L. Shedletsky               -1-               Using Journals




          GUIDELINES FOR USING JOURNALS(1)
         







        I.  What is a journal?




             A place to practice personal  writing;  a place to work

             out  ideas  and  concepts  discussed  in  class  or  in

             assigned  readings;   an  individual   record  of  your

             experiences during a class; speculations;  observations

             outside of class; thinking out loud.


        II. What should I write?




                   *personal reactions to class, teacher


                   *informal jottings, notes, clippings


                   *explorations of ideas, theories, concepts,

                    problems, discussion topics


                   *reactions to readings, TV, events, people


                   *whatever you want to explore or remember

       


                   *specific journal assignments made in class or

                    given as homework




                   *an evaluation of each week's classes reviewing

                    what you learned(or did not learn), problem

                    areas, etc.




        III. When should I write?




                   *three or more times a week


                   *any time; early in the morning, and late at

                    night


                   *when you have problems to solve, decisions

                    to make, confusions to clarify


                   *when you need to practice or try something out




        IV. How should I write?




                   *however you feel like it


                   *don't worry about formal language conventions,

                    including spelling, punctuation and grammar

                   *take risks


                   *freely




        V.  Specific requirements



                   *For COM 265 ONLINE it would be convenient to write
		    
                    on your computer so you can easily hand in the journal; 
		    
                    paper will work if you hand that in at the end of the
		    
                    semester 


                   *Date each entry (include the time at which you

                    are writing)


                   *Write long entries as often as possible

                    to help develop ideas fully


                   *Make lots of entries


                   *Use a pen (pencils smear)


                   *(OPTIONAL)Index at the end of the term; include page

                    numbers and table of contents for

                    significant entries


                   *You may want to include exercises; however, you may
                    
                    include your reactions to classes and class discussion



        VI. Grading




              In keeping with the generally open ended nature of the

              journal--its openness to  speculation and creativity--

              I cannot  put a  precise quantity  requirement on  the

              journal.  But I will skim the journals and get a  feel

              for the nature of the  entries and the seriousness  of

              the effort.   With  some help from you,   all journals

              ought to receive full credit.    Insight is really the

              most impressive feature the journal can hold.    Write

              for yourself, enjoy the journal,  and use it  to learn

              and the grade will be superlative.
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        (1) This handout borrows heavily from Brodsky, D., and
            Meagher, E.  (1987). Journals and Political Science.  In
            T. Fulwiler (Ed.), The journal book     Portsmouth, NH: Boynton/Cook,
             pp.375-386).