Fall 2022 | Sec 004
MWF 1:25-2:15
Mondays & Fridays: CAND 2375
Wednesdays: Ross 1240 Computer Lab
MARC–FOR NEXT TIME, ORGANIZE THE CLASS AROUND THE GUN POLICY PROJECT. SPREADSHEET WORK. NESS, MOVING BEYOND THOUGHTS AND PRAYERS ARTICLE. DEVELOP SECOND AMENDMENT READING. See Ben’s lightning talk.
Dr. Marc C. Santos
www.marccsantos.com
marc.santos@unco.edu
Office: Ross Hall 1140B
Student Hours: Fridays 2:30-4:00 (Zoom links available upon request). I will be in the Michner Library foyer. Tuesdays 2:30-4:00 by email appointment.
Course Introduction
Welcome to ENG 123! This is a course primarily in research methods and academic writing. For the first five weeks of class, you will join a writing group centered around some potential research topics. You will learn to read, dissect, and analyze academic publications–paying special attention to methodologies and discussion sections. Then, you will develop a research question and corresponding project based on your initial reading. This work will culminate in a final research paper of 12-15 pages and corresponding research presentation.
My degree is in Rhetoric and Composition, a diverse scholarly field that investigates how humans relate to each other, how/why we can(not) persuade each other, and how to best compose and deliver information in hopes that others will actually read/listen/consider it. Three pieces of (relatively) contemporary scholarship inform this course.
First and foremost, this course approaches research in terms of the “worknets” introduced by Derek Mueller in his 2015 piece “Mapping the Resourcefulness of Sources: A Worknet Pedagogy.” Mueller argues that too often research citations in student papers are merely attempts to meet a requirement and too rarely authentic engagements with scholarly work. Sources are jammed in as “evidence” of the writer’s (preexisting) belief. Mueller advocates for an approach in which student research is on the research and researcher. We will read, discuss, and use Mueller’s 4 pronged method for analyzing sources in the coming weeks.
This leads to the second influence on this class, Jennifer Rice’s work in Distant Publics. Rice challenges the age-old notion that writing classes should begin by urging students to select a topic that is interesting to them or is relevant to their lives. Rice argues that preparing citizens to participate in the more tedious dimensions of democracy means showing them that there is joy to be found in scrutinizing something that might seem irrelevant. An added benefit of this approach is that it allows students to throw themselves into a question toward which they might not have a preexisting, or ideologically determined, answer. Part of navigating a post-factual world is that we recognize how cognitive bias and tribal loyalty often leads us to merely confirm answers that match up with what we already believe. To counter this, we need more exercise critically engaging materials to which we do not have an intense investment. As I’ll discuss below, this course begins by asking you to select a topic from a list that I have put together. I have selected articles that show an intersection between academic research and public policy problems. I will encourage you to select a topic that you *don’t* think you already know a lot about, one toward which you don’t necessarily have strong convictions, a problem/question to which you don’t have an immediate and unwavering answer.
The third piece of research shaping this course is Asao B. Inoue’s Antiracist Writing Assessment Ecologies. This one has more to do with how I will assess your work. Inoue demonstrates how traditional assessment practices in English, particularly “grading rubrics,” tend to overly reward white and/or middle class students and overly penalize minority and/or poor students. Furthermore, courses driven by objective standards and rubrics often measure a writer’s current ability more than they promote improvement.
Countless studies show that combining grades with feedback are actually counterproductive to student development. There’s two main reasons for this. First, objective standards, rubrics, and qualified grades reward you for knowing penalize you for thinking and/or learning. Thinking and learning are messy processes. They often involve struggle and failure. Rubrics often penalize anything less than mastery. Expecting mastery out of folks who are learning is a terrible approach to assessment. The second reason is more “phenomenological”: in traditional grading systems, students often (if subconsciously) view feedback as attempts to justify a grade rather than as productive suggestions for improvement. Put simply, students learn more when grades and feedback are separated. Finally, Inoue argues that students show significant improvement when they assess others’ writing.
This course reflects Inoue’s research in three ways: first, our writing groups will be peer review groups, in which you will be both working collaboratively to collect and share sources and assessing each other’s writing. Second, we will spend considerable time “grading” material; beyond supplying feedback, I want you to be quite familiar with the tools I will use to evaluate final projects. Third, the majority of the work turned in for this class is graded quantitatively–that is, if you pass it in and it meets length/content requirements then you will receive full credit. Only a few larger projects will be evaluated according to a traditional rubric. By the time we get to the final paper, you will have extensive experience using the rubric to evaluate drafts of your own and peers’ work.
