REQUIRED TEXTS:

Suskind, Ron. A Hope in the Unseen.
Conley, Dalton. Honky.
Newman, Katherine S. Chutes and Ladders.
Golden, Daniel. The Price of Admission.

Additional necessities:
a college-level dictionary
a valid KSU e-mail account (if you choose not to use your Kent e-mail account, then please set that account
to forward messages to the account that you do use)

COURSE DESCRIPTION

This course will require a variety of things from you, but most of all I ask that you bring to class your intellectual curiosity and your unique ideas and opinions. Any class that I teach is a student-centered class, and because of this, your participation is not only vital, but required. I will design projects and classroom experiences that will make necessary your participation and ask that you help to create a classroom environment in which your voice is heard, and in which the voices of others are valued and respected.

English 21011 is a general-education course designed to help you to build and strengthen the writing skills that you will need in order to be successful throughout your college career. There is an increased emphasis in this class on research skills and on assessing the best ways to discover information. While we will read and discuss several full-length texts during the semester, the readings are primarily meant to be starting points for your own writing. This is not a literature class. Be prepared to write a lot! You will write both in class and out of class, both formally and informally, and you will write four essays that include information from research and outside reading. In this class we will spend the semester focused upon the themes of social class and educational access, and we will consider both formal and informal/cultural forms of education as a way in which to gain access to the larger society.

This section of English 21011 will offer you a unique opportunity to gain some of your research and ideas first-hand through providing service to selected schools in the Canton City Schools system. If you choose to be a part of this service-learning project (Track A), then some of your writing requirements will differ from the writing requirements of those engaged in different, mostly library-based research projects (Track B). Working as a tutor and mentor for elementary-school children will be a valuable experience for any student who plans to major in an education-related field and can also be great experience for any student who learns best through experience.

On the Stark campus, service-learning has been defined in several ways:

• Service-learning is a credit-bearing, educational experience in which students

  participate in an organized service activity that meets identified community needs
  reflect on the service activity in such a way as to gain further understanding of course content, a broader appreciation of the discipline, and an enhanced sense of civic responsibility.

  Adapted from Robert Bringle and Julie Hatcher, ?A Service Learning Curriculum for Faculty.?
  The Michigan Journal of Community Service-Learning, Fall 1995, pp. 112-22.

• ?Service? should be considered direct or indirect service that meets needs defined by a specific community partner while simultaneously meeting the specified learning goals of the service-learning course. When engaged in service-learning, students should ideally provide for specific needs of underserved populations or communities for whom such services would be out of reach without the participation of service-learners. True service provides assistance that is necessary and that promotes civic engagement among all stakeholders.

Track A: This ?track? will require a service-learning component. For this component of the class, you will work as a tutor and mentor at McGregor Elementary School in the Canton City school system. In order to gain consistent experience and to provide service that will meet a real need in the school, you will be required to perform consistent service for approximately two hours per week: one hour a day, twice per week, over the course of the semester (other schedules can be negotiated, dependent upon the needs of McGregor and its students and teachers). Service-learning experiences will begin during the week of February 5 and will continue through the week of April 23. Assignments will often ask you to draw from your experiences at McGregor, and your final essay will be based upon experiences you have had during the course of the semester. Much of your ?research? will be done through direct experience rather than through traditional library research (although you will be required to do outside research for the longer paper). A journal that chronicles your service-learning work will serve as a document of this experiential research and will be graded as part of the writing requirements for the class.

Track B: This track will allow you to take a more traditional approach to research and will require you to familiarize yourself with various library offerings and with methods of finding a variety of resources in the library and on the internet. An annotated bibliography that outlines a number of outside sources (minimum of ten) related to the topic of your longer essay will be required. Time spent on this project should equal the time spent in service by those on Track A. The bibliography will be accompanied by a report that will give a detailed overview of the materials that you discover, and that report (along with those of other students from this class) will be a useful tool for the Canton city Schools and their diversity coordinator. More on this project after you have chosen your course track.

Everyone will hear a great deal about service-learning and Canton City schools during the first few weeks of class. Because the schools will come to depend upon the service you provide, you should be sure when choosing your course ?track? and when selecting times and days for service that you can complete the semester-long service requirement. Scheduled times for visits can be changed only if such changes are OK-ed by the school, teacher, principal, etc. Failure to complete the service-learning component, however, as well as failure to complete any component of the class, will result in a below-passing grade for this class.

POLICIES

Essays
Although directed in-class writing assignments will help you to formulate theses for your essays, as well as to draft and edit your work, you must be prepared to put in time outside of class as you revise and polish your graded, written assignments. Use a writing handbook like Andrea Lunsford?s The Everyday Writer, to guide you as you proofread and edit your papers. Ultimately, you are responsible for basic grammatical and mechanical knowledge, and so please ask me to work with you on these issues if you know that you have trouble with the basics.

I will meet with you as often as you like during my office hours and by appointment. I will also require that you meet with me for one individual conference during the process of writing Essay #3 (I will ask you to sign up for these conferences at a later time).

Essays may be written in multiple steps: pre-writing exercises; an outline paragraph or thesis statement, to help you define the topic of your paper; a draft that will be read by other students ("peer editors"), and by me if you would like to meet with me outside of class; and a final draft. Any steps that I require will factor into your grade. Required processes will be outlined in each assignment sheet that I prepare during the term.

On days when we have a peer-editing session, each student will read and comment on other students' work in his/her group. Peer-editing sessions will be guided sessions that you must attend! On the day of each peer-editing session, you must bring in a copy of your essay that can be shared with your group (not your only copy!). The peer-editing process will figure into the grade for each out-of-class essay. If you don't have a draft prepared on the day of peer editing, at least come to class and participate in the peer-editing process?help your classmates to write effectively! A one-third letter grade will be docked for a missed peer editing session.

As a part of the process of writing and researching Essay #4, you will be required to prepare and present researched information to the class. This project will be a presentation that outlines information gained through service-learning that you use in the longer research-based essay that will be due at the end of the term. I will explain this component of the class more fully later in the term.

Reading Responses
All reading assignments should be read prior to class discussion. For each day when there is a reading assignment, you will be required to hand in a written response to that day's reading. Reading responses should be approximately one typed, double-spaced page in length. This assignment will help to ensure that reading will be done and that we can have lively, informed class discussions. These responses will be part of your homework grade. Responses should not summarize the day?s reading assignment, but should strive toward reflective and analytical considerations of the reading. You are free to make personal connections, or to express distaste or confusion about a text, but you must do so critically and thoughtfully, always taking the time to think about your own reading process and your critical and other reactions to texts.

Attendance
You must regularly attend class in order to meet all requirements of the course. I will not impose an attendance policy, and there is no such thing in this class as an absence that is automatically ?excused.? Each student and each issue will be approached on a case-by-case basis. If you have a special consideration, then please see me on your own, in my office, during office hours or by appointment.

please keep track of your absences in this or in any class.

Plagiarism
University policy also explains, ?The use of the intellectual property of others without attributing it to them is considered a serious academic offense. Cheating or plagiarism will result in receiving a failing grade for the work or course. Repeat offenses will result in dismissal from the university.?

Plagiarism is a serious offense, and is one that neither I nor the University will tolerate. In order to avoid any unintentional breaches of academic honesty, please use MLA documentation to clearly document your research. If you have any questions regarding proper citation or appropriate ways in which to use the ideas or writings of others, then please meet with me to discuss the process. Any student whom I suspect of plagiarism will receive a zero grade for the paper or an ?F? for the course, and may be sent to the dean for counseling or additional recourse. I am also required to report any instances of cheating or plagiarism to the student conduct officer, regardless of whether formal charges are filed.

Grading

• All assignments are due in class, when we begin. No late work will be accepted. Reading responses and other daily writings cannot be made up, so come to class and come prepared.
• Out-of-class writing should be typed, double-spaced, on 8.5×11-inch white paper.
• Reading responses will be given grades of ?, ?+, or ?-. A ?check? indicates competency and that clear ideas are present; basically, you?re doing what I?d like to see. A ?check plus? indicates a high-caliber response, and a ?check minus? will designate a response that I find insufficient. At some point during the semester (usually before mid-term), I will notify you if those ?check minuses? will become zeros. A ?check minus? means you need to step up your game and engage with texts more thoroughly and/or analytically. All checks earn one point toward the total grade earned for these responses (I will also include in this grade any in-class writing assignments that I choose to collect). At semester?s end, I will assign grades based on a traditional scale (i.e. 90% = A, etc.). This is the easiest portion of your grade to control; turn in your responses!
• Please make careful note of any assignment sheet or other explanation I give you during this semester. Any essay or other assignment that is not completed to the specifications I lay out in class or in a written directive will not be graded at the ?satisfactory? (C) level. If you have any questions, then please come to see me during my office hours or by appointment.
• I assign letter grades to essays, presentations, etc. Grades for assignments and for the course will be plus/minus, and will factor into the following final grading scale:

  A 93 and above
  A- 90 up to 93
  B+ 87 up to 90
  B 84 up to 87
  B- 80 up to 84
  C+ 77 up to 80
  C 74 up to 77
  C- 70 up to 74
  D+ 67 up to 70
  D 60 up to 67
  F Below 60

  All work must follow my specifications in order to receive a grade of ?C? or higher. Requirements for written work are as follows:

  • A= thoughtful, clear writing relatively free of grammatical errors; clear, specific thesis that shows focus and that is fully explored within the essay
  • B= above-average work that shows intelligent and analytical thought (and often attempts an ambitious thesis), but may lack a clear focus or adequate development of ideas; may show evidence of weak mechanics
  • C= satisfactory work that fulfills the assignment but does not move to claim an original point of view; this work might also show evidence of severe grammatical problems that need direct attention
  • D= does not meet the assignment; does not show evidence of specific analysis or of thoughtful reflection
  • F= words on a page that do not cohere to form an argument, an analysis, or to meet an academic standard of writing.
• If you have questions or concerns about any grade, or if you wish to ask me for special consideration about any assignment or due date, then you must do so in my office, during office hours. Do not ask such questions in front of classmates. Ideally, you should wait until you?ve had time to review my comments before you meet with me to discuss a grade.
• You must complete all assignments in order to pass this class. Any essay not turned in, any whole requirement missed (i.e. no homework ever turned in), or any other component skipped altogether will result in a grade of no higher than ?D? for the class.

