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English Composition II 12279 - Spring 2014 Syllabus TR 4:00-5:15PM, Sparks 425 Georgia State University

Prof. Joe Anderson

Course Google page: http://goo.gl/qMVFtC Email: eanderson35@gsu.edu Twitter: @ProfAnderson (#GSU1102) YouTube channel: http://ow.ly/nU8ic Office: General Classroom Bldg. (GCB) 960 Instagram: profanderson1979 Office hours: Before and after class, Saxby’s by appointment (GSU University Library), other times TBD

Official Course Description:

A composition course designed to develop writing skills beyond the levels of proficiency required by English 1101. Stresses critical reading and writing and incorporates a variety of more advanced research methods; readings will be drawn from a wide variety of literary texts. Passing grade is C.

Course Objectives:

By the end of this course, the successful student will be able to:

Analyze, evaluate, document, and draw inferences from various sources.

Identify, select, and analyze appropriate research methods, research questions, and evidence for a specific rhetorical situation.

Use argumentative strategies and genres in order to engage various audiences.

Integrate others’ ideas with their own.

Use grammatical, stylistic, and mechanical formats and conventions appropriate for a variety of audiences.

Critique their own and others’ work in written and oral formats.

Produce well-reasoned, argumentative essays demonstrating rhetorical engagement.

Reflect on what contributed to their writing process and evaluate their own work.

Anderson’s Comments:

Writing is organized thought. So, the goal of this writing course is to make you a better thinker. Every piece you complete should be an exercise in pushing your own boundaries; with every draft, you should be learning at least as much as you’re trying to show the reader. In doing so, you will better understand how you’re being shaped by your environment—and how you can shape it, in turn.

The best thing you can do is develop an argument I haven’t seen before and makes me think. I love a paper that teaches me something, discusses something new, or proposes a novel position. If my feedback repsponds more to your content than presentation, that’s a big part of the job done.

Regurgitation, on the other hand (or an hand) really blows: an essay is not about how well you can rephrase someone else’s words and throw them up into your reader’s lap. Avoid straight summary.

This is a tech-intensive course during which we train in communicating through various modern media forms. Please be aware that you will be required to engage with computers, internet technology, and social media. If you have a laptop or tablet with net access, you are strongly urged to bring it with you.

Finally, you’ll be called upon to read aloud to your peers, in small groups, and as an entire class. Please be prepared to participate fully.

Textbook and other required materials:

Gaillet, Dr. Lyneé, et al. GSU’s First Year Guide to Writing. College ruled notebook; 1-subject, 10.5 x 8 in. At least 70 pages. Course Google page access (see top of syllabus) Regular Twitter access Regular internet access Strongly suggested: An internet-enabled laptop or tablet

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The Jist:

To pass this class you MUST earn a passing

essay average AND develop a complete

and passing notebook.

Assignments

COURSE NOTEBOOK:

You’ll be graded for the quality and completeness of your notes. Two full pages of notes are required for every hour of regular class time (not just per class meeting; there is a difference). If you miss any classes, make sure to copy a friend’s notes to avoid losing points. Pages will be counted qualitatively, at my own judgement. In order to be counted, all notes must be fully legible, with pages numbered. Non-note work (responses, email discussions,

presented articles, etc.) should be dated and organized within the notebook. Keep in mind that this continuing assignment necessitates regular attendance. Sample pages from passing notebooks can be found on the course Google page. You must develop a passing notebook in order to pass the class.

ESSAYS & MAJOR ASSIGNMENTS

We will explore how argument is presented and audience perceptions influenced within a variety of contexts. You will complete at least three major assignments (not including graded revisions) in which you critically respond to media products of your own

choosing. Our in-class discussions will be warm-up exercises for the sort of thinking you’ll be doing in your essays; you’ll be expected to develop independent, sophisticated conclusions that go well beyond summary. If you do not complete the required number of essays, you may fail the class, regardless of the grades you receive on the work you do turn in.

If you earn a failing grade on an essay, you may be required to write an additional reflective piece in which you review your feedback and outline a plan to improve your performance in the next essay.

