RHET 1302, Fall 2011, Section 003

RHET 1302: Rhetoric Course Syllabus Fall 2011 Section 003 MWF 10:00 10:50 AM Class location: JO 3.908 Mark Jenkins Email: maj100020@utdallas.edu Office Number: JO 3.704 Office Hours: 9:00-9:50 M W & by appointment.

NOTE: All matters associated with this course are subject to change at the instructor's discretion. Any and all changes will be communicated to students in writing. Course Description RHET 1302 will prepare you for college-level writing while helping you develop your critical thinking skills. Rhetoric is the study and practice of how people communicate messages, not only in writing and speech, but also through visual and digital mediums. In this class, you will develop skills to analyze the way rhetoric, in its various forms, addresses audiences. By paying attention to the strategies that good writers and speakers use to persuade their particular audiences, you will learn to reason better and to persuade others in your own writing, both through rhetorical appeals and through analysis of audience, purpose, and exigency that is at the heart of the study of rhetoric. For RHET 1302, you will read and reread texts and write multi-draft essays. Practically speaking, you will learn skills that you can use in your future course work regardless of your major. Student Learning Objectives Students will be able to write in different ways for different audiences. Students will be able to write effectively using appropriate organization, mechanics, and style. Students will be able to construct effective written arguments. Students will be able to gather, incorporate, and interpret source material in their writing. Required Texts Rosenwasser, David and Jill Stephen. Writing Analytically with Readings. 2nd ed. Thomson/Wadsworth, 2011. Students should have Microsoft Word (available as part of Microsoft Office package at the campus technology store at a substantial discount), or a free equivalent, like Open Office, installed on whatever computer they will use to complete class assignments.

Fall 2011 Assignments and Academic Calendar

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Note: This Calendar is subject to change. Assignments and readings should be completed by each day of class. Wed, Aug 24 Introduction to the Course **Diagnostic Essay** Course syllabus and class expectations Discuss the basics of writing: organization, development (transitional words and phrases, paragraph structure), style issues Fri, Aug 26 Mon, Aug 29 Writing and the Writing Process Writing Analytically, Chapter 1 Writing and the Writing Process Writing Analytically, Chapter 2 Paul Goldberger Disconnected Urbanism 473-474 The Process of Critical Analysis Writing Analytically, Chapters 3 The Process of Critical Analysis Writing Analytically, Chapter 3 (contd) Christine Rosen Our Cell Phones, Our Selves 457-472 Begin Blog project (ongoing throughout the semester) Labor Day Holiday (no classes) The Process of Critical Analysis Writing Analytically, Chapter 4 Using Evidence Writing Analytically, Chapter 8 Finding, Citing, and Integrating Sources Writing Analytically, Chapter 14 283-300, 306-314 Finding, Citing, and Integrating Sources Writing Analytically, Chapter 14 (contd) [Plagiarism Tutorial at http://www.utdallas.edu/judicialaffairs/UTDJudicialAffairsAvoidDishonesty.html] Introduce Essay #1 Assignment Writing About Reading Writing Analytically, Chapter 5 Writing About Reading Writing Analytically, Chapter 5 (contd) Jonathan Franzen Imperial Bedroom 493-500 Reading Analytically Chapter 21, Places and Spaces: Cities and Suburbs James Howard Kunstler The Public Realm and the Common Good 521-532 Jack Gambino Demolition Zones: Contemporary Photography 533-545

Wed, Aug 31 Fri, Sep 2

Mon, Sep 5 Wed, Sep 7 Fri, Sep 9 Mon, Sep 12 Wed, Sep 14

Fri, Sep 16 Mon, Sep 19

Wed, Sep 21

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Fri, Sep 23

Mon, Sep 26

Wed, Sep 28 Fri, Sep 30 Mon, Oct 3 Wed, Oct 5 Fri, Oct 7

Mon, Oct 10 Wed, Oct 12 Fri, Oct 14

Mon, Oct 17 Wed, Oct 19 Fri, Oct 21 Mon, Oct 24 Wed, Oct 26 Fri, Oct 28 Mon, Oct 31 Tue, Nov 1 Wed, Nov 2

Fri, Nov 4

Essay #1 Proposal Due Reading Analytically Chapter 21, Places and Spaces: Cities and Suburbs continued Rosalyn Baxandall and Elizabeth Ewen Suburban Birth Pangs 555-562 Jane Jacobs The Uses of Sidewalks: Safety 565-576 Making Interpretations Writing Analytically, Chapter 6 Thesis Statements Writing Analytically, Chapter 11 Thesis Statements Writing Analytically, Chapter 12 Essay #1 Rough Draft Due In-Class Workshop/Peer Revision In-Class Workshop/Peer Revision continued DUE: Essay #1 Final Draft Introduce Essay #2 Assignment Reminder: Turnitin.com Introductions and Conclusions Writing Analytically, Chapter 16 Analyzing Arguments in Your Writing, Part I Writing Analytically, Chapter 7 Analyzing Arguments in Your Writing, Part II Writing Analytically, Chapter 9 Essay #2 Proposals Due Analyzing the Visual Writing Analytically, Chapter 24 745-778 Analyzing the Visual (contd) Chapter 24 792-858 Organizing the Essay using 10 on 1 Writing Analytically, Chapter 10 Organizing the Essay using 10 on 1 Writing Analytically, Chapter 10 (contd) Rough Draft Due/Conferences Essay #2 Conferences Essay #2 Conferences Essay #2 Reminder: Turnitin.com **Last day to drop with a WP/WF** DUE: Essay #2 Final Draft Introduce Essay #3 Assignment Writing Analytically, Chapter 13 TBA

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Mon, Nov 7 Wed, Nov 9 Fri, Nov 11 Mon, Nov 14

Wed, Nov 16 Fri, Nov 18 Mon, Nov 21 Wed, Nov 23 Nov 24-26 Mon, Nov 28

Style and Word Choice Writing Analytically, Chapter 17 Style and Sentence Structure Writing Analytically, Chapter 18 Style Sentence Structure and Word Choice DUE: Proposal for Essay #3 More on Organization Writing Analytically, Chapter 15 Writing Analytically, Chapter 15 Essay #3 Rough Draft and Annotated Bibliography Due Conferences Essay #3 Conferences Essay #3 Conferences Essay #3 Reminder: Turnitin.com Thanksgiving Holiday (no classes) DUE: Essay #3 Final Draft Grammar and Punctuation Writing Analytically, Chapter 19 In-Class Workshop Revising the Portfolio Revising the Portfolio DUE: Portfolio Course Wrap-Up

Wed, Nov 30 Fri, Dec 2 Mon, Dec 5

Grading Blog Project Essay #1: Community Writing or Rhetorical Analysis (Proposal and Rough Draft= 5% of total 15%) Essay #2: Visual Analysis (Proposal and Rough Draft= 5% each of total 20%) Essay #3: Academic Research Essay & Proposal (Proposal, Annotated Bibliography, and Rough Draft 5% each = 15% of total 30%) Portfolio Homework/Peer Review/Other Assignments Participation 5% 15% 20% 30%

10% 10% 10%

Total 100% (I will make use of the +/- system in grading as stipulated by The University of Texas at Dallas Undergraduate Catalogue, 2010-2012.)

