Leadership Starts Here
Rhetoric and Writing Studies 200: Written Argument in Context
Spring 2014
Professor: Marla Grupe Williams
Section 78 T/Th 3:30 – 4:45
Office: Storm Hall 112A
Hours: Tuesday 11a.m. – 2 p.m.
*and by appointment
Email: mmgrupe@aol.com
Mail: RWS Main Office, SHW 141
RWS Phone: 619-594-6515
Recommended Texts:
A Twitter account (you can find me @mmgrupe, same as my email)
A text-ready phone to share your 140 character “Twitter Essays” in class
Electronic readings via Blackboard (access to working computer, internet, printer, ink and paper)
Raimes, Ann. Keys for Writers. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, (any edition with MLA 2009 is fine).
General Education Capacities/Goals & RWS Learning Outcomes
Our Learning Outcomes Reflect the Goals and Capacities of the General Education Program.
RWS 200 is one of several courses in the area of general education defined as “Communication
and Critical Thinking.” Focusing particularly on argument, this course emphasizes four essential
general education capacities: the ability to 1) construct, analyze and communicate argument, 2)
contextualize phenomena, 3) negotiate differences, and 4) apply theoretical models to the real
world. This course advances general education by helping students understand the general
function of writing, speaking, visual texts, and thinking within the context of the university at
large, rather than within specific disciplines. In addition to featuring the basic rules and
conventions governing composition and presentation, RWS 200 establishes intellectual
frameworks and analytical tools that help students explore, construct, critique, and integrate
sophisticated texts.
Within this framework of four general capacities, the course realizes four closely related
subsidiary goals. These goals focus on helping students
1) craft well-reasoned arguments for specific audiences;
2) analyze a variety of texts commonly encountered in the academic setting;
3) situate discourse within social, generic, cultural, and historic contexts; and
4) assess the relative strengths of arguments and supporting evidence.
Our student learning outcomes for RWS 200 are closely aligned with these goals and
capacities, and reflect the program’s overall objective of helping students attain “essential skills
that underlie all university education.”
Student Learning Outcomes: the following points describe outcomes to work on throughout
the semester, to be attained over the 15 weeks. Students will be able to:
1. Building on the work done in RWS 100, students will be able to: articulate what
argument a text is making; describe the work that is done by each section of the
argument; describe elements of the argument—claims, methods of development, kinds of
evidence, persuasive appeals; translate an argument into their own words;
2. understand and incorporate all aspects of the writing process--including prewriting,
drafting, revising, editing, and proofreading;
3. articulate what key terms, definitions, concepts, statements of a problem or issue are
established by a text;
4. investigate and articulate how an argument is positioned—based on certain kinds of
assumptions, located in a way of thinking and representing issues from a point of view;
5. work with multiples sources in a paper, deciding what to include and what to exclude,
choosing an effective structure, and creating significant relationships among sources;
6. analyze and assess arguments made by visual texts; incorporate visual images into their
documents;
7. craft a cohesive paper, and use effective metadiscourse to articulate the project of the
paper and guide a reader through it;
8. describe their own papers and reflect on how they wrote them; differentiate between the
content of their texts and the language and rhetorical strategies they employ;
9. assign significance to the arguments they read;
10. revise their own work effectively, re-reading previous work and re-envisioning it in the
light of reflection, feedback, further reading and new sources of information;
11. edit their writing for the grammar and usage conventions appropriate to the project.
The following four outcomes describe the four major writing projects of “assignment types” for
the course. Students will be able to:
1. Discern elements of context embedded in arguments, the clues that show what the
argument is responding to – both in the sense of what has come before it and the
sense that it is written for an audience in a particular time and place; examine a
writer’s language in relation to audience, context, and community;
2. Use concepts and arguments from one text as a context for understanding, evaluating
and writing about another;
3. Given the common concerns of two or more arguments, discuss how the claims of
these arguments modify, complicate, or qualify one another; consider how major
positions advanced in these texts relate to each other and evaluate the persuasiveness
of these positions.
