(OCRA1) Researching Personal Identity with CRA Peer Tutor Chloe Isabella Tsang

In this article, the Board of SASS interviews Critical Reading and Argumentation (OCRA1) peer tutor Chloe Isabella Tsang. We hope that this article will help current and future Critical Reading and Argumentation (OCRA1) students in their academic journey!

When did you take Critical Reading and Argumentation (OCRA1), and who was your instructor?

I took CRA in 2019, my Junior year, with Dr. Hicks.

How much time did you spend a week working on assignments and preparing for discussion sessions in Critical Reading and Argumentation (OCRA1)?

I spent about 2-3 hours every week when there were no papers due, I worked through the small homework assignments pretty quickly and relied more on the class discussions for better/deeper understanding of the texts we were assigned to read. Big papers had me spending a whole week revising drafts and creating a plan.

What did the typical week in Critical Reading and Argumentation (OCRA1) look like?

I didn’t have much of a set schedule other than attending class - I always read the text assigned the day before discussion (so it’s fresher in my memory when I get to class), and completed the small homework assigned right after. I kept my eye out on upcoming papers so I knew when I had to start choosing a prompt.

What did you enjoy about Critical Reading and Argumentation (OCRA1)?

The creativity that the subject encouraged. This was both surprising and exciting for me during the first week of class - with our previous core classes, I was so used to the strict guidelines we are usually meant to follow in writing our philosophy papers. However, in CRA, we were not only given the freedom, but encouraged, to be more creative with the philosophical ideas we were studying.

What challenged you the most in Critical Reading and Argumentation (OCRA1)? How did you overcome those challenges?

Understanding the texts assigned. There are some long texts we have to read and they’re not easy to understand all at once, so for me, I struggled in the beginning with being able to come away from the reading with a good understanding, or any at all. I stayed diligent in class, listening to how other students interpreted the reading, and then how our instructor explained it to us, and then staying back after class if I had any further questions (or going to office hours).

Are there midterms/finals in this class? How would you recommend reviewing for these exams?

No midterms and finals! Huge plus haha.

What are the major assignments for this class? How would you recommend approaching these assignments?

The Moral Experiment and Final Project. The former is where you are tasked to apply one of the schools of thought you’ve studied to your everyday life, then write a paper about it. The latter is interesting - you get several options (and a lot of freedom) to be artistically expressive in demonstrating what you’ve learned, and showcasing your ability to think critically and be more inquisitive about a given topic.

How do you recommend reading and taking notes of reading and lectures? Do you recommend that students type or write notes?

Since there aren’t any exams, it’s completely up to you whether you want to type up all your notes or write them down. I personally typed them all up so I can easier reference them when I’m writing papers, but to each their own.

How should a student participate and engage in Critical Reading and Argumentation (OCRA1) class discussions?

If you have absolutely any question or thought related to the conversation or topic at hand - raise your hand and say it.

What tips do you have that could be useful to students taking Critical Reading and Argumentation (OCRA1)?

Have fun with it and work with your teacher - because you’re given more freedom to be creative with philosophy, it helped me a lot by working closely with my instructor on my papers so she could guide my thinking, and make sure I don’t drift too far away from the assigned task while maintaining ingenuity.

What was your favorite topic covered in Critical Reading and Argumentation (OCRA1)?

Personal Identity - we go hard and deep into what makes the identity of a person, criterions of identity and problems with it. I went on to write my final paper about it.

How does Critical Reading and Argumentation (OCRA1) compare to other courses in the core sequence, and how is it different from the typical English course?

What makes CRA different from all other courses is exactly why I enjoy it so much - the freedom of creativity that we’re allowed to explore. I wrote my paper on the ontological argument in relation to dinosaurs, and my personal identity paper on batman… so I think that says a lot.

Do you have any resources (i.e. study tips, useful websites) to share with students who want to take the course?

Crash Course philosophy on youtube is always great, and make sure that you can summarise each reading in a paragraph to demonstrate your understanding. Also make a note of certain parts of the reading that you might not understand so you can bring it up in class.

Do you have anything to add?

Good luck and have fun! Reach out to me or Kee (another peer tutor for CRA) if you need any help :)

Chloe Isabella Tsang is a peer tutor for Critical Reading and Argumentation and can be found on the Writing and Tutoring Center.

#CRA #OCRA1