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Benjamin Miller email: bmm2104@columbia.

edu o""ice: #10 $ iloso% y &all o""ice ours: MW 4 ' (%m and by a%%ointment

University Writing Englis !1010.024 MW 2:40 ' #:((%m 42( $u%in )abs

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/ e University Writing $rogram see1s to 2elcome and integrate students into t e virtual barrage o" 2ritten e3c ange t at "orms t e intellectual li"e o" t e university. Em% asi4ing critical analysis5 revision5 collaboration5 and researc 5 t is course aims to translate t is academic conversation "rom a source o" an3iety to a source o" stimulation. *ver t e course o" t e semester5 you 2ill read and discuss te3ts "rom a number o" "ields5 com%lete regular in"ormal reading and 2riting e3ercises5 2rite several longer essays5 and underta1e a researc 'based collaborative critical %roject o" your o2n design. / roug %ersistent in6uiry and %ractice5 you 2ill learn s%eci"ic s1ills and "oster general abits o" mind im%ortant to your academic success.

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8ttendance and %artici%ation in all class activities $re%aration o" reading and 2riting e3ercises "or eac class and con"erence !om%letion o" "our "inis ed and titled essays5 eac accom%anied by at least one dra"t *ne grou% %resentation and discussion 9during %rogression t ree: Maintenance o" a %ort"olio 2 ic 2ill contain all o" your essays5 dra"ts5 and in"ormal 2riting5 2 ic 2ill act as t e %rimary source and a%%endi3 "or essay "our

Attendance Because t is class is structured as a seminar5 absences cannot be made u%. ;ou may miss u% to t ree classes 2it out %enalty. . 2ill not distinguis bet2een e3cused and une3cused absences5 o2ever5 so . urge you to save yours "or religious observance5 illness5 etc. ." you e3ceed your allo2ed number o" absences5 you 2ill be %enali4ed on your course grade by one't ird o" a letter "or eac subse6uent missed class. <or e3am%le5 i" you 2ere going to get a "inal grade o" B in t e course5 on t e "ourt absence it 2ould become a B'5 on t e "i"t absence it 2ould become a !=5 and so on. / is is a course'2ide %olicy. Reading Assignments +eadings 2ill be dra2n %rimarily "rom t e library reserves. W ile all t e essays5 articles5 c a%ters5 etc. set aside "or t is course are 2ort reading5 only some 2ill be assigned> direct lin1s

Miller ? syllabus ? %age 2 o" @ to t ese re6uired te3ts 2ill be available on !ourse2or1s. ;ou are res%onsible "or %rinting and reading 2 atever te3t is assigned "or class and "or bringing it 2it you. .n addition5 %lease obtain t e "ollo2ing t2o te3tboo1s: Boot 5 Wayne !.5 Aregory A. !olomb5 and Bose% M. Williams. The Craft of Research. 2nd ed. ! icago: University o" ! icago $ress5 200#.
9!ontains sur%risingly good %resentation o" tec ni6ues5 not only "or conducting library researc 5 but also "or develo%ing and de"ending claims and t eses.:

&ac1er5 -iana. The Bedford Handbook for Writers. Ct ed. 0e2 ;or1: ,t. MartinDs $ress5 2002.
9/ e basic style guide %re"erred by !olumbia University. !ontains advice and guidelines "or sentence construction and grammar5 as 2ell as t e all'im%ortant standards "or citation and documentation.:

