Syllabus CSUEB 3003 Discursive Writing II Online
Instructor: Georgie Ziff
Website: www.georgiesenglishwiki.pbworks.com
Course Description:
English 3003 is designed to improve the writing skills of students. It is required for students who
fail the Writing Skills Test, or who have already passed English 3000/3001 and are required to
take a second-tier writing course in order to satisfy the University Writing Skill Requirement at
CSU East Bay.
This course can be taken for a grade or for CR/NC. If taking the class for CR/NC, you must have
a minimum of a grade of 75 to receive credit. If taking the class for CR/NC, be aware of the
following points in making your decision:
 If the course is being taken to also satisfy a major requirement, it must be taken for a letter
grade.
 A student who is following the F'00 writing skills policy can get an administrative waiver with a
D or D+ in the second-tier course, but not with a NC.
 CR/NC has no effect on your GPA
 There is a maximum of 60 CR units allowed for the undergraduate degree.
Requirements for 2nd tier classes:
 A minimum of 8000 words of writing in the quarter.
 Submit all final drafts of essays to Turnitin.com through the link on Blackboard
Essay Info and Submit on the Menu Bar All essays, including the Portfolio Introduction
Essay, must be submitted to the Turnitin.com website to check for plagiarism.
Objectives:
The student will demonstrate:
1. Reading and writing proficiency within the discipline, to include the following skills:
a. develop a paragraph with support
b. formulate an argument
c. analyze a text
d. use persuasive arguments
e. summarize a text
f. evaluate a text
2. Research skills
a. Avoidance of plagiarism
b. Ability to document sources
c. Ability to give professional presentation
3. Ability to self-edit
4. Ability to appropriately develop paragraphs with relevant and sufficient support
5. An effective and appropriate written communication style for the audience, with emphasis on
organization, structure, audience awareness, and clear purpose.
Portfolio:
Students’ portfolios will be evaluated to assess whether the student has achieved proficiency in
reading and writing. The portfolio will include an introduction and self-assessment of the work
included. This will be a personal analysis and evaluation of your own work. It must be a
minimum of two (2) typed, double-spaced pages. You must pass both the class and the
portfolio to pass the class.
Required Texts/Materials:
Reading Critically, Writing Well, 10th edition by Axelrod, Cooper and Warriner
ISBN: 978-1-4576-3894-7
The book is available in both hard copy and e-book editions at the campus bookstore and online.
Both versions at the bookstore are packaged to include:

the video access code you will need to watch the videos in the course (Video Central)

the e - pages access code to access the online readings that are only available online.
The e-book version = ISBN 10-4576-4991-8. To buy the e-book directly from the publisher, go to this
link: http://bcs.bedfordstmartins.com/ebookstogo/default.asp#t_895965____
First you have to download an e-reader, then download the book. Screenshot: Click on RCWW
Download for the e-book.png.
Be sure to scroll down in the right column the find the correct textbook title.
In the hard cover version, the e-pages access code is on the inside back cover of the book. Here is a
handout that provides instructions for accessing the e-pages. This is what the e-page looks like; click
on the appropriate chapter for the assigned reading.
Here is a link to Amazon.com, however, if you do buy the book elsewhere, you must purchase the
access codes for Video Central and the e-pages directly from the publisher. Here is a link for Video
Central: http://bcs.bedfordstmartins.com/videoenglish/VC/Default.aspx and click on "purchase access
online". Here is a handout with more information about Video Central.
Recommended but not required Textbooks:
 Longman or Oxford Advanced Dictionary of English
 Keys for Writers by Anne Raimes (any edition)
 Grammar Troublespots by Anne Raimes (any edition)
 They Say I Say by Gerald Graff & Cathy Birkenstein (brief edition; 2nd edition)
Internet Requirements:
You will be accessing websites for articles, interactive quizzes, readings, videos and
writing exercises, so you must have reliable computer and internet access and a current
Horizon email account.
Instructor Contact:
Emails are ONLY accepted through Blackboard. Those sent outside Blackboard will not
receive a response. Emails are discouraged, as the course provides all necessary
information through written instructions, PPTS, and videos. Before emailing, be sure to
read ALL the Orientation materials, FAQs, syllabus and the Schedule folders.
DO NOT email with questions whose answers are found in the course. Make the effort to
find the answers. If necessary to email, they will be responded to within 48 hours during
the work week: Mon - Fri. before 5 pm. Those received after 5pm Friday will receive a
response Monday.
