Hi everyone,
Expect a new post here every week with full details on what to do. Posts will usually go live on Thursdays.
NOTE THAT THIS IS THE UPDATE FOR THE DAY SECTION: IF YOU’RE IN THE NIGHT SECTION, SEE THE POST FOR YOUR CLASS
First a few housekeeping things before we get to the assignment itself. There’s a lot in this week’s post but there’s a lot to cover. It will be shorter after the first few weeks.
- You might find it helpful to subscribe to new posts for this site: use the e-mail sign-up form on the main page.
- If you’re new to the class, welcome! Be sure to carefully review class policies on the syllabus.
- Get the required course book: Dr. Maulana Karenga’s Introduction to Black Studies, 4th edition.. You will need it to do the reading assignments for the rest of the semester. You can also buy the book directly from the publisher at the list price. See links on the books page.
Please sign up for the class text message service run by Remind(.com) if you haven’t done so yet
- You can sign up online here or send a text message to 757-337-4602 and type the following as the message: @aas166day.
General Announcements:
- Lehman has emergency grants available to quickly provide money for housing, medical, food, transportation, and other needs. Details at the Student Affairs office.
- The Lehman Food Bank offers food assistance. Details here.
- Lehman has a very comprehensive page of students resources including laptop/tablet loans. Details here.
- NY State has reinstated TAP financial aid eligibility for part time students! Details here
Quick highlights from week 2: Wednesday September 7
- REVIEWED Dr. Leonard Jeffries Jr’s “The Essence of Black Studies” (handout and also on the Readings page). What’s his view of a Black Studies methodology (i.e. ways to analyze information and do research) and how should it approach the world?
- REVIEWED key points in the A Great and Mighty Walk documentary film
What to do for Week 3–September 12/14:
For Monday September 12:
WATCH Prof. Jeffrey Kaplan’s video on how to read texts to remember and understand information on YouTube. (23 minutes)
READ Dr. John Henrik Clarke’s essay “Africana Studies: A Decade of Change, Challenge, and Conflict” (13 page PDF file on the Readings page)
Things to think about while viewing and for discussion
Watch Dr. Kaplan’s video for tips on the process of reading and taking notes. List the key strategies he suggests in your notebook and try them for the readings this week.
Dr. Clarke’s essay was presented at a conference of the African Heritage Studies Association. In this essay, he makes an attempt to trace some of the early history of the discipline (academic major) of Africana Studies and present some of the key issues he thinks it faces.
Try to understand the following key points from the essay:
- What is the issue with naming the major–specifically Black Studies vs Africana Studies?
- What is the dilemma that Black scholars/writers face?
- What is the significance of the contributions of W.E.B. Du Bois and Carter G. Woodson?
- What’s the importance of the search for ideology Dr. Clarke mentions in the last few pages?
For Wednesday September 14: [Updated]
BRING a copy of Dr. Clarke’s essay from Monday’s class with you.
READ Dr. Marimba Ani’s chapter from Let the Circle Be Unbroken. PDF on the Readings page. Read it slowly and carefully using some of the reading strategies in Dr. Jeffrey Kaplan’s video you watched over the weekend. You’ll have to read it at least twice. (11 pages.)
Try to understand the following key points and be able to answer them:
- What worldview?
- What is the African worldview as defined by Dr. Ani?
- What is the difference between African and European-based worldview?
- What’s the significance of complementary pairs in the African worldview?
- What’s the role of spirit/spirituality in the African worldview?
What’s Next?
We start reading from the Introduction to Black Studies textbook. We’ll start with chapter 1.
Introduction to Africana Studies 