English 2, Section 3: Research Writing, Spring 2008

English 2, Section 3: Research Writing, Spring 2008

Tuesdays and Thursdays, 11:50 a.m. – 1:05 p.m., Sem 214

Instructor: Jessica Hausmann

Office: Sitterly 301B, x8309 (973-408-3131, x8309 from off campus)

Email: jhausman@drew.edu, jess.haus@verizon.net

Office hours: Th 1:30-3:30 (3:30-4:30 teacher-mentor) and by appointment

Course Description: This half semester long course focuses on academic research and writing. Our goals include developing an effective writing process including strategies for library and internet research, prewriting skills, drafting, and revision. Our goals for the final research paper are that it will be well organized, include an effective thesis, develop a convincing argument supported with adequate evidence, use sources correctly and effectively, document sources properly using MLA style, and, of course, avoid plagiarism, both intentional and unintentional. You will be graded both on your final product and on the process you used to get there.

Also, you are responsible for reading the syllabus, and turning in assignments on time whether I remind you of them in class or not.

General Composition Policies

Academic Integrity: Students are expected at all times follow the rules for source use described in the “Drew University College of Liberal Arts Standards of Academic Integrity” document available in The Longman’s Writer’s Companion, on line at <http://www.depts.drew.edu/composition/Integrity.htm>, and in printed form from the office of the Dean of the College, BC 110. Students found to be in violation of these standards by the Committee on Academic Integrity will fail the course, regardless of other penalties levied by that committee.

Academic Accommodations: Requests for academic accommodations must be formally filed with the Office of Educational Services. It is the student’s responsibility to self-identify with the Office of Educational Services. To schedule an appointment, call x3327 or stop by BC 114. Please note there are no retroactive accommodations.

The Public Nature of Class Writing and Discussion: Part of becoming a good writer is learning to appreciate the ideas and criticism of others. 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 your opinion. Rather, I am suggesting that you adopt positions responsibly, contemplating the possible effects on others, and that you take responsibility for your words and for engagement with the words of others.

Respect/Nondiscrimination: You must respect your fellow writers. This means that you must take them and their ideas and writing seriously and comment constructively with sensitivity to their feelings. Failure to do this will result in a collapse of the trust necessary for a workshop and you will be asked to leave and marked absent. Lack of respect ranges from discriminating comments (homophobia, racism, sexism, etc.) to yawns, the pulling of faces, drumming fingers, laughter, asides to other members of the seminar, and so on. Also, cell phones and IM should never be answered during class and should be turned off.

Class Policies and Requirements

Required Texts and Supplies – Bring to Every Class Meeting:

Lap-top computer and cables/wireless modem

Anson, Chris M., et al. eds. The Longman Writer’s Companion. 3^rd ed.

Course Requirements and Grades:

Final Portfolio: Emailed to me by 11:59 p.m. Mon., March 17. It should contain a brief statement (about 300-500 words) explaining what you have learned from English 2, how you’ve changed as a writer, how you have improved, and also areas where you would still like to improve. You should also describe your writing process, and how that has changed. The portfolio must also contain:

Final Paper: A well-organized, thesis-driven argumentative research paper with:

An argumentative thesis (meaning someone can reasonably disagree with it. It doesn’t have to be “controversial.”)
Evidence to back it up
3000-4000 words not counting the works cited (approx. 10-13 pages)
A minimum of 10 sources, at least 7 of which are not exclusively web-based (see note)
A works cited (not the same thing as annotated bibliography)
Adherence to MLA standards for all citations
A title
One-inch margins all around, double-spaced text, printed in 12-pt Times New Roman font.

* A note on sources: A minimum of seven of your sources must be from some source other than the general/public internet. General/public internet sources include, but are not limited to, web pages and internet-only news sites. Books, journals, government reports, and other sources which appear in print somewhere are not general/public internet sources and may be used towards your seven non-internet sources, even if you accessed them through on-line databases. General encyclopedias, Wikipedia, and about.com are not acceptable as sources for this paper.The paper will be done in stages. Due dates are on the schedule below.

Grading Criteria: Papers will be graded based the complexity, clarity, and appropriateness of the thesis, as well as how it relates to the rest of the paper; the amount and quality of the evidence; your ability to focus on your topic without straying or being repetitious; ample development and explanation of ideas over appropriate page length; acknowledgement and development of counter-argument/opposed perspective; the organization of the paper including the introduction and conclusion, the order of paragraphs, the coherency of paragraphs, and transitions and linking ideas; the proper use of sources including smooth integration of in-text citations, the work cited, and proper format of both; a balanced use of sources; an appropriate, formal/academic tone; and strong syntax and mechanics, including sentence structure, word usage, grammar, and punctuation.

Important: No final papers will be accepted if I have not seen at least one draft before it is turned in. This is a program-wide policy and there are no exceptions

(Final Portfolio Requirements continued on next page…. )

Process: In your portfolio you should also include all of your prewriting, notes, drafts, etc. This part of your grade depends on how you got to your final product rather than the product itself. You should commit yourself to work seriously at each stage, including idea generation, research, organization, drafting, and revision. You also should save everything and not save over your drafts but save each version under a different name.

