Dr. Josh Lederman, Ph.D.
Meeting time: M, W, Th 12-12:50
Classroom: Brown 224
Office: Rabb 219
Email: jlederman@brandeis.edu
Office Hours: M, W, Th 11am-noon
and by appt.
Composition 1A-5:
Fall 2015
With its focus on argument, analysis, and revision, Brandeis University’s Composition course
will prepare you for the writing you will perform during your college years and beyond. Because it will
familiarize you with crucial skills and vocabulary terms, Composition will give you an edge in UWS
and your other courses. Succeeding here means creating clear, persuasive essays that conform to
American academic expectations.
Our goal over the semester will not be simply to improve as thinkers and writers, but to open up
our concept of writing to new possibilities through structured assignments, class discussions, peer
group workshops, and conferences.
REQUIRED TEXTS
Writing in Response
Other assigned readings posted on Latte
OVERVIEW OF Major ASSIGNMENTS
Essay 1: Close Reading
An argument about Freire's Pedagogy of the Oppressed, Chapter 2
Essay 2: Lens Analysis
Using Bourdieu's concept of cultural capital, we will seek to find newer, deeper critical insight into a
text (a film, book, current event, or similar thing) chosen by the student.
Essay 3: Research Paper
Students will chose a specific problematic issue in education, and will seek to articulate a deeper
understanding of that problem—and possibly offer a solution—by engaging with positions that other
scholars have already taken is response to this issue.
Final Portfolio
Students will gather all written work into an electronic portfolio, and they will write a short series of
reflective pieces in response to specific prompts given out by the instructor at the end of the term.
Non-Graded Assignments
Twice a week*, students will post a 500 word “One-Pager” on Latte, each to be assigned by the
instructor.
*When a draft of a paper is due, there will be no one-pager; we will not have both due at once.
GRADED EVALUATION
Participation: 10%
Completion of Non-Graded Work: 10%
*Note: 10% means final grades can be affected by a full letter grade
80%: Course Papers and Final Portfolio
CLASSROOM EXPECTATIONS
Attendance: The discussions we hold in class are tailored to your writing, which I will be reading and
assessing throughout the semester. It is in your best interest to attend class on time and ready to go.
 Being significantly or habitually late counts as an absence.
 Every absence after your third will result in a reduction of your grade by one third of a
letter and, in accordance with University policy, your dean will be notified.
 Seven absences will result in failure.
Participation: You are expected to prepare for and participate fully in all classroom activities,
including discussions, workshops, etc.
 Have assigned texts marked up and read for the day they appear on the syllabus,
 And come to class prepared to offer your own thoughts and questions on them.
 Always bring hard copies of that day’s readings to class.
Papers: Both the rough and final drafts of essays will be submitted electronically via Latte and must
adhere to formatting guidelines:
 Use 12-point Times New Roman font
 Double-space and employ 1 inch margins
 Include your last name and a page number in the header/footer of each page after the
first
 Include a title
 Cite all sources in APA format
 Include a references page
A note on drafts: Drafts are not graded. However, late drafts will result in the reduction of the
grade on your final paper according to the guidelines posted below. If you do not turn in a draft, I
will not grade your final paper.
The Writing Center: The Writing Center here at Brandeis offers free one-on-one writing tutorials with
experienced consultants.
 A Writing Center Reward Form entitles you to a one-day extension on the final draft of any
paper
 One extension per paper
Laptops: Laptop use is not allowed in class unless you have a special dispensation from the university.
Academic integrity: It is essential that all your work for this course is original and that when you use
outside sources you cite them properly. The University policy on academic integrity is distributed
annually in the Rights and Responsibilities Handbook (http://www.brandeis.edu/studentlife/sdc/rr/).
Instances of alleged dishonesty will be forwarded to the Department of Student Development and
Conduct for possible referral to the Student Judicial System, and may carry severe consequences
including failure on the assignment in question, failure in the course, and/or suspension from the
University. Please do not hesitate to ask me any questions you have about plagiarism, citation, or use
of sources.
Disabilities: If you are a student with a documented disability on record at Brandeis University and
wish to have reasonable accommodation made for you in class, please come see me as soon as possible.
Further information is available at the Disabilities Resources website
(http://www.brandeis.edu/disability).
COURSE OBJECTIVES AND OUTCOMES
The course is intended to provide students with an understanding of:
 Close textual analysis of multiple media;
 Various strategies for generating ideas, drafting, writing, and editing;
 And effective techniques for communicating complex analytical ideas.
