First Thoughts on UWP 101 and the Textbook

I haven’t had a writing class in quite some time. This morning I arrived early and was anxious waiting in the classroom, wondering what sort of workload would be laid before me in this upcoming six weeks. To my surprise, this class does not seem like a typical writing class where a student needs to read seven books and do three term projects. Instead, we are asked to create our own blogs and write four entries weekly, which provides great incentives for a technology addict like me to write and work my creativity.

In addition to the weekly writing assignments, a textbook named New Keywords was required for the class. Therefore I went straight to bookstore to purchase this mysterious work of words (literally) after our first meeting. The travel between Storer and the bookstore was nothing more than linear. I located the pile of the book, picked a less-tortured copy, went to the register and paid for it. The process was as smooth as it could be.

While having lunch, I had a chance to read the introduction of the book. I was totally amazed by the originality of the idea of making connections between vocabulary and cultures. A quote I came across working as an intern at the Cross-Cultural Center on campus coincides with the book’s intent: Say what you mean and mean what you say. The world and history evolve, so does people’s choice of words. In today’s multicultural society, we, as the educated bunch, do have a responsibility to understand the power of language and be aware of the cultural sensitivity of words. I am pleased and grateful that we select a textbook that speaks to my passion. I am eager for future class discussion to come.