English 1

Introduction to Critical Thinking and Writing

Course Objectives

By the end of this course you will be able to:

Demonstrate reading skills that enable you to identify the thesis and evaluate the supporting evidence of an essay you have read.
Write a well-developed, analytical essay with a clear thesis that unifies and organizes your essay, with supporting evidence and examples to support your thesis.
Analyze and evaluate research sources, and synthesize information from different sources.
Provide documentation of your research, using internal citations and a Works Cited page, employing MLA guidelines.
The actual College SLO language is as follows:

The student will demonstrate the ability to read, comprehend, and analyze college-level writing and respond with thesis-driven analytic essays.

As assessed by: analytic essays, exams.

After defining a topic and using any combination of library, web-based, and/or field research, the student will write a research paper that uses carefully evaluated and well-documented research material to support a clearly articulated thesis.

As assessed by: research paper

This means that in this course you will learn to read and think properly in order to learn how to write. Learning how to write clearly will in turn help you to think clearly, and vice versa.

We shall learn to examine the process which stops us from being able to read and which in turn stops us from being able to write.

We shall explore the structure and machinery of the brain, and its relationship to our thought patterns and how this affects our ability to think and write.

Utilizing several short stories and poems, (and maybe some art and a film) we shall use these 'texts' to jump-start our thinking and our writing along 'academic' lines.

We shall spend time exploring the nature of writing with a thesis, and how the use of a thesis relates to the structure, organization, and the development of an academic paper.

We shall also teach ourselves to see what goes into an academic conclusion to an essay, as well as developing the necessary skills that enable us to see what needs to be done if an essay is to be fully revised.

Having explored the nature of writing in several academic papers we shall work towards a final research paper of a minimum of ten pages, which will be a culmination of all of the skills you have acquired throughout the semester. This paper will also enable you to learn how to find, integrate and cite outside sources of research.

Under California Law it is a Misdemeanor record this class in any format without the instructor’s written approval.

Texts:

Lawrence Driscoll, English Literature (published by Kendall Hunt): available in the bookstore and over the road on Pico at A+R Bookstore.

Graff and Birkenstein They Say/I Say: free PDF here.

Evaluation and Grading:

1. Attendance is mandatory. If you miss more than two classes in a row, I will assume that you have dropped the course and will remove you from my roster. If you decide to drop the class, it is your responsibility to drop and to handle the necessary paperwork through the Administrative Office to ensure that you don’t receive an F in the class.

2. Please be on time for class. Since parking at SMC is somewhat challenging, allow yourself time to get here. Late arrival is a discourtesy to me and to your classmates, and two late appearances will be counted as an absence.

3. Essays: You will write five essays in-class , plus 3 out of class papers, and a final research paper. For take home essays: Do not miss class and drop a paper in either of my mail boxes on campus as I will not accept it. Only papers handed in to me in at the start of class will be accepted. Failure to submit the paper in person in class on the day of the deadline means that you have an F on that paper. If you have to go to the doctor bring me a copy of what you were treated for, including the doctor’s phone number. If someone dies and it interferes with your work bring me a copy of the death certificate. Do not email me your paper expecting me to download it, print it out, and staple it.

Other impromptu papers and quizzes may be written in class. These assignments will be a part of regular classroom activity and I will assume that you have kept up with the reading assigned for the course. I reserve the right to give pop quizzes etc... on any occasion. I also reserve the right to audio record the classes and/or office hours for academic self-assessment purposes.

Before you submit a paper written outside of class always make sure that you have a copy for yourself to keep, and also, keep all graded papers that are returned to you.

4. Exams: There will be one main exam during the semester: the final. In class , 3 hours. Do not confuse this with your final 10 page paper.

Grading:

5 In class essays for 20 points each = 100 points

Final Paper = 30 points

Quizzes: 30 points total (approx 3 of these, 10 each)

Out of class essays= 30 points total ( approx 3, 10 each)

Final Exam = (In class Essay/Comprehension Test) 30 points

Participation: 10.

Attendance: 10.

Total: 240.

If we don't get to do all of this work the grade will be calculated accordingly.

Remember: Don't pressure me for a good grade...pressure yourself.

Students who are 'sporadic' in their attendance can expect that their grades will reflect their absences.

