COURSE OBJECTIVES:
The mission of ASU’s Writing Programs is to introduce students to the importance of writing in the work of the university and to develop their critical reading, thinking and writing skills so that they can successfully participate in that work. Writing is intellectual work, and the demands of writing within the university community include the need:

• to synthesize and analyze multiple points of view;
• to articulate and support one’s own position regarding various issues; and
• to adjust writing to multiple audiences, purposes, and conventions.

Students in our courses are expected to engage the ideas encountered in academic and serious public discourse, to develop complex ideas and arguments through serious consideration of different perspectives, and to connect their life experiences with ideas and information they encounter in classes.

English 215 is an advanced interdisciplinary writing course emphasizing critical reading and thinking, argumentative writing, library research, and documentation of sources in an academic setting. Practice and study of selected rhetorics of inquiry (for example, historical, cultural, empirical, and ethnographic) employed in academic disciplines, preparing students for different systems of writing in their academic lives. Throughout this course, students will:

• significantly improve their academic writing;
• develop an understanding of how members of a particular discipline conceive of and engage in the rhetorical practices of that discipline;
• demonstrate understanding of the key conversations, the forms, and the conventions of writing in a particular discipline;
• gain experience in the construction of knowledge within a discipline and practice using its discourse;
• read critically and analyze rhetorically writings from a particular discipline and use those lenses to frame their own discourses;
• write in the different forms and styles of a particular discipline; and
• develop techniques for conducting research on the Internet and with other electronic databases.
  
  

REQUIRED TEXTS/SUPPLIES:

Hult, Christine. Reading and Writing Across the Curriculum. Longman, 2002 (packaged w/additional text).

Schmidt, Gary. Communities of Discourse: The Rhetoric of Disciplines. Prentice Hall, 1993.

ASU Writing Programs Guide (available only online; click here to go to Guide)

University Policies/Student Affairs Office: Student Code of Conduct, including: Student Academic Integrity, Sexual Harassment, Class Disruption

2 new 3 1/2" disks

ASUrite account (for details on obtaining an account, click here)

Stapler and staples (standard size -- trust me on this one) OR binder clips

copy cards for use in the library

Course Requirements and Grading

Attendance and Participation:
Because so much of your learning will take place in class, you must attend on a regular basis to receive credit for this course. If you miss more than FOUR (4) class meetings, you cannot pass this course. This is a Writing Programs policy and is non-negotiable. This means that there is no such thing as an "excused" absence. There are only `absences.'

"Attendance" means being present, on time, awake, and prepared for the entire class period. A student who is chronically late to class, leaves early, sleeps through class, engages in off-task activity, or is not prepared to participate in the day's class work will not receive attendance and participation credit. Further, I may cancel classes at least once this semester to hold mandatory conferences with you. If you miss a conference, you will be counted absent (as if from class). Beyond this policy, I expect students to make every effort to attend all meetings and to miss class only in rare and unavoidable circumstances. Should you arrive after I have called the roll, it is your responsibility to ensure that I correct the roll at class end.

Note #1: To accommodate students who participate in university-sanctioned activities, the Writing Programs Office offers sections of this course at various times of the day and week. We have asked advisors across campus to help students enroll in appropriate sections. If you think that this course may conflict with a university-sanctioned activity in which you are involved--athletics, the debate team or another--please see me after class today. Transferring to another section may be the only viable option, but we should discuss it.

Teacher Conferences:
You should try to visit with me in my office at least twice during the term to discuss your papers and your class performance. Please take this opportunity to let me get to know you a little better. I also encourage you to visit your other professors during their office hours. Your conferences with me will be figured in your final grade.

Classroom Protocol:
Most of our classtime will be devoted to discussions and workshops, with an occasional lecture, announcements, and other in-class activities. Regardless of the class format, you are expected to be prepared, to listen, to contribute, and to participate in an appropriate fashion. Among other things, this means:

• no off-task use of your computer (e.g., no personal e-mail, Web surfing, or other computer based activities that are not specifically course related)
• computer monitors are to be turned off during class discussions, lectures, and announcements or when otherwise directed
• do not print files during classtime unless otherwise directed
• personal communication devices (cell phones, beepers, and other devices) must be turned off for the entire class period. Unless you are part of an emergency on-call organization--Fire Department, Police Department, EMT, etc.), you should not and will not receive calls during class. Doing so will result in a 0 for the day's participation credit.
  

