Composing Application:

What a took away from the Poe writing was know where you are going to go and write backwards.

Conversely, in Carter's essay she says O'Connor writes just the opposite.  She starts out with a line or sentence and has no idea where it is going.

The biggest impact Carter's essay has left on me and will immediately affect my 4351 CW poetry class is, the idea of tension.  I have a list of things that I have to include in every poem; language, concrete details, establish setting early on, diction, meter, end with a strong image, show me what is happening don't tell me etc... but now to the list I will add tension.  Tension is huge in a part of all life.  Sometimes it is a perpetually inner tension of your success as an individual with life, or if you are smart or beautiful or skinny enough or loved.  These simple thoughts all come with tension to old and young, but the real tension is how these ideas are being worked out in your head, sometimes in your guts.  Life is all about simple basic things when writing to people. All can respond to the statement, "God is holy".  Some may say "There is no God", some may say "Amen", some may say, "Which God" whatever they may believe there is a thought preceded with tension.  This is a touchy subject to a lot of people.  It is simple and straight forward.  

The other singular impact this essay had on me is the affirmation of my perspective being unique and if I can compose that artistically it can be a well written piece. 

Assignment-3

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Freshmen Artifacts

Artifact # 1- Mentor Tech
Texas Tech University offers a program called MentorTech. The artifact is designed to help only freshmen become acquainted with Texas Tech and Lubbock. It provides freshmen with a mentor to help them navigate over "barriers" in Lubbock and on Campus. Mentor Tech's website incorporated video, personal stories and music which made it appealing. The website was easy to navigate, user friendly and involved only two clicks to get to the information needed.

• It is designed to give a brief overview of the program and start the process of becoming a protege with an application/fact sheet that is quick and easy to fill out. The application for a protegee is very specific and asks many questions in an effort to find the right mentor for each freshmen.
• I discovered the artifact after typing freshmen helps on the Texas Tech homepage
• I think the artifact did its job. It conveys the message to freshmen that there is a support network available to help them and by the specificity of the 'protegee fact sheet' shows that they understand the diversity in students and their desire for a mentor with similar qualities.
• For the average freshmen I don't think this is very important. It seems like a big brother big sister program with the mentors helping them personally with college life and tips to succeed at college. It seems like this would only reach students that are overwhelmed with a university and have not had much guidance for academic success. But for those students I give it a 8 and for the average freshmen I give it a 3.

Artifact #2--First Year Raider Experience or FYRE

• This artifact for freshmen can be found at the Center For Campus Life's website, First Year Experience.
• The artifact attempts to simply be a map for students who are looking for their resources. The website only offers links to other websites as well as letting freshmen know about the freshmen camps before the semester begins.
• It does accomplish its objective, it is limited in scope seems to be more focused on the camps for freshmen prior to coming to Tech.
• There are many ways to improve this artifact. For example it offers for drop boxes with these metaphorical names like changing lanes and then only gives you about fifteen links to click on. It does not tell you what changing lanes encompasses or what links you will find under this drop box. It is this non-specific for all the drop boxes which are the only actual resources on this website. I did not entertain the websites because they just gave me links to like admissions, the rec etc... It also offered 20 things a red raider should do. These twenty things encouraged them more along the lines of school spirit and pride.
• I give this artifact a 4 of importance only because the camps are probably a good resource for the freshmen and it helps them get signed up.

Artifact #3--Is11oo website

• I found this artifact on the advising centers website. It was found on the their homepage under the link 'Your first two years'. The Is1oo0 link was easy to find only because I knew what it was from previous exposure.
• The Is 11oo website attempts to encourage freshmen to take the small course by relaying statistics that show success by other students who have taken the class. The homepage is easy to use and appealing both positive qualities needed to hold a freshman's attention. It also serves as a resource for the course and gives links to finding critical things needed for basic survival at Tech like; e-raider, webct, it help and library information. These sites are visited daily by Tech students. I really think it is good that it does not go into the discourse on being a good red raider, 'Raider Power'.
• The site accomplishes it's goal it lets freshman know about the class and how it helps success. It is thorough and some freshmen may be turned off by it but I think it is better to have to much information rather than not enough.
• I think it could be improved by more practical statistics that freshman are interested in, i.e. money after college. Give some facts about how much college grads with G.P.A's of 3.5 make compared to grads with a 2.1. I would like to see our list of Freshman Killers also as a source on this website as well as others. The name alone is captivating and makes me want to look at it to see what it is entails.
• I give this site an 8 it is very helpful, user friendly but I'm not sure of how knowledgeable freshman are about it and its where-abouts.

Artifact #4--First Time Freshmen

• I found this link on the admissions website. http://www.admissions.ttu.edu/
• The website serves as a informational guideline for administrative needs. The t's and i's that need to be crossed and dotted after being accepted at Tech. There is a link that takes the students to a Freshmen Checklist with direct them quickly and easily fulfill the requirements needed. It also suggests the Raider Camp for them and links them to that site.
• The artifact could be enhanced by linking them to mentor tech, Is 11oo, PEGASUS and other like minded programs for the freshmen.
• The artiact accomplishes what it is sets out to do. It is dealing with administrative issues and covers those only.
• I give it an 6 for lack of awareness. This is the one artifact that is poised to reach the widest range of freshmen and fails to do so by not meeting any other needs they might have. It woul be good for our website Freshmen Killers to be linked to this. Our website, http://www.freshman killers.ttu.edu/ will have all this and the other links as well as our enhancements that we discover in the class.

• Artifact#5 under construction
  

Intrinsic vs. Extrinsic Organization

Developing intrinsic organization after laying the foundation of extrinsic I think could be revolutionary in education. Beginning the class focusing on the concept and then taking the foundation and seeing how and where it when we give them a problem to solve or ask them to solve a problem with the information/education just presented. The cool thing is going to be all the different problems and solutions that are going to arise based on the sheer definition of intrinsic: belonging to the basic nature of someone or something. Which means potentially you could have five different problems and solutions like 4360 because the information reaches people at different levels because of demographics. The problems and solutions could have a wide scope because we are all coming from a different place. This lends itself to the idea that we could solve more problems.
You will never be able to take the concepts out of the classroom but focusing education on problems and not fact only needs could begin the process of using our education and not wasting it.
Which brings me to my last point. If you do research on a problem that you have learned about via the concept in the classroom. You not only are going to retain more of the information but you are going to begin writing your own thesis/dissertation and become a little expert on the initial concept. This idea teaches critical thinking, problem solving and most importantly understanding moves us away from memorization. This also makes the classroom fun, challenging and personal so you would gain more students time and attention thus better educating our youth. Huge!

We Can

We can, if I we can't lets quit.
My preferred Team, "Taking Advantage of Being at Tech". I have many ideas and thoughts concerning this topic/concept from: getting an education vs a degree, to the value of an education, which conflates largely into the the ability/opportunity of a college education in comparison to youth in our country that want to college and to youth in other countries that literally die trying to get into our country. I think we would be amiss not to address this possible rhetorical tool to communicate the gift of college before these freshman and try to tear down this idea of entitlement.
In light of this last comment I already have a group of South African students preparing answers to a survey focussed on this topic in hopes to juxtapose this idea of complacency/entitlement of freshmen at Tech with a group of students that are thirsty, dying and dreaming of the opportunity to be a freshmen at any college or university. I am forming the survey now and will love input and suggestions on it.
I realize my scope is limited all suggestions and thoughts are welcome.
Please advise. Thanks.