Core 110F:
Effective Writing
Joe Kraus
Fall
Semester, 2001
Introduction
to the Course:
This
is a class about writing. Writing, as we will talk about, is a lot of different
things. I expect that each of you
knows a great deal about it already; you’ve each reached an advanced level of
study and have clearly done a lot of it in the classes you’ve taken before
this one. In this class, we will
build off of what you already know. If
you think you know something about writing already, be prepared to use it again.
My
favorite definition for the sort of writing we will do in this class, expository
writing, is “capturing the rhythm of your every day thoughts in written
words.” By that, I mean that the
writing we do will call on you to look to your own experiences, daydreams, and
expressions as the material and substance of your work.
The writing we will do requires you to reflect on things you’ve done,
people you’ve known, and problems you’ve encountered.
I take it for granted that you all already “know” everything you need
to know to write the papers of this class.
The kind of writing we will do is a skill you already have; we’re
simply going to polish it.
While
we will spend a great deal of time talking about writing, I can tell you in
advance that I will ask two general questions of everything you write.
First, I will look at the way you write your paragraphs.
If they are not coherent or have other problems, I will try to suggest
ways for you to strengthen them. Second,
I will look at the way you sustain a thesis throughout your paper.
I see these two questions as related; a coherent thesis makes it easier
to write coherent paragraphs, and coherent paragraphs reinforce your overall
thesis.
When
you write with a clear thesis with well-developed paragraphs, you will do well
in this class.
You
should know immediately that this class calls for a great deal of work.
I am asking you to write a total of seven essays (with two to three
drafts of each) as well as to write ten shorter sketches, none of which should
take you more than half an hour to complete, and two full-page responses to your
classmates’ work. You will have a major writing assignment each of our 17
weeks, and you should expect to be planning one paper at about the same time as
you are wrapping up another.
For
each of the essays you will write, I will ask you to write a first draft.
By “first draft,” I mean I expect you to write the best paper you can
write on your own. I expect you to have written, re-read, corrected, and
proofread each of your first drafts before you bring it into class.
During class, we will generally have a workshop that should give you
enough insight to revise your first draft into a second draft which I will then
collect and grade. For the six essays, I will ask you for at least one
additional draft.
At
the end of the semester, I will collect a writing portfolio from each of you. In it, I expect to find new drafts of five of your essays, a
complete set of journal entries, and some of the in-class writing that we will
do in the course of the semester.
Methods of Instruction:
We
will spend most of our class time in discussion. I expect you will have done the assigned reading, writing,
and any other homework. I will
usually have a series of points that I want to make on a particular day, but I
want to make sure that you have the opportunity to direct our discussion on the
basis of the ideas that you bring to class yourself.
On
occasion, I will lecture, but we will be such a small class that even such
lectures will be informal. I look
forward to each of you helping to redirect our conversations.
Instructional
Materials:
We
do not have a textbook for this class. I
ask only that you buy the coursepack on sale at the bookstore.
If
you and I agree that you need some additional work on your grammar or sentence
mechanics, I may suggest additional texts that I think can be helpful.
Attendance
Policy:
We
have roughly 40 classes scheduled for this semester.
I expect you to attend each of those classes.
I recognize that some of you may not feel well sometimes and that you may
have other emergencies that cause you to miss class. Your absence affects everyone in the class, however, not just
you, so I expect you to recognize your obligation to us.
If you miss even a single class in the first four weeks, I will discuss
with you whether you have the time and flexibility to be part of our class this
semester. If you miss three or more
classes in the first four weeks or five or more in the first seven, I will
encourage you to withdraw. In my
experience, students who miss even so apparently small a number of classes have
difficulty completing our overall work.
Barring extraordinary circumstances, you will fail
this class if you miss more than 7 classes in the course of the semester. (Missing 8 classes would mean missing more than 20 percent of
our class meetings.)
If you miss more than 3 classes, I may reduce your
final grade by a full letter.
Simply
attending class is insufficient. I
expect you to be prepared as well. I
reserve the right to mark you as absent if you attend class without having
prepared the necessary homework or having forgotten some of your essential books
or notes.
I
expect you to notify me any time you miss class. I am glad to hear from you by
e-mail (jkraus@kings.edu), phone, or in person.
I
do not distinguish between excused and unexcused absences.
I assume that you have a valid reason any time that you miss class.
It is strictly your choice whether you want to share that reason with me.
Methods of Evaluating
Student Progress:
I
will determine final grades through the following breakdown:
Narrative.................15%
Rem. Person............15%
Profile......................15%
Evaluative...............15%
Uncanny..................15%
Journal.........................................10%
In-class
Rogerian...........................5%
Workshop
responses....................10%
I remind you, however, that it
is possible fail the class for excessive absences even if you otherwise complete
the written work.
Links to More Course Information:
Journal Assignments: