English 254: Writing & Communities 1
Laura Madeline Wiseman, Ph.D.
madeline@huskers.unl.edu
Andrews 320
Office Hours: TBA
Fall 2014
TR 12:30, sec 55
Andrews TBA
Required Texts
Natasha Trethewey, Native GuardTed Kooser, Local Wonders
Tayari Jones, Leaving Atlanta
Cheryl Strayed, Wild
Diana Hacker, A Writer’s Reference, 7th Edition
select essays available through blackboard
Welcome to English 254: Writing & Communities! English 254 focuses on the study and practice of writing
in communities. “Communities” is understood broadly. We will explore many communities as a class such
as disciplinary communities, campus communities, home or family communities, online communities, etc.
Students will be guided to examine how communities and individuals within communities use writing for
multiple purposes: to set the terms of membership in the community, forge a communal identity,
deliberate over important matters, research and make informed decisions, make arguments,
communicate information and ideas within and beyond the community, create new knowledge, influence
a broader conversation or another community, and so on. Through three main writing projects and many
smaller writing activities, students will participate in community conversations and make choices as
writers based on what they learn about writing in the communities they study. This course will give
students the opportunity to practice writing in a supportive, student-centered environment. This course
has the following aims and scope: Students will build on prior experiences with composing (invention,
drafting, revising, and final editing) and with the rhetorical concepts of audience, purpose and context by
undertaking a minimum of 3 projects and producing (at minimum) the equivalent of 30 pages of polished
prose (typed, double-spaced). These formal projects should be informed directly or indirectly by
students’ developing understanding of writing as a social practice and students' study of writing in
community/ies. Students will learn to analyze the social dynamics of actual contexts for writing, and
interpret published texts through an understanding of writing as a social practice. Students will learn
strategies for researching the uses of writing in a community. While the emphasis of this course is on
conducting primary research, students may also gain additional experience with secondary research as
well. Students will have opportunities to learn new revision strategies and gain new insights about
revision by developing a more finely tuned understanding of how writers conceptualize their work and
possible communities of readers for their work. Students will continue to refine their skills at providing
constructive response to peers’ writing by producing at least 3 substantive, written responses to peers’
or community members’ texts-in-process. Students will have guided opportunities to inquire into and
reflect on the development of their writing and learning in terms of the concepts taken up in the course.
Students will gain additional practice in sentence-level editing and proofreading their writing, and in
identifying and attending to appropriate stylistic conventions for citation and formatting.
Week One: Inquiring into Community
T 8/26
Introduction
R 8/28
Read: Trethewey, N. (August 2010). Our Loss, Through the Eye of the Storm. The New York
Times, (page WK10 ). Retrieved from:
English 254: Writing & Communities 2
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/29/opinion/29trethewey.html?_r=0
- Hoyt, A. (August 2012). How Poet Laureate Natasha Trethewey Wrote Her Father's 'Elegy'.
The Atlantic. Retrieved from:
http://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2012/08/how-poet-laureate-natashatrethewey-wrote-her-fathers-elegy/261126/
Due: welcome letter (see my letter on blackboard or on my site)
Week Two: Inquiring into Community – Writing about Place
T 9/2
Read: Local Wonders
Activity: Quiz 1, in-class writing
R 9/4
Due: one-page proposal on Writing about Place essay
Activity: in-class writing, writing groups assigned
Week Three: Inquiring into Community – Writing about Place
T 9/9
no class
Read: Native Guard
R 9/11
Activity: in-class writing, discussion, group workshop
Due: rhetorical analysis 1, first draft Place essay
Week Four: Inquiring into Community – Writing about Place
T 9/16
Read: Local Wonders
Activity: in-class writing, discussion
Due: peer response letter 1, sign up for full-class workshop
R 9/18
Read: Local Wonders
Activity: field trip Morrill Hall
Week Five: Inquiring into Community – Writing about Place
T 9/23
Read: Local Wonders
Due: rhetorical analysis 2
Activity: in-class writing, discussion
R 9/25
Activity: in-class writing, group workshop
Due: second draft Place essay
Week Six: Inquiring into Community – Writing about Education
T 9/30
Read: Leaving Atlanta
Activity: Quiz 2, in-class writing
R 10/2
Due: one-page proposal on Writing about Education essay
Activity: in-class writing
Week Seven: Inquiring into Community – Writing about Education
T 10/7
Read: Leaving Atlanta
Due: rhetorical analysis 3
Activity: in-class writing, discussion
R 10/9
No class – groups meet outside of class for group workshop
Due: first draft education essay
Week Eight: Inquiring into Community – Writing about Education
English 254: Writing & Communities 3
T 10/14
R 10/16
Read: Leaving Atlanta
Activity: in-class writing, full-class workshops
Due: peer response letter 2
Activity: in-class writing, group workshops
Due: second draft education essay
Week Nine: Inquiring into Community – Writing about Education
T 10/21
Fall Break – Enjoy!