Writing Assignments ;ou 2ill do at least t ree ty%es o" 2riting in t is course: exercises5 drafts5 and final essays. / ese assignments connect 2it eac ot er in a develo%mental se6uence . call a progression. We 2ill be 2or1ing on "our %rogressions t is semester5 eac ending in t e submission o" a %articular 1ind o" essay. Exercises: E3ercises include any 1ind o" 2riting t at you do in class or at ome to %ractice s1ills t at you 2ill need "or success"ul com%letion o" t e "inal essay. E3ercises are not essays5 but eac e3ercise 2ill el% you build to2ard your essay dra"t. We 2ill do multi%le 1inds o" in"ormal 2riting in class5 bot %rivate and %ublic5 and a 2ritten ome2or1 e3ercise 2ill be due "or almost every class. / is 2riting includes not only 2or1 you do "or yoursel"5 but also res%onses to ot er studentsD 2riting. E3ercises are not individually graded. Exploratory Drafts: +esearc as s o2n t at success"ul 2riters o"ten discover t eir central idea only a"ter t ey ave 2ritten e3tensively. 8n e3%loratory dra"t does not aim to a%%ro3imate t e essay in its "inal "orm5 but instead attem%ts to de"ine t e %roblem you o%e to solve. / ese dra"ts are li1ely to be messy ' mar1ed by ga%s in t in1ing5 omissions5 and digressions. -ra"ts are not individually graded. Formal Drafts: By contrast to t e e3%loratory 2riting o" t e e3ercises5 your "ormal dra"t 2ill re%resent t e very closest to a "inal %roduct you can come at t at %oint. / is is 2 en t e essay begins to ta1e its "inal s a%e5 and to develo% an argument based on a claim. ;ou s ould be %re%ared5 o2ever5 to ma1e ig 'level adjustments a"ter receiving "eedbac15 %ossibly including t e addition o" ne2 material or e3cision o" o""'to%ic %assages. -ra"ts are not individually graded. Final Essays: *nce you ave received "eedbac1 on your dra"t5 you 2ill %re%are a "inal essay "or a letter grade. ;our "inal essay 2ill li1ely be 6uite di""erent "rom t e %revious dra"ts in "orm5 and o"ten in content5 in %art because t is is t e most %ublic 1ind o" 2riting you 2ill %roduce "or t is course. ;ou s ould al2ays imagine as your readers astute and interested %eo%le 2 o

Miller ? syllabus ? %age # o" @ are largely un"amiliar 2it t e te3ts you 2ill cite as evidence "or your ideas> one o" your tas1s is to el% readers 1no2 2 y your ideas are signi"icant "or someone besides yoursel". 8ll "inal essays must ' develo% an argument in a co erent5 com%elling 2ay ' ave a t oug t"ul beginning5 middle5 and end ' be grammatically correct ' ave a tone a%%ro%riate "or t e intended audience. Assignment Formatting 8ll 2ritten assignments must ' be ty%ed using a standard seri" "ont 9eg. /imes 0e2 +oman: in 12%t5 2it one'inc margins5 double's%aced ' be sta%led5 2it your name and t e %age number 9E o" ;: in t e u%%er rig t corner ' include a 2ord count at t e end o" t e %a%er. ' include a cover %age 9"or "inal essays: or "irst'%age eader 9"or e3ercises and dra"ts: 2it your "ull name5 t e date5 t e assignment number5 and t e course titleFsection number 9Univ. Writing ' Engl !1010.024: .n addition5 t2o co%ies o" t e assignment must be %osted to !ourse2or1s: ' one co%y in your %ersonal %ort"olio ' one co%y on t e discussion board 9e3ce%t 2 en noted: ' "ilenames s ould be "ormatted Gassignmentty%e'%rogressionH'assignmentH'nameI. <or e3am%le5 my res%onse to t e second e3ercise in %rogression one 2ould be e3ercise'1'2'ben.rt" and my "irst "inal essay 2ould be essay'1'ben.rt". Plagiarism - Don't Do It $lagiarism is a serious academic o""ense. &ere is a brie" list "rom t e !olumbia University Handbook 9140'141: o" some o" t e "orms %lagiarism can ta1e. ,ubmitting5 as oneDs o2n5 essays 9or %ortions o" essays: 2ritten by ot er %eo%le> <ailing to ac1no2ledge5 t roug %ro%er "ootnotes and bibliogra% ic entries5 t e sources o" ideas essentially not oneDs o2n> <ailing to indicate5 t roug %ro%er use o" 6uotations and "ootnotes5 %ara% rases o" ideas or verbatim e3%ressions not oneDs o2n5 including materials on t e Web> ,ubmitting 2or1 2ritten "or one course to a second course 2it out aving received %rior %ermission "rom bot instructors> !ollaborating on an assignment or e3amination 2it out s%eci"ic %ermission o" t e "aculty member to do so.

Miller ? syllabus ? %age 4 o" @

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Exercises and Drafts ,ince t ese assignments are designed to el% you develo% and e3%eriment 2it ideas and language5 t ey 2ill not be individually graded. $artici%ation 2ill be noted5 o2ever5 and could a""ect your overall grade "or t e course. .n addition5 you 2ill receive some "orm o" "eedbac1 on all o" your 2riting. . may underline or brac1et te3t5 2rite marginalia5 andFor %ose "ocused 6uestions or comments to dee%en your t in1ing. .n "act5 every class meeting is a res%onse to your e3ercises and dra"ts5 since . also read your 2or1 to 1no2 2 at 2e need to "ocus on as a grou%. Essay Grading ;our "inal essays "or eac %rogression 2ill receive a letter grade5 and t e grade 2ill be based %rimarily on t e 6uality o" t e "inal %roduct. Eac essay 2ill be accom%anied by s%eci"ic grading criteria ' t e t ings .Dll loo1 "or 2 en . grade t e essay. .n general5 t oug 5 eac letter grade signi"ies t e "ollo2ing: J8J essays not only "ul"ill t e goals o" t e %rogression5 but %us beyond t ose goals in sur%rising 2ays. / is is more li1ely to be %ossible 2 en t e 2riter as "ound somet ing com%elling to 2rite about and as ta1en great care to attend to is or er language and "orm. 8 essays re"lect e3cellence and artistry. JBJ essays come in t2o basic varieties: t e Jsolid BJ and t e Jstriving B.J / e solid B is a good5 com%etent %a%er t at su""ers less "rom %oor e3ecution t an "rom limited ambition. / e striving B e3cels in certain areas5 but it is su""iciently uneven to %reclude it "rom receiving an 8. B essays re"lect a su%erior understanding o" t e %rogressionDs goals. J!J essays re"lect di""iculty in "ul"illing t e %rogressionKs goals5 and again5 t ere are t2o 1inds: t e Jsidetrac1ed !J and t e Jstruggling !.J / e "ormer may dis%lay good style and control5 but nonet eless "ails to meet t e re6uirements o" t e %rogression. / e latter does not come toget er 2ell enoug to be a com%etent essay5 even t oug it may s o2 a "air amount o" 2or1. J-J essays ave %roblems similar to t ose o" ! essays5 but com%ounded. J<J essays "ail to meet t e minimum level o" e3%ectations "or t e course. Late and Missed Assignments 8ll assignments must be turned in on time. E3ercises 2ill be discussed in class5 so t at late com%letions can not be made u%. <or late dra"ts5 you 2ill still ave t e o%%ortunity "or revision5 but you may not receive timely or e3tensive comments i" your 2or1 comes in late. 0ote t at e3ercises and dra"ts are designed to build on one anot er> not com%leting any o" t ese assignments 2ill ave a cumulative negative e""ect on your "inal %roduct. 8 late "inal essay 2ill lose 1F# o" a letter grade 9e.g. "rom a B ' to a !=: beginning t e minute a"ter t e deadline. / e grade 2ill continue to go do2n by a t ird every 24 ours until t e essay is submitted.

Miller ? syllabus ? %age ( o" @

." you antici%ate a %roblem5 let me 1no2 as soon as you do5 so t at 2e can 2or1 toget er to best resolve it. T e Fo!r Progressions ;our course 2or1 "or t e semester 2ill be 2eig ted as "ollo2s: $rogression 1: <raming Essay 91(00'2000 2ords:................20L
in 2 ic a term or meta% or is ta1en "rom one te3t to inter%ret5 analy4e5 or ot er2ise e3%lore a second te3t. .t is o"ten 2ort 2 ile to t en re"lect5 elaborate5 or ot er2ise comment on t e use"ulness o" t e com%arison.

$rogression 2: !onversation Essay 91(00'2000 2ords:........2(L


in 2 ic several te3ts or vie2%oints are set against eac ot er so as to advance a ne2 idea not "ound in any o" t e sources alone.

$rogression #: !ollaborative !ritical $roject........................40L


in 2 ic an array o" to%ics are e3%lored in order to enric our understanding o" a common JseedJ te3t. <irst5 "our subject areas are researc ed and %resented in grou%s> "rom t ese broad areas5 individual essays are t en com%osed.