Research Proposal w/Annotated Bibliography: Email to me by the beginning of class Tuesday, Feb. 14. We will discuss format in more detail in class. Generally the proposal will finalize your topic selection and give me a sense of the direction of your project. It will also provide a bibliography of 15 possible sources, listed in MLA format, with a brief annotation summarizing each. This will give me a sense of the kind fo sources you are finding and help you keep your sources straight. THIS IS SEPARATE FROM THE WORKS CITED YOU WILL TURN IN WITH YOUR FINAL PAPER. Therefore, you do not have to use the same sources on your annotated bibliography list and in your paper. However, it is good to annotate sources you think you might use because this is a more efficient use of your time.

Email Responses: Topics/questions/prompts and due dates are listed on your syllabus. After you have responded to the question, you may also talk more generally about your progress and any problems, concerns – or little victories – you encounter while working to keep me informed about your progress. Responses should be approximately 300-500 words.

Class Participation: Includes elements such as attendance and lateness (see below). Also you should have your work completed, and bring your hand book and computer. You should take part in class discussions and be an active participant in peer feedback and other workshops. Naturally, as noted above, you should be respectful, and not disruptive.

Attendance and Lateness: It is in your best interest to be at every class. This class is short and moves quickly, so your presence is necessary. Also, your input is expected in class discussions and workshops. Of course, things happen, people get sick, etc. The following is the policy dealing with this issue:

Two absences: no penalty
Three or more absences: final grade may be lowered up to one full grade
Five or more absences: You may fail the class

If you have to miss class because of an emergency or extended illness, you should let me know beforehand and get a note from the dean.

Being late to class may also affect your grade, particularly if it is habitual.

Handing in Work: All work should be submitted by email. It should be sent before class begins. If you are having a problem with your email, you should hand in a paper copy during class, but you should then email the work as soon as you are able to.

Saving Work: Always save your work in several places – on your hard drive, on a CD-Rom, data stick, or similar portable device, and also on the Drew server (you can do that by emailing it to yourself or putting it on the K-drive).

Late Work: Late drafts will result in your process grade being lowered. You will lose a full letter grade for any other graded work handed in late, including your final portfolio. Any work that is more than a week late will receive a zero. Email responses will not be accepted late. Extensions will only be granted if you request them before the work is due and/or if they are requested through the dean.

Schedule

Tu Jan. 29 Discussion: Course intro, prewriting exercises, and picking topics

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Th Jan. 31 Work due by the beginning of class:

Email Response #1: Preliminary Research Proposal – approximately 250 words discussing what topic you think you want to work on, why you’re interested in it, and why you think it is a good topic worth researching. (It’s ok if you change your topic later.)

Readings:

Academic Honesty Policy: http://depts.drew.edu/composition/Academic_Honesty.htm

* Follow “EXAMPLES OF PLAGIARISM and discussion” link

Summary/Paraphr.: www.users.drew.edu/sjamieso/research_sources.html#summarizing

Annotated bibliographies:

http://www.unc.edu/depts/wcweb/handouts/annotated_bibliographies.html

MLA examples http://www.unc.edu/depts/wcweb/handouts/annotated_mla.html

Research Proposals: http://users.drew.edu/~sjamieso/research_proposal.html

Discussion: Avoiding plagiarism, research proposals, annotated bibliographies

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Tu Feb. 5 Work due by the beginning of class:

Email Response #2:Summarize the Drew Academic Honesty Policy. Use the rules for summarizing and paraphrasing you read about. Also, talk about those things in the policy that seem most confusing. Finally, list some strategies you will use to make sure you follow the rules of the policy.

Discussion: Reference librarian presentation in class

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Th Feb. 7 Work due by the beginning of class:

Email Response #3: Make a list of 15 web-based resources. Talk about the techniques you used to find them and what information you received from the librarians that helped you. Start reading and skimming your sources, taking notes for annotations. Which are most promising so far? What have you found in your research that surprises you?

Also, any work the librarian asked you to complete for today.

Discussion: Reference librarian presentation in class

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Tu Feb. 12 Work due by the beginning of class:

Email Response #4: Make a list of 25 sources you found using Drew’s library resources. Talk about the techniques you used to find them and what information you received from the librarians that helped you. Start reading and skimming your sources, taking notes for annotations. Which are most promising so far? What have you found in your research that surprises you?

Reading: “Establishing Arguments”: owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/588/01/

Discussion: Review research proposals, annotated bibliographies, arguments

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Th Feb. 14 Work due by the beginning of class:

Final Research Proposal/Annotated Bibliography (No more topic changes after this!)

Readings: Introduction and thesis http://owl.english.purdue.edu/workshops/hypertext/ResearchW/writeintro.html and also follow the links to other introduction sites at the bottom

Discussion: Thesis and introduction

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Tu Feb. 19 Work due by the beginning of class:

Introduction to your paper – make sure you include the thesis

Readings:

Outlining: http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/544/01/

Paragraphs: http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/606/01/

Discussion: An organizational plan

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Th Feb. 21 Work due by the beginning of class:

Outline: indicate paragraphing/topic sentences

Email Response #5: Are you affected by writer’s block or anxiety? When does this happen? What type of writer’s block do you suffer from (use reading)? What strategies will you use to combat this issue (again, feel free to draw on your reading)?

Readings:

Quoting, Paraphrasing, Summarizing: http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/563/01/

Writer’s Block: http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/567/01/

Discussion: Outlines, drafting, source use

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Tu Feb. 26 Work due by the beginning of class:

Readings:

http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/589/01/ -- follow all 4 links at the bottom

http://www.unc.edu/depts/wcweb/handouts/plagiarism.html

Review Drew Policy: http://depts.drew.edu/composition/Academic_Honesty.htm

Discussion: Avoiding plagiarism and drafting – bring papers in progress

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