Delving into Scientific American
I’ve assembled a set of topics/readings. You will choose one of these as the launching point for your work this semester:
- Psychedelic Mushrooms and/as Mainstream Medicine?
- Issues with Mis/Disinformation and Public Policy/Perception
- Analyzing the Potential Effectiveness of Recently Proposed Climate Change Policies
- Issues Surrounding Reducing Gun Violence
- Can/Will/Has Artificial Intelligence Reach(ed) Consciousness?
Most of these articles contain links/summaries contemporary research. The few that don’t have “leads” to research (references to recent studies, interviews with significant researchers, etc that are just a Google or Google Scholar search away). Following Rice, I’ll encourage you to pick a topic in which you have some measure of interest, but not one in which you are extremely invested. As we read these SA articles, we’ll be digging into their sources–especially the critical peer-reviewed (i.e. “scholarly”) ones.
The format of this course will be a different from the format of other academic research writing classes. Most classes begin by having you explore a research topic. Something that interests you. I shy away from that approach. Instead, I’ll ask you to invest a bit or yourself in a topic to which you don’t necessarily have a deep connection or a preconceived idea. Rather than starting by writing a research question, you’ll start by exploring some other folks’ research. Mueller writes: “research questions are oftentimes instigated by encounters with what others have written.” So rather than begin by asking you about your interests and having you articulate a question, we are going to begin by reading some existing research and mapping its relation to other research. You won’t formally propose a research question until the middle of the semester, after you’ve done a considerable bit of reading, thinking, and writing.
You will then research, write, and revise a 12-15 page academic research paper. You might not believe me now–but after all the work you do this semester, it will be much easier to write a 15 page paper than a 8 page paper. Many of you will write 24 pages and struggle/cry to cut it down to 15.For the final project this semester, I’ll ask you to transform your research paper into a video that can be shared via social media. The videos will be under 5 minutes long, so the challenge will be condensing them and composing them in a way that is accessible, informative, and entertaining.
Text and Materials
All materials for this class will be distributed electronically.
Materials and assignments for this course will be found in two places. First, via Canvas. You can find instructions on logging into and using Canvas here. Second, via this course website. I will post class notes to the course website in advance of most class sessions. I will email out links to these class notes via Canvas.
You will need to have or create a Google Drive account to complete and turn in assignments. I do not accept Word Documents or .pdfs. You should write and revise your documents in Google Docs since I often use the version history to track your progress.
Assignments
In-Class Activities
These include quick writes, editing and revision activities, Google Drive individual/team writing activities, Canvas “quizzes” and writing sessions, occasional discussion points, and any other minor assignment we do. In-class activities also constitute in class grading sessions, peer review, workshopping, and reflective work.
Worknets
Mueller’s name for his research analysis, you will conduct two of these during the first five weeks of the semester. These “deep dives” will form the basis for your topic proposal.
LAC Course Content Criteria:
1c, 1d, 2a, 3a, 4a, 4b
Proposal
In the proposal assignment, you will articulate your research question, argue for its relevance (establish kairos), and map out the sources you will need to answer that question. You will receive feedback about the topic’s suitability, your purpose for research, your proposed audience, and your research plan.
LAC Course Content Criteria:
1a, 1b, 1c, 1d, 2a, 2b, 3a, 3b, 4a, 4b, 5a, 5b
Group Annotated Bibliography
The annotated bibliography is a list of sources that you will consider for your research paper. You will write an annotation for each source consisting of a brief description and evaluation of each source. You will create and employ effective keyword searches in disciplinary databases to access, identify, and evaluate reliable information from credible/scholarly sources.
LAC Course Content Criteria:
1b, 1d, 2a, 2b, 3a, 3b, 4a, 4b, 5a, 5b
Conference and Outline
Sometime after Spring Break we will meet for a conference to discuss your research progress and your outline for the final paper.
Peer Review/Workshop/Conference
You will be asked to attend at least two conferences (one for the sentence outline assignment and one for a draft of your final essay) and participate in two in-class workshops (one for a preliminary draft and one for the completed draft).
Multimedia Presentation
This presentation is a way for you to show your fellow classmates what you have been working on since midterm. Your purpose in the presentation is to recreate the most essential insights and messages from your essay; thus, you will explain your issue, purpose, audience, research question and thesis.
