Creative Writing

I am looking back at some of my favorite courses I had designed and taught throughout the years. Perhaps they will be helpful templates for a few current teachers. Here is the first one:

CREATIVE WRITING (1989-2009)

Instructor/Course Designer: Glen Brown

Course Description:

If you have begun to express your experiences and imagination in writing, if you have a passion for reading and an appreciation for the written and spoken word, if you have a desire to record what you have thought and lived -- this class is for you.  Through a combination of workshops, discussion, and exercises, we will explore the process of writing poetry, short fiction, and dramatic scripts and provide you with both active readers and thoughtful responses to your work with an emphasis on the development of critical skills that are useful for revising and editing your writing.  (Note: This course may be used to fulfill ½ credit of the graduation requirement for creative arts.)  

Creative Writing Standards:

Standard I: Reading

Students will learn to read short stories, poetry, drama, and exposition with comprehension and fluency using a variety of reading strategies.

1.1 Use prior knowledge and experience to understand poetry, short fiction, drama, and exposition

1.2 Read and understand the use of poetical, fictional, and dramatic elements

1.3 Understand story structure

1.4 Understand how literary elements (e.g. character, point of view, setting, tone, conflict, symbolism, metaphor, irony, plot, theme…) are used in literature to create meaning

Standard II: Writing

Students will employ a range of strategies to communicate with clarity of thought, focus, language, and syntax for varying purposes and audiences. Moreover, students will use writing as a tool for reflection, creative expression, and discovery of personal voice.

2.1 Demonstrate through writing the techniques and strategies a writer uses to communicate meaning and interest to the reader, i.e., sensory appealing imagery (Show and don’t tell!), metaphor, and surprise

2.2 Demonstrate through writing an understanding of plot, conflict development, characterization, setting, point of view, and theme

2.3 Demonstrate through writing the use of dialogue, foreshadowing, flashback, irony, and figures of speech

2.4 Develop a sense of writing style using voice, tone, perspective, and the various elements of creative writing

2.5 Write sentences with precise and appropriate words, distinguish between literal and figurative language, and avoid jargon and cliché

2.6 Proofread writing for errors and omissions of both formal substance; revise and restructure where ideas are poorly organized or where evidence is lacking; and correct for errors in syntax, usage, mechanics, and style

2.7 Demonstrate ability to pre-write, draft, proof, peer-edit, and revise a piece of writing

2.8 Demonstrate an understanding of both form and technique through application of descriptive, narrative, poetic, and dramatic writing

2.9 Emulate the writing of professional poets and fiction writers for the purpose of understanding a variety of techniques such as voice, style, and tone

Standard III: Presenting, Listening and Developing Media Literacy

Students will communicate effectively for varying audiences and purposes using spoken and visual language. Moreover, students will listen, view, and respond respectfully to other perspectives.

3.1 Listen to, participate in, and produce effective small and large group workshop discussions

3.2 Demonstrate the ability to discuss competently one’s own writing and the writing of others

3.3 Gather necessary information and plan, organize, and deliver a poetical presentation

Standard IV: Aesthetics

Students will explore the arts to build an understanding of self and culture.

4.1 Develop an understanding and enjoyment of literature

4.2 Respond thoughtfully to poetry, short fiction, drama, and exposition

4.3 Understand the aesthetic qualities found in a variety of writing genres

4.4 Perform plays and improvisations in class

4.5 Perform dramatic readings of short fiction and poetry in class

Major Projects:

Major assignments include the writing of nine poems for the accelerated level and six poems for the preparatory level, one short story for accelerated and one character sketch for preparatory, one non-fiction piece for both levels, and one one-act play with at least three scenes for accelerated and one one-act play with at least one scene for the preparatory level.  (All plays will be performed in class.)  You are encouraged to write more poems than assigned so you can have a better selection to choose from for your final quarter grade.  You will choose five/three poems for your poetry portfolio assessment, depending upon level.  Note: any late poem has to be chosen for this assessment and will receive no better than a C for a grade!  This will affect your overall portfolio grade.  Turn your poems in on time!  A journal is also required 2^nd quarter.

Other assignments include choosing one poet from the list of core instructional resources and reading three poems to the class from one of his or her published works.  This is the only textbook you need to purchase for this class: a poet of your choice.  You can purchase your book at places like Barnes & Noble or Borders.  Our bookstore will not have any books to purchase.