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Assignment Descriptions (Note: You must submit all major assignments to Turnitin.com by the due date.) Essay #1: Community Writing You, yourself, are a member of several communities. These communities can range from very broad classifications like your status as a student at this university, or the very specific like your participation in an activist group that supports a local cause. The Community Writing assignment asks you to think critically about the communities of which you are a part and to select a community that you can discuss with some competence. Once you have selected a community, identify a problem within that community and then form an opinion about the problem. Topics may take the form of (but are not limited to) the options listed below: Option I: Identify a problem within your selected community and propose action(s) that might solve it. Option II: The general public may not feel that belonging to your community is beneficial to either its members or outsiders. Taking the stance that membership in your community is beneficial, argue how and why you believe your community is indeed a community and consider its potential benefits to you and others. Past topics in this essay include athletic teams, major, neighborhoods, country, religious group, and groups based on personal interests such as a an online community centered around . For examples of community writing, peruse the forums, blogs, and online magazines associated with your community. These texts will not only inform you about issues related to your community, but may also give you some idea of style. You should adapt your writing to your intended audience. The style of this essay may be informal, but should be free of technical errors. This essay asks you about your own experiences, and therefore should not require you to do much research or rely on the ideas of others. Below are the URLs of a few examples: http://media.www.utdmercury.com/media/storage/paper691/news/2009/02/09/Opinion/Profess ors.Can.Prevent.Another.Textbook.Fleecing-3618684.shtml http://www.utdmercury.com/news/wi-fi-woes-unresolved-1.1607045 http://www.huffingtonpost.com/david-callahan/do-colleges-care-about-st_b_789918.html http://www.pastemagazine.com/articles/2010/01/is-indie-dead.html http://lifehacker.com/5658620/the-now-habit-overcoming-procrastination-and-enjoyingguilt+free-play http://www.randsinrepose.com/archives/2007/11/11/the_nerd_handbook.html http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=women-tenured-science-professors Proposal Due Date: Friday September 23rd
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Rough Draft Due Date: Monday, Oct 3rd Final Draft Due Date: Fri, Oct 7th Length: 3-5 double-spaced pages (not including Works Cited) in MLA format, 11 or 12-point font Source limit: One (1) source minimum You must include a Works Cited page and use correct MLA format for in-text (parenthetical) citations. Essay #2: Visual Analysis The Visual Analysis assignment asks you to select a photograph, print advertisement, and/or work of art and analyze its features to discover a deeper meaning. In working with something visual, you will apply the techniques and strategies you have read about in Chapters 2-4 and 6 of Writing Analytically with Readings. The visual analysis requires you make the five analytical moves we have previously discussed: Suspend judgment (understand before you judge). Define significant parts and how they are related. Look for patterns of repetition and contrast and for anomalies (aka The Method). Make the implicit explicit (convert to direct statement meanings that are only suggestedmake details speak). Keep reformulating questions and explanations (what other details seem significant? what else might they mean?). (Rossenwasser and Stephen 53) Just like a written text, a visual communicates meaning on a deeper level beyond merely the literal. Your essay will illuminate this meaning, helping your audience understand your interpretation of the image. So in addition to describing the visual subject, you will be arguing for a particular interpretation. Proposal Due Date: Friday, October 14th Rough Draft Due Date: Wednesday, Oct 26th Final Draft Due Date: Wednesday, November 2nd Length: 4-6 double-spaced pages (not including Works Cited) in MLA format, 11 or 12-point font Source limit: Two (2) sources minimum You must include a Works Cited page and use correct MLA format for in-text (parenthetical) citations. Essay #3: Academic Research Essay

