Course Reflections

READINGS:
Theoretical readings: were there enough? in the right order? did they go into enough depth? what would you like to read more about? anything you need to leave out?

I personally found the first reading by Hayles to be exhausting. Later in the term, it made much more sense, but the concept was rather abstract to be initially grappling with on my own. I really had no idea what I would be learning about in the class even after trying to read through her discussion. In the future, you should toy with the idea of going through this reading as a class and implementing it with your own ideas. This probably would have helped to clarify and strengthen Hayles's classifications.

Examples of genres: were there enough? in the right order? would would you like to read more of? anything you'd leave out?

I think you used the texts in a very effective manner. We went through a variety of genres-- ones that you chose and others that we chose when giving our presentations. The variety was definitely accomplished, but the most important aspect was being able to conceptualize navigation as part of the text's understanding. This was strongly established regardless of the specific genres with which we dealt.

As far as order, I think it helps to start by navigating a hypertext or flash poem. These are the genres that I have come to recognize as closest to those which students expect to see when dealing with literature. It's more effective to allow for familiarity when teaching a concept that would otherwise seem too foreign to comprehend. We started off by reading "Blue Hyacinth" and "Twelve Blue" (and if I recall correctly we went through "Faith" in class early in the semester.) After the discussions of these pieces, I finally started to "get" what we were doing in the class. This was also the first time that I was genuinely interested in electronic literature.

COURSE BLOG:
Useful? Anything you'd add? Anything you'd ditch?

Your blog had a lot of useful and relevant information. Off-hand, the most helpful elements were that it contained easy access to the course materials (the syllabus, grading criteria, our "textbook," etc.), it summed up our efforts in class (giving students the ability to look back for further clarity or catch up if they'd missed a class), and containted any information we would need concerning assignments for the next class (the texts we should be looking at, blogs we should be posting, dates for future assignments, etc.).

I personally didn't find the specific text interpretation links to be entirely necessary. I found that the fun in the class was that we were learning something entirely new, and I wanted to see if I could reach an understanding on my own. Some students might prefer more direction in this kind of scenario, but I honestly didn't click a single one. :P

ASSIGNMENTS:
Project 1, Project2, Project 3 => Clear criteria? Appropriate criteria (did they move you deeper into your understanding of & facility creating electronic literary texts)?

It was obvious that you planned out the criteria very carefully for the projects. The assignment sheets are very specific. As electronic literature was a new topic for us, it was very important that the terminology in the criteria had been previously established and defined for our specific purposes in the class (for example, the idea of "navigating" a text vs. reading a text).

Need more, shorter assignments? Fewer longer assignments?

Most of the students were able to reasonably accomodate the demands of the three projects. I liked the idea of structure in the first two (hypertext and flash) and more freedom in the third. This gave us a clear backbone for understanding as well as the choice to explore a new dimension. I would leave the assignments as are.

Was feedback/support useful during + after the composing process?

You were definitely very supportive throughout the semester, both in the creation of our own texts and formulation of ideas about various texts we encountered. It was helpful to talk about our ideas for own texts and get feedback and advice from you and the students in the class.

The only thing I would incorporate more thoroughly is a means of acquiring other forms of software to give students more choices when completing their texts. Googlesites and powerpoint worked for our purposes, but I would have liked to have learned more about some other software. Of course this presents an issue of funding, but if there are other free and accessible mediums, they would be useful to students.

Blogs: What were the blogs good for? What were they NOT good for? Would you keep blogs as a feature of the course and why? Anything you'd change

The blog was relevant as the course is heavily focused on the effect of technology in creating and recrafting literature. It would seem superficial to write papers for this class, but the blog allowed for just the right amount of focus. I admit I did not post a blog for every suggestion made in yours, but even browsing through others' blogs helped me think things through more efficiently and with a broader scope for interpretation.

I would keep the blog; it gives students a sense of ownership over their ideas. This is very helpful in establishing confidence in a subject matter that is new to them. The blogs also required structured brainstorming, without which I don't think the pieces we composed would have made as much sense (considering the importance of the work's structure in creating meaning.)

I would change the blog suggestions to allow for more independent thinking and exploring in addition to the kinds of topics you've already chosen. For example, maybe a blog entry once a month focusing on new struggles and successes one has reached. This kind of entry would help students' brainstorming when thinking of topic ideas and would function as your indicator of what is clear up to that point and what may require further discussion.

Review: How did this assignment contribute to your understanding of electronic literature? How did it contribute to your understanding of how to WRITE electronic literature? Would you keep this assignment – and why or why not? Anything you'd change?

The review was a fun assignment. I liked crafting my own meaning out of small details not usually associated with literature. As I was given the responsibility of attributing these minute details, I gave more thought to some of the kinds of things I could do when creating texts.

I would definitely keep the assignment up to the point that it does not interfere with time allotted students to create their own works. It worked in our class because there were only 9 students, and only a few class periods were needed to facilitate our discussions. If the class size grows substantially in the future, I would either ask students to present in groups, or abandon it altogether. While it certainly added to my dissection and creation of texts, I believe I would have been able to get to that point without giving a review. This is the only piece of the course I would suggest even possibly removing.

WHAT YOU LEARNED
How did this course affect your understanding of literature?

As an English major, I have experienced courses that both discredit and glorify the literary canon. Electronic literature, as a genre or a class, strongly challenges the pre-formed literary hierarchy.

Throughout the course, we have established that literature is very much associated with power. We have also established that literature can be either read or navigated. If we are responsible for navigating a text, we share some of the author's power. Here, the meaning of the text is derived from the navigator's response as much as it is from the author's writing, structure and effects.

What did you learn about electronic literature?

I learned various genres of and strategies for navigating electronic literature. I also learned that the way the reader creates meaning is as important as the implied meaning itself. The genre was initially incompatible with my previously-formed expectations, but I learned to consider elements which had never before been relevant (analying movement in print literature for example).

What did you learn about writing electronic literature?

I learned that the concept or feeling of the text is more pertinent than having any sort of linear plot. A writer can sometimes convey a meaning more accurately when freeing him/herself from plot restrictions. I also discovered how to create new levels of interpretation by using effects such as movement, color, fade, size, font, images, etc.

How did this course expand your proficiency with software? hardware?

I never used Googlesites before, but I used to have a geocities page when I was about 13 or 14. Sadly, geocities has since been deactivated. If I'm recalling with any sense of accuracy, I believe the sites were set up very similarly. Even without the previous experience, I feel I'd have had very little difficulty creating my hypertexts. Googlesites is very simple to use when creating an interlinked website.

I also had prior experience with powerpoint, but I definitely gained some knowledge on this software. I typically use the program to make clickable presentations for classes. I knew about the addition of effects, but I was really shocked at the level of manipulation I could accomplish using it.

Clearly composing electronic texts differs from writing print texts; how did this course affect your composing process?

Other than the previously-mentioned avoidance of plot reliance, I feel it has strengthened my abilities to manipulate my writing and deliberately explore the double meanings I present in my writing.

What kind of students would you recommend this class to (or not)?

The class certainly deviates from what one would expect in a typical literature course, but I don't think this means only specific kinds of students should take it. Anyone with a deep enough appreciation for literature should also recognize the hierarchy of power surrounding it and be open to new ways of viewing and creating it.






Well, here you have it-- my longest blog post of the semester. Phew! Hope it helps.

HAVE A NICE SUMMER EVERYONE!!!! =)
-Lisa