MA Assessment Exam

Timeline Description automatically generated.

Dr. April Shemak, MA Director. MA Assessment Exam.

[Audio] We are meeting to discuss the upcoming MA Assessment Exam. I am Dr. Shemak, the director of the MA program. Please excuse my computerized voice. I have health issues that make speaking difficult, so I will have my computer do most of my speaking for me today. I apologize for the narrator's voice. It's a little too " game-show-host" for me, but it was the best option!.

[Audio] This is the description of the Graduate Assessment Examination from the MA Handbook (which is available on the Blackboard English MA organization that you are enrolled in. Examination Dates During the August MA Program Orientation, the Graduate Director will present all incoming graduate students, including those who began in the preceding spring and summer semesters, with a list of ten " touchstone texts," selected in consultation with the MA faculty assigned graduate courses during the ensuing academic year. Students will have eight months to master these texts and to familiarize themselves with both the historical contexts in which they were produced and the major trends in current scholarship on each of them. The examination will be administered on the first Saturday of the following May. Examination Areas The ten titles are selected from the full history of literature written in English, both non-traditional and canonical, and represent a range of genres and perspectives; the list will include poetry, drama, and prose (both fiction and non-fiction), and may include cultural studies, literary theory, linguistics, or histories of the English language. The exam questions will ask students both to address the exceptional qualities of each text and to synthesize a comparative argument, drawing connections across the diverse texts. For this reason, it is important that all MA students complete both ENGL 5301 Methods of Graduate Research and ENGL 5302 Literary Theory before taking the exam..

[Audio] Preparing for the Graduate Assessment Examination Students should notify the Director if they do not intend to take the Graduate Assessment Exam in their first year; it is assumed that all incoming students will take the exam at the end of their first year. Students should acquire editions of each of the texts (where possible, a current scholarly editions); faculty will recommend editions and may recommend important works of criticism..

[Audio] Students should consider their own areas of weakness and take courses in those areas. Although it is not necessarily the case with everyone, many of the texts will be taught in the fall and spring courses. It is not necessary, nor would it be possible, to take courses that cover all of the texts—it remains the responsibility of students to learn the texts. Students should begin by reading all ten titles, scholarly introductions, and supplemental materials included in their editions. Often scholarly editions provide further reading suggestions, which is an excellent place to continue learning more about each title..

[Audio] While the faculty will organize events, it is also advisable for students to form study groups and develop diverse ways in which to engage with the texts. While the faculty may and will discuss the works on the list, they are not to tutor individual students on works on the list—it is the student's responsibility to use the methods and theories learnt in ENGL 5301 and 5302 to master the texts. Students should prepare a dossier of notes and materials for the exam, which should include extensive notes, bibliographies, and précis; the exam is open- book but you will not be permitted to use online files or the internet during the exam. While the faculty will organize events, it is also advisable for students to form study groups and develop diverse ways in which to engage with the texts. While the faculty may and will discuss the works on the list, they are not to tutor individual students on works on the list—it is the student's responsibility to use the methods and theories learnt in ENGL 5301 and 5302 to master the texts. Students should prepare a dossier of notes and materials for the exam, which should include extensive notes, bibliographies, and précis; the exam is open-book but you will not be permitted to use online files or the internet during the exam..

[Audio] This is a take-home exam—you will receive is about 5 PM on Friday, May 6th and need to submit it to me at aas004@shsu.edu by 10 AM the following MONDAY, May 9th.

[Audio] Study Tips Look for common themes-- Identity and Race, Class, Gender, Sexuality, Ethnicity—how do these things impact theme and form? For example, if you are looking at a text authored by a white man, conder how women and/or non-white and/or LGBTQ characters are represented in the text. Demonstrate that you have an understanding of the critical scholarship about a text You will need to examine at least five of the ten texts in your essay. The exam questions will state which texts are required to be included in your essay. Pace yourself so that you are writing about 2 pages/text. Each text should be given the same amount of space—do not spend all of your time on one or two texts and a small amount on the rest (that will make it seem as though they are "tacked on" rather than integrated in your analysis). have a thesis statement for your essay—remember that you need to make an argument and you'll need to include all of the parts of a complete essay (don't forget an introduction and conclusion!!) give specific examples from the text to support your argument—include quotations and page numbers read the scholarship about each text—refer to it in your essay—know who the major scholars are. Some have case studies, or Norton critical editions, MLA Approaches to Teaching series, critical introductions, critical c companions are things that come to mind..

