ENGL 109 Introduction to Academic Writing
Fall 2022
Classroom EV3-3412
Tuesdays and Thursdays, 2:30-3:50 pm
Instructor Information:
Instructor: Patricia Ofili
Office Hours: Tues/Thurs: 1:30 – 2 pm via Team, and by appointment Email: p3ofili@uwaterloo.ca
Course Description
The purpose of ENGL 109 is to help students develop critical reading and writing skills. We will focus on three genres of writing: Personal Narrative, Rhetorical Analysis, and Argumentative Essay. Smaller activities will also be completed in class to help you develop and revise your own work as well as the work of your peers. Collaboration is a key to learning in this course, and it will be expected that you participate in the social environment of the class. Another important component of this course is revision. Since writing is an iterative process, it is important that students have the chance to develop their work through the revision of draft work. This process will also give you a chance to bring up any challenge you may be having (e.g., developing a thesis or main idea, grammatical issues, etc.) with the course, so that you can clear them up before the final due date of an assignment. Finally, originality is encouraged! Some of the best ideas come from your own personal interests and life experiences. Feel free to be creative.
Required Texts
Ruskiewicz, John and Jay Dolmage. How To Write Anything: A Guide and Reference with Readings, 5th Edition. Boston: Bedford St. Martin’s Press, 2022. Print.
Joan Didion’s “Goodbye to All That” (available as a .pdf via Google).
Course Goals and Learning Outcomes
English 109 is designed to:
- To give you the opportunity to learn and practice writing in a variety of academic genres
- To help you learn to read critically
- To help you learn to write persuasively by effectively employing elements of formal argumentation
- To help you give and receive useful feedback on writing for the purposes of revision
- To help you learn and practice communicating to a variety of academic audiences.
Accommodations
We will make an effort to ensure that all students have multiple means of accessing class information, multiple ways to take part in class activities, and multiple avenues for being assessed on class work. The University of Waterloo has a long- standing commitment to support the participation and access to university programs, services, and facilities by persons with all types of disabilities. All students who have a permanent disability as well as those with temporary disabilities have the right to what UW calls “AccessAbility Services.” To register for these services, you must provide documentation from a qualified professional to verify your disability. Please contact them at 519-888-4567 ext. 35082 or drop into Needles Hall 1132 to book an appointment to meet with an advisor to discuss their services and supports.
Standard of Work
This is a university-level course, and you are expected to be comfortable with the mechanics of writing; that is, to understand and use proper grammar, syntax, and punctuation in order to communicate effectively. The course textbook, How To Write Anything, offers guidelines and activities to help you with these mechanics. If you feel that you require extra assistance regarding this, please contact me and/or the Writing Centre in the Student Success Office (South Campus Hall, second floor).
Response and Evaluation
You will write three major essays in this class, and this work will represent the bulk of your course grade. You will receive a final grade on individual papers when you hand them in. Finally, you will collect your best work and create a final portfolio, which you’ll submit at the end of the semester for a final grade.
The larger assignments will be complemented by smaller ones. These smaller assignments will help you build up to the larger themes and ideas of the major assignments.
Your participation grade includes attendance, participation in class and group discussion, as well as your overall level of interaction with the material. I understand that some students may feel uncomfortable participating in class; however, I will try to foster an environment that is inclusive and comfortable for all to share their ideas.
The final portfolio will include your revised three major papers and your final reflection.
***All writing assignments are to be submitted into the dropbox.
Late Work
Late papers (major assignments) will be penalized 2% (applied to your participation grade) per day late. All major papers must be completed – you will fail the class if any of the major papers are not completed and submitted, however late. Short-writing submitted late will be accepted, but will work against your short-writing grade. Check syllabus for all due dates. Extensions will be provided on an individual basis. Please contact me if you require an extension for the material. Extensions will not be given after 10:00 pm of the night before the final due date.
Absences
It is strongly encouraged that you attended all classes. Attendance will be taken in all class sessions. Students who miss more than two classes are in danger of a failing participation grade. Always bring your course book How To Write Anything to class.