QUIZZES, HOMEWORK, OTHER

Some quizzes and other pieces of coursework may be assigned for completion outside of class. Others will be given during our regular meeting time or made available online. Specific homework may also be assigned to individual students at the instructor’s discretion.

CLASS PARTICIPATION

As participation is essential to maintain a student-driven course, frequent and well-thought comments and questions are required. Class participation is counted as:

Full, intelligent, and respectful participation in all class discussions, whether in the classroom or online Completing all assigned readings, activities, and projects Acting with politeness and consideration toward classmates and professor in all settings and circumstances Participating fully in conferences and any other review activities

There is no standalone participation grade. Instead, this credit will be reflected in other grades. See ‘Attendance’ for more information.

English Majors:

The English Department at GSU requires an exit portfolio of all students graduating with a degree in English. Students should work on this every semester, selecting 1-2 papers from each course and revising them, with direction from faculty members. The portfolio includes revised work and a reflective essay about what you’ve learned. Each concentration (literature, creative writing, rhetoric/composition, and secondary education) within the major may have specific items to place in the portfolio, so be sure to check with the front office of the English Department or contact an advisor.

ESSAY EXTRA CREDIT: For additional points per essay, you may choose to argue against yourself: provide a single, complete page thoroughly outlining your specific position on an issue and the ideologies you recognize as influencing these beliefs. The essay proper must then deviate from that established perspective in some significant way.

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Grading:

All work submitted for this course must be written at a college-appropriate level. Assignments which earn a below-average grade (69% or lower) may be failed outright or returned for total revision.

Your work will be graded using the domain scoring guide found in the introductory materials and on the course Google page. Some assignments may be graded for all of the domains, others for a single domain, any combination of domains, or by some other means. Familiarize yourself with the scoring guide.

I will read your essays carefully and make suggestions for improvement. However, I will not mark every error. You must review your own writing and use what you learn from teacher, peer, and tutor feedback to improve your subsequent essays.

It is expected that you will submit the best possible version of each essay for grading, so please take the time to proofread, revise, and have your work peer reviewed before turning in a final copy. You should not expect any opportunities for revision once an assignment is submitted for a final grade. Visiting the Writing Studio, attending conferences, and regularly coming to office hours are strongly encouraged.

Again, in order to pass the course, you must maintain a passing average on all essays and pass the notebook requirement.

Formatting:

Many well-written essays have earned lowered scores because of poor formatting. All pieces of writing, whether submitted via hardcopy or electronically, should be formatted in the following manner:

E-mail messages and other electronic pieces should be formatted in a similar fashion when possible and parctical (double-spacing in Word is not the same as hitting ‘Enter’ at the end of every line and will cost you points!) Aside from worksheets and assignments completed in-class (ex: notebooks), all pieces of writing must be typed; handwritten submissions will not be accepted. The filename of any submitted essay must include your last name and the assignment title (ex: Smith essay 2). Consult the syllabus addendum for an example of a properly-formatted essay.

Attendance:

A student who misses more than a week’s-worth of class meetings throughout the semester, for whatever reason, may be dropped from the class with a grade of “W” or receive an “F”. This could affect veterans’ benefits and financial aid. However, you should not assume you will be dropped if you stop attending class. You are responsible for withdrawing by the drop date to avoid receiving a failing grade for the course. See the school’s website for this semester’s deadline.

A high attendance rate does not guarantee a high grade. Those that communicate and participate more often tend to earn higher grades overall, though; talking is a part of thinking.

Also, please get to class on time. A late arrival invariably causes disruptions and can have a chilling effect on advancement.

Anderson On Grading…

100-90 A

89-80 B

79-70 C

69-60 D

59 & below F

‘C’ is AVERAGE. If your work displays the lowest acceptable level of skill for a college student, this is the grade you will earn. If you believe that you should be earning better than an average grade, it is contingent on you to do better-than-average work. Meanwhile, a ‘B’ indicates excellent work, while an ‘A’ paper is near-flawless; the higher the grade is, the harder and more rarely it is earned.

