Course Syllabus
English 1301: SYLLABUS AND COURSE SUMMARY
English 1301: Rhetoric and Composition I
Syllabus
Fall 2021
Instructor Information:
Instructor: Dr. Michael S. Raines
Course Information : English 1301.CO51; 10-10:50; Trimble Hall-215
Office/Hours : MWF 11-12:45 and T/TH online, by email appointment
Email : michael.raines@uta.edu
ENGL 1301 RHETORIC AND COMPOSITION I: This course satisfies the University of Texas at Arlington core curriculum requirement in communication. This course will require students to read rhetorically and analyze scholarly texts on a variety of subjects. The course emphasizes writing to specific audiences and understanding how information is context dependent and audience specific. Students must engage with a variety of ideas and learn how to synthesize those in college level essays.
Core Objectives:
Critical Thinking Skills: To include creative thinking, innovation, inquiry, and analysis, evaluation and synthesis of information.
Communication Skills: To include effective development and expression of ideas through written, oral, and visual communication.
Teamwork: To include the ability to consider different points of view and to work effectively with others to support a shared purpose or goal.
Personal Responsibility: To include the ability to connect choices, actions and consequences to ethical decision-making.
ENGL 1301 Expected Learning Outcomes. By the end of ENGL 1301, students should be able to demonstrate:
Rhetorical Knowledge
- Use knowledge of the rhetorical situation—author, audience, exigence, constraints—to analyze and construct texts
- Compose texts in a variety of genres, expanding their repertoire beyond predictable forms
- Adjust voice, tone, diction, syntax, level of formality, and structure to meet the demands of different rhetorical situations
Critical Reading, Thinking, and Writing
- Use writing, reading, and discussion for inquiry, learning, communicating, and examining assumptions
- Employ critical reading strategies to identify an author’s position, main ideas, genre conventions, and rhetorical strategies
- Summarize, analyze, and respond to texts
- Find, evaluate, and synthesize appropriate sources to inform, support, and situate their own claims
- Produce texts with a focus, thesis, and controlling idea, and identify these elements in others’ texts
Processes
- Practice flexible strategies for generating, revising, and editing texts
- Practice writing as a recursive process that can lead to substantive changes in ideas, structure, and supporting evidence through multiple revisions
- Use the collaborative and social aspects of writing to critique their own and others’ texts
Conventions
- Apply knowledge of genre conventions ranging from structure and paragraphing to tone and mechanics
- Summarize, paraphrase, and quote from sources using appropriate documentation style
- Control such surface features as syntax, grammar, punctuation, and spelling
- Employ technologies to format texts according to appropriate stylistic conventions
Required Texts: STUDENTS MUST HAVE THE FOLLOWING EDITION
Graff and Birkenstein, They Say/I Say 5 th edition ISBN: 9781324022275
Also available through Norton as an e-text: https://wwnorton.com/books/. Cheapest version!
Special Disclaimer: Typically, a college syllabus will end with a note that exact assignments and due dates may be adjusted according to the needs of each class. This semester, the need for adaptability will be paramount, so the chances of this syllabus (and the dates herein) changing are highly likely. On the other hand, I feel a personal need to provide consistency and regular availability in order to counteract some of the instability that may occur over the coming semester. Dr. Raines will challenge himself to maintain regular hours and out-of-class availability; he challenges each student to develop a writing and participation process that fulfills the class requirements and allows for learning from each assignment. If, after completing a COVID self-check, he or any student feels a reasonable need for quarantine, such a possibly infected person should do so, and all concerted effort should be focused on Canvas and the class’s online learning environment. Students concerned about attendance grades can create equivalent achievement with appropriate online work, if done in a timely manner.
Description of Major Assignments
Summary Responses/Reading Responses/Reading Quizzes: More specific reading response prompts will also be provided. Reading Response generally refers to any in-class or homework writing students do that you take a grade on. Peer Reviews, Drafts, etc. may be considered part of this grade category. Instructors will want to provide specific instructions to students about each reading response assigned. See assignment bank in the FYC org and calendar for suggestions. Reading quizzes will be occasionally assigned—especially if students do not come to class prepared.
