W131 Syllabus – Autumn 2014
W131 – Reading, Writing, and Inquiry I
Jacqueline C. Reynolds
Class Meetings: LA 144 – Tuesdays & Thursdays 12:00-1:15pm
Office Hours: Wednesday 1:00-2:00pm and by appointment
Office: LA G37
Contact & Submissions: reynjc01@ipfw.edu
Website: http://users.ipfw.edu/reynjc01
Course description:
English W131 teaches skills of critical reading, thinking, and writing to help students
meaningfully engage artifacts, events, and issues in our world. The course builds students'
abilities to read written and cultural texts critically; to analyze those texts in ways that engage
both students' own experiences and the perspectives of others; and to write about those texts for a
range of audiences and purposes as a means of participating in broader conversations.
Assignments emphasize the analysis and synthesis of sources in making and developing claims.
A word from your instructor:
Writing is a process. It may be preferable to all involved if there was a simple formula for a great
paper that one could follow; however, that is not the case. Similarly, I cannot simply stand in
front of the class, lecture at you for an hour on how to write well, and expect great writing to find
its way onto your pages. Writing is an extensive process that requires practice – an immense
amount of practice – community involvement, revision after revision, and critical feedback.
During your sixteen-week course, you will be writing only three main papers; however, they will
all be extensively revised not only on your own, but also with the guidance of your peers.
Getting an outside perspective on your work, aside from my own, is invaluable and crucial to
bettering yourselves as writers. In essence, the main goal of this course is to help you become a
better writer, to help you understand the process that is writing in the academic world, to help
you become critical thinkers, readers, and analyzers who understand how and the importance of
dissecting a text to get at its deeper, more complex meaning, and to recognize and be able to fix
writing errors in your own work as well as that of your peers and outside sources.
Course Goals & Outcomes
Students who successfully complete this course will be able to:



Produce texts that use appropriate formats, genre conventions, and documentation styles
while controlling tone, syntax, grammar, and spelling.
Demonstrate an understanding of writing as a social process that includes multiple drafts,
collaboration, and reflection.
Read critically, summarize, apply, analyze, and synthesize information and concepts in
written and visual texts as the basis for developing original ideas and claims.
1
W131 Syllabus – Autumn 2014




Demonstrate an understanding of writing assignments as a series of tasks including
identifying and evaluating useful and reliable outside sources.
Develop, assert and support a focused thesis with appropriate reasoning and adequate
evidence.
Compose texts that exhibit appropriate rhetorical choices, which include attention to
audience, purpose, context, genre, and convention.
Demonstrate proficiency in reading, evaluating, analyzing, and using material collected
from electronic sources (such as visual, electronic, library databases, Internet sources,
other official databases, federal government databases, reputable blogs, wikis, etc.).
Required Texts
Engaging Questions: A Guide to Writing: Channell & Crusius (ISBN: 9780073383828)
The 2014-2015 IPFW Writing Program Student Handbook (ISBN: 9780738069685)
Major Writing Assignments
Please note that all assignments are due via email (reynjc01@ipfw.edu).
Epiphany Narrative (Minimum of 3 pages)

In this short essay, you will focus on a lesson you learned from a particular experience.
Epiphany moments are often sudden realizations followed by an understanding of the
impact the experience had on you in a way not comprehended before. This particular
assignment is less academic and formal than the rest.
Visual Analysis (Minimum of 4 pages)

The visual analysis is the first in a series of three assignments that require both a rough
and final draft. This paper requires you to explore an image critically and offer profound,
original, and analytical observations about the piece by breaking down the whole into
individual elements to expose how they work to make the composition.
Rhetorical Analysis (Minimum of 4 pages)

Similar to the visual analysis, the rhetorical analysis requires you to break down a
complex, nonfiction text into individual elements beyond the simple context of the
written words or obvious meaning in order to see how the text works rhetorically. For this
paper, your concern will not be with the actual issue or topic itself, but rather exploring
how and why the author implements particular rhetorical devices and strategies to convey
his message and how these elements contribute to the effectiveness of the composition.
2
W131 Syllabus – Autumn 2014
You will also delve into areas that are removed from the general and obvious context of
the text such as purpose, audience, and genre.
Argumentative Paper (Minimum of 7 pages)

Perhaps one of the most intriguing and exciting papers, this assignment allows you to
practice the elements of argumentation on a topic that is meaningful and significant to
you. You will be consulting outside sources to build your argument and logically refute
the opposition, while practicing skills that will be required in upper level college courses.
Journals (Minimum of 3,000 words)

