A drawing, entitled "The Sphinx" by 14 year- old Honorata Gajda completed in 1997, in Oslo, Norway.
Permission graciously granted by Honorata and her parents to use the drawning in this site.

SYLLABUS

MATERIALS FOR YOUNG ADULTS

Professor Kay E. Vandergrift

17:610:548

3 Credits

COURSE DESCRIPTION

Evaluation and selection of materials based upon the biological, socio-cultural, psychological and developmental characteristics of young adults; guidance in the use of these materials, emphasizing gender-fair and multicultural resources and the attitudes, interests, problems, and opportunities of young adults in contemporary society.

PRE- AND/OR CO-REQUISITES

None

COMPETENCIES ADDRESSED

At the conclusion of the course it is expected that students will be able to:

·         Describe the historical development, current trends, and enduring characteristics of young adult literature. [Note: The term "literature" is used broadly to refer to works in all media.]

·         Identify current reading, viewing, and listening interests of young adults and incorporate these findings into collection development and program planning.

·         Apply factual and interpretive information on adolescent psychology, growth and development, sociology, and popular culture in planning for materials and services for young adults.

·         Recognize literary elements in story and apply critical judgments to selected literature.

·         Use Reader-Response, Feminist and other literary theories in work with young adult literature

·         Interpret current research on young adult reading, information needs, and library usage and apply it to selecting materials for young adults.

·         Devise and publicize pathfinders, book lists, powerpoints, displays, etc., which will facilitate access to collections and motivate use.

·         Develop a materials collection plan for young adults which includes all appropriate formats, using a broad range of selection sources.

·         Select and use appropriate tools in collection building and user guidance; analyze and criticize the usefulness of the tools in terms of coverage, cost, and special features.

·         Develop a plan for a variety of information services (e.g., information referral, crisis intervention counseling, etc.) to meet the diverse needs of young adults.

It is further expected that students will acquire the following skills--

ORGANIZATION OF THE COURSE

The following topics will be emphasized throughout this course. A detailed schedule will be distributed in class and is available in the Habitat File Cabinet.

NATURE OF THE COURSE/RESOURCES FOR THE COURSE

You are expected to become familiar with a wide variety of resources about  media for young people. Many of these resources are contained within eCompanion, the electronic learning environment that supports this course by organizing most of the required materials in one place for ease of access and use. In order to enter this electronic course space, you are pre-registered in Rutgersonline [http://www.rutgersonline.net], using your email account available to us. Once you are registered, the course(s) in which you are enrolled will appear when you log into Rutgersonline. There are a number of places within your course space that contain resources essential for your work. Please be aware that this course is a living and growing entity; new resources may be added during the semester, and you will need to visit eCompanion on a regular basis

This is an extremely resource-rich course. As graduate professional students with many different work and life experiences related to youth literature, you are expected to scan the materials collected here and select those that are most appropriate for your own professional growth. There is a limit on the number of pages you may print from the SCILS computer labs, so you will need to make such decisions wisely. In fact, many of these resources are brief and meant to be pursued online. Any materials all students are expected to read will be identified and /or distributed in class.

As busy professionals, time management and quick, yet appropriate, decision-making is our stock in trade. We all must develop strategies to locate, evaluate, and select appropriate resources to do our work, using some of the same skills required to build library/media center collections for young people. In this instance, I have pre-selected many of the resources for you, but that does not preclude the need to seek out situation-specific resources that meet your own needs.

The nature of the resources included here varies greatly. They range from scholarly articles and websites that demand concentrated reading and thought to examples of “best practices” to brief bibliographies that simply alert you to materials available at a particular moment in time. The intent is to assure that you are aware of this range and of some of the key sources for professional materials that you will return to for current resources throughout your careers. As you locate additional resources you wish to share with colleagues in this class, you may load them to the Webliography or Document Sharing segments of eCompanion.

MAJOR ASSIGNMENTS

Note Regarding Assignments: Professionals rarely work in isolation. You are encouraged to discuss work in progress with each other, with colleagues in the field, and with the professor.

Required of All Students

·         Active and committed participation in class. This means coming to class prepared to discuss the assigned topics or titles, asking questions, sharing responses, and challenging the ideas presented in the readings and by the professor or classmates. (Remember you are challenging the ideas presented, not the individual offering them.)

·         Journal: You are expected to read many young adult books, graphic novels and magazines and view motion pictures, videos, CDs, computer games, websites, and television programs popular with young adults. Professional materials, including selection tools, should also be included in your reading. You would be wise to maintain a personal record of items read or viewed that might be useful to you in your work with YAs. You are required to make at least one substantive entry in the eCompanion Journal each week to comment on the week's topic, your readings, and/or to raise questions. This is a private communication with Professor Vandergrift and allows you to comment on things you do not have the opportunity to raise during class sessions.

·         Interview of a Young Adult: Prepare an "informal interview schedule" and talk with a young adult (ages 12-18) about his/her reading and viewing behaviors and preferences. If possible, discuss a particular book with that young adult. [Further instructions will be available in eCompanion.]

