ESLW 123: Academic Writing for International Undergraduates
Fall 2017 Syllabus
MWF 10-10:50 AM
Anthony Michael Hall, Room 77
John Hughes University
Shermer, Illinois
Shermer, Illinois
Instructor: Krystie Ritchey
Email: krystie@johnhughes.edu
Office location: Molly Ringwald Hall, #16
Office hours: Mondays and Wednesdays, 2-3 PM
Overview: This course is a one-semester course for undergraduate international students at John Hughes University, a 4-year liberal arts institution. The course, which is limited to 15 students per section, is intended for students who have been placed in it as a result of their English Language Proficiency Test scores, have completed the two-semester sequence of Foundations of College Writing for International Students I and II, or who qualify via TOEFL/IELTS score to take Academic English Composition I with domestic students, but feel they would be more comfortable in an ESL class. The main focus of the course is to introduce students to the practices of research-based writing for American academic audiences, such as research paper structure, developing research questions, APA citations, academic tone, and avoiding plagiarism. Additionally, there is a presentation component where students will work to improve their oral skills by crafting a short presentation on their research project.
Course objectives: By the end of this course, students will be able to:
- Write an argumentative essay that effectively incorporates opposing arguments and refutations.
- Conduct and document effective pre-research, which includes choosing a researchable topic, adjusting the scope of the topic, forming a tentative thesis statement, and outlining, and explore their pre-research findings in an exploratory essay.
- Formulate effective search strategy and retrieve relevant articles located in library databases.
- Evaluate sources based on reliability and relevancy.
- Summarize, synthesize and integrate sources in their writing without plagiarism (by paraphrasing, quoting, and summarizing) in APA style.
- Write a research paper, with support from academic sources, that critiques existing solutions or recommends new solutions for a social issue.
- Present their research in a brief oral presentation to their peers.
Required Textbook: Samantha Baker & John Bender, Academic Writing: Skills for Success (1st ed.), 2017. Shermer, Illinois: Ferris Bueller Educational Publishing.
Grade Policy for ESLW Courses:
Students must earn a C- (70%) or better in order to successfully pass the course.
Your grade will be made up by the following components:
ESLW 123 Major Assignments
Argumentative Essay/Diagnostic Revision (Unit 1 Major Assignment)
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15%
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Exploratory Essay (Unit 2 Major Assignment)
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15%
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Annotated Bibliography (Unit 3 Major Assignment)
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15%
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Research Paper (Unit 4 Major Assignment)
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25%
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Oral Presentation
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10%
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Participation and Homework
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5%
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Attendance
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5%
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Writing Reflection Journal
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10%
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Grading Scale:
A+ (97-100%)
|
A (94-96%)
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A- (90-93%)
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B+ (87-89%)
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B (84-86%)
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B- (80-83%)
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C+ (77-79%)
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C (74-76%)
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C- (70-73%)
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D (60-69%)
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F (0-59%)
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Course Outline:
UNIT I: Introduction to Academic Writing
Week 1
M
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1.1: Introduction to the Course
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W
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1.2: Diagnostic Essay (in class)
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F
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1.3: Audience & Purpose
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Week 2
M
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1.4: Persuasive Strategies
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W
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1.5: Responding to Opposition
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F
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1.6: Thesis Statements
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Week 3
M
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1.7: Paragraph Structure (TEA)
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W
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1.8: Writing Coherently & Cohesively
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F
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1.9: Introduction & Conclusion Paragraphs
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Week 4
M
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1.10: Academic Tone
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W
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1.11: Peer Review: Introduction
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F
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1.12: Peer Review: Practice
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UNIT II: Introduction to the Research Process
Week 5
M
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2.1: Overview of Research Papers/Exploratory Essay
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W
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2.2: Choosing a Research Paper Topic
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F
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2.3: Avoiding Plagiarism: Overview
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Week 6
M
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2.4: Introduction to APA In-text Citations
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W
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2.5: Paraphrasing, Summarizing, Quoting
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F
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2.6: Writing Concisely
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Week 7
M
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2.7: Background Brainstorming
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W
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2.8: Critical Thinking
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F
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2.9: Thesis Statements for Research Papers
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Week 8
M
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2.10: Library Resources (Field Trip)
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W
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2.11: Creating an Outline
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F
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2.12: Introduction to APA Reference Page Citations
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UNIT III: Refining and Organizing Research
Week 9
M
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3.1: Overview of the Annotated Bibliography
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W
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3.2: Source Reliability
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F
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3.3: Source Relevancy
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Week 10
M
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3.4: Choosing Sources & Refining Topics
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W
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3.5: Effective Note-taking/Skimming & Scanning
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F
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3.6: Source Summary Writing
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UNIT IV: Writing and Presenting Research Papers
Week 11
M
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4.1: Introduction to Source Synthesis, pt. 1
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W
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4.2: Introduction to Source Synthesis, pt. 2
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F
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4.3: Reporting Verbs & Advanced In-text Citations
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Week 12
M
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4.4: Research Paper Introductions and Conclusions
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W
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4.5: APA Research Paper Formatting
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F
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4.6: Research Paper Workshop Day
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Week 13: THANKSGIVING BREAK
Week 14
M
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4.7: Effective Presentations: Delivery
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W
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4.8: Effective Presentations: Materials
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F
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4.9: Peer Review (In-class)
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Week 15
M
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4.10: Student Presentations, Day 1
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W
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4.11: Student Presentations, Day 2
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F
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4.12: Individual Conferences (NO CLASS)
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