LAC Course Content Criteria: 1a, 1c, 2a, 3a, 3b, 3c, 4a, 4b, 5a, 5b
Research Paper
Your final essay will be a 2,500-3,500 word (10-15 pages, not counting title page or references/works cited page) mechanically and stylistically coherent, argumentative researched essay on your topic that demonstrates you have gained the benefits of research, illustrates your understanding and utilization of argumentative rhetorical strategies, and demonstrates your ability to correctly incorporate outside source material as necessary for support of your claims.
LAC Course Content Criteria: 1a, 1b, 1c, 3a, 3b, 3c, 4a, 4b, 5a, 5b
Grades
Weighted and averaged points for the course will be computed according to the following plus or minus grade scale:
93–100 =A 87–89 = B+ 77–79 = C+ 67–69 = D 0–66 = F.
90–92 = A– 83–86 = B 73–76 = C 80–82 = B– 70-72 = C-
Number grades that fall between two whole numbers will be rounded up if they are 0.5 or higher. (Example: 86.5= 87; 86.3 = 86)
Assessment
Assignment Percentage
In–class activities 20%
Worknets 15%
Proposal 10%
Annotated Bibliography 15%
Conference/Outline 5%
Presentation 10%
Final Research Paper 25%
Labor-Based Grading
Research on writing studies tells us that the most important component of learning to write is consistent effort and investment. Thus, assessment in this class aims to measure how hard you try more than whether your writing is “good.”
If you pass in all assignments (relatively) on-time (and they address the basic concerns of the project’s rubric), maintain solid attendance, and receive positive assessments from group mates on Project 3, then you are assured a “B” in the course. If I believe your effort is insufficient and doesn’t reflect basic concerns, I will let you know via Canvas comments or email. I’ve primarily been grading effort for the past 5 years and no one has ever accused me of being unfair or pedantic. I want to reward investment and effort. Show it, and you will do fine.
To earn an “A,” you will have to invest extra effort. This includes:
- Revising your project proposal (+2 points)
- Visiting office hours in order to share drafts or ask meaningful questions about a project/reading/work (1-3 visits per semester) (+1 point per visit)
- Bringing drafts of your proposal, annotated bibliography, and/or final paper to the Writing Center (+1 point per visit)
- Including additional sources in your annotated bibliography (1-2 points depending on quantity and quality)
- Going above and beyond in conducting primary research for your final paper (1-2 points)
- Making consistent and meaningful contributions to class discussions (especially when we are reviewing scholarship or are grade norming) (1-2 points)
- Submitting a draft of your final paper prior to the draft deadline (3 points)
I recognize that some of these criteria might seem ambiguous; the last thing I want to do is to stress you out about whether or not you are doing well in this class. In fact, I’m aiming for exactly the opposite. The gambit I am playing here, backed by contemporary scholarship, is that your writing will improve if you aren’t concerned about your grade. I trust you to care about improving as a writer. Do the things that we know tend to make you better writers and your grade will take care of itself. Do the things! You will complete a Google form in the final week of class that includes a self-evaluation.
I am trying to set up an environment that rewards you for your labor. Writing studies scholarship consistently shows that the most significant factor in learning to write is simply investment. The more writing you do, the better writer you will become. I believe that moving to a labor-based system makes writing classes less stressful, since you do not need to be overly concerned that your lack of expertise or experience will doom you to a poor grade.
However, effort alone will not necessarily make you better–we need to focus that effort. Class assignments will often come with rubrics that identify key concepts, genre conventions, strategies, or content that has to be included in a project. If you miss something, you will have the opportunity to revise and resubmit until you get it down. We will familiarize ourselves with project rubrics by grading past projects together as a class.
Student/Office Hours
Student hours are on Friday afternoons from 2:30 until 4:00. Additionally, I am available on Tuesday afternoons by appointment (send me an email to set up a time; meetings are generally 15-30 minutes).
What’s the point of office hours? Mostly preparation or review.
- If we are starting a project, then you can come in and just brainstorm. Most of my best ideas come from just talking to people–ideas just emerge. The dialectic process (fancy speak for asking “what about” kinds of questions) has been around for a few millennia because it works.
- If I’ve handed back a project, then office hours are a great way to ask questions about my feedback. I try to put meaningful comments in the margins of your work. I also recognize that you might not understand my comments. Likewise, you might not understand why you got a lower score on a rubric grade. If you pop into office hours, we can review your work before you revise it. I can highlight what revisions should take priority and make sure you are working efficiently
- Also, if you are interested in becoming a Writing Minor or an English Major, I am more than willing to provide an overview of the programs and answer any questions you might have. If you are looking for an internship, then I can help you get course credit.
