UNIVERSITY CHAPMAN Department of English and Comparative Literature One University Drive Orange, CA 92866 [phone] COURSE SYLLABUS ENG 103 Seminar in Rhetoric and Writing Credits: 3. Prerequisite: Appropriate placement score and a passing evaluation on the placement essay. Catalog Description: Prerequisite; Appropriate placement score. In this course on the theory and practice of writing effective essays, students master a variety of essay modes by completing a wide range of assignments. Topics will vary; topic-specific syllabi will be offered for individual sections from which students will be able to choose. (Offered every semester.) 3 credits. Restrictions: None. Essential Equipment and Facilities: Movable classroom furniture, chalkboard, computer, Internet connection, overhead LCD projector. Course Goals, Objectives and Content: Students who successfully complete English 103 will be able to write for varied audiences and purposes appropriate to college-level discourses, demonstrating the ability to think, read, and write critically in response to various rhetorical situations. Individual instructors will prepare a topic-specific syllabus that must be approved by the schools curriculum committee and the universitys Academic Council prior to the course being listed in the class schedule. The following general objectives will be linked to specific course outcomes for each topic-specific section. Students will learn to Focus on a purpose Respond to the needs of different audiences Respond appropriately to different kinds of rhetorical situations Use conventions of format and structure appropriate to the rhetorical situation Adopt appropriate voice, tone, and level of formality Use writing and reading for inquiry, learning, thinking, and communicating Fall 2004
Understand a writing assignment as a series of tasks, including finding, evaluating, analyzing, and synthesizing appropriate primary and secondary sources Integrate their own ideas with those of others Understand the relationships among language, knowledge, and power Be aware that it usually takes multiple drafts to create and complete a successful text Develop flexible strategies for generating, revising, editing, and proof-reading Understand the collaborative and social aspects of writing processes Learn to critique their own and others works Use a variety of technologies to address a range of audiences Control such surface features as syntax, grammar, punctuation, and spelling Practice appropriate means of documenting their work Current Required Text(s): One of the following textbooks is required for each section: Bean, John, John Ramage, and June Johnson. The Allyn and Bacon Guide to Writing, 3rd.ed. New York: Pearson, 2003. Mauk, John and John Metz. The Composition of Everyday Life. New York: Heinle, 2003. Behrens, Laurence, Leonard J. Rosen, and Bonnie Beedles. A Sequence for Academic Writing. 2nd ed. New York: Longman, 2004. The following handbook is required for each section: Hacker, Diana. A Writers Reference. 5th ed. Boston: Bedford St. Martins, 2003. (ISBN 0312397674) One of the following readers will be specified on each topic-specific syllabus: Bartholomae, David, and Anthony Petrosky. Ways of Reading: An Anthology for Writers. 6th ed. New York: Beford St. Martins, 2002. (ISBN 0312258976) Dobrin, Sidney I. Saving Place: An Ecocomposition Reader. Boston: McGraw-Hill, 2005. Hirschberg, Stuart, and Terry Hirschberg. The Millennium Reader, Brief Edition. 3rd ed. New Jersey: Prentice Hall, 2002. (ISBN 0130979910) Kennedy, X.J., Dorothy M. Kennedy, and Jane E. Aaron. The Brief Bedford Reader. 7th ed. New York: Bedford St. Martins, 2000. (ISBN 0312197713) Kirszner, Laurie G., and Stephen R. Mandell. The Blair Reader. 4th ed. New Jersey: Hall, Prentice 2001. (ISBN 013091066X) Maasik, Sonia, and Jack Solomon. California Dreams and Realities: Readings for Critical Thinkers and Writers. 3rd ed. New York: Bedford St. Martins, 2005. Maasik, Sonia, and Jack Solomon, ed. Signs of Life in the USA. 3rd. ed. New York: Bedford/St. Martins, 2000. Petracca, Michael F., and Madeleine Sorapure. Common Culture: Reading and Writing about American Popular Culture. 4th ed. New York: Prentice Hall, 2003. Warner, J. Sterling, and Bill Swanson, ed. Projections: Brief Readings on American Culture. New York: Heinle, 1999. Watters, Ann. Global Exchange: Reading and Writing in a World Context. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Prentice Hall, 2005.
Major Study Units (specific details will be provided on individual syllabi): A. The Writing Process 1. Prewriting 2. Thesis development 3. Writing 4. Revising 5. Editing and Proofreading B. Essays for Rhetorical Purposes 1. Narrative Autobiographical Essay 2. Rhetorical Analysis of a Text 3. Summary and Response to a Text 4. Exploratory or Informational Report 5. Documented Argumentative Essay 6. Evaluation Essay C. Library Orientation 1. Accessing a variety of research sources, both print and electronic 2. Determining validity of source material, including Internet sites 3. Ensuring familiarity with Chapman University databases, catalog, and search strategies. D. Oral Communication Strategies E. Standard English Usage Instructional Strategies: Lectures, discussion, workshops, individual conferences. Methods of Evaluation: Final grades will be based on the students' ability to write for multiple audiences and purposes, using formats and rhetorical strategies appropriate to the rhetorical situation. Students will write approximately 25-30 pages--including pre-writing as well as rewriting--in the course of the semester. Additional Requirements for Graduate Courses: N/A. Bibliography (will be enhanced with texts specific to each sections topic): Axelrod, Rise B. and Charles R. Cooper. The St. Martin's Guide to Writing. 6th ed. New York: St. Martin's Press, 2001. Baker, Sheridan. The Practical Stylist. 8th ed. New York: Addison Wesley, 1997. Barnet, Sylvan. A Short Guide to Writing About Art. 7th ed. Boston: Pearson Longman, 2002. Behrens, Lawrence and Leonard J. Rosen. Writing and Reading Across the Curriculum. 8th ed. Boston: Pearson Longman, 2002.
Comley, Nancy R., David Hamilton, Carl H. Klaus, Robert Scholes, and Nancy Sommers. Fields of Reading: Motives for Writing, 6th ed. New York: Bedford St. Martins, 2002. Cooper, Charles R., and Susan Peck MacDonald. Writing the World: Reading and Writing about Issues of the Day. New York: Bedford St. Martins, 2003. Elbow, Peter. Writing With Power: Techniques for Mastering the Writing Process. 2nd ed. New York: Oxford University Press, 1998. Kane, Thomas S. The Oxford Essential Guide to Writing. Berkeley, CA: Berkeley Publishing Group, 2000. Lunsford, Andrea A., John J. Ruszkiewicz, and Keith Walters. Everything's an Argument: with Readings. 2nd ed. New York: Bedford St. Martins, 2001. Lunsford, Andrea A., and John J. Ruszkiewicz. The Presence of Others: Voices and Images That Call for Response. 3rd ed. New York: Bedford St. Martins, 1999. Maimon, Elaine P. A Writers Resource: A Handbook for Writers and Researchers. New York: McGraw Hill, 2002. McQuade, Donald and Robert Atwan. The Writer's Presence. 3rd ed. Boston: Bedford of St. Martin's, 2002. Tyner, Thomas E. College Writing Basics. 6th ed. Boston: Heinle, 2002. Watkins, Floyd C., W. B. Dillingham, and John T. Hiers. Practical English Handbook. 11th ed. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 2000. Williams, Joseph M. Style: Ten Lessons in Clarity and Grace. 7th ed. Boston: Pearson Longman, 2002.
Prepared by: Gerri McNenny, Fall 2004.