Spring 2014
RHE 306: Rhetoric and Writing Handbook
Instructor: Sarah Frank
E-mail: snfrank@utexas.edu
Class Time and Place: TTh 2:00pm-3:30pm, FAC 9
Unique number: 44630
Course Wiki: https://rhe306frank.pbworks.com
Office: Flawn Academic Center Rm. 16 (FAC 16)
Office hours: T 11:30 – 1:00pm; W: 12:00 – 1:30pm; and by appointment
Required Textbooks (Available at the University of Texas Co-op):
Critical Situations: A Rhetoric for Writing in Communities (UT Custom Edition). Crowley and
Stancliff. Pearson, 2012.
What Money Can’t Buy. Michael J. Sandel
Easy Writer: A Pocket Reference. Fourth Edition. Lunsford. Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2009
RHE 306 Course Description
Rhetoric & Writing is a course in written argumentation. However, we acknowledge that
successful persuasive writing requires a solid foundation in other skills (for example:
research, reading, critical thinking, time management, mastery of grammar and style,
community engagement, etc.). This course seeks to meet these curricular goals by carefully
tracking student progress through three (3) aspects of the writing process: summary,
analysis, and argumentation. By using the Learning Record to evaluate student
performance, the course is able to emphasize the writing process over the written product.
As a result, this course can be tailored to help any student, at whatever stage, become a
more confident researcher, reader, writer, and community member.
A Note on How to Use This Document
This document contains a wealth of information about this course. It is not a traditional
syllabus, which you might review on the first day of class and not look at again. Students
should use this document as a handbook, and they should review it whenever questions
about the course arise. Please use the table of contents and the embedded hyperlinks to
navigate the document efficiently and easily. Within these pages is students’
comprehensive guide to the Learning Record, to which students will need to frequently
return. Students may also find this document helpful when they are completing individual
assignments, as the handbook contains several important and helpful hints about the
writing, revising, and submitting of all assignments. Please keep this handbook in print
form, and feel free to visit the electronic copy posted on the course workspace.
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RHE 306 Handbook Table of Contents
A Brief Introduction to the Learning Record . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
Dimensions of Learning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4
Course Strands and Objectives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Evaluation Criteria . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .8
Guide to Learning Record Assignments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10
Journal Entries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Major Essays, Essay Revision, and Peer Review . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
Position Summaries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
Guide to Course Policies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .13
Official DRW (Department of Rhetoric and Writing) Policies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .16
Schedule of Assignments and Due Dates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .17
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A Brief Introduction to the Learning Record
Learning theorists have suggested that learning is a complex, organic process that occurs at
its own pace and in its own manner. Each student learns in unique ways. In order to more
effectively measure a wider range of student learning, this class will not assign traditional
grades. The instructor will provide neither numerical nor letter grades, but will instead
respond to student writing with comprehensive (qualitative) written feedback. Students
will use this feedback to revise written work, and also to gauge their progress along four
course strands. Throughout the semester, students will assemble a portfolio of their work.
At the midterm and at the end of the semester, each student will assemble a written
argument, explaining why he/she deserves a particular (letter) grade, using his or her
portfolio (including the instructor’s written feedback) as evidence of the strength of
his/her performance. These final self-assessments will draw on the provided Evaluation
Criteria and the six Dimensions of Learning, and they will seek to show how a student has
progressed along each course strand. At the end of the course, students will be assigned a
letter grade based on their cumulative portfolios.
It is important for students to note that the absence of a traditional quantitative evaluation
system does not translate into a less rigorous course. In other words, this class will not be
easy—if anything, students have found in the past that the use of the learning record
requires more writing, more effort, more complex and critical thinking, and more selfdiscipline. Additionally, students should understand and keep in mind that the Learning
Record is not designed to “reward” effort alone; just as in a traditional classroom, an
excellent final grade requires excellent work, not just excellent effort. More information on
this point can be found in the section about Evaluation Criteria.
