English 102 Effective Written Discourse
Section A01, Summer 2002
11:00-12:15, M-T-W-Th
271 M & M
Joe Law
Office: 027 Paul Laurence Dunbar Library
Office phone: 775-2155
E-mail: joe.law.wright.edu
Office hours: 1:00-2:00 M-Th and by appointment
COURSE PREREQUISITE: Grade of C or better in English 101
REQUIRED TEXT:
Lunsford, Andrea A., and John J. Ruszkiewicz. Everything’s an Argument. 2nd ed. New York: Bedford-St. Martin’s, 2001.
COURSE DESCRIPTION:
English 102 (Effective Written Discourse) continues English 101’s focus on writing as a process, stressing principles of argumentation and academic research techniques.
POLICIES AND COURSE REQUIREMENTS:
General Education: English 102 is part of Area I (Communication and Mathematical Skills) in the General Education program required for all baccalaureate degrees at Wright State University. This program has three broad, overarching goals:
< to sharpen critical thinking, problem solving, and communication skills as a basis for life-long learning;
< to cultivate an awareness of the moral and ethical insight needed for participation in the human community
< to 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 Grade: Your grade will be determined on the basis of the final drafts of three papers (80%) and of the preliminary assignments for each paper (20%). Each of the three papers will be given increasing weight: 20% for paper 1, 25% for paper 2, and 35% for paper 3. Grading standards are included with this syllabus. Read them carefully. Attendance will affect your grade as well (see below).
Attendance: Attendance and participation are required of all students. Illness and university-sponsored business are the only legitimate reasons for missing class. Illness must be documented with a doctor's certificate. Missing more than 15% of the classes (3 class meetings) will lower your grade. After a third absence, I will deduct 2.5 percentage points per absence from your final grade.
Late Work: As a rule, I do not accept
late assignments. Late work will be accepted only in the case of a documented
illness or participation in an official university-sponsored activity. In the
case of the latter, students should make arrangements with me in advance of the
absence.
Editing skills: Class time will not be devoted to the study of grammar and editing; however, I will reduce all paper grades for grammatical and spelling errors. It is the responsibility of all students to proofread and edit their own work before it is submitted. Any student who does not exhibit proficiency in editing throughout the semester should not expect to pass the course.
Paper format: All assignments written out of class must be typed (or processed) on 8 1/2 by 11" white paper with 1" margins on all sides. All papers should be double spaced. Your name, my name, the course number and section number, and the date should appear in the top left corner of the first page above the centered title. All subsequent pages should be numbered in the upper right corner as illustrated on the attached sample first page.
Academic honesty: All work submitted must be your own, with outside sources properly acknowledged. Academic dishonesty includes copying another's work, turning in someone else's work as your own, allowing a tutor to write part or all of your paper, or allowing someone else to use your work in this same manner. If you are unsure about your work in this matter, talk to me before you submit the paper, not after.
Special accommodations: If you need course adaptations or accommodations because of a disability, if you have emergency medical information to share with me, or if you need special arrangements in case the building must be evacuated, please make an appointment to see me as soon as possible. We should make adjustments at the beginning of the course.
University Writing Center: Writing Consultants in the Writing Center (031 Library) are available to assist you as you work on your papers. Summer hours are 10:00 to 3:00 M-Th. The Writing Center also has a cluster of networked computers available for student use. Be sure to take a copy of the assignment with you. To get more information about the services provided by the Writing Center, call 775-4186.
Reading and Assignment Schedule
All readings should be completed before the class in which they will be discussed; all assignments must be typed (including topics, plans, and drafts).
Week 1
06/10/02 Introduction to course
06/11/02 Chapter 2 (“Reading and Writing Arguments”) and Chapter 3 (“Readers and Contexts Count”)
06/12/02 Draft due; workshop
06/13/02 Chapter 9 (“Arguments of Definition”)
Week 2
06/17/02 Paper 1 due; Chapter 10 (“Evaluations”)
06/18/02 Chapter 18 (“What Counts as Evidence”)
06/19/02 Chapter 20 (“Intellectual Property”) and Chapter 21 (“Assessing and Using Sources”)
06/20/02 Plan for paper 2 due; workshop
Week 3
06/24/02 Draft of paper 2 due--bring two copies; Chapter 22 (“Documenting Sources”--MLA section)
06/25/02 Chapter 12 (“Proposals”)
06/26/02 Topic for paper 3 due; workshop for paper 2
06/27/02 Paper 2 due; workshop with topics for paper 3
Week 4
07/01/02 Plan for paper 3 due; sign up for conferences
07/02/02 Individual conferences
07/03/02 Individual conferences
07/04/02 Independence Day (University Closed)
Week 5
07/08/02 Individual conferences
07/09/02 Individual conferences
07/10/02 Workshop
07/11/02 Paper 3 due; course evaluation (bring #2 pencil)
OTHER IMPORTANT DATES:
June 19--Last day to drop a class without a grade
June 25--Last day for all but freshmen to drop a class with a grade of W
July 5--Last day for freshmen to drop a class with a grade of W
OVERVIEW OF PAPER ASSIGNMENTS
Paper 1 Use the information provided in chapters 2 and 3 of Everything’s an Argument to analyze and evaluate an argument. You will be given several arguments from which to choose. (Appropriate length: about 750 words)
Paper 2 Working with a topic of your choice, write either an argument based on definition (chapter 9) or an evaluation (chapter 10). The finished paper should make appropriate use of outside source material (summaries, paraphrases, quotations, statistics, etc.) and should be documented using MLA style (chapter 22). (Appropriate length: about 1,000 words)
Paper 3 Working with a topic of your choice, write a proposal for solving an existing problem. Like paper 2, this paper should make appropriate use of outside source material. (Appropriate length: about 1,500 words)