English 102: Composition II
Westfield State University
Fall 2011
Office: Parenzo 11 Course location: Juniper Park 15
Email: jchristian@westfield.ma.edu Office hours: M & W 3-4; Tu 11-12
and gladly by appointment
Overview
Good writing is good thinking. This will be our motto for this class as we continue to develop the critical writing, reading and thinking skills you began to work on in Composition I. In this class, we will explore a variety of different texts and genres of writing, and we will seek to add our own ideas, opinions, and arguments to the array of ideas we encounter through our reading, and through our discussions with each other. We will continue to focus on the writing process: generating, drafting, revising, and we will also seek out new strategies for refining and sharpening our ideas, and for translating complex insights onto the page. As we do so, we will form a community of writers, working to spur each other on to new insights, create lively class discussions, and be thoughtful, caring readers of each other’s work.
You can expect to write and to discuss in nearly every class meeting. Likewise, there will be some form of reading and writing homework assigned between nearly all class meetings. Please always bring writing utensils, a notebook, and assigned reading material to class. These are necessary for your success and learning in Composition II; they will also factor you’re your Participation Grade. For further details about the objectives of English 102, please see the Composition Program’s brochure.
Required Text
D’Agata, John. About a Mountain. WW Norton. 2010
Fleming, David. Other Words: A Writer's Reader. Kendall Hunt Pub Co. 2009
Assignments
In this class, you will write a total of 7 formal, graded essays over the course of 6 units. You will also complete informal responses to readings we do as a class, which, in total will account for 10% of your final grade.
Essays
- Reacting to Poetry: 4-pages. The goals for this first unit are for you to push yourself to respond to, consider, and expound upon a given text, in this case a famous poem. In this unit, you will choose 1 of 4 given poems to analyze and respond to. It will be up to you how you respond to this poem, and where your essay leads you.
2. Reviews. 1-2 pages each. Using New York Times reviews as examples, you will write a total of two reviews. For the first review, you will pick some unique aspect of campus life and review it. For the second, you will review some text chosen by the class, and you challenge will be to find a unique angle from which to approach this text. Both reviews will address an audience comprised of the campus community.
3. Interacting with Texts. 3-4 pages. In this essay, you will integrate your own ideas with those expressed in essays we’ve read as a class, from your textbook OTHER WORDS. In this essay, you will write for a more scholarly purpose, and direct your essay toward other scholars.
- How to Be Cool (photos and writing). In this essay you will use your own photographs and observations in conjunction with course readings and class discussions to inquire into what comprises “coolness” and fashion, and how they are performed.
- Research Narrative. 5-6 pages. For this essay, you will consider John D’Agata’s About a Mountain as a guide while you craft your own research question and tell the story of your hunt to find answer(s) to that question, using a variety or scholarly and public sources.
6. Final Reflection. 3-4 pages. In this essay you will assess your writing and thinking over the course of the semester. Using your first four essays as source material, you will comment on your growth as a writer (and potential room for more growth), any common themes that occur in your writing, how your thinking about writing has changed. Ultimately, you will want to reflect upon your development as a writer over the course of the semester and possibilities for future development.
Informal Responses
Over the course of the semester you will be asked to write 1-page informal responses to what we read as a class. I will collect these responses and grade them Check-plus, Check, of Check-minus. In total, these responses will account for 10% of your grade.
The goal of the informal response is to allow you to think about what you’ve read in terms of questions you have about a given text, ideas it causes you to consider, disagreements or revisions you might make to an author’s arguments, etc. We will use these responses as a means of starting our class discussions. They will also create a valuable practice-space for your longer essays.
A “Check-Plus” response will include your original, thoughtful ideas in conjunction with insightful, close analysis of the given text (quotes and specific examples).
A “Check” response will function more like an apt summary of the text, and include some of your original ideas, and some analysis of the text.
A “Check-Minus” response will meet only the bare minimum criteria: That is, proving you read the assigned material.
*Informal Responses will not be accepted late. They are due in-class on the day they are assigned.
Attendance: You may miss up to 3 classes without penalty. It does not matter whether absence is “excused” or “unexcused.” After 3 absences, you will lose 3 points from your final grade for each additional absence. Excessive tardiness or leaving class early may also count as an absence.
When you are absent, it is your responsibility to find out what you missed. Please, when possible, let me know in advance if you know you will miss class.
Conferences: Several times throughout the semester we will hold small group conferences for going over drafts of papers. You are also welcome to come by my office hours, or make an appointment with me for an individual meeting.
Grading: Unit 1, 10%; Unit 2, 10%; Unit 3, 15%; Unit 4, 15%, Unit 5, 25% (includes Annotated Bibliography, 5%); Unit 6, 15%; Informal Responses, 10%.
I will give specific grading criteria for each major paper. Please see the Composition Program’s Blue Brochure for a description of general grading guidelines.
*You must complete all major essays in order to receive a passing grade in the class.
Responsibilities to Our Writing Community. Creating a community that enables us to grow and develop as writers depends on each of us fulfilling our individual responsibilities, offering mutual respect to one another, and being receptive readers of one another’s writing.
Participation: Active, regular participation is a basic expectation of this course. One of the best ways to learn to write, after all, is to talk about the choices available to you as a writer and to share ideas about writing with your classmates. As a result, all students are expected to participate actively in class and to provide respectful responses to others’ contributions.
Plagiarism: It is fine to use ideas, words, and short passages from the writings of others in your own writing as long as you acknowledge the source. Failure to acknowledge the contribution of others is considered plagiarism, a serious academic offense. You will find a copy of the Writing Program’s statement about plagiarism in the opening pages of The Penguin Handbook, which also contains other information and advice concerning plagiarism.
About cellphones: Cellphone should remain silent and out of sight during class. Please keep them either in your pocket or your backpack.
*Please let me know by email or in-person if you have learning accommodations.
The reading and writing center
Call 413-572-5569 for an appointment
The Reading and Writing Center helps students, staff, and faculty at Westfield State University further develop their understanding of reading, writing, and critical thinking. Whether you're tackling a biology textbook, preparing to take the Massachusetts teacher certification exam (MTEL), trying to understand Shakespeare's diction, beginning an essay, polishing a resume, or developing a reading or writing assignment for your class, come see us. Our staff of highly trained reading and writing consultants look forward to working with you. 