ENGL 1130: Composition II (WA)

Academic Discipline and Discourse: Social Sciences

Sample Syllabi (Partial)

Course Description:

In Academic Discourses and Disciplines, we study the written communication of discourse communities in the academic world, specifically at UT and specifically in the social sciences.

Comp II Learning Outcomes:

By the end of the semester, Comp II students should be able to do the following:

  • Reaffirm their mastery of the Comp I learning outcomes
  • Create a thesis that establishes claims for both a main argument and intermediate arguments that support it
  • Be able to distinguish between background, primary, and secondary research sources, and use those sources appropriate for the genre they are writing and the audience for whom they are writing
  • Write collaboratively with others, while remaining responsible for their own contribution to a group project
  • Use at least two different citation styles, and identify the disciplines for which they are appropriate
  • Apply advanced methods for integrating outside sources into an argument, such as endnotes, footnotes, appendices, or similar references
  • Use electronic environments to collaborate on texts, conduct peer review, and produce texts appropriate for publication in electronic forums
  • Produce a minimum of 7,000 words in final draft form, which means producing a final portfolio of at least 22-25 full pages of text, not including works cited pages. (English Department requirement).

Required Textbook:

The Little, Brown Handbook by Jane Aaron (UT customized version)

Assignments:

The course is divided into two parts with a total of five writing projects.

Part 1: Critical Analysis and Argument (Writing Projects One, Two, and Three)

Part 2: Informative writing (Writing Projects Four and Five)

Project One: Critical Analysis

The goal of this first project is to hone your analytical skills. You will be writing five brief documents, analyzing and critiquing periodical articles and/or visuals.

Project Two: Commentary

The goal of this project is to expand Project One into a longer, more formal, persuasive document written to a more public audience.

Project Three: Researched Argument

This final project for Part 1 is to use your finely tuned research skills to marshal evidence in support of a claim. In addition to writing the researched argumentative essay, you will also have a few assignments that will aid in the writing of the essay, such as an Annotated Bibliography.

Project Four: Primary Research/ Proposal

One goal of Project Four is to become proficient at writing collaboratively. You and your team will have three major writing assignments to complete: a survey, a proposal report based on your survey results, and a Power Point slide presentation based on your proposal.

Project Five: Research Report

The goal of this final Part 2 project is to transmit the results of a secondary research investigation via an informative report, using APA citation style.

Grading:

I am using a point system for grading. Then, at the end of the semester, I will add up all the points you’ve earned and convert this number to a letter grade for your final course grade using the chart below:

Points earnedFinal Course Grade

278-300A

268-277A-

258-267B+

240-257B

231-239B-

225-230C+

210-224C

200-209C-

180-199D

0=179F

How do you earn points? All points come from graded writing assignments. (There are no points given for attendance, participation, or extra credit.) Below is a chart of what each writing assignment is worth.

Project / Assignment / Potential Points
Project One / Five Response Writings / 40
Project Two / Open Letter / 40
Project Three / Annotated Bibliography / 15
Project Three / Researched Argument / 65
Project Four / Collaborative Survey / 10
Project Four / Collaborative Proposal Report / 40
Project Four / Collaborative Power Point Presentation / 25
Project Five / APA Research Report / 65