English 9 Honors and English 11; Assignment for 8/12/11

Here is your task today.

First, click the link to the article “How Bad Is It?” by John Cassidy from this week’s New Yorker.

Then, draft an email in which y ou will respond to the text that you read. You will need to title your email exactly this way: Lastname, Firstname; English 9 or 11; Response to Cassidy 8/12/11. Send it to Mr. Vaughan at spanishatlhs@gmail.com before class ends today.

Answer the following questions in the text of the email, allowing no less than a paragraph (5-7 sentences) per question. Do not attach a .doc or .docx file to your email. Make sure your asnwers are numbered correctly and that everything is as grammatically perfect as you can make it.

1. Summarize, in 10 words or less, Cassidy’s article.

2. Cassidy insinuates that there are many inadequate theories in politics today about the economy and how to fix it. What are some of those theories, and why does he think they are inadequate?

3. What is the political bias that Cassidy shows throughout the article? How could you tell? Is that bias a helpful aspect to his text? Why or why not?

4. What, according to Cassidy, needs to happen to fix the jobs problem plaguing the American economy these days?

5. In your opinion, is the economy “that bad”?

6. How does the jobs/economic crisis affect you personally? (If you do not wish to discuss your personal life, then elborate on that question from the perspective of someone you know, or perhaps describe its effects on Lexington.)

Spanish 1, Fall 2011; Assignment for 8/12/11

Okay…

So we have had a ton of Spanish over the past few days (which is, of course, fitting–given that this is a Spanish class)! I thought it would be nice to pause and reflect a little on a subject that is near and dear to everyone’s heart: learning Mandarin Chinese.

Now hear me out.

This really does have to do with this class. Or so says Newsweek‘s Jerry Guo, in an article published a few months ago. His argument is, well…you will see for yourself.

Here is your assignment:

First, read this article from Newseek that has to do with globalization, monolingualism, and American education. Then, open an email (not a .docx) and respond to the following writing prompts. Title your email this way: Writing Assignment on 8/12/11, YOUR NAME (Block  2 or 4).

1. Summarize, in 10 words or less, Guo’s article.

2. Enumerate three examples (at least sentence each) of how and why globalization impacts you directly.

3. Describe the comparison Guo drew between Spanish and Mandarin. What are some advantages to learning either language?

4. What are two concrete methods by which American education can address the problem of monolingualism?

5. Guo talks about the lack of a “culture of teaching language” in our primary (elementary) schools. Why do you think that is? Is it a good thing or a bad thing? Why?

6. The No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act that Guo discusses did not, admittedly, help foreign language education. But it did favor other subjects and academic disciplines. What were those subjects, and why do you think NCLB favored them?

Email these to Mr. Vaughan (spanishatlhs@gmail.com) by the end of class today.