Composition I-PN
CM102
Cecelia Munzenmaier
(515) 727-6899, x6921
cmunzenmaier@kaplan.edu
Course Objectives
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Apply the writing process:
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Invention and research
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Planning and drafting
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Revising
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Editing
Course Objectives
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Analyze the importance of purpose and
audience in writing.
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Recognize various methods or patterns
of writing.
Demonstrate the ability to use standard
American English in written communication.
Critically analyze written communication.
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Demonstrate the correct use
of documentation.
Course Requirements
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Baseline essay (ungraded)
Stage 1 paragraph
Stage 2 paragraph (with source)
Five-paragraph essay (draft)
Argumentative essay (final)
Where to Get Help
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http:/word-crafter.net/CompI
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Assignments
Syllabus
Subject-specific resources
Grammar help
Academic Success Center (ASC)
Library
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In person
Online: http://www.geocities.com/andygresslibrary/
Email: agress@kaplan.edu
Objective 1: Audience
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Who might you write for
as a medical professional?
Audience
Peers
Supervisors
Patients
Legislators
Type of writing
Objective 2: Patterns
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What are the advantages and
disadvantages of following a pattern?
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Writing pattern :: recipe
Objective 3: Standard English
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You are about to read a letter that was
actually printed in the newspaper.
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Based on this letter, what do you think
the writer is like?
Standard American English
To the University of Michigan So-Call Student Body
What, if I may ask as a taxpayer and a person who pays
taxes to support a bunch of Hoods, beer slops, punks,
and you name it: U. of M. has it including the commie
Profs.
I put 3 sons through college and not one is a bunch
of pigs like you birds. . . [rather, they are] men with good
honest jobs, homes, and families. If even one of my
son’s had come home and said he was going to burn
his draft card, I would have took him apart piece by
piece, then stick him back together and he would have
been glad to enlist then, and I would not have cared if
he ever came back.
Standard American English
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Would you hire this person?
I am the “experienced practical nurse” yoo
seek in todays Register. Im responsible, have been
through training program’s in dealing with Alzhymers
patience, and have participated in teams two guide
patient care decisions. I am ready too start, if
necessary, as early as next week. I, has the solid
Clinical Experience you specified. As well as the strong
commitment to patient care you Desire.
Standard American English
 Correcting 20 common errors will correct
91.5% of all grammatical errors.
http://www.bcc.ctc.edu/writinglab/errors.htm
 Write first; correct later.
 Target a few errors at a time.
 Fumble Rules activity
 Grammar diagnostic quiz (print results and email
to your instructor)
Objective 4: Critically Analyze
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Peer review: Objective eye
Count
Countthe
thesixFs.
Fs.
FINISHED FILES ARE THE RE
SULT OF YEARS OF SCIENTI
FIC STUDY COMBINED WITH
THE EXPERIENCE OF YEARS...
Objective 4: Critically Analyze
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If my writing is based on research,
what can I add?
New
• Which is best?
• Why do things
happen the way
they do?
• Do I agree
or disagree?
As, Bs
• How could
Cs
things
be made better?
organization
Pieces
of data
Bloom’s Taxonomy
Objective 5: Documentation
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As a medical professional, where does
your credibility come from?
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Credentials
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Experience
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Reputation
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Expert knowledge
Objective 5: Documentation
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In academic writing, your opinion
is only as good as your documentation.
AIDS is caused
by flatworms!
vs.
Be HIV-negative
in Six Weeks!!!
http://www.quackwatch.com/01QuackeryRelatedTopics/aids.html
Objective 5: Documentation
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Rank these sources from most credible
to least credible.
Objective 5: Documentation
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Which definititions are authoratitive?
Objective 5: Documentation
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Where do I find this information?
Anorexia nervosa. (2008,
June 26). Retrieved from
National Institutes of
Mental Health Web site:
http://www.nimh.nih.gov/
health/publications/
eating-disrders/
anorexia-nervosa.shmtl
Overview: Writing Process
True or False?
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There is one right way to write.
Good writing is neat.
No one can survive Comp I.
Beliefs about writing can make me
smarter.
Myth:
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There is one right way to write.
Reality:
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The writing process is anything a writer
does from the time the idea came until
the piece is completed or abandoned.
There is no particular order.
—Donald Graves,
writing researcher
Writing Process
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Get ideas
Get them down
Revise them
Polish/publish
Take time to plan
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“Those who focus on form before generating
ideas find it _______
more difficult to develop the body
of their papers” (Hillocks, 1986).
Hillocks, G. (1986). Research on written composition: New directions for teaching.
Urbana, IL: National Conference on Research in English.
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“Experienced writers spend up
to _____%
of their time
40
planning” (Davis, 2005, p. 15).
Davis, K. W. (2005). The McGraw-Hill 36-Hour Course
in Business Writing and Communication.
New York: McGraw-Hill.
Polish after you draft
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“Timing is also important when making
corrections. Writers who try to catch
every mistake as they draft can give
themselves writer’s block” (Russell,
2005).
Russell, M. (2005). The assumptions we make: How learners and teachers
understand writing. Retrieved November 3, 2005, from National Center
for Adult Learning and Literacy Web site: http://www.ncsall.net/
?id=336
Is this good writing?
Who created that draft?
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A Hamilton College student who’s
repeating Comp I
A returning student whose last comp
class was 10 years ago
A Newbery-winning author
Reality
You have to get the bulk of it down, and then
you start to refine it. You have to put down
less-than-marvelous material just to keep
going, whatever you think the end is going to
be, which may be something else altogether
by the time you get there.
—Larry Gelbart,
M.A.S.H writer
Myth
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If writing makes me anxious,
I must be a bad writer.
Are you this anxious?
Anne Lamott describes writing restaurant reviews:
I'd write a first draft that was. . . . so
long and incoherent and hideous that for the rest
of the day I'd obsess about getting creamed by a car before
I could write a decent second draft.
I'd worry that people would read what I'd written
and believe that the accident had really been a
suicide, that I had panicked because my talent was
waning and my mind was shot.
—Bird by Bird
Writing takes effort
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In studies of writers, which variable do
you think made the biggest difference in
quality?
Knowing what they wanted to say
How much they liked writing
How much they revised
Myth
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No one can survive Comp I.
Reality
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Grades follow an inverted Bell Curve.
mostly Cs
A few Ds and Fs
A few Bs and As
Normal Bell Curve
Ds and Fs
A few Cs
Comp II Curve
Bs and As
Reality:
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Your beliefs about writing
can make you smarter.
How do I know?
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In a study by Carol Dweck, 4th-graders “were
given unsolvable problems followed by
solvable ones. Once the ‘helpless students’
failed, their strategies deteriorated down to
_____ grade level; whereas, the "masteryoriented students" stayed at 4th grade level
despite failures. They rolled up their sleeves
and worked harder. The crucial element was
whether the student saw the failure as having
to do with ability or effort.”
How to Succeed
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Find a topic you like
Follow the rubrics for each assignment
Be here
Keep up with assignments
Revise
Avoid the “Comp is hard” trap