In this class there will also be evaluations and critiques of writing under discussion, quizzes, journal writing, writing exercises, improvised acting and interpretation of one-act plays.  To receive a final grade for this class, all major assignments (even if they were graded “F” for being late) must be handed in: nine/six poems, one short story/character sketch, one one-act play, one non-fiction piece, and one free-choice assignment.  Failure to do so will result in a semester grade of “F.” 

Homework Policy:

All assignments must be typed.  Any assignment may be revised throughout each grading period.  Save all drafts and final copies of your work for portfolio evaluation each quarter.  Late assignments must be chosen for evaluation in your portfolio.  You will not receive course credit if you are missing an assignment!

If you are absent the day an assignment is due, you still need to hand it in that day.  Your choices are to e-mail me or drop it off at the main office via a friend, relative, or roadrunner; or you may send it through the U.S. mail so it will be postmarked that day.  Always be aware of your due dates!  Don't procrastinate.  The "printer-computer-break-down" (formerly the-dog-ate-my-homework) excuse might be legitimate, but it will not be accepted.  You know the major due dates well in advance, so do not procrastinate!  Your grade is lowered one full grade each day the assignment is late with a minimum/maximum of 50% credit.

Note: Any writing containing unnecessary obscenity or lewd allusions will be graded “F.” Also, your writing should not be so personal that it warrants an adult’s intervention – topics dealing with alcohol, drugs, suicide, abuse, etc.  If you have a real problem, please seek appropriate help.

Core Instructional Resources:

The following is a partial list of poets. Please choose from this list of poets when purchasing your book for this class. (See Recommended Books for Purchase for more information)

Randy Blasing, Neal Bowers, Gwendolyn Brooks, Charles Bukowski, Michael Collier, Billy Collins, Robert Cording, John Dickson, Gregory Djanikian, Stephen Dobyns, Edward Dorn, Jack Driscoll, Stephen Dunn, Paul Eluard, B.H. Fairchild, Lawrence Ferlinghetti, Lucia Getsi, Allen Ginsberg, William Greenway, Bruce Guernsey, Tony Hoagland, Richard Jackson, Jane Kenyon, Galway Kinnell, Philip Larkin, D.H. Lawrence, Denise Levertov, Philip Levine, Lisel Mueller, Howard Nemerov, Sharon Olds, Steve Orlen, Linda Pastan, Sylvia Plath, Jacques Prevert, Helen Reed, Adrienne Rich, Arthur Rimbaud, Len Roberts, Paulette Roeske, Theodore Roethke, Peter Schmidt, Jon Silkin, Jeffrey Skinner, William Stafford, Mark Strand, Quincy Troupe, Paul Valery, Fred Voss, Bruce Weigl, William Carlos Williams, Jeff Worley, James Wright, Dean Young...

(All short fiction, non-fiction, dramatic scripts, and essays will be given to you for your perusal.)

Course Methods:

We will have large group discussion workshops, individual conferences, in-class and out-of-class writing and reading assignments.  A typical class period may entail discussing a topic (poems/stories/plays) for the day, a writing lesson or exercise, continued work in progress, revising old work or starting something new.  Any piece of writing can be totally factual, totally made-up, or anywhere in between.  It is nobody’s business what it is, unless it warrants intervention as previously indicated.

Plagiarism: 

Borrowing facts, ideas, images, or language from others without crediting the source is plagiarism.  It is your responsibility to read, understand, and adhere to the Plagiarism and Cheating Policy.  Most of your writing assignments will be submitted to turnitin.com.

Conferences:

You are responsible for your own education and intellectual development.  If you do not understand what is being discussed in class, set up a conference with me.  

Creative Writing 1st Semester:

Poetry Due Dates:

Fri. 8-29                            “The Wild Flower Man” or “Birthday” Lu Yu/Dunn

Fri. 9-5                              “Loves” Emulation – Dunn

Fri. 9-12                             Twenty Poetry Projects – Simmerman*

Thurs. 9-18                       “Innocence” Emulation – Dunn

Wed. 9-24                          “Sweet Shop” Emulation – Dickson*

Mon. 9-29                          First Time Memory

Fri. 10-3                             Childhood Memory*

Wed. 10-8                           Sections Emulation – Pastan/Mueller

                                            Emulation of poet or poem is due on presentation date.