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In this assignment, write an essay that examines an issue of importance within your academic discipline. Here are some examples: 1) Using multiple outside sources, create an overview of contemporary work. What does it mean in 2011 to have a career? What makes a career rewarding, challenging, and successful? Consider the workplace environment, outside work (home, family, social, weekends). It might be useful to focus on a specific career, especially one related to your major and interests. 2) Choosing a particular field such as education, medical, business, consider what major changes (3-5 changes) have occurred in the last 10-20 years. Are these changes for the better or for the worse? Once the essay finishes considering what exactly these changes are, consider what caused these changes. 3) Find a topic, issue, or problem within your field that interests you. Researching publications and related sources, consider why is it of interest to you? How does it affect your field in the present? How might it affect your field in the future? 4) Or you may propose your own topic. Just keep in mind that it needs to be a topic that you can contribute to based on the research time and page length. Some topics that would not work include: global warming, illegal immigration, gun control, the death penalty, abortion, and nationalized health care. You will be graded on your ability to present an informed, effective argument that demonstrates your understanding of the subject, displays your research into its issues, effectively uses source material (in summary, paraphrase, and cogent quotations), and reaches logical, substantiated conclusions based on well organized and subordinated claims. At least three of these sources must be cited in the rough draft and five in the final drafts of your Academic Essay. Your drafts are expected to contain a cogent, well-formed argument based on that preliminary work and to be presented in the MLA style, which is a required, graded element of this assignment. Length: 6-8 pages (not including Works Cited) in MLA format, 11- or 12-point font, doublespaced. Due: Proposal Due Date: Monday November 14th Rough Draft/Annotated Bibliography Friday November 18th Monday November 28th Final Draft Due Minimum of Three (3) scholarly and two (2) popular sources (5 sources total) You must include a Works Cited page and use correct MLA format for in-text (parenthetical) citations.
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Blog Project Length: at least 250 words Minimum nine (9) due during the semester At nine (9) different times this semester, you will post to a blog designated for your particular RHET 1302 section on eLearning. Your blog entries should offer a thoughtful response to course readings and/or class discussions. Starting with the third week of September, blogs will be due by Thursday at 11:59 PM. Responses will be due the following Tuesday at 11:59 PM. As learning to read critically is an essential part of the course, you will find reading articles on your own based on your own interests as a way to practice analytical skills. This can often lead to ideas for paper topics and even potential sources. To help with this process, I would like you to choose from the following websites: www.wired.com, www.nytimes.com, www.theatlantic.com, http://www.thewashingtonpost.com/ http://www.sciencemag.org/ http://www.smithsonianmag.com/ and other websites listed under links on eLearning. If there is another publication or website you would like to use, feel free to ask. Your blog entries could also offer a thoughtful response to course readings and/or class discussions. Each time, choose one article that you find interesting. After you reading it at least once, try to summarize the writers main point. Then, spend the rest of your response responding to this idea. Do you agree with their point? Why? How does the writer make their point (Rhetorical appeal, Evidence)? Who is the article for? What else might you need to know to understand the article? While the article may have a few images, avoid writing about only collections of images. Use your blog freely within the bounds of good sense. Think of blog entries as something you would be willing to say in class (or have someone read aloud in class). Entries should conform to a good sense of propriety and classroom etiquette. Keep in mind that these are writing exercises, so avoid txt msg spk. Furthermore, abbreviated responses or simply saying, I agree, in answering a classmate will not suffice. Although individual entries are not graded, the blog is graded writing as a whole. I will be looking for improvement over time in your ability and willingness to express ideas in controlled, focused blog entries.

Course Portfolio (E-Portfolio) Due Date: Monday, December 5th

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The course portfolio is a complete collection of the work you have done during the semester uploaded to eLearning as a single Word file. It is an opportunity for you to assess your progress as a writer, and evaluate those areas in which you still need work. The complete portfolio will include the following: 1. Reflection Essay: A 3- 5 page reflection essay examining your work. It should highlight problems you faced, how you feel you improved, and areas in which you are still unclear or feel you need more help. The essay should address these questions for each of the essays you submitted during the semester and for the blog project, as well as providing an overview of the work you did during the semester as a whole. 2. Completed Blog Project 3. Copies of both drafts of your: Rhetorical Analysis/Community Writing Essay Visual Analysis Essay Academic Essay Keep in mind that this essay serves as a guide to help me evaluate your portfolio. It is your chance to direct my attention to what you have done best, as well as explain weaknesses in your pieces, demonstrating an awareness of how you might improve. This is not an argument for me to positively evaluate you. Rather, it is an opportunity to reflect on the individual assignments as well as your work as a whole. In addition to the reflection essay, you may revise one of your first two essays, using my feedback and feedback from others, for a higher grade. Keep in mind that a revision doesnt guarantee a higher grade, especially if significant changes are not made. The revised grade will replace the previous grade, but only if it is higher. Essays that receive an A- or higher are exempt from this option. Some things the reflection essay might address include: Important revisions you made in the process of writing a paper Patterns you seem to have in your writing Differences between drafts Challenges with specific assignments What you learned What is still confusing? How you look at writing differently than when the semester began How has your writing changed? How your writing process has changed