Peer Reviews. Each essay will include mandatory peer review workshops. Students are expected to use both a spell-check and a grammar-check (like Grammarly) prior to submitting their papers for peer review. It is very important that you participate in peer review, as you will not be able to make up these points; furthermore, no major essay will be accepted for final grading without having first undergone a peer review.
Three Major Essays
Discourse Community Analysis (Due for Peer Review by Sept. 15; due for Final Grade by Sept. 24):
The first part of the semester deals with students learning to analyze their own language and their own communities. The Discourse Community Analysis (DCA) requires the close examination of language used within a group the student selects with due consideration. For this essay, the essayist (the student writer) will make an argument explaining how that person (the student) became part of a specifically named discourse community. Critical thinking will be shown in the accumulation of specific language examples or quotations of jargon used within the community as well as how the those examples are ordered. Furthermore, sensible, non-mechanical writing integrates the logical use of transitions between required elements such as the naysayers or examinations of logos, pathos, and ethos. Students must show composition skill in paragraphing, constructing a thesis, selecting an appropriate topic/discourse community for analysis, quoting, attributing quotes, shaping an essay to stay on topic, and titling an essay in interesting and appropriate ways.
Rhetorical Analysis (Due for Peer Review by Oct. 15; due for Final Grade by Oct. 29):
A common Freshman Writing assignment, the UTA requirements for Rhetorical Analysis Essays target the analysis to the rhetorical effectiveness of one article from one of the reading clusters approved and assembled for this class. For this essay, you will select an eligible essay cluster on one of the UTA cluster topics including:
- college mental health
- social media and privacy
Your second major semester essay will dissect the rhetorical strategies, assumptions, audience awareness, fallacies, and soundness of argument regarding the essay designated for RAE from your selected cluster. Only one essay per reading cluster is viable for analysis, and it is the first essay within the cluster clearly marked as the article available for RAE focus.
Critical thinking will be shown in the student writer's accumulation of specific language examples or quotations used by the article's author to persuade an audience. Students are urged to order those examples of successful or failed rhetoric so they support their fact-based opinion about the article. Furthermore, sensible, non-mechanical writing integrates the logical use of transitions between required elements such as the naysayers or examinations of logos, pathos, and ethos. Students must show composition skill in paragraphing, constructing a thesis, selecting an appropriate topic/discourse community for analysis, quoting, attributing quotes, shaping an essay to stay on topic, and titling an essay in interesting and appropriate ways.
Signature Assignment: Synthesis Essay (Due for Peer Review by Nov. 17; due for Final Grade by Dec. 6):
For this essay, you will continue your writing on the topic cluster you selected for the Rhetorical Analysis. After reading multiple sources about your chosen topic, you will develop a clear central claim and use multiple sources to support your claim. All previous essay standards, of course, still apply.
Class Participation: You will be graded daily on class participation, which includes coming to class prepared, making thoughtful contributions in response to the readings, asking and answering questions, and presenting a general attitude of interest in the course content. Improvement in writing is a complex process that requires a great deal of practice and feedback from readers. Regular practice and attendance--in one form or another--is thus necessary for success in ENGL 1301. Students are expected to attend class regularly and to arrive on time. Excused absences include official university activities, military service, and/or religious holidays. Students must inform the instructor in writing at least one week in advance of an excused absence. I will not supply what you miss by email or phone. It is your responsibility to conference with a peer to get this material or make an appointment to see me in person.
Attendance: First-Year English courses play important functions in students’ educational experiences at UTA, from language awareness and argumentation to the rudiments of English and persuasion; the effectiveness of your course is directly related to your active participation. Attendance and classwork are expected from each student. The penalties for excessive absences are explained as “grade caps” along with the more positive, though similar concept of benchmarks.