As universities become increasingly competitive, students become more grade conscious. While this is understandable, you should also have realistic expectations about your grade for this course. One who has fulfilled the requirements for the course, even at the cost of a great deal of hard work, is not automatically entitled to an A. Standards for grades here at SMC are what you would expect at UCLA, USC, or any reputable university. Following are some general guidelines for passing grades in this class:

C: C work reflects the average ability of university level students. Students earn C’s by completing all the requirements of the course. They come to class, accomplish the reading, and turn in competently written assignments. Often they participate in discussion. They are developing skill in engaging intellectually with written material and learning to ask questions of it. C papers probably contain less that is insightful or original than A or B papers. Essays and exam answers are sometimes clouded with surface errors or occasional unsupported generalizations. But the writing shows thoughtfulness and general university level skill and fluency.

B: B’s are for good to very good work. Generally, students earn B’s by being prepared for class and participating in discussion. B writing while being free of mechanical errors may demonstrate less complexity of thought and analysis than A work, even while offering a degree of originality and insight.

A: A’s are reserved for excellent, superior work, that is often original, and well-expressed. A students always come to class, participate in class discussions and keep up with the reading as well as asking questions of it. A work demonstrates intellectual curiosity and initiative. A writing is intellectually engaging, well-reasoned, and well-supported; revealing complexity of thought; it is free of mechanical errors.

PLAGIARISM: A plagiarized paper is NOT acceptable, under any circumstances. To plagiarize is to present the work of others as your own. If you use an idea from a secondary source -- a book, an article, Cliff or Monarch notes, or a website-- or from commentary in a textbook, you must document it even if you put the idea into your own words. You may not have others write papers for you and present the work as your own effort. Consequences for plagiarism, a violation of academic integrity, are severe, resulting in failure for the assignment. As your instructor I will also have to place a notice of academic dishonesty with the College Disciplinarian.

Schedule (subject to my decisions to change, alter, revise etc…)

All readings are to be completed for the day on which the class meets. You will be called upon to participate, so make sure you have done the reading! Class participation is a regular part of your college education.

Please keep all of your graded work. Keep everything with my comments on it, and always make back-up copies of essays in progress. Computers have a habit of eating near-completed papers the night before the deadline! Save all work to Google drive (You have it free through SMC) or an email server. "I don't have my essay: its on my hard-drive at home" is no longer a technologically plausible excuse.

Part One: Introductions: You and Your Voice.

Homework : Read Chapter One of my book. Take notes on it: There will be a writing assignment on it. Read Chapter Four of Graff and Birkenstein.

First In-class essay: Wed after Labor Day. I would like you to write in class, handwritten, for about 45 mins on the following prompt:

To what extent do you feel that certain things have shaped your present self? What are they? Have they shaped you in positive or negative ways? Don't just assume that you will write a biographical sketch that is chronological. Try to select maybe three things to work on and to give the essay some focus. I will have a handout in class with some more tips!

Class Library

College Writing Links

1.SMC Grading Rubric Here

2. Harvard Writing Resources

3. How to write an F paper.

4. Review Checklist

5. Works Cited Help: MLA citations

6. MLA Sample page

7. Essay Characteristics

8. Sheridan Baker Thesis Machine

9. Grammar Exercises On Line

Articles on Writing

1. Abrahamson article

2. How to Write a Title for an Academic Paper

3. . Deborah Appleman article

4. Charles King article

Poetry Etc.

1. ‘The Writer’ By Richard Wilbur

2 ‘Digging’ By Seamus Heaney

3. Link to Seamus Heaney Collection

4. ‘St.Kilda’s Parliament’ by Douglas Dunn.

have a look at www.scotlandsimages.com

Apted:

1) Freedland

2) Confino on Apted (You MUST use this one)

3) Apted on JSTOR again

4) Interview with Apted

5) Hackwriters.com on Apted

6) Slate.com on Apted

7) Hudson Review article

8) Richard Kilborn article

9) Peter Wilshire

Background:

Wikipedia on the Up Series

Contemporary Literacy

1. Glynda Hull

2. Ann Pirrie

3. Winch and Wells

4. Davies and Birbili

5. Keller-Cohen

6.Buly and Valencia

Articles for the Gilbert and George Essay

Please use the Tim Marlow video we watched in class, and then feel free to choose whatever you need from these: Try to use at least four articles from this list. In your essay you will also need to select 8-10 pictures from the gallery to focus on. Try to pick a range of pictures in order to make a stronger argument.

1. http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/johntusainterview/gilbertgeorge_transcript.shtml

2. http://www.newmediastudies.com/art/gilbert.htm

3. http://www.tate.org.uk/tateetc/issue9/gilbertandgeorge.htm

4. http://gala.univ-perp.fr/~dgirard/Exposes/gilbertandgeorge/gilbertandgeorge.htm

5. http://www.tate.org.uk/modern/exhibitions/gilbertandgeorge/gg_teacherspack.pdf

6. Another interview with G and G.

7. Gilbert and George on JSTOR.

8. A Collection of Articles etc. from The Guardian newspaper in London (these are short so three of these only equals ONE article)

9. The documentary we saw in class is Tim Marlow with Gilbert and George. You can find the details for it on Amazon here.

English 1

Introduction to Critical Thinking and Writing

Course Objectives

​

By the end of this course you will be able to:

​

Demonstrate reading skills that enable you to identify the thesis and evaluate the supporting evidence of an essay you have read.

Write a well-developed, analytical essay with a clear thesis that unifies and organizes your essay, with supporting evidence and examples to support your thesis.

Analyze and evaluate research sources, and synthesize information from different sources.

Provide documentation of your research, using internal citations and a Works Cited page, employing MLA guidelines.

The actual College SLO language is as follows:

The student will demonstrate the ability to read, comprehend, and analyze college-level writing and respond with thesis-driven analytic essays.

As assessed by: analytic essays, exams.

After defining a topic and using any combination of library, web-based, and/or field research, the student will write a research paper that uses carefully evaluated and well-documented research material to support a clearly articulated thesis.

As assessed by: research paper

This means that in this course you will learn to read and think properly in order to learn how to write. Learning how to write clearly will in turn help you to think clearly, and vice versa.

We shall learn to examine the process which stops us from being able to read and which in turn stops us from being able to write.

We shall explore the structure and machinery of the brain, and its relationship to our thought patterns and how this affects our ability to think and write.

Utilizing several short stories and poems, (and maybe some art and a film) we shall use these 'texts' to jump-start our thinking and our writing along 'academic' lines.

We shall spend time exploring the nature of writing with a thesis, and how the use of a thesis relates to the structure, organization, and the development of an academic paper.

We shall also teach ourselves to see what goes into an academic conclusion to an essay, as well as developing the necessary skills that enable us to see what needs to be done if an essay is to be fully revised.

​

Under California Law it is a Misdemeanor record this class in any format without the instructor’s written approval.

Texts:

Lawrence Driscoll, English Literature (published by Kendall Hunt): available in the bookstore and over the road on Pico at A+R Bookstore.

​

Graff and Birkenstein They Say/I Say: free PDF here.

​

​

Evaluation and Grading:

2. Please be on time for class. Since parking at SMC is somewhat challenging, allow yourself time to get here. Late arrival is a discourtesy to me and to your classmates, and two late appearances will be counted as an absence.

Before you submit a paper written outside of class always make sure that you have a copy for yourself to keep, and also, keep all graded papers that are returned to you.

4. Exams: There will be one main exam during the semester: the final. In class , 3 hours. Do not confuse this with your final 10 page paper.

Grading:

5 In class essays for 20 points each = 100 points

Final Paper = 30 points

Quizzes: 30 points total (approx 3 of these, 10 each)

Out of class essays= 30 points total ( approx 3, 10 each)

Final Exam = (In class Essay/Comprehension Test) 30 points

Participation: 10.

Attendance: 10.

​

Total: 240.

​

If we don't get to do all of this work the grade will be calculated accordingly.

​

Remember: Don't pressure me for a good grade...pressure yourself.

Students who are 'sporadic' in their attendance can expect that their grades will reflect their absences.

​

​

Schedule (subject to my decisions to change, alter, revise etc…)

All readings are to be completed for the day on which the class meets. You will be called upon to participate, so make sure you have done the reading! Class participation is a regular part of your college education.

Part One: Introductions: You and Your Voice.

Homework : Read Chapter One of my book. Take notes on it: There will be a writing assignment on it. Read Chapter Four of Graff and Birkenstein.

First In-class essay: Wed after Labor Day. I would like you to write in class, handwritten, for about 45 mins on the following prompt:

​

​

​

Class Library

College Writing Links

1.SMC Grading Rubric Here

2. Harvard Writing Resources

3. How to write an F paper.

4. Review Checklist

Articles on Writing

2. How to Write a Title for an Academic Paper

3. . Deborah Appleman article

Poetry Etc.

1. ‘The Writer’ By Richard Wilbur

2 ‘Digging’ By Seamus Heaney

3. Link to Seamus Heaney Collection

4. ‘St.Kilda’s Parliament’ by Douglas Dunn.

have a look at www.scotlandsimages.com

Apted:

1) Freedland

2) Confino on Apted (You MUST use this one)

3) Apted on JSTOR again

4) Interview with Apted

5) Hackwriters.com on Apted

6) Slate.com on Apted