CLASS ASSIGNMENTS

(Dates are tentative, but any changes will be announced well in advance of new due dates)

Grades for all students will reflect:

Writing Inventory: 1/22 (5%)
Essay #1: Due 2/9 (10%)
Essay #2: Due 3/16 (15%)
Essay #3: Due 5/4 (15%)
Homework/in-class writing (15%)
Presentation (10%)

Grades for Track A
(service-learning participants)
will reflect:
Service journal (15%)
Reflective research essay #4 (15%)

Grades for Track B
(diversity research)
will reflect:
Annotated bibliography/report (two parts; 15%)
Research-based Essay #4 (15%)

English 330: Business Writing
Honors Section 01: MW 9:00 10:40 in 037 Millett
Winter 2003

Lecturer: Cathy Sayer Office: 483 Millett
Mailbox: 469 Millett Office Hours: MW 11:00 1:00
Phone: 775 2471 TTH 1:00 2:30
Email: cathy.sayer {at} wright(.)edu and by appointment

Texts and Materials

For this course, you will need:
Business and Administrative Communication, 6th Edition, by Kitty 0.
A Writer's Reference, 4th Edition, by Diana Hacker (recommended)
Access to a computer with Microsoft Word software (Windows 98 or above)
Several preformatted IBM disks

Course Goals

The general goals of this course are to prepare you for the types of writing you will encounter in the workplace and for the citizenship role of a business professional. The specific goals are to assist you in developing strategies for: writing with specific audiences and purposes in mind writing collaboratively developing a sense of ethics in business communication planning, drafting, and revising your writing designing your documents visually

Course Description

To achieve the course goals, you will write a variety of texts: emails, memos, letters, proposals, reports, handbooks, manuals, etc. Some will be exercises from our text, but most of your writing in your major project will be real workplace writing in the form of a service learning team project.

Service learning projects represent mutually beneficial partnerships between academic courses and nonprofit organizations. The nonprofit groups will provide you with real workplace contexts for practicing the skills taught in the class, and you will provide valuable services for the organizations services for which they could not afford to pay and which might otherwise go undone. All parties have an equal stake in the success of these projects.

For your service learning project in this course, you and 1-2 other classmates will form a team to provide writing services for a non profit organization in our area. Your team will choose a project from a list of organizations that have made requests for our services. And the whole class will work as an extended creative team, supporting each other and acting as a consulting group as we contract out our services to meet needs in our community. By the end of the course, you should have a collection of writings from which to compile a portfolio to take to job interviews.

Course Requirements

Your final course grade will consist of the following:

• Collaborative Team Project Portfolio 50%
• Project Evaluation 15%
• Participation 20%
• Team Player Grade 15%

All assignments must be completed and turned in to receive a passing grade in the course. All formal team portfolio pieces must have received feedback from your classmates and me in order to be submitted for a grade.

Collaborative Team Project Portfolio

Your team's project portfolio is due, Wednesday, March 12, at the celebration we will host to honor our community partners and present them with the completed projects. The portfolio will consist of drafts and revisions of the following documents.

• a portfolio transmittal
• an email that introduces you to your community partners
• a project proposal
• a progress report
• a negative or persuasive message (most likely email)
• the final project

Class discussion, readings and activities will provide guidance on the proper format for these pieces. And you will receive feedback on each from your classmates and me to help you revise. You will have one mandatory conference with me on a semifinal draft of your project. However, before you submit your first drafts to your community partners for review, you should consult with me to make certain your work reflects the principles being learned in the course.

Project Evaluation

Your project evaluation will be due during finals week and will be discussed in more detail before you begin work on it. Basically, though, you will be asked to demonstrate your overall learning about business writing during this term by evaluating

• The effectiveness of your team's collaborative process
• The amount and quality of each team member's contributions (team player grade)
• The quality of writing in your team project. Your own progress in internalizing business writing principles and skills, using examples from pieces you wrote during the project
• How your choices, behaviors, and activities as a business professional and a citizen might differ as a result of your work in the nonprofit sector

Participation

Your participation grade will be based on a reading log and presentations of your team's document drafts to the class. Your grade will be calculated on the percentage of credits you earn out of the total possible during the term (90%=A, 80%=B, etc.).

Reading Log

Every day that you have a reading assignment, you should come to class with a reading log. The purpose of the logs is to help you digest your readings and be prepared to apply the information to your project work during class time. In the log, you should take notes on the most important points and concepts in the chapter and list any questions you want to ask in class. So that you can use your log efficiently in class, you also may want to note page numbers where each piece of info is located. Each log should be labeled with the date, the chapter number, and the title and may be typed (single or double spaced) or handwritten. Logs will receive full or half credit. To earn full credit, you must

• Be present for the entire class
• Thoroughly complete the log for the correct reading
• Present the log to me at the beginning of class on the assigned day Logs that are deficient in one or more of these areas will receive half credit. However, you may make up as many as 3 logs with no penalty, as long as the late work is presented at the beginning of the next class meeting.

Draft Presentations

During the term, each team will draft and revise 7 different documents. On the day a draft is due, one member of your team will present the draft to the class on the big screen and explain why you made the choices you did. The class will then discuss strengths of the draft and improvements that can be made. Each team member must do his/her fair share of the presentations (2/3 for a 3 person team, 3 for a 2 person team). Presentations will receive full or half credit. For full credit, you must

• Present a draft that shows a good attempt to apply principles in the reading and class discussion.
• Explain the team's choices clearly and thoroughly.
• Presentations that are deficient in one of these areas will receive half credit.
• There will be no make ups for draft presentations.

Team Player Grade

At the end of the term, your team members (in their project evaluation) and I will evaluate your contributions as a team player. Each of us will assign you a team player grade, which I will then average to arrive at your team player grade. I assume that your classmates and I will be looking for similar characteristics in terms of your performance in the class and on your team, but I can tell you the qualities I look for.

• Prompt and faithful attendance
• Efficient and effective use of class time, evidenced by the quality and amount of your in class work (Team members may also value the way you use out of class meeting time.)
• Flexible and cooperative attitude (Team members might especially value these qualities when setting up meeting times or needing help in emergencies.)
• Good work ethic (history of meeting deadlines and carrying your fair share of the load)
• Willingness to take risks and shoulder some kind of leadership (making phone calls, scheduling or running meetings, soothing hurt feelings, providing needed materials or skills)

Tips for Success

The policies and procedures in this course will follow, as closely as possible, those in the work world. Therefore, in determining what might be proper behavior in a given situation, you should continually ask yourself, "What would I do if this happened on my job? How would this action reflect on me as an employee? How would it reflect on my company?" Making things run smoothly will require common sense, respect for others, and effective and timely communication, both with me and with your classmates.

Partial Course Schedule

M 2/17 – Present project. Bring all negative or persuasive message drafts and project materials to class.

W 2/19 – Draft project report.

M 2/24 – Draft of project due.

W 2/26 – Checking Progress of Teams. Bring a copy of the Service Learning project draft for the 1-2 hour Projects conference

W 3/5 – Preparing Portfolio. Final project editing. Discuss project.

Week 10 – Work on projects or speak informally about project evaluations and your learning in the class.

W 3/12 – Attend Celebration Thanking Community Partners

Finals Week – Evaluating Project. Evaluation due.

COLLEGE WRITING AND RESEARCH
Student Syllabus, Spring 2003

English 102, sections 70 and 71 (3 credits), and Eng. 298, s. 002, for one additional service learning credit.

These are partially online, service learning sections. In addition to the three class hours a week, students will spend about thirteen hours during the semester at a service learning site to be assigned. In addition, much of the work of the class will be done online at http://blackboard.mt.uwm.edu

Instructor: Dr. Kathleen Dale
Office: Mitchell 165A
Phone: 229 3748
Office Hours: M 9 3, W 9 11, F 9 11, TR 12:30 1:30, and other times by appt.
Email: kdaleC {at} uwm(.)edu
Home page: http://www.uwm.edu/People/kdale

Texts: (All required texts are on library reserve under the name of 'Dale.')

Soul of a Citizen by Paul R. Loeb (about $16 new)
Good Reasons by Faigley and Selzer (about $24 new)
A Pocket Style Manual (3rd ed.) by Diana Hacker (about $7)
Student Guide to the English Dept's First Year Writing Program ($3.50)

Prerequisite:

Grade of C or better in English 101 or placement score of 576 or higher (Code 3 on the EPT).

Goals:

1. Rhetorical Knowledge and Awareness
English 102 promotes rhetorical knowledge and awareness through carefully selected course readings which illustrate how a particular topic is formulated differently depending upon the rhetorical situation and through a sequence of argumentative writing assignments which ask students to compose rhetorically self conscious arguments in light of audience, purpose, and context.

2. Reading/Writing/Critical Thinking Connections
English 102 encourages reading/writing/critical thinking connections through writing assignments which require accurate, close reading of texts. Together, the reading and writing assignments require students to acknowledge multiple points of view and to use writing to understand others' ideas and to think through their own in increasingly complex terms.

3. Writing Process Strategies
English 102 emphasizes writing process strategies, particularly invention and revision. Writing, reading, and research activities are presented as forms of inquiry, ways of investigating and discovering ideas. Extensive revision is presented as a way of continually rethinking and reshaping one's ideas and presentation of ideas. Ongoing reflective writing, which culminates in a final reflective essay, illustrates the importance of a repertoire of writing strategies and conscious control of rhetorical choices.

4. Academic Writing Practices
English 102 teaches common academic writing practices: summary, paraphrase, direct quotation, appropriate citation, research techniques and common academic writing genres, particularly various forms of argument.

Class Policies and Procedures:

• Students will write four essays around the themes of homelessness, hunger, and/or illiteracy as explored through their service learning and/or reading and research: a rhetorical analysis; a causal and policy argument; a position paper; and a reflective analysis of the student's own learning and writing process. All essays will involve some form of research, and all essays must be word processed.