Course Concerns
If you are experiencing problems with the course or with the marking, you should first discuss your difficulties with your instructor, Patricia Ofili. Students who believe that they have been wrongfully or unjustly treated or penalized have the right to grieve; refer to Policy #70, Student Grievance: http://www.adm.uwaterloo.ca/infosec/Policies/policy70.html.
A decision made or penalty imposed under Policy 70 (Student Petitions and Grievances) (other than a petition) or Policy 71 (Student Discipline) may be appealed if there is aground. A student who believes he/she has a ground for an appeal should refer to Policy 72 (Student Appeals)http://www.adm.uwaterloo.ca/infosec/Policies/policy72.htm
Academic Honesty
All students registered in courses in the Faculty of Arts are expected to know what constitutes an academic offence, to avoid committing academic offences, and to take responsibility for their academic actions. When the commission of an offence is established, disciplinary penalties will be imposed in accord with Policy #71 (Student Academic Discipline). For information on categories of offences and types of penalties, students are directed to consult the summary of Policy #71 which is supplied in the Undergraduate Calendar (on the Web at http://www.adm.uwaterloo.ca/infoucal/UW/policy_71.html).
If you need help in learning how to avoid offences such as plagiarism, cheating, and double submission, or if you need clarification of aspects of the discipline policy, ask your course instructor for guidance. Other resources regarding the discipline policy are your academic advisor and the Undergraduate Associate Dean. Students seeking guidance on academic honesty are urged to consult the following page of the Arts Faculty Web site, “How to Avoid Plagiarism and Other Written Offences: A Guide for Students and Instructors” (http://watarts.uwaterloo.ca/~sager/plagiarism.html).
Plagiarism or copying other people’s style or ideas and claiming them as your own is a serious academic offense. Any incident of plagiarism will automatically cause a paper to fail, could cause you to fail the course, and will be reported to the Dean’s office.
Formatting of Assignments and Procedural Basics
- For all hard copy assignments, use Times New Roman, 12 pt. font, 1-inch margins
- Number all pages
- MLA format is required for all of your bibliographies and in-text citations.
- Save all of your work (including final assignments, draft work, peer comments, etc., since these may be required for your final portfolio)
- For peer-review exercises in class, you would be expected to bring your laptop or any other device to class with you.
Classroom Etiquette:
The classroom (including any online activity on our LEARN site) is expected to foster ideas and communication. Therefore, be respectful in your interactions with other students. Constructive criticism is encouraged, but it is also important to be fair with others. Smartphones and laptops are allowed in class; however, in a manner that is productive to learning. The consequence of using these technologies inappropriately (e.g. playing videogames, texting, etc.), will be that your participation grade will suffer.
Grade Breakdown
Final Portfolio 15%
Personal Narrative 15%
Rhetorical Analysis 15%
Argumentative Essay 15%
Short Writing Assignments 10%
Group Project 15%
Class Participation 15%
Unit Overview and Schedule
*Note: Some dates and scheduling may change. I will notify you of these changes.
Unit 1: Personal Narrative
This personal narrative, simply put, tells a story about a particular event that changed the writer’s life. The contents of the narrative are up to the author. Similar to a storybook, a personal narrative will likely have characters and dialogue, develop a plot, and have a major theme that the narrative surrounds (e.g. family, love, a life lesson, goals, first job, learning a new language, etc.). There are several subgenres of the personal narrative outlined in your textbook, including:
- Literacy narratives (pp. 22 - 23)
- Memoir/Reflection (p. 21)
- Visual Narrative/Infographics (59 – 60 & 153)
The goal of the personal narrative is to help you develop a main idea using originality. This assignment does not require secondary sources, however, if you choose to use them, please format the assignment appropriately (MLA). You may be creative and include a photograph, a drawing, or content through another medium. However, please remember that the written content should make up the bulk of the assignment and that any visual content should be used as a reference point for the rest of the narrative. The Personal Narrative should be 4-5 pages in length.