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Dimensions of Learning
Learning theorists have argued that learning and development are not like an assemblyline which can be broken down into discrete steps occurring with machine-time precision,
but an organic process that unfolds in complex ways according to its own pace and rhythm.
Using the Learning Record, students are actively searching for, and documenting, positive
evidence of student development across six dimensions: confidence and independence,
knowledge and understanding, skills and strategies, use of prior and emerging experience,
critical reflection, and creativity. These six dimensions cannot be "separated out" and
treated individually; rather, they are dynamically interwoven. The dimensions of learning
should help students develop the language to describe and explain how they are
progressing, and what their progress has looked like.
Individually, learners can expect to make progress across these six dimensions:
Confidence and independence
We see growth and development when learners' confidence and independence become
congruent with their actual abilities and skills, content knowledge, use of experience, and
reflectiveness about their own learning. It is not a simple case of "more (confidence and
independence) is better." In some cases, an overconfident student who has relied on faulty
or underdeveloped skills and strategies learns to seek help when facing an obstacle; or a
shy student begins to trust her own abilities, and to insist on presenting her own point of
view in discussion. In both cases, students are developing along the dimension of
confidence and independence.
Skills and strategies
Skills and strategies represent the "know-how" aspect of learning. When we speak of
"performance" or "mastery," we generally mean that learners have developed skills and
strategies to function successfully in certain situations. Skills and strategies are not only
specific to particular disciplines, but often cross disciplinary boundaries. In this class, for
example, students develop many specific skills and strategies involved in composing and
communicating effectively, from research to concept development to organization to
polishing grammar and correctness, and often including technological skills for computer
communication.
Knowledge and understanding
Knowledge and understanding refers to the "content" knowledge gained in particular
subject areas. Knowledge and understanding is the most familiar dimension, focusing on
the "know-what" aspect of learning. In a psychology class, knowledge and understanding
might answer a wide range of questions such as, What is Freud's concept of ego? Who was
Carl Jung? What is "behaviorism"? These are typical content questions. Knowledge and
understanding in such classes includes what students are learning about the topics;
research methods; the theories, concepts, and practices of a discipline; the methods of
organizing and presenting our ideas to others, and so on.
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Use of prior and emerging experience
The use of prior and emerging experience involves learners' abilities to draw on their own
experience and connect it to their work. A crucial but often unrecognized dimension of
learning is the capacity to make use of prior experience as well as emerging experience in
new situations. It is necessary to observe learners over a period of time while they engage
in a variety of activities in order to account for the development of this important
capability, which is at the heart of creative thinking and its application. With traditional
methods of evaluating learning, we cannot discover just how a learner's prior experience
might be brought to bear to help scaffold new understandings, or how ongoing experience
shapes the content knowledge or skills and strategies the learner is developing. In a math
class, students scaffold new knowledge through applying the principles and procedures
they've already learned: algebra depends on the capacity to apply basic arithmetic
procedures, for example.
Reflection
Reflection refers to the developing awareness of the learner's own learning process, as well
as more analytical approaches to the subject being studied. When we speak of reflection as
a crucial component of learning, we are not using the term in its commonsense meaning of
reverie or abstract introspection. We are referring to the development of the learner's
ability to step back and consider a situation critically and analytically, with growing insight
into his or her own learning processes, a kind of metacognition. It provides the "big
picture" for the specific details. For example, students in a history class examining
fragmentary documents and researching an era or event use reflection to discover patterns
in the evidence and construct a historical narrative. Learners need to develop this
capability in order to use what they are learning in other contexts, to recognize the
limitations or obstacles confronting them in a given situation, to take advantage of their
prior knowledge and experience, and to strengthen their own performance.
Creativity and Imagination
As learners gain confidence and independence, knowledge and understanding, skills and
strategies, ability to use prior and emerging experience in new situations, and
reflectiveness, they generally become more playful and experimental, more creative in the
expression of that learning. This is true not only in "creative" domains such as the arts, but
in nearly all domains: research, argumentation, history, psychology. In all fields the
primary contributions to the field are the result of creative or imaginative work. Among
other things, this dimension recognizes the value of creative experimentation even when
the final result of the work may not succeed as the student may hope.