Benchmarks and Grade Caps: When someone accomplishes a small task on the way to a larger goal, we may use the word “benchmark” as a way of measuring someone’s growth. Various benchmarks for English 1301 will be covered, and exercises will often be used to help students implement required content and become comfortable with grading expectations. For instance, the earliest essay will focus on language examples, use of anecdotes to explore the concept of community, clarity of sentence structure and phrasing, preciseness of thesis claim, identification of rhetorical appeals, awareness of naysayers, writing purpose, paragraph adhesion, and other introductory concepts. These concepts are expanded upon in the second and third essays. Some portion of a student’s grade relates to that student’s ability to meet or exceed English 1301 benchmarks in writing submissions.
Conversely, students may also need to look at various problems, deficiencies, mistakes, inaccuracies, or serious breaches of professionalism as limitations to their success; such limitations we will typically call “caps” or “grade caps” in Dr. Raines’ English class. For instance, the campus-wide UTA grade cap for any writing that is either plagiarism or found to be a resubmission of prior work is an F. There is no grade higher than an F that students may obtain on a paper with even one instance of plagiarism; the grade is capped—preventing any plagiarism from passing. To this concept, Dr. Raines adds grade caps related to attendance, participation, quotation integration (papers 2 and 3), audience awareness/diction formality, and others. To begin with, consider the following schedule of grade caps related to missing class which will be in effect for all MWF classes during Fall 2021:
Total absences allowed: 5
Grade cap w/ 6-8 absences: B
Grade cap w/9-11 absences: C
Students missing 12 or more classes should seriously consider withdrawing from the class.
A schedule of further benchmarks and grade caps for individual writing assignments will be published later in the semester as they become applicable.
Grade Percentage: Your final grade for this course will consist of the following:
25% Discourse Community Analysis
25% Rhetorical Analysis
30% Signature Assignment: Synthesis Essay
20% Responses/Quizzes/Participation
Final grades will be calculated as follows: A=90-100%, B=80-89%, C=70-79%, F=69%-and below; Z=see the Z grade policy above. Individual assignments often have set rubrics associated with them while daily grades will offer less rigid instructions and grading criteria.
The Z grade is reserved for students who attend class regularly, participate actively, and complete all the assigned work on time but simply fail to write well enough to earn a passing grade. This judgment is made by the instructor and not necessarily based upon a number average. The Z grade is intended to reward students for good effort. While students who receive a Z will not get credit for the course, the Z grade will not affect their grade point average. They may repeat the course for credit until they do earn a passing grade.
The F grade, which does negatively affect GPA, goes to failing students who do not attend class regularly, do not participate actively, or do not complete assigned work.
All major essays must be peer reviewed and revised prior to submission to Dr. Raines for final grading. Peer reviewing is one of the most important activities for writers. By seeing what others are doing, a student writer can have a better idea of what is interesting, creative, focused or persuasive; these concepts must be experienced, not just taught. Essays submitted to Dr. Raines without undergoing the peer review process will receive a grade of zero “0” and will be graded only AFTER a written request for a reevaluation of the work is received and a second draft is completed by integrating a peer reviewer’s comments. Do not ignore the work expected to produce a quality draft for peer review—otherwise, the process will be far less rewarding and harder on your partner. Any student submission showing an obviously haphazard or insufficient effort for a required peer review draft will receive either a day or two days of ZERO participation, depending on the flippancy of the submission. Drafts are to be worked on and edited prior to peer review submission, not just thrown together. Dr. Raines wishes to teach students how to improve their critical thinking and verbal persuasion through consistent effort, not just sporadic and unedited attempts.
All major essay projects must be completed to pass the course. If you fail to complete an essay project, you will fail the course, regardless of your average. Keep all papers until you receive your final grade from the university. You cannot challenge a grade without evidence. Students are expected to keep track of their performance throughout the semester and seek guidance from available sources (including the instructor) if their performance drops below satisfactory levels. Students must review all comments and rubric scores given by their peers and by their instructor, Dr. Raines; accessing these comments and grades requires clicking on links within a student’s own gradebook.
Paper Reuse Policy – You are not allowed, under any circumstances, to reuse papers from prior classes in this course or any other course that you have taken at any institution. Reusing papers does not demonstrate any advance in knowledge or skill, and so would not be helpful for you either in terms of your learning this semester, or for me in terms of assessing this learning. If you feel your situation constitutes a clear or significant exception to this rule, you must discuss this with me prior to the due date of the first draft.
