Syllabus
Introduction to Academic Writing
(ENGL 109)
General Information
Section Number: 014
Hours: Tuesdays and Thursdays 08:30 - 09:50 a.m. Location: EV3 3406
Term: Winter 2020
Instructor
John Yoon
Office: 1304F, Games Institute, EC1
Email: j42yoon@uwaterloo.ca
Phone: N/A
Office Hours: Tues 11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m., Thurs 11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m., or by appointment
Course Description and Objectives
This course will teach you how to approach and examine subjects from an academic perspective and how to communicate your findings in an academic manner. It has the following objectives:
- To help you to think critically and communicate effectively
- To learn and practice a variety of strategies for inventing, drafting, and editing texts
- To learn and practice writing in a variety of academic genres
- To learn to read critically
- To learn to write persuasively by effectively employing elements of formal argumentation
- To help you give and receive useful feedback on writing for the purposes of revision
- To learn and practice communicating to a variety of academic audiences.
The best way to learn about writing is by writing, so you’ll be doing a lot of formal and informal writing in the class.
Texts
Ruszkiewicz, John J, Dolmage, Jay T. How to Write Anything: A Guide and Reference (without readings). 4th ed., Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2012.
Online readings and resources accessible through the course LEARN site.
Assignments
| Assignment | Weight(%) | Date of Evaluation |
|---|---|---|
|
Thesis assignment |
5% |
Jan. 21 |
|
Argument essay |
20% |
Feb. 4 |
|
Rhet. Analysis proposal |
5% |
Feb. 11 |
|
Rhetorical analysis |
20% |
Feb. 27/Mar. 3 |
|
Research essay proposal |
5% |
Mar. 17 |
|
Annotated bibliography |
10% |
Mar. 26 |
|
Research essay |
30% |
Apr. 9 |
|
Participation |
5% |
All term |
Details of the assignments will be distributed during the course.
Course Policies
Assignments and Class Procedures
- Assignments are to be submitted to the appropriate LEARN drop box in PDF or .doc format.
- Assignments which are late without good reason will be penalized at a rate of two percentage points for every week day late (10% per week).
- Class discussion is a prominent part of the course, so students are expected to attend all classes and to come with the readings completed. In my lectures and in my questions to the class and individuals I will assume the assigned readings have been done. Students will lose 1% from the participation mark for each class missed without a good excuse.
- We will often be using email to communicate with one another. All email communication will occur through your Waterloo account, which you should check regularly. Please email within reasonable business hours.
Electronics
Please mute your phones and do not answer them in class. If you have a genuine emergency for which your phone is needed during a particular class, contact me beforehand. Laptops and tablets are allowed for class-related purposes only. Use of devices for non-class-related purposes (surfing, email, chatting) or in a manner that is distracting to other students will lead to my requesting that you not bring your device to class. At some points in the class I may ask the class to shut their laptops.
Cross-listed course
Please note that a cross-listed course will count in all respective averages no matter under which rubric it has been taken. For example, a PHIL/PSCI cross-list will count in a Philosophy major average, even if the course was taken under the Political Science rubric.
Academic Integrity
Academic Integrity: In order to maintain a culture of academic integrity, members of the University of Waterloo are expected to promote honesty, trust, fairness, respect and responsibility.
Discipline: A student is expected to know what constitutes academic integrity, to avoid committing academic offences, and to take responsibility for his/her actions. A student who is unsure whether an action constitutes an offence, or who needs help in learning how to avoid offences (e.g., plagiarism, cheating) or about “rules” for group work/collaboration should seek guidance from the course professor, academic advisor, or the Undergraduate Associate Dean. When misconduct has been found to have occurred, disciplinary penalties will be imposed under Policy 71 – Student Discipline. For information on categories of offenses and types of penalties, students should refer to Policy 71 - Student Discipline.
Grievance: A student who believes that a decision affecting some aspect of his/her university life has been unfair or unreasonable may have grounds for initiating a grievance. Read Policy 70 - Student Petitions and Grievances, Section 4.
Appeals: A student may appeal the finding and/or penalty in a decision made under Policy 70 - Student Petitions and Grievances (other than regarding a petition) or Policy 71 - Student Discipline if a ground for an appeal can be established. Read Policy 72 - Student Appeals.
Other sources of information for students:
Academic Integrity website (Arts)
Academic Integrity Office (UWaterloo)
Accommodation for Students with Disabilities
Note for students with disabilities: The AccessAbility Services office, located on the first floor of the Needles Hall extension, collaborates with all academic departments to arrange appropriate accommodations for students with disabilities without compromising the academic integrity of the curriculum. If you require academic accommodations to lessen the impact of your disability, please register with the AS office at the beginning of each academic term.
Tentative Schedule
|
Week |
Dates |
Topic |
Readings and Assignments |
|---|---|---|---|
|
1 |
Jan. 7 |
Introduction to the class |
Syllabus |
|
Jan. 9 |
What is Academic Writing? Critical Thinking |
pp. 4-15 |
|
|
2 |
Jan. 14 |
Thesis + organization of texts |
pp. 16-35 |
|
Jan. 16 |
Arguments |
pp. 89-118 |
|
|
3 |
Jan. 21 |
Arguments 2 |
Thesis assignment due |
|
Jan. 23 |
Style |
pp. 368-381 |
|
|
4 |
Jan. 28 |
Peer-review, workshop |
Argument essay draft due pp. 357-361 |
|
Jan. 30 |
Topic proposals |
pp. 203 |
|
|
5 |
Feb. 4 |
Rhetorical Analysis |
Argument essay due |
|
Feb. 6 |
Rhetorical Analysis 2, summarizing and quoting |
pp. 785-790 |
|
|
6 |
Feb. 11 |
Oral reports |
Rhetorical analysis proposal due pp. 275-286 |
|
Feb. 13 |
Oral reports 2 |
TED talk [external link] |
|
|
7 |
Reading Week |
Have fun |
Relax |
|
8 |
Feb. 25 |
Workshop |
Presentation peer-review draft |
|
Feb. 27 |
In-class presentations |
Rhetorical analysis presentations 1/2 |
|
|
9 |
Mar. 3 |
In-class presentations cnt’d |
Rhetorical analysis presentations 2/2 |
|
Mar. 5 |
Research essay |
pp. 221-232 |
|
|
10 |
Mar. 10 |
Research essay 2 |
pp. 79-86 |
|
Mar. 12 |
Research methods |
pp. 428-444 |
|
|
11 |
Mar. 17 |
Annotated Bibliography |
Research essay proposal due pp. 251-256 |
|
Mar. 19 |
Summarizing and Paraphrasing; Documenting Sources |
pp. 457-467 |
|
|
12 |
Mar. 24 |
Library workshop |
Check out RefWorks or similar programs |
|
Mar. 26 |
Writing help |
Annotated bibliography due pp. 387-401 |
|
|
13 |
Mar. 31 |
Editing and proofreading |
Research essay draft due (final essay due Apr. 9) |
|
Apr. 2 |
Workshop |
Workshop and peer-review research essay |