R 10/23
Read: Leaving Atlanta
Due: Quiz 3
Activity: in-class writing, full-class workshops
Week Ten: Inquiring into Community – Writing about a Journey
T 10/28
Read: Wild
Activity: Quiz 4, in-class writing
R 10/30
Due: one-page proposal on Writing about a Journey essay
Activity: in-class writing
Week Eleven: Inquiring into Community – Writing about a Journey
T 11/4
Read: Wild
Due: rhetorical analysis 4
Activity: in-class writing, discussion
R 11/6
Activity: in-class writing, group workshops
Due: first draft journey essay
Week Twelve: Inquiring into Community – Writing about a Journey
T 11/11
Read: Wild
Activity: in-class writing, discussion
Due: peer response letter 3
R 11/13
Activity: in-class writing, group workshops
Due: second draft journey essay
Week Thirteen: Inquiring into Community – Writing about a Journey
T 11/18
Activity: Sheldon Art Field Trip
R 11/20
Read: Wild
Due: rhetorical analysis 4
Activity: in-class writing, full-class workshops
Week Fourteen: Inquiring into Community – Writing about a Journey
T 11/25
Read: Wild
Activity: in-class writing, group workshops
Due: third draft journey essay
R 11/27
Thanksgiving Vacation – Enjoy!
Week Fifteen: Inquiring into Community – Writing about a Journey
T 12/2
Read: Wild
Activity: Quiz 5, in-class writing, discussion, sign up for final presentations
English 254: Writing & Communities 4
R 12/4
Activity: in-class writing, full-class workshops
Week Sixteen: finals
T 12/9
Due: final presentations, portfolios, reflective letters
R 12/11
Due: final presentations, portfolios, reflective letters
Outcome 1: By passing this course, you will fulfill ACE Learning Outcome 1:“Write texts, in various forms,
with an identified purpose, that respond to particular audience needs, incorporate research or existing
knowledge, and use applicable documentation and appropriate conventions of format and structure” Your
written work will be evaluated by the instructor according to the specifications described in this syllabus. At
the end of the term, you may be asked to provide samples of your work for ACE assessment as well.
Course Requirements (200 points total) - Policies, Help-guides, Grading Rubrics, etc. on
blackboard
Attendance & Participation: (20 points) Regular attendance is required and will be noted in your
participation grade. If you are more than 5 minutes late to class, you will be considered absent for the
day. More than 2 lates that are less than 5 minutes late to class will adversely affect your grade. More
than two unexcused absences will adversely affect your grade. (Note: Excused absences are always
accompanied by an official note—from a doctor, coach, police, secret service, etc.) A student with 6 or
more absences will fail the course. Be an active learner and come to class prepared to learn.
Extra Credit: (student’s choice - 5 points or 1 absence) Students will have the opportunity to attend an
event, talk, or reading by a writer studied in this course. This response begins with a brief recap of the
highlights of the event (100 words) and then responds directly to one or more aspects of the event,
especially as it pertains to class texts. A 2-3 full pages (500-750 words) discussion should ensure a
significant response. All papers turned in without following paper guidelines will receive an automatic
zero. No exceptions. Extra credit papers must be accompanied by viable proof of your attendance (e.g.
event handout, signature, ticket stub, etc.). Event papers are due the second class day after the event. No
exceptions.
* Wednesday, September 10, 2014, 7:30 pm, Natasha Trethewey, “The Quarrel with Ourselves,” E.N.
Thompson Forum on World Issues
Welcome Letters: (10 point) Students will write an introduction letter of 2-3 pages (500-1000 words) to
their instructor after reading the instructor’s letter. Please include a photo. Questions: What about you
would be important for me to know upfront? What other English classes have you taken? What does
writing about community mean to you? How do you define rhetorical practices? What communities do
you hope to write about? What people in your life have influenced who you are today, your writing and
reading practices, and your sense of self? What journeys have you taken? Where in nature do you enjoy
spending time? What educational settings have been the most conducive to helping you learn? What goals
do you have for this class?
Quizzes: (25 points, 5 points each) There will be several very short quizzes. Quizzes are to encourage you
to do the readings. Quizzes cannot be made up, even with excused absences. No exceptions.
English 254: Writing & Communities 5
Essay Proposals: (15 points, 5 points each) Students write three ten page essays in 254. Each essay
requires a one page (250-500 word) proposal that outlines the essay the student intends to write.
Proposals must receive instructor approval.
Rhetorical Analysis: (50, 10 points each) Students will write rhetorical analyses on texts students. Each
paper is three-four pages in length (750-1000 words). See blackboard for essay guides.
3 Peer Response Letters: (15 points, 5 points each) Students will write 3 peer response letters. See
blackboard for guides.
Final Portfolios: (55 points) Each student is responsible for compiling portfolios of their finest work
completed for the three writing assignments for the course. All items in the portfolio (other than
handwritten work completed in class) will follow paper format guidelines. Portfolios that do not follow the
paper format guidelines will receive an automatic zero. No exceptions. Though the portfolio may contain
as many pages as the student wishes, 30 pages of prose must be substantially revised for each portfolio.
Final Reflective Letter: (10 points) Students will reflect on their learning and writing to critically
investigate their process. Student will demonstrate the various stages their work went through to arrive
at a polished product.