English 391: Advanced Composition
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Course Description
In this advanced composition course, you will practice writing skills that are necessary for success in the workforce. The course is designed to help you produce writing that is clear, useful and persuasive in a professional context. The writing you craft will be concerned with engaging real-word audiences, understanding rhetorical situations, and appreciating the opportunities and limitations of various forms of professional writing. The course will embrace the process of writing (including the planning, drafting and revising stages) and look carefully at all stages of work that factor into producing a final, polished product.
We will employ stasis practices in the process of rhetorical invention, namely conjecture, definition, quality, and action. Major writing assignments will include a series of four linked papers that advance a topic of your choosing and culminate in a substantial proposal argument or report. These linked assignments will categorize the kinds of questions ‘at issue’ in any particular dispute: for example, debates over definitions, facts, causes, values and proposed actions. We will work through these issues in assembling a comprehensive argument. As peer review is often a key part of the professional realm, there will be ample opportunities to examine—and learn from—your classmates’ work.
Required Texts
A Rhetoric of Argument (3rd ed.) by Jeanne Fahnestock and Marie Secor. ISBN 978-0073036168.
Style, Lessons in Clarity & Grace (11th ed.), by Joseph Williams and Joseph Bizup. ISBN 978-0321898685.
Recommended Text
A Pocket Style Manual, by Diana Hacker and Nancy Sommers. ISBN 978-0312542542.
Learning Objectives
I have designed this course so that you will be able to demonstrate or make significant progress toward achieving the Fundamental Studies Professional Writing learning outcomes. By the end of the course, you should be able to:
- Analyze a variety of professional rhetorical situations and produce appropriate texts in response.
- Understand the stages required to produce competent, professional writing through planning, drafting, revising, and editing.
- Identify and implement the appropriate research methods for each writing task.
- Practice the ethical use of sources and the conventions of citation appropriate to each genre.
- Write for the intended readers of a text, and design or adapt texts to audiences who may differ in their familiarity with the subject matter.
- Demonstrate competence in Standard Written English, including grammar, sentence and paragraph structure, coherence, and document design (including the use of the visual) and be able to use this knowledge to revise texts.
- Produce cogent arguments that identify arguable issues, reflect the degree of available evidence, and take account of counter arguments.
Schedule of Meetings
This calendar is subject to change. Any changes will be announced in class, and students are responsible for keeping up with such changes. Assignments are to be completed by the date indicated. In addition to the readings listed here, further readings may be assigned from handouts distributed in class and from online sources.
Aug. 31 (Wed)Introduction
Discuss Syllabus; Show Course ELMS website
Sept. 2 (Fri)Argument
Chapter 1 (Rhetoric)
Discuss Paper One Assignment Sheet; Review Audience Analysis
DUE: One page Reflection on Your Expectations for this course (ELMS)
Sept. 5 (Mon)University Closed- Labor Day
Sept. 7 (Wed)Style as Choice & Actions
Lessons One, Two, and Three (Style); Review Careers.umd.edu
Sept. 9 (Fri)Logos, Ethos, and Pathos
Chapters 2 & 3 (Rhetoric); Look at Target Corporation; what can we determine about this potential employer from its website?
DUE: Job Description/Audience Analysis for Assign. #1 (hard copy)
Sept. 12 (Mon)Introduction to Peer Review
Review sample text using peer review sheet
Sept. 14 (Wed)Draft Workshop
DUE: Rough Draft of Cover Letter and Resume (hard copy)
DUE: Revised Audience Analysis (including job description; hard copy)
***NOTE: Wednesday, Sept. 14th is the last day for Schedule Adjustment (Drop/Add)***
Sept. 16 (Fri)Discuss Paper Two Assignment Sheet
DUE: Assignment One (including cover letter, resume, audience analysis) (ELMS); submit job description in hard copy
Sept. 19 (Mon)Questions and Claims & Language and Voice
Chapters 4 & 5 (Rhetoric)
Sept. 21 (Wed)Definition: What is It?
Chapter 6 (Rhetoric)
DUE: Topic Proposal for Papers Two through Five (hard copy)
DUE: Audience Analysis for Paper Two (hard copy)
Sept. 23 (Fri)Research: How to Find and Use Sources to Support Your Argument
Chapters 10 & 11—pages 327-385 (Rhetoric); Review Library Modules
Sept. 26 (Mon)CLASS CANCELED FOR CONFERENCES
***NOTE: All students will have individual conferences during this week (September 26th-30th) to discuss research topics.***
Sept. 28 (Wed)CLASS CANCELED FOR CONFERENCES
Sept. 30 (Fri)CLASS CANCELED FOR CONFERENCES
Oct. 3 (Mon)Characters, Cohesion, and Coherence
Lessons 4 &5 (Style)
Oct. 5 (Wed)Draft Workshop
DUE: Rough Draft of Paper Two with Revised Audience Analysis (hard copy)
Oct. 7 (Fri)Discuss Paper Three Assignment Sheet; Transitioning to stasis two
DUE: Paper Two (ELMS)
Oct. 10 (Mon)Causal Argument
Chapter 7—pages 179-216 (Rhetoric)
Oct. 12 (Wed)Causal Argument cont.