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Course Strands and Objectives
The following four course strands—rhetoric (argumentation) skills, writing skills, research
skills, and community engagement—represent specific objectives for learning that have
been established for this course. The dimensions of learning can be applied to each strand
in order to demonstrate multiple forms of student performance in each area. For example,
in the Writing Skills strand, a student may develop more successful time management
strategies (which would fall under the dimension of “Skills and Strategies”), but that
student may also find that her time management skills allow her to become more
independent as a writer (which would fall under the “Confidence and Independence”)
dimension.
Rhetorical (Argumentation) Skills
Rhetoric includes the ability to invent or come up with persuasive arguments, to present
those arguments convincingly (incorporating evidence, connecting reasons and evidence,
appealing to emotions, soliciting trust, demonstrating goodwill) and the ability to organize
information in a convincing manner (arranging material so that it can be understood and so
it conciliates and moves the audience). Rhetorical skills also relate to the analysis of other
arguments, requiring students to understand and effectively discuss how other rhetors and
writers present their own claims. Broadly speaking, student development in this learning
strand should demonstrate an ability to analyze the arrangement and persuasive material
in an argument as well as the ability to plan, develop, organize, and write a persuasive
argument.
Writing Skills
Writing skills relate the entire writing process from the planning stages to the completion
of a polished written argument. These skills include brainstorming, planning, note-taking,
outlining, free-writing, correct use of grammar and punctuation, sentence structuring, and
the reconsideration and reshaping of a written product (evaluating one’s own work or
another’s work, forming and executing goals for revision, reconceptualizing an argument in
light of new information or new circumstances). This strand also includes the student’s
general writing habits and behaviors, including time-mangement. In this area students
should demonstrate their developing knowledge of how effective writers compose as well
as a more refined ability to plan, write, and revise.
Research Skills
Research includes the ability to find credible and reliable sources (using databases,
performing searches, locating a range of information in a variety of manners and media) as
well as the ability to incorporate research into one’s writing (using citation styles such as
APA and MLA, quoting, paraphrasing, summarizing). In this learning strand students
should demonstrate development of new skills in or knowledge for finding and using
information while composing a persuasive discourse. Students should also demonstrate
increased confidence in their research, particularly in developing successful searches and
in evaluating a source’s credibility and bias.
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Community Engagement
Community engagement includes student participation both in the community broadly
speaking, in the traditional classroom, and in the online workspace. This course strand
seeks to emphasize that writing is not a solo activity, but is rather done among and for a
broader network of groups and individuals. Student development in this learning strand
should demonstrate an increased awareness of writing as a social event—one that requires
the writer to engage both with a broader intellectual conversation, and also with the direct
feedback of peers and instructors. Students who progress along this strand will
demonstrate rigor in the revision of their own work, and carefulness in their critique of
others’ work.
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Evaluation Criteria
As explained in the previous pages, the Learning Record (LR) will determine final grades in
this course, and these final grades will be based on the evaluation criteria below. The
Learning Record allows students to make individual goals and set individual priorities as
they pursue a level of engagement that is appropriate for them. In the midterms and final
reflections, students will evaluate their progress and decide which set of criteria most
accurately describes their performance in the course.
Please Note: There will be no plus/minus grades assigned in this course.
The grade criteria are as follows:
A
The student frequently and actively engages both in classroom discussion and in the
online community. The student has perfect (or near perfect) attendance, and all assigned
work is completed and uploaded on time and to the appropriate destination. The student
goes above and beyond expectations for all coursework (including essay revisions),
frequently seeking input from both peers and the instructor. The student consistently
produces remarkable written work, presenting insightful and convincing arguments and
texts that are extremely polished and free of grammatical errors. The student should also
be actively involved in counseling and/or assisting her peers with their own writing
whenever appropriate, for example, during peer reviews and group activities. The student
shows remarkable development along all four course strands, and directly supports this
development with concrete evidence in her midterm and final reflections. Final and
midterm reflections demonstrate self-awareness both of existing and emerging strengths
and of areas for future improvement, and are composed carefully and thoughtfully.
B
The student regularly engages both in classroom discussion and in the online
community. The student has near perfect attendance, and all assigned work is completed
and uploaded on time and to the appropriate destination. The student more than meets
expectations for all coursework (including essay revisions), occasionally seeking input
from both peers and the instructor. The student consistently produces strong written work,
presenting convincing arguments and texts that are polished and relatively free of
grammatical errors. The student should also be helpful to her peers whenever possible, and
demonstrate growth as a peer reviewer and community member. The student shows
development along all four course strands, and attempts to support this development with
concrete evidence in her midterm and final reflections. Final and midterm reflections
demonstrate self-awareness both of existing and emerging strengths and of areas for future
improvement, and are thoughtfully composed.
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C
The student occasionally engages in classroom discussion, and is a regular member in
the online community. The student has few absences (three or fewer), and all major
assignments are completed and uploaded on time. The student meets expectations for all
coursework (including essay revisions), but infrequently seeks additional input from either
peers or the instructor. The student is infrequently helpful to her peers, although she
participates fully in mandatory peer reviews. The student produces written work that
meets basic expectations, presenting coherent arguments and texts that are readable,
despite containing some grammatical errors. The student shows development along most
course strands, and inconsistently supports this development with concrete evidence in
her midterm and final reflections. Final and midterm reflections demonstrate some
awareness both of existing and emerging strengths, but may neglect to discuss areas of
future improvement. While some growth is evident, the midterm and final reflections do
not fully or thoroughly describe the student’s development.
D
The student rarely engages in classroom discussion, and is an infrequent member in
the online community. The student has poor attendance (three or more absences), and
occasionally submits work that is late or incomplete. The student does not meet the
expectations for coursework and does not seek additional help from either peers or the
instructor. The student produces written work that sometimes falls short of basic
expectations, presenting weak or incoherent arguments and texts that are unpolished and
rife with grammatical error. The student does not demonstrate interest in the progress of
her peers, and provides incomplete feedback as a peer reviewer. The student shows
development along only one or two course strands, and rarely supports this development
with concrete evidence in the midterm and final reflections. Final and midterm reflections
demonstrate very little awareness of existing or emerging strengths, and neglect to discuss
areas for future improvement.
F
The student demonstrates minimal or no participation in course activities, poor
attendance, and several late, incomplete, or missing assignments. When the student does
submit work, her writing does not meet the assignment criteria. The student does not
demonstrate an awareness of, or a progression along the course strands. The student fails
to give evidence of development across the dimensions of learning, and she does not
support the claims made in the LR reflection with any evidence.
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Guide to Learning Record Assignments
In the following pages are guidelines and instructions for each of the assignments you will
complete during the course. Each page in this guide contains instructions for titling and
uploading the assignment, as well as a brief overview about each assignment’s nature and
purpose. Please refer to these short guides prior to the submission of any significant
assignment.
JOURNAL ENTRIES
1. In your personal folder, click on LASTNAME – LR Journal.
2. In the upper left-hand corner, click New, then select Create a page… from the drop-down menu.
3. Title the page with your LASTNAME as a prefix, then cite the assignment/activity to which you are
responding (“Advertising with Ethos,” “Backpacks vs. Briefcases,” etc.).
Example: LASTNAME – Advertising with Ethos
4. Select Use a template, then select LR Journal Template from the drop-down menu.
5. In the bottom right hand corner, under Page security, select Locked.
6. You will see the page appear in your LASTNAME – Reflections folder; click the new page.
7. Near the upper left-hand corner, click the EDIT tab.
8. Complete the Reflection, then click SAVE.
In this course, you will be interested in engaging multiple forms of learning and
development. At the end of this semester, you will all have improved as writers, certainly.
