English 110.

01 | Spring 2012
What We Talk About When We Talk About Difference: The Rhetoric of Othering in America
Class Meets: Tuesdays, 316 Denney Hall; Thursdays, 206 Central Classrooms | 9:30-11:18am Instructor: Silas Charles Hansen, hansen.312@osu.edu Office Hours/Location: T 11:30-12:30/Th 11:30-1:30pm | 461 Denney Hall (or by appointment) Course Description and Objectives In this first-year writing course, you will develop your capacity for undertaking academic research and analysis through an original research project and presentation of the results of your work to an audience of your peers. You will identify an area of interest within our course themeThe Rhetoric of Otheringand you will find materials to analyze, develop analytical research questions, explore secondary texts, and make claims that are connected to the evidence you have discovered. As many researchers do at this stage in their work, you will then reframe what you have learned for a public audience. You will write a short, persuasive article with the goal of publication in Commonplace, for which you will also serve as an editor. Over the course of the quarter, you will also supplement your work as a writer through responses to prompts in a class blog. These responses will provide additional practice at key skills and serve as the basis for several classroom activities and discussions. In terms of our specific course theme, we will look at a variety of primary sources including, but not limited to: television shows, movies, music videos, song lyrics, short stories, poems, advertisements and analyze the way they talk about difference in American culture. Based on these analyses, we will draw conclusions about the ways in which we, as a culture, talk about differences based on race, ethnicity, religion, socioeconomic class, sexuality, gender identity, etc. After researching what the experts have to say on the subject, we will use those secondary sources to support or complicate our conclusions. We will also look at the differences between academic and public writing and try different rhetorical techniques based on audience and purpose through The Blog Project, Commonplace, and in-class writing assignments. Goals and Objectives for the General Education Curriculum Writing and Related Skills coursework develops students skills in written communication and expression, reading, critical thinking, and oral expression. 1. Students apply basic skills in expository writing. 2. Students demonstrate critical thinking through written and oral expression. 3. Students retrieve and use written information analytically and effectively. Specific Learning Outcomes 1. Students learn the conventions and challenges of academic discourse. 2. Students can read critically and analytically.

Required Materials Rossenwaser, David & Jill Stephen.Writing Analytically 6th ed. Boston: Thomson, 2012. Commonplace Online Users Manual (purchased online at http://www.commonplaceuniversity.com/ -- instructions for purchasing are available on Carmen) Readings posted to Carmen website (you must have access to readings during each class meeting, either in hard copy or digitally) Course Requirements During the quarter, you will complete several major assignments designed to build on each other intellectually and conceptually. These assignments are: Analytical Research Project Primary Source Analysis Annotated Bibliography Analytical Research Paper 50% 10% 10% 30%

Skills: Identification of appropriate primary sources for analysis, accessing university library databases, application of analytical frameworks and rhetorical methods, analysis of primary and secondary sources, synthesis of multiple critical viewpoints into new interpretations, thesis development, composing process, style and grammar. The Blog Project 15%

Skills: Transfer of analytical skills to new genres and media, contribute meaningfully in writing to ongoing thematic discussion. Commonplace Essay 10%

Skills: Making appropriate rhetorical decisions to reframe the results of academic research for a new audience, understanding genre expectations, revising, style and grammar. Peer-Editing for Commonplace 10%

Skills: Editorial editing, responding to author with clear and practical advice, suggesting revision for publication. Participation 15%

Skills: Active participation in discussion, in-class writing, productive collaboration, respect for classmates and instructor.

Course Policies Attendance is important to the success of this class and to your development as a writer. Therefore, each unexcused absence after two will result in the lowering of your final grade by one-third of a letter grade (for example, from a B+ to a B). Excused absences, such as those for contagious or debilitating illness, family tragedy, religious observance, or travel for intercollegiate athletics, will not affect your grade. I reserve the right to require documentation for any excused absence. It is your responsibility to contact me as soon as possible if you miss class. It is program policy that five unexcused absences will automatically result in failure of English 110. Participation grades like all other grades are earned by student, not awarded by the instructor. To earn an A for participation, students must arrive on time to each class (unless excused), participate productively and respectfully in class discussion, come prepared with all required materials, having completed all reading and writing assignments for that class and remain mentally present throughout class. Tardiness is disruptive to the classroom environment, and prevents you from fully participating and understanding information and class discussion. Excessive tardiness will lower your participation grade. If you are more than thirty minutes late for class, you will be marked as absent for that day. Plagiarism is the unauthorized use of the words or ideas of another person. It is a serious academic offense that can result in referral to the Committee on Academic Misconduct and failure of the course. Faculty Rule 3335-5-487 states, It is the responsibility of the Committee on Academic Misconduct to investigate or establish procedures for the investigation of all reported cases of student academic misconduct. The term academic misconduct includes all forms of student academic misconduct wherever committed, illustrated by, but not limited to, cases of plagiarism and dishonest practices in connection with examinations. Instructors shall report all instances of alleged academic misconduct to the committee. Student Work should be turned in at the time indicated on the syllabus and in the format designated by the instructor (in other words, if I say to submit to the drop box, do not email it or turn in a hard copy; if I request a hard copy, do not email it or submit to a drop box). Late submission of an assignment will result in the deduction of one full letter grade for each day past the due date (for example, B+ to C+). Important Note: All work turned in via the Carmen drop box must be in either .doc or .docx format. Microsoft Word is available on public computers throughout campus, and you can also download Open Office, a free word processing program, which will save work in these file formats. I will email you if your work is in an unacceptable format and you will have 24 hours to upload a new file before the late work policy goes into effect.

Class Cancelation Policy: If class is canceled due to emergency, I will contact you via email and request that a note be placed on the door. In addition, I will contact you as soon as possible following the cancelation to let you know what will be expected of you for our next class meeting. Notes Regarding Email: I make every effort to respond to email in a timely fashion, but please allow up to 24 hours for a response on weekdays and up to 48 hours on weekends. In other words, do not wait until the last minute. I will not discuss grades via email. You must make an appointment to speak to me in office hours. Work submitted via email will not be accepted under any circumstances. All work must be submitted via the appropriate Carmen drop box, or in hard copy, as indicated by the instructor. If you have trouble accessing the Carmen drop box, you must email me the assignment before the due date/time, but you must still upload it to the Carmen drop box as soon as you are able. As you will find throughout the quarter, I am a bit of a tech-nerd and am very interested in the use of digital media in the classroom, so we will do quite a bit of this throughout the quarter. With that in mind, I do not have a no electronic devices policy, but I do hope that we can use them in respectful and productive ways (e.g., to aid in class discussion) and avoid some of the more problematic uses (e.g., texting or using Facebook during class). I will ask you to put them away if it becomes a problem, but I hope that we can have a welcoming environment toward technology.

Resources The Ombudsman of the Writing Programs, Matthew M. Cariello, mediates conflicts between instructors and students in the Writing Programs courses, including 110 and 367. His Spring 2012 office hours in Denney Hall 441 are MW 11:30-1 and TR 1-3. Other times are available by appointment. Phone: 292-5778 or email: cariello.1@osu.edu. All conversations with the Ombudsman are confidential. The OSU Writing Center is available to provide free, professional writing tutoring and consultation. You may set up an appointment by visiting http://cstw.osu.edu/writingcenter. We all have different learning styles, strengths, weaknesses, and varying abilities. Whether or not your needs are documented with someplace like the Office of Disability Services (http://ods.osu.edu), it is my intent to make the classroom an accessible, safe, positive space for all students. Please let me know as early as possible in the term if theres anything I can do to help maximize your participation and access in the course.

