sub-discipline books
This assignment provides you with an opportunity to deepen you anthropological understanding of human evolution, ethnography, archaeology, or linguistics. These are all fascinating books that can transform your understanding of the world. The objective of this activity is to develop your critical thinking and communication (written) skills.
My Freshman Year: What a Professor Learned by Becoming a Student
By Rebekah Nathan Penguin Books, Reprint Edition (2006) ISBN: 978-0143037477 |
The Story of the Human Body: Evolution, Health, and Disease
By Daniel Lieberman Vintage, Reprint Edition ISBN: 978-0307741806 |
Wisdom Sits in Places: Landscape and Language among the Western Apache
By Keith H. Basso University of New Mexico Press ISBN: 978-0826317247 |
In Search of the Old Ones: Exploring the Anasazi World of the Southwest
By David Roberts Simon and Schuster, 1997 ISBN: 978-0684832128 |
Please select one of the the books above. Pick the one you think will be of most interest to you. To help you learn, remember, and enhance your critical thinking skills, please answer the following question for the book you selected. Please number your answers following the questions below.
1. The main purpose of the book is ________________.
[State as accurately as possible the author's purpose for writing the book. In other words, what motivated him/her to write it, what did he/she hope to accomplish? A strong answer will require several sentences.]
2. The research question that the author is addressing is, _________________.
[Identify the key question in the mind of the author when s/he wrote the book. Authors usually write about issues they are interested in answering or understanding themselves. State the author's research question in the form of a question. A strong answer will be a single sentence stated as a question.]
3. Please list and describe the anthropological methods the author uses to answer the research question.
[Methods are specific and more than just a restatement of what the book is about. A strong answer will list the specific methods discussed in our textbook and during class and be followed by a sentence or two describing how the method was employed in the book.]
4. Please identify and describe two "things" from each chapter that you learned and want to remember.
A strong answer will:
5. The main results (conclusions) of the book are __________________.
[A strong answer may be provided in several sentences to a paragraph.]
6. If we accept the authors results/conclusions, what are some implications for our understanding of humanity or yourself?
[In other words, what difference does this information make in your understanding? How does the argument/information change or contribute to your understanding? A strong answer will require several sentences to a paragraph.]
7. Answer the questions associated with the book you chose:
[A strong answers will require a paragraph per question.]
My Freshman Year
a. Do you think it was ethical for the ethnographer to live among students without telling them what she was doing? Why/why not?
b. Do you think an ethnographer living in a dorm at UTA would make similar observations? What would be different/the same?
The Story of the Human Body: Evolution, Health, and Disease
a. Did your understanding of human evolution change after reading this book? Why/how?
b. Based on what you learned in the book, what specific behaviors would you like to adopt to improve yourself and your world?
Wisdom Sits in Places
a. How does this book influence your understanding of the Western Apache and indigenous peoples of North America?
b. What role does landscape play in the lives of the Western Apache?
In Search of the Old Ones
a. What is your opinion of Blackburn's "Outdoor Museum"?
b. Roberts is very focused throughout the book on the late 13th century abandonment of the northern Southwest and so are many archaeologists. Why do you think there so much interest in the abandonment?
8. Please give me your opinion of the book and rate it from 1 (lowest) to 10 (highest).
[A strong answer will require several sentences.]
************
Late submissions: This assignment may be turned in late. See the point deduction policy here.
Submitting Your Assignment. You may submit your assignment any day/time before the day and time it is due. Upload it to Blackboard in Microsoft Word or pdf format. If you have problems uploading your assignment, you may email it to me before the day/time it is due. All Signature Assignments count toward your grade; none are dropped.
Grading Rubric.
20 points: All questions answered. All answers are specific, thorough, and accurate. Minimal to no grammatical errors. Excellent work! Exceeds expectations.
18 points: All questions answered. All answers are specific, thorough, and accurate. Minimal to no grammatical errors. Very good work!
16 points: All questions answered. Most answers are specific, thorough, and accurate. Minimal to no grammatical errors.
14 points: All questions answered. Answer quality is uneven. Some obvious grammatical errors.
12 points: Some questions answered. Answer quality is uneven. Many obvious grammatical errors.
10 – 0 points: Some questions answered. Answer quality is uneven and mostly poor. Many obvious grammatical errors.