 

Wed. 10-15                         Poetry Portfolio Due

                                                *not required for prep credit

Every student must purchase a poetry book from the recommended list by Tuesday, September 2^nd. There is a 1% penalty for each day that you do not have your book.  Student presentations will begin Monday, September 15^th.

Portfolio Assessment:

Accel students will choose five poems for their final portfolio evaluation; prep students will choose three poems for their final portfolio evaluation.  Because these choices are not limited to the required assignments, students are encouraged to write as many poems as possible beyond the required exercises and include them in the portfolio.

A one-act Play is due for performance Monday, October 27^th.

3-5 scenes for accelerated credit

1-2 scenes for preparatory credit

A Short Story for workshop is due Monday, November 17^th.

A Non-Fiction piece for workshop is due Monday, December 8^th.

One Free-Choice assignment (poem, story, play, or non-fiction piece) for workshop is due Monday, January 5^th.

These assignment dates may also be subject to change at the teacher’s discretion.

In the past, grades have been distributed as follows but may be subject to change:

1^st Quarter:                                                        2^nd Quarter:

Poems = 70%                                                     Play = 20%

Short Story = 20%

Quizzes = 10%                                                  Non-Fiction = 20%

Poet Presentation = 20%                                   Choice = 20%                                                    

                                                                           Journal = 10%

                                                                           Workshop Participation = 10%

A Few Recommended Poetry Books for Purchase:

Neal Bowers: Night Vision

Michael Collier: The Ledge 

Michael Collier: The Folded Heart
Michael Collier: The Clasp and Other Poems
Michael Collier: The Neighbor

Billy Collins: Sailing Alone Around the Room

Billy Collins: The Apple That Astonished Paris

Billy Collins: Questions About Angels

Billy Collins: The Art of Drowning

Billy Collins: Picnic, Lightning 

Billy Collins: Nine Horses
Billy Collins: The Trouble with Poetry
Billy Collins: Ballistics
John Dickson: Victoria Hotel

John Dickson: Waving at Trains 

John Dickson: Lake Michigan Scrolls
John Dickson: The Music of Solid Objects
Gregory Djanikian: The Man in the Middle

Gregory Djanikian: Falling Deeply into America

Gregory Djanikian: About Distance
Gregory Djanikian: Years Later
Gregory Djanikian: So I Will Till the Ground

Stephen Dobyns: Velocities

Stephen Dunn: Different Hours

Stephen Dunn: New & Selected Poems 
Stephen Dunn: Not Dancing
Stephen Dunn: Work and Love
Stephen Dunn: A Circus of Needs
Stephen Dunn: Full of Lust and Good Usage

Stephen Dunn: Local Time 

Stephen Dunn: Between Angels 

Stephen Dunn: Landscape at the End of the Century 

Stephen Dunn: Riffs & Reciprocities 

Stephen Dunn: Loosestrife
Stephen Dunn: Local Visitations
Stephen Dunn: The Insistence of Beauty
Stephen Dunn: Everything Else in the World
Stephen Dunn: What Goes On
Eloise Bradley Fink: Girl in the Empty Nightgown

Lucia Cordell Getsi: Intensive Care

Tony Hoagland: Donkey Gospel

Jane Kenyon: Otherwise
Galway Kinnell: Selected Poems
Philip Larkin: The Whitsun Weddings
Philip Larkin: High Windows
Philip Larkin: The North Ship

Philip Levine: Selected Poems

Lisel Mueller: Alive Together

Sharon Olds: The Dead and the Living

Linda Pastan: Carnival Evening

Sylvia Plath: Selected Poems

Len Roberts: The Silent Singer
Len Roberts: From the Dark
Len Roberts: Sweet Ones
Len Roberts: The Disappearing Trick

Paulette Roeske:  Divine Attention
Jon Silkin: New and Selected Poems

Jeffrey Skinner: A Guide to Forgetting
Gary Soto: New and Selected Poems

Mark Strand: Selected Poems

Bruce Weigl: What Saves Us

"Adjuncts should be the recipients of a greater proportion of university resources, with benefits, salaries, and respect that reflect the value of the work they do"-Sophie Culpepper

“American universities have become notorious for their price tags. In the last 20 years, private university costs have increased by 157 percent, while public universities have seen an even greater rise of 194 percent, bringing the national tuition average in the 2017-18 academic year to $26,010 for out-of-state public tuition and $41,727 for private universities (US News notes these figures are not adjusted for inflation, but emphasizes that the pace of growth of tuition and fees ‘are significantly outpacing inflation’).

