ENG 1010 Freshman Composition: The Essay




Metro State, Spring 2003, section 12
Dr. Cynthia Kuhn
 

Course Description: We will discuss and practice various strategies for writing and revising thoughtful, effective college essays. At the end of the course, students should be able to demonstrate the following abilities: use writing as part of a process leading to an understanding of feelings, beliefs and knowledge; recognize ways in which writing enhances learning; focus the intention of the essay on a central idea or purpose; specify the central idea through elaborative detail; recognize options made available by the relationships among writer, purpose, and audience; adjust writing style to the needs of a specific audience; exercise useful control over writing mechanics; produce prose characterized by sound sentence structure, clear diction, and recognizable, logical organization.

Required Texts: Reading Critically, Writing Well (Axelrod & Cooper, 6th ed., Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2002) and The Penguin Handbook (Faigley, Boston-Longman, 2003).

Assignments:
 
Essays (4) = 400
Portfolio = 300
Participation = 100
Presentation = 100
Workshops = 100
Total Possible Points = 1000
900-1000 = A
800-899 = B
700-799 = C 
600-699 = D 
0-599 = F

SCHEDULE

You should come to class having read the assigned material carefully: read the text once quickly to get a sense of the whole, then read again slowly, noting the text’s main issue(s), structure, and patterns worthy of exploration. You should be prepared to participate constructively in discussions.  Overall, I'm looking for thoughtful responses that demonstrate your active consideration of the course material. 
 
 
Date
Topic/Assignments Due
Page numbers below refer to the Reading Critically text unless otherwise noted.

W 1/22
writing sample
F 1/24
introductions/syllabus
M 1/27
read: “Autobiography” (12-23); Lorde, "That Summer I Left Childhood Was White"
W 1/29
read: Bragg, “100 Miles…”
F 1/31
read: Dillard, "A Chase" 
M 2/3
Essay Workshop 1 (bring two copies of your draft)
read: “Guide…” (58-69)
W 2/5
Thesis workshop: bring a copy of your thesis, typed on a sheet of paper (exclude your name).
F 2/7
Autobiographical essay due (in a folder with all drafts)
M 2/10
read: “Observation” (70-79), including “Soup”
W 2/12
read: “Guide…” (120-130)
F 2/14
read: Coyne, “The Long Good-Bye…”
M 2/17
read: Cable, “The Last Stop”
W 2/19
readPapenfuss, “Behind the Sugar…”
F 2/21
Essay Workshop 2 (bring two copies of your draft)
M 2/24
Introduction workshop: bring a powerful revised version of the introduction to the essay you are currently working on.Type it on a sheet of paper (exclude your name).
W 2/26
Observation essay due (in a folder with all drafts)
F 2/28
read: “Explaining Concepts” (182-193) 
M 3/3
read: Farley, “Rave New World”
W 3/5
read: “Guide…” (240-249)
F 3/7
readLemonick, “Will Tiny Robots…”
M 3/10
read: Tannen, “Marked Women”
W 3/12
read: Gutierrez, “Music Therapy”
F 3/14
Essay Workshop 3 (bring two copies of your draft)
M 3/17
Introduction and Conclusion workshop (bring a copy of your draft in progress)
W 3/19
Definition essay due (in a folder with all drafts)
F 3/21
read: “Evaluation” (250-262), including Etzioni, “Working at McDonald’s”
SPRING BREAK 3/24, 3/26, 3/28
M 3/31
read: “Guide…” (301-312)
W 4/2
read: Kinsley, “Email Culture”
F 4/4
readCorliss, “Run, Chicken Run!” and Hyder, “Poltergeist…”
M 4/7
Essay Workshop 4 (bring two copies of your draft)
W 4/9
Introduction and Conclusion workshop (bring a copy of your draft in progress)
F 4/11
Evaluation essay due (in a folder with all drafts)
M 4/14
In-class portfolio work
W 4/16
In-class portfolio work
F 4/18
In-class portfolio work
M 4/21
In-class portfolio work
W 4/23
Portfolio Introduction workshop (bring draft of your portfolio introduction)
F 4/25
Portfolios due
M 4/28
Presentations
W 4/30
Presentations
F 5/2
Presentations
M 5/5
Presentations
W 5/7
Presentations
F 5/9
Presentations
TBA
Final Exam Week Meeting
 

Please see the official (paper) syllabus for course policies, assignment guidelines, important dates, etc.

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