1. The main purpose of the book is ________________.
[State as accurately as possible the author's purpose for writing the book. In other words, what motivated him/her to write it, what did he/she hope to accomplish? A strong answer will require several sentences.]
2. The research question that the author is addressing is, _________________.
[Identify the key question in the mind of the author when s/he wrote the book. Authors usually write about issues they are interested in answering or understanding themselves. State the author's research question in the form of a question. A strong answer will be a single sentence stated as a question.]
3. Please list and describe the anthropological methods the author uses to answer the research question.
[Methods are specific and more than just a restatement of what the book is about. A strong answer will list the specific methods discussed in our textbook and during class and be followed by a sentence or two describing how the method was employed in the book.]
4. Please identify and describe two "things" from each chapter that you learned and want to remember.
A strong answer will:
- Summarize in your own words these things you learned. One sentence summaries are an inadequate demonstration of the depth of your learning. React (in writing) to what you are learning with several sentences to a short paragraph per insight/'thing".
- This effort will be as valuable as you are willing to make it. Text such as "The author explained what evolution tells us about sex, diet, and how we live" are inadequate because this is a description of what a book is about and not documentation of what you learned. Likewise, "I learned about how Freshmen interact with international students" is not an adequate demonstration of the depth of your learning.
- You're not describing what the book is about, you're capturing your growing understanding of yourself and humanity.
- Documenting relatively specific facts without stating the larger significance for your learning is not worth your time (e.g., "Lactase is an enzyme that is used to digest milk.").
- Please separate what you learned by chapter and number each new insight.
5. The main results (conclusions) of the book are __________________.
[A strong answer may be provided in several sentences to a paragraph.]
6. If we accept the authors results/conclusions, what are some implications for our understanding of humanity or yourself?
[In other words, what difference does this information make in your understanding? How does the argument/information change or contribute to your understanding? A strong answer will require several sentences to a paragraph.]
7. Answer the questions associated with the book you chose:
[A strong answers will require a paragraph per question.]
My Freshman Year
a. Do you think it was ethical for the ethnographer to live among students without telling them what she was doing? Why/why not?
b. Do you think an ethnographer living in a dorm at UTA would make similar observations? What would be different/the same?
The Story of the Human Body: Evolution, Health, and Disease
a. Did your understanding of human evolution change after reading this book? Why/how?
b. Based on what you learned in the book, what specific behaviors would you like to adopt to improve yourself and your world?
Wisdom Sits in Places
a. How does this book influence your understanding of the Western Apache and indigenous peoples of North America?
b. What role does landscape play in the lives of the Western Apache?
In Search of the Old Ones
a. What is your opinion of Blackburn's "Outdoor Museum"?
b. Roberts is very focused throughout the book on the late 13th century abandonment of the northern Southwest and so are many archaeologists. Why do you think there so much interest in the abandonment?
8. Please give me your opinion of the book and rate it from 1 (lowest) to 10 (highest).
[A strong answer will require several sentences.]
************
Late submissions: This assignment may be turned in late. See the point deduction policy here.
Submitting Your Assignment. You may submit your assignment any day/time before the day and time it is due. Upload it to Blackboard in Microsoft Word or pdf format. If you have problems uploading your assignment, you may email it to me before the day/time it is due. All Signature Assignments count toward your grade; none are dropped.
Grading Rubric.
20 points: All questions answered. All answers are specific, thorough, and accurate. Minimal to no grammatical errors. Excellent work! Exceeds expectations.
18 points: All questions answered. All answers are specific, thorough, and accurate. Minimal to no grammatical errors. Very good work!
16 points: All questions answered. Most answers are specific, thorough, and accurate. Minimal to no grammatical errors.
14 points: All questions answered. Answer quality is uneven. Some obvious grammatical errors.
12 points: Some questions answered. Answer quality is uneven. Many obvious grammatical errors.
10 – 0 points: Some questions answered. Answer quality is uneven and mostly poor. Many obvious grammatical errors.
Feedback: Given the number of assignments I will grade and the need to grade them in a timely manner, I regret that I will not be able to provide individual comments on your assignment. Comments, if any, will be available by selecting the "View Rubric" link in Blackboard under "My Grades." If you would like to receive my feedback on your answers, please come to my office hours and I will be happy to discuss your assignment.