CB R O U R Z DA EN RD SO

Dr. Jennifer Darrell TTh, 12:30-1:45

jenniferdarrell@kings.edu HM 601
x5211 Office Hours: TTh, 2-4:30, HM 517

DE QU SE TRATA this class?

We are surrounded by borders.

Las fronteras nos delimitan.

They divide us into US and THEM.

Los de este lado y los del otro.

We're here to find these borders, to understand them, and to challenge them.

Para destruirlas, cuando sea necesario.

We'll ask ourselves many questions:

Por qu existen las fronteras?

What types of borders surround us?

Hay una manera en que las fronteras nos ayuden?

What makes somebody want to cross a border?

Por qu no queremos que otros crucen las fronteras?

Why is border crossing so difficult?

Es posible cruzar una frontera?

How can we reach out across a border?

Qu podemos hacer to help?

 Learning Goals
Identify different types of borders that exist (physical, geographical, psychological, etc.)
Critically reflect on how and why borders are constructed, and how and why people
choose to cross them
Analyze and critically interpret texts in a variety of genres, both fiction and non-fiction
Locate and evaluate information from a variety of sources, including statistical data,
historical narratives, and mass media
Empathize with others from different backgrounds and respond sensitively to their unique
situations
Advocate for the fair and just treatment of all human beings
Engage in and facilitate respectful discussions on sensitive topics, even in the face of
disagreement
Develop self-awareness about core values and moral convictions, including the capacity
for self-criticism

Reading List
Gloria Anzalda, Borderlands/La Frontera: The New Mestiza, 4th ed., Aunt Lute Press,
2012. [Bookstore]
Luis Humberto Crosthwaite, "Muerte y esperanza en la frontera norte," Instrucciones para
cruzar la frontera, Editorial Planeta, 2002, 43-48. [Moodle]
Luis Humberto Crosthwaite, "La silla vaca," Instrucciones para cruzar la frontera, Editorial
Planeta, 2002, 77-94. [Moodle]
Carlos Fuentes, "Malintzin de las maquilas," La frontera de cristal, Alfaguara, 1995, 129-60.
[Moodle]
Carlos Fuentes, "Ro Grande, Ro Bravo," La frontera de cristal, Alfaguara, 1995, 241-96.
[Moodle]
Sonia Nazario, La travesa de Enrique, Random House, 2006. [Bookstore]
Other readings will be made available on Moodle

Assignments and grades

Participation 15% 93-100 A

Moodle Posts 10% 90-92 A
Short Story 7.5% 87-89 B+
Infographic 7.5% 83-86 B
Leading Class Discussion 10% 80-82 B
Teaching Project 15% 77-79 C+
Blog Entries 10% 73-76 C
Final Project 20% 70-72 C
Reflective Essay 5% 60-69 D
 Course Policies
Attendance (aka "Do I really have to come to class?): Yes, of course you have to come to
class! I miss you when you're not there! (Not to mention the fact that we will cover a LOT of
material in class, and it will be very difficult for you to do well in the course if you are absent.)

Of course, sometimes life happens. Maybe you have a gigantic chemistry exam to study for, or maybe you're just
not feeling well. To account for this, I give you two absences to do with as you wish. Use them wisely. For each
absence after your second, I lower your final grade by 3 points. If you have three absences and a final grade of 87,
you will earn an 84. If extenuating circumstances come up that will take you out of class for an extended period of
time, come talk to me, and we'll work something out.

If you miss a day of class, you are still responsible for turning in any assignments that were due that day, and it is
your job to get the notes from class.

Also please note that I don't like getting in trouble any more than you do, so if you are absent a lot, I'll have to follow
the college policy and refer your name to the Associate Vice President for Student Success and Retention. Please
see page 112 of the Kings College Student Handbook for more information on the colleges attendance policy.

Participation: It is your mission to actively participate in all discussions every day. Strong
participation includes coming prepared, engaging respectfully with your classmates, and
asking questions in class. Remember, participation represents 15% of your grade that is
because I want to hear from you! We will check in midway through the semester using the
participation rubric available on Moodle and then once more at the end of the semester.

