This course will enhance writing skills necessary for college, the workforce, and beyond. Throughout this course, we will examine a variety of media sources related to the communities around us to enhance our skills as critical readers and writers. This community exploration will be through essays, short stories, poems, videos, and other forms of media. This course includes instruction in the composing process and practice in various kinds of writing, including analysis, interpretation, and research writing from sources. By the end of the course, students will complete a minimum of 5000 words of finished prose. Writing assignments will incorporate a process of prewriting, drafting, revising, and polishing drafts. Students will receive feedback on a regular basis throughout the semester, both from your peers and instructor, in addition to anyone else you trust with your writing. Research techniques will be covered to help everyone build on source integration and better develop synthesis skills. This is not a lecture-based course. Activities, film clips, and peer workshops are valuable and vital to our class sessions.
The major writing assignments will consist of four essays of original thought: narrative, analysis, community-engaged research, and global research. Each essay will range in length from approximately 250-1500 words. Typing is required for all assignments outside of class.