• The first drafts of essays two, three, and four must be at least 850 words to receive first draft credit (the first draft of essay one must be at least 800 words). You must add a word count to all of your first draft. Two of these four essays will be revised numerous times for the final portfolio. Portfolio essays must be between 1000-1500 words, except for the reflective analysis essay, which should be about 500-700 words. Keep all copies of your various drafts! You will be asked to submit them with your portfolio.
• Tardiness: Being late to class or to your service learning assignment is annoying to all involved. You are expected to be in class and at your volunteer assignment on time. Chronic tardiness may have a negative effect on your grade. However, it's better to come to class late (once in a great while) than to stay away just because you are a few minutes late.
• Attendance: Since writing courses are based on student participation during class time, attendance in English 102 is mandatory. Students who miss more than four class sessions and two service sessions will necessarily earn a grade of C or lower in the course and will have to repeat it. There is no distinction between excused/unexcused absences. Every time you are not in class or at your assigned service site, for whatever reason, it counts as an absence. Your Service Learning Time Record, signed by your site supervisor, must be turned in to me by Monday, May 5, or your portfolio will not be accepted.
• There will be "entry tickets" to many of the regular class sessions. These "tickets" will involve assignments that must be handed in at the door or shown at the beginning of class, or you will lose points.
• Make up service sessions must be arranged with your onsite supervisor, who will notify me of your attendance.

Grading:

If I believe your final portfolio to be borderline, I will take it to a final assessment session of other 102 instructors at the end of the semester. Although they will determine whether a portfolio is passing (C level work or above) or failing, I will assign the final grade.

HOW POINTS CAN BE ADDED:

• Up to 300 "electronic points" (EP) may be added for the quality and timeliness of your electronic participation in reflective/journal forums, quizzes, essay postings, essay discussion forums, and your other web site work. These 300 points will be divided among the individual electronic assignments as seen in parentheses (EP points) throughout the schedule of assignments.
• Ten points an hour extra credit may be earned for up to 10 extra hours (100 points) at your volunteer service learning site (must be documented by your supervisor and should probably be served immediately before or after your regularly scheduled time). These are in addition to the 13 required hours.
• Five points extra credit will be given each time you visit me, a tutor, or the writing center to work on a specific essay or the revision of an essay. I will have forms available which you may take to be signed by the tutor or writing center staff person you consult. I will keep track of those students who come to my office.
• There will be other opportunities for extra credit, such as attending various service learning events, and the creation of a Power Point slide show based upon your research paper. More information later.

HOW POINTS CAN BE SUBTRACTED:

• Ten points will be LOST for each class or volunteer day missed (up to 60 points before you fail the class).
• Ten points will be LOST every time you do not turn in one of the ten assigned "entry tickets" at the beginning of class (up to 100 points). If you are absent, you lose points for BOTH attendance and for any "entry ticket" due that day.
• Ten points will be LOST for each first draft of an essay NOT turned in or posted by the due date listed in this syllabus (up to 30 points).

Assignments Schedule

Jan. 21/Tues: Introduction to class (MIT B 9). If you are unfamiliar with Blackboard, please see me for more help individually.

Please fill out your "Student Home Page" in Blackboard and include a current picture of yourself. There is a scanner in MIT 133 and other computer labs to scan a photo of yourself onto a disk. Then you can upload it onto your page (up to 20 points for a complete and timely page with your picture).

Jan. 23/Thur: Take Online Quiz about the syllabus (under "Assignments") before class (15EP). Bring to class as "entry ticket #1."

Service learning introduction and overviews by site representatives. Sign up in class or by Monday, Jan. 27 with the Institute for Service Learning here on campus, ENG B59, (229 2767), for one of the following sites:

• Hope House (209 W. Orchard near South side) homelessness
• Laubach Literacy Center (2724 W. WeiIs) illiteracy
• Milwaukee Rescue Mission, Joy House (830 N. 19th) hunger and illiteracy
• St. John's Cathedral Meal Site (802 N. Jackson) hunger
• Interchange Food Pantry (1035 N. Waverly) hunger
• Meta House (2266 N. Prospect) illiteracy
• The Gathering (various locations for meal sites) hunger

Jan. 28/Tues: Assignment #11, online: a 300 400 word response to ONE of the first three preliminary questions about the themes of the course, and 100 word responses to EACH of the other questions (25EP). Print and bring all responses to class as "entry ticket #2". Discussion of preliminary questions.

Jan. 30/Thurs: Assignment #2, online (25 EP). Before completing the assignment, read Loeb, 1 34, and Good Reasons, 1 4 and 1215. Xerox and bring to class YOUR annotations (not mine) as "entry ticket #3".

Discussion of quiz and annotations of Loeb's pp. 14 34*. How would you describe Loeb's tone? Claims? Values? Assumptions? What can you tell about his use of reason, emotion, and his own character in order to help persuade the reader of his point of view?

You should attend your first orientation or volunteer session at your service learning site sometime this week. Think about what you're seeing/experiencing, and take notes. If you are having trouble finding a workable site, please see me soon.

Feb. 4/Tues: Read Loeb, Chapters Two through Five (pp. 34 116), and Good Reasons, Chapter 4, pp. 73 95. Find and bring at least THREE examples of EACH of Loeb's appeals to reason (logos), emotion (pathos), and character (ethos) this is your "entry ticket #4" to today's class. In addition, take the online quiz (under "Course Information" on these Loeb chapters (25EP). Print it and bring it to class for "entry ticket #5."

Feb. 6/Thur: In class writing on Chas. 1 5, Loeb.

Group work on draft of Essay #1, Rhetorical Analysis.

See Good Reasons, pp. 104 106.

Post a 250-word journal entry linking these two weeks' readings and your first service experience in the Discussion Forum for Friday, Feb.7, 8 pm. Follow up with at least two responses to other students' entries which don't have many responses by Sunday the 9th, 8pm. Reply briefly to those who have responded to you (25 EP). Describe your first service experience (or another experience if you have not had your first experience yet). What did you do? What did you see? How did you feel? Then, relate your experience to one or more of the following statements by Loeb:

Can you relate your experience to Loeb's statement that social involvement involves risk? He says, "At the very least, it requires us to make ourselves psychologically vulnerable. It impels us … to challenge internal fears, and to face criticism from those who will call our efforts fruitless, foolish, or a waste of scarce time. In return, social involvement converts us from detached spectators into active participants" (29).

"If we convince ourselves that nothing can change, we don't have to risk acting on our dreams. But the more we accept this, the more we deny core parts of ourselves. We deny even the possibility that our choices can matter"(96).

"We never know how the impact of our actions may ripple out. We never know who may be touched. That's one more reason why, although the fruits of our labors can't always be seen, they matter immensely" (110).

Feb. 11/Tues: Draft of Essay #1 due (rhetorical analysis, 800 word minimum with word count attached) with reflective note stapled on top (what went well/what didn't in this first draft? on what specifically would you like feedback?).

Read Loeb, Chapter 6. In class group summary of main points.

Good Reasons, Chapter 2.

Sometime before 9 am post in Thursday's Discussion Forum a 150 word question or topic for class discussion arising from a specific passage from Loeb's chapters 6 through 9. Quote the passage and give the page number first (15 EP).

Feb. 13/Thur: Discussion of Loeb, Chapters 7 9.

In Discussion Forum for Sunday, Feb. 16, 8 pm (20 EP), post a 250 word journal entry linking your week's service learning experience to a specific quotation from Loeb, Chapters 6 9. Copy the quotation before you begin your journal entry. Respond to at least four postings of others by Wednesday, Feb. 19. Finally, respond briefly to all who have responded to you.

Feb 18/Tues: Sometime before 9 am., post in today's Discussion Forum a 150 word topic for class discussion resulting from a specific passage from Loeb's chapters 10 12. Quote the passage and give the page number first (20 EP).

In class: Discussion of Loeb's chapters 10 12, based upon your postings.

Essay #1 returned. Criteria for passing 102 portfolio papers (see pages 13 14 of Student Guide). How to revise.

For Thursday, jot down one or more problems or things that are troubling you about your service experience so far, for discussion with each other and with members of the Institute for Service Learning. Bring this to class Thursday for "entry ticket #6."

Feb 20/Thur: Discussion and brainstorming about common problems experienced at service sites.

By Friday, Feb 21, 8 pm, post a 260-word entry about what you've perceived at your service site to be the main cause(s) of hunger, homelessness, or illiteracy in the appropriate Discussion Forum. Follow up with at least two responses by Monday the 24th (20 EP).

Feb 25/Tues: Essay # 2 assigned: primary and/or secondary research for a claim about the causes of/solutions to homelessness, hunger, or illiteracy. Draft of essay will be posted in Blackboard along with at least one picture taken at your service site or found on the web.

Read Good Reasons, Chapter 13, "Effective Research," on how to conduct primary as well as secondary research.

Permission to photograph forms.

Discussion of extra credit Power Point project (up to 30 EP).

Feb 27/Thur: Library talk on research techniques. Meet in Library, east wing, E159.

Skim Hult, pages 69 122 and 123 156, as well as the library handouts, before you begin your search. Note particularly those parts of Hult's chapter on research and documentation that you are unfamiliar with and focus on those.

Post in Discussion Forum by Friday, Feb 28, 8 pm. Read everyone's posting and respond to at least two people who have not received many responses by Monday the 3rd, 8pm. Return again by Wednesday the 5thth 8 pm, to respond to those who have responded to you (20EP). In this forum, in at least 250 words, describe an incident or situation in your service experience so far that caused a dilemma for you because you did not know how to act or what to say. If you are not doing service, instead of an initial posting, respond thoughtfully to at least four people

• Why was it such a confusing event?
• How did you, or others around the event, feel about it?
• What did you do, or what was the first thing that you considered doing?
• What might you have done, instead of what you did do? What difference, if any, might this have made?
• How does a recent course reading relate to this issue, perhaps suggesting a course of action that might be advisable?

March 4/Tues: Library Work Day. Sign in at my table in the Reserve Reading Room (first floor, east wing). Those interested in learning how to transform your essay into a Power Point presentation for up to 30 points extra credit (due Nov. 5) let me know.

March 6/Thur: Library Work Day. Sign in at our table in the Reserve Reading Room.

March 11/Tues: Bring four copies of your draft so far as "entry ticket #7" to class. Group workshops of drafts. Midterm Assessments.

March 13/Thur: Meet in MIT B 9. Bring paper draft of Essay #2 with at least one embedded graphic (850 word minimum with word count attached) and reflective note added to top or bottom. In addition, bring a disk with this essay on it to post in the class web site (30EP).

