Composition I

This course is described in the catalogue as an “introduction to the rhetorical, conceptual and stylistic demands of writing at the university level [including] composing processes, search strategies, and writing from sources.” Because this class is part of the Selected Studies Program, it’s structured so that you take the initiative in your own learning, assess your writing strengths and weaknesses, and make decisions concerning your own projects.

You’ll be reading essays on issues of immediate importance in Hawai‘i: homelessness, the military, the prison system, law enforcement, the cultural arts, energy policies, Hawaiian culture, public education, transportation, the university, and more. Class discussion of essays in THE VALUE OF HAWAI‘I: KNOWING THE PAST, SHAPING THE FUTURE will add to your knowledge of current conditions in our state, and help you to write your own strongly-positioned essays.

To accomplish this, you’ll need a commitment

  1. to engage actively in discussions with instructor and peers
  2. to critique each other’s writing
  3. to make site visits to explore historical, political, and cultural resources on O‘ahu
  4. to want to learn about university-level scholarship.

Required Texts

UH Bookstore

  • THE VALUE OF HAWAI‘I: KNOWING THE PAST, SHAPING THE FUTURE. Eds. Craig Howes and Jon Osorio. Honolulu: UH Press, 2010
  • THE MLA HANDBOOK FOR WRITERS OF RESEARCH PAPERS. 7TH ED. NY: Modern Language Association of America, 2009.

Required Writing

  1. Portfolio of self-assessments
  2. A series of short essays based on workshop sessions, which increasingly incorporate primary- and secondary-source material
  3. A final project based on argument and research. You choose the subject and the thesis. Your essay will be included in our own essay collection, KNOWING THE PAST, SHAPING THE FUTURE: FROM THE PERSPECTIVE OF ENGLISH 100A/FALL 2010 CLASS MEMBERS.