RWS 305W- Rhetoric & Writing Studies, Writing in Various Settings
SPRING 2014
Instructor: Kimberly Humes
Course Meetings: Fridays, 4:10-7:00 pm
Office Hours: T. 12:00-1:00 pm, Th. 4:15-5:00, or by appointment
Email: khumes@mail.sdsu.edu
COURSE DESCRIPTION
Being able to research and think critically about the various arguments
you will encounter in life, regardless of your occupation, is a crucial part of
being successful in your communication. It is also important for your ability
to participate in intelligent discourse, whether verbal or written.
According to the SDSU catalog, this course is designed to help students
compose “effective texts for a wide range of situations in and out of the
university. Learning to adjust textual elements for specific purposes,
audiences, and settings. Enhances critical reading and writing skills by
exploring how content contributes to meaning and effectiveness.”
Ultimately, my goal for this course is to help you not only improve your
critical reading and writing to make these skills more ‘fluid,’ and easier for
you to practice, but to also inspire in you an appreciation for the writing
process as a whole. My intention is to foster an environment that is both
challenging and engaging, allowing you to explore ideas that you are
passionate about.
GRADING AND REQUIREMENTS
o You will write four take-home essays in different formats. You will
discuss and workshop all early versions of your take-home essays
with your classmates before the essays are submitted for a grade.
The instructor also will review the first three take-home essays before
they are turned in for a grade.
o You will do two in-class essays -- a midterm and a final -- so we can
examine how your skills are progressing under such circumstances.
o There may be pop quizzes to make sure you are keeping up with
the reading.
o You are expected to attend every class ready and prepared,
having done all of the readings. If you are to miss a session, you
should email the instructor in advance with a worthy excuse and
make sure you catch up on what you missed with a classmate. It is
essential that you attend every class in order to participate in class
activities. Students who miss more than two meetings might
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consider leaving the course on their own as they will be significantly
behind on coursework.
In-class essays cannot be made up unless the situation in approved
in advance. Late work will be bumped down one grade level. Any
assignment more than a week late won’t be accepted.
Students with more than three unexcused absences will be
dropped from the class.
Tardiness is rude; come on time.
Please pay attention and respect the instructor and your peers by
listening when others are talking, and maintain a level of respect
worthy of the course.
Any incident of plagiarism will result in the instructor taking the class
to university officials for further action and the student getting no
points on the assignment. The instructor takes instances of
plagiarism extremely seriously and will not hesitate to deal with them
appropriately. For further questions regarding plagiarism, refer to
the SDSU General Catalog or the university website.
All assignments will be typed and double-spaced (MLA), even
rough drafts, with sizeable margins so the instructor and classmates
can read the work and make comments where appropriate. Blue
books will be required for all in-class assignments.
Good grammar and decent spelling are requirements to pass this
class.
EXPECTED STUDENT LEARNING OUTCOMES
Upon completion of this class the student will be expected to write essays
on the level of a university graduate and comprehend upper-divisionlevel rhetorical writing.
POINTS BREAKDOWN (1,000 points total)
o Four take-home essays – 600 points total (150 each)
o Mid-term – 100 points
o Final – 200 points
o Pop quizzes, class participation, promptness, improvement,
knowledge of reading assignments – 100 points
All writing must be complete, in MLA format, and grammatically sound to
receive a passing grade.
To pass this class the student must earn a C, which means accumulating
725 points throughout the semester.
**NOTE: Obtaining a C- means the student must repeat this, and any other,
writing class.
The rest of the grading is as follows.
926-1000– A
900-925 – A876-899 – B+
826-875 – B
800-825 - B776-799 – C+
726-775 – C
TEXTS
o Rereading America, Cultural Contexts for Critical Thinking and
Writing by Colombo, Cullen, and Lisle, 8th Ed.
o Writing with Style by Trimble, 2nd Ed.
o Outcasts United by St. John
CALENDAR (Tentative)
WEEK 1: 1/24 - Class introduction; introductory essays
WEEK 2: 1/31 – In Outcasts read pp. 1-25; in WS read Ch. 1-2; in RA read
introductory sections and Soto, pp. 26-32, Coontz, pp. 32-48; talk about
comparison/contrast essay
WEEK 3: 2/7 – In Outcasts read pp. 26-45; in RA read Morse pp. 81-84,
Wolfson, pp 89-102; Sullivan, pp. 102-106; free write comparison/contrast
essay
WEEK 4: 2/14 – In Outcasts read 46-70; in WS read Ch. 3; workshop
comparison and contrast essay in class, turn in to instructor for his input
WEEK 5: 2/21 – In Outcasts read 71-98; in WS read Ch. 4; in RA read Gatto,
pp. 148-157, Moore 128-146; discuss personal essay topics and ideas
WEEK 6: 2/28 – In Outcasts read pp 101-126; in WS read Ch. 5; in RA read
Rose, pp. 157-169; Compare and Contrast essay (Essay 1) DUE for grade;
free write personal essay
WEEK 7: 3/7 – In Outcasts read pp. 127-142; in RA read Louv pp. 664-676;
workshop personal essay, turn in to instructor for his input
WEEK 8: 3/14– In Outcasts read pp. 143-162; in WS read Ch. 6; in RA read
Rodriguez and Avila, pp. 194-210, and Malcolm X, pp. 210-219; discuss
ideas for argumentative essays
WEEK 9: 3/21 - Personal essay (Essay 2) DUE for grade; in-class midterm
WEEK 10: 3/28 – In Outcasts read pp. 163-186; in RA read Kimmel, pp. 608618 workshop argumentative essays in class, turn in to instructor for input
WEEK 11: 4/4 No School- Spring Break
WEEK 12: 4/11 – In Outcasts read pp. 187-200; in WS read Ch. 7-8; in RA
read Kincaid, pp. 524-527, Cofer pp. 537-546; discuss documented
research essay
WEEK 13: 4/18 – In Outcasts read pp. 202-214; in WS read Ch 9-11; in RA
read Rosin, pp. 546-567; talk in class about students’ research essay ideas
WEEK 14: 4/25 – In Outcasts read 215-234; in WS read Ch. 12-16; read “A
Modest Proposal,” provided by instructor; Argumentative essay (Essay 3)
DUE for grade
WEEK 15: 5/2 - In Outcasts read pp. 235-256; in RA read Terkel, pp. 398-409,
Alexie pp. 483-496 Velazquez pp. 764-772; Berlau, pp. 772-785, workshop
research essay in class
WEEK 16: 5/9 – In Outcasts read pp. 257-to end; in RA read Kindlen, pp.
618-629 Salam, pp. 629-637, Buchanan pp. 462-473; Martinez, pp. 473-483;
workshop research (Essay 4) DUE.
Week 17: 5/16 – Final exam.