Read seven of your classmates' drafts, and post your responses to at least three other drafts of essay #2 that haven't had at least three responses by Tuesday, March 25, 8 pm (20EP). In your comments, indicate what you think works well in the draft (be specific), and how well the draft meets the essay requirements (re read the assignment). Finally, what suggestion(s) might you have for revision?

March 25/Tues: Discussion of Good Reasons, Chapter 3 ("Thinking More about Your Audience").

March 27/Thur: Begin writing for Essay #3 position or mediating essay.

April 1/Tues: Class workshops of draft. Bring four copies: your "entry ticket #9" to class. PowerPoint extra credit projects due.

April 3/Thur: Draft of Essay #3 due with reflective note and word count.

Sign up for sharing one revision with the class over the next few weeks. On the day for which you signed up, you must bring enough copies for all your classmates and instructors.

Also sign up for required conference with instructor or CA to choose final portfolio essays on either Friday the 4th, Monday the 7th or Tuesday the 8th

Read Good Reasons chapters, 14 and 15.

April 8/Tues: Revision Workshop

April 10/Thur: Revision Workshop

April 15/Tues: Class workshop on revision.

April 17/Thur: Class workshop on revision.

All first drafts of required length must be in by noon, Wed., April 23, or you will not be allowed to hand in a final portfolio. This means you will have to repeat the course.

April 22/Tues: Continue revision workshops.

April 24/Thur: Continue revision workshops.

April 29/Tues: Revision workshop. The Reflective Analysis essay.

Post your 500 word entry about the whole semester's service-learning experiences in the Discussion Forum for Wed, April 30, 8 pm.

Follow up with at least three responses by Friday the 2nd, 8pm, and again by Monday the 6th (20EP). Specifically, describe what happened in your overall service experience, including what you accomplished, some of the events that puzzled or confused you, interactions you had, decisions you made, and plans you developed.

Briefly analyze how specific readings relate to your service experience. Apply the reading and your service experience to you and your personal life, including your goals, values, attitudes, beliefs, and philosophy. Finally, comment upon any personal gains you feel you have made through your service so far this semester, along with any specific examples. Has your service benefited you in any way? If you continue, what will be your reasons? If not, why not?

May 1/Thur: Bring draft of reflective analysis essay (500 700 words) to workshop. This is your "entry ticket #10" to class. Workshop if needed.

Monday, May 5: All Service Learning Time Sheets, signed by your supervisor, must be turned in to me by 4 pm, or you will not be allowed to turn in your portfolio on Wednesday. Exceptions must be cleared with me.

May 7/Tues: Class evaluations. PORTFOLIOS DUE IN CLASS.

College Writing

Textbooks

• The Ready Reference Handbook: Writing, Revising, Editing, Jack Dodds, Allyn and Bacon, 2000, ISBN 0 205 31019 2
• Plato Software (College provides)
• Online articles

Course Description

ENC 1101 is a challenging and exciting course. Opting to take this class with the 50/50 designation allows me to offer you the opportunity to meet half of the state mandated contact hours via our on line platform. Instead of spending three hours each week in a designated classroom, you will spend half of that time on line; the other half you will come to class and work with me and a small group of students on reading and writing assignments.

ENC 1101 is the first required general course in college level writing. You will compose essays and other works using various methods of development. This course fulfills 8,000 words of the Gordon Rule requirement and must be completed with a grade of "C" or better.

Prerequisites

Scholastic Assessment Test (SAT) score of 440 or more on the verbal subtest; American College Testing (ACT) score of 17 or more on the English subtest; Computerized Placement Test (CPT) score of 83 or more on the English subtest; or ENC 0021 with a grade of "S."

Course Competencies

Competency #1: The student will demonstrate an understanding of the writing process by:

a. Choosing and limiting a subject that can be sufficiently developed within a given time, for a specific purpose, for a specific purpose and audience.

b. Developing and refining pre writing and planning skills.

c. Formulating the main point to reflect the subject and purpose of the writing.

d. Supporting the main point with specific details and arranging them logically.

e. Writing an effective conclusion.

Competency #2: The student will demonstrate proficiency in writing a unified and coherent essay using methods of development suited to the topic by:

a. Writing an introductory paragraph.

b. Constructing a thesis statement.

c. Developing the thesis by:

1. Providing adequate support that reflects the ability to distinguish between generalized and concrete evidence.

2. Arranging the ideas and supporting details in a logical pattern appropriate to the purpose and focus. These may include descriptive, narrative, evaluative writing, process analysis, comparisons and contrast, cause and effect, and exemplification and others.

3. Writing unified prose in which all supporting material is relevant to the thesis.

4. Writing coherent prose providing effective transitional devices.

d. Writing a concluding paragraph.

Competency #3: The student will demonstrate the ability to proofread, edit, and revise by:

a. Recognizing and correcting errors in clarity.

b. Recognizing and correcting errors in unity and coherence.

c. Using conventional sentence structure and correcting sentence errors such as fragments, run ons, comma splices, misplaced modifiers and faulty parallelism.

d. Recognizing and correcting errors in utilizing the conventions of Standard American English including:

1. Using standard verb forms and consistent tense.

2. Maintaining agreement between subject and verb, pronoun and antecedent.

3. Using proper case forms consistent point of view.

4. Using standard spelling, punctuation, and capitalization.

5. Selecting vocabulary appropriate to audience, purpose, and occasion.

Competency #4: The student will demonstrate an understanding of various reading selections by:

a. Identifying main ideas, purpose, overall organizational patterns, supporting details, and elements of coherence in assigned readings.

b. Distinguish fact from opinion.

c. Summarizing and/or paraphrasing passages.

Competency #5: The student will integrate research materials into a piece of writing by:

a. Assembling research sources on a designated subject.

b. Taking effective notes from research sources.

c. Recognizing when and how to document sources.

Assignments and Percentages

Folder #1 (10%)

This is a compilation of work for the first four weeks of the semester. This first folder should include the following:

1. Table of Contents
2. Reflective Essay (1 page)
3. Discussion Postings and Responses
4. Notes
5. Drafts of Essays
6. In Class Writing Samples
7. Report for Plato Activities

Folder #2 (15%)

This is a compilation of work done from week four to week eight. It should demonstrate greater development, control, and depth than the previous folder.

1. Table of Contents
2. Reflective Essay (2 pages)
3. Discussion Postings and Responses
4. Notes
5. Drafts of Essays
6. In Class Writing Samples
7. Power Point Presentation (At least 10 slides)
8. Report for Plato Activities

Folder #3 (15%)

This is a compilation of work done from week nine to week thirteen. It should be a showcase of your writing skills.

1. Table of Contents
2. Reflective Essay (3 pages)
3. Discussion Postings
4. Drafts of Essays
5. In Class Writing Samples
6. Research Essay

Cape Florida Research and Education Project (30%)

Students will participate in investigating the Cape Florida Restoration Project. They will have the opportunity to participate in a 20 hour service learning project. Participants will work with me and a Cape Florida biologist to help restore a portion of park land. The work is physically intensive and very rewarding. Service learning participants will be assigned to a group. Each member will have a particular task to complete which will become part of an oral and written group presentation at the end of the semester. This semesters' project will also include working with a local elementary school and developing a mentoring program around the theme of South Florida and environmental literacy.

Students who do not choose to do service learning will participate in the Cape Florida Project by providing secondary research. They will write a report of approximately ten pages in length that will involve library and Internet research. This report will be integrated to the group presentation at the end of the term.

Meets MWF, 1:00 02:05 p.m. in Hum 111
(Service Learning sessions at West Wind Village to be arranged)

Instructor: Argie Manolis
Email: manolis {at} mrs.umn(.)edu (This is the best way to reach me)
Office: HUM 124
Office Phone/Voicemail: 589-6257 (This is the second best way to reach me)
Office Hours: Tues, 12-2 and Wed, 2-4

A poem does invite, it does inquire. What does it invite? A poem invites you to feel.
More than that: It invites you to respond. And better than that: A poem invites a total response.
-Muriel Rukeyser from The Life of Poetry

Course Description
Welcome to Introduction to Creative Writing! This is a course in "inquiry" and "total response." In the process of reading and writing poetry and fiction, you'll come to recognize the power of the written word how it can change the way writers and readers live their lives. This writing course is designed to help you discover and put into practice your own strategies for living a more creative life. More practically (or more academically), you'll learn basic strategies for gathering ideas for, writing, critically reading, and revising prose (primarily fiction) and poetry (which may be fictional or non fictional).

This course encourages you to think of all your writing as work in progress. You will complete a portfolio of fiction and poetry at the end of the semester, but much of your grade on this portfolio will hinge on how hard you work at drafting and revising. In the process of doing the work, we'll discuss questions like, what makes a good story? A good poem? What is creative writing as an academic discipline and as a way of life? Where do our own stories and poems, and our own writing goals, fit in? What value does creative writing have personally, socially, and politically?

Research shows that people learn best when their reading, writing, and thinking relate to challenges and needs within their communities. In this course, you will have the opportunity to interact with elderly people in the Morris community, many of whom suffer from Alzheimer's Disease and Related Dementia. You will create "found poetry" from their words in addition to your original poems. You will be providing a valuable service, and in the process, you'll learn to value the lives, memories, and words of people much different than you. You will spend a total of eight hours this semester Outside of class time meeting with the residents.

Course Requirements and Policies

Books You Need:

• A Poetry Handbook, by Mary Oliver
• Writing Fiction: A Guide to Narrative Craft, by Janet Burroway
• Service Learning in Writing Courses at University of Minnesota Morris
• Course Manual, Fourth Edition (This manual will be available from the instructor at the cost of production).

Other Supplies/Costs:

• Photocopying costs will be significant. You should set aside $20 for these costs from the beginning of the semester.
• Two two-pocket folders for submission of your portfolios and journal entries.
• A large envelope for the return of your final portfolio
• A disk, with all versions of your stories and poems saved.
• Lined paper and a pen for in class writing assignments.

Attendance and Participation (5% of grade):
Because so much of your learning will take place in class, you must attend to receive credit for this course. If you miss more than three unexcused class meetings, your final course grade will be lowered by one letter grade. If you miss more than five unexcused class meetings, you cannot pass this course. Conferences and service learning sessions count as class meetings. If you find yourself missing class frequently because of illness, family problems, or other reasons, please talk to me about your attendance record as soon as it is of concern.

