Composition I

Composition in more
than just writing. It describes a set of important critical thinking
skills, such as summarizing, evaluating, organizing, and arguing, which we
communicate through writing and speaking. In this course we will identify the
features of critical thinking that are important in college, and
practice using them for a range of academic purposes. At the end of
the course, you should be able to articulate not only how well you
understand a given piece of writing, but also what you would need to
do to understand it further.

This course will be organized
in short units that a) identify specific critical thinking skills, b)
enable students to learn those skills through investigation and
problem solving, and c) move students to the point where they can
express those skills by writing about important topics. In other words, we will focus on
learning how to think, and practice putting our thoughts into words.
There will be a significant reading component to this class, along
with hands-on learning in class and tutorials on research and
research methodologies. Finally, there will be a major emphasis on
learning how to evaluate your own writing.

In addition to
learning a set of critical thinking and critical writing skills which
will apply broadly to your college experience, the second half of the
semester will present you with significant opportunities to explore
how writing is used in your field(s) of interest. Writing might not
be easy, but it can be satisfying – if we learn how to make it
useful.

Texts

Readings will be
provided by the instructor as necessary. Students will need to
purchase a dictionary, available at Revolution Books.

Assignments

– Homework: reading
responses, skills practice, journalling

– In-class
investigations that assess whether you’ve learned a particular
skill(s)

– One personal essay

– One research essay

– Two
self-assessments (midterm and end of term)

Attendance and
participation are also required for this course. You should expect
to work actively in class in small or large groups, and you should
expect this course to be challenging. But fun – all hitchhikers are welcome.