Turning in Assignments to Canvas: All major assignments (DCA, RAE, and SE) in this course will be submitted to Canvas. I will not accept any assignments via e-mail. All assignments submitted to Canvas must be saved as a .doc or .docx file to ensure that I am able to open them on my computer. It is your responsibility to ensure that all of your work is saved in this way and submitted in the correct format. As part of the final check before submission, any student composing in a non-Microsoft word processor application MUST double-check the final translation from Google docs, Notebook, etc. Students who submit work in an unsupported format will receive a zero for the assignment; resubmissions will reflect standard late deductions.
Late Assignments. Papers are due when specified in the Canvas assignment posting. A standard deduction of one letter-grade per class meeting will stand for this semester; furthermore, daily grades are usually not allowed for submission after the day the exercise is covered in class. Anyone submitting a late first draft of the DCA, RAE, or Synthesis essay risks the chance of not being paired with a partner simply due to logistics. Your instructor reserves the right to adjust these deductions based upon demonstrated student effort and need.
Expectations for Out-of-Class Study : A general rule of thumb is this: for every credit hour earned, a student should spend 3 hours per week working outside of class. Hence, a 3-credit course might have a minimum expectation of 9 hours of reading, study, etc. Beyond the time required to attend each class meeting, students enrolled in this course should expect to spend at least an additional 5-6 hours per week of their own time in course-related activities, including reading required materials, completing assignments, preparing for exams, etc.
Grade Grievances : First Year Writing has a specific procedure that must be followed in order for a student to appeal a grade or any other matter related to their 1301/02 class. First, the student must communicate with the instructor in an attempt to resolve any matter in question. The next step is for students to communicate with the Director of First Year Writing. The Director will then advise students on the next official steps in any appeal process. Any appeal of a grade in this course must follow the procedures and deadlines for grade-related grievances as published in the current undergraduate / graduate catalog.
Late Enrollment Policy: Though I realize that sometimes enrolling in a course after the start date is unavoidable, please be advised that you will be held responsible for the class periods that you have missed even if you were not enrolled in the course. I will not allow you to make up attendance, missed opportunities for participation points, or any other assignments that occurred before you enrolled. If you enroll in class after the start date it is your responsibility to contact your peers in order to get caught up on the schedule and any announcements that might have been delivered in your absence. This policy also applies to students who drop and add.
Classroom Behavior. Class sessions are short and require your full attention. All cell phones, laptops, and other electronic devices should be turned off and put away when entering the classroom; all earpieces should be removed. Store materials from other classes, reading not related to this class, bulky bags, and other distractions so that you can concentrate on the ENGL 1301 readings and discussions each day. Bring book(s) and e-reserve readings (heavily annotated and carefully read) to every class. Students are expected to participate respectfully in class, to listen to other class members, and to comment appropriately. I also expect consideration and courtesy from students. Professors are to be addressed appropriately and communicated with professionally.
According to Student Conduct and Discipline , "students are prohibited from engaging in or attempting to engage in conduct, either alone or in concert with others, that is intended to obstruct, disrupt, or interfere with, or that in fact obstructs, disrupts, or interferes with any instructional, educational, research, administrative, or public performance or other activity authorized to be conducted in or on a University facility. Obstruction or disruption includes, but is not limited to, any act that interrupts, modifies, or damages utility service or equipment, communication service or equipment, or computer equipment, software, or networks” (UTA Handbook or Operating Procedures, Ch. 2, Sec. 2-202). Students who do not respect the guidelines listed above or who disrupt other students’ learning may be asked to leave class and/or referred to the Office of Student Conduct.
Sleeping, listening to music or videos, texting, phone usage, and other forms of not attending class will be recorded as such . Students should make sure their use of electronic devises during class is focused upon English 1301 content.
Classroom Visitors: Only students officially enrolled in this section are allowed to attend class meetings. Students may not bring guests (children, spouses, friends, family) to class unless an academic request has been submitted and approved by the instructor well in advance of the proposed class visit. Children are not allowed in class as visitors at any time
Academic Integrity. All students enrolled in this course are expected to adhere to the UT Arlington Honor Code:
I pledge, on my honor, to uphold UT Arlington’s tradition of academic integrity, a tradition that values hard work and honest effort in the pursuit of academic excellence.
I promise that I will submit only work that I personally create or contribute to group collaborations, and I will appropriately reference any work from other sources. I will follow the highest standards of integrity and uphold the spirit of the Honor Code.
It is the philosophy of The University of Texas at Arlington that academic dishonesty is a completely unacceptable mode of conduct and will not be tolerated in any form. All persons involved in academic dishonesty will be disciplined in accordance with University regulations and procedures. Discipline may include suspension or expulsion from the University. "Scholastic dishonesty includes but is not limited to cheating, plagiarism, collusion, the submission for credit of any work or materials that are attributable in whole or in part to another person, taking an examination for another person, any act designed to give unfair advantage to a student or the attempt to commit such acts" (Regents’ Rules and Regulations, Series 50101, Section 2.2)
You can get in trouble for plagiarism by failing to correctly indicate places where you are making use of the work of another or colluding with another to prepare assignments. It is your responsibility to familiarize yourself with the conventions of citation by which you indicate which ideas are not your own and how your reader can find those sources. Read your textbook and/or handbook for more information on quoting and citing properly to avoid plagiarism. If you still do not understand, ask your instructor. All students caught plagiarizing or cheating will be referred to the Office of Student Conduct. Additional information is available at https://www.uta.edu/conduct/ . Students are encouraged to review these guides on plagiarism: http://libguides.uta.edu/researchprocess/plagiarism
http://libguides.uta.edu/copyright/plagiarism
Disability Accommodations: UT Arlington is on record as being committed to both the spirit and letter of all federal equal opportunity legislation, including The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), The Americans with Disabilities Amendments Act (ADAAA), and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act. All instructors at UT Arlington are required by law to provide “reasonable accommodations” to students with disabilities, so as not to discriminate on the basis of disability. Students are responsible for providing the instructor with official notification in the form of a letter certified by the Office for Students with Disabilities (OSD). Only those students who have officially documented a need for an accommodation will have their request honored. Students experiencing a range of conditions (Physical, Learning, Chronic Health, Mental Health, and Sensory) that may cause diminished academic performance or other barriers to learning may seek services and/or accommodations by contacting:
The Office for Students with Disabilities, (OSD) www.uta.edu/disability or calling 817-272-3364. Information regarding diagnostic criteria and policies for obtaining disability-based academic accommodations can be found at www.uta.edu/disability .
Counseling and Psychological Services, (CAPS) www.uta.edu/caps/ or calling 817-272-3671 is also available to all students to help increase their understanding of personal issues, address mental and behavioral health problems and make positive changes in their lives.
Non-Discrimination Policy: The University of Texas at Arlington does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, religion, age, gender, sexual orientation, disabilities, genetic information, and/or veteran status in its educational programs or activities it operates. For more information, visit uta.edu/eos .
Diversity Statement: The University of Texas at Arlington's Committee on Diversity and Inclusion affirms our strong commitment to maintaining the principles of inclusion and diversity at the core of our university. At a time of uncertainty, we firmly stand behind all our students, faculty, and staff, regardless of national origin, race, ethnicity, religion, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, and other differences that make us one of the most diverse college campuses in the country.
Anyone who believes her/his safety has been compromised is encouraged to contact the Committee on Diversity and Inclusion .
Title IX Policy: The University of Texas at Arlington (“University”) is committed to maintaining a learning and working environment that is free from discrimination based on sex in accordance with Title IX of the Higher Education Amendments of 1972 (Title IX), which prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex in educational programs or activities; Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (Title VII), which prohibits sex discrimination in employment; and the Campus Sexual Violence Elimination Act (SaVE Act). Sexual misconduct is a form of sex discrimination and will not be tolerated. For information regarding Title IX, visit www.uta.edu/titleIX or contact Ms. Jean Hood, Vice President and Title IX Coordinator at (817) 272-7091 or jmhood@uta.edu.