On days when a draft is due for peer review, you will be expected to come with a complete typed draft and a disk copy. Failing to come with a completed draft will affect your peer review grade and your attendance/participation grade. Nevertheless, even if your draft is incomplete, it is better to come to class than to miss since missing too many classes could result in your failing the class. Moreover, if you come, you will earn some participation credit. We will also spend class time writing, and you should give your best effort to these writing activities since your participation grade will be affected by this work.

Course Work:
You must come to each class prepared to write, to share your drafts with others, and to revise what you have already written. This means you must work steadily both in class and on your own. You should plan to spend two to three hours outside of class for every hour in class. Writing classes frequently require more time from students than many other classes do. All final drafts of papers must be typed or wordprocessed and double spaced. Drafts for workshops should also be typed. Put your name, my name, the course title, the date, and title of your work on the first page. Number all pages and put your name on each page, staple your paper & submit with invention/heuristic work, drafts, and peer reviews.

Keep all your writing for this course, including in-class and out-of-class working notes, drafts, revisions, final drafts, workshop responses, and journal entries. At the end of the semester, you will review your work to analyze and evaluate your progress. (I strongly urge you to backup all your work. It could be disastrous for you gradewise if you cannot produce evidence of your work at semester's end.) All major projects must be completed in order to pass the course.

Since each writer's needs are unique, this course will provide lots of individual attention and feedback from me as well as from other students in class. I also encourage you to seek reactions to your ideas and drafts from people outside of this course. Consider soliciting advice from family, friends, and roommates. To plagiarize is to present as your own any work that is not exclusively your own and violates the University policy on Academic Integrity. Plagiarism of all or a portion of any assignment will be severely penalized.

Computer Technology:
This class will also introduce you to several aspects of computer research and pedagogy. We will frequently be doing class exercises and collaborative work on computer. You do not have to have expertise on the computer to succeed in this class, but you will have to work frequently on computer-aided assignments. There are bound to be technical glitches and frustrations during the semester. Remember that there are usually multiple ways to solve and avoid technical problems by being creative, troubleshooting, and not giving in to frustration. The most effective way to learn about the technology is by talking to other users and taking an active role in problem solving. The helpline for computer problems for ASU students and staff is: 480-965-6500.

If you do not have a computer at home, you'll want to use one of the many ASU computing sites on campus. There are several locations. Although the Computing Commons is the largest site, it is also the busiest, so it's a good idea to explore other smaller sites as well.

If you have a computer at home and are interested in free software to connect to ASU's system, contact the Computing Assistance staff on the second floor of the Computing Commons, or call them at 480-965-6500

Use of Computers:
ASU has adopted a new policy governing all uses of university computing resources that I expect you to observe. The Computer, Internet, and Electronic Communications Policy is available here

Please note that during class, you should not use the computers to make purchases online, send and read email, play games, or surf inappropriate websites.

The Public Nature of the Class Writing and Discussion:
Part of becoming a good writer is learning to appreciate the ideas and criticisms of others, and in this course our purpose is to come together as a community of writers. Remember that you will often be expected to share your writing with others. Avoid writing about things that you may not be prepared to subject to public scrutiny or that you feel so strongly about that you are unwilling to listen to perspectives other than your own. This does not mean that you are not entitled to an opinion but that you adopt positions responsibly, contemplating the possible effects on others, that you take responsibility for your words and for engagement with the words of others.

Plagiarism:
To plagiarize is to present as your own any work that is not exclusively your own. Plagiarism of all or a portion of any assignment will be strictly penalized. For more information on plagiarism, see ASU's Writing Programs Guide  and University Policies at http://www.asu.edu/studentlife/.

Grading Criteria

• Essays 90% (15%, 20%, 20%,35% respectively)
• Attendance & Participation 10%