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WRD 110Composition and Communication: The Experience of Place[1]

Instructor: Mary Clai Jones

Office: 1206 Patterson Office Tower

Office Hours: MW1:30-3pm

Mailbox: 1245 Patterson Office Tower

email:

Course Time and Location

WRD 110 Patterson Office Tower Rm 03

MW 3:00-4:15

Overview and Goals

WRD 110focuses on critical inquiry and research. Throughout the course, students are encouraged to explore their place in the broader community and engage in reflective thinking and analysis. WRD 110 asks students to write and speakeffectively about local issue not only for their classmates but also for audiences beyond the classroom. WRD 110 places special emphasis on the skills of conductingprimary and secondary research, as well as how to use visuals and onlineresources to enhance writing and oral presentations.Over the course of the semester, class members can expect to work independently, with a partner, or with a small group of classmates to investigate, share findings, and compose presentations of their research, as well as to practice and evaluate interpersonal and team dynamics in action.

Our course assignments and readings have two primary purposes: First, they will help you assess the ways in which rhetoric (spoken, written, and visual) constructs our understanding of communities and the issues that impact them. Second, they will develop your ability to identify academic avenues of inquiry grounded in significant primary and secondary research and make use of all available media. To reach these goals, you will conduct individual and team-based work for a series of communication products that combine modalities (face-to-face, written, oral, visual, digital) in different ways. A significant component of the class will consist of learning to use visual and digital resources, first to enhance written and oral presentations and later to communicate mass mediated messages to various public audiences.

Student Learning Outcomes

In this course, students will demonstrate the ability to

• compose written texts and deliver oral presentations that represent relevant and informed points of view appropriate for the audience, purpose, and occasion.

• analyze, create, and use visuals as a form of communication.

• demonstrate an awareness of appropriate strategies used to communicate effectively in different situations (e.g., large-group, small-group, interpersonal) and contexts (e.g., face-to-face, digital).

• find, analyze, evaluate, and properly cite pertinent primary and secondary sources, using relevant discovery tools, as part of the process of preparing speeches, composing texts, and creating visuals.

• develop flexible and effective strategies for organizing, revising, practicing/rehearsing, editing, and proofreading (for grammar and mechanics) to improve the development and clarity of their ideas.

• define revision strategies for essays, speeches, and visuals, set goals for improving them, and devise effective plans for achieving those goals, in collaboration with peers, instructor, and librarians.

• engage in a range of small group activities to explore and express experiences and perspectives on issues under discussion.

Required Materials

  • How to Write Anything: A Guide and Reference by John J. Ruszkiewicz
  • A Pocket Style Manual, 6th EditionbyDiana Hacker and Nancy Sommers
  • A Pocket Guide to Public Speaking, 4th Edition by Dan O’Hair, Hannah Rubenstein, and Rob Stewart
  • The Engaged Citizen: A Selection of Student Writing for the University of Kentucky’s Division of Writing, Rhetoric and Digital Studies 2013-2014
  • Electronic/Digital Research Journal
  • Some readings and will be posted on Blackboard. *You should have access to all electronic readings during class, either by printing them or bringing your laptop or tablet.

Course Policies

On-Time Attendance and Participation

Since discussion will be an integral part of the course, you must be prepared for class, on time, and offer productive comments based on the assigned readings. Preparation involves not only reading but also making notes about the reading so that you are prepared to discuss issues in depth. I reserve the right to add quizzes to the class agenda if too many class members appear to be unprepared.

You can accrue three unexcused absences without penalty, but your final grade will be reduced by 5% for each additional unexcused absence. To receive an excused absence, you must provide official documentation; if for a sponsored University activity (such as intercollegiate athletics), documentation must be provided in advance. The policy for absences for regularly scheduled WRD classes is as follows: The University Senate and the Division of Writing, Rhetoric, and Digital Studies set a limit on the total number absences—both excused and unexcused—at 1/5th of the total class meetings. Consequently, you will fail the course if you miss more than 20% of class days, regardless of the circumstances. In a class that meets three times a week, missing 8 classes will result in automatic failure. In a class that meets twice a week, missing 5 class days will result in automatic failure.

Students who are 10 minutes late three times will result in one unexcused absence and will count toward your total number of unexcused absences, if you cannot provide proper documentation.

Late Assignments

Your assignments for this course, including speeches, essays, journals, and informal assignments, are due on the dates indicated in the class outline or as indicated in class. Late work will not be accepted one week after the due date. Late assignments will be reduced 1/3 of a letter grade per day they are late.