Page size: 8 ½ x 11 inches 1-inch margins on every side Double-spaced Page number, student last

name, and course posted in top right of ALL pages

12-point font size Times New Roman font type A Works Cited page (absence

of which will lower the final grade 10%)

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Missed or Late Work/Test Make-Up Policy:

Late assignments will not be accepted unless the student makes extension arrangements with me before the assigned due date, and these opportunities will be very limited. Only in the case of an extreme documented emergency will any other considerations be made.

If technical problems prevent you from submitting a paper to the course page or via email, you may submit a hard copy. To do that, you must either hand it to me personally by the deadline, or:

1. Hand the paper to an administrative aide in the English office before the deadline, and

2. Ask that aide to write the date and time on the paper, sign it, and put it in my mailbox

Academic Dishonesty/Plagiarism:

Georgia State University defines plagiarism as “any paraphrasing or summarizing of the works of another person without acknowledgement, including the submitting of another student's work as one's own. Plagiarism frequently involves a failure to acknowledge in the text, notes, or footnotes the quotation of the paragraphs, sentences, or even a few phrases written or spoken by someone else. The submission of research or completed papers or projects by someone else is plagiarism, as is the unacknowledged use of research sources gathered by someone else when that use is specifically forbidden by the faculty member. Failure to indicate the extent and nature of one's reliance on other sources is also a form of plagiarism. Finally, there may be forms of plagiarism that are unique to an individual discipline or course, examples of which should be provided in advanced by the faculty member. The student is responsible for understanding the legitimate use of sources, the appropriate ways of acknowledging academic, scholarly or creative indebtedness, and the consequences of violating this responsibility.”

Using a paper for multiple courses without the consent of each instructor does not constitute plagiarism per se, but it does count as academic dishonesty and will be treated accordingly. Academic dishonesty of any kind, plagiarism or otherwise, is grounds for failure on the assignment in question, failure for the entire course, or referral to the appropriate dean for additional sanctions. I reserve the right to submit any assignment for analysis by any plagiarism software or service at my disposal.

For more on GSU’s policies, refer to ‘Academic Honesty’ in the Student Catalog, available at http://goo.gl/EGW1Uj

Classroom Etiquette:

Students who violate classroom decorum and do not respect the rights of their fellow students to enjoy an atmosphere conducive to learning will be asked to leave and will be counted as absent. This may be expanded to a permanent removal from the class at my discretion. Please consult the Student Code of Conduct (http://goo.gl/37YQVW) for more information.

Incompletes:

The notation of "I" may be given to a student who, for nonacademic reasons beyond his or her control, is unable to meet the full requirements of a course. In order to qualify for an "I", a student must:

Have completed most of the major assignments of the course (generally all but one), and

Emailing w/ Anderson: Some tips Are you using a professional-

sounding email address? Have you filled out the subject

line? Is it brief but clear? Are you opening the message

with a salutation, such as “Dear Prof. Anderson,”?

Are you clearly identifying yourself (first and last name) in the body? Have you included a signature line?

Are you paying attention to conventions? Have you proofread? Have you included complete sentences and appropriate punctuation? Is all spelling correct?

Have you remembered to attach any necessary materials? This is particularly relevant during grade review.

If the answer to any of these is ‘no’ or ‘I don’t know’, review the message again before you send it!

To avoid plagiarism, give proper credit to borrowed material whenever you: Directly quote another person’s actual words,

whether oral or written; Paraphrase the words, ideas, opinions, or theories of

others; Use another person’s ideas, opinions, or theories; Borrow facts, statistics, or illustrative material; Offer materials assembled or collected by others in

the form of projects or collections without acknowledgment.

adapted from Indiana University Code of Student Rights, Responsibilities and Conduct

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Be earning a passing grade in the course (aside from the assignments not completed) in the judgment of the instructor.