[Audio] STUDY TIPS CONTINUED know the field that a text is a part of— U.S. Ethnic, British, postcolonial, etc. know time period in which a text was written (is a text contemporary American, 16th century British, etc.) know the genre of a given text ( prose fiction novel or short story, poetry, graphic novel, slave narrative, restoration drama, etc.).

[Audio] STUDY TIP: LOOK for connections between texts. Below are some, but not all, examples: how do they use form to tell a story? ( autobiography, poetry, slave narrative, novel) theme of migration: the refugees, woman hollering creek THEME OF bondage and freedom shared by the tempest, incidents in the life of a slave girl, a grain of wheat how do texts use language/ linguistics to tell story? The Tempest, annie john, woman hollering creek How do texts portray gender roles— persepolis, country wife, inicidents in the life of a slave girl, woman hollering creek, Annie john How do texts represent memoir/autobiography/ life-writing: persepolis, incidents in the life of a slave girl Theme of coming-of-age—Annie john, woman hollering Creek and other stories, Persepolis.

[Audio] STUDY TIP: watch university of texas, Department of English: The critical reader's toolkit.

[Audio] This is the 2021 assessment exam. Please note that this is a sample and is based on the 2021 list of touchstone texts.Guidelines: Select one of the two topics (below), and compose a persuasive essay in response. This is an open-book, open-notes exam, but you are prohibited from accessing the Internet while composing your essay—if you used electronic editions of the texts, you may consult these. You are permitted to spend three hours writing this exam. You may split this time up, but please limit yourself to this time constraint. Your essay must represent original literary analysis and critical thinking. You should provide in-text citations, but a works cited is not required. You may not discuss other works of literature than those that appear on the list (included below the exam questions). Make sure to include close-readings of each work of literature that you address as well as some discussion of relevant criticism and/or theory. Follow MLA format guidelines but do not stress over trivial rules; you will not be assessed for your exact adherence to them. Please insert page numbers, but do not put your name on the exam. You will receive a report on your exam within a month..

[Audio] These are the topics from the 2021 assessment exam. 1.Make an argument about how the notion of the " borderland" has shaped five works of literature from the list of ten texts. Begin with Gloria Anzaldua's Borderlands/La Frontera: The New Mestiza and then discuss four other texts from the list of ten. In your discussion of each work, define carefully what is meant by "borderland" bearing in mind the cultural context of a work. You will need to cite specific textual evidence to support your analysis and discuss the type of borderland represented in the work. Having discussed the individual texts, make an argument about what the literary portrayal of borderlands suggests collectively. If you wish to make substantial use of Linguistics and English Literature in your essay, you may substitute it for one of the four other works of literature.or2. Make an argument about the representation of the " body" in five texts from the list of ten. How are bodies "texts" that help shape literary works? In your discussion of each work, define carefully what is meant by "the body." Consider how such things as gender, race, sexuality, immigrant status, class, and religion intersect in the portrayal of bodies. Analyze whether bodies are considered healthy or ill. Keep in mind that "the body" is a cultural construction and how it is interpreted largely depends upon cultural context. Cite specific textual evidence to discuss how individual works portray bodies. Having discussed the individual works, make an argument about the definition and representation of bodies in the literary works collectively.If you wish to make substantial use of Linguistics and English Literature in your essay, you may substitute it for one of the four other works of literature..

[Audio] Here is a list of the 2021 touchstone texts.

[Audio] Any questions? You can ask questions verbally by unmuting your microphone, or you can type your question in the chat (please send it to " everyone" and not solely to me).