At the end of the course, the student will be able to:
 Think critically about a variety of texts related to course themes;
 Understand how various media contribute to broader cultural concepts;
 And appreciate some of the complexities of anthropological inquiry and how close textual
analysis aids in that appreciation.
Four-Credit Course Policy
Success in this 4 credit hour course is based on the expectation that students will spend a
minimum of 9 hours of study time per week in preparation for class (readings, papers,
discussion sections, preparation for exams, etc.).
SCHEDULE OF CLASSES (subject to revision)
[OP means One-Pager]
Week 1: 8/27
8/27. First Class (R): introductions; course overview
Unit 1: Close Reading
Week 2: 8/31-9/4
M: start Freire. Read on the board; discuss
W: OP on Freire, choose line to explore. Discuss
R: [choose a line from later in the chapter for discussion] [spin the random name wheel?]
Week 3: 9/7-9/11 [*Monday OP: explication of second quote/passage]
M: XX LABOR DAYXX
W: discuss, and move it toward how the whole is in the line and the line represents the whole*
toward paper #1: what is the point of a close reading? Examples of why it's important (text from
gf/bf; 2nd amendment; also, seeing through (a) the ideology of the text or (b) the ideology that
the text is pointing out]
R: [Brandeis MONDAY] [OP: ideas about the part-whole connection (hermeneutics); OR, have
them choose a whole paragraph to work with for the first paper]
how does a mere idea/point become a paper?
Week 4: 9/14-9/18 [*Monday OP: elements of paper one: idea, point, reader; i.e., what you want to
say, to whom, and why]
M: XX NO CLASS XX
??
discussion; questions; discussion of introduction. (**Rice (2013) lines on hermeneutics!)
W: Draft due [conference style reading?] [spin the wheel?]
R: Draft due [conference style reading?] [spin the wheel?]
*individual meetings with everyone? Or in small groups? 8 groups of three; one hour
each?
Week 5: 9/21-9/25
M: Final Revisions Discussion
W: XX NO CLASS XX
R: Paper #1 Due, Final
write cover letter in class
Unit 2: Lens Essay
Week 6: 9/28-10/2
T: *meets on Tuesday* reading about Bourdieu together (or Adams*); thoughts
W: [OP thoughts; conflicting ideas; anger, understanding, confusion]
Discussion: what specific thing/image caught you, impacted you
R: discussion continued, specifically the conundrum of assimilation/equality. What questions
does this issue raise about (a) education, (b) society at large, (c) what success means, and at
what price, etc.? How do people relate personally?
Week 7: 10/5 – 10/ 9 [OP on ideas peculating from Thursday's discussion; due Monday night]
M: XX NO CLASS XX
W: The Lens essay introduction. What is the goal, the point, the purpose? Examples in class
R: Thinking up a text (current/historical event, movie, book, etc.) to read through the lens of
Bourdieu.
Week 8: 10/12- 10/16 [OP: thoughts about how you understand your text differently when viewing it
through this lens lens]
M: Discussion
W: [OP: continue to refine new understandings of the text vis-a-vis the lens]
R: Turning ideas into a paper.
Week 9: 10/19 – 10/23 [Toward a thesis and motive/mission for Paper #2]
M: Discuss, question, critique
W: Discuss Introductions
R: [OP: drafting introductions]
Week 10: 10/26 – 10/30
M: Paper #3 Drafts due. Cover Letter in class
W:
R: Go over Drafts
Week 11: 11/2 – 11/6
M: Paper #2, Final Draft Due. Discuss Paper #3: research.
W: [OP: about possible topics]; discussion
R: Introduction to research methods
Week 12: 11/9 – 11/ 13 [OP: root articles and description/summary]
M: Discuss root articles
W: [OP begin searching for branch articles]
R: cont'd
Week 13: 11/16 – 11/20 [OP: progress report; titles and brief descriptions of each article]
M: Recapping lens exercise; what idea/thesis is emerging as you learn about other scholars'
takes on the issue at hand?
W: Annotating sources
R: Due: Annotated Bibliographies
Week 14: 11/23 (monday only; thanksgiving)
M: progress reports; plan for final research and drafting; work on intro's/headings
Week 15: 11/30 – 12/4
M: workshop drafts
W: workshop draft
R: Final Paper Draft Due
Week 16: 12/7 – 12/9
M: hand back drafts; revision discussion
W: last class [12/9] last revision workshop
Final Work Due: Friday December 18th, at the latest
Final Papers: Sunday December 13, midnight
Portfolios: Friday December 18, 5:00pm
[W: 12/23, grades due]