·         Author Project: Select an author of significance in young adult literature. Submit your author to me for approval. How would you assess the overall contributions of this author to the field of YA literature?  Has s/he contributed to more than one literary genre or type?  What are the similarities and differences among the various works? Identify your author's literary works for this audience and categorize them, if possible or necessary. Select three to five major works and use these books as exemplars in your discussion of her/his work. Consider what we have read and discussed about literary elements, genres, and literary theory and criticism in your discussion.

·         PowerPoint Presentation: Select a very specific topic from within the broad categories of Health, Body Image, and Human Sexuality. Consider how young adults might relate to the topic you have selected. What might they already know? What might they be interested in knowing? What do you think they need to know? How can they acquire this information? Identify your audience [Either YAs or parents, teachers, librarians] and prepare a PowerPoint that presents key points and references related to this topic. Avoid the "gimmick pitfalls" in PowerPoint. Concentrate on clarity in typeface and an innovative background template. Don't overcrowd your slides or use animation for its own sake. In other words, don't let the presentation overpower the content. (Among the sites that might assist you for this project are http://www.puberty101.com/ and http://education.indiana.edu/cas/adol/risk.html)

·         Write a critical analysis of two adult coming-of-age novels, either male or female, that might be read by young adults. Consider professional books and articles on human development, adolescent psychology, and the coming-of-age process in your analysis. Remember that, historically, such resources have been based on white, male, European models. More recently, feminist scholars have presented alternative models of human experience; and now there are new theories of contemporary male development in response to the popularization of those female voices. Consider also what you have read about literary theory and criticism and specific works about young adult literature. It is also important to consider various multicultural and other contexual influences on the coming-of-age of the characters you examine.

Thus, the paper will focus on the coming-of-age of the characters in the books you have chosen, comparing and contrasting their development with what you have read in the professional materials. You are expected to demonstrate your knowledge of the novels, of literary criticism, and of developmental psychological, and sociological theories as they pertain to these novels.

METHODS OF ASSESSMENT

Grades will be determined on the following basis:

Policy on Academic Integrity Summary

By Rutgers University

“Academic freedom is a fundamental right in any institution of higher learning. Honesty and integrity are necessary preconditions to this freedom. Academic integrity requires that all academic work be wholly the product of an identified individual or individuals. Joint efforts are legitimate only when the assistance of others is explicitly acknowledged. Ethical conduct is the obligation of every member of the university community and breaches of academic integrity constitute serious offenses” (Academic Integrity Policy, p. 1).

The principles of academic integrity entail simple standards of honesty and truth. Each member of the university has a responsibility to uphold the standards of the community and to take action when others violate them.

Faculty members have an obligation to educate students to the standards of academic integrity and to report violations of these standards to the appropriate deans.

Students are responsible for knowing what the standards are and for adhering to them. Students should also bring any violations of which they are aware to the attention of their instructors.

Violations of Academic Integrity

Any involvement with cheating, the fabrication or invention of information used in an academic exercise, plagiarism, facilitating academic dishonesty, or denying others access to information or material may result in disciplinary action being taken at either the college or university level. Breaches of academic integrity can result in serious consequences ranging from reprimand to expulsion.

Violations of academic integrity are classified into four categories based on the level of seriousness of the behaviors. Brief descriptions are provided below. This is a general description and is not to be considered as all-inclusive.

Level One Violations

These violations may occur because of ignorance or inexperience on the part of the person(s) committing the violation and ordinarily involve a very minor portion of the course work. These violations are considered on academic merit and not as disciplinary offenses.

Examples: Improper footnoting or unauthorized assistance on academic work.

Recommended Sanctions: Makeup assignment.

Level Two Violations

Level two violations involve incidents of a more serious nature and affect a more significant aspect or portion of the course.

Examples: Quoting directly or paraphrasing without proper acknowledgement on a moderate portion of the assignment; failure to acknowledge all sources of information and contributors who helped with an assignment.

Recommended Sanctions: Probation, a failing grade on the assignment, or a failing grade in the course.

Level Three Violations

Level three offenses involve dishonesty on a significant portion of course work, such as a major paper, hourly, or final examination. Violations that are premeditated or involve repeat offenses of level one or level two are considered level three violations.

Examples: Copying from or giving others assistance on an hourly or final examination, plagiarizing major portions of an assignment, using forbidden material on an hourly or final, using a purchased term paper, presenting the work of another as one’s own, altering a graded examination for the purposes of re-grading.

Recommended Sanctions: Suspension from the university of one or more terms, with a notation of "academic disciplinary suspension" placed on a student's transcript for the period of suspension, and a failing grade in the course.

Level Four Violations

Level four violations are the most serious breaches of academic integrity. They include repeat offenses of level three violations.

Examples: Forgery of grade change forms, theft of examinations, having a substitute take an examination, dishonesty relating to senior thesis, master’s thesis, or doctoral dissertation, sabotaging another’s work, the violation of the ethical code of a profession, or all infractions committed after return from suspension for a previous violation.

Recommended Sanctions: Expulsion from the university and a permanent notation on the student’s transcript.

Faculty who believe that violations have occurred should immediately contact the Office of the Dean. Students who suspect that other students are involved in actions of academic dishonesty should speak to the instructor of the course. Questions on reporting procedures may be directed to the Office of the Dean.

 

 

 

SCILS, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey