Fundamentals of English Composition
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Course Description
Fundamentals of English Composition is a one-semester designed to give beginning
writers the tools they need to write effectively for school and life. Course lessons and
activities will engage students in practical and accessible discussions of how to write.
Throughout the course, emphasis is placed on the principles that allow effective writing
to achieve its purpose. Students will identify the characteristics of effective writing. They
will also identify different purposes for writing and learn strategies to achieve those
purposes. The course further addresses the writing process through in-depth instruction
on prewriting and revision. Along with this, the course explains writing context and the
issues of audience and intended audience. Students will incorporate research strategies
such as accurate representation of sources, correct citation, and adding to the greater
conversation of research by synthesizing others’ ideas with their own. Students will
learn how to achieve their purpose through style, form, and rhetorical mode. Finally,
students will evaluate their own work through the lenses of reader expectations and
constructive criticism.
Upon completion of this course, students will have demonstrated success at various
prewriting activities, outlined their work extensively, and written analytical essay, an
analytical essay, a persuasive cover letter, and a personal narrative, along with a
research-based paper. Students will also have experienced peer review as well as
guidelines for accepting and offering constructive criticism.
Course Objectives
When you finish this course, you will be able to:
 Identify the characteristics and structures of effective writing
 Describe in your own words what it means to write effectively
 Discuss and apply the steps of the writing process
 Apply the characteristics and structures of effective writing to compose effective
paragraphs, essays, personal narratives, and cover letters
 Understand how forms and modes work together to help a writer deliver effective
content
 Discuss strategies for identifying audience and intended audience in order to
achieve purpose
 Represent others’ ideas in your own writing and accurately cite them
 Synthesize others’ ideas with your own in order to create a new understanding
about a topic for your reader
©2012 Connections Education LLC. All rights reserved.
 Explain the relationships between elements in the writing context: author, reader,
content purpose, form, mode, and style
 Consider writing as a skill that can be improved like any other and as an art form
capable of achieving not only purpose but also effect
Course Assignment Values
Assignment Type
Points
Possible
Weight
14 Assignments
70 pts
31%
3 Journals
15 pts
7%
7 Papers
56 pts
21%
6 Unit Tests
60 pts
22%
1 Midterm Exam
18 pts
8%
1 Final Exam
25 pts
11%
244 pts
100%
Course Totals
Suggested Course Schedule
The suggested time frame shown below is based on learning sessions. A learning
session is a 45-minute period of time. This course should take approximately 90
learning sessions to complete, but this schedule is just a suggestion. You may work on
each unit at your own pace, completing as many learning sessions as you’d like in one
sitting. However, keep in mind that you must finish the entire course within the time
specified by your school district.
Learning
Session
1-15
16-31
Content Covered
Unit 1: Characteristics and Structures of Effective Writing
In this unit, you will learn about the aspects of effective writing.
In this unit, there will be:
2 Assignments
10 pts
3 Journals
15 pts
2 Papers
16 pts
1 Unit Test
10 pts
Unit 2: The Writing Process
This unit is about the writing process. You will learn to identify and use
the six steps of the writing process, and learn different organizational
tools you can use when writing.
In this unit, there will be:
©2012 Connections Education LLC. All rights reserved.
32-47
48-63
64-79
80-90
3 Assignments
15 pts
1 Paper
8 pts
1 Unit Test
10 pts
Fundamentals of English Composition Midterm Exam 18 pts
Unit 3: Establishing Purpose: Audience, Context, and Form
This unit focuses on how concepts such as intended audience, context,
and form relate to establishing purpose in your writing.
In this unit, there will be:
3 Assignments
15 pts
1 Paper
8 pts
1 Unit Test
10 pts
Unit 4: Achieving Purpose: Rhetorical Modes
In this unit, you will learn about different rhetorical modes used in writing.
In this unit, there will be:
3 Assignments
15 pts
1 Paper
8 pts
1 Unit Test
10 pts
Unit 5: Research Methods Introduction
In this unit, you will learn about representing others’ ideas, citing them,
and incorporating your ideas with those that you research.
In this unit, there will be:
1 Paper
8 pts
1 Unit Test
10 pts
Unit 6: Assessment and Evaluation
This unit will teach you how to use a rubric to revise your writing.
Additionally, you will learn strategies to address style in a piece of writing.
In this unit, there will be:
3 Assignments
15 pts
1 Paper
8 pts
1 Unit Test
10 pts
Fundamentals of English Composition Final Exam
25 pts
©2012 Connections Education LLC. All rights reserved.
Privacy Policy
No member of the Advanced Academics staff is authorized to release student
information without the written permission of the student’s parent or legal guardian.
Names, images, and/or class work of Advanced Academics students will not be
published in print, video/film, or on our public website without written student and
guardian consent.
Disability Statement
If you have a disability or condition that may affect your ability to succeed in this course,
please contact your teacher. It’s important that you discuss the problem with him or her
so accommodations may be made to give you every opportunity to perform well. Your
teacher and virtual school program coordinators are committed to helping students with
disabilities succeed, and every request will be treated with respect and confidentiality.
©2012 Connections Education LLC. All rights reserved.