When a student has a nonacademic reason for not completing one or more of the assignments for a course, including examinations, and wishes to receive an incomplete, it is the responsibility of the student to inform the instructor of the reason, either in person or in writing. The grade of "I" is assigned at the discretion of the instructor and is not the prerogative of the student. Conditions to be met for removing an "I" are established by the instructor.

Withdrawals:

An official last day to withdrawal from a course with a grade of “W” is established each semester and can be found by contacting the registrar’s office or the school academic calendar. It is the student’s option and responsibility to withdraw from the course by this date.

Students with Disabilities:

Georgia State University complies with Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act and the Americans with Disabilities Act. Students who wish to request accommodation for a disability may do so by registering with the Office of Disability Services. Students may only be accommodated upon issuance by the Office of Disability Services of a signed Accommodation Plan and are responsible for providing a copy of that plan to instructors of all classes in which an accommodation is sought.

Class Cancellation Policy:

On occasion, GSU will announce a late opening or early closing of a specific campus or the entire college because of weather conditions or other emergencies. Since classes begin at various times throughout the day, a late opening or early closing may occur during a scheduled class period. Consult the GSU homepage (www.gsu.edu) for the most current cancellation information.

Additionally, if I need to cancel our class on a last-minute basis, I will most likely notify students via Twitter, the course Google page, or both. Please make sure that you check these resources regularly.

Online Evaluation of Instructor:

Your constructive assessment of this course plays an indispensable role in shaping education at GSU. Upon completing the course, please take time to fill out the online course evaluation.

Additionally, you are encouraged contribute to the instructor’s public evaluations at RateMyProfessor.com

Syllabus Contract: Please copy the following into the box below, complete the remainder of the form, detach and return. No grades will be assigned until this contract is completed and returned. I have read and understood the policies described in the syllabus, including the information regarding plagiarism and other forms of academic dishonesty. I agree to work and produce material in a responsible and ethical manner, as defined by the Georgia State University Student Code of Conduct, and to adhere to all other guidelines stated in this syllabus.

Name (printed):__________________Signature:_________________________

Course title and times:________________ Today’s date:______________

Assignment 1: List three questions you have about the syllabus. These may be referred to in class. 1.

2.

3.

_________________________ Assignment 2: Visit http://goo.gl/zeG2RU and take each of the three grammar tests you find there. Print the results and staple them into your notebook. Show me as you’re submitting this completed slip.

Syllabus Addendum What follows on the next three pages is a sample essay and Works Cited page, formatted according to the most recent MLA requirements. If you are formatting according to MLA specs and your essay deviates from that of this sample, it is wrong and you will lose points. Also, make sure to read the text of the sample thoroughly, as it will provide you with further important instruction. As for the rest of the introductory material, make sure you review everything and complete the syllabus test and contract, as none of your work will be counted in the gradebook until you have done so. -Anderson

Writer's Name Course Title / Instructor's Last Name Assignment Name Date Format (here: MLA) No feedback requested This is a Left-Justified Title, in Same Size and Type as Text. You can set your title in bold or italics if you wish, but it isn’t required. A title is optional, but encouraged. Usually, the title should not be more than one line or sentence long (unlike this title).

This is the text of an MLA-formatted essay: if you are composing an MLA-formatted

paper, it should resemble this. It must be double-spaced, in either Times New Roman or Arial

font, 12-point type. The heading and title can be single-spaced or 1½ spacing, but the body of

the work must be double-spaced to allow for instructor comments. The margins should be one

inch all the way around; left and right, top and bottom. Do not include a page number on the

first page; subsequent pages should be marked at the top right with the author's last name and

page number. If you’re not familiar with MS Word’s ‘insert page number’ function, consult the

Word help menu or look for a formatting how-to on YouTube (usually linked directly from our

coursepage). Do not use the first line of each page to manually insert page numbers, as this will

lead to messy formatting if you are sending the file electronically. See the next page for an

example of proper page numbering.

Justify only the left margin, leaving the right 'ragged'. Indent the first line of each

paragraph. Do not put extra spaces between paragraphs. Do not use fancy types, italics, or bold.