Because we are building a community of writers in this class, participation is important. You must participate in full class discussions of readings, service learning activities, and workshops. In class writing, including both journals and bi weekly letters (explained below) will count toward your final grade. At the end of the semester, I will assign an attendance and participation grade based on attendance and promptness, in class writing, participation in class discussions and workshops, and peer evaluations of your participation in the service learning project.

The Workshop (Part of attendance and participation grade):

Good writing is never a product of only one mind. Writers draw on a variety of experiences and influences in order to work through the writing process, An important influence is feedback from a diverse audience for the sake of this course, your teacher and your peers. The workshop is an important part of this, and all, creative writing courses. The workshop allows you to gather a variety of responses and make choices about how you will revise your work as a result. As a reader, you'll discover what styles of writing you most enjoy and how to better appreciate good writing. You'll gain critical reading skills which will help you write more clearly and thoughtfully.

Writing involves risk. Responding to writing involves careful, critical, sensitive communication. I hope that as we get to know each other, we will learn to challenge and to support and encourage each other. This classroom should be a place in which we all feel comfortable sharing our work and are all open to thoughtful feedback. It's important to note that there's a difference between providing critical feedback that is useful and feedback that amounts to a general judgment negative or positive about a piece of work. Similarly, there's a difference between disagreeing with an idea or comment and shutting down or criticizing the person who made the comment. All work has the potential to be improved, and all ideas have the potential to be thoughtfully reconsidered. You'll be asked to look critically at each piece by your peers and think about how it could be improved. Unsupported comments will not be accepted. Neither will comments that are hurtful or condescending. Workshop responses (20% of your grade): You will be assigned to a group of three to four other students for each assignment. You are required to read drafts of poems and stories from the entire class, but you must only complete a thorough written response for your group members. You must be prepared to lead the discussion about the pieces written by members of your group on the day they will be workshopped. We will discuss the process for responding to drafts in more detail, and you will get a list of questions and/or criteria for each assignment.

Workshop Policies:

• You must bring enough copies of your draft for each class member and the teacher on the day your drafts are due. You are responsible for knowing how many copies to bring. If you do not bring enough copies, your participation grade will be affected.
• You must complete written peer reviews for each group member on the day the peer review is due. You must bring two copies of the peer review: one for the writer and one for the teacher. If you do not complete the peer review on the day it is due, or bring copies for both the writer and the teacher, your participation grade will be affected.
• You must include copies of peer reviews you received with your portfolio packets, so do not discard them, even after you've completed the revision.
• Peer reviews must be prepared in one of the following ways: you may type responses to each of the questions or criteria. Include your name, the writer's name, and the assignment if you type peer responses. You may also respond to each of these questions or criteria by writing in the margins of the poem. If you choose the second option, be sure you respond in some way to all criteria and use dark ink to write your comments so they will be legible on a photocopy. Write comments legibly, and include your name legibly at the top of the poem.
• Bi-weekly letters (part of attendance and participation grade):
  Every other week, I will give you ten minutes at the end of class to reflect on the work we have accomplished as a community of writers during the previous two weeks. I will return your letter with a response during the next class period. Unlike the rest of your work in this class, your letters will be confidential. Because my goal is to help you learn, I want to check in with you every two weeks and find out how the class is working for you. Suggestions on ways to improve the class curriculum are greatly encouraged. In addition to these letters, I encourage you to meet with me so we can discuss how the class is working for you in more detail.
• Conferences (part of attendance and participation grade): One group and two individual conferences are scheduled during the semester so you may receive one on one feedback on your writing in various stages. In addition, you should plan to visit me during office hours for additional feedback.

Final Poetry and Fiction Portfolio (50% of your grade):
You will write one short story and three original poems this semester. You will be evaluated not only on the quality of the final drafts, but also on the process. You will do a lot of prewriting for each assignment. It is your responsibility to keep track of these prewriting assignments. Out of class prewriting assignments must be submitted in the format described for your story drafts below. In class prewriting will be handwritten, but should include a heading with your name, the date, and a description of the prompt. Each time a draft is due, I will collect all the prewriting that led to that draft, directly or indirectly.

The story and the first two poems will be submitted to the instructor and peers for oral and written comments; the third poem will receive comments from the instructor only. You are expected to revise the story and one of the poems using these comments. At the end of the semester, you will write a reflection on your revision process for each piece you revise. Revision means "re vision" or "seeing in a new way." Mechanical changes or a few minor changes in plot, setting, language, line breaks, etc. does not constitute a revision. A revision involves reworking the piece several times, using critical thinking, peer comments, and artistic vision (which comes from a combination of intense engagement with the piece and periods of distance from it). How thoroughly you revise, how well you address peer comments in your reflection, and how much the story or poem improves in terms of its essential elements (plot, imagery, characterization, line breaks, etc.) will effect your grade.

In order to receive a passing grade (C or D) on this portfolio, you must submit all drafts of portfolio pieces on their due dates, complete 75% or more of the prewriting, and write a good revision. For an A or B, all prewriting must be completed and all drafts submitted on time. The revision must be significantly better in terms of its essential elements than the early drafts. All pieces must also be carefully proofread and free of mechanical errors for an A or B. In addition to prewriting exercises, Your portfolio will include several drafts, workshop responses, a final revision of at least one poem and the story, and a reflection on your revision process.

Found Poetry Portfolio (15% of your grade):
You're responsible for writing found poems based on the tapes from at least three meetings with residents at West Wind Village. Each time you write a series of found poems, you will also write a reflection on the process and on what the poems reveal or witness (a handout with specific questions to address will be available). Writing found poems will give You practice in composing titles and line breaks and help you think about your role as a writer in new ways. At the end of the semester, you and your peer group will compile these poems into a book of poetry for the residents and their loved ones. Each group of found poems and reflection is due in draft form a week after the session with residents. Final versions are due close to the end of the semester, when you will compile final books of poems for each resident with your peers.

Service learning journals and final service learning reflection essay (10% of your grade):
As part of the course's service learning requirement, you must reflect on the service learning project periodically throughout the semester. Specific questions will be offered to you in advance of each journal due date. Service learning journals should be submitted in the same format as your short story draft (see "final poetry and fiction portfolio"). In addition, you will draft and revise a final service learning reflection essay, which will be included in each resident's final book of poems. On some weeks, rather than a journal, you will be asked to write a letter to a family member of a resident with whom you work on the service learning project along with a brief reflection and analysis to accompany the letter. This letter should be formatted like a business letter. Examples will be provided.

Grading Policies:

• For drafts of poems and stories, I will offer comments only; however, the comments will clearly explain how the assignment could be improved. I will you written comments on the day your poem or story is workshopped. For the third poem, you will receive my comments during a conference. You won't receive a grade for these pieces until I review your final portfolio revisions, but these final grades will be largely based on how thoughtfully you incorporated earlier comments.
• You will receive comments on found poems within a week of the day they are submitted. You and your peers will receive a group grade on the final poetry books.
• Your workshop responses will be graded based on how thoroughly you answered each assigned question/addressed each criterion and how thoughtfully you engaged the writer's work. I will offer thorough comments on these; please allow two weeks for a return.
• Your service learning journals and essay will address how thoroughly and thoughtfully you answered the prompt and how well you narrated, reflected, and analyzed your experience in the previous two weeks.
• Please see me during office hours or make an appointment to discuss any concerns about your grade.

Tentative Schedule
(NOTE: This schedule is likely to change. All changes will be announced in class.)

• 1/13: Introductions/pre-survey
• 1/15: Complete informational questionnaire. Read introduction to manual and complete reflection journal on p. 15. Read chapter one in Burroway.
• 1/17: No class today. Begin work on assignments for 1/20.
• 1/20: Read chapter one in manual and complete reflection journal on p. 23.
  NOTE: If you have already been involved in the service learning project, please complete the same journal assignment; Your responses will likely be
  different this semester.
• 1/22: Read chapter four in manual and complete reflection journal on p. 72 under "additional questions for creative writing." You do NOT have to complete the reflection journal questions above this one. Read "The Visible Man" on pp. 144 154 in Burroway and the stories and poems on reserve at the library before tackling the reflection journal question. Be prepared to discuss all the stories and poems in the packet.
• 1/24: Read chapter five and complete reflection journal under "additional questions for creative writing" on p. 80. You do NOT have to complete the reflection journal questions above these.
• 1/27: Read chapter six in manual. Read chapter seven in manual. Read "alternative journal assignment" (handout).
• 1/29: Complete journal on pp. 52 53. Panel discussion. Bring questions for panelists.
• 1/31: Tour of West Wind Village. First service learning session during assigned group time. Facilitator will write poems for this week.
• 2/3: Read chapter eight and complete reflection journal on p. 109.
  NOTE: If you have already been involved in the service learning project, please complete the same journal assignment; your responses will likely be
  different this semester. Complete a plot outline for your story. (Consider using exercise 1 or 3 on p. 28, or in class writing exercises, for ideas).
• 2/5: Read Chapter Three in Burroway. 2/7: Read Chapter 10 in Burroway. Second service learning session during assigned group time. Facilitator will write poems for this week.
• 2/10: Service learning journal #1 due. Read chapter Four in Burroway to p. 132. Complete a character sketch of your main character by freewriting about him/her, then writing a one page summary of the important characteristics of the character and the main obstacle/difficulty s/he will face in the story. (Consider using the exercises on p. 155 under "development/revision" for help in freewriting).
• 2/12: Read chapter five in Burroway.
• 2/14: Read chapter six to p. 216 in Burroway. Write a one page description of one or more of the settings in your story in progress. Read Chapter 7 to p. 273 in Burroway.
• 2/15: Sweetheart's dance at West Wind Village. Volunteers who write a reflection about their experience will receive 20 points of extra credit toward their reflection journal or essay grade (wherever the points would best help you at the end of the semester). Third service learning session during assigned group lime. Facilitator will write poems for this week. Individual conferences will be held outside of class lime this week. Bring your story in progress to the conference.
• 2/17: Read Chapter 8 in Burroway to p. 301. Read "Who's Irish?" on pp. 311-319.
• 2/19: No class today. Begin work on homework for 2/21.
• 2/21: Read Chapter two in manual and complete reflection journal. Read poems your facilitator wrote from weeks one and two (handout). Read found poetry reflection journal assignment sheet (handout). Practice writing found poems. Continue work on story. Fourth service learning session during assigned group time. Student assigned to fourth session writes poems.
• 2/24: Service learning journal #2 due. Read pp. 1-18 in Oliver. Practice writing found poems. Continue work on story.
• 2/26: Read pp. 19 34 in Oliver. Practice writing found poems. Continue work on story.
• 2/28: Story due with five copies. Read sample peer responses (handout). Fifth service learning session during assigned group time. Found poems and reflection due in class on Monday for student assigned to fourth session. Student assigned to fifth session writes poems. Group workshop conference will be held outside of class time. Bring two copies of each workshop response to the conference.
• 3/3: Read pp. 35 57 in Oliver and packet of poems (handout).
• 3/5: Read 58 75 and 112 118 in Oliver.
• 3/7: Read chapter 11 in Burroway.
• 3/10-3/14: Have a safe and happy spring break! Sixth service learning session during assigned group lime. Found poems and reflection due in class on Monday for student assigned to fifth session. Student assigned to sixth session writes poems.
• 3/17: Service learning journal #3 due. Read assignment sheet and readings for poem #1 (handout)
• 3/19: Work on poem/discuss handout.
• 3/21: Work on poem/discuss handout. Read sample poem responses (handout). Seventh service learning session during assigned group time. Found poems and reflection due in class on Monday for student assigned to sixth session. Student assigned to seventh session writes poems.
  