“Such exorbitant figures do not even account for the majority of a university’s budget, but they still beg the question: how do universities spend their profits? The answer varies, but significant proportions are devoted to administration, admissions, and new buildings and sports facilities. In fact, in 2014, less than one-third of institutions’ budgets were dedicated to paying teachers. Now, an increasing systematic reliance on part-time, contingent-worker ‘adjunct’ professors is proving detrimental to the quality of education for students, not to mention the quality of life for these faculty members.

“Adjunct is a term encompassing a variety of university teaching roles below the rank and pay of full professors. Adjuncts have temporary contracts, renewed on a contingent basis. They constitute an ever-increasing proportion of faculty teaching students in higher education in an emerging modern trend. In 1969, nearly 80 percent of college-faculty positions were tenure-track (non-adjuncts). Today, the statistics have more than flipped, with more than three in four professors now non-tenure track. Adjuncts form 68.7 percent of the faculty at community colleges, 26.7 percent at public research universities and 40.2 percent at private (nonprofit) research universities.

“In 2015 62 percent of 467 adjuncts responding to a survey reported earning less the $20,000 per year. That is compared to an average salary for full-time professors of more than four times that. More than 60 percent of adjuncts hold a second job (48 percent held one other job and 17 percent two or more other jobs in 2009), which perhaps relates to the fact that their regular income keeps nearly a third of adjuncts at or below the poverty line; a second job can be viewed as the first distraction presented from devoting full attention to teaching students.

“Magnifying and adding to financial insecurity is an irregular teaching schedule, subject to last-minute changes-or outright cancellations. Adjunct professors can have their classes canceled as late as the day before they are scheduled to start, for reasons which may include the university’s whim or a lack of demand. The uncertainty involved with being an adjunct can even have repercussions for student learning; when student evaluations play a role in determining whether an adjunct will leave or stay, in many cases an adjunct is incentivized to challenge students less or grade more generously to avoid harsh evaluations. Adjuncts must walk the tightrope between avoiding offense to their students and the university in what they say in class and write in published work, teaching under twin pressures of job insecurity that can translate to curtailment of their academic freedom.

“Many anecdotes accompany these statistics. Some adjuncts sleep in their cars to save money, especially in areas where real estate is unaffordable—such as Silicon Valley. Conversely, adjunct Tanya Paperny commutes without a car, resulting in 13-hour days. Some universities limited the number of hours their adjuncts could work in order to avoid having to provide health insurance under the Affordable Care Act. D.C. In fact, this year, Robert Ryan of the University of South Florida died of cancer, and without employer-sponsored health insurance, despite having taught at the university for 20 years.

“Adjuncts need to be better paid, and to have better health care and job security benefits. In NLRB v. Yeshiva University, the US Supreme Court ruled in 1980 that given their ‘managerial’ status, tenure-track professors at private institutions cannot unionize. This does not apply to adjuncts, which itself indicates an acknowledgment of the gulf of status and job quality between professors and adjuncts. Unionizing has helped adjuncts, resulting in annual pay increases ranging from five to 20 percent, according to the executive director of the American Association of University Professors Julie Schmid.

“Adjuncts have been able to mobilize through the Service Employee International Union, the American Federation of Teachers, and even the United Autoworkers Union, which represents a variety of white-collar workers. Another group, the New Faculty Majority, has collaborated with unions as well as the Department of Labor in efforts to rectify concerns including hour and wage violations caused by universities stepping around the Affordable Care Act. President Maria Maisto looks to legislative reform as one of the most effective potential pathways to improving the lot of adjuncts. Republican control of Congress, however, creates obstacles to the kind of pro-labor reform she is interested in.