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Thursday |
Tuesday |
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Sept 8th Introductions Course Overview What is a narrative? Activity & Discussion: Write about a text (e.g., movie, book, poem, or song) that affected/changed you and why. 1 paragraph) Homework: Read: Patton Oswalt’s “Zombie Spaceship Wasteland” (799-807) Activity: Write a 1 paragraph summary of Oswalt. Read HTWA Chapter 1, Narrative: particularly pages 8 - 11 |
Sept 13th Due: Short Reflection Piece of Oswalt Questions regarding Chapter 1, Narrative Class Activity: Discuss Oswalt and Elements of a Personal Narrative w/ examples Homework: Read: Joan Didion’s “Goodbye to All That” (available as a .pdf via Google). Write a short reflection piece (1-2 paragraphs) covering some of the following elements of Didion’s essay: theme, style, perspective, and timeline. |
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Sept 15th Due: Short Reflection of Didion’s narrative Discussion and Reflection: Didion’s “Goodbye To All That” Lesson: Showing Instead of Telling Activity: Draft an introduction to your Personal Narrative Homework: Read Anna Peppard’s “On Marvel’s First Female Superhero Written by a Woman: Comic Book Feminism 45 Years before Wonder Woman” (Pg 763-) and write a 1-page analysis Continue to draft your Personal Narrative |
Sept 20th Due- 1-page analysis of Anna Peppard’s article How do you Create Dialogues in your personal narratives? Homework: Read Lewis Dartnell’s “Why Would Aliens Even Bother with Earth? The Pros and Cons pf a Trip to the Planet We Wall Home.” (pg 583) and Read HTWA Chapters 35, 36, 37, 38, & 39 Complete a rough draft of Personal Narrative and read chapter 31; Peer editing in preparation for peer review exercise in class. Library Workshop- Due Sept 21 This workshop is recommended for everyone, and it will help you learn more about how to do productive research that is absolutely necessary for your entire academic pursuit. Discuss your experience on Learn as part of your class participation grade. |
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Sept 22nd The Library Staff will answer questions pertaining to the library workshop Due: Rough Draft of Personal Narrative Class Activity: Peer Review Workshop |
Sept 27th Class Activity: Peer Review Exercise Discuss chapters 30 – 39 of HTWA and Peer Review exercise. Homework: Revise final-for-now Personal Narrative |
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Sept 29th Due: Final-for-Now Personal Narrative (Submit in the drop box) Activity: Discuss - Lewis Dartnell’s “Why Would Aliens Even Bother with Earth? The Pros and Cons pf a Trip to the Planet We Wall Home.” (pg 583) Read HTWA Chapter 14, Rhetorical Analysis |
Unit 2: Rhetorical Analysis
The rhetorical analysis takes a critical focus on Shakespeare’s Othello. The purpose of this assignment is for you to show how well you can argue persuasively about any chosen position regarding any contemporary issues identified in Othello.
Three main concepts may help you do this are how: ethos, pathos, logos function in this text. We will discuss these further in class and I will provide examples on how to spot and analyze these effectively. The rhetorical analysis is also the first assignment that requires you to have an argument of sorts (thesis). This assignment may also require secondary sources and we will discuss how to find sources that support your argument. The analysis should be around 4-5 pages in length.