Weekly Summary Response Analysis Assignments:
For each assignment, you must write THREE paragraphs:
1. Paragraph one summarizes the assignment; this describes the main points of the
article/video/powerpoint.
2. Paragraph two is your response: what you learned, how it could influence your writing.
3. Paragraph three compares and contrasts how the topic is discussed and explained in
the different media formats. How does audience and purpose affect the creation of the
video, for example? Look at the fonts and styles used in the powerpoints. Examine the
language of the article. Which media did you find most effective and why?
* Weekly assignments are due Friday by 5pm – DO NOT use file attachments for
assignment submissions.
File attachments are only used for essays.
How to Submit Assignments: See the instructional video on Blackboard showing how
to submit assignments:
Click Schedule on the Menu Bar in Blackboard - Weeks are organized by folder. Click
on the assignment to open the dialogue box in which you write.
Late assignments are discouraged and receive only partial credit: 5 points for
submission during the assigned week; 3 points for the week after; 1 point for every week
after that.
Discussion Board Participation:
You are required to post responses to Discussion Questions on the Discussion Board
by clicking on the Menu Bar button. The Reading Like a Reader and Reading Like a
Writer questions follow each of the assigned readings in the text. You must contribute to
the discussions of each reading, and respond to TWO of your classmates' responses in
the discussion board, making substantive responses for each reading. Show respect for
your classmates and their ideas. During discussions, many different opinions will be
expressed. All are welcomed and none are to be ridiculed. Use appropriate language
during discussion, and refrain from domination a discussion. Keep audience and
purpose in mind.
Credit is given for Discussion Board participation only during the week of the discussion
topic. Late posts/responses are NOT accepted – the Discussion Board closes on
Friday at 5pm.
Posts receive a possible 6 points; 2 points for your own post, and 2 points each for
substantive responses to classmates.
Essays:
You will write two essays this quarter.
* Evaluation Essay: 4-6 pages, or 1,000-1,500 words with full revisions &
Turnitin Originality Report for the final draft
* Proposal to Solve a Problem Research Project: 6-8 pages and the Turnitin
Originality Report for the final draft.
To submit essays, click on the Essay Info and Submit button on the Menu Bar on
Blackboard. Click on View/Complete under the Turnitin icon to upload your document.
 (See the instructional video in the course showing How to Submit Essays and
How to Obtain the Turnitin Originality Report).
The drafts will be peer-reviewed online in the Wiki between you and your classmates in
your small online group. See the instructional video in the course showing How to
Upload Essays to the Wiki for peer review. You are encouraged to take your work to the
Student Center for Academic Achievement (SCAA and work with a tutor. You will
prepare the final draft based on the feedback you receive and this final draft will be
graded.
Essays and all written homework assignments (except pre-writing) must, size 12 font,
double-spaced, 1-inch margins top, bottom, and sides. All final essay drafts must be in
MLA format and turned in digitally as an emailed Microsoft Word attachment that is
compatible with Microsoft Word, so if you have a different word processing program,
save it in a rich text format (.rtf).
Guidelines are on my website, with links through Blackboard, and due dates for essays
are on Blackboard in the weekly Schedule folders. Late Essays are discouraged during
the course and as result, receive one full grade deduction. IMPORTANT: your documents
must be labeled correctly with your name and title of the essay.
How to Format Your Essays in MLA style:
Double-spaced in the upper left hand corner on only first page:
Your Name
Page numbers in upper right hand corner
English class
Instructor G. Ziff
Assignment (Evaluation Essay, for example)
Date
Draft One (or Two or Three)
Titles are Centered and Capitalized Correctly in
Same Size Font and not Underlined nor Bold
Double Spaced throughout, 12 point font with 1" margins
Grading in this course:
* Evaluation Essay is worth 25%
* Research Proposal Essay is worth 25%
* Assignments are worth 15%
* Portfolio is worth 10%
* Discussion Board Participation is worth 15%
* Rhetorical Analysis Presentation is worth 10%
The final date for late work submission is the last Wednesday of the last week of the
class, after which late work will NOT be accepted without prior approval from the
instructor, which would result in one full grade deduction.
Rhetorical Presentations:
Each of you will evaluate an essay from the textbook (one that the class has not been
assigned in the course) from a rhetorical point of view, analyzing audience, purpose, and
strategy of the writer, using the template on Blackboard under Course Materials. You will
present the information you learn in a PowerPoint Presentation. When posted, all
students must view them and evaluate them on the discussion board.
 Presentations are due by Wednesday Week Nine.
 Presentation Reviews are shared by Friday Week Nine.