“The Atlantic compared Uber and FedEx delivery drivers to adjunct professors in terms of the contingent nature of their work. Contingent workers across the board tend to have lower job satisfaction, lower pay per hour, and fewer benefits. They are most vulnerable to the latter two because of the room for them to be categorized as 1099 independent contractors rather than full W2 employees. Adjuncts, who might teach one course at six different colleges, can and do fall through the cracks for benefits; the difference is they are categorized and taxed as employees (not independent contractors), yet lack the benefits of full employees.

“This classification was challenged in the U.S. Tax Court in 2011, in WILLIAM EDWARD SCHRAMM AND STELLA LOGAN SHERROUSE v. COMMISSIONER OF INTERNAL REVENUE, but the case upheld adjuncts’ classification as full employees. If adjuncts were 1099 independent contractors, they would have to pay self-employment taxes on what they earned as adjuncts; so the court based its argument on the responsibility and actions of the university in regulating the classes taught by adjuncts as conflicting with any narrative of adjuncts as self-employed, citing ‘that the school determined the class schedule, managed registration of students, provided the web interface for the class, and bore all risk of profit and loss, along with the fact that the courses taught were part of the school’s primary business.’

“While labor regulators were able to press for Uber and FedEx drivers in California to be reclassified from independent contractors to employees instead, perhaps the best way to help adjuncts would be to pass legislation specifying and protecting specific adjunct professor benefits-or strengthening unions’ abilities to negotiate those benefits. Ideally, this would take place on a national level, for consistency, but promising examples of legislation in this spirit do already exist at the state level.

“In 2016, also in California, Assembly Bill 1690 passed to support unions in entering negotiations with universities on behalf of adjuncts, and guaranteed adjuncts at community colleges with six semesters of acceptable reviews a workload equal to that held in their sixth semester, creating one possible precedent for a way to improve economic stability and quality of life for adjuncts, benefitting their students as well.

“In order to pay adjunct professors more and give them better benefits, universities would have to spend a greater proportion of their funds on teaching. Right now, the investment of funds in amenities by universities are different instances of the same phenomenon; investments give them an edge in advertising themselves to student ‘consumers.’

“If universities are driven to spend more on buildings and sports equipment than their professors to attract students, this represents a fundamental distortion of the ethos of institutions of higher education. One way to recognize the importance of employment of professors as a marker of quality in education could be to have the number of adjuncts a university employs become a significant figure in the calculation of university rankings—which would make sense in any case, because the quality of education evidently is affected by the number of adjuncts.

“Though this would not help the majority of adjuncts in dire financial straits at community colleges and less prestigious schools, it could contribute to a key shift in mentality and a valuable increase in awareness, especially among students, of the situation of adjuncts.  

“There is another potential source to draw on for teaching funds. Between 1993 and 2009 the sheer number of university administrators increased by 60 percent, and median salaries for college presidents increased by seven percent between the 2013 and 2014 fiscal years, reaching $428,000. Both of these trends reflect another way in which higher education is being detrimentally forced into a capitalist, business-style mold; when boards of trustees at universities are dominated by businessmen, there is an expectation of a salary paralleling that of a business executive for top administrators. Why not dedicate a proportion of the swollen salaries of administrators to adjuncts?

“Adjunct positions may create flexibility for universities, and even for professors themselves with interest in only teaching one time, but the contemporary disproportionate reliance on them is damaging to the majority of that labor force, and to their students as well;  when larger numbers of students are taking classes with adjuncts or an institution employs many adjuncts, graduation rates are lower, according to the University of Southern California’s Delphi Project. 

“Adjuncts should be the recipients of a greater proportion of university resources, with benefits, salaries, and respect that reflect the value of the work they do. Economic recognition of this value would not only enhance adjuncts’ quality of life across the board, but the quality of universities themselves, and of the education for which undergraduates pay so very high a price.”

Money Well-Spent: Boost Pay for Adjuncts, Forget Glitzy Stadiums by Sophie Culpepper

For 61 articles about this injustice, click here.

Senator Jeff Flake on Donald Trump's Assault on Truth and Democracy

“Mr. President, near the beginning of the document that made us free, our Declaration of Independence, Thomas Jefferson wrote: ‘We hold these truths to be self-evident...’

“So, from our very beginnings, our freedom has been predicated on truth. The founders were visionary in this regard, understanding well that good faith and shared facts between the governed and the government would be the very basis of this ongoing idea of America.