Chapter 7- pages 216-227; Review sample essay from text
Oct. 14 (Fri)Addressing Counterarguments
“The Indispensable Refutation” (Rhetoric, 2nd ed., on ELMS)
Oct. 17 (Mon)Pre-Draft Workshop
DUE: The paragraph containing your thesis and an outline of your argument, including a list of the causes that brought about the situation under discussion
Oct. 19 (Wed)Draft Workshop
DUE: Rough Draft of Paper Three (include Audience Analysis; hard copy)
Oct. 21 (Fri)Discuss Paper Four Assignment Sheet
DUE: Paper Three (ELMS)
Oct. 24 (Mon)Evaluation
Chapter 8—pages 228-259 (Rhetoric)
Oct. 26 (Wed)Evaluation continued
Chapter 8—pages 260-282 (Rhetoric); review sample essay from text
Oct. 28 (Fri)Emphasis and Concision
Lessons 6 & 9 (Style)
DUE: One page Mid-Semester Reflection (ELMS)
Oct. 31 (Mon)Counterargument: Addressing Alternative Proposals in your Proposal
Nov. 2 (Wed)Draft Workshop
DUE: Rough Draft of Paper Four (including Audience Analysis; hard copy)
Nov. 4 (Fri)Discuss Paper Five Assignment Sheet; What is a professional proposal?
DUE: Paper Four (ELMS)
Nov. 7 (Mon)Proposal
Chapter 9—pages 283-313 (Rhetoric)
Nov. 9 (Wed)Proposal continued
Chapter 9—pages 314-324 (Rhetoric); review sample essay from text
***NOTE: Wednesday, Nov. 9th is the last day to drop the course with a “W.” ***
Nov. 11 (Fri)Clarity of Form
Lessons 7 & 8 (Style)
Nov. 14 (Mon)CLASS CANCELED FOR CONFERENCES
***NOTE: All students will have individual conferences during this week (November 14th-18th) to discuss the proposal paper.***
Nov. 16 (Wed)CLASS CANCELED FOR CONFERENCES
Sept. 18 (Fri)CLASS CANCELED FOR CONFERENCES
Nov. 21 (Mon)Draft Workshop
DUE: Rough Draft of Paper Five (including Audience Analysis; hard copy)
Nov. 23 (Wed)University Closed-Thanksgiving
Nov. 25 (Fri)University Closed- Thanksgiving
Nov. 28 (Mon)Shape, Elegance, andThe Ethics of Style
Lessons 10, 11, & 12 (Style)
Nov. 30 (Wed)Style Workshop
DUE: New copy of Rough Draft of Paper Five (hard copy)
DUE: Revised Audience Analysis (hard copy)
Dec. 2 (Fri)Review Expectations for Presentations
DUE: Paper Five (ELMS)
Dec. 5 (Mon)Oral Presentations
DUE: One page Final Reflection (ELMS)
Dec. 7 (Wed)Oral Presentations
Dec. 9 (Fri)Oral Presentations
Dec. 12 (Mon)Oral Presentations, Course Wrap-Up, and Evaluations
Grading Procedures
Your grade for this course will be based on five formal writing assignments and several smaller assignments to be completed either at home or in class; participation in class; and participation in draft workshops.
The first assignment is the Cover Letter/Resume, in which you will locate a position vacancy and apply for that position.
The next four assignments are linked together, each one building on the assignments that come before it. You will select a topic for the second paper and retain it for the third through fifth papers. If you must switch topics between these assignments, you are required to submit a written proposal to me that describes your new topic and why you feel compelled to switch topics. Switching topics will require more work on your part and may diminish the authority you are able to bring to your papers; therefore, it is strongly discouraged. The second assignment is the Definition Paper, in which you will assert a position about your topic and defend that position. The third assignment is the Causal Paper, in which you will explain the causes of the situation you described in the second assignment. The fourth assignment is the Evaluation Paper, where you will adopt a different style of argument to persuade your audience to agree with your assessment of the situation. Finally, in the fifth assignment or Proposal Paper, you will argue for a way to address the situation you have considered in the earlier assignments.
Homework assignments will include a series of three self-reflection responses, which are designed to help you think more consciously and productively about your writing process.
Paper Submission: Papers must be uploaded to by the beginning of class on the day they are due; otherwise, they are late.
LATE PAPERS turned in late on the day they are due will be penalized one-half of a letter grade. After that, they will be marked down one letter grade per day late. If you must hand a paper in late, you must also contact me the day the paper is due so that I know when to expect your paper and we can make arrangements for delivery (whether you’ll give it to me in class or deliver it to my office, etc.). Papers more than one week late will not be accepted and will receive a zero.If you must submit a paper late, you must also contact me the day the paper is due so that I know when to expect your paper.
The format for assignments will vary, it will always be assignment-specific, and you will be expected to follow the format required by each assignment. Submissions that do not follow these formatting guidelines will be penalized.
