Rhetoric & Writing Studies 200
The Rhetoric of Arguments in Context
Spring 2014
INSTRUCTOR
Katie Hughes
Office: Storm Hall 106B
Phone: 594-6617 (use only during office hours)
Office hours: Wed 12:30-1:30 pm, Thurs 2-3 pm, & by appt.
Email: khughes@mail.sdsu.edu
Prerequisites
Successful completion of RWS 100, AS 120, MAS 111B, Linguistics 100, or an equivalent
course at another institution or a high enough score on the AP English exam.
REQUIRED TEXTS & MATERIALS
 They Say, I Say by Gerald Graff and Cathy Birkenstein (Norton, 2010) (Not the one
with Readings)
 Access to a computer, printer and Word software.
 Paper for in-class writing.
COURSE DESCRIPTION
RWS 200 builds on the skills you learned in RWS 100, with a greater focus on the context of
arguments—their historical and cultural settings, their relationship to other arguments, and their
relationship to current times. In articulating what argument a text is making, you will consider what
the argument is responding to in the sense of what has come before, as well as the particular
audience being addressed.
Course Topic Focus: The Context of Place
What defines a place, and how are we defined by place?
We grow up in a place or perhaps many places, and often move on to new ones as we pursue
our goals. These places can be considered in various ways—town or city; apt or house; planned
development, urban housing project, mansion or the streets; rural or urban or suburban. Beach,
desert, mountain, valley or plain; sprawling, dense or isolated. In addition, geography, climate,
economy, politics, and culture all influence and are also influenced by place.
In other words, context both shapes and is shaped by places, so a focus on the context of
place offers a fruitful theme to pursue in our RWS 200 course, “The Rhetoric of Arguments in
Context.” We will read & view pieces by a variety of writers who share a concern for the
essence and influence of place, analyze how contextual influences shape their arguments,
and bring our own set of contextual variables into the discussion.
RWS 200 LEARNING OUTCOMES
By the end of the course, you will complete four projects that develop your ability to:
1. Articulate a text’s argument, analyze and describe its elements, and identify elements
of context embedded in it--the clues that show what the argument is responding to,
both in the sense of what has come before it and in the sense that it is written for an
audience in a particular time and place. Evaluate how effectively the argument
persuades this audience within this specific context.
2. Use concepts and arguments from a text that provide criteria by which another
argument can be evaluated; analyze ways in which another text meets (or fails to
meet) these criteria. In so doing, evaluate the text for its effectiveness, both for its
intended audience and in the larger context of writing.
3. Examine a group of texts that consider a topic from a variety of viewpoints. Consider
how the major positions advanced in these texts relate to each other, and evaluate the
persuasiveness of these positions.
4. Consider your contemporary, current life as the context within which you are reading
the arguments assigned in the class; position yourself in relation to these arguments in
order to make an argument; evaluate the texts and support this evaluation through
reference to a specific audience.
The process for completing these four projects will include work done in class as well as at
home, and will be aided by the text, They Say/I Say, as well as material you research and
other texts we bring into our study. This work will enhance your ability to complete the projects
successfully by achieving the following integral outcomes:
 Articulate what argument a text is making, building on the work done in RWS 100:
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 your own words.
 Understand and incorporate all aspects of the writing process--including prewriting,
drafting, revising, editing, and proofreading.
 Articulate what key terms, definitions, concepts, statements of a problem or issue are
established by a text.
 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.
 Work with multiple sources in a paper, deciding what to include and what to exclude,
choosing an effective structure, and creating significant relationships among sources.
 Analyze and assess arguments made by visual texts; incorporate visual images into
your work.
 Craft a cohesive paper, and use effective metadiscourse to articulate the project of the
paper and guide a reader through it.
 Describe your own papers and reflect on how you wrote them; differentiate between