Since completing the assigned reading is crucial to your success in this course, you will
keep a journal throughout the semester documenting your critical responses to the text.
The amount of entries coincides with the assigned reading. Every day reading is assigned,
you will need to write a short entry (200 words minimum) covering the material you
read, with few exceptions (see the journal handout). Grades for the journal will be based
on effort, quality, and engagement with the material. In order to receive a high grade, all
entries must be completed and well written with quality critical observations.
Grading Breakdown
Epiphany Narrative
10 points
Visual Analysis
10 points
Rhetorical Analysis
30 points
Argumentative Paper
30 points
Journals & Short Writings
20 points
100 points total
You must complete all major papers to pass the course. Failure to complete a rough draft of any
of the above writing assignments (except the epiphany narrative and journal) will result in a 5point deduction from that assignment (2 from the visual analysis). Please note that at least 17
pages of revised, polished, final drafts are required in this course as dictated by
departmental and state regulations.
Grading Scale
100-94
93-90
89-87
86-84
83-80
79-77
76-74
73-70
69-60
59-0
A
A-
B+
B
B-
C+
C
C-
D
F
3
W131 Syllabus – Autumn 2014
Attendance
You are permitted six (6) absences during the semester. There is no distinction between excused
and unexcused absences, nor am I responsible for material, exercises, or information you missed.
Please keep in mind that if you miss the attendance call and do not tell me after class that you
were present, you will be marked as absent. Similarly, students who get up and leave during
class without prior explanation will receive an absence for the day. If I feel as though you are not
present cognitively or exhibit extreme unpreparedness, I reserve the right to mark you as absent.
If you are absent more days than permitted, each day thereafter, three (3) points will be deducted
from your final grade.
Papers & Assignments
All assignments are due on the date specified by 11:59am. I do not accept late papers. All
papers must be submitted via email (reynjc01@ipfw.edu) in a word document (.doc or .docx)
only. Failure to turn in a final draft of any major assignment will result in an “F” for the paper
and likely the entire course. If you know that you will be absent the day an assignment is due,
send the finished product to me early. There will be no make-up work or extra credit offered
for the duration of this course, so please, do not ask.
Participation
Participation is a crucial aspect of collegiate learning and in order to participate, you, of course,
need to be present, and also be ready to engage in discussions, both group and class, by
completing the assigned readings or writing. I will not be able to go over everything in the
readings assigned due to time limitations so I expect critical engagement from all students,
especially when I ask questions and when you participate in peer review groups. Failure or
inability to participate due to unpreparedness will result in a deduction of points at my discretion.
In Class & Take Home Writing Activities
Several times during the semester, I may hand out writing assignments that are to be completed
during class time, for the next class meeting, or both. These may be individual or group
assignments, or in some cases, both. They may pertain to assigned reading or future assignments.
These activities will be included in the journal grade for the course and you will not have the
opportunity to make up this work if you were absent the day it was assigned.
Email
Please be sure your IPFW email account is active and you are well versed in how to use it for
this is how you will be sending me your papers, any questions you may have, and how I will be
4
W131 Syllabus – Autumn 2014
retuning your graded assignments and distribute group emails. Please refrain from using personal
email accounts for these communication purposes.
Classroom Etiquette
Do not bring cell phones to class, but if you must, turn them off. Noisy cell phones, complete
with their colorful ringtones, are most distracting for all. (If, for extenuating circumstances only,
you need to have such communication devices with you on a particular day, please let me know
beforehand.) There is to be no texting during class. There are to be no private conversations
held during class with friends or foes. If for any reason you arrive late to class, refrain from
entering in an intrusive manner. If such distractions do occur, your final grade will be
reduced by three (3) points for each infraction. If you become a nuisance during class,
creating a distracting and unproductive environment for others, I will ask you to leave in addition
to the deduction of points.
Grading
The grading breakdown is on page 3 of the syllabus. Grades are neither personal nor
negotiable. I grade without personal bias, so please do not feel as though the grade you receive
is a reflection of how I feel about you as a person – I grade based on the work that is presented to
me, not on who presents it. I reserve the right to raise grades for exemplary writing
improvement, obvious hard work, and dedication to advancement. I make all efforts to get
feedback to you quickly – usually within 2 weeks of submission, but I make no guarantees.
Academic Honesty
I take plagiarism very seriously. I expect all work submitted by you to be your own original work
and include proper documentation of any outside source(s) that may have been used. The IPFW
Undergraduate Bulletin defines plagiarism as “adopting or reproducing ideas or statements of
another person as one’s own without acknowledgment” (280). Please see the section “Student
Conduct Subject to Disciplinary Action” for further elaboration. Any deliberate plagiarism in
this course will result in an automatic “F” for the assignment and likely the entire course as
well as possible sanction from the University. I have a day set aside for addressing plagiarism
and how to avoid it in an effort to ensure everyone understands precisely what the violation is so
it can be avoided. Remember, if in doubt, always cite, properly. Also unacceptable is doing
someone else’s work for them, or having someone else do your work for you.
The IPFW Writing Center
Save time and write better papers or presentations for any class through free one-to-one or small
group consultations in The Writing Center @ The Learning Commons, Helmke Library, 2nd
floor. Bring assignments, questions, ideas, and a draft (if you have one). Consultants can help
you start, write more clearly, revise, edit, and cite sources responsibly. Visit as you begin writing
5
W131 Syllabus – Autumn 2014
and as you revise. Drop-ins are welcome if time is available, but appointments, made online
through TutorTrac, receive preference. For TutorTrac, online consulting, and resources to make
your writing process easier, go to ipfw.edu/casa and click on “Writing Center.”
Disabilities Statement
If you have a disability and need assistance, please contact the Director of Services for Students
with Disabilities (Walb 113; 481-6658) as soon as possible so accommodations can be made
promptly. Once the director has provided you with a letter attesting to your needs for
modification, bring it to me. For more information visit www.ipfw.edu/ssd.
Military Service
Are you active duty military, or a member of the reserves? Are you a veteran of military
services? All of us in the IPFW Writing Program value your service, and will work with you to
allow you to meet your military obligations, while fulfilling the course requirements. If you have
special needs in this area, please let me know. A great resource for current and former members
of the military is the Military Student Service.
*Details of this syllabus are subject to change per instructor’s prerogative.
6