Late Work: As a general rule, if you miss a day of class, you are still responsible for turning in
any assignments that were due that day. That said, I understand that sometimes
extenuating circumstances come up. I can work with you, but you need to let me know.
Please email me or come talk to me in my office hours if you need an extension, and be
prepared to explain the circumstances as well as a specific time and date by which you
believe you can turn the work in. This does not guarantee you an extension, but it
communicates a level of respect for me, for your classmates, and for the course, and I will
do my best to work with you. Any work turned in late without previous permission will be
penalized by 5 points per calendar day.

Academic Honesty: I have a zero tolerance policy towards plagiarism and academic fraud.
As the Kings College Catalog states All forms of dishonesty in college work are regarded
as a serious offense and may result in failure of a semester course, suspension, or dismissal
from the College. All incidents will be reported immediately to the Academic Integrity
Officer. If you are ever in doubt as to whether something is permissible or not, please ask!
You may also refer to pages 4450 of the Kings College Student Handbook for a detailed
explanation of the Academic Integrity Policy of Kings College.
 major assignments
Moodle Posts: Each day, before coming to class, you will reflect thoughtfully and critically
in writing to the text assigned for class. These reflections are meant to be short
(approximately 150 words). Each night, I will give you a question or series of questions to
help guide your reading, and your response to these questions will form the basis of your
Moodle reflection.

We will use these reflections as the basis for our class discussions, so please take them seriously and put thought
into your work. Please read the reflections that your peers place on Moodlethey are for everyone to see. It is
perfectly acceptable, even encouraged, for your reflection to be a response to one of your peers. Do you agree
with him or her? Disagree? Why or why not? Can you take someone elses insight a step further, or apply it to a
different section of the text? You can create the beginnings of a discussion on Moodle, which we will then
continue in class.

These assignments are meant to help you write freely while testing out ideas, arguments and language in a low-
stakes writing environment. You should edit your work so that it is as clean as possible, but your grade will be
based solely on the content of your reflections, not on your grammar. These reflections are worth 10% of your final
grade. As long as I feel you are taking the work seriously, you will receive full credit for each reflection completed
on time. You cant be wrong for trying out an idea, and you wont be graded based on whether or not I agree with
you. I do reserve the right to lower your grade if it seems that you are putting minimal time and effort into your
work. All posts are due by NOON on the day of class. Because the reflections are meant to help facilitate class
discussion, ***you will not receive credit for late posts.***

Short Story: You will create a short story in the style of "Muerte y esperanza en la frontera
norte" by combining news articles from papers on both sides of the USMexican border.
This assignment will encourage you to read critically, to identify bias, and to synthesize
information from a variety of sources.

Infographic: You will select a specific topic relevant to the theme of the class, research
relevant statistical data, and create an infographic to present the data in a compelling and
comprehensible manner. This assignment will help teach you to locate and evaluate
sources of information and to consider the most effective means of presenting information
so as to achieve the desired effect.

Leading Class Discussion: Each of you will be responsible for leading class discussion on
one chapter of Borderlands/La Frontera (see assigned dates on the class calendar). In
consultation with me, you will prepare the Moodle discussion questions for the chapter,
select additional readings to complement the primary text, begin class with a brief summary
of both the texts and the Moodle forum posts, and lead your classmates in a thoughtful
discussion of the texts. This will allow you to practice facilitating respectful discussions on
potentially sensitive topics.
Teaching Project: You will be working with students from my Spanish for Heritage
Speakers class to design a lesson related to immigration and border crossings that you will
then present to my students in Intermediate Spanish II. This will serve as continued practice
in the facilitation of respectful discussions, and will allow you to educate others on the
importance of empathy and respect.

Blog Entries: Over the course of the semester, you will produce two one-page blog
entries in which you identify material from outside the course that engages with the ideas
we are studying. In your blog post, you will attach or link to the document or media (where
possible), or include a brief (less than a paragraph) explanation of the material you want to
assess. Explain your choice of item and why it is relevant and thought-provoking for this
course. I encourage you to think creatively about the kinds of material you might like to
study, including (but not limited to): print news media, TV news media, a novel, a movie, a
song, a TV show/episode, the physical environment (for example, an analysis of the layout
of an urban space).

