|
| |
Course Objectives
The overall goal of this course is to help you develop your abilities to write
effectively on the job. Pursuing this goal, we're going to write a lot, read a lot, and
talk a lot. We'll aim to have each of you produce documents that you will be proud to show
prospective employers or graduate admissions committees--ones that will win their
admiration. In order to accomplish this aim, you will practice
- writing to various audiences and for various purposes (e.g., to inform, to persuade, to
earn goodwill)
- planning and managing short- and long-term writing projects
- drafting, designing, revising, and editing documents
- writing collaboratively (e.g., co-authorship, peer editing)
- designing documents (e.g., layout, formatting, incorporating graphics/visuals into
documents)
- writing ethically and responsibly as a professional and as a member of society
- using technology to aid communication in the workplace
We'll work through two or more drafts of the major assignments in this course. That's
because writing multiple drafts is the best way to achieve an outstanding final product
and it's an excellent way to learn. You'll gain insights about how to revise your drafts
from four sources: reading, class discussion, peer review sessions (in class or out), and
conferences with me.
The peer review sessions deserve special note. In them, we'll look for things the author
has done particularly well, so that we can learn from them. In addition, we will provide
the author with constructive advice about how to make the communication work better, look
more polished, and satisfy more fully its readers' needs, expectations, and desires.
Finally, I want to add that I'd like the course to be fun. I like to write, and I like to
teach writing. I'll try to do everything I can to make our class sessions enjoyable and I
will, as much as possible, let you write on topics of personal or professional interest to
you.
Back to English 303 homepage
Portions of this site are borrowed or adapted from Paul Anderson's web
syllabus, by permission of the author.
|
