ENGLISH 364.01 INTRODUCTION TO COMPOSITION THEORY
Missouri Western State College, Division of Liberal Arts and Sciences
Department of English, Foreign Languages, and Journalism
Fall Semester 1998
MWF 2:00-2:50 MC 211
Instructor: Dr Cynthia Jeney
Office: JMG T-309
Office Hours: MW 3:30-4:30p.m.; T-Th 10 a.m. - 12 noon (and by appointment)
Phone: 271-4447
Email: jeney@griffon.mwsc.edu Course Objectives:
Upon completion of ENG 364 a student should be able to:
· identify many of the major themes in contemporary literary and composition theory, especially in relation to the practicalities of secondary and college writing instruction;
· categorize these themes in a number of different, meaningful ways;
· discuss various and sometimes contradictory academic assumptions about writing, teaching, and the teaching of writing;
· analyze the position of composition as an academic field in the U.S. and the role of theory and theorizing within it;
· describe the context of writing education in terms of its main economic, social and political features;
· use textual intervention and critical interpretation to uncover the main economic, social and political features of the various texts of Composition Studies;
· discuss the political and ethical implications involved in literacy education and the professional teaching of writing;
· pose problems within current composition theory and support proposed solutions to those problems. Means:
To reach these goals, each student is expected to:
· make strenuous individual contributions to a collective investigation of the nature of theoretical understanding in Rhetoric and Composition;
· read selected passages from primary sources;
· read interpretive analyses from secondary literature;
· read and analyze articles and news stories in College English, The Chronicle of Higher Education, College Composition and Communication, and other journals;
· write several short papers and one longer essay;
· pass a mid-term and a final examination involving objective questions and short essay responses;
· do exercises and activities involving various applications of different theories about rhetoric and writing;
· critique pedagogical exercises and activities that reflect different theoretical orientations and ideological assumptions;
· develop a coherent and defensible point of view regarding a central theoretical conception of language and writing and the ethics involved in its practical application. Required Texts and Materials:
· Pope, Rob. The English Studies Book. London: Routledge, 1998.
· Wiley, Mark, Barbara Gleason, and Louise Wetherbee Phelps. Composition in Four Keys: Inquiring Into the Field. Mountain View, CA: Mayfield, 1996.
· (The teacher reserves the right to assign other required materials over the course of the term.)
· Pocket folder for handouts
· Loose change for copying materials from the library
· Two (at least) 3.50" disks for word processing your assignments in the computer lab or at home.
Suggested Materials:
It is a good idea to purchase for your permanent library the three titles required of all English majors in our Department:
· Trimmer. A Guide to MLA Documentation.
· Holman and Harmon. A Handbook to Literature.
· Stevens and Steward. A Guide to Literary Criticism and Research. LAS Ethics Focus:
English 364 is "ethics intensive." This means that our studies will involve an examination of ethical principles, questions and problems in the relatively new academic field of composition studies. You will be asked to evaluate—collaboratively and individually, orally and in writing—social, ethical, pedagogical, political, and cultural issues of each situation and text we look at and intervene in during the term. Grades
This course uses the following grading scale:
Requirements:
15% Class participation, quizzes, exercises, and attendance
15% In-Class presentations
15% Mid-term exam
20% two brief papers
20% Term Essay
15% Final Exam
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100% Attendance
Please refer to the College's Policy Guide governing student attendance, section IV.B. Anyone with more than six (6) absences from class will receive a failing grade. Workshops, in-class presentations, quizzes and exercises cannot be made up. In-Class Presentation
Presentations in class of materials for study are essential to this class. There will be little room for “make-up” presentations if you are absent on your presentation day, simply because alternative texts/days may be filled. You will sign up to “present” two or more assigned readings in class. Presentations must include outlines and 10-15 minutes in which the student will lead lecture/discussion of the material. Presentations may include summary, overview, illustration, handouts for classmates, freewriting, outside readings, discussion questions, comparison with other texts we have read, extensions of theories into teaching / writing situations, and so forth. Academic Honesty
Students must submit their own work. Plagiarism or cheating on papers or tests is a complete breach of your contract with the school and with me. I will always seek the strongest punishment available under campus rules for any incidence of cheating. I also expect you to be able to prove positively that you have not cheated, so that I reserve the right to punish even apparent cheating unless you can demonstrate that the appearance is deceiving. I will always be willing to help you make such a demonstration, which will be greatly aided if you keep copies of all your earlier work toward final assignments. Disabilities
Any student in this course who has a disability that prevents the fullest expression of abilities should contact me personally as soon as possible so that we can discuss alternative ways to satisfy class requirements. Class Participation
Please come to class on time, to avoid disrupting our work. You must keep up with the assigned readings (expect quizzes), and you must do the short writing assignments as they are assigned. Some of the readings and shorter writings will involve your active participation in small group inquiry and discussion. You should expect to do a great deal of talking, listening, reading and writing with your peers, the class as a whole, and the teacher. Seeking Assistance
My office hours are a key resource for you. You can see me on a drop-in basis at the hours posted on my door and on this syllabus, or by appointment. Your Job and Family
It is my duty to inform you at every opportunity that this class is "more important" than your job. Colleges cannot really function if this is not part of the agreement between students and the institution. For different reasons, family responsibilities do not constitute valid reasons for missing class or falling behind in your work. That is, while family is certainly more important than school, we assume that you have arranged your family life so as to permit you to meet all your educational responsibilities. If you have not, you have taken a calculated risk and should be willing to accept grading penalties as a consequence of your choices. Technology
All final assignments for this course must be word-processed. Missouri Western maintains a number of computer labs where you can find assistance in word processing your work. You may be expected to participate in e-mail and listserv discussions. You may also be expected to post notes and discussion points on a class web page. This may mean that you will have to spend time outside of class on a computer terminal, on or off campus. Late Papers
It is expected that all work will be handed in on time. Late papers, be they short or long assignments, will lose one letter grade (10% of possible points) for each day beyond the due date. This applies whether you are in class or not. Planning to finish early, being on good terms with helpful classmates, and learning to use computers to send material over the Internet should completely insure you against even the most unlikely emergencies.
