“I found Prof. Dalton’s class to be quite effective. He did a wonderful job incorporating low-stakes writing, group work, handouts and visual aids into his lesson to meet the needs of all sorts of learners. he was attentive, making his way to each group several times, and clear in his teaching. But what stood out to me most was the relationships he’s fostered with each individual student. He lets his personality shine, keeps the atmosphere light yet productive, and gives every student the confidence to share. I was so impressed with the ease and comfort with which students participated, and I think it takes a special instructor to foster that sort of learning environment. I learned a lot observing Professor Dalton and view him as an asset to our department.”

Borough of Manhattan Community College (BMCC) faculty, Observing my ENG 201 Class, Spring 2018

While the first-semester composition course takes similar form across CUNY, second-semester composition can vary more widely. Some campuses, like City College, use it as an opportunity to introduce disciplinary writing. Others, like Lehman College, emphasize research. Two-year campuses like BMCC and LaGuardia often focus on “writing through literature.” These local variations are reflected in the course syllabi below. The representative teaching observations often feature moments where student writing is at the center of the conversation–a common thread in each of these courses across CUNY.

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ENG 121: Composition II

Lehman College

Continues the work of ENG 111, advancing critical reading skills and essay development. Emphasis on writing analytical essays and papers based on research in various academic disciplines. Classroom instruction supplemented by individual conferences on drafts with instructor, library resources sessions, and appropriate use of available technology. Note: All students, unless exempted, must pass this course in fulfillment of the Common Core Requirement in English Composition. Students who take but do not pass this course should repeat it the following semester.PREREQ: ENG 111 or equivalent or departmental permission. (Lehman College catalog)

Sample syllabus: “Listen Up”

In this course, we listened to audio nonfiction narratives—podcasts—posing complex questions. These questions engaged many themes: equity, social justice, the power of human creativity to make art and to design (better?) machines. Those stories, these questions, and our responses to them all drew on the knowledge that emerges from our differences. Where we often start is with this set of givens: That students come to Lehman with a lot to say. That this course builds on what we all have to learn from these true-life stories, from the rich resources available at Lehman, and from the (just-as-rich) resources we bring to Lehman. That all we have to do is listen up.  

Representative teaching observation

“Tim provided an engaging audio text (and great material throughout the course) for students to unpack and discuss in their listening groups….I was impressed with the thoughtful freewrites that were shared and Tim impressively expanded on students’ sharing and made connections back to the class materials to reinforce the discussion of the roles of music and history in these podcasts. The class uses an impressive range of online tools: shared learning spaces, discussion board forums, and blogs. Mr. Dalton is clearly an experienced and thoughtful teacher of writing but he is also a thoughtful teacher in an online classroom who uses digital tools to accommodate different learners and to keep students engaged.”

Lehman College faculty member, observing my Composition II course, Spring 2021

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ENG 201: Introduction to Literature

Borough of Manhattan Community College

This is a course that builds upon skills introduced in English 101. In this course, literature is the field for the development of critical reading, critical thinking, independent research, and writing skills. Students are introduced to literary criticisms and acquire basic knowledge necessary for the analysis of texts (including literary terms and some literary theory); they gain proficiency in library and internet research; and they hone their skills as readers and writers. Assignments move from close readings of literary texts in a variety of genres to analyses that introduce literary terms and broader contexts, culminating in an independent, documented, thesis-driven research paper. By the conclusion of English 201, students will be prepared for the analytical and research-based writing required in upper-level courses across the curriculum; they will also be prepared for advanced courses in literature. (BMCC Catalog)

Sample syllabus & course site: “Adventures in Retelling”

Star-crossed lovers, meddling immortals, feigned identities, battles of wits, and dire warnings: these are the stuff of fairy tale, myth, and folklore that have drawn us in for centuries. In this course, we’ll read some re-imaginings of traditional folklore and mythology from East and South Asia–and use these stories, old and new, as jumping off points for literary interpretations, library research, and the development of our own voices as writers.

Representative teaching observation

“Professor Dalton leads a truly student centered, innovative classroom where the digital is a substantial and meaningful part of the learning. He employs scaffolding and skillfully interweaves critical discussion with lessons in composition, emphasizing to students the connections between their various writing tasks and activities.”

BMCC faculty, observing my Composition II course in Spring 2019

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ENG 102: Writing Through Literature

LaGuardia Community College

This course extends and intensifies the work of Composition I, requiring students to write critically and analytically about culturally-diverse works of literature. Students are introduced to poetry, drama, and fiction, employing close-reading techniques and other methodologies of literary criticism. Students will utilize research methods and documentation procedure in writing assignments in varying academic formats, including a research essay that engages literary critics or commentators. (LaGuardia Catalog)

Sample syllabus: “Loners, Liars, Oddballs, & Thieves”

In this class, we studied 15 poems, five pieces of fiction, five critical essays, and two films. Each assigned text related in some way to the relationship between individual and community. Our focus looked with particular care on characters who fit awkwardly into an environment. We asked: Why do some people fit in and others do not? Does everyone want to conform? Do some people prefer to “march to different drummer,” even at great cost?

Scholarship of Teaching and Learning from Composition II

” ‘Slowly Carving a Niche’: Notes on Reading a Poem for a Month,” an essay that emerged from my work in ENG 102, was published in 2011 by In Transit: The LaGuardia Journal of Teaching and Learning.

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ENG 210: Writing for the Social Sciences

City College of New York

Sample syllabus: “Autoethnography of…a book club?”

In this course, we adopted the tools of social scientists: research, interviews, observation, some data, and a lot of writing. Students had the option to develop a digital portfolio of writing in CUNY Academic Commons showcasing your skill using these tools. To do this, we became participant-observers in a subculture that’s very at home in an English department: the book club. We used the tools of disciplinary writing to select books; to set norms and define roles for our book groups; to analyze the process of discussing books about true stories set in cultures that may or may not be familiar; and to write about the events, systems, and experiences described in those books. As a class, we read excerpts of three contemporary memoirs. Starting March 1, we read and discuss the social science aspects of ONE of four books: 

• Heavy by Kiese Laymon (2018) or 
• Ordinary Girls by Jaquira Diaz (2019) (available in English or in Spanish), or 
• Fairest by Meredith Talusan (2020) or
• Crying in H Mart by Michelle Zauner (2021)

Students acquired a copy of whichever book they chose to read. We read these, socially. These writers each tell true stories from their lives against backdrops that many social scientists study from a greater distance. By the end of the semester, students became able to talk about when a social experience is most clearly seen from afar—and when a writer needs to zoom in. 

Becoming Ethnographers: A student-produced anthology from Spring 2020

The above anthology emerged in the pandemic-interrupted semester of Spring 2020. Students who had planned to do fieldwork suddenly could not even access campus. Their shift in form and focus from individual projects to a collective document was remarkable.