4. Consider your contemporary life as the context within which you are reading a group
of arguments; position yourself in relation to ongoing research and discussion in order
to make an argument and “join the conversation.” Evaluate source texts so as to
create a space for an original contribution.
Analysis of Argument(s) in Context
25% Due Tuesday, February 25
“Lens” Essay – Theoretical
Applications
Argument in Contemporary Context
25% Due Thursday, March 26
Creative Project
10% Due Tuesday, May 6
Final Exam - WPA
20% in class Tuesday, May 6
20% Due Thursday, April 24
100 Percent Total
A = 93-100, A- = 90-92
B+ = 88-89, B = 83-87, B- = 80-82
C+ = 78-79, C = 73-77, C- = 70-72
D = 60-69, F = 59 and below
ACADEMIC MISCOUNDUCT
The University takes very seriously all forms of academic misconduct which include, but are not
limited to cheating, plagiarism, collusion, falsifying academic records, copying or allowing
another student to copy a paper or assignment, and providing false or misleading information in
order to receive an extension on a paper or assignment. Plagiarism is always unacceptable and
will result in failure on the assignment and possibly expulsion from the course. All such
improprieties will be directly documented and reported to the Center for Student Rights and
Responsibilities.
CELL PHONES
The ringing, beeping, handling, answering and use of cell phones in class used to bother me in
the extreme –now, I’ve given up – let’s tweet! I understand that technology is a constant
temptation and companion, and it is my expectation that you respect me and the classroom
environment. Some days I will ask you to share your ideas via text message on the board for all
to see and discuss. This semester, we’re embracing technology.
EMAIL & BLACKBOARD PROCEDURES
Please check your email regularly and be prepared to print various readings from Blackbaord.
There is no course reader or formal textbook for this class – our textual relationship is electronic
– hence, you should have access to a printer, ink and paper and consider this cost in lieu of
payments to the bookstore. If and when you email me, please identify yourself and the course
info in the email (you wouldn’t believe how many students email sans even a name, who is
“surferboy27@hotmail”???).
ESSAY SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS
 All our major writing assignments will be workshopped in hard copy form in class and
electronically via PeerMark out of class. These essays will be submitted on Blackboard
via Turnitin; Turnitin is a fickle mistress – all work is due by the beginning of class time,
and Turnitin will lock you out immediately at your class start time on the stated due
date. There is no late work, no partial credit, no retroactive excuses. Plan your use of
technology accordingly and give yourself sufficient time to upload your work.
 Failure to submit a properly formatted essay will result in a 10% grade reduction on the
assignment in question. We will go over each genre and format together in class, but it is
your responsibility to use your handbook or the Purdue OWL website to properly format
your written work. Attention to detail matters. All typed academic essays should be in
MLA format.
 All work must be completed on time; this means that no late essays will be accepted,
EVER. Any university recognized exceptions must be cleared with me prior to the class
session when the assignment in question is due.
WORKSHOP ENVIORNMENT
This class functions as a writing workshop; one of the main goals of this class is to help you
become an effective writer and build your confidence as a writer in preparation for your future
at and beyond SDSU. You will participate in different types of workshop for each major writing
assignment in this class. I expect a high level of effort and commitment to the workshop
environment by coming to class prepared and willing to give constructive comments to your
classmates – even if you don’t feel qualified – you’ll begin to know what good writing looks like
and must be open to revision. Workshop is an integral part of the writing process; the idea that
writing is an isolated activity is a myth – every writer needs editing, support and revision.
THE WRITING CENTER
SDSU now offers free individualized writing consultations and tutoring at the Writing Center in
PSFA 116; you can drop in for tutoring and essay writing help for any course or make an
appointment online via their website http://writingcenter.sdsu.edu/ If your graded work in this
course suggests that you are struggling, I may encourage you to supplement classroom writing
instruction with more personalized support in the Writing Center. Don’t hesitate to take
advantage of this excellent service!