Arou% $resentation...........................................(L .ndividual Essay 92(00'#000 2ords:.............#(L $rogression 4: +etros%ective Essay 91200'1(00 2ords:.......10L
in 2 ic eac studentKs o2n 2riting becomes t e subject o" e3%loration and analysis.

/ e remaining (L 2ill re"lect %artici%ation5 bot in class and on ome2or1.

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!olumbia %rovides students 2 o register 2it t e *""ice o" -isability ,ervices 2it a range o" su%%ort o%tions5 and 2ill %rovide you 2it a letter stating t e accommodations to 2 ic you are entitled5 2it out disclosing any ot er in"ormation about you. ." you 1no2 or believe you mig t ave a disability o" some 1ind5 you may 2ant to ta1e a loo1 at t eir 2eb'site: tt%:FF222. ealt .columbia.eduFodsFne2sFds'%rograms. tml. / e *""ice o" !ounseling and $syc ological ,ervices also %rovides many 1inds o" su%%ort i" you need it. / eir 2eb'site is at tt%:FF222. ealt .columbia.eduFc%sFinde3. tml.

Miller ? syllabus ? %age C o" @

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W at" W ere" W en" #o$" W o" Wor1 2it a tutor on any %iece o" 2riting5 including academic essays5 senior %a%ers5 cover letters5 and a%%lications. Undergraduate Writing $rogram5 #10 $ iloso% y &all. Mon'/ urs: 10'@> <ri: 10'(. ,ign u% "or an a%%ointment or sim%ly come by. 8ny student enrolled in a !olumbia University course.

G!idelines for %t!dents Wor&ing $it T!tors / e goal o" t e Writing !enter is to %roduce better 2riters and t in1ers in t e long term5 not necessarily %er"ect %a%ers in t e s ort term. / ere"ore5 2e encourage you to tal1 2it a tutor early in t e 2riting %rocess. /utors 2ill 2or1 2it you at any stage in t e develo%ment o" your %a%er. ;our tutor 2ill be an advanced graduate student 2it signi"icant training and classroom e3%erience teac ing 2riting at !olumbia. We encourage you to develo% an ongoing relations i% 2it a %articular tutor. / at 2ay5 t e tutor 2ill get to 1no2 you as a 2riter and 2ill be better able to el% you im%rove. &o2ever5 you are 2elcome to come "or dro%'in assistance or to 2or1 2it more t an one tutor. ;ou s ould e3%ect to be actively involved in your tutoring session5 not to sit %assively 2 ile your tutor corrects your %a%er. ;ou s ould consider t e tutoring session an o%%ortunity to ave an in'de%t conversation about your 2or1 2it an e3%erienced reader. 'o!r Res(onsi)ilites !ome on time and be %re%ared. $rovide your tutor 2it a co%y o" your assignment. Bring your notes or your dra"t. W W at To Ex(ect /o 2or1 and t in1. /o be treated 2it res%ect. /o "ocus on areas o" concern to you. /o retain aut ority over your te3t. at *ot To Ex(ect /o ave your essay %roo"read or edited. /o be guaranteed a good grade. /o receive judgments about t e validity o" your grades. /o ave your 2or1 done "or you.

<or more in"ormation5 email u2%tutors@columbia.edu or call 9212: @(4'#@@C ' or just dro% by.

Miller ? syllabus ? %age N o" @

Miller ? syllabus ? %age @ o" @

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Banuary 1O Wednesday <ebruary 2 Wednesday N Monday +, Wednesday 2@ Monday Marc 4 <riday ++ Friday ! "onday $ Wednesday 8%ril C Wednesday 11 Monday 1@ Monday -- Friday 2( Monday May 2 Monday / Wednesday "irst day o" class e3%loratory dra"t due5 essay 1 "ormal dra"t due5 essay 1 essay + d!e at +(m e3%loratory dra"t due5 essay 2 "ormal dra"t due5 essay 2 essay - d!e at +(m spring break # no class spring break # no class e3%loratory dra"t due5 essay # "irst "ormal dra"t due5 essay # second "ormal dra"t due5 essay # essay . d!e at +(m second day o" $assover ' class 2ill meet last day o" class essay / d!e at +(m

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