“As the distinguished former member of this body, Daniel Patrick Moynihan of New York, famously said: ‘everyone is entitled to his own opinion, but not to his own facts.’

“During the past year, I am alarmed to say that Senator Moynihan’s proposition has likely been tested more severely than at any time in our history.

“It is for that reason that I rise today, to talk about the truth, and its relationship to democracy. For without truth, and a principled fidelity to truth and to shared facts, Mr. President, our democracy will not last.

“2017 was a year which saw the truth – objective, empirical, evidence-based truth -- more battered and abused than any other in the history of our country, at the hands of the most powerful figure in our government.

“It was a year which saw the White House enshrine ‘alternative facts’ into the American lexicon, as justification for what used to be known simply as good old-fashioned falsehoods.

“It was the year in which an unrelenting daily assault on the constitutionally-protected free press was launched by that same White House, an assault that is as unprecedented as it is unwarranted. ‘The enemy of the people,’ was what the president of the United States called the free press in 2017.

“Mr. President, it is a testament to the condition of our democracy that our own president uses words infamously spoken by Josef Stalin to describe his enemies. It bears noting that so fraught with malice was the phrase ‘enemy of the people,’ that even Nikita Khrushchev forbade its use, telling the Soviet Communist Party that the phrase had been introduced by Stalin for the purpose of ‘annihilating such individuals’ who disagreed with the supreme leader.

“This alone should be a source of great shame for us in this body, especially for those of us in the president’s party. For they are shameful, repulsive statements. And, of course, the president has it precisely backward – despotism is the enemy of the people. The free press is the despot’s enemy, which makes the free press the guardian of democracy. When a figure in power reflexively calls any press that doesn’t suit him ‘fake news,’ it is that person who should be the figure of suspicion, not the press.

“I dare say that anyone who has the privilege and awesome responsibility to serve in this chamber knows that these reflexive slurs of ‘fake news’ are dubious, at best. Those of us who travel overseas, especially to war zones and other troubled areas around the globe, encounter members of U.S. based media who risk their lives, and sometimes lose their lives, reporting on the truth. To dismiss their work as fake news is an affront to their commitment and their sacrifice.

“According to the International Federation of Journalists, 80 journalists were killed in 2017, and a new report from the Committee to Protect Journalists documents that the number of journalists imprisoned around the world has reached 262, which is a new record. This total includes 21 reporters who are being held on ‘false news’ charges.

“Mr. President, so powerful is the presidency that the damage done by the sustained attack on the truth will not be confined to the president’s time in office. Here in America, we do not pay obeisance to the powerful – in fact, we question the powerful most ardently – to do so is our birthright and a requirement of our citizenship -- and so, we know well that no matter how powerful, no president will ever have dominion over objective reality.

“No politician will ever get to tell us what the truth is and is not. And anyone who presumes to try to attack or manipulate the truth to his own purposes should be made to realize the mistake and be held to account. That is our job here. And that is just as Madison, Hamilton, and Jay would have it.

“Of course, a major difference between politicians and the free press is that the press usually corrects itself when it gets something wrong. Politicians don’t. No longer can we compound attacks on truth with our silent acquiescence. No longer can we turn a blind eye or a deaf ear to these assaults on our institutions.

“And Mr. President, an American president who cannot take criticism – who must constantly deflect and distort and distract – who must find someone else to blame -- is charting a very dangerous path. And a Congress that fails to act as a check on the president adds to the danger.

“Now, we are told via twitter that today the president intends to announce his choice for the ‘most corrupt and dishonest’ media awards. It begs belief that an American president would engage in such a spectacle. But here we are.

“And so, 2018 must be the year in which the truth takes a stand against power that would weaken it. In this effort, the choice is quite simple. And in this effort, the truth needs as many allies as possible. Together, my colleagues, we are powerful. Together, we have it within us to turn back these attacks, right these wrongs, repair this damage, restore reverence for our institutions, and prevent further moral vandalism.

“Together, united in the purpose to do our jobs under the Constitution, without regard to party or party loyalty, let us resolve to be allies of the truth -- and not partners in its destruction.

“It is not my purpose here to inventory all of the official untruths of the past year. But a brief survey is in order. Some untruths are trivial – such as the bizarre contention regarding the crowd size at last year’s inaugural.