• 3/24: Draft of poem #1 due with copies for class and instructor.
• 3/26: Workshop group one's poems. Group one responses due two copies each. If you are not in group one, read group one's poems carefully and make
  written notes for the workshop.
• 3/28: Workshop group two's poems. Group two responses due two copies each. If you are not in group two, read group two's poems carefully and make written notes for the workshop. Eighth service learning session during assigned group time. Found poems and reflection due in Class on Monday for student assigned to seventh session. Student assigned to eighth session writes poems."
• 3/31: Service learning journal #4 due. Workshop group three's poems. Group three responses due two copies each. If you are not in group three, read group three's poems carefully and make written notes for the workshop.
• 4/2: Workshop group four's poems. Group four responses due two copies each. If you are not in group four, read group four's poems carefully and make written notes for the workshop.
• 4/4: Read poem 42 assignment sheet and readings (handout). Ninth service learning session during assigned group time. Found poems and reflection due in class on Monday for student assigned to eighth session. Student assigned to ninth session writes poems
• 4/7: Read Chapter 15 in manual.
• 4/9: Work on service learning essay in class.
• 4/11: Draft of service learning essay due with copies for peer group. Tenth service learning session during assigned group time. Found poems and reflection due in class on Monday for student assigned to ninth session. Student assigned to tenth session writes poems.
• 4/14: Service learning journal #5 due. Peer response to service learning essay due.
• 4/16: Draft of poem 92 due with copies for class. Read found poem semester reflection assignment sheet (handout).
• 4/18: Workshop group one's poems. Group one responses due two copies each. If you are not in group one, read group one's poems carefully and
  make written notes for the workshop. Last service learning session. Found poems and reflection due in class on Monday for student assigned to tenth session. This session is not taped; no poems are written from it. Individual conferences held this week. Draft of poem #3 any topic, any form due on day of conference. Revisions of Found poems also due on day of conference. Found poems and reflection due in class on Monday for student assigned to last session.
  
• 4/21: Workshop group two's poems. Group two responses due two copies each. If you are not in group two, read group two's poems carefully and make written notes for the workshop.
• 4/23: Workshop group three's poems. Group three responses due two copies each. If you are not in group two, read group three's poems carefully and make written notes for the workshop.
• 4/25: Workshop group four's poems. Group four responses due two copies each. If you are not in group four, read group four's poems carefully and make written notes for the workshop.
• 4/28: Service learning journal #6 due. Read 109-111 and 119-122 in Oliver. Read Chapter fourteen in manual. Close to final drafts of all found poems and reflection due. In class, we'll edit poems and reflections and begin work on the books of poems.
• 4/29: Celebration at West Wind Village held at 6:30 p.m.
• 4/30: Second draft of service learning essay due. In-class peer review. Continue work on books of poems.
• 5/2: Post survey and evaluations. Fiction and poetry portfolio due. Includes revision of story and at least one poem, reflection essay, drafts of all
  formal assignments, and final draft of service learning essay (hard and electronic copy).
• Tuesday, 5/6: Final draft of service learning essay due in hard copy and electronic copy. Final draft of found poetry portfolio due. Final books of poetry due in electronic copy. Bring these to my office. Time TBA.

CA Eng458
Writing: Process and Product

With a Service Learning Component

Fall 2001

Writing: Process and Product

Dr. Gail S. Corso Office: 3021

Office Hours: MT 11:00 a.m. 12:50 p.m. 610 558 5515

gcorso {at} neumann(.)edu

Course Description:

Writing: Process and Product (3 credits) prepares future teachers of writing and writers, also, to understand composing and revising processes, methods for evaluating writing and teaching style and grammar. You will examine the design of writing projects for different contexts, and you will apply processes of invention, intervention, and revision in your own written reports about a service project and a researched inquiry or creative project. Ten hours of service learning will be part of this course.

Course Materials:

Evaluating Writing: The Role of Teachers' Knowledge about Text, Learning, and Culture. Edited by Charles R. Cooper and Lee Odell. Urbana, ELL: NCTE, 1999.

Heimlich, Joan E., and Susan D. Pittelman. Semantic Mapping: Classroom Applications. Newark, DE: International Reading Assn., 1986.

Neman, Beth S, Teaching Students to Write. 2nd ed. NY: Oxford UP, 1995.

Noden, Harry R. Image Grammar: Using Grammatical Structures to Teach Writing. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann, 1999.

Optional Text:
Programs and Practices: Writing across the Secondary School Curriculum. Edited by Farrell Childers, Pamela, Anne Ruggles Gere, and Art Young. Portsmouth, NH: Boynton/Cook, 1994.

Required Supplies:
Notebook
Folder
Miscellaneous writing supplies

Course Objectives:
Through projects and processes designed for this course, you will enhance your understanding of writing as a complex process. We will discuss the following topics:

1. Balancing the affective, constructive, and the cognitive
2. The writing process
3. Describing texts and their features'
4. Teaching grammar and syntax
5. Teaching an image grammar
6. Revision processes
7. Semantic Mapping (for readers and for writers)
8. Thoughtful responses to writers
9. Assessing writing
10. Designing writing assignments and assessing them in several disciplines

Students may choose one service project among five options related to writing:

1. Negotiate a project at the Assisi House Coordinator: Sheila O'Gara, Director of Activities
2. Negotiate a project with seniors through the office of Sr. Hildegarde
3. Negotiate one of two projects through the office of Sr. Corinne Wright, OSF, Director of Environmental Projects on campus
4. Negotiate one project as a peer tutor of writing in ARRC with Dr. Ed Peck as site coordinator
5. Negotiate one project at a local school as a tutor

Assignments:

Bi-weekly journals about readings posted to electronic: 40 points

Service Project: 30 points

• Initial Report
  
• Interim Report
  
• Final Report
  

Outcome of Service Project: 20 points

Research about an area of interest
Or creative products for the service experience

Oral presentation about your service project
(scheduled during Final Exam Week) 10 points

TOTAL 100 POINTS

Service Learning Project

Dates for meetings:
Initial meeting is October 13th, 2001 with the group of seniors.
Additional meetings will be arranged given the senior and student's schedules.

Location of meetings:
The initial meeting will take place in the McNichol room on Neumann's campus. Additional meetings will also take place on the Neumann campus with their exact locations to be decided upon later (most likely the McNichol room or library).

Goals for the Service Learning Project:

• Expand upon my current communication skills.
• Share my communication skills with others in hopes of teaching them, and gaining interpersonal experience for myself.
• To develop trust between myself and the seniors in hopes of learning more about each other, and help the communication process between the different generations.
• Apply theories and techniques discussed in class, and in the readings, to hands on situations.
• Learn about other people and what the writing process is like for them.

Class Agenda and Focus:

Week One
Balancing the Affective, Cognitive and Constructionist
H.W. Read "Teaching the Student" in TSW (3 3 1); "The Personal Teaching Approach" (559-563)

Week Two
The Writing Process H.W. In TSW "Teaching Pre Writing: Invention and
Arrangement" (56 110); "Teaching the Writing Process" (111 143)

Weeks Three and Four
Describing Texts and Their Features
**** Service Project: Initial Report due
H.W. In EW "Assessing Thinking: Glimpsing a find at Work" by Lee Odell; "What We Know about Genres, and How It Can Help Us Assign, and Evaluate Writing" by Charles R. Cooper; "Audience Considerations for Evaluating Writing' by Phyllis Mentzell Ryder, Elizabeth Vander Lei, and Duane H. Rouen; "Coaching Writing Development: Syntax Revisited, Options Explained" by William Strong; "Assessing Portfolios" by Sandra Murphy

Week Five
Teaching Grammar and Syntax

H.W. In TSW (230 277)

Week Six

Innovative Pedagogy to Teach Grammar in IG (1 108)

Week Seven
Revision Processes

In TSW "Teaching the Rewriting Stage: Structural Revision" (144 193)
SM (the booklet)

Week Eight
Assigning Writing H.W. In TSW "Assigning Writing (537 558)

**** Interim Report

Week Nine
Responding to Student Writers

H.W. "Responding to Students' Work"(505 536); "Reflective Reading: Developing

Thoughtful Ways to Respond to Students' Writing" by Chris Anson

Week Ten

Writing in the Disciplines
In EW "Assessing Writing to Learn in Four Disciplines" (13 7 222)

Weeks 11 and 12
Independent Research for Research Project
Individual Conferences
Research or Creative Project due

Weeks 13 and 14

Group Work in class to prepare for final presentation
Final Report for Service Project due

Week 15
Course Survey and Class Book distributed

Final Exam Week: Oral Presentations

Interactive Journey Book (adapted from Linda Flower's theory): Starting Point

Due Date: End of Second Week of Classes

Task: Design a Personal Web Page of you as a writer, you as a future teacher of writing, or of you as a professional communicator. At your course site in Blackboard.com, there is a design ready for your "Personal Page." Select "Communications" and you will find this space where you can add information.

1. In the section, "Intro Message," select one of the possible service learning projects, and explain why it interests you.