Rough Outline
Here is the big picture. At first, we will look at the fundamental questions. What are we doing here? What are theories? What is "composition" and where does it belong? How do we do the right things in class? Then we will learn in more depth about composition theories as they have been divided by the Wiley book, which will make up the bulk of the mid-term exam material. Then we will explore where composition belongs within English Studies as explained by the Pope book. Then, while continuing to explore key articles from the Wiley book in more depth, you will also form smaller research communities within which to do individual projects exploring specific aspects of composition theory, which will result in an end-of-course conference that will supply much of the final exam material. Schedule of Assignments, Daily Themes, and Events
August
M 21 Introductions, Syllabus, Overview.
W 23 Pope 7-23, 24-42;
F 25 Wiley 551-566 (Fulkerson, Berlin) M 28 Wiley 140-148; (Corbett)
W 30 Wiley 211-224 (Kinneavy)
September
F 1 Pope 67-92 Overview: Practical Criticism, Old (New) Criticism,
Formalism & Functionalism
(Assign short paper #1 – apply critical theory to a primary
text in Pope “Anthology of Sample Texts”) M 4 LABOR DAY--NO CLASS MEETING
W 6 Pope 92-123 Overview: Psychological approaches, Marxism,
Feminism
F 8 Pope 124-154 Overview: Postmodernism, Postcolonialism M 11 SHORT PAPER #1 DUE – Outline of Classical Rhetoric (Handouts)
W 13 Wiley 567-581 (North)
F 15 Wiley 129-139 (Gleason) M 18 Wiley 149-157(Shaughnessy, Winterowd)
W 20 Wiley 163-175 (Williams)
F 22 Wiley 176-183 (Young) M 25 Wiley 198-210 (Ede & Lunsford) Assign Short Paper #2
W 27 Wiley 17-23 (Wiley)
F 29 Wiley 24-28 (Moffett) October
M 2 Wiley 29-33 (Britton)
W 4 Wiley 40-49 (Berthoff, Berthoff)
F 6 Wiley 62-83 (Elbow, Elbow) M 9 COLUMBUS DAY -- NO CLASS MEETING
W 11 Wiley 84-113 (Bruffee, Stewart)
F 13 SHORT PAPER #2 DUE (Short Argument: On Grading Issues) M 16 Wiley 398-416; 445-459 (Sternglass, Rose); Discuss Midterm
W 18 Wiley 480-485 (Smitherman-Donaldson)
F 20 MIDTERM EXAM M 23 Pope 155-177 (Common Topics) Assign Brief Research Proposal.
W 25 Pope 177-202 (Common Topics) Discuss Research Paper Topics
F 27 Pope 220-236 (Common Topics) M 30
November
W 1 RESEARCH PROPOSAL DUE. Wiley 257-265 (Gleason)
F 3 Wiley 417-433 (Wiley, Rouse) M 6 Wiley 460-479 (Bartholomae)
W 8 Wiley 486-492 (Robertson, et.al.)
F 10 Wiley 503-529 (Villanueva, Bizzell) M 13 Wiley 492-502; 530-540 (Miller, Hairston)
W 15 Wiley 266-284 (Emig)
F 17 Wiley 337-352 (Hawisher)
M 20 Wiley 354-363 (Hillocks)
W 22 Wiley 375-387 (Geisler)
F 24 Wiley 302-310; 311-336 (Dyson, Freedman) M 27 Wiley 582-593 (Knoblauch)
W 29 TERM PAPER DUE. December
F 1 Open.
W 6 FINAL EXAM DUE 2:00-3:50 |