Daily Schedule Day 1: Tuesday 3/27 Denney 316 In class: introductions, syllabus/course overview, begin First Day Writing Assignment Assignments: First Day Writing Assignment due to Carmen drop box by 5pm on Wed. 3/28, read Drinking Coffee Elsewhere by ZZ Packer (on Carmen) Day 2: Thursday 3/29 Central Classrooms 206 In class: course theme, intro to rhetorical analysis, talk about Primary Source Analysis Assignments: read Chapter 1 (Introduction: Fourteen Short Takes on Writing and the Writing Process) and Chapter 2 (Toolkit of Analytical Methods I: Seeing Better, Seeing More pages 24-35 [Part A, sections 1-3] and pages 42-50 [Part B]) of Writing Analytically, bring two possible primary sources to class on Tues. 4/3 Day 3: Tuesday 4/3 Denney 316 In class: rhetorical analysis (continued), connecting claims and primary evidence Assignments: read chapter 6 (Making Interpretations Plausible), chapter 8 (Reasoning from Evidence to Claims pages 166-171 [Part A]) of Writing Analytically Day 4: Thursday 4/5 Central Classrooms 206 In class: claims & primary evidence (continued), research questions Assignments: Primary Source Analysis due to Carmen drop box by noon on Sat. 4/7, read chapter 8 (Reasoning from Evidence to Claims pages 172-182 [Part B]) of Writing Analytically, Blog Post #1 due by noon on Mon. 4/9 Day 5: Tuesday 4/10 Denney 316 In class: secondary sources, talk about Annotated Bibliography, intro to academic research, sign up for individual conferences Assignments: read chapter 14 (Finding, Citing, and Integrating Secondary Sources pages 283-295 [Part A]), chapter 2 (Toolkit of Analytical Methods I: Seeing Better, Seeing More pages 36-42 [Part A, sections 3 and 4]) of Writing Analytically Day 6: Thursday 4/12 Central Classrooms 206 In class: finding, reading, and evaluating secondary sources Assignments: bring your three possible secondary sources to class on Tues. 4/17, read chapter 13 (Using Sources Analytically: The Conversation Model) of Writing Analytically, Blog Post #2 due by noon on Mon. 4/16, come to individual conference Day 7: Tuesday 4/17 Denney 316 In class: finding, reading, and evaluating secondary sources (continued) Assignments: read chapter 14 (Finding, Citing, and Integrating Secondary Sources pages 296-297 [Part B] and pages 306-309 [Part C, section 4 & Part D]) of Writing Analytically

Day 8: Thursday 4/19 Central Classrooms 206 In class: MLA citations, formatting the Annotated Bibliography Assignments: Annotated Bibliography due to Carmen drop box by 5pm on Sun. 4/22, read chapter 10 (Using Evidence to Build a Paper: 10 on 1) of Writing Analytically, Blog Post #3 due by noon on Mon. 4/23 Day 9: Tuesday 4/24 Denney 316 In class: talk about Analytically Research Paper, integrating secondary sources Assignments: read chapter 11 (Making a Thesis Evolve) and chapter 12 (Recognizing and Fixing Weak Thesis Statements) of Writing Analytically Day 10: Thursday 4/26 Central Classrooms 206 In class: thesis statements, connecting claims and secondary evidence Assignments: read chapter 15 (Forms and Formats Across the Curriculum pages 317-319 [selections from Part A], 323-347 [Parts B, C, and D]) and sample Analytical Research Paper (on Carmen), Blog Post #4 due by noon on Mon. 4/30 Day 11: Tuesday 5/1 Denney 316 In class: thesis statements (continued), organizing the Analytical Research Paper Assignments: read chapter 16 (Introductions and Conclusions Across the Curriculum pages 349-352, 356-371) Day 12: Thursday 5/3 Central Classrooms 206 In class: introductions and conclusions Assignments: Analytical Research Paper due (hard copy and to the Carmen drop box) on Tues. 5/8 IN CLASS Day 13: Tuesday 5/8 Denney 316 In class: moving from academic to public writing, introduction to Commonplace Assignments: read chapter 9 (Analyzing Arguments) of Writing Analytically and introduction (Timely, Compelling, and Relevant) and chapter 1 (The Importance of Being Timely) of Commonplace User Manual Day 14: Thursday 5/10 Central Classrooms 206 In class: writing for a public audience/Commonplace Assignments: read chapters 2 (Arguments) and chapter 2.5 (Arguments: Ethos and the Public Persona) of User Manual, Blog Post #5 due by noon on Mon. 5/14 Day 15: Tuesday 5/15 Denney 316 In class: writing for a public audience/Commonplace Assignments: read chapter 3 (The Importance of Being Relevant) of User Manual

Day 16: Thursday 5/17 Central Classrooms 206 In class: writing for a public audience/Commonplace Assignments: Commonplace Essay due to Carmen drop box by 5pm on Thurs. 5/17, read chapter 4 (Being a Commonplace Editor) of User Manual, Blog Post #6 due by noon on Mon. 5/21 Day 17: Tuesday 5/22 Denney 316 In class: Commonplace Workshop I Assignments: read assigned Commonplace Essay (on Carmen) Day 18: Thursday: 5/24 Central Classrooms 206 In class: Commonplace Workshop 2 Assignments: Commonplace Individual Memos due to Carmen drop box by 9am on Thurs.5/29 Day 19: Tuesday 5/29 Denney 316 In class: Commonplace Workshop 3 Assignments: Blog Project Reflections due to Carmen drop box by 5pm on Wed. 5/30 Day 20: Thursday 5/31 Central Classrooms 206 In class: Course Evaluations, wrap-up