When you submit essays to be graded, professors want good writing in a simple, professional

format; we don’t want to be distracted by frills. Again, your typed pages should look like these.

You will be asked to include a 'Works Cited' page for research assignments; this is

different from a 'Bibliography' page or a 'Works Consulted' page, as will be explained later in the

semester. The ‘Works Cited’ page should be arranged alphabetically, using hanging indents, as

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in the sample that follows. To format source citations according to MLA specifications, you can

refer to almost any reputable writer’s guide, such as Easy Writer or The Little Brown Handbook.

Within the essay, list the source immediately after the quote or paraphrase, using only the

author's last name and the page number, as in this example (Smith 3). If the source is electronic,

some instructors will just allow you to cite by last name, but others will require you to cite the

paragraph the information is taken from. Pay attention to the requirements of individual

instructors.

Within the essay and on the 'Works Cited' page, book titles such as Gone with the Wind

should be italicized or underlined, but not both; whichever format you choose, be consistent

throughout the essay. Short story or article titles, such as “The Ransom of Red Chief,” should be

in quotes. All titles should be placed in title case, as in the above examples. Also, you’ll see a

sample of an annotation along with the first entry of the Works Cited; you usually won’t need to

annotate sources unless it’s explicitly required, but in such cases all entries should resemble the

first. When you’re not being asked to annotated, your entries should resemble the rest of the

sample Works cited page.

The last page must be ¾ full to count as a full page. Therefore, this sample would qualify

as a 2-page paper.

Again, these guidelines are designed to make your writing look like everyone else's. The

only factor that will differentiate your paper from those of your peers is the quality of the writing

itself, so make sure to give your very best effort and that you get whatever help you can from the

Writing Studio or a personal tutor.

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Works Cited

"Blueprint Lays Out Clear Path for Climate Action." Environmental Defense Fund.

Environmental Defense Fund, 8 May 2007. Web. 24 May 2009.

Occasionally, you might be asked to provide an annotated bibliography. The annotation

of a bibliographic (or Works Cited, or Works Consulted) entry will usually just be a few

sentences summarizing the piece or providing some form of relevant commentary.

Format annotations similar to the rest of paper, with appropriate indentation.

Clinton, Bill. Interview by Andrew C. Revkin. “Clinton on Climate Change.” New York Times.

New York Times, May 2007. Web. 25 May 2009.

Dean, Cornelia. "Executive on a Mission: Saving the Planet." New York Times. New York

Times, 22 May 2007. Web. 25 May 2009.

Ebert, Roger. "An Inconvenient Truth." Rev. of An Inconvenient Truth, dir. Davis Guggenheim.

Rogerebert.com. Sun-Times News Group, 2 June 2006. Web. 24 May 2009.

GlobalWarming.org. Cooler Heads Coalition, 2007. Web. 24 May 2009.

Gowdy, John. "Avoiding Self-organized Extinction: Toward a Co-evolutionary Economics of

Sustainability." International Journal of Sustainable Development and World Ecology

14.1 (2007): 27-36. Print.

An Inconvenient Truth. Dir. Davis Guggenheim. Perf. Al Gore, Billy West. Paramount, 2006.

DVD.

Leroux, Marcel. Global Warming: Myth Or Reality?: The Erring Ways of Climatology. New

York: Springer, 2005. Print.

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The Essentials: Commonsense Tips to Keep in Mind if You Really Want to Pass This Course

The Internet You'll need regular access to the internet. Check the website and your email often. I’ll go over the course website if

time permits, but you’re responsible for being able to access and navigate that resource. Do not attempt to send anything to my regular email, as it will probably be automatically deleted. If you can’t talk to

me face-to-face, your best bet is to Tweet me at the handle posted at the top of the first page of the syllabus. Do not ask if something “is going to be on the website”; I will always

tell you ‘no’, even if the answer is actually ‘yes’. If it sounds important, write it down.

Consider the “Any Fool” test: Can a source have been posted by any fool, or has it been posted by someone who had to identify themselves and jump through some meaningful hoops in order to disseminate this information? Any fool can write a blog or post a website, but not everyone can be published in a newspaper, trade publication, industry journal, etc.

