Instructor: Dr. Donaher
Office: JGM 309 O
Office Hours: MWF 8:00-9:00 and 10:00-11:00, and by appointment
Phone: 816-271-5964
E-mail: donahepa@griffon.mwsc.edu
URL: http://www.missouriwestern.edu/~donahepa

Course Philosophy and Objectives

You will have to write and put away or burn a lot of material before you are comfortable in this medium. You might as well start now and get the necessary work done. For I believe that eventually quantity will make for quality.  --  Ray Bradbury

A professional writer is an amateur who didn't quit. -- Richard Bach

There are a lot of ways to go about learning about writing; one approach is to do a lot of writing and to do a lot of "writing about writing," your own and other people's. This class utilizes this approach.

At the end of English 104, you will understand that:

• Writing can be used for different purposes.
• Multiple audiences exist.
• Writing is a recursive process.
• There are many productive ways to generate ideas and arguments.
• Common patterns of organization exist.
• Formal distinctions exist among different prose genres.
• Polished writing keeps the reader's attention on the message.
• Reading is interactive.

As part of MWSC's General Studies program, this course is also designed to help you develop the "skills, knowledge, and characteristics of an educated person," as defined in the College Catalog, page 43.

Required Materials

Textbook:

• Schrodes, Caroline, Harry Finestone, and Michael Shugrue. The Conscious Reader. Boston: Allyn and Bacon, 1998.

Other:

• A Student E-mail Account at MWSC. Contact the Computer Center to learn how to activate your student account at  816-271-4354.
• To participate fully in this course, you must have ready internet access and be able to complete the assignments in a timely manner. Assignments are due every Wednesday, at noon CST, and no late work is accepted, except as outlined in the Course Policies.
• For word processing, you must use Microsoft Word '98 or earlier, or another compatible program. Compatibility means  that files converted from some other program to MSWord '98 retain their original format and layout and conform to MLA manuscript guidelines.
• To get started, read over the Course Policies, Course Schedule, and Assignment pages. Then, on the Course Schedule page, click on "Getting Started" for a message from your instructor and further instructions.

Pre-Writings
Students will do a number of invention writings for each Unit paper including brainstorming, freewriting, and topic evaluation. Once topics for final papers are chosen, the student will write a structured freewrite of a specified length prior to writing the final paper for the Unit. These invention strategies allow the student to explore a variety of topics and topic approaches before beginning the final Unit paper.

Critical Responses and Summaries
Students will write six critical responses to and four summaries of the assigned readings. Writing critical responses helps students to develop and practice their analytical and synthesizing skills. Writing summaries helps students learn to synthesize complicated arguments for use as evidence in their own writings.

Argument Analyses
Students will write two argument analyses in which they both delineate the parts of an argument in two essays and then evaluate the effectiveness of these arguments. This exercise draws upon and tests a student's ability both to understand and synthesize complex ideas, as well as to use logic to evaluate the overall argument.

Unit One Paper - The Concept Essay
A Concept Essay explains an idea for an expressed purpose, drawing upon a variety of evidence as proof. For this essay, students will be writing about the concept of education.

Unit Two Paper - The Concept Essay Revisited
A Concept Essay explains an idea for an expressed purpose, drawing upon a variety of evidence as proof. For this essay, students will be writing about stereotypes as concepts.

Unit Three Paper - The Position Paper
A Position Paper is a persuasive essay that makes an argument for an expressed purpose. Position papers use the elements of argument and a variety of evidence to prove their points. For this essay, students will be researching and writing about  issues related to consumerism and the environment.

Unit Four Paper - The Position Paper Revisited
A Position Paper is a persuasive essay that makes an argument for an expressed purpose. Position papers use the elements of argument and a variety of evidence to prove their points. For this essay, students will be researching and writing about issues related to censorship, artistic freedom, and the differences between art and commercial enterprise.

Annotated Bibliographies
For both the Unit Three and Four papers, students will conduct research at the library and on the internet and incorporate that research into their final papers. The fruits of this research will also be presented in the form of an annotated bibliography, a bibliography with short abstracts for each article citation. Writing abstracts, like writing critical responses, summaries, and argument analyses, helps students refine their analytical and synthesizing skills.

Course Policies

Saving Work
Students should save all their work for this class--from notes to drafts to final papers. There may be occasions when work needs to be re-submitted or grades verified.

Formats for Submitting Work
All drafts and final papers for this course must be word processed and submitted in the format specified by the assignment. Be sure to follow submission guidelines carefully in order to receive full credit for your submissions (see "Getting Started" for more information).

Late Work
Learning is a cumulative process and each assignment in this course is designed to build on the last assignment; therefore late work disrupts this important aspect of the learning process. Except for the four final papers, no late work will be accepted under any circumstances. Late papers will discounted one letter grade if unreasonably late. No work will be accepted after noon CST on May 2, 2001.

Grading
Students will do a variety of writing assignments over the course of  the semester, including pre-writing exercises, critical responses, summaries, argument analyses, two short formal papers, and two longer, formal research papers with annotated bibliographies. In order to pass the course, students must complete these papers. In addition, the quality of their work and the percentage of the other writings completed will determine the final grade.

The Final Grade Distribution is as follows:

Unit One = 20%
Unit Two = 20%
Unit Three = 30%
Unit Four = 30%

A word of caution: don't underestimate the value of small assignments since no late work (other than final papers) is accepted. Occasional lapses are understood, but chronic lapses can only pull the final grade downward.

Fullest Expression of Abilities
Any student who has a disability that prevents the fullest expression of abilities should contact the instructor by the end of the first week to discuss class requirements.

Classroom Courtesy
Students are expected to be courteous and respectful in all of their exchanges with the instructor and other students. Because this course is conducted without face-to-face encounters, one should be particularly careful to note how tone, rhetoric, and language all contribute to the overall impression of one's writings.

Plagiarism
Plagiarism is literally the stealing of others' words and ideas and using them as your own. Make every effort to give credit where credit is due, and if you are not sure of "how"--ASK. Students are responsible for proving that all work turned in for grading is their own original work. Plagiarism is a serious offense and, therefore, will receive harsh punishment. Papers with evidence of plagiarism will receive an zero, which will result in failure of the course. Don't think that you won't be caught; writing style is distinctive and verifiable.

Course Schedule
A detailed Writing Assignment Calendar is attached to each Unit Overview. Please refer to it for specific dates, details, and instructions.
 

Getting Started

Day One (January 11)

• Meet on Campus, Thursday, January 11, 2001, MC Building, Recital Hall, 5:30-8:30 pm
• Getting Started Instructions

Unit One
Weeks One - Three (January 18 - February 7)

• Unit One Overview and Assignment Calendar

Unit Two
Weeks Four -  Six (February 8 - February 28)

• Unit Two Overview and Assignment Calendar

Unit Three
Weeks Seven -  Ten (March 1 - April 4)

• Unit Three Overview and Assignment Calendar

Unit Four
Weeks Eleven - Fourteen (April 5 - May 2)

Unit Four Overview and Assignment Calendar