Rieman, Sponsors of Literacy, spring 2011 (MW)

Due Dates:

Draft due for peer workshop: February 2

Revised Draft due via Moodle: February 7

Multilodal Art show: February 9

Sponsors of Literacy Assignment

Sponsors of Literacy definition: “any agents, local or distant, concrete or abstract, who enable, support,
teach, model, as well as recruit, regulate, suppress, or withhold literacy—and gain advantage by it in
some way” (Brandt 407).

We have read and talked about Deborah Brandt’s “Sponsors of Literacy” essay, Malcolm X’s “Learning
to Read,” and Sherman Alexie’s “The Joy of Reading and Writing: Superman and Me.” We also read
Heath’s Protean Shapes in Literacy Events.” These four pieces explore how individuals gain access to
specific types of literacies. We have been writing and talking about these ideas, so now you can start to
put all of your ideas together into a richer and more comprehensive piece of writing. Once you do that,
you’ll translate what you wrote about into a multimodal piece and share it with the class (more about this
after you’ve written your paper).

Examine your own literacy history, thinking about it in the kinds of categories that Brandt proposes in
her essay—in your early education, access to books and computers, parental support etc. Think about how
you are currently defining literacies and how you interpret Brandt’s definition of sponsors. “Then
consider who your primary literacy sponsors were (people, as well as institutions like churches or clubs or
school systems) and what literacies they taught you (academic, civic, religious etc.). Would you consider
the access provided by these sponsors adequate? What literacies have you not had access to that you wish
you had?” (Brandt 427). You may gain greater understanding of your own literacy history by talking
with other about theirs or thinking about yours in relationship to what you have heard others say.

Please remember to follow MLA format and to come up with a descriptive title for your essay
(something more gripping and personal than “Sponsors of Literacy”).

Also, with each paper you write, you will include a self-assessment. Once your draft is complete, take
some time to reflect on the work that you have done. Think about how you got to this point—from early
brainstorming to peer workshop to this revision. What do you think about your paper? What are its
strengths and weaknesses? What would you have spent more time on if you’d had it? Put this self-
assessment at the beginning of your paper in italics. (see the “Formatting papers for this class” handout
on Moodle)

An important note about revisions: whenever you go into a draft to revise, please start it in a new
document, keeping a copy of the previous draft. You want to have a record of process/development for
your work to include in your portfolio.

Works Cited

Brandt, Deborah. “Sponsors of Literacy.” Writing about Writing: A College Reader. Eds. Wardle and Downs.
Boston: Bedford, 2011. 406-26. Print.