- Just talking. Much of the University experience involves being exposed to difference. Different ideas, disciplines, terminologies, people, attitudes. It is natural to have questions. “Hey, you mentioned this thing in class.” Or, hey, this idea came up in another class–but it seems to contradict what you said the other day. Or, hey God of War is a pretty great video game, but why do you think they made Atreus such a jerk in the middle? Or, hey, have you seen/read/played [insert name of television show, movie, book, graphic novel, video game, DnD module]? It seems like you’d be into it because [reasons]?
You are not bothering me when you come to office hours. I do not offer them simply because the University orders me to (and, um, pays me to). I authentically enjoy helping people develop ideas, explore the strange and unfamiliar, and share cool stuff.
Course Policies and Procedures
Attendance
Students are expected to attend all scheduled class meetings. That said, things happen. You may miss up to 4 classes this semester without penalty. Consider these sick days–you do not have to explain to me why you missed them nor do you have to provide me any kind of doctor’s note.
If you develop an illness or have a family situation that requires you to miss more than one class session, then please contact me as soon as possible to see if we can work something out. Note that, because this is a discussion-based and workshop-driven course, we might not be able to work something out. You need to be here. Every absence beyond your 4th results in a 4 point deduction from your final grade. If you miss 10 classes, you will automatically fail the course.
If someone tests positive for COVID or is placed on quarantine, then please do NOT come to class if you are feeling symptomatic–send me an email and let me know if you would like a Zoom link. Documented cases of COVID do not count against your sick days and, assuming you are able to join us on Zoom, will not count against your absences.
Also note that I f*cking hate Zoom and will only offer it as an option to those who are dealing with COVID.
Technology
We’ll spend at least 1/2 of our time together in a computer lab. I expect everyone to know when they should be paying attention to the computer screen, and when they should be paying attention to whomever is speaking (whether it is me or a classmate).
I encourage you to bring a laptop to class for note-taking or writing. If you take notes on a smartphone, that’s fine with me. Again, I expect you to engage discussion when appropriate and to not allow mobile devices to become a distraction.
Late Work
Due dates are included in Canvas and will be listed on the course website. It is your responsibility to complete assignments on time. I expect everyone in this class to compose using Google Drive, so there should not be any issues with computer crashes or software malfunction.
That said, I will except late work for 50% credit. It is better to put in some effort and get a 50% than to let a zero tank your grade.
Student Code of Conduct and Academic Integrity
All members of the University of Northern Colorado community are entrusted with the responsibility to uphold and promote five fundamental values: Honesty, Trust, Respect, Fairness, and Responsibility. These core elements foster an atmosphere, inside and outside of the classroom, which serves as a foundation and guides the UNC community’s academic, professional, and personal growth. Endorsement of these core elements by students, faculty, staff, administration, and trustees strengthens the integrity and value of our academic climate.
UNC’s policies and recommendations for academic misconduct will be followed. For additional information, please see the Student Code of Conduct.
Additionally, the Department of English at UNC has adopted the following policy regarding plagiarism. Pretending that another¹s work is one’s own is a serious scholarly offense known as plagiarism.
For a thorough discussion of plagiarism, see the Dean of Students website information on academic integrity:
http://www.unco.edu/dos/assets/pdf/StudentCodeofConduct.pdf#nameddest=SC_integrity
Students who are caught plagiarizing will receive a final grade of “F” in the course. In addition, they will be reported to the Chair of the Department of English and the Dean of Students office for possible further disciplinary action.
If you need help with understanding documentation systems and avoiding plagiarism beyond the instruction given in class and as seen in the UNC Code of Conduct, speak with the instructor or visit the UNC Writing Center’s web site for a series of PowerPoint tutorials at http://www.unco.edu/english/wcenter/academicintegrityindex.html. Students can also visit the Michener library’s website for resources relating to documentation systems. Instructors use experience and a plagiarism detection service, Safe Assignment, sponsored by the University, to aid in spotting cases of plagiarism. Plagiarism will not be tolerated.
Double Dipping
Some but not all UNC instructors regard double or repeat submissions of one’s own work as a form of plagiarism. If you intend to use in this course written material that you produced for another course, you must consult with me before doing so for each individual assignment. I have no problem with you working on material that will benefit you in another course so long as we discuss the matter prior to submission. By policy, double submission of work requires the approval of both instructors.