Wikipedia—or any encyclopedia—is not a valid essay source. YouTube is the video equivalent of Wikipedia, and just as acceptable

of a source.

In Class This is a course for adults seeking to develop their writing abilities. No

kids allowed. Say your name when I call on you, and I should have it down within

the first few weeks. If I'm not calling you by name, it's because I don't know it. And if I don’t know your name, how well do you think you’re doing in the course?

Contribute to class discussions as often as possible. If you don’t, the person who does will get the grade you could be getting.

Every once in a while, I might give an extra point or two to all the names I can connect with faces or people who have gone to the writing center and let me know about it. Will you be getting those points?

High marks in other courses or schools do not entitle you to high marks here. Keep this in mind when you wish to complain about your final grade.

There is no allowance for half-assing. If it looks like you didn’t do your best, if the work looks rushed, if it seems like you didn’t care, or if you assumed you’d get a good grade just because you’re you, I will stop reading immediately; you earn an ‘F’.

I’ll get papers back to you as soon as I can, but they may take a while. Don’t start bugging me right away.

If you need to ask if it’s still possible for you to pass the class, the answer is very probably ‘no’.

Don’t assume that you’re passing just because I’m being cordial during class. I’m just a nice guy.

Don’t expect friendly warnings or second chances. Stay on top of your own grade.

Attendance is not enough. Part of thinking is talking, and those who communicate and participate tend to get better grades.

In discussion or on paper, ‘it depends on who you are,’(or any variation thereof) is never an acceptable answer by itself.

Highlight: How to get the grade you want by working smarter!

Complete all work fully and by deadline.

Pay strict attention to assignment sheets, specific requirements, and deadline calendars.

Read essay feedback! This is how you learn what you need to fix to get a better grade!

Talk to me about your work as often as possible. The best way is to see me before or after class, but don’t forget office hours and Twitter.

If you have a question or concern, ask immediately. Also, have specific questions in mind when you communicate with me outside of class and during conferences.

Don’t go easy on yourself. Revise and proofread as often as necessary. Then, do it a few more times.

More specifically: print your essay and read it out loud, slowly. Mark errors as you notice them. Make corrections and repeat the process; at least three times for every essay.

Go to the Writing Center at least once a week. Consider it a lab and make time in your schedule for it.

Attend every class meeting, don’t ever be late, bring all necessary materials every single time, and take copious notes (in some cases, the more notes you take, the more points you get).

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Your Work Brevity is key. Say less; communicate more. How ever deep your analysis is, it’s not deep enough. Make connections. Go deeper. Moral stances make for poorly-supported arguments. Morals aren’t a good foundation for an objective paper because

they’re not objective. The three most common writing mistakes are repetition, awkward phrasing, and comma errors. If you’re going to mess

something up, at least be original about it. An email message is a professional document. Treat it as such. Otherwise, I will not read it. Don’t use contractions in professional writing. This includes email.

Numbers under ten should be spelled out. Other classes may say different, but it’s standard for this class.

‘I added detail’ does not qualify as significant revision. Do not pad. Ever. This includes mega-quotes; unnecessary summary

(more than 3 brief sentences per essay); spaces between paragraphs; wordiness; oversized margins, line spacing, and fonts; or anything else that makes it look like you half-assed it.

Avoid hypotheticals (‘what if’, ‘should have’, ‘could have’ etc.). Work with what you have.

Don’t “think” it or “believe” it or “guess” it. Know it and show it. Remove ‘it seems’ from your vocabulary; it is or it isn’t. ‘Got’ is slang. Do not use it. “He or she?” “He/she”? “(S)He?” None of the above: If you don’t know

the gender, pick one and stick with it. “And/or” is even worse than “He/she”. When in doubt, go with ‘or’. “Try and-” (as in “I will try and go to the bathroom, but I think I’m too

drunk.”) is a mixture of wordiness, slang, and poor grammar. Keep it simple; “I will run barefoot across those rusty nails” or “I am going to use the gas oven to blow-dry my hair.”

