ELI 83 (2) Hybrid: Writing for International Graduate Students
Spring 2014 Syllabus
Tuesday 9:00 - 10:15 am
Moore 109
Instructor: Bal Krishna Sharma
Office: Moore 262
Email: bsharma@hawaii.edu
Office Hours: Thursday 9:30-10: 30 or by appointment
Course Web Site: Announcements, assignments and materials available through the following websites:
Laulima: https://laulima.hawaii.edu
ELI 83 (2) Course Website: https://eli83uhmanoa.wordpress.com
Course Description
ELI 83 is designed for graduate students at the University of Hawai‘i at Manoa who need to develop their
academic writing abilities in English as an additional language. Students in this course will explore academic
writing in their disciplines, develop clarity of written expression, and improve command over textual, rhetorical,
and discursive conventions common in academic writing. Students will also apply the different tasks that are
associated with the writing process to various writing situations. By the end of this course, students should be
prepared for independent academic writing at the graduate level.
Student Learning Outcomes
By the end of the course students will be able to:
 analyze discipline and genre-specific academic English writing conventions and effectively apply that
knowledge to graduate level writing tasks.
 self-assess their strengths as academic writers, as well as areas for continued development, incorporating
personal reflection and feedback from others
 appropriately incorporate a variety of reliable information sources that are relevant for doing graduatelevel research in their academic writing
Additional Goals for the Course
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Students will develop confidence in their ability to write academic English.
Students will develop their general and discipline-specific English vocabulary.
Students will learn that academic writing is a social as well as a personal endeavor1.
Students will develop accuracy in written English grammar.
Students will develop a critical understanding of the local communities they encounter in and outside
academia in Hawai’i
Course Texts and Materials
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Swales, J.M., & Feak, C.B. (2012). Academic writing for graduate students: Essential Tasks and Skills
(3rd ed.). Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press. (REQUIRED)
Maimon, E.P., Peritz, J.H., & Yancy, K.B. (2007). A writer’s resource: A handbook for writing and
research. (2nd ed.). Boston: McGraw-Hill. (Recommended)
An e-mail account (it is essential that you have an e-mail account that you check regularly. If you change
your e-mail address, you must inform me.) (REQUIRED)
Academic writing is not constant, but rather evolving. It involves a diverse range of genres and conventions,
and what is appropriate in one discipline may not be in another. Academic writing is not an individual isolated
endeavor, but rather is cooperative and involves interaction among many people and texts.
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Computer Requirements
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A computer with a stable internet connection, a web browser (e.g., Safari, Chrome), and a word
processing application (e.g., Microsoft Word).
A copy of Adobe Acrobat Reader, which you can download for free from
http://www.adobe.com/products/reader.html
Antivirus software, which you can download for free from http://www.hawaii.edu/askus/1247
Course Activities/Requirements
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Active class participation: This is a class of opportunities to learn not just from your textbook and
individual writing assignments but also from each other. Keeping up with the readings and participating
actively in class is crucial for your learning and for the strength of our class community. Additionally,
although much of the online portion of our hybrid class will consist of individual assignments, you will
also take part in approximately three online discussions and three online peer review sessions.
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Textbook Assignments: Most weeks you will be assigned readings from the textbook and asked to apply
the concepts you have read about. These assignments will give you practice developing specific aspects of
academic writing and will often form the basis for class activities; so it’s essential that you complete them
consistently and on time.
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Writing Workshops (WW): Through the three WW papers you will have the chance to extend and
consolidate the general academic writing skills you have practiced in the shorter textbook assignments;
they will also serve as additional opportunities to practice the writing process and peer review.
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Convention Analysis Projects (CAP): For this project, you will analyze models of academic writing in
your field in order to become familiar with its writing conventions. This project consists of four 2-3 page
assignments that will culminate in a 8-10-page research paper. Through the CAPs you will not only have
extensive practice writing process but also a final product that can serve as your customized guidebook to
writing in your discipline.
All papers should be typed in Times New Roman 12-point font and double spaced. Please do not send
assignments/papers by e-mail without asking for permission. Note that ELI 83 students are required to produce
total 20-25 pages of revised, final draft writing over the course of the semester.
Grading
This is a Credit/No Credit course. In order to get credit, you must receive an overall grade of at least 75%.
Class participation
20%
Weekly assignments
15%
Writing Workshops
25%
Convention Analysis Projects (5)
40%
-------------------------------------------------------------------------Total
100%
Grading Scale:
For each CAP and WW paper I will provide you with a grading rubric that describes the criteria for a passing
paper.
 5 points:
Pass+: Writing exceeds criteria
 4 points:
Pass: Writing satisfactorily meets all criteria
 3 points:
Resubmit +: Writing needs some revision in order to pass
 1-2 points:
Resubmit: Writing needs substantial revision in order to pass.