the content of your texts and the language and rhetorical strategies you employ.
 Assign significance to the arguments you read.
 Revise your own work effectively, re-reading previous work and re-envisioning it in the
light of reflection, feedback, further reading and new sources of information.
 Edit your writing for grammar and usage conventions appropriate to the project.
General Education Capacities/Goals & RWS Learning Outcomes
The RWS Learning Outcomes reflect the Goals and Capacities of the SDSU 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 arguments; 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, understanding 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 reflect the program’s overall objective of helping students attain
“essential skills that underlie all university education” by helping students to:
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.
4) Assess the relative strengths of arguments and supporting evidence.
COURSE STRUCTURE
There are four major projects which vary in form from formal academic essays to collaborative
interviews and presentations. For each project, you will find a prompt & schedule on
Blackboard describing the specifics, including a timeline of due dates for each component and
a description of criteria that will both guide you in successfully completing the project and
serve as the benchmark for grading.
Projects will be the culmination of smaller assignments, called Collateral Work, that you will
complete along the way in order to enhance your learning and your ability to ahieve the best
results possible from the work you do on the projects. The weight of each graded component
towards your course grade appears in the table below, along with the probable due dates* and a
brief description of each project.
PROJECT
Project 1:
Account of an Argument & its
Context (Essay)
Project 2:
Using One Text as a Lens on
Another (Essay)
Project 3:
Arguments in Context
(Collaborative visual presentation &
individual write-up)
Project 4:
Entering the Conversation: Group
Dialogue (Interview & Transcript)
Collateral Work
DUE DATE*
2/20
WEIGHT
15%
3/18
20%
Presentations:
4/15 & 4/17
25%
Paper: 4/22
Submitted by the
25%
date & time of our
scheduled final exam
Ongoing, various
15%
*Due dates listed here are tentative; please refer to individual project schedules for actual due dates on
all work.
ASSIGNMENT PROCEDURES
 Prompts & Other Assignments: All documents, links, instructions, prompts and
assignments are grouped by project on Blackboard and can be accessed by clicking on the
corresponding Project button.
 Submission Guidelines: Most written assignments will be submitted online, either through
Blackboard’s blog tool, or through the Turnitin link posted in the corresponding project on
Blackboard. Instructions for submission accompany each assignment you do. In addition to
the online submission, you will occasionally be instructed to print out drafts or smaller
assignments to work on in class.
 Rewrites: Once the final draft of an essay has been handed in, there are no rewrites.
However, you are encouraged to revise and rewrite frequently over the course of the time
spent on each project. To reinforce this, class time will be spent on various aspects of the
drafting process, and individual meetings in my office can provide focused guidance for
making revisions that maximize your ability to turn in your best work.
 Formatting Requirements: In order to be graded, all work done at home must be typed,
handed in as instructed (either on paper in class or online through Blackboard or both),
follow the format posted on Blackboard in Course Information, and be on time.
 Feedback: Rough drafts and revision drafts will receive written and/or verbal feedback from
me and/or your peers. Feedback venues include online feedback through Turnitin’s
GradeMark and PeerMark functions, individual meetings with me, and in-class workshops.
COURSE GRADE CALCULATION
 Final drafts of papers & presentations will be assigned percentage grades. In most
cases, the percentage will be calculated by Turnitin, using a rubric I design*, with weighted
criteria. In some cases, I may override the calculated percentage if I find the grade to vary
greatly from my sense of what the essay truly deserves. For non-essay project grades, I will
use a Blackboard rubric, also designed by me.
*Note: Please be assured that the categories and weighted values for evaluation criteria in
the rubrics are entirely designed by me, not Turnitin or Blackboard. In other words, the
software does not grade your paper; I do!

Collateral work will be assigned points that are earned in terms of completeness and
quality. Maximum points for individual assignments vary according to the amount of work
involved. (For example, a short, in-class writing might be worth 5 points, while a rough
draft might be worth 10 and peer reviews worth up to 30.) Some collateral work will be
completed in class; some will be done at home, including blog entries on Blackboard. In
addition, earnest participation in class discussions and activities may be rewarded with
some points to bump up the total. Your points and a corresponding percentage will be
displayed as Collateral Work in Blackboard’s My Grades. This total will change with each
point-earning assignment; the percentage you see is a running total that indicates what
your grade in that area is so far.

The following grading scale translates percentages into letter grades. Note that an A is a
95%, not 100%. Rarely, work is so excellent that it receives an A+ (or 96-100%). In most
cases, however, if you get an A, it will show as 95%. In the Collateral Work category, it is
possible to earn 100% if all work is completed at the maximum point value.
A+
A
AB+
B
96-100 %
93-95 %
90-92 %
87-89 %
85-86 %
BC+
C
C-
80-84 %
77-79 %
75-76 %
70-74 %
D+
D
DF
67-69 %
65-66 %
60-64 %
59 % and below

All grade percentages are automatically calculated by Blackboard based upon the weighted
value for each project and using a scale of 100. A weighted Running Total column keeps track
of your course grade as each project is completed. This is a good way to see how you are
doing at any given point in the semester. NOTE: Look at the percentage, not the total points,
as the total points do not take into account the different weighted values of the projects.

At the end of the course, in determining your Course Grade, I take the weighted Running
Total calculated by Blackboard and average up for percentages at .5 and above, and down
for any number .4 and below. (For example, 92.4% would be an A- ; 92.5%would be an A.)
PROCEDURES & POLICIES
Communication
 Blackboard: Everything is there: due dates, handouts, assignments, grades and other
miscellaneous information. Sometimes, a Blackboard Announcement is the only way to
communicate with everyone about a due date change, assignment clarification, room
change, etc. Therefore, you are expected to check Blackboard Announcements
regularly! You can also use the Blackboard email function to contact me and your
classmates.

Email: When you email me, please use the subject line to clearly indicate your class &
section, and why you are writing to me. (If you email through Blackboard, your class &
section appears automatically.) I am usually prompt in responding to emails, but I make no
guarantees on weekends or nights. I am happy to answer specific questions in emails, but I
cannot engage in extensive revision work, nor can I answer general questions like, “What
did I miss in class today?” Please stop by my office for those sorts of issues. And please
always check Blackboard Announcements and the Project schedule first! If you check
announcements regularly and keep up with the work listed on the Project Schedule, you
should have no reason to be confused or fall behind.
Attendance and participation:
 Being absent and failing to do course work will ultimately hurt your grade, as all work in and
out of class is specifically designed to promote your success in completing the projects.
Those who show up and do the work consistently achieve higher levels of success (get
better grades) than those who do not. My policy is to incentivize: 15% of your course grade
is earned through your level of participation in and completion of the collateral work leading
up to the final project submission. No make-up or late work is accepted, but missing one or
two small-stakes assignments will not kill your grade, as the possible total for that category
is 100%. On the other hand, quality participation can be the difference in bumping up a
borderline course grade.
NOTE: If serious illness or personal catastrophe threatens to compromise your ability to
meet course criteria, it is your responsibility to communicate with me in a timely manner via
email or during office hours. Often, adjustments can be made and solutions can be reached.

Mobile Devices: Please exercise judgement: When they are part of what we are doing in
class, fine. When not, put them away.
Plagiarism Policy:
Plagiarism is a serious offense and may result in a grade of F (zero) on any project containing it.
In addition, the university mandates that “after action has been taken by the faculty member, the
faculty member shall complete a form that identifies the student who was found responsible, the
general nature of the offense, the action taken, and a recommendation as to whether or not
additional action should be considered by the campus judicial affairs office” (Executive Order
969, issued by the Office of the Chancellor, effective 12/30/06). Sometimes students don’t
realize they are plagiarizing when they fail to properly document the ideas, concepts, words,
phrases or longer passages they have taken from other sources. As part of this course, we will
review what needs to be documented and how to do it correctly.
Turnitin Policy:
Students agree that by taking this course all required papers may be subject to submission for
textual similarity review to Turnitin.com for the detection of plagiarism. All submitted papers will
be included as source documents in the Turnitin.com reference database solely for the purpose
of detecting plagiarism of such papers. You may submit your papers in such a way that no
identifying information about you is included. Alternatively, you may request, in writing, that your
papers not be submitted to Turnitin.com. However, if you choose this option you will be required
to provide documentation to substantiate that the papers are your original work and do not
include any plagiarized material.
Students With Disabilities:
If you are a student with a disability and believe you will need accommodations for this class, it is
your responsibility to contact Student Disability Services (SDS) at (619) 594-6473 as soon as
possible. Please note that accommodations are not retroactive, and that I cannot
provide accommodations based upon disability until I have received an accommodation letter
from Student Disability Services.