Welcome to POLITICO’s West Wing Playbook, your guide to the people and power centers in the Biden administration. Send tips | Subscribe here| Email Alex | Email Max Teaching has always been a passion for first lady JILL BIDEN — since 2009, she’s taught English at Northern Virginia Community College and is the first first lady in modern history to work full-time during her husband’s tenure. She has described her teaching job as a core part of her identity, and it’s something President JOE BIDEN regularly touts when discussing education policy. “If I wanted to know anything about community colleges in Virginia, I go to my wife,” Biden said today at community college in Culpepper, Va. We know far less about what kind of professor the first lady is, or how she approaches the subject matter she’s teaching. A copy of a syllabus for an introductory English course, ENG 111, she taught in the fall semester of 2021, obtained by West Wing Playbook, offers a glimpse. The required reading for the first lady’s course consists of two books: “Born a Crime: Stories from a South African Childhood,” an autobiography by The Daily Show’s Trevor Noah; and “Rules for Writers, Ninth Edition (with 2016 Updates),” by Diana Hacker and Nancy Sommers, which covers the basics of writing, grammar and research. Her office did not comment for this story. Noah’s office didn’t respond. In the syllabus, Biden writes that the course “will focus on the theme of finding ways to solve some of the world’s problems,” and lays out three overarching class topics — the process of writing; expository and argumentative writing; and critical thinking and research. The first lady appears fairly accessible to her students despite her other responsibilities — her office hours are 10 a.m. through 11 a.m. and 2:30 p.m. through 3:30 p.m. on both Tuesdays and Thursdays, and through Zoom “as requested.” If students reach out by phone or email, she writes that they can expect a reply to email within two days or a call within 24 hours. Biden also lays out Zoom etiquette for those students taking the course virtually (or what she calls “netiquette,” a combination of the words "Internet etiquette"). She asks that students keep their cameras on — no black screens — and stay muted unless they're speaking. She also adds a disclaimer: no Zooming and driving. Makes sense! Students “who miss more than four classes will incur a grade penalty. Students who miss more than six classes will receive a failing grade.” Showing up late, or leaving class early, “will be counted as unexcused absences unless you have permission from the instructor.” The first lady also describes in detail what kind of essay is worthy of an “A” grade and what’s worthy of an “F.” An “A” essay “reflects excellence in a student’s thinking and writing, deals with one topic, focused to fit the length and scope of the discussion.” An essay worthy of an “F,” in contrast, “has no focus … contains writing that rambles or is incoherent. It has so many serious grammatical, spelling, and/or punctuation errors that the errors interfere with the communication of ideas.” And apparently she is stingy with those “A’s”! While she received a 4 out of 5 rating on RateMyProfessor — those giving her low scores for her teaching seemed primarily to complain that she’s a tough grader and gives too much homework. One student wrote in Nov. 2020 that she “gives a lot of work with no context,” while another wrote around the same time that she’s “a good teacher, but a very tough grader. Be ready to grind to pass the class.” But another student raved, “Im not gonna lie, she gives A LOT of homework, makes you work for the good grade, but its 101% worth it.” The West Wing Playbook team caught a few typos in the syllabus we received. But we’ll leave that to the English professor to find! You can read the full syllabus here. TEXT US — Did we miss something about her teaching career? Send us an email or text and we will try to include your thoughts in the next day’s edition. Can be anonymous, on background, etc. Email us at westwingtips@politico.com or you can text/Signal Alex at 8183240098 or Max at 7143455427. WHAT YOU TEXTED — In response to yesterday’s top about Biden science adviser ERIC LANDER — including some of the defenses of him — one former OSTP staffer wrote us: “If he was Michael Jordan for basketball, he was Michael Jordan playing baseball when it came to government.” Do you work in the Biden administration? Are you a student or have you been student of Jill Biden's? Email/text us! Please?
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