“But many untruths are not at all trivial – such as the seminal untruth of the president’s political career - the oft-repeated conspiracy about the birthplace of President Obama.

“Also not trivial are the equally pernicious fantasies about rigged elections and massive voter fraud, which are as destructive as they are inaccurate – to the effort to undermine confidence in the federal courts, federal law enforcement, the intelligence community and the free press, to perhaps the most vexing untruth of all – the supposed ‘hoax’ at the heart of special counsel Robert Mueller’s Russia investigation.

“To be very clear, to call the Russia matter a ‘hoax’ – as the president has many times – is a falsehood. We know that the attacks orchestrated by the Russian government during the election were real and constitute a grave threat to both American sovereignty and to our national security. It is in the interest of every American to get to the bottom of this matter, wherever the investigation leads.

“Ignoring or denying the truth about hostile Russian intentions toward the United States leaves us vulnerable to further attacks. We are told by our intelligence agencies that those attacks are ongoing, yet it has recently been reported that there has not been a single cabinet-level meeting regarding Russian interference and how to defend America against these attacks. Not one.

“What might seem like a casual and routine untruth – so casual and routine that it has by now become the white noise of Washington - is in fact a serious lapse in the defense of our country.

“Mr. President, let us be clear. The impulses underlying the dissemination of such untruths are not benign. They have the effect of eroding trust in our vital institutions and conditioning the public to no longer trust them. The destructive effect of this kind of behavior on our democracy cannot be overstated.

“Mr. President, every word that a president utters projects American values around the world. The values of free expression and a reverence for the free press have been our global hallmark, for it is our ability to freely air the truth that keeps our government honest and keeps a people free. Between the mighty and the modest, truth is the great leveler. And so, respect for freedom of the press has always been one of our most important exports.

“But a recent report published in our free press should raise an alarm. Reading from the story: ‘In February…Syrian President Bashar Assad brushed off an Amnesty International report that some 13,000 people had been killed at one of his military prisons by saying, you can forge anything these days, we are living in a fake news era.’

“In the Philippines, President Rodrigo Duterte has complained of being ‘demonized’ by ‘fake news.’ Last month, the report continues, with our President, quote ‘laughing by his side’ Duterte called reporters ‘spies.’

“In July, Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro complained to the Russian propaganda outlet, that the world media had ‘spread lots of false versions, lots of lies’ about his country, adding, ‘This is what we call fake news today, isn't it?’

“There are more: A state official in Myanmar recently said, ‘There is no such thing as Rohingya. It is fake news,’ referring to the persecuted ethnic group. Leaders in Singapore, a country known for restricting free speech, have promised ‘fake news’ legislation in the new year.’

“And on and on. This feedback loop is disgraceful, Mr. President. Not only has the past year seen an American president borrow despotic language to refer to the free press, but it seems he has in turn inspired dictators and authoritarians with his own language. This is reprehensible.

“We are not in a ‘fake news’ era, as Bashar Assad says. We are, rather, in an era in which the authoritarian impulse is reasserting itself, to challenge free people and free societies, everywhere.

“In our own country, from the trivial to the truly dangerous, it is the range and regularity of the untruths we see that should be cause for profound alarm, and spur to action. Add to that the by-now predictable habit of calling true things false, and false things true, and we have a recipe for disaster. As George Orwell warned, ‘The further a society drifts from the truth, the more it will hate those who speak it.’

“Any of us who have spent time in public life have endured news coverage we felt was jaded or unfair. But in our positions, to employ even idle threats to use laws or regulations to stifle criticism is corrosive to our democratic institutions.

“Simply put: it is the press’s obligation to uncover the truth about power. It is the people’s right to criticize their government. And it is our job to take it.

“What is the goal of laying siege to the truth? President John F. Kennedy, in a stirring speech on the 20th anniversary of the Voice of America, was eloquent in answer to that question: ‘We are not afraid to entrust the American people with unpleasant facts, foreign ideas, alien philosophies, and competitive values. For a nation that is afraid to let its people judge the truth and falsehood in an open market is a nation that is afraid of its people.’

“Mr. President, the question of why the truth is now under such assault may well be for historians to determine. But for those who cherish American constitutional democracy, what matters is the effect on America and her people and her standing in an increasingly unstable world -- made all the more unstable by these very fabrications. What matters is the daily disassembling of our democratic institutions.

