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WRTG 1150, Section79

Spring 2012

Instructor: Dr. Nancy Hightower / Office: TB1
Office Hours: 12:30-1:30 Tues/Thurs, 10-12 Wed, and by appointment / Email:

This course meets the CCHE criteria for the general education requirement in communication for intermediate writing courses (CO2) in the following capacities.

As stated in Knowing Words, the aim of the course is to help you:

  • write with fluency; to acquire a practical and reflective understanding of the writing process

Throughout the semester, you’ll use a variety of strategies—researching, drafting, revising, editing, and proofreading—to help you refine your own writing process. One of the most important strategies that you’ll practice is reviewing and critiquing each other’s writing. A regular part of class time will be devoted to small- group peer review sessions in which you will read and critique each other’s work. The benefits of this workshop approach are two-fold: as a writer, you receive a range of responses to your work and, as a reader, you learn from reading and critiquing your peers’ writing.

  • develop rhetorical knowledge, making informed choices as you adapt your writing to the needs of your audience, to a specific context and situation, and for a particular purpose

We’ll begin by analyzing the rhetorical situation in a variety of texts—that is, we’ll ask questions about the relationships between the text, writer, audience, and context, and we’ll discuss how these relationships shaped the writer’s choices. Then you’ll apply this rhetorical knowledge by writing in different genres and for different audiences, adapting the voice, tone, format and structure of your writing to meet the needs of your audience.

  • become a proficient reader, approaching texts with a writer’s awareness of craft and a critic’s ability to interpret and respond to a text’s meaning and effects

We’ll explore texts that come from a variety of sources (both scholarly and popular, for example) and from a variety of media (traditional print, film, websites, etc.). You’ll be asked to read critically: to recognize the rhetorical strategies an author has chosen—both in format and content—that invite the audience to interpret the text in a particular way. We’ll also discuss how the same text may be interpreted in different ways.

  • develop strategies of research that will enable you to become an active investigator of your culture
    You’ll learn about research technologies available here at CU (on-line databases, electronic books and journals, bibliographic software, etc.) through a library seminar. More importantly, we’ll discuss how to evaluate a source for accuracy, relevance, credibility, reliability and bias by examining the source’s rhetoric and rhetorical situation.
  • understand and apply conventions of standard linguistic usage, including proper grammar, syntax, punctuation, and spelling as you compose, revise, and edit your writing across a range of rhetorical tasks and genres.

Yes, grammar counts…but what counts as “good” grammar changes in different rhetorical situations. You will practice writing in special rhetorical situations even as you make your work accessible to secondary audiences in other disciplines. We will have kinetic as well as verbal and written exercises that will help you hone your sensitivity to audience expectations, and then use this awareness when crafting your papers.

Assignments:

This I believe Audio Essay 15% Visual Rhetoric Project 15% Library Quizzes 5% Participation: 10% (&reading quizzes) Chosen project 30% Group presentation 15% Resume/Cover letter 10%

Major Assignments:

You will be responsible for three major multimodal assignments:

1)This I Believe Multimodal Assignment 20%:In his bookSoul of a Citizen, writer and activist Paul RogatLoeb maintains that the personal story has the powerto“providethe organic connection that binds one person to another” (119), a crucial element in building community. Telling our stories and reflecting on our lives, he says,can “help us connect with the stories of others, and with a larger narrative of being” (148).

In this project, you are going to tell a short story that illustrates one of your personal beliefs–in other words, a storyabout the “core values that guide [your] daily lives” (). Specifically, you will write an essay that follows the format ofThis I Believe, a radio project that collects and broadcasts essays from thousands of people from all walks of life.TIBexecutive producer Dan Gediman says about the project: “The goal is not to persuade Americans to agree on the same beliefs. Rather, the hope is to encourage people to begin the much more difficult task of developing respect for beliefs different from their own”(thisibelieve.org/about/). You will record a podcast of your story and post it to the class wiki, as well as the written version.

2)Visual rhetoric paper, with a photography component. This assignment will encourage you to develop your own working definition of what is “nature” or “natural.” Of course, these are very abstract terms, and so you can apply them to many different issues. For instance, is the West a “real” place or an artificial construct? What boundaries does it have? How would you define the West, or any aspect of nature? Is technology merely an aspect of nature since it is made by humans, or is it made to correct the “mistakes” of nature? Is the natural body the same as the normal body? These questions are again very broad and need to be narrowed down much more and explored in depth, but it gives you an idea of the freedom you will have within the assignment.

3)Final Project of your choosing. This multimodal assignment builds upon the first two projects, and you can use research and ideas from either to form the basis of this last project. You will write a one-page prospectus detailing what your final project will entail (photo essay, video, blog, etc). The final project will be 1900-2200 words (around 7-9 pages) and include some kind of visual element.

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Finally, you will give a group multi-media presentation that shares the information you have discovered over the course of the semester, and poses interesting and challenging questions for how we perceive the natural and unnatural.

Grading Scale:

A 93-100%

A-90-92%

B+88-89%

B83-87%

B-80-82%

C+78-79%

C73-77%

C-70-72%

D+68-69%

D63-67%

D-60-62%

F59% or less

POLICIES—PLEASE READ

OFFICE LOCATION:

Myoffice is locatedin the Temporary Building 1, located inbetween SewallHall and the Rec Center. You’ll see a horizontal building with two sets of doors. Choose the doors on the LEFT. Once inside, you should see stairs to your immediate left. Take the stairs down, then go down the hall. I’m the second door on the right (red room, brain in jar on desk, etc.)

EMAIL POLICY:

Please feel free to email me with any questions you may have. I usually respond to emails in less than 24 hours (and sometimes as quickly as 24 seconds, if I’m online). However, please follow good email etiquette when contacting me. Include the following components:

  • a proper subject line that lets me know the nature of your email
  • a respectful greeting (Dear Nancy, Hi Dr. Hightower, etc.)
  • your name at the end
  • For the first two weeks of class, please include your class time or section number with your signature or in the subject line. If you do not receive some kind of reply within 24 hours, please email me again.

** I don’t accept final assignments in disk form or in an email, and I don’t take attachments.

ATTENDANCE AND LATE WORK:

You are allowedtwo absences, for any reason. After two absences,your finalgrade will be lowered by one-half letter grade for every day missed,and more than five absences will cause your failure of the course. I will take into account extreme illness (with a doctor’s note). Your timely attendance is required; if you are late for two classes, it will count as an absence.

LATE WORK:We will have numerous draft workshops for all major projects, so you will have adequate time to complete your assignments on time. Therefore, late work incurs a letter grade deduction for every day it is late.** I don’t accept final assignments in disk form or in an email, and I don’t take attachments.

If you miss a class, for any reason:

  • Email mebeforeclass to let me know you aren’t coming so I can leave appropriate handouts in my box.
  • Get lecture notes and homework assignments from a classmate.
  • Turn assignments in by due date (unless a prior arrangement has been made).

Religious Observance:Campus policy requires that faculty make every effort to reasonably and fairly deal with all students who, because of religious obligations, have conflicts with scheduled exams, assignments, or required attendance. In this class, you will need to give me two weeks’ notice if you must miss a class for religious practices. See full details atPlease give me two weeks’ notice if you must miss a class for religious practices.

PARTICIPATION:

This class isn’t a lecture class (nothing could be more boring—lecture upon lecture about writing!). So, we will need everyone’s participation in order tohelp us learn what it means to engage in thoughtful, articulate persuasion. Therefore, your participation grade is based on the following:

  • printing out all the reading material, annotating the story/article, and bringing it to class.
  • contributing to class discussions in a thoughtful, engaging, and productive way.
  • being good, active peer editors when work-shopping drafts.

***Texting in class is very distracting both to me and your fellow students. Please turn off all electronics before the class period begins. Because such distraction so negatively affects the classroom, if your cell phone rings in class, or you are caughttext messaging someone, your finalparticipation grade will be reduced by 5 points.

DRAFTS:

Bringing in drafts of your work is an essential part of this class. Good writing always means revision. Therefore, failure to bring a draft on a draft due date will result in a 5 point reduction of your final participation grade.

Of course, bringing a draft into class is just one part of the writing equation. Bringing drafts to me during office hours in between draft days can only strengthen your paper. You can also get assistance with your drafts at The Writing Center,located inthe NorlinLibrary, E111. Appointments are requiredand can be made from the Writing Center website (see above web address). Email them at:

If you have missed a draft dayfor illness (with a doctor’s note) or havenotified me in advanceof your absence on a draft day:

  • Email two other students your draft and get comments on it.
  • Edit their drafts as well.
  • Bring all edited drafts in hard copyby the next class dayto getfull credit.

Special Accommodations:

If you need special accommodationsdue to a disability, please give me a letter from Disability Services so that we can make the necessary arrangements. If you have any questions regardingthis process, please visit

Counseling Services.Life at CU can bepretty stressful at times, and students can experience different kindsof trauma both on-campus, and concerninghome life. If you have any kind of crisis or feel depressed for an extended period of time, please talk to me (sooner rather than later) AND contact Counseling Services at Willard Administration Center, Room 134, phone 2-6766. Walk-in hours are Monday through Friday 8-5.

Contacting Victim’s Assistancecan also be a good idea, since they will email your professors to work with you (303-492-8855,

Student Academic Services Center.If you find yourself struggling with academic life,you may visit the Student Academic Services Center (SASC), which helps students who are having difficulty meeting the expectations of college life. Some students may beeligible for no-cost tutoring, and there’s a dedicated computer lab in Willard 353. SASCalso offers assistance to ESL students. Willard Hall, room 386, phone 2-0259.

Readings are to be printed out, read, and annotatedbefore class for full participation credit.

WEEK 1 Jan 17, 19

Tues:Introductions, review of class policies.

Thurs:In-class writing Diagnostic, syllabus policies quiz. Review of class blog.

WEEK 2 Jan 24, 26

Tues:

  • Resume lecture (bring draft of one, if you have it)
  • Resume & Cover Letter Assignment

Thurs:

  • Bring draft of resume to workshop (along with job description)
  • Cover letter lecture (the importance of voice)

WEEK 3 Jan 31, Feb 2

Tues:

  • Bring substantially revised draft of resume to workshop, and cover letter draft
  • Go over This I believe Assignment

Thurs:

  • Bring substantially revised draft of resume and cover letter to workshop
  • Look at sample TIB essays
  • Break into presentation groups for Tuesday
  • You will be divided into 5 groups of four
  • Go to the Writing Resources page and click on the This I Believe Site or NPR This I Believe site.
  • Pick the strongest TIB, send the link to me, and be prepared to give a 5 minute presentation on the strengths of the essay, as well as what might have been done to improve it

WEEK 4 Feb 7, 9

Tues:

  • Resume due (with all drafts, in a folder)
  • Class presentations on favorite TIB assignments

Thur: Matt Riggs will show us how to makean audio file

WEEK 5

Tues:

  • Draft 1 of TIB due
  • Bring computers to class, get signed on to wikidot

Thurs:

  • Draft 2 of TIB due
  • Schlosser, “Why McDonald’s Fries Taste so Good”; Rhetorical analysis of the term “natural flavors”

WEEK 6 Feb 21, 23 TIB

Tues:

  • Substantially revised draft 3 of TIB due
  • Mead, “Eggs for Sale”: Examining the egg donation industry and its rhetoric of “helping nature along”;

Thurs:

  • Go over Visual Rhetoric Assignment; Review of VR examples
  • Chapter 3 of Knowing Words

WEEK 7 Feb 28, March 1

Tues:

  • Post TIB to wiki and turn in essay (with drafts, in a folder) by class time
  • Pollan, introduction to In Defense of Food: Redefining what qualifies as “food”; Brainstorm Visual Rhetoric topics

Thurs:

  • Slater, “Prozac Mother and Child”: Exploring the rhetorical tenuousness of defining “mental illness”
  • Finalize Visual Rhetoric topics

WEEK 8 March 6, 8

Tues:

  • Bring first two paragraphs of Visual Rhetoric Assignment for peer review session. Look for engaging first sentence, evolving thesis can that be developed throughout paper
  • In-class video analysis.

Thurs:

  • Bring heavily revised first page, and part of second page. Bring typed, one-page outline of photo ideas.
  • Go over final project requirements. Brainstorming possible topics

WEEK 9 March 13, 15

Tues:

  • Have RIOT library tutorial and quizzes completed by 11 a.m.
  • Turn in one page prospectus to me describing your final project

Thurs:

  • Last draft workshop of VR paper (Bring photographs on computer. Peer Review of photographs and examining the visual arguments presented within scenes, exploring form (focus, light, color, placement), and well as content (narrative created)
  • How to create a digital essay/blog/website
  • Group presentation assignment

WEEK 10 March 20, 22

Tues:

  • VR assignment due
  • Library Visit

Thurs:No Class

WEEK 11 SPRING BREAK!!

WEEK 12 April 3, April 5

Tues:

  • Susan Bordo “Reading the Slender Body”: Reading the rhetoric of “fat”
  • Bring research materials for final project
  • Group presentation workshop

Thurs:

  • First draft of final project (introduction—first page)
  • How to have a good presentation (lecture)

WEEK 13 April 10, 12

Tues:Draft 2 of final project and presentation workshop

Thurs: Draft 3 of final project and presentation workshop

WEEK 14 April 17, 19

Tues:Draft 4 of final project and presentation workshop

Thurs: Final workshop for project and presentations

WEEK 15 April 24, 26

Tues: Group Presentations

Thurs: Group Presentations

LAST WEEK May 1, 3

Tues: Group Presentations

Thurs:

  • Group Presentations
  • Final projects turned in to me (hardy copy of drafts and paper, email with any links/digital projects)