Options:

• Writing at the Assisi House. Contact Person, Sheila O'Gara
• Writing with the Seniors from Saturday Seminar. Contact Person, Sr. Hildegarde Grogan
• Community Garden at Neumann. Contact Person, Sr. Corinne Wright
• Westtown School. Contact Person, Linda Cobourn*
• Academic Resource and Career Placement Center at Neumann. Contact Person, Dr. Ed Peck

2. On your web page, there is space for personal information. Tell class members a bit about you. A picture can be uploaded to the site. If you have a picture that you like, then, you can scan it, and add it to the web page; if you need a picture taken, then you can have a digital picture taken.

3. On this site, you need to add at least three web addresses of sites in relation to your goals as a writer, future teacher, or communicator.

Please let me know which group you may be interested in, so you can collaborate with several other students in this class and meet with the coordinator together. Ideally we can meet together with the contact person to discuss the nature of what you can accomplish the clients involved or with the organization.

For this ongoing Interactive Journey Book, you may wish to start gathering data, such as six or so clip art images, several other web links related to your area of interest for the service project, shareware sound effect for your research project.

Professor: Dr. Brooke Hessler
Email: bhessler {at} okcu(.)edu
Box: Walker Center (WC) 248
Office: WC 214
Office Hours: MWF 10-11 AM and by appt.
Office Phone: 405-521-5330

Course Purpose & Scope
Our course is an enriched version of Composition II designed to challenge you to communicate visually as well as textually. Through a series of individual and collaborative research and writing projects, you will:

• Extend the academic research and writing knowledge you learned in Composition I (including the development and analysis of summaries, reports, and arguments);
• Employ a range of rhetorical strategies to analyze and create visual texts;
• Identify and interpret the rhetorical strategies inherent in everyday images, places, and things;
• Become familiar with many of the ways visual literacy is employed in academic disciplines and in professional communication.

To deepen and apply this knowledge, you will participate in a very special community service learning project: helping the Oklahoma City National Memorial Center build its online "virtual archive" of artifacts that have been collected at the site to communicate the personal and societal impact of terrorism. Your role as a Virtual Archivist will involve selecting, interpreting, photographing, and writing about those objects in order to help school children and other visitors acquire a deeper understanding of the Memorial and its significance to people in and far beyond our city.

Credit hours earned for the course: 3.0. Prerequisite: ENGL 1113.

Required Texts
Seeing and Writing by Donald McQuade & Christina McQuade
The Bedford Handbook by Diana Hacker (or a similar handbook)

Required Materials & Resources
-An active email account from Jan 15 to May 10.
-Knowledge of your OCU student username and password.
-Two diskettes (to back up your document files).
-An ample supply of paper and pens. (We will write during every class)
-Transportation to the Oklahoma City National Memorial Center (downtown), and the ability to visit that site approximately 4 times for 3 4 hours per visit.

Assignments & Grading
-Web Board Postings Ongoing 15%
-Multiple Perspectives Presentation, Jan 22 (W) or Jan 24 (F) = 10%
-Virtual Archive Project (Team)*, Multiple deadlines = 30%
-Visual Report on the Archive Project (Individual or Team)**, TBD = 20%
-Research Paper Incorporating Visual Rhetoric, May 7 (W) = 25%

*The Virtual Archive Project will include at least two draft review cycles with peer review boards in class and with OKC Memorial Center curators before the final due date.

**The Visual Report will be completed as an entity in the Honors Research Poster Contest. You are welcome to compose your research poster individually or as part of a team.

Assessing Your Growth as a Visual and Verbal Rhetorician
As you can see from the assignment listing above, each project asks you to demonstrate your ability to compose information both verbally and visually within a different genre (including web texts, an oral presentation, a poster, and an academic research paper). I will evaluate your work according to the three main categories of rhetorical development: ethos, pathos, and logos. (These terms will become very familiar by the end of the semester!) You will also evaluate your work and assess your progress: through reflective writing, peer reviews, and in class surveys. I will periodically use your evaluations to tailor our class activities to your learning goals.

Oklahoma City National Memorial Service Learning Projects

Teaching Trunks
This team will help children learn about the Oklahoma City bombing and the National Memorial from multiple perspectives. Using images and words, you will tell one or more of the following stories: the role of search and rescue dogs, the significance of the Survivor Tree, the symbolism underlying the thousands of origami cranes given to the Memorial Center. Your tasks will include selecting photographs and writing text to accompany each photograph: creating a narrative that will capture the attention of the children and educate them. Your project will be included with other artifacts and teaching materials in special trunks that are being transported to schools in Oklahoma and throughout the U.S.

Symbolic Quilt
This team will tell the story of a remarkable quilt created by people around the United States who contributed individual pieces to represent their personal response to the Oklahoma City bombing, and their messages of hope to the survivors and their families. To share this quilt with the world, you will photograph it (in its entirety, with close ups of especially interesting or important squares), read the letters of the individual artists who contributed each square, and compose text to accompany the photographs in the Memorial's virtual archive. This project will involve a little detective work: you will need to use the information contained in the letters to match the quilt squares with their stories and symbols.

Jim Lange Cartoons
This team will interview Daily Oklahoman cartoonist Jim Lange about the cartoons he created to communicate about the Oklahoma City bombing and its affect on our community. Your project will include developing, conducting, and possibly videotaping the interview, photographing a collection of his cartoons, and composing a short Lange biography and other text to accompany the cartoons. The project will be published in the Virtual Archives.

Treasured Objects
This team will research and write about some of the special objects that belonged to the victims and survivors of the Oklahoma City bombing. You will photograph each object, research the significance of the object, and compose text to accompany it. The images and stories will be displayed in the Virtual Archives.

Lecturer: Cathy Sayer Office: 106 Oelman
Mailbox: 441 Millett Office Hours: MW 10:00 12:00
Phone: 775 2471 (my office) TTh 12:00 2:00
775 3136 (to leave message) Other times by
Email: cathy.sayer {at} wright(.)edu appointment.

Required Texts and Materials

If You're Trying to Teach Kids How to Write, Revised Edition, by Marjorie Frank
A Writer's Reference, 4th Edition, by Diana Hacker
Course Packet for English 399: Writers Helping Writers

Course Goals

The primary goals for this course are:

• to improve both your writing skills and those of students at Stivers School for the Arts,
• while encouraging them to continue their education through college.
• to help you form a diverse community with Stivers students and to explore the richness and complexities of that community.
• to engage you in critical thinking about the complexities of community/communal life and
• about the impact of an individual's actions within a community.

Description of Course

In English 399, you will act as writing coaches for a class of students at 5tivers School for the Arts. This community service project is the heart of the course, but the course itself has three major components. These components wilI overlap and inform one another throughout the quarter, enhancing your learning and helping you achieve the course goals.

First Component: Orientation
The purpose of the orientation phase of the class is to prepare you for the work you will do with a class of sophomore honor students at Stivers every Thursday. Some of class time each Monday will be given to this preparation. We will get acquainted with the state of Ohio's schools in general. And we will read selections from the course packet, respond to those readings in class discussions and in class and out of class writings, and develop questions that will help focus a critical exploration of our community experience.

Second Component: Experience
The experiential portion of the class, of course, consists of your work with the Stivers students every Thursday. During this part of the course, you will work with a group of 3-4 high school students, guiding them through the processes of writing two different essays. You will give them feedback on their writing; and since you will be writing the same papers right along with them, they can give you feedback on yours, as well. In this portion of the course, it will be important to remember that high schools and universities operate differently in a number of ways. For one thing, teachers in high schools don't work from a course syllabus. They plan their projects in much smaller segments or units than do college instructors. Therefore, we may sometimes be in a sort of plan and learn as we go situation. We will need to be flexible in order to work effectively with the class at Stivers.

Third Component: Reflection
What makes a community service experience a service learning experience is the knowledge gained through reflection. In this component of the course, you will
reflect on your observations, thoughts, and feelings in reaction to the service experience through discussions and writing. Keeping service log and writing a final reflective essay are two of the concrete activities that will help you think through and communicate your reflections.

Course Requirements

Your grade for the course will be based on the following:
Daily Writing 25%
Essay 1 (I Search Essay) 25%
Essay 2 (To Be Announced) 25%
Final Reflective Essay 25%

You will receive a handout describing the three writing assignments at the appropriate time.

• Daily Writings
  You will have some in class or out of class writing due almost every time class meets. It may be a service log entry, a plan for your Stivers work session, a quiz or freewrite based on the readings, prewriting for an essay, a draft, feedback on classmates' writings, etc.
  
  
• Service Log
  Service log entries are a particular type of daily writing that deserve and, perhaps, require additional explanation. As mentioned earlier in the syllabus, without the opportunity to reflect on the service experience, it becomes simply a community service project, not an academic learning project. However, this is a course for college credit; and as such, it has its own set of learning objectives that must be addressed. The service log entries give you a place to "digest" your experiences in the service project, to process them and connect them cognitively to other experiences and areas of knowledge.

Therefore, after every workshop session at Stivers, you will need to write a log entry that

1. describes what happened in your group
2. demonstrates critical thinking about those events.

Occasionally, I will give you specific prompts to guide you, but you are always welcome to take your thinking in other directions.
Here are some ideas to help get you started.

• Describe the school building or the classroom. How does it compare to your own junior high or high school? What were your initial reactions to seeing it? How do the students seem to feel about their school?
• Narrate the events in your group's work session. What did you or others do and say? What reactions did you observe? How did you feel at the time? How do you feel now in retrospect?
• Describe Ms. Bohman (the teacher we will be working with). How does she compare with your junior high or high school teachers? What could you learn from observing her?
• What puzzles, surprises, excites, troubles, or angers you about the school, the students, etc.?
• What problems do you see in the school, the education system, the lives of the students in your group, or any other reality you observe
  at the school? What solutions can you imagine to these problems?
• What questions would you like to ask someone (Ms. Bohman) or check out through research?
• What kinds of personal or social situations can you observe that might have an impact on these students' abiIity to learn? What evidence do you see of this?

• Evaluation of Daily Writings
  You must be present in class to receive credit for that day's writing. All out of class assignments must be complete at the beginning of class on the assigned
  day. If you should miss a class, you must come to the next class with all the work that is due on the day you return, as well as the work that was due the day you were absent. The late work will receive less credit unless documentation is provided to demonstrate that you were unable to attend on the due date. When I grade daily writing, I am not looking at organization, punctuation, etc., as I will in your formal essays. Rather I will be weighing the amount of effort demonstrated in the degree of thoroughness, the depth of critical thinking, the number of insights, etc.