Before each assignment is due, we will hold draft workshops in class. You must bring a polished draft that meets all of the requirements of that particular paper assignment. You will exchange papers with a classmate and you will comment on the writing of your classmate. I will distribute peer review sheets to guide your constructive criticism. These sheets will be turned in with the final draft of your paper and will be graded.
As part of your Proposal assignment, you will make a short presentation of your proposal to the class during the last week of the semester. Your grade for the presentation will constitute 50% of your in-class assignments/class participation/homework grade.
Notes: To receive a passing grade in this course, you must complete all of the major assignments in a timely manner. All papers and homework should be submitted to ELMS unless otherwise specified. Always save a backup copy of your assignments.
Your grade will be determined on a 100 point scale:
In-class assignments/Homework/Peer reviews / 10 pointsParticipation in discussion / 10 points
Presentations / 5 points
Cover Letter/Resume / 10 points
Definition Paper / 10 points
Causal Paper / 15 points
Evaluation Paper / 15 points
Proposal Paper / 25 points
Grades: When grading each of your assignments, I will ask one overriding question: “Does this document do its job successfully?” The “job,” or purpose, of each document will be explained on the individual assignment sheets, and we will spend ample time in class discussing how you can create a rhetorically successful text for each assignment. I will use the following criteria to evaluate your major writing projects:
A / Exemplary work. The text demonstrates originality, initiative, and rhetorical skill. The content is mature, thorough, and well-suited for the audience; the style is clear, accurate, and forceful; the information is well-organized and formatted so that it is accessible and attractive; genre conventions are effectively used; mechanics and grammar are correct. The text is well-edited, well-written, well-argued, and well-documented and requires no additional revisions.B / Good work. The text generally succeeds in meeting its goals in terms of audience, purpose, and rhetorical skill without the need for further major revisions. The text may need some minor improvements in content, presentation, or writing style/mechanics.
C / Satisfactory work. The text is adequate in all respects, but requires some substantial revisions of content, presentation, or writing style/mechanics; it may require further work in more than one area. For instance, central ideas may generally be apparent, but may often lack adequate explanations, rhetorical analysis, or documentation necessary for different audiences and purposes.
D / Unsatisfactory work. The text generally requires extensive revisions of content, presentation, writing style, and/or mechanics. The writer has encountered significant problems meeting goals of audience, purpose, and acquiring command of rhetorical principles.
F / Failing work. The text does not have enough information, does something other than is appropriate for a given situation, or contains major and pervasive problems in terms of content, presentation, or writing style/mechanics that interfere with meaning. A failing grade is also assigned to plagiarized work.
I will use the following grading scale to calculate your grade for each assignment and the course:
A+ / A / A- / B+ / B / B- / C+ / C / C- / D+ / D / D- / F97% / 93% / 90% / 87% / 83% / 80% / 77% / 73% / 70% / 67% / 63% / 60% / 0%
Attendance and Participation Policies
To succeed in this course, regular attendance is required. Classroom discussions and in-class work account for a significant part of your grade, and class participation, once missed, cannot be restored.Below are the policies on unexcused and excused absences, as well as tardiness. Please note that missing more than two weeks’ worth of class for any reason may result in a zero for the participation/professionalism portion of your grade and may jeopardize your overall course grade. If you are absent, it is your responsibility to find out what you’ve missed. Missing more than two weeks of class will make catching up difficult, if not impossible.
Unexcused Absences: You may take up to one week’s worth of no-questions-asked absences per semester for both the expected (i.e., being the best man in your brother’s wedding) and the unexpected (i.e., a flat tire).
If you take a no-questions-asked absence, however, youare still responsible for whatever material was covered in class. If a major scheduled grading event (assignment due, in-class workshop/peer review, presentation) is scheduled for that class period, and you don’t show up and don’t have a university-sanctioned excuse (see below) then you will lose the points for that activity.
Excused Absences:The University excuses absences for your own illness or the illness of an immediate family member, for your participation in university activities at the request of University authorities, for religious observance, and for compelling circumstance beyond your control.Documentation is required for all excused absences. If you have an anticipated excused absence, you must let me know in writing by the end of the schedule adjustment period or at least two weeks in advance.
Absence due to religious observance: The University System of Maryland policy provides that students not be penalized because of observances of religious beliefs, but rather shall be given an opportunity, whenever feasible, to make up within a reasonable time any academic assignment missed due to individual participation in religious observances. It is the student’s responsibility to notify the instructor within the first three weeks of class regarding any religious observance absence(s) for the entire semester. The calendar of religious holidays can be found at:
Absence for one class due to your own illness: The university requires that you provide me a self-signed note attesting to the date of your illness, with an acknowledgment that the information provided is true.Providing false information to University officials is prohibited and may result in disciplinary action. The Health Center provides an online form for this purpose:
Absence from more than one class because of the same illness: You must provide written documentation of the illness from the health care provider who made the diagnosis. The provider must verify dates of treatment and indicate the time frame during which you were unable to meet academic responsibilities. No diagnostic information should be given.