It is advised that this assignment be used to integrate Paul Loeb’s presentation (Loeb’s Lecture), one, two, or three (1, 2 or 3) selected excerpts/readings from Soul of a Citizen, and any type of service experience (optional), into your specific curriculum so that your students will have an academically rigorous way to directly and intentionally connect Paul Loeb’s presentation (Loeb’s Lecture) with their worldview and Citizenship & Civility for course credit.
The following tasks must be completed by <insert date here> and these assignments are worth XX points of your final grade.
Read the assigned excerpts from Paul Loeb’s Soul of a Citizen book and complete the discussion questions after each excerpt. EXCERPT ONE & DISCUSSION QUESTIONS: On First Steps Towards Engagement & Reflection
EXCERPT ONE & DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:
On First Steps Towards Engagement & Reflection
Loeb Excerpt One (1) & Discussion Questions
EXCERPT TWO & DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:
Addressing Comfort Zone & Examples from the Field
Loeb Excerpt Two (2) & Discussion Questions
EXCERPT THREE:
Suggestions to Make Engagement Possible
Loeb Excerpt Three (3) – NO Discussion Questions
The following tasks must be completed by <insert date here> and these assignments are worth XX points of your final grade.
- Attend Paul Loeb’s presentation (Loeb’s Lecture) on Soul of a Citizen: Living with Conviction in Challenging Times
- Afterwards, please choose one of the following dimensions as the focus of your *Articulated Learning Statement and then respond to the six questions with that selected dimension in mind. It is expected that you will thoroughly reflect on your learning and will include specific references to the Soul of a Citizen excerpts/readings, Paul Loeb’s presentation you attended, any discussion that occurred as a result of the presentation, and any relevant experiences related to the presentation.
- Articulated Learning Statement Dimensions:
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Academic Dimension: an awareness of relevant academic content that has been enhanced by Paul Loeb’s presentation, Soul of a Citizen readings/excerpts, subsequent discussion, and/or any relevant experiences you have had at WCU.
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Civic Dimension: an awareness of either the larger community (university, city, country, etc.) or smaller community (family, friends, peers, etc.) in which you live that has been enhanced by the presentation, Soul of a Citizen readings/excerpts, subsequent discussion, and/or any relevant experiences you have had at WCU.
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Personal Dimension: an awareness of a personal characteristic of yours that has been enhanced by the presentation, Soul of a Citizen readings/excerpts, subsequent discussion, and/or any relevant experiences you have had at WCU.
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Reflection Prompts (see rubric below for what is expected):
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The dimension I am focusing on and why, in this Articulated Learning Statement, is…
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With regard to that dimension, from the presentation, Soul of a Citizen readings/excerpts, subsequent discussion, and/or any relevant experiences I have had at WCU, I learned…
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I learned this specifically through…
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This learning matters to me because…
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Because of this learning, I will attempt to change the following scenario in the future by…
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In what ways (if any) have Loeb’s presentation(s), excerpts from his Soul of a Citizen, and these assignments influenced your understanding of Citizenship and/or Civility?
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Suggested rubric for grading reflection prompts:
| completely lacking (0-1) | under-developed (2) | good (3) | |
| Dimension identified (Personal, Civic, Academic) | did not identify the dimension being explored | <====or====> | clearly identified the dimension being explored |
| From the Loeb presentation, Soul of a Citizen readings/excerpts, subsequent discussion, and/or any relevant experiences, I learned | does not identify any ideas from listed artifacts or resources | identifies ideas from the range of artifacts and resources listed, but does not make any level of synthesis | expands on ideas and makes synthesis across a range of artifacts and resources listed and clearly connects discussion question responses |
| I learned this specifically through | does not identify any reasoning behind specific ideas/ conclusions | identifies the reasons behind conclusions, but does not thoroughly explain reasoning or recognize complexity | explains the reasons behind conclusions and anticipates and acknowledges the complexity of the issue |
| This learning matters because | does not identify any value or explain why there was no value in new learning/info | identifies the value in being exposed to this new learning/ info, but does not evaluate it | identifies and evaluates the value in being exposed to this new learning/info |
| Because of this learning I will attempt to change the following scenario in the future by… |
does not identify any future (potential) changes in actions | identifies future (potential) changes in actions, but does not propose or critique actions in future scenarios | identifies, proposes, and critiques a plan of action for how learning can transfer to future scenarios |
| NOTE: Reflection assignments DO NOT have to be in “essay form”. Students can choose preferred ways to present their reflections and thoughts (e.g., essays, poems, videos, art projects, speeches, etc.). There is not a maximum or minimum word limit. | n/a | n/a | n/a |
TIP: All reflection prompts can be responded to in a collaborative (team-based) way so that people can grow ideas together instead of independently.