For more information, go to www.austincc.edu/mkuykend

Course Description

ENGLISH 1301 is a study of the principles of composition with emphasis on language, the mechanics of writing, types of discourse, and research and documentation.

Grading and Requirements:  Refer to the English department master syllabus for a general outline of department requirements regarding numbers of papers and the grading system.  I will use System 2:Letter Grades.  I will assign letter to all required essays.  You will be given the opportunity to draft and revise each required essay assignment one or more times.  You will also be required to pass the Departmental Exam (see description below) in the Testing Center to pass the course.  I have included the master syllabus in Course Documents. 

• Paper I:   10%
• Paper II:  20%
• Paper III:  25%
• Paper IV:  25%
• Info Game Worksheet:  10%
• Drafts:  10%
• Exit Exam (The C Test)) pass/fail

The Info Game tutorial is at:  http://library.austincc.edu/help/infogamedevelopment

This is the new revised version of the Info Game.

 These grades will provide you with a measure of your progress and give you a sense of your standing in the course.  In order to do well, however, you should focus on grades and more on improving the quality of your reading, writing, and thinking skills.  Improve your skills, and higher grades will follow, not only in this course but in all your subsequent college courses.  These skills are needed in all courses.

• Linda H. Peterson and John C. Brereton, eds.  The Norton Reader, Twelfth Edition

Note:  This text is absolutely necessary.  Borrow one if you must.  Barnes and Noble (online) has good prices.  Go to www.barnesandnoble.comand click on textbooks.  The ISBN of the text is 978-0-393-92948-5 (pbk).

 Highly Recommended:

•  ***Lennis Polnac.  Purpose, Pattern, and Process. 6^th, 7^th, or 8^th editions.  This text provides       the best explanation of the Aims and Modes approach to writing.  It is worth the money.
   
•  Andrea A. Lunsford.  Easy Writer. Third or Fourth edition.  If you already have a handbook, use it.  If you cannot afford to buy a handbook, use the Purdue Online Writing Lab (OWL) :
   
• http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/search.php
   
•  a dictionary and a thesaurus OR use Dictionary.Com  www.dictionary.com

 Other requirements:

• Access to the Internet, Microsoft Word 2003, 2007, or 2010 (Please no Microsoft Works), and the knowledge and technical ability to send and receive documents via Blackboard.  Check out free download of Microsoft Word at http://www.openoffice.org/
   
• I require that you use your ACC email address.  Go to this URL link to set up your gmail account:  http://www.austincc.edu/google/.  If you have trouble logging in on Blackboard, follow the instructions on the sign in page.

English 1301 is one of the most useful courses you are likely to take in college.  It is designed to help you improve your thinking, reading, and writing skills (very important skills for college students and human beings in general).  I have chosen core essays for you to read.  Ideally each group demonstrates the aim(s) and mode(s)—in various configurations—that you will use in your papers.  Notice the organization, use of detail, and rhythm and pace.  I have provided a chart of the characteristics of the aims and modes.  It is located in Course Documents.

Paper assignments will focus on demonstrating knowledge of the four aims and modes.  An aim refers to the author’s purpose in writing an essay; mode refers to the method the author uses to organize that essay.  Print out the Aims and Modes chart I’ve put in Course Documents.  Notice that

• The expressive aim focuses on the writer’s thought, feelings, and perceptions (diaries, letters, journals, personal autobiographical essays). 
• The persuasive aim focuses on the audience to whom the essay is targeted. The author attempts to change the mind , behavior, or beliefs of that audience. (sermons, advertisements, political slogans, editorials and opinion pieces)
• The Informative aim focuses on presenting information in an objective manner.  Presenting the facts is primary.  The author will usually analyse and interpret those facts and possibly explore or project what the facts may lead to in the future.  (textbooks, economic predictions, social and environmental pieces)
• The literary aim focuses on language devices—imagery, metaphors, similes, personification, irony, etc. to involve the reader to the point that the piece invokes a response and entertains the reader. (short stories, autobiographical essays, poetry, drama, novels)

The modes organize the essay in such a way that the reader can follow where the authors lead.

• The narrative mode is used to tell a story or describe a process.  Narration of event (story) uses chronology to move the story along; narration of process uses sequence to walk the reader through the steps or phases of something.  Narration of event is often paired with the expressive and/or literary aims and the descriptive mode; narration of process is often paired with the informative and/or the persuasive aims and with the classification mode.
• The descriptive mode seeks to point out the unique aspects of a subject or topic. It’s uses specific detail to separate the ordinary from the unusual. (Commentary, fashion and design, people.)
• Classificationputs things into categories, compares and contrasts objects, attitudes, and  topics.  It is often paired with the informative and persuasive aims and the descriptive mode. (political platforms, steps in process, getting organized).
• Evaluationuses criteria (standards) to make judgments or recommendations about all kinds of things—books, movies, musicians, concerts, TV shows, what have you.  Evaluation is based on reasoned opinion.  I like this movie for these reasons.  Often this process is unconscious and often circular—I like it because I like it.  Evaluation is often paired with persuasion.  You will use the evaluation mode with the persuasive/analytic/interpretive part of the informative aims in your third paper.

Goals:  The goals of Composition I are to promote:

• critical thinking, reading, and writing skills
• clear, coherent, confident, and effective communication
• collaborative writing and learning

 Course Outcomes:  Upon completion of Composition I, you should be able to

• identify rhetorical purposes (Aims) and methods of organization (Mode) appropriate to topic, thesis, and audience.
• write a coherent essay observing appropriate grammatical, mechanical, and stylistic conventions
• evaluate, edit, and revise at all stages in the writing process.
• collect, read, analyze, and organize information from a wide range of sources and use the MLA style of documentation to create a Works Cited of the paper’s sources with each source referenced at least once in the paper using the MLA parenthetical documentation.

A full syllabus will be posted on Blackboard for enrolled students.