Study Skills (Kullmann/Klaus/Logemann)

I would like to join Devin Zuber in recommending you to have a look at Peter Schneck’s blog where you will find advice on how to sharpen your thesis statements for your final papers. Remember that it is arguable, focused, original, provocative, thrilling… theses that are wanted! But don’t worry, you will eventually get there And if you struggle… there is always office hours and the option of e-mailing me!

A happy New Year to all bloggers and welcome back to our study skills blog where we will hopefully continue to find thought-provoking and inspiring ideas to be used in our subsequent sessions.

Remember the “Code of Ethics” we talked about today in connection to our session on newspapers and investigative journalism? We discussed the issue of “accountability” and the newspapers’ duty to invite dialogue with the public over journalistic conduct. This blog is your personal “letter to the editor”-section as it gives you the opportunity to voice your grievances, to add comments and suggestions…  Use it!

Wishing you all a merry Christmas. Have a lovely holiday and the happiest of new years!

Hello,

this just came in and might be relevant for you:

“Am Mittwoch den 10. Dezember 2008 wird eine Informationsveranstaltung über OPIuM für Studierende angeboten. Es wird eine kurze Schulung über den Umgang mit dem System und seinen wichtigsten Funktionen, z.B. Prüfungsanmeldung, Ergebniseinsicht, Statistiken, stattfinden.

Teilnehmen können Studierende aller Fachrichtungen, in deren Studiengängen die Online-Anmeldung mit OPIuM eingeführt ist oder wird. Eine Anmeldung ist nicht notwendig.

Veranstaltungszeit: Mi 10.12.2008 von 14 Uhr s.t. bis 14:30 Uhr
Veranstaltungsort: Raum 01/E01-E02 (Verfügungszentrum Kolpingstrasse)”

Christmas is just around the corner.
That’s why our Language Department will have a Christmas Party on Wednesday, the 17th of December. You are all very welcome to come along. It will take place in the Stadtgalerie Café (Große Gildewardt; in the old part of town, near the Lagerhalle). Starting time will be 5 p.m.
Whoever wants to enjoy a merry evening with fellow students, lecturers, professors, secretaries, … sign up with Anke Bonadonna in our English office (41/120) until the 3rd of December. Costs will be 6 Euro per student.
And: We will do a secret Santa (which you might rather know as “Wichteln”). BUT: It’s crap stuff and unwanted gifts that will be exchanged (”Schrottwichteln”)! Scratchy, pink-brown-yellow, knitted polyester jumpers from Auntie Mabel? Embroidered handkerchiefs? Perfect
So, please wrap up your awful presents and bring them along when registering in the office (we collect them in advance to make sure we will have enough).

We hope to see many of you there!

Hello bloggers,

you all did a really good job this morning reciting and presenting your poems. I hope this session succeeded in dispelling the cloud of anxiety. By now, each group got its personal, detailed feedback via e-mail. 

As you know there will be no tasks for this week but feel free to make use of our discussion forum. It gives you the opportunity to post comments concerned with our last sessions or with Michael Meyer’s “Narrative” (which is to be read for the next session).

As if poetry was removed from the here and now: Emma Lazarus, Barack Obama and America’s beacon…

Today we’ve analysed Emma Lazarus’s poem “The New Colossus” and tackled the images of the “beacon” and the “golden door”. It seems as if Barack Obama and his speechwriters had a look at the very same poem before completing last week’s victory speech… Have a look at this extract:

“And to all those who have wondered if America’s beacon still burns as bright – tonight we proved once more that the true strength of our nation comes not from the might of our arms or the scale of our wealth, but from the enduring power of our ideals: democracy, liberty, opportunity and unyielding hope.” (Barack Obama, Victory Speech, Chicago, 4^th November 2008)

… sounds familiar?!?

By the way, as you know there are no tasks for this week as you will be busy preparing your poem analyses and your little recitations and presentations. However, you are kindly invited to use the newly created “Discussion Forum” to exchange ideas and thoughts on our last sessions. Get the ball rolling there!

The presidential race is over – and the winner is: Barack Obama!

For all those of you interested in his victory speech. Here is the full speech on BBC News:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/us_elections_2008/7710079.stm

Hello everybody,

this study skills blog offers the opportunity to knit loose ends of our class discussions, to apply knowledge gained in class, and to do some further research in order to prepare following sessions.

Each set of tasks is obligatory only for the assigned group of students. However, everyone else is very welcome to contribute to the blog as well.

There are two possibilities for you to use this blog: Either you simply write comments without being registered, or you register with the people who manage this University blog system. If you want to register, go to the following page:

http://www.blogs.uni-osnabrueck.de/ and fill in your stud.ip user name and password.

You are then officially registered, and you can build your own blog. Once your registration was successful, send a short note my way (annklaus@uos.de).

Once I get your note, I can add you to the user list for this blog. You will be able not only to write comments (you can do this without being registered), but as a user you can open new discussions by writing posts, you can edit and manage your posts, and you can post files as well for others to read and use.

However, you don’t necessarily have to manage a blog on your own to respond to the tasks on this study skills blog.

For now: Get into it and enjoy!!