Plagiarism

Part II of Student Rights and Responsibilities states that all academic work‚ written or otherwise‚ submitted by students to their instructors or other academic supervisors‚ is expected to be the result of their own thought‚ research‚ or self–expression. See section 6.3.1; online at:

In cases where students feel unsure about a question of plagiarism involving their work‚ they are obligated to consult their instructors on the matter before submission. When students submit work purporting to be their own‚ but which in any way borrows ideas‚ organization‚ wording or anything else from another source without appropriate acknowledgment of the fact‚ the students are guilty of plagiarism.

Plagiarism includes reproducing someone else's work‚ whether it is a published article‚ chapter of a book‚ paper from a friend or some file‚ or another source, including the Internet. Plagiarism also includes the practice of employing or allowing another person to alter or revise the work which a student submits as his/her own‚ whoever that other person may be. Plagiarism also includes using someone else’s work during an oral presentation without properly citing that work in the form of an oral footnote.

Whenever you use outside sources or information‚ you must carefully acknowledge exactly what‚ where and how you have employed them. If the words of someone else are used‚ you must put quotation marks around the passage in question and add an appropriate indication of its origin. Plagiarism also includes making simple changes while leaving the organization‚ content and phrasing intact. However‚ nothing in these Rules shall apply to those ideas which are so generally and freely circulated as to be a part of the public domain.

You may discuss assignments among yourselves or with me or a tutor‚ but when the actual work is done‚ it must be done by you‚ and you alone unless the assignment has been designed to be conducted with a partner or small group of classmates. All work submitted must be new, original work; you may not submit work you have produced for another purpose or class, including a previous WRD course.

Class Conduct

We will have fun this semester, and there will be a great deal of give and take in our discussions. But we will only have fun if you conduct yourself with respect for yourself and others. I expect you to

  • come to class prepared (do all reading and come prepared to discuss it; do all homework) and take pride in the work you do
  • offer support and encouragement to your classmates
  • listen to others carefully before offering your opinion
  • talk to me outside of class if anything that happens during class bothers you.

In order to maintain a productive, engaged and respectful work environment, I ask that you to turn all devices to silent and pack all cell phones up before each class period. Please refrain from sleeping and reading irrelevant materials once class begins. Show up on time and ready to work. Arriving late and leaving early from class is distracting. Please request permission and alert me to your needs should you require late arrival or vice versa.

A word about electronic etiquette: When communicating online, assume the same boundaries as real life interactions (at least for this class). Refrain from personal attacks. If you shouldfeel attacked by a member of the class, please speak with me, and I will help you handle it. When feeling compelled to respond, try requestingmore information, e.g., "What makes you say that?" Incendiary comments shut down productive discussion, which is a learning tool of this course. In addition, do not download material to the class listserv or send messages to members in private or on Blackboard that could make other members of the class uncomfortable. Think of the class as a professional placeand your fellow classmates as colleagues.

Students who engage in behavior so disruptive that it is impossible to conduct class may be directed to leave for the remainder of the class period. See the UKY's Code of Student Conduct for further information on prohibited conduct:

Peer Groups

Although some introverts and recluses may believe that living in a bubble is more comfortable, none of us can afford to live in a vacuum. In the real world, most writers, educators, and other professionals must work collaboratively. Some assignments for this class require that you collaborate with your peers both in and out of class. We will begin group work informally during in-class work. Then we will graduate to peer review, and finally, your last project will consist of a group assignment. Treat everyone in this class as a valued colleague, and you will have few problems. I reserve the right as the instructor to intervene in groups where members don’t appear to hold up responsibilities. There are consequences for failing to hold up your end of the work load whichcanrange from a full letter grade deduction for the assignment to a zero (determined on a case-by-case basis).

Blackboard

I will post all major assignment prompts on Blackboard. I’m trying to cut down on the amount of paper I handout in class, so refer to Blackboard for all course documents including the syllabus, readings, discussion board, etc. The daily schedule is subject to change during the semester, but not without first discussing it in class. You will be responsible for checking the online syllabus and schedule before beginning your homework for each of our class meetings for any changes or updates. Please put a title, your name, my name, and the date on all assignments but also for items posted to Blackboard. Make sure your assignments are posted to Blackboard on time, in the right location, and in the right format.