Disability Accommodations
Any student requesting disability accommodation for this class must inform the instructor giving appropriate notice. Students are encouraged to contact Disability Support Services (www.unco.edu/dss ) at (970) 351-2289 to certify documentation of disability and to ensure appropriate accommodations are implemented in a timely manner.
UNC Course Catalog Description
English 123: Instruction in diction, style, logical analysis, research techniques and organization of college level research papers. (LAC, 1b gtP)
Prerequisite: Successful completion of ENG 122, an ACT score of 30.0 or higher in English, or an SAT verbal score of 630 or higher. In ENG 123, students are expected to be in control of grammar and mechanics and to be competent essay writers.
The Colorado Commission on Higher Education has approved English 123 for inclusion in the Guaranteed Transfer (GT) Pathways program in the gt-CO2 category. For transferring students, successful completion with a minimum C‒ grade guarantees transfer and application of credit in this GT Pathways category. For more information on the GT Pathways program, go to http://highered.colorado.gov/academics/transfers/gtpathways/curriculum.html
Liberal Arts Core Student Learning Outcomes for Area 1 (Composition)
The general education requirement in Written Communication is designed to help students develop the ability to use the English language effectively, read and listen critically, and write with thoughtfulness, clarity, coherence, and persuasiveness. Each course in the Written Communication sequence assumes that writing is a recursive process. Thus the intermediate and advanced writing courses reinforce, deepen, and extend the content of their prerequisite courses.
Students who successfully complete the Area 1 requirement in Composition will have acquired a good foundation for writing clearly at the college level. After successfully completing two courses in composition, students will be able to:
- Read, analyze, summarize, and reflect on texts written in several genres for specific discourse communities.
- Use voice, tone, format, and structure appropriately in written communication.
- Use recursive strategies for generating ideas, revising, editing, and proofreading for extensive, in-depth, and/or collaborative projects.
- Use sources and evidence effectively, applying appropriate documentation.
- Critique their own work and the work of others.
- Identify and evaluate the relevance of context.
- Synthesize other points of view within their own position.
- Reflect on the implications and consequences of the stated conclusion.
gtPathways Content Criteria, Competencies, and Student Learning Outcomes (SLO’s): Written Communication.
Competency: Employ Rhetorical Knowledge (GT-CO1, GT-CO2)
Exhibit a thorough understanding of audience, purpose, genre, and context that is responsive to the situation.
Criterion 1: Deepen Rhetorical Knowledge
Student Learning Outcomes:
- a. Focus on rhetorical situation, audience, and purpose.
- b. Use voice, tone, format, and structure appropriately, deepening
understanding of relationships between form and content in writing. - c. Write and read texts written in several genres, for specified discourse
communities. These communities may include professional or disciplinary
discourse communities. - d.Practice reflective strategies.
Competency: Develop Content (GT-CO1, GT-CO2)
Create and develop ideas within the context of the situation and the assigned task(s).
Criterion 2: Deepen Experience in Writing
Student Learning Outcomes:
- a. Develop recursive strategies for generating ideas, revising, editing, and
proofreading for extensive, in-depth, and/or collaborative projects. - b.Critique one’s own and others’ work.
Criterion 3: Deepen Critical and Creative Thinking
Student Learning Outcomes:
Competency: Use Sources and Evidence (GT-CO1, GT-CO2)
Critically read, evaluate, apply, and synthesize evidence and/or sources in support of a claim.
Criterion 4: Use Sources and Evidence
Student Learning Outcomes:
- a. Select and evaluate appropriate sources and evidence.
- b. Evaluate the relevance of sources to the research question.
Competency: Apply Genre and Disciplinary Conventions (GT-CO1, GT-CO2)
Apply formal and informal conventions of writing, including organization, content, presentation, formatting, and stylistic choices, in particular forms and/or fields.
Competency: Control Syntax and Mechanics (GT-CO1, GT-CO2)
Follow an appropriate documentation system. Demonstrate proficiency with conventions, including spellings, grammar, mechanics, and word choice appropriate to the writing task.
Criterion 5: Deepen Application of Composing Conventions
Student Learning Outcomes:
- a. Apply genre conventions including structure, paragraphing, tone, mechanics,
syntax, and style to more extensive or in-depth writing projects. - b. Use specialized vocabulary, format, and documentation appropriately.