Final Project: At the end of the semester, you will do a final project that will be a creative,
public representation of everything we have covered in class. The purpose of this project is
to help you engage in self-reflection regarding the lessons we have learned, to advocate
for social justice in the wider community, to facilitate campus- and community-wide
discussions on the topic of immigration, and to encourage others around us to respond to
all human beings with respect and empathy.

Reflective Essay: This essay should be between 500-600 words. Explain how your
thinking
about immigration and other issues related to the theme of borders has changed (or not
changed) over the semester. The point of this essay is to allow you to critically reflect on
your learning experience in this course.

what if you need more help?

I will help you! Come see me in my office hours, and we can talk through any issues.

There are also many instructional support services available through the Academic Skills
Center. The Writing Center may be especially useful for this course. More information on
the Academic Skills Center can be found at:
http://www.kings.edu/academics/support/skills_center.

If you have a documented disability and require accommodations, please contact me

privately as early in the semester as possible so that we can make the appropriate
arrangements for your success!
 tentative course schedule

Class #1, Tuesday, Aug. 29th: Course introduction

Class #2, Thursday, Aug. 31st: La travesa de Enrique, Prlogo
Class #3, Tuesday, Sep. 5th: La travesa de Enrique, Cap. 1-2
Class #4, Thursday, Sep. 7th: La travesa de Enrique, Cap. 3
Thursday, Sep. 7th, 7 PM, Burke Auditorium: "From Deportation to Prison: The Politics of Immigration
Enforcement in Post-Civil Rights America"
Class #5, Tuesday, Sep. 12th: La travesa de Enrique, Cap. 4-5
Class #6, Thursday, Sep. 14th: La travesa de Enrique, Cap. 6-7
Class #7, Tuesday, Sep. 19th: La travesa de Enrique, Eplogo
Class #8, Thursday, Sep. 21st: Muerte y esperanza en la frontera norte
Class #9, Tuesday, Sep. 26th: Articles TBD. Short story due
Class #10, Thursday, Sep. 28th: Sharing of student stories
Class #11, Tuesday, Oct. 3rd: Las maquiladoras, Readings TBD
Class #12, Thursday, Oct. 5th: Malintzin de las maquilas
Class #13, Tuesday, Oct. 10th: Malintzin de las maquilas
Thursday, Oct. 12th: FALL RECESS. NO CLASS.
Class #14, Tuesday, Oct. 17th: Ro Grande, ro Bravo
Class #15, Thursday, Oct. 19th: Ro Grande, ro Bravo
Class #16, Tuesday, Oct. 24th: Borderlands/La Frontera, Prlogo y cap. 1 (Jill) Infographic due
Class #17, Thursday, Oct. 26th: Borderlands/La Frontera, cap. 2 (Sabrina)
Class #18, Tuesday, Oct. 31st: Borderlands/La Frontera, cap. 3 (Merissa)
Class #19, Thursday, Nov. 2nd: Borderlands/La Frontera, cap. 4 (Britney)
Class #20, Tuesday, Nov. 7th: Borderlands/La Frontera, cap. 5 (Jessica)
Class #21, Thursday, Nov. 9th: Borderlands/La Frontera, cap. 6 (Alizabeth)
Class #22, Tuesday, Nov. 14th: Borderlands/La Frontera, cap. 7 (Juan)
Class #23, Thursday, Nov. 16th: Trial run of teaching project
Class #24, Tuesday, Nov. 21th: Teaching project due, to be scheduled separately
Thursday, Nov. 23rd: THANKSGIVING. NO CLASS!
Class #25, Tuesday, Nov. 28th: La silla vaca
Class #26, Thursday, Nov. 30th: La silla vaca
Class #27, Tuesday, Dec. 5th: Readings TBD
Class #28, Thursday, Dec. 7th: Reflective essay due. Presentation of final projects in class.
Final project is due at the scheduled final exam time.