Your essay shows how the term "cultural literacy" has morphed into "multicultural literacy": good inclusion of the reference to the book on multicultural literacy--which was published only one year after Hirsch's first book on cultural literacy. (I think your reference to the year of publication as a reason for Hirsch's exclusionary ideas is too generous: I was there, reading his book when it was first published for courses in my PhD program: he was clearly out of step with the literacy research of that era.) You clearly lay out the basic ideas that Hirsch proposed and you also explain the criticisms of those ideas. Since we had never discussed any of this in class, your topic was particularly challenging to write in the first weeks of the semester. Your prose style is clear and accessible. Your expertise as a write or academic prose makes it a pleasure for me to read your writing. Grade: A+
Your essay shows how the term "cultural literacy" has morphed into "multicultural literacy": good inclusion of the reference to the book on multicultural literacy--which was published only one year after Hirsch's first book on cultural literacy. (I think your reference to the year of publication as a reason for Hirsch's exclusionary ideas is too generous: I was there, reading his book when it was first published for courses in my PhD program: he was clearly out of step with the literacy research of that era.) You clearly lay out the basic ideas that Hirsch proposed and you also explain the criticisms of those ideas. Since we had never discussed any of this in class, your topic was particularly challenging to write in the first weeks of the semester.
ReplyDeleteYour prose style is clear and accessible. Your expertise as a write or academic prose makes it a pleasure for me to read your writing.
Grade: A+