“We are a mature democracy – it is well past time that we stop excusing or ignoring – or worse, endorsing -- these attacks on the truth. For if we compromise the truth for the sake of our politics, we are lost.

“I sincerely thank my colleagues for their indulgence today. I will close by borrowing the words of an early adherent to my faith that I find has special resonance at this moment. His name was John Jacques, and as a young missionary in England he contemplated the question: ‘What is truth?’

“His search was expressed in poetry and ultimately in a hymn that I grew up with, titled ‘Oh Say, What is Truth.’ It ends as follows: ‘Then say, what is truth? 'Tis the last and the first/ For the limits of time it steps o'er/ Tho the heavens depart and the earth's fountains burst/ Truth, the sum of existence, will weather the worst/ Eternal… unchanged… evermore.’

“Thank you, Mr. President. I yield the floor.”

This speech was printed by Politico.

“Students learn more effectively from textbooks than from online screens” by Patricia A. Alexander and Lauren M. Singer

“...We conducted three studies that explored college students' ability to comprehend information on paper and from screens.

“Students first rated their medium preferences. After reading two passages, one online and one in print, these students then completed three tasks: Describe the main idea of the texts, list key points covered in the readings and provide any other relevant content they could recall. When they were done, we asked them to judge their comprehension performance.

“Across the studies, the texts differed in length, and we collected varying data (e.g., reading time). Nonetheless, some key findings emerged that shed new light on the differences between reading printed and digital content:

·         Students overwhelming preferred to read digitally.

·         Reading was significantly faster online than in print.

·         Students judged their comprehension as better online than in print.

·         Paradoxically, overall comprehension was better for print versus digital reading.

·         The medium didn't matter for general questions (like understanding the main idea of the text).

·         But when it came to specific questions, comprehension was significantly better when participants read printed texts.

“Placing print in perspective: From these findings, there are some lessons that can be conveyed to policymakers, teachers, parents and students about print's place in an increasingly digital world.

“Consider the purpose: We all read for many reasons. Sometimes we're looking for an answer to a very specific question. Other times, we want to browse a newspaper for today's headlines. As we're about to pick up an article or text in a printed or digital format, we should keep in mind why we're reading. There's likely to be a difference in which medium works best for which purpose. In other words, there's no ‘one medium fits all’ approach.

“Analyze the task: One of the most consistent findings from our research is that, for some tasks, medium doesn't seem to matter. If all students are being asked to do is to understand and remember the big idea or gist of what they're reading, there's no benefit in selecting one medium over another. But when the reading assignment demands more engagement or deeper comprehension, students may be better off reading print. Teachers could make students aware that their ability to comprehend the assignment may be influenced by the medium they choose. This awareness could lessen the discrepancy we witnessed in students' judgments of their performance vis-à-vis how they actually performed.

“Slow it down: In our third experiment, we were able to create meaningful profiles of college students based on the way they read and comprehended from printed and digital texts. Among those profiles, we found a select group of undergraduates who actually comprehended better when they moved from print to digital. What distinguished this atypical group was that they actually read slower when the text was on the computer than when it was in a book. In other words, they didn't take the ease of engaging with the digital text for granted. Using this select group as a model, students could possibly be taught or directed to fight the tendency to glide through online texts.

“Something that can't be measured: There may be economic and environmental reasons to go paperless. But there's clearly something important that would be lost with print's demise. In our academic lives, we have books and articles that we regularly return to. The dog-eared pages of these treasured readings contain lines of text etched with questions or reflections. It's difficult to imagine a similar level of engagement with a digital text. There should probably always be a place for print in students' academic lives – no matter how technologically savvy they become.

“Of course, we realize that the march toward online reading will continue unabated. And we don't want to downplay the many conveniences of online texts, which include breadth and speed of access. Rather, our goal is simply to remind today's digital natives – and those who shape their educational experiences – that there are significant costs and consequences to discounting the printed word's value for learning and academic development.”

A new study shows that students learn way more effectively from print textbooks than screens by Patricia A. Alexander and Lauren M. Singer

There is nothing quite like reading a good book. I am sharing just two of my many bookcases in my home: