RWS 305W: WRITING IN VARIOUS SETTINGS
Spring 2013/Maureen Kelley, Instructor
COURSE DESCRIPTION
According to the Department of Rhetoric and Writing Studies, 305W will help students to
analyze writing in different contexts by introducing them to the concept of rhetorical
situations: the complex interplay among writer, audience, subject, and context. RWS 305W
will provide students with strategies to understand the function of reading and writing in
cultural, academic, and professional communities. 305W will enhance students’ abilities to
develop writing processes that reflect invention, inquiry, revision, and editing. And it will
provide students with strategies to analyze the writing conventions of different discourse
communities and to begin to write effectively within these communities.
COURSE TEXTS/REQUIREMENTS
 Please bring a laptop, tablet or smartphone (not optimal) to class every day.
 Course readings and other material will available on our Blackboard site or be
available online.
COURSE REQUIREMENTS
Writing Projects (80 points). The course consists of three units. Each unit will cumulate
in a writing project.
Journal (20 points). Please see the Semester Journal instructions in our Blackboard site
for details.
ASSIGNMENT
Writing Project 1
Writing Project 2 (2 parts)
Writing Project 3 (2 parts)
Journal
Total Course Points
POINTS
20
30
30
20
100
OTHER CLASSROOM POLICIES & PROCEDURES
Contact: My email is available on our Blackboard site. I use Blackboard for all class
activities and assignments. From time to time, I email instructions, clarifications, or
assistance with projects, so please check your email and the Blackboard site before class.
Always feel free to contact me via email with any questions or concerns during the course.
If you need individual assistance, please let me know. Please note: I don’t respond to
email over the weekend (99% of the time). If you miss class, please email a classmate
(not me) to find out what you missed.
Special Needs: If you have special learning needs or are registered with Disabled Student
Services, please let me know so that I can accommodate your needs.
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Teaching Philosophy: I enjoy the teaching of rhetoric and take great pleasure in my
students’ developing proficiency in academic reading, writing, and critical thinking. I will
gladly act as coach and mentor, but please be advised that I consider higher education an
exercise in self-reliance. I expect that students will familiarize themselves with the course
requirements and policies and do their best to follow these guidelines.
Late work: It is really important that you stay on top of your writing assignments in this
class. It has been my policy for a number of years not to accept late work for any
reason other than a documented medical issue. This has caused anguish for both me
and students who try to turn in late work, but I understand that I will not deviate from this
policy. I understand that we all have important “stuff” that, at times, makes school difficult.
Although I am sympathetic to all of these issues, I cannot make “special exceptions” for
them. If I did, I would need a “special exception” policy for all students. Meeting deadlines
(despite life issues) is good practice for everyone.
Plagiarism: Plagiarism is defined as using another person’s work or ideas without giving
proper credit, and is a violation of Title 5, California Administrative Code, Part 5, Section
4130(a). All SDSU students are responsible for having a full understanding of the
university’s Honesty Policy.
Pet Peeve: Students who covertly text, check sports scores, shop online, read Facebook
feeds, wear earphones, or engage in any other activity that does not pertain to class. We
are only together for a brief time each week, and, although tempting, avoiding those kinds
of actions is good practice for transitioning into professional environments.
GRADING
“A” means “excellent.” Students who earn “A's” produce outstanding work throughout the
course. Although effort is important, encouraged, and appreciated, trying hard will not
necessarily guarantee you an “A.” Please remember that grades never reflect the intrinsic
worth of a human being. I evaluate your work, not your character; thus a less than stellar
grade is not a measure of your value as a person. Your course will be graded on a point
scale that corresponds to the following:
A 94-100 B+ 87-89
C+ 77-79
D+ 67-69
A- 90-93
B 84-86
C 74-76
D 64-66
B- 80-83
C- 70-73
D- 60-63
F 0-59
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COURSE GOALS
Rhetorical Knowledge
RWS 305W will help students to analyze writing in different contexts by introducing them to the concept of
rhetorical situations: the complex interplay among writer, audience, subject, and context. Students will learn
how to
 Respond effectively in writing to issues and arguments raised in a variety of disciplinary, popular,
and professional texts and/or contexts
 Identify individual discourse communities and find and analyze their characteristic texts, evaluate
their credibility and principles, and apply relevant aspects of their information to other contexts and
arguments
 Analyze the details of a wide variety of writing situations (textual elements such as tone, evidence,
organizational patterns, diction, even visuals) according to the author’s purpose as well as the
audience’s needs and tastes
 Understand the concept of rhetorical situations: the relationship among writer-audience-subjectcontext
Critical Thinking and Reading
RWS 305W will provide students with strategies to understand the function of reading and writing in cultural,
academic, and professional communities. Students will learn how to
 Use “language about language” that enables a writer to reflect on the use of rhetorical strategies as
well as strengths, difficulties, and progress as a working writer
 Apply critical reading strategies to a variety of publicly and individually produced texts
 Work with demanding readings and learn to interpret, incorporate, and evaluate these readings
 Use writing as a way to learn—to think about, question, and communicate ideas
 Understand the relationships among language, knowledge and power
Writing Processes
RWS 305W will enhance students’ abilities to develop writing processes that reflect invention, inquiry,
revision, and editing. Students will learn how to
 Develop successful, flexible strategies for generating, revising, and editing texts
 Understand the collaborative and social aspects of the writing process
 Critique their own and others’ texts
Knowledge of Conventions
RWS 305W will provide students with strategies to analyze the writing conventions of different discourse
communities and to begin to write effectively within these communities. Students will learn to
 Understand the ways various discourse communities use different strategies for conveying
information, researching information, and evaluating and analyzing information
 Analyze audience expectations about conventions and address them in critical ways
 Effectively integrate a variety of sources into their writings
 Practice appropriate means of documenting their sources
 Sustain reasonable correctness in grammar and mechanics to perform well in a variety of writing
contexts and professional settings
Attitudes, Values, and Preparation for Life beyond the University
RWS 305W reflects the values of a liberal arts education, namely,
 Working cooperatively with others to achieve mutually defined goals, face-to-face in the classroom
and in other settings
 Respecting the diverse voices and perspectives that characterize life in a multi-cultural classroom
and society
 Applying critical reading strategies to a variety of publicly and individually produced texts
 Valuing free expression and the ability to participate confidently in public discussion on issues of
importance to the workplace and the community
 Showing initiative in problem solving situations