COURSE OUTLINE

October 2002

Course Number: ENGLISH 826

Course Title: BASIC WRITING SKILLS

Units: 3 units.

Hours: Five class hours per week.

Course Prerequisite: None.

Corequisite: READ 826 if indicated by college Reading Placement Test. Recommended: Eligibility for READ 826 and ENGL 826 by appropriate scores on college placement tests and other measures as necessary.

Course Classification: Credit course not applicable for the Associate Degree.

Catalog Description:
A course in basic writing focusing on paragraph and essay organization, sentence skills, reading and text-based writing. Students will be assigned in-class and outside writing assignments and exercises, individual conferences, tutoring. English 826 prepares students for English 836.

Specific Instructional Objectives:
During the semester students are expected to learn the following:

A. Develop and organize ideas into paragraphs and essays

B. Revise, edit and proofread

C. Read and write from text

D. Vary sentences in type and structure

E. Write using a variety of rhetorical modes

By the end of the semester students should be able to write effective, coherent, unified paragraphs within fully developed essays relatively free of errors.

Course Content:
ENGL 826 includes instruction in the following areas:

A. Paragraph and essay writing

.......1. Pre-writing activities

....... 2. Supporting details and analysis

....... 3. Organization: unity and coherence

....... 4. Topic sentences/thesis statements

....... 5. Introductions and conclusions

....... 6. Revision, editing and proofreading

....... 7. Sentence combining

....... 8. Personal writing to text-based writing, including integrating, quoting, paraphrasing and citing sources as well as
....... analysis and interpretation of textual content

....... 9. Introduction to essay forms, including narrative, compare/contrast, cause-effect, definition, exemplification,
....... classification, argument, introduction to research

B. Reading (emphasis on non-fiction)/critical thinking

....... 1. Distinguishing between main ideas and supporting details

....... 2. Understanding relationships between ideas

....... 3. Recognizing tone, strategies and rhetorical devices

....... 4. Distinguishing between fact and opinion

....... 5. Outlining, paraphrasing and summarizing readings

....... 6. Reflecting, analyzing and connecting ideas

....... 7. Analyzing organizational patterns

....... 8. Using logical reasoning

....... 9. Examining assumptions about themselves and the world

C. Proofreading and editing for the following:

....... 1. Fragments and run-together sentence structure

....... 2. Verb tenses and subject/verb agreement

....... 3. Punctuation and capitalization

....... 4. Pronoun, adjective and adverb use

Methods of Instruction:
Lecture/discussion, small group instruction, individual exercises and writing practice, individual work with the instructor, computer-assisted instruction, in-class writing, use of media, textbook, and practice activities.

Substantial guidance in the writing process from sentence to paragraph to essay. It is suggested that students write 2,500-3,000 words during the semester, usually in compositions of 500+ words. Reading and writing will be done primarily outside of class.

Suggested Text(s):
Some suggested rhetorics and handbooks are English Skills by John Langan, Real Writing by Susan Ankar, Process and Practice by Philip Eggers, and The Least You Should Know About English by Teresa Ferster Glazier.

Include non-fiction and fiction selections and, possibly, one full-length text.

Some suggested readers and book-length works are Readings Across American Cultures by Gillotte and Gregory, Always Running by Luis Rodriguez, House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou, and Maggie's American Dream by Comer.

Evaluation of Student Performance:
Letter grade based on satisfactory completion of writing tasks, quizzes, conscientious attendance, and effective participation.