Writing Center and Multimodal Communication Lab

The Writing Center is located in W. T. Young Libraryin The Hub found in the basement room B108B (phone: 859-257-1368). You can walk in or make an appointment online:

The staff can help you identify and correct problems with all aspects of your writing as well as work with you on visual design. You may also want to consider the Media Depot also located in the W. T. Young Library Hub:

The Media Depot is a student digital media space which provides access to recording equipment and recording rooms, editing stations with specialized multimedia software, and technical support for students’ development of their academic media projects.

Students with Special Needs

If you are registered with the Disability Resource Center (DRC) and require special accommodations to complete the work for this course, you must produce a letter from the DRC that details what you need before I can grant you these accommodations. Special accommodations cannot be granted retroactively. This is a non-negotiable class policy. Please contact the DRC at 257-2754 if you have questions about your eligibility for special accommodations.

Major Assignments

Project 1: Place Reflection and Experiential Mapping:For this first project, we will consider the way we experience our everyday spaces. In preparation for this initial essay, we will spend time in class observing the ordinary places we visit on a daily basis—the classroom for example. Taking time to look around us, examine the design and purpose for spaces, we will speculate about how people experience their surroundings. How do people interact with different space and why? Can such experiences challenge or complicate the official means of organization and power that we confront in our daily lives? (e.g. UK’s design of campus or the embedded messages of consumerism).

In this project, you will title, pin, and draw your own unique map in Google Maps. In a short reflective essay, write about your experience in a chosen place. Drawing on your observations, your essay might include how people make use of campus. Note especially any ways that people use space in unexpected or interesting ways. You may discover that your findings correspond to, or contradict our class discussions and readings. You could also consider what it means to become a new member of the campus community. How did this experiment reinforce or complicate your expectations of entering the UK community, for instance?

Project 2:RhetoricalInquiry of a Place

For this project, we will take Rebecca Solnit’s essay on Detroit as a model for examining and analyzinga specific location. Building up to this essay, we will also consider how other shared readings, speeches, and digital media pieces complicate how we perceive the spaces that surround us.

Expanding our observational radius, this project entails writing an essay designed around rhetorical inquiry on a local place that you can visit. You may choose another campus location, anywhere in Fayette County, or even your hometown as long as you can physically visit the site before composing your essay. For instance, you could visit a chain restaurant, like Chili’s. Or you might consider a visit to the farmer’s market in Lexington, Memorial Coliseum or Memorial Hall. Your essay should include not only vivid, engaging descriptions of your chosen site but also begin to examine the rhetoric embedded in geographic places. Solnit, for example, interweaves observations about the decline of Detroit’s auto industry and its effects on the landscape as well as a new urban economy. Your essay should reference at least three sources (one scholarly publication and one interview are required).

The second part of this assignment asks you to present your findings to the class in a short presentation (3-5 minutes). You may use up to five index cards (with keywords only) in your presentation as well as visually dynamic PowerPoint slides. These slides need to include at least two visual images (perhaps photos you took of the site, physical artifacts such as a brochure from the site, or relevant graphics gleaned from other sources and properly cited). You could also use these slides to summarize your main findings, pose questions to the class, and/or quote briefly from your sources. You must include a title slide and a final slide with a Works Cited.

Project 3.1: Group Proposal for Final Project

This proposal is a collaboratively written document (1000 words) that will be submitted as a major assignment. It must contain at least four sources, one of which should be primary and one scholarly. The proposal should have the following components: 1) a clearly chosen audience with whom you anticipate your chosen project connecting, 2) a detailed description of the contested space identifying stakeholders, the controversy, and the contexts, 3) a project plan with tasks, deadlines, and individual responsibilities. Your proposals will help get your ideas together long before the group startscreating the digital project.

Since the proposal is a collaboratively written document, make sure that the document feels like a cohesive piece of writing—instead of a document that was produced in sections. This is one of the most important skills of professional composition collaboration.

Project 3.2 Group Digital Project about Contested Spaces

Each group will present theirdigital projects to the class. Your goal as a group is to present your findings to the class about your controversy, discuss how various stakeholders regard your issue, and identify any potential solution(s) to the controversy. While the group speech should feel cohesive, each individual within the group will be responsible for delivering a 3 - 5 minute speech. Speakers should cite at least two relevant outside sources and use at least two PowerPoint slides containing a title, key words, and one nonverbal symbol (e.g., image, pie chart, line graph, or a diagram) that helps listeners to better understand the message. You may each use a maximum of five 3 x 5 one-sided index cards (key words only). The organization of your speech is ultimately up to your group. You may want to capture your audience’s attention with the digital project or build up to the premiere of the digital project as a capstone to your speech. After your group’s presentation, there will be a Q & A session.