‘This’ and ‘that’ can be vague. Make sure the reader knows what these pronouns refer to.

Don’t go with the easiest or most obvious approach; everyone has the same first five ideas, and they’ll all earn you a ‘C’. What’s going to make your essay stand out?

Don’t assume universal truths based on limited information. If you do, it just takes one exception to prove you wrong.

Proper formatting is law. Otherwise good writers get failing grades because of padding, misquotes, Wikipedia citations, and other expressions of their own sloppiness, laziness, and lack of attention.

Can’t make it to the Writing Center? Find a partner in class and set up an peer review partnership. Even better, find a bunch of people and set up a peer review network. If that fails, hire a tutor. There is no excuse for not getting your work read by somebody other than you and your instructor.

Incorrect subject line and filename formatting will cost you points. The correct form is in the syllabus under ‘Formatting’. Also, see the sample essay in this packet.

On average, those who go to the Writing Center regularly, attend conferences, and come to my office hours earn higher grades than those who don’t.

No ‘I will’ statements, or any variation thereof explicitly defining authorial intention. Have some finesse about it..

One more time: Grammar and mechanics errors are the main reasons papers fail. Get your grammar and mechanics down pat early on and make sure that you proofread to eliminate typos; I am much happier commenting on what you say than on how you say it.

Highlight: A few ways to lose essay points INSTANTLY! Open or close a paragraph or essay with a quote or definition.

Attach a ‘Bibliography’ vs. a ‘Works Cited’ page

Include any formatting non-standard to the stated specs. See the sample (previous) for a properly-formatted MLA essay.

Distract me from your argument with your language. I love to object to arguments. I hate to have to take time away from that by focusing on proofreading and revision errors. A paper that pulls me in with its ideas, where language is simply the vehicle for those ideas and doesn’t get in the way, is the goal.

Claim in your argument that something is ‘unfair’ without including a definition of fairness, identifying to whom the situation is unfair, identifying who must be benefitting from this lack of fairness, and why the reader should care about any of it.

Use ‘In today’s society’ any variation thereof, or any other pat ambiguities.

Make the same mistakes in your current essay that you made in your last essay. This indicates that you’re not reading feedback comments nor, commensurately, giving this class the necessary attention. This behavior may incur its own penalty, to be determined on a case-by-case basis.

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Highlight: Common Editing Marks ? – unclear/irrelevant

awk – awkward phrasing

comb – combine element

[with x]

conv. – conversational

tone

estab. – previously-

established point

frag. – sentence fragment

its – ‘In today’s society’

mw – missing word*

nt? – Do you need this?

obv. – obvious point

oop – out of place

element

punc. – punctuation error

red. – redundant

rel.? – relevance?

Rep. – repetitive

sp. – spelling

struc. – structure error

suf. – suffix error

ts – unnecessary tense

shift*

w – wordy

wc – questionable word

choice

wop – worn-out phrase

(cliché, etc.) And remember to ask about any unclear marks or comments immediately.

Focus Content Organization Engagement Conventions

Parameters for study,

developed by the author,

which allow the argument to

go into greater depth about a

narrow range of elements.

The elements of the

argument; may be crafted

from outside information,

but must always be refined

and made relevant by the

author.

The evident sensibility of

the arrangement of the

elements. Must be

reviewed at the sentence,

paragraph, and whole-

essay levels.

How a reader might react

to the piece; the ‘so

what?’ test. Includes but

is not limited to word

choice and sentence

variety. Also includes A/V

when fitting.

Grammar, mechanics,

spelling, word choice,

punctuation, etc.

4 A complex argument is

developed and sustained, with

divergences from the main

point only when necessary to

understanding, and made in

the most elegant and clearly-

relevant way possible.

Complete clarity of content.

The development of the

content truly shows that the

author has learned at least

as much in developing the

paper as they are trying to

communicate through it.

Arrangement of elements

at all levels is

sophisticated, consistent,

and practically useful in

some regard.