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Course Policies Peer Review Group Early in the semester, I will assign you into a group of 3-4 students who you will work with throughout the semester for in class assignments, peer review of drafts and Blog Project Entries. You are responsible for getting your writing to your classmates in a timely manner, just as they are responsible for getting their essays to you in a timely manner. Most of this work will be done in class and through eLearning so there will be minimal need to meet outside of class time, unless you choose to do so. General Essay Format Guidelines Please follow this format for all of your essay rough drafts and final copies: Final drafts should follow the MLA format. This includes citing all outside sources correctly both in text and on a works cited page. An example of a paper in MLA format can be found in Writing Analytically. Essays must be typed, double-spaced, on one side of the paper, and with standard margins on the right and left sides, top, and bottom of the page. The font used for your final draft should be 12-point Times or a similarly proportioned and sized font. Pages must be numbered with your last name and page number in the upper right-hand corner in the document header. Your essays must have a title, but please don't make a separate title page. Note: Essays that fail to meet MLA format requirements are subject to a letter grade reduction. We will review MLA formatting well in advance of the first essays due date. Attendance Because each class period consists of a mixture of class discussion, group work and freewriting, your thoughtful, attentive, and active participation is essential (and will form a portion of your grade). If you sleep, engage in non-class-related activities, or interfere with your classmates' ability to learn you will be counted absent for that day. Be on time - class starts promptly. Leaving early will count as an absence. Each student is allowed four (4) unexcused absences, no questions asked. Save them for when you really need them. Your final grade will suffer a 5% reduction for each unexcused absence you accumulate over four (e.g., 7 unexcused absences = 15% total reduction). You are responsible for your attendance. You must make sure you sign the roll sheet and/or notify me if you arrive late and after I have taken roll.

Punctuality
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Persistent tardiness to class is disrespectful to both your instructor and your peers. Continually arriving late to class will affect your participation grade in the course. Three tardies will result in one unexcused absence for the course; I will consider you absent if you arrive more than 15 minutes late to class. Class Participation Your success in this course is a function of your level of engagement. I am interested in the quality of your remarks rather than the quantity. Please use your analysis of the readings, your blog posts, and prior research and/or study when responding orally in class, and please be prepared to back up any points you make. Participation in this course does not include doing work unrelated to this course during class, sleeping in class, or using the computers or other personal electronic devices for personal messaging, research, or entertainment. Late Work All drafts, including final, must be submitted when and as required in order to successfully complete this course. Late assignments will suffer a final grade deduction of 5% for each date late. After a week, such assignments will receive a zero. If you are having trouble completing a specific assignment please get in touch with me as soon as possible and consider making use of the schools writing center. Uploading a rough and final draft to turninit.com is a required part of writing assignments for this course. Failure to do so by the due date will result in losing points, 5% of the final grade for each day late. We will enroll in turnitin.com the first week of class. To do so you will need to go to turninit.com enter the class ID: 4230869 and the enrollment password: rhet1302s3 Personal Communication Devices Turn off all cell phones, pagers, and other personal communication devices before the start of class. Do not use such devices during class. If I have to ask you repeatedly to put away such devices, it will affect your participation grade and can lead to being market absent for the day. Room and Equipment Use Tampering with or destroying any of the computers, printers, modems, or wiring in the classroom is strictly prohibited. Violations will result in disciplinary action by the Dean of Students office. Hacking a door code and/or entering a classroom without the instructors permission constitutes criminal trespass. The Director of Rhetoric and Writing will pursue action through the Dean of Students Office and/or the UTD Police Department against any student who engages in such behavior. The Director of Rhetoric and Writing will also pursue action against
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students who are caught attempting to enter a room without permission (i.e., entering possible number combinations in an attempt to open a classroom door). University Policies Please review the university policies at http://go.utdallas.edu/syllabus-policies.

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I have read the policies for RHET 1302.003 and understood them. I agree to comply with the policies for the Fall 2011 semester. I realize that failure to comply with these policies will result in a reduced grade the course.

Signature: ______________________ Date: ________________________

Name (print): __________________________ UTD e-mail address: __________________________

The use of students work during Rhetoric class allows instructors to demonstrate writing concepts with examples specifically tailored for this course. Use of a sample paper or an excerpt from a paper benefits students by allowing them to evaluate the strengths and weaknesses in others writing and to apply whats learned to their own work. If you agree to allow your instructor to share your writing samples, your name and other identifying information will be removed from writing samples. Your work will be treated respectfully by instructors, who also expect that students demonstrate such respect. All students are expected to participate in peer review. If you agree to share your work for class demonstration and exercises, please sign the following statement: I allow my instructor to use samples of my writing for demonstration during this class and for other sections of Rhetoric. I may revoke my permission by letting my instructor know I no longer wish my work to be shared.

Signature: ______________________

Date: ________________________

Name (print): __________________________

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