But you will also have experienced other forms of growth—perhaps an increased
confidence in yourself as a reader and writer, an ability to build on emerging
understanding, or the capacity to reflect on oneself and one’s process. Your LR Journal is
your opportunity to report on this progress on a very regular basis, and to document your
experiences (both positive and negative) in the course. These entries will be instrumental
when you reflect on your performance at the end of the semester.
LR Journal Entries are brief, unstructured “journal entries,” usually completed during the
last ten minutes of each class. In these reflections, you will have the opportunity to reflect
on some aspect of the course—either an activity from that day’s class, a frustrating
experience with an assignment, a personal victory or goal, etc. Did a particular activity help
you develop a certain skill, or understand a particular concept? Did a certain assignment
build your confidence in your skills, or cause you to reconsider previous knowledge? Were
you bored or confused by a specific lecture? What do you wish had happened differently?
All of these topics (and many more) would be fair game for any entry.
LR Journal Entries are Learning Record (LR) assignments.
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MAJOR ESSAYS, ESSAY REVISIONS, AND PEER REVIEW
1. Complete the essay and save the document as LASTNAME_Assignment (e.g.
FRANK_ControversyMap). Save the essay in .doc or .docx format.
2. In your personal folder, click on LASTNAME – Major Essays.
3. In the upper left-hand corner, click Upload files...
4. Select the appropriate file, and click Choose/Open/Select in your finder.
5. A menu will appear asking you to choose to upload the document as a wiki page, or to upload the
document as a file. Select No, upload as a file.
6. The file will appear in your LASTNAME – Major Essays folder, titled LASTNAME_Assignment.doc
Three major essays will serve as benchmarks, each focusing on a different interval in the
writing process:
The Controversy Map (Essay 1) asks you to demonstrate skills in all course strands as
you attempt to present the “landscape” of your controversy. This text will be informative in
its purpose: you are presenting what others have said and are saying about the
controversy, locating particular areas of disagreement among stakeholders.
The Rhetorical Analysis (Essay 2) also potentially draws on all course strands. Here, you
will analyze one argument (visual, aural, or textual) relevant to your controversy, seeking
to answer the questions: how does this argument work? What choices did the author make,
and why? Is the text ultimately effective, and why?
The Persuasive Text (Essay 3) asks you to build on previous units in order to make a
persuasive argument relevant to your controversy. In order to be successful here, you will
draw on all course strands to frame the conversation, analyze available positions, and enter
that conversation yourself.
Major Essay Revisions are mandatory. Revisions should be based on the instructor’s
feedback and on the student’s stated revision goals. Students seeking final grades in A-B
range will submit thorough (even comprehensive) revisions, applying the instructor’s
feedback to the essay in its entirety. Revisions should be uploaded to the LASTNAME –
Major Essays folder, titled as LASTNAME_AssignmentTitle_Revision.
Peer Review of all major essays is also mandatory. In order to successfully complete all
Learning Record (LR) assignments, students must be present in class on each Peer Review
day. Further instructions, criteria, and templates for the Peer Review will be supplied.
Major Essays, Major Essay Revisions, and Peer Reviews are Learning Record (LR)
assignments.
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POSITION SUMMARIES
1. In your personal folder, click on LASTNAME – Position Summaries.
2. In the upper left-hand corner, click New, then select Create a page… from the drop-down menu.
3. Title the page with your LASTNAME as a prefix, then PS1, PS2, or PS3.
Example: LASTNAME – PS1
4. Select Use a template, then select Position Summary Template (Unit 1 or 2) from the drop-down
menu.
5. In the bottom right hand corner, under Page security, select Locked.
6. You will see the page appear in your LASTNAME – Position Summaries folder;
click the new page.
7. Near the upper left-hand corner, click the EDIT tab.
8. Complete the Position Summary, then click SAVE.
Position summaries are relatively short writing assignments that summarize a given text
and demonstrate how the text fits in with the larger conversation. Position summaries
draw on all course strands in that a successful summary requires excellence in research
(finding the text to be summarized), reading (developing a understanding of the material to
be summarized and its relation to the overall controversy), and writing process
(developing an awareness of the conversation before diving in). These assignments are
intended to prepare you for upcoming Major Essays, and to provide you with valuable
feedback on a low-stakes assignment.
