Welcome to Composition II Unit 1

Unit 1 seminar Course outcomes Syllabus information Tips for success Academic writing Writing experiences

Contact information Email: sthompson3@kaplan.edu E-mails: use CM 220-xx: Concern in subject line (for example: CM 220-03 Unit 3 project question) Office hours: by appointment (on AIM) AIM ID: sylthompson94 Other instructors in cohort: Michele Turecek: Mturecek@kaplan.edu Julie Kares: Jkares@kaplan.edu

Flex seminar times Day Time Instructor Wednesday Noon to 1 pm ET Thompson 9 to 10 pm ET Turecek Sunday 8 to 9 pm ET Kares

Course description This course helps students apply research and critical thinking skills to develop effective persuasive arguments. Students will create professional writings, incorporating post-draft revision strategies and working constructively with colleagues.

Course outcomes CM220-1: Construct logical arguments CM220-2: Develop strategies for effective problem solving CM220-3: Conduct research to support assertions made in personal, academic, and professional situations CM220-4: Articulate what constitutes effective communication in personal, professional and diverse contexts CM220-5: Demonstrate effective listening strategies

Course level assessments 0: No progress 1: Introductory 2: Emergent 3: Practiced 4: Proficient 5: Mastery 9: Cannot be assessed (didn’t turn in assignment) Used by Kaplan to measure student progress Helps to determine if courses are helping students fulfill course outcomes Leads to needed revisions in course Does not affect your grade Found in grade book in units with assessed projects (unit 2 exercise and final project)

Late policies Projects: one-letter-grade late penalty per unit Discussions: no credit for responses to classmates posted more than 2 days after the unit ends; one-letter grade per late unit penalty for discussion posts Seminars: must attend one of the live seminars or post a response to the seminar question in the seminar discussion thread by the end of the unit (no exceptions unless prior arrangements are made with me) Work submitted more than 3 units late will not be accepted No final projects accepted after the end of unit 9 unless prior arrangements are made with me or an incomplete is granted

Project guidelines Projects due Tuesdays by 11:59 p.m. Use the correct unit’s dropbox to post assignments Write documents in MS Word with “doc” or “docx” extension Read grading rubric and project guidelines carefully! Be sure to review Kaplan’s plagiarism policy (see the syllabus and the Writing Center for details)

Hybrid grading rubrics CONTENT ORGANIZATION WRITING STYLE MECHANICS A 90-100 points Focused thesis statement. Shows original thought. Describes in detail three specific claims and clearly explains how they will be developed. Describes at least two challenges. Full, correct APA references for two sources are included. Should be very well-ordered. Each section must have a strong internal organization. Transitions found between and within sections must be clear and effective. Appropriate to the assignment, fresh (interesting to read), accurate (no far-fetched, unsupported comments), precise (say what you mean), and concise (not wordy). Project is free of serious errors; grammar, punctuation, and spelling help to clarify the meaning by following accepted conventions. Citations and formatting follow APA guidelines.

Substantive discussion posts will. . . Avoid short expressions of agreement or disagreement or summaries of a classmate’s post. Pose follow-up questions to issues raised by myself or other students in order to encourage further discussion. Use personal experiences to illustrate your points. Recommend alternative solutions to problems and offer constructive disagreement with issues raised by your peers. Refer to our course readings and offer relevant parallels between those readings and our discussions. Demonstrate your knowledge of the course material. Stay on topic. Be about 200-250 words for the main response and 100 words for responses to classmates. Requirements vary for each unit, so read instructions and review any examples carefully.

Effective seminar discussions Be respectful Avoid side conversations Be prepared—briefly review material before class Stay on topic Ask questions! Use ??? before a ?

Option 2 seminar assignments Only required if you miss the live seminar Select the “seminar” tab for that unit. Review the questions carefully. Post a response of about 200-300 words in that seminar’s discussion thread by the end of the unit. No seminar credit will be given after a unit ends. Review the archive before responding to the question(s).

Unit 1 assignments Readings: “Communication Skills” and “Write Well, Go Far” (both in the Kaplan library Academic Search Premier database, Electronic articles) Optional: “Leadership in Writing” Post in the “introduce yourself” thread. Discussion 1: What aspects of the final project worry or intimidate you? (includes exercise questions—need to review under “Assignment” icon) Discussion 2: Summary/review of article from Writing Center library that addresses one of your concerns; go to Writing Center to find articles Attend the unit 1 seminar or post in the option 2 seminar dropbox.

Unit 1 exercise (post in DB) Read the "Final Project Requirements" information in unit 9 (see “Project” icon). Open a new MS Word document and develop a thoughtful response to the following questions: 1.) Based on your current writing skills and work habits, which parts of working on the paper (coming up with a thesis statement, research, time management, etc.) do you anticipate will be most challenging for you? 2.) Please list and discuss three of the challenges or concerns you have, save your document, and post your response to the Unit 1 (Looking Forward to the Final Project) Discussion 1. Cut and paste your responses into the discussion board along with the answers to parts 2 and 3.

Other course projects/assignments Unit 2 exercise: Analysis of speech (writing vs. speaking) Unit 3: Choosing a topic, discussing controversies, and developing a thesis statement Unit 4: Revised thesis and two sources Unit 6: Draft of persuasive essay Unit 7:Peer review of classmate’s draft Unit 9:8-10 page persuasive essay on topic selected in unit 3

Final project Write an original persuasive essay (begin selection of topics in unit 2) Must be 8-10 pages, not counting title and references page Use APA formatting and citations Must cite a minimum of 5 credible sources, no more than 2 internet-only At least 2 sources must be books or academic articles (from academic journals). One great way to find academic sources is to look in the Kaplan Library for articles in refereed or peer-reviewed journals. "Academic Search Elite" (one of the Kaplan Library Electronic Articles databases) allows you to limit your search to scholarly or peer-reviewed journals. Google Books and Google Scholar are other database options.

Tips for success Review the “course home” materials about the library, plagiarism, and navigating the E-college platform. Review the documents posted in Doc Sharing. Check e-mail and announcements frequently. Communicate with me and ask questions! Participate actively in the weekly discussions and seminars. Read grading rubrics and assignment guidelines carefully.

Some questions to consider. . . What are differences between informative and persuasive writing? What kinds of persuasion do we see and use in our daily lives? How might you use persuasive writing in your professional life? What are some positive (or negative) experiences you have had with writing? What apprehensions do you feel about this class/final project?

Your toolbox Returns from internet searches Blogs Wikipedia USE! BE CAREFUL! MS Word Dictionary Thesaurus Bartleby.com Kaplan library Kaplan Writing Center (live chats, Q & A, paper review, library) Google Scholar Google Books Free academic databases and electronic journals available on-line http://www.wholeagain.com/free_acad emic_databases.html Returns from internet searches Blogs Wikipedia

Academic, formal, and informal writing Uses Standard American English (no slang, contractions) Is carefully revised and edited for errors References and cites credible sources using conventions of a field (APA, MLA, etc.) Stays in third person May use slang, abbreviations, contractions Often not edited for grammar, mechanics, spelling Uses first and second person pronouns

Why write? Inform Persuade Entertain Deal with specific audiences

Advantages to writing Writing gives you time to reflect and research – shape and reshape material. Writing makes communication more precise. Writing provides a permanent record of thoughts, actions, and decisions. Writing saves time-- we absorb information more swiftly when we read than when we hear.

What to know before you write Purpose: Why are you writing? Audience: to whom are you writing? Context: Terminology Nature of text (essay, email, etc.)