 0 points:
No credit: Writing that plagiarized or submitted late.
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Don’t be discouraged if you are asked to resubmit a writing assignment. Revision is an integral part of the writing
process, one that all writers must contend with. Please note that revisions will not be allowed for CAPs #4 & #5.
Late Assignments
Because assignments build on one another, it is important to finish them on time. Late work is NOT accepted.
Homework assignments will generally be due in class and the deadlines for major writing assignments will be
mentioned in their respective assignment guidelines. Please note that Laulima Assignment closes after the
specified deadline and you cannot submit your work after that.
Note: “Computer problems” are not a valid excuse for late work. If you are experiencing problems, please email
me and/or use one of the many computer labs available on campus to finish your work.
Attendance
In any language course, regular attendance and participation is vital to improvement and success. Specifically, the
ELI requires a minimum of 75% performance for all credit/no credit courses. In order to achieve 75% or higher,
you should attend regularly. If you do not attend this class regularly and participate actively you will likely get a
grade of NO CREDIT.
Class begins promptly at 9 a.m., and as we meet only once a week, we need to start right on time. If you are more
than 5 minutes late, you will be marked as “late” in the attendance sheet. Three “lates” will be equal to one
absence. If you are absent, it is your responsibility to check Laulima to find out what you missed and to complete
it by the due date.
For the hybrid portion of the class, “attendance” includes submitting assignments, participating in online
discussions/peer review, and logging in to Laulima regularly (at least three times a week) to check for messages
and announcements. Neglecting to submit assignments, participate in discussions, and/or respond to emails is
equivalent to skipping class. Even if you are otherwise passing the class, if you are frequently absent (either inclass or online), I will ask that you meet with me to discuss your situation; if the absences persist, I will issue an
interim performance report.
Use of Electronic Devices
Use of laptops, iPads and electronic dictionaries will be permitted to the extent their use is necessary for the class.
Use of cell phones will not be allowed.
Interim Performance Report
Teachers issue interim performance reports in order to warn students who are in danger of failing a class and to
clarify exactly what the students must do in order to achieve a passing grade. These are official documents signed
by the director of the ELI. If I feel you are at risk for failing this course or are frequently absent, I will first ask
you to meet with me. If your performance does not improve, I will issue an interim performance report.
Plagiarism
The ELI recognizes that rules regarding academic honesty and intellectual property are different across cultures.
We also recognize that UH students are expected to abide by a particular definition of academic honesty, one that
is common to universities in the
US. Students who do not follow these rules, for whatever reason, may be
charged with cheating or plagiarism. At UH, common punishments for such violations include failing the
assignment, failing the course, suspension from the university, or even expulsion. The following definition of
plagiarism comes from the UH-Manoa Student Conduct Code:
The term "plagiarism" includes, but is not limited to, the use, by paraphrase or direct quotation, of the
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published or unpublished work of another person without full and clear acknowledgement. It also
includes the unacknowledged use of materials prepared by another person or agency engaged in the
selling of term papers or other academic materials.
University of Hawai`i at Manoa Student Conduct
Code (2008) http://studentaffairs.manoa.hawaii.edu/policies/conduct_code/system_scc.php
It is ultimately each student’s responsibility to understand the rules regarding plagiarism and cheating at UH, and
to learn how to avoid such violations. Please note that all ELI writing courses include work concerning this. If you
have questions about this, ask your instructor and/or visit the ELI website:
http://www.hawaii.edu/eli/students/plagiarism.html
Research in the ELI
The ELI is continually reviewing a variety of aspects of the program (including policies, curriculum, and the ELI
Placement Test) in order ensure that our program evolves in ways that help meet ELI students' needs. As a result,
don't be surprised if some of your ELI classes have ongoing research projects.
Additionally, because UH-Manoa is a research university, there is a great deal of research going on every
semester across campus. Students and faculty from the Department of Second Language Studies (SLS) may ask
ELI students or classes to participate in research projects. Some of these projects may be directly related to what
you do in ELI classes, but others may be unrelated. Keep in mind that, with individual projects, you have the
choice of whether to participate or not.
Your Opinion Matters: End-of-semester Course Evaluations
The University of Hawaii requires every class to administer course evaluations at the end of the semester. More
importantly, every student should be given a voice and opportunity to share their opinions and suggestions in
order to improve the courses that they attend and programs that they participate in. The ELI highly values student
input, and your feedback helps to improve the content and delivery of our courses.
If the ELI does not receive many course evaluations, it will have no feedback. Feedback will be valuable to
improve our courses. For these reasons, I strongly encourage you to take a bit of time to complete the course
evaluations. Thank you!
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