COURSE DESCRIPTION
In this course students will learn about writing as a process and all elements that it involves. Areas of emphasis will include critically reading and responding to the works of others, developing your own ideas as well as essay planning, organizing, drafting and revising. The intention is for students to practice these various areas in order to apply them to a variety of future writing situations.
Assessment in the course is not done in the traditional grade system. Rather, the focus is on providing detailed feedback commentary that gives guidance to the student about specific areas of strength and concern and helps them become more self-aware writers.
The course is meant to be taken on a specific schedule with multiple deadlines to allow for timely instructor feedback as well as practice working with set deadlines. Students should expect to spend approximately 4-5 hours a week on coursework.
Students will also have the option of choosing from a list of topics to work with that might be of more interest to them. I have found that students have an easier time engaging with the writing process when they are reading and writing about things they care about. A variety have been chosen to hopefully allow for all students to find something they can connect with on some level.
MAJOR COURSE COMPONENTS
Readings
A variety of readings that include informational resources on skills of focus as well as others that express thoughts and opinions intended to allow for students to engage with the ideas of others.
Video Lectures
Video lectures, which walk students through the important concepts of the course through visual presentations with instructor commentary.
Assignments
Assignments designed to help students practice the various skills as they are introduced as well as one complete essay, approximately 600-800 words in length, which serves as the culmination of all course work.