Individual prompts for each of the four Position Summaries are posted on the wiki at the
header of the appropriate template, and should be consulted before, during, and after the
completion of these assignments.
Positions Summaries are Learning Record (LR) assignments.
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Guide to Course Policies
The following course guidelines are non-negotiable.
Late Work and Extensions
Students will not be able to receive formal, written instructor feedback on an essay that is
submitted late. No exceptions. An essay is considered late if it is not uploaded to the course
wiki by the beginning of class on the due date, unless otherwise designated.
While it is not typical for me to grant an extension, if you feel that you may have a problem
submitting an assignment on time, please email me for an appointment to discuss the
situation. I will not discuss extensions over email—you must see me in person to handle
these issues. If you have not met with me in advance of the due date and you do not submit
the assignment, you will not receive written feedback.
Attendance and Tardiness
According to the policy dictated by the Department of Rhetoric and Writing, any student
who misses more than four (4) class meetings will receive a failing grade for the course.
This includes both excused and unexcused absences. For more details please review the
departmental policy on the sheet attached. Please also remember that the Evaluation
Criteria do include attendance—therefore, you should keep in mind that regular
attendance is a major component of your final grade.
Part of being present in class is a basic level of participation in class activities. This means
that students should not be engaged in work or activities unrelated to RHE 306 during class
meetings. This means that students should not sleep, should not study for other classes,
and should not be logged into any social media sites, blogs, tumblrs, etc. that are not
specifically related to classroom activities. Students who are engaged in these activities will
be marked absent for the day.
Tardiness is disruptive to our classroom community and will not be looked kindly upon.
While mistakes do happen, students who are regularly tardy will be marked as absent. If
you feel you will have a problem arriving promptly, please consider dropping the class and
registering for a more convenient time.
Uses of Technology
We are quite fortunate to be meeting in a computer classroom, and we will take advantage
of the resources we have available. This means that we will frequently be working on the
desktop computers in the classroom. Students who wish to bring laptops for note-taking
are permitted to do so, but this is a privilege that can be revoked if it is abused.
The use of cell phones in the classroom is strictly prohibited. If you must use your phone,
please leave the classroom to do so. Any student using a cell phone in the classroom will be
marked absent for the day.
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Classroom Etiquette
This course centers around discussion of real controversies in our society, and we may at
times discuss political and ideological issues that directly touch upon your own life and/or
the lives of your peers. Engaging in these discussions is an important demonstration of
student engagement, and all students are encouraged to participate regularly. Remember,
though, that there is no room in our discussions for comments that are racist, sexist,
homophobic, classist, or ableist in nature. Students who cannot abide by this policy will,
after one warning, be asked to leave the classroom, and they will need to schedule a
meeting with the instructor to further review classroom etiquette.
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Official DRW (Department of Rhetoric and Writing) Policies
Attendance
Rhetoric & Writing has established this attendance policy for all RHE courses. Any
questions or appeals concerning this policy must be made directly to the department
Associate Chair. You are expected to attend class, to arrive on time, to have prepared
assigned reading and writing, and to participate in all in-class editing, revising, and
discussion sessions. Should you miss the equivalent of five TTH or MW class sessions or
seven MWF sessions this semester, excused or not, you will fail the course. If you find that
an unavoidable problem prevents you from attending class, you should contact your
instructor as soon as possible, preferably ahead of time, to let him or her know.
You will not be penalized for missing class on religious holy days. A student who misses
classes or other required activities, including examinations, for the observance of a
religious holy day should inform the instructor, in writing, well in advance of the absence,
so that alternative arrangements can be made to complete work. If you know you will have
to miss class(es) for this reason, provide your instructor with the date(s) as early as
possible. Please note that the University specifies very few other excused absences (e.g.,
jury duty).
When you must miss a class, you are responsible for getting notes and assignments from a
classmate. These notes cannot be provided by the instructor on an individual basis.
Scholastic Honesty
Turning in work that is not your own, or any other form of scholastic dishonesty, will result
in a major course penalty, possibly failure of the course. This standard applies to all drafts
and assignments, and a report of the incident will be submitted to the Office of the Dean of
Students and filed in your permanent UT record. Under certain circumstances, the Dean of
Students will initiate proceedings to expel you from the University. So, take care to read
and understand the Statement on Scholastic Responsibility, which can be found online at
http://www.utexas.edu/ cola/depts/rhetoric/firstyearwriting/plagiarismcollusion.php. If
you have any doubts about your use of sources, ask your instructor for help before handing
in the assignment.
Students with Disabilities
Any student with a documented disability who requires academic accommodations should
contact Services for Students with Disabilities at 512-471-6259 (voice) or 1-866-329-3986
(video phone) as soon as possible to request an official letter outlining authorized
accommodations. More information is available online at
http://www.utexas.edu/diversity/ddce/ ssd.
Email Accounts
Email is an official means of communication at UT-Austin, and your instructor will
frequently use this medium to communicate class information. You are therefore required
to obtain a UT email account and to check it daily. All students may claim an email address
at no cost by going to http://www.utexas.edu/its/services/email/.
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Emergency Information
Occupants of buildings on The University of Texas at Austin campus are required to
evacuate buildings when a fire alarm is activated. Alarm activation or announcement
requires exiting and assembling outside. Familiarize yourself with all exit doors of each
classroom and building you may occupy. Remember that the nearest exit door may not be
the one you used when entering the building. Students requiring assistance in evacuation
shall inform their instructor in writing during the first week of class.
In the event of an evacuation, follow the instruction of faculty or class instructors.
Do not re-enter a building unless given instructions by the following: The University of
Texas at Austin Police Department, or Fire Prevention Services office.
Other important Emergency Information: http://www.utexas.edu/safety/preparedness/
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RHE 306 Schedule of Assignments and Due Dates
Please see the Course Wiki for detailed Unit Schedules
DATE
IN-CLASS TOPIC
1/15
Introduction to RHE 306
HOMEWORK AND ASSIGNMENTS DUE
1/20
1/22
Initial Reflection due
(Upload to Journal Folder)
1/27
Preliminary Topic Proposal due
1/29
Final Topic and Stakeholder Map due
2/3
Position Summary 1 due
(Upload to Position Summaries Folder)
2/5
Position Summary 2 due
(Upload to Position Summaries Folder)
2/10
2/12
Peer Review
Draft of Controversy Map (Essay 1) due
(Upload to Major Essays Folder)
2/17
Introduction to Unit 2 (Analysis)
Controversy Map Essay (Essay 1) due
(Upload to Major Essays Folder)
2/19
Position Summary 3 due
(Upload to Position Summaries Folder)
2/24
Controversy Map Essay Revisions due
(Upload to Major Essays Folder)
2/26
3/3
Midterm Reflection due
(Upload to Journal Folder)
3/5
Position Summary 4 due
(Upload to Position Summaries Folder)
3/10
Spring Break
3/12
Spring Break
17
3/17
3/19
Peer Review
Draft of Rhetorical Analysis due
(Upload to Major Essays Folder)
3/24
Introduction to Unit 3 (Persuasion)
Rhetorical Analysis Essay due
(Upload to Major Essays Folder)
3/26
3/31
4/2
Rhetorical Analysis Revisions due
(Upload to Major Essays Folder)
4/7
4/9
Position Summary 6 due
(Upload to Position Summaries Folder)
4/14
4/16
4/21
Peer Review
Draft of Persuasive Essay due
(Upload to Major Essays Folder)
Persuasive Essay due
(Upload to Major Essays Folder)
4/23
4/28
Paper Conferences
4/30
Last Class Meeting
LR Final Reflection due
(Upload to Journal Folder)
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