Highly engaging. A

combination of strong

construction and smart

presentation with no

evident weak points.

Brief when possible.

Moving.

Word choice and

sentence structure are

invisible; the actual

writing is not noticed

except for where it

shines. No errors

worth mentioning.

3 Focus is maintained and the

argument is allowed to

develop to a sufficient depth,

but something more is

possible. Were the most

interesting paths of

investigation pursued?

Essay is constructed out of a

clear line of reasoning that

comes to an original,

contextually-sensible

conclusion.

Some revision at one or

more of the organizational

levels is necessary, but

not in any way that would

impinge on understanding

or engagement.

Author consistently

executes an earnest

strategy to interest the

reader. An honest

attempt at engagement,

even if it falls flat, will

earn you a three here. If

you don’t, come see me.

Functional

communication of the

information, with few

instances of language

or construction that

hinders readability.

2 This is likely a puddle paper;

rather than pursuing a specific,

limited topic for a sustained

duration and to the greatest

intellectual depth possible,

only a few major ideas are

reviewed, and none with any

intellectual vigor.

This is likely a puddle

paper; a few different large

points about the topic are

reviewed, but nothing is

explored in great depth, nor

are any personal

discoveries made.

Serious errors, usually of

the kind that confuse or

alienate the reader, such

as chronological confusion

or unexplained tense shift.

Argument is probably

wordy, often awkwardly

phrased, ambiguous,

repetitious, obviously

poorly-founded, or some

combination thereof.

Evident lack of either

basic understanding of the

language, motivation, or

both.

The intended message

is significantly

obscured or detracted

from by

inapprpropriate word

choice, wordiness,

awkward phrasing, or

punctuation errors.

Errors are consistent,

however, and display

a need for specific

remediation.

1 The subject of the

argument—and the intentions

of the author—are unclear.

The reader is unengaged with

the topic, if they even bother

finishing the piece.

No effort made to develop

significant content. A lack

of content may be manifest

in a lack of overall length or

an abundance of irrelevant

or nonsensical material.

Nothing more than the

most basic, necessary

arrangement of words and

sentences, with no

thought given to the

effectiveness of that

arrangement.

No acknowledgement of

the audience and no

desire to communicate

the argument. An “I don’t

give a shit” paper usually

gets all 1s.

No apparent attention

paid to word choice,

sentence structure, or

any other

conventional

concerns. Errors are

scattershot, indicating

no attempt at

proofreading or

revision.

0

Scoring

The essay:Was not turned in

Is effectively illegible

Is incoherent

Is entirely off-prompt

Is otherwise insufficient An

ders

on

’s D

om

ain

Sc

ori

ng

Gu

ide

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A word about the Writing Center…

GO TO THE WRITING STUDIO. THEY WILL HELP YOU FOR FREE.

The GSU Writing Studio is located in 25 Park Place, room 2420 (24th floor). For scheduling, an FAQ, and further information about available services, visit http://www.writingstudio.gsu.edu/index.html Phone: (404) 413-5840 Fax: (404) 413-5830

THE WRITING STUDIO WILL SEND YOU A CONFIRMATION OF YOUR APPOINTMENT: FORWARD THIS TO YOUR PROFESSOR FOR POINTS!!!

Highlight: Anderson’s Tips On Writing Centers It might sound stupid, but think of visiting a writing center like going on a date. If you’re lucky, you’ll click with the first person you meet and you’ll clearly see the benefits right away. Unfortunately, it’s not usually that easy; instead, see as many people as you can until you find the one you work with best. This is where a writing center stops being like a date, though. You may find that you get along with someone really well, but does that translate into a higher grade? Are they addressing your writing issues in the way you need them to? If not, no matter how friendly you are, move on (but at least get their number). And, of course, once you’ve found that special tutor, ask the receptionist about their Writing Studio schedule and adjust your own accordingly. Also, don’t stop going to the Writing Studio even when you’re not in a writing course anymore. They can help you with writing for all subjects, as well as with professional documents, like resumes and cover letters.

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