Course Schedule

Week 1 T 3/28 WSU In class: Introduce course and syllabus. Get acquainted.

Th 3/30 WSU Assignment: Read the first section, "Community Service and Service Learning," in the course pack.

In class: Discuss service learning.

Week 2 T 4/4 WSU Assignment: Read Chapter 1 and 3 in If You're Trying.

In class: Discuss reading and plan first visit to Stivers.

Th 4/6 Stivers Meet behind Millett at 9:00. We'll take my green mini van.
At Stivers, we'll form groups, get acquainted and
brainstorm for I Search paper topics.

Week 3 T 4/11 WSU Assignment: Read Chapter 4 and 5 in If You're Trying.
Service Log #1 due. Also, bring to class all your
research/sources for your I Search essay.

In class: Discuss readings, do prewriting activities, and
plan Stivers visit.

Th 4/13 Stivers Work through prewriting activities.

Week 4 T 4/18 WSU Assignment: Read Chapter 6 in If You're Trying. Service Log #2 due.

In class: Discuss readings, logs, next Stivers visit.

Th 4/20 Stivers Assignment: 1st draft of I Search essay due.
Lead group in responding to each other's first drafts.

Week 5 T 4/25 WSU Assignment: Read "The Writing Response Group" in course pack.
Service Log #3 due.

In class: Discuss readings and logs. Plan peer responses to
drafts.

Th 4/27 WSU Assignment: Read Chapter 9 in If You're Trying.
Revision of I Search essay due (bring 2 copies).
In class: Peer responses to drafts. Discuss
evaluation/assessment.

Week 6 T 5/2 WSU Assignment: Read Chapter 7 in If You're Trying.

In class: Discuss reading, Essay 2, and next Stivers visit.

Th 5/4 Stivers Assignment: Final draft of I Search Essay due.
Share/publish final drafts. Introduce Essay 2 and
brainstorm.

Week 7 T 5/9 WSU Assignment: Read "The Language of Response" in
course pack. Service Log #4 due.
In class: Discuss reading, logs, and next Stivers visit.

Th 5/11 Stivers

Week 8 T 5/16 WSU Assignment: Read "Response Groups in Action" in
course pack. Service Log # 5 due.
In class: Discuss reading, logs, and next 5tivers visit.
Introduce Final Reflective Essay.

Th 5/18 Stivers

Week 9 T 5/23 WSU Assignment: Bring all logs to class. Service Log # 6 due.

In class: Discuss logs and next Stivers visit. Do romancing for Final Reflective Essay.

Th 5/25 Stivers

Week 10 T 5/30 WSU Assignment: Draft of Final Reflective Essay and Service Log due #7.
In class: Plan final visit to Stivers and celebration.
Respond to peers' drafts.

Th 6/1 Stivers Assignment: Final draft of Essay 2 due.
Share/publish final drafts. Celebrate!
Finals Week T 6/6 WSU Final Reflective Essay due in my mailbox by noon.

English 102: Writing in the Academy
Section Theme: Problems in Community

Lecturer: Cathy Sayer Office: 082 Library
Mailbox: 441 Millett Office Hours: MWF 11:00 12:00
Phone: 775 2471 (my office) TTh 11:30 1:30
775 3136 (to leave message) Other times by
Email: cathy.sayer {at} wright(.)edu appointment.

Required Texts and Materials

The Allyn and Bacon Guide to Writing by John D. Ramage and John C. Bean
A Writer's Reference, 3rd Edition, by Diana Hacker
The Passbook for College Composition

2-3 paper folders with pockets
A copy card or money for copiers
Access to a computer or word processor (All work for this class must be typed.)

Course Goals

As a course in your General Education Program, this course seeks to:
-sharpen critical thinking, problem solving, and communication skills as a basis for life-long learning;
-cultivate an awareness of the ethical and moral insight needed for participation in the human community;
-increase knowledge and understanding of the past, of the world in which we live, and of how both past and present have an impact on the future.

Course Description

In this course, you will continue to build on what you have learned about writing processes in English 101 and in previous school work, while improving your skills in the types of writing you will do in your other academic courses. Specifically, you will focus on further developing skills in conducting various kinds of research, using traditional print sources, the Internet, and your own field experiences. You will also seek to understand how language works to effect persuasion, explore some of the ethical concerns of persuasion, and work to make your own writing persuasive within ethical parameters.

Course Theme

Since one of the goals for this course is to improve critical thinking and since clear thinking provides the content for clear writing, theme courses have been developed to encourage students to delve deeper into a particular area, rather than skim the surface of several. The theme for this course, "Problems in Community," is based on the belief that the health of our communities has a significant impact on all of our lives. Through readings in local newspapers, class discussions, and writing, we will explore some of the problems in the communities of the Miami Valley. We will attempt to uncover some of the causes of these problems and propose appropriate solutions. Additionally, in order to provide each student with a first-hand perspective of the issues affecting our local community, students in this class will participate in community service projects.

Course Requirements

Your final course grade will consist of the following:
Final portfolio 70%
Daily Writings 30%

Final Portfolio

Your final portfolio is due on the last day of class, Wednesday, March 10. It will include:

• a cover letter that introduces your portfolio and evaluates your progress as a writer
• the final revisions of 2 of your major essays,
  
• the photocopies of your cited research,
  
• all drafts and prewriting of the essays included,
  
• your final service log entry,
  
• any other pieces of writing produced during the quarter that you believe help to demonstrate your progress as a writer.

Needless to say, the final portfolio is extremely important, as its degree of success largely determines your level of success in the course. Additionally, passing English 102 signifies to the university community that you have achieved a level of writing skill that will enable you to continue to grow and succeed as a writer 'in your major. Therefore, multiple drafts and major revisions will be well worth your time. Consequently, I will give you written and/or oral feedback on your essays before you revise them for your final portfolio.

Major Papers

Your major assignments for this class will include prewriting, drafts, and revisions of

• Essay 1: Describing a Community Problem
• Essay 2: Investigating the Causes of a Community Problem
• Essay 3: Proposing Solutions to a Community Problem

As we begin to work on each of these papers, you will receive detailed instructions on the assignment requirements and the important due dates. All drafts, including draft 1, must be typed, and double spaced, following MLA guidelines. See 583 596 in Allyn & Bacon (A&B) for a model of page layout. Papers, along with all prewriting, drafts, and revisions, must be submitted in a folder with pockets. Staple pages together in the upper left comer. Do not use erasable bond paper, cover pages (on final drafts), or clear plastic covers.

Daily Writings

You will have some in class or out of class writing due almost every time class meets. It may be a log entry for your community service project, an exercise or quiz based on the reading assignment, prewriting for an essay, a draft, feedback on classmates' writings, etc.

You must be present in class to receive credit for that day's writing. All out of class assignments must be complete at the beginning of class on the assigned day. I will not accept make ups; but in keeping with the attendance policy, which follows, I will allow 3 zeros without penalty. However, you should save your zeros in the event you must be absent due to illness or winter transportation problems.

Community Service Log

After each visit to your community service site to provide service, you should write a log entry. These will be important *in helping you learn from your service experience and in generating insights that might be used in your papers and in the cover letter of your final portfolio. In your log, you should narrate what happened during that visit and reflect on the significance of those events.

Sometimes I may give you specific prompts to write about, but most of the time, you will be on your own. First, describe what happened during the visit. What did you and others say? What reactions did you observe? You'll need to be very observant In order to do a good job on this part of the entry. Second, reflect on your 'initial reactions to the visit and on what you think and feel in retrospect, as you write. What surprised, excited, puzzled, troubled, angered, or simply interested you? What reasons might there be for the way things are? What kinds of solutions can you imagine for some of the problems you see? What questions might you ask someone the next time you go? What might you want to check out through research? In this part of the entries, you'll need to put on your critical thinking and problem solving caps.

In class, we will decide together how much community service is reasonable for you this quarter and the appropriate number of entries that will be expected. These decisions will affect when and how often log entries will be collected. As with all the work for this course, entries must be typed and double spaced. I will evaluate these entries based on thoroughness, amount of detail, and depth of critical thinking.

Critical Readings

Critical reading is one of the most important skills a writer can develop. First, you learn to spot problems in the writing of others. Then, it's easier to recognize problems in your own writing. To help you develop skill in critical reading, this quarter, you will write several critiques of the work of your peers (peer responses) and of your own essays (commentaries). You will write at least one peer response to each of the major papers; and before, you turn in your own essays for feedback from me, you will write a commentary evaluating their strengths and weaknesses.

To critique means to evaluate both strengths and weaknesses. Since the purpose in doing critiques is to help you learn to evaluate your own work, your grades on these will be based on how thorough your assessments are, rather than on how right or wrong they are. In the case of the peer responses, I will especially be looking at how many problems you note and how many suggestions you make for improvement. When you write the commentaries for your own essays, I will again be looking to see how many problems you are able to spot. But I will also expect you to generate questions to ask me so that I can give you the kind of feedback that will be most useful to you in making your revisions.

Conferences

I will schedule two conference days during the quarter, one at about midterm and one before the final portfolio is due. These will be times that you can come in and chat about the progress you are making on your drafts. You may want to ask for clarification of some comment I wrote on an earlier draft, or you may want to show me revisions that you have done. During these conferences, you will be in charge. You will ask the questions and direct the conference to make sure that you get what you came for. I will act as your coach, encouraging and instructing you so that you will be able to do your best by "game time" (final portfolio). Of course, any time you have questions or need clarification on some point, or if you just want to talk about the class, you may see or call me during office hours or schedule a conference for that purpose. And don't forget the value of email!

Attendance

The collaborative nature of the course makes your participation necessary, not only to your own success in the class, but also to the success of others. Therefore, the following attendance policy will apply:

You may miss 3 classes without receiving a penalty. (Normally, my limit is 2, but I'm adding an extra to allow for winter health and transportation problems.) Your course grade will drop one letter for every day you are absent over the 3 allowed. You will automatically fail the course if you have more than 6 absences. Exceptions to this policy will be made at my discretion and may require documentation. So it would be wise to save your absences for those occasions when you really need them.