Drop Policy. Students may drop or swap (adding and dropping a class concurrently) classes through self-service in MyMav from the beginning of the registration period through the late registration period. After the late registration period, students must see their academic advisor to drop a class or withdraw. Undeclared students must see an advisor in the University Advising Center. Drops can continue through a point two-thirds of the way through the term or session. It is the student's responsibility to officially withdraw if they do not plan to attend after registering. Students will not be automatically dropped for non-attendance . Repayment of certain types of financial aid administered through the University may be required as the result of dropping classes or withdrawing. Contact the Financial Aid Office for more information ( http://wweb.uta.edu/aao/fao/ ).
Student Support Services : UT Arlington provides a variety of resources and programs designed to help students develop academic skills, deal with personal situations, and better understand concepts and information related to their courses. Resources include tutoring , major-based learning centers , developmental education, advising and mentoring , personal counseling, and federally funded programs . For individualized referrals, students may visit the reception desk at University College (Ransom Hall), call the Maverick Resource Hotline at 817-272-6107, send a message to resources@uta.edu , or view the information at http://www.uta.edu/universitycollege/resources/index.php .
The UTA Writing Center (411LIBR) : The UTA Writing Center offers free writing tutoring and consultations to all UTA students through face-to-face or online sessions. The Writing Center hours are Monday-Thursday 9:00 am - 8:00 pm, Friday 9:00 am - 3:00 pm, and Saturday-Sunday noon - 5:00 pm. Please visit www.uta.edu/owl to register and make appointments, sign up for First-Year Writing workshops, and find additional information about Writing Center events and services.
The IDEAS Center ( 2 nd Floor of Central Library) offers free tutoring to all students with a focus on transfer students, sophomores, veterans and others undergoing a transition to UT Arlington. To schedule an appointment with a peer tutor or mentor email IDEAS@uta.edu or call (817) 272-6593.
Student Feedback Survey: At the end of each term, students enrolled in classes categorized as lecture, seminar, or laboratory shall be directed to complete a Student Feedback Survey (SFS). Instructions on how to access the SFS for this course will be sent directly to each student through MavMail approximately 10 days before the end of the term. Each student’s feedback enters the SFS database anonymously and is aggregated with that of other students enrolled in the course. UT Arlington’s effort to solicit, gather, tabulate, and publish student feedback is required by state law; students are strongly urged to participate. Data from SFS is also used for faculty and program evaluations. For more information, visit http://www.uta.edu/sfs .
Final Review Week: for semester-long courses , a period of five class days prior to the first day of final examinations in the long sessions shall be designated as Final Review Week. The purpose of this week is to allow students sufficient time to prepare for final examinations. During this week, there shall be no scheduled activities such as required field trips or performances; and no instructor shall assign any themes, research problems or exercises of similar scope that have a completion date during or following this week unless specified in the class syllabus . During Final Review Week, an instructor shall not give any examinations constituting 10% or more of the final grade, except makeup tests and laboratory examinations. In addition, no instructor shall give any portion of the final examination during Final Review Week. During this week, classes are held as scheduled. In addition, instructors are not required to limit content to topics that have been previously covered; they may introduce new concepts as appropriate.
Emergency Exit Procedures: Should we experience an emergency event that requires us to vacate the building, students should exit the room and move toward the nearest exit, which is located [insert a description of the nearest exit/emergency exit]. When exiting the building during an emergency, one should never take an elevator but should use the stairwells. Faculty members and instructional staff will assist students in selecting the safest route for evacuation and will make arrangements to assist individuals with disabilities.
Electronic Communication: UT Arlington has adopted MavMail as its official means to communicate with students about important deadlines and events, as well as to transact university-related business regarding financial aid, tuition, grades, graduation, etc. All students are assigned a MavMail account and are responsible for checking the inbox regularly. There is no additional charge to students for using this account, which remains active even after graduation. Information about activating and using MavMail is available at http://www.uta.edu/oit/cs/email/mavmail.php .
Campus Carry: Effective August 1, 2016, the Campus Carry law (Senate Bill 11) allows those licensed individuals to carry a concealed handgun in buildings on public university campuses, except in locations the University establishes as prohibited. Under the new law, openly carrying handguns is not allowed on college campuses. For more information, visit http://www.uta.edu/news/info/campus-carry/
Face Covering Policy: While the use of face coverings on campus is no longer mandatory, all students and instructional staff are strongly encouraged to wear face coverings while they are on campus. This is particularly true inside buildings and within classrooms and labs where social distancing is not possible due to limited space. If a student needs accommodations to ensure social distancing in the classroom due to being at high risk, they are encouraged to work directly with the Student Access and Resource Center to assist in these accommodations. If students need masks, they may obtain them at the Central Library, the E.H. Hereford University Center’s front desk or in their department.
Conferences and Questions: I have five regularly scheduled office hours each week. These times are reserved for students to drop by or to make an appointment to discuss course assignments, grades, or other class-related concerns. I will be happy to make other appointment times for you if your class schedule conflicts with regular conference times or if I am not available on certain days. If you receive a grade on an assignment or quiz about which you have questions, please wait twenty-four hours before discussing it with me. This gives you time to process the assignment comments and to think about how your course work meets the requirements set forth for each assignment. I do not discuss individual student issues in the classroom before, during or after class.
Syllabus and Schedule Changes. Instructors try to make their syllabuses as complete as possible; however, during the course of the semester I may be required to alter, add, or abandon certain policies/assignments. Instructors reserve the right to make such changes as they become necessary. Students will be informed of any major changes in writing.
Course Schedule. Assignments are due on the day they are listed.
|
Week |
Date |
Class Topic |
Assignments Due |
|
1 |
WED |
Intro to Student Responsibilities, academic conversation, and syllabus/policies |
|
|
1 |
FRI |
Diagnostic Essay;
Entering Academic Conversations and Composing Arguments |
Due: Signed Syllabus Contract |
|
2 |
MON |
The Rhetorical Situation and Audience |
Read: TSIS Chapter 1 and Introduction to Rhetoric (UTA-61) |
|
2 |
WED |
Introduction to Discourse Community;
DCA Assignment Read Aloud |
|
|
2 |
FRI |
Pathos, Ethos, and Logos Appeals |
Due: Diagnostic Essay
Review and Continue to work with: TSIS “Introduction to Rhetoric” specifically pathos, ethos, logos, and appeals to audience. |
|
3 |
MON |
Labor Day: No Class |
|
|
3 |
WED 9/8 |
Metacommentary
|
Read: TSIS Chapter 10 |
|
3 |
FRI |
Reviewing The Rhetorical Triangle: Tying Pathos, Ethos, and Logos Together;
In Class Work: Ethos, Pathos, Logos Exercises [and/or] Cover Letter Exercise;
Census date *Last day to drop without a W |
Read: review TSIS “ Introduction to Rhetoric” |
|
4 |
Mon |
Connecting Rhetorical Appeals to Discourse Communities
In Class Work: DCA Interviewing Activity |
Due: DCA Brainstorming |
|
4 |
WED |
Discuss and Assign DCA Peer Review |
Due: First Draft of DCA
Read: TSIS Chapter 11 |
|
4 |
FRI 9/17 |
Discuss Grade Criteria/Rubric for DCA;
Sample DCA Read Aloud |
Due: Completed DCA Peer Review |
|
5 |
MON |
DCA Grade Norming Using Rubric [or] Conferences |
DCA Grading Criteria pp. UTA-8 – UTA-10 |
|
5 |
WED |
In Class Work: Editing/Revising Themed Peer-to-Peer Workshops [or] Conferences |
Read: TSIS Chapter 8 and review Chapter 11
Bring writing materials and all drafts/notes on DCA thus far |
|
5 |
FRI |
In-class Revision Reflection; Introduce Rhetorical Analysis Essay and Read Aloud Assignment Prompt |
Due: DCA FINAL
Read: RAE Assignment Prompt pp. UTA-11 – UTA-16) |
|
6 |
MON 9/27 |
Explain Reading Clusters and Connection to Synthesis Essay; Analyze The Shorthorn Audience |
Read: 3-5 Shorthorn articles to get a sense of the publication and audience |
|
6 |
WED |
Rhetorical Analysis Invention Activity |
|
|
6 |
FRI |
Rhetorical Analysis Invention Activity |
Read: RAE eligible article of choice |
|
7 |
Mon |
In-Class Rhetorical Analysis of RAE Article |
Review: TSIS Chapter 10 |
|
7 |
WED |
In-Class Rhetorical Analysis of RAE Article |
Read: TSIS Chapter 2 |
|
7 |
FRI |
Discuss RAE Paper Organization |
Read: TSIS Chapter 3 |
|
8 |
MON |
Discuss Reasons and Evidence |
|
|
8 |
WED |
Discuss Grading Criteria/Rubric for RAE |
Read: RAE Grading Criteria UTA-17 – UTA-19 |
|
8 |
FRI |
Peer Review |
Due: First Draft of RAE |
|
9 |
MON |
Discuss RAE Revision strategies |
|
|
9 |
WED |
Individual Conferences on RAE or In Class Work on RAE |
|
|
9 |
FRI |
Individual Conferences on RAE or In Class Work on RAE |
|
|
10 |
MON |
Individual Conferences on RAE or In Class Work on RAE |
|
|
10 |
WED |
Individual Conferences on RAE or In Class Work on RAE |
|
|
10 |
FRI |
Introduce Synthesis Essay |
Due: RAE Final |
|
11 |
MON |
Synthesizing Sources: Sweet Synthesis Activity
|
Read: All articles in chosen Reading Cluster |
|
11 |
WED |
Structuring Arguments |
Read: TSIS Chapter 7 and All articles in the chosen Reading Cluster
Review: TSIS “Introduction to Argument...” |
|
11 |
FRI |
Advancing the Argument:
Last day to drop classes; submit requests to advisor prior to 4:00pm |
Read : TSIS Chapters 4 & 5 |
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12 |
MON |
The Art of Summarizing |
Review: TSIS Chapter 2 |
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12 |
WED |
Addressing the Naysayer & |
Review: TSIS Chapter 6 |
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12 |
FRI |
The Art of Quoting & |
Review: TSIS Chapter 3
Review: TSIS Chapter 10 |
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13 |
MON |
Bringing it all Together |
Review: TSIS Chapters 8, 11, and “Introduction to Rhetoric” , specifically warrants |
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13 |
WED |
Assign Peer Review Prompt |
Due: First Draft of Synthesis Essay |
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13 |
FRI |
In-Class Grade Transparency Exercise |
Read: Synthesis Essay Grading Criteria ( pp. UTA-28 – UTA-30) Due: Completed Peer Review(s) |
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14 |
MON |
Documenting Sources & Avoiding Plagiarism |
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14 |
WED |
Thanksgiving: No Class |
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14 |
FRI |
Thanksgiving: No Class |
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15 |
MON 11/29 |
Synthesis Essay Revision Workshop & Individual Conferences
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15 |
WED 12/1 |
Synthesis Essay Revision Workshop & IN-CLASS Conferences |
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15 |
FRI 12/3 |
Writing Beyond 1301: |
Read: TSIS Chapters 17 & 18 |
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16 |
MON 12/6 |
Course Reflection & Final Revision Workshop Review and discuss Synthesis Essay Organization |
Due: Synthesis Essay Final
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Emergency Phone Numbers: In case of an on-campus emergency, call the UT Arlington Police Department at 817-272-3003 (non-campus phone), 2-3003 (campus phone). You may also dial 911.
ENGL 1301 Syllabus Contract
I have read and understood the syllabus, and I agree to abide by the course policies.
_____________________________________ ______________
Print Name Date
_____________________________________
Signature Date
Permission to Use Student Writing
Student’s Name
Class Number and Section
Instructor Name
I give my permission for my writing to be used as an example of student work and/or as a teaching tool for future classes. I understand that my name will be removed from my work before it is shared with others.
Student’s signature
UTA ID Date
Course Summary:
| Date | Details | Due |
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