Portfolio Final Writing Requirements: Your portfolio is due in the Blackboard Portfolio
section by Wednesday of the last week of class, and must be created and shared in the
"My e-Portfolio" link.
The Portfolio Guidelines are listed on Blackboard under Course Materials.
 Watch the instructional videos: How to Create Portfolios and How to Share
Portfolios in the course.
Objectives:
1. Review and refine writing skills that pertain to process, including audience awareness,
prewriting, thesis generation, outlining and essay organization, effective sentence
generation, paragraph development, effective proofreading and revision
2. Become familiar with various models of argumentation
3. Master the Toulmin model of rhetorical analysis, including terminology such as
“claim,” “evidence,” “warrant” or “assumption,” “backing,” and “logical fallacy”
4. Refine critical reading skills
5. Critically read, discuss, and evaluate the rhetorical effectiveness of a written argument
in terms of ethos, pathos, and logos, (inductive and deductive reasoning), audience
appeal and strategies of support
6. Deepen familiarity with the conventions of academic writing, including demonstrating
command of MLA documentation style
7. Generate well-reasoned and authoritatively supported argumentative essays in the
form of rhetorical analyses of a range of texts, including argumentative essays,
speeches, op ed pieces, advertisements, film, and some literature
8. Become familiar with primary and secondary research methods and protocol,
including personal interviews, surveys, library searches, on-line searches,
documentation format, note-taking, and annotated bibliography
9. Assert a position on a debatable issue (e.g., political, social, or cultural issues) and
persuasively support it with authoritative evidence acquired through research
10. Show evidence of awareness of differing points of view and be able to address those
points of view
11. Engage in the process of generating a major argumentative research essay.
Course Assignments:
In this class students will perform the following tasks:
• Review the components of different types of argumentative essays
• Read assigned text and essays
• Explore vocabulary usage, especially as it pertains to rhetorical analysis of Toulmin,
Classical, and Rogerian modes of rhetorical analysis and argumentation
• Improve critical reading and argumentative writing skills by discussing essays, written
by both students and professionals
• Practice incorporating secondary sources into their own writing
• Write and revise rhetorical analysis essays and/or write and revise argumentative
essays supported with well-researched evidence
• Work in peer revision groups
• Engage the process of producing a major argumentative research essay.
Academic honesty and plagiarism policy:
Plagiarism is defined as any content in any sentence in essays that you did not
discover through first hand experience, or that is common knowledge, you will
need to provide:
* correct in-text citations in parentheses
* correctly formatted Works Cited page
Cheating or plagiarism will not be tolerated and will result in severe disciplinary action.
Students are required to complete the lesson on plagiarism and sign the statement.
Cheating is defined as possessing unauthorized sources of information during an
exam; copying the work of another student during an exam; completing an assignment
for another student; submitting out-of-class work for an in-class assignment; retaining
exams or other materials after they were supposed to be returned to the instructor;
submitting the same paper for two different classes without approval of both
instructors; and inventing data or falsifying an account of data collection.
Plagiarism is taking the words of another and either copying or paraphrasing those
words without giving credit to the source (through parenthetical citations, quotation
marks, reference citations, all of which we will go over in class). This includes using
material from the Internet without citing correctly. I am required to file a report of
academic dishonesty with the Department of Academic Affairs should an act of
plagiarism occur. The first incidence of plagiarism will result in an “F” on the assignment
and you will be reported to the Dean of the College. If plagiarism occurs a second time,
you will fail the course.
By enrolling in this class the student agrees to uphold the standards of academic
integrity described in the catalog at http://www20.csueastbay.edu/academic/academicpolicies/academic-dishonesty.html.
Information on what to do in an emergency situation (earthquake, electrical outage, fire,
extreme heat, severe storm, hazardous materials, terrorist attack) may be found at:
http://www.aba.csueastbay.edu/EHS/emergency_mgnt.htm.
Please be familiar with these procedures. Information on this page is updated as
required. Please review the information on a regular basis.
Grievance Policy
English Department Grievance Policy: All student grievances concerning grading or
other areas are to be brought to the attention of the course instructor before any other
action can be. If you cannot find a resolution to your grievance, then you and your
instructor will meet with the head of the composition program or the Dean of the English
Department.
Disability Accommodations
If you have a documented disability and wish to discuss academic accommodations, or if
you would need assistance in the event of an emergency, please contact me as soon as
possible. Students with disabilities needing accommodation should speak with
Accessibility Services. http://www20.csueastbay.edu/af/departments/as/
Final notes:
This syllabus is subject to change as needed. I may also assign individualized
homework to help you improve particular skills.