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Thursday |
Wednesday |
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Oct 4th What is a Rhetorical Analysis? Choose a novel, advert, movies, song, music video, or poem to write your rhetorical analysis on. Activity: Discuss Ethos, Pathos, and Logos in various genres of texts. |
Oct 6th Due - 1-page summary of Roxane Gay’s “Not Here to Make Friends” Class Activity: Discuss Roxane Gay’s “Not Here to Make Friends” article |
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Homework: Read Roxane Gay’s “Not Here to Make Friends” (pp 747-759); Write a 1-page summary. |
Homework: Christine Martorana’s “Death: The End We All Have to Face(book),” (Pg 771) Read HTWA, Chapter 46, Evaluating Sources, 49 Summarizing Sources, 50 Paraphrasing Sources, and 51, Incorporating Sources, and 52 Documenting Sources |
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Oct 11th READING WEEK |
Oct 13th READING WEEK |
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Oct 18th Discuss Roxane Gay Due Today: I page summary of Christine Martorana’s article Activity: Discuss Christine Martorana’s article and your thesis statement and argument Homework: Read Joe Weisenthal’s “Donald Trump, the First President of Our Post-Literate Age.” (Pg 211) HTWA Chapters 30, 32, 34, 35, and 36. |
Oct 20th Due: I-page Analysis of Joe Weisenthal’s article Class Activity: Discuss Joe Weisenthal’s “Donald Trump, the First President of Our Post-Literate Age.” (Pg 211) Discuss HTWA Chapter 46, Evaluating Sources, 49 Summarizing Sources, 50 Paraphrasing Sources, and 51, Incorporating Sources, and 52 Documenting Sources Practice with Summary, Paraphrase and Quotation Homework: Develop the draft of your rhetorical Analysis Activity: Present your arguments to the class. Homework: Complete your rhetorical analysis; and Read HTWA, Chapter 33 & 34 For Revising Your Work – |
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Oct 25th |
Oct 28th |
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Due Today: Rough Draft for Peer Review Peer Review Homework: Complete Final-for-Now rhetorical analysis Read – Paul Argenti’s “Corporate Ethics in the Era of Millennials.” (Pg 672) |
Activity – Discuss: Read – Paul Argenti’s “Corporate Ethics in the Era of Millennials.” (Pg 672) Due Today: Rhetorical Analysis Essay Final-For-Now (Submit in the drop box) Homework: Read HTWA pages 89-94 - Arguments. Read Marcel O’Gorman’s “The Case for Locking Up Your Smartphone” on pp 703-708; and write a 1-page critical analysis. |
Unit 3: Argumentative Essay
For this assignment, students are required to complete a formal essay, with credible secondary sources and a well-structured argument. You will begin by choosing a current issue that you are interested in. Then, you will do some research to learn more about the issue and about various viewpoints and stakeholders. Eventually, you will form a unique thesis about this issue, and use research to support a series of claims. You will organize your essay and write persuasively to change people’s minds about your issue. The main point of this assignment is to further help students develop critical reading and writing skills. The essay should be 5-6 pages in length.
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Monday |
Wednesday |
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Nov 1st Due: 1-page critical analysis of O’Gorman’s article. Activity: Taking a Side on O’Gorman’s article and Discuss HTWA pages 89-94 - Arguments. Discuss Topics for Argument: Homework: Read HTWA 457 -459 (summarize main argument, key points, and your own response to each text). |
Nov 3rd Discuss concept mapping, your topic, and thesis statement. Activity: Thesis construction. Homework: Read Emily Bazelon’s “Hitting Bottom: Why America Should Outlaw Spanking” page 681 -685, and write a 1-page critical analysis. Decide on a tentative topic idea, and create list of perspectives and opinions |
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Nov 8th |
Nov 10th |
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Due: 1-page critical analysis of Bazelon’s article Activity - Discuss: Bazelon’s article and your Tentative topic Homework: Read HTWA, chapter 37, 38, 39, & 40 |
Activity: Discuss HTWA, 37, 38, 39, & 40 Homework: Using Online Databases Conduct Research; Find Three Sources |
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Nov 15th Edge Workshop Due Today: Three Sources in MLA format Discuss: Secondary sources and research in groups; idea sharing Homework: Draft your argumentative essay. |
Nov 17th Due Today: Draft for Peer Review Discuss HTWA Chapters 50 - 53, Citation Strategies and peer reviews of essay. Homework: Revise your argumentative essay |
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Nov 22nd In-Class Reflective Memo Due Today: Argumentative Essay Final-For-Now (Submit in the drop box) Homework: Group Project |
Nov 24th Discuss Continue your group project Discuss Revision Strategies Homework: Decide which assignments you will revise. Begin Revising Your Two Best Essays and Gathering Your Portfolio Materials. |
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Nov 29th Presentation of the group project Homework: Keep Revising Your Two Best Essays and Gathering Your Portfolio Materials Final Portfolio Due: Dec 6th |
Dec 1st Presentation of the group project Activity: Review and Reflect |
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Dec 6th Last Class- Submission of Final Portfolios |