Portland Community College | Portland, Oregon

Develops upper-advanced writing skills. Includes grammar and mechanics, and builds upon expository essay styles by introducing outside research. Explores concepts including but not limited to the cultural expectations related to a U.S. academic environment with an increased emphasis on basic research conventions. This is the fifth course of a five-course sequence. Prerequisites: ESOL placement test OR successful completion of ESOL 252 within the past 12 months AND successful completion of OR concurrent enrollment in ESOL 250 and ESOL 254 or higher. Audit available.

Upon completion of the course students should be able to:

1. Use a multi-step process to plan, revise, and edit written work, including tools (e.g., dictionary, thesaurus) and sources to support writing.
2. Use the accepted patterns of organization and clarity common to professional and academic writing.
3. Demonstrate an ability to locate and evaluate potential sources of support for ideas expressed in writing using the Internet, the library, and research databases.
4. Demonstrate an understanding of academic and professional practices for how primary and secondary sources are integrated into writing through the appropriate use of summary, paraphrase, and citation to avoid plagiarizing.
5. Use linguistic knowledge to accurately communicate through writing in professional, civic, and academic situations commonly encountered in the U.S.

Students who successfully complete this course should be able to:

1. Use writing to reflect and clarify thinking and to develop fluency.

2.  Apply critical thinking to writing with an understanding of one’s own cultural filter, using concepts learned in a multi-cultural environment; apply cultural understanding learned in class to examine and appreciate the writing of others.

A. Essays

Write a minimum of five essays, the majority of which are satisfactory*, including:

1. at least two in-class essays

2. at least three out-of-class essays

3. an essay not tied to a particular rhetorical style, some suggestions include:

• reader response or responding to a prompt
• an article for a publication such as The Bridge or The Change Agent

• project proposal for service learning steps (research an organization and its demographics)
• synthesized response to a lecture and correlated media, like a reading or painting
• persuasive essay written in pairs, each student with an opposing viewpoint
• a critique of an opinion piece, noting missing evidence or faulty logic

B. Optional assessment strategies

• personal narrative: reflective essay on ESOL experiences and future plans
• an article similar to New York Times column, “Lives”
• an article similar to “Community Voices” types of pieces in local papers
• description of a graph or chart
• a guidebook (e.g. how to use library as a resource)
• a blog

* explanation of satisfactory attached

A. Grammar and Mechanics

B. Writing Process

C. Rhetorical Styles

D. Critical Thinking Skills

Competencies and Skills

A. Grammar and Mechanics

1. use adverb clauses, adjective clauses, and noun clauses and phrases correctly

2. identify and correct sentence fragments, run-ons, and comma splices

3. use and correct problems with parallel structure

4. use verb tenses and modals competently in the active and passive voice

5. use gerunds and infinitives competently

6. use articles, prepositions, coordinating and correlative conjunctions, and transition words correctly

7. apply punctuation, capitalization, and spelling rules correctly

B. The writing process

1. use prewriting skills, including brainstorming techniques, group discussion of topics, narrowing a topic, and outlining

2. revise and edit (including peer response) multiple drafts

3. develop skills in organizing essays correctly:

a. create a thesis statement

b. create introductions in a variety of styles, each keeping the intended audience in mind

c. develop supporting paragraphs that have clear topic sentences and adequate relevant supporting detail

d. develop ability to evaluate and improve an essay in the areas of coherence and unity of ideas and presentation

4. conference twice with instructor

5. keep a reading/writing journal (optional)

6. use assigned format for papers

7. apply research techniques and conventions, including library research, interviewing, source materials (summarizing, paraphrasing, quoting) and documentation (parenthetical references, list of works cited)

C. Rhetorical Styles

1. competently use at least two of the following rhetorical styles in multiple-paragraph essays: classification, problem/solution, definition and argument

2. write two essays not tied to a particular rhetorical style

3. use outside sources for at least two papers during the term

D. Critical Thinking Skills

1. use supplemental or textbook readings to generate ideas and vocabulary for writing assignments

2. effectively analyze and synthesize information from a variety of sources and form a well-supported thesis

3. appropriately incorporate examples or the thoughts of others and provide source citation

4. avoid plagiarism

5. demonstrate an awareness of audience and purpose

6. distinguish between relevant and irrelevant information

7. distinguish among facts, opinions, and beliefs

8. avoid bias, stereotyping, and inappropriate or emotional language in writing

9. identify topics of equal class for classification

10. distinguish between causes and effects and offer valid solutions

11. define a term or group by specific examples

12. outline and exemplify relevant arguments on an issue

13. refute opposing arguments

14. distinguish between subjective and objective evidence

15. distinguish between a thesis and a statement of fact

16. form a thesis based on assigned readings, or film as text, and support it with details and examples

17. understand the difference between narration/ description and expository writing

18. identify resources to help address personal language issues in order to correct errors independently of tutors or instructors

Explanation of Satisfactory Essays

A satisfactory essay includes the following:

1. selection of a topic worthy of adult communication

2. selection of a rhetorical pattern that integrates well with the chosen thesis

3. appropriate language, detail, and tone showing originality with awareness of audience

4. an introduction which creates interest and fits with the rest of the essay

5. a clear thesis statement

6. paragraph development that thoroughly explains the thesis statement

7. appropriate topic sentences

8. a concluding paragraph

9. unity and coherence

10. seventy percent grammatical accuracy in these areas: verb tense, verb form, sentence form, agreement, word form, word choice, and word order, and punctuation; grammatical errors in other areas should not interfere with understandability

11. precise vocabulary (word form and word choice appropriate to context/ purpose/ audience)

12. appropriate transitions and other connectors

13. sentence variety

In addition to the above general criteria, the following essay-specific criteria will be used:

A satisfactory in-class essay

1. contains at least four paragraphs

2. includes development that is at least 70 percent as thorough as satisfactory out-of-class essays

3. demonstrates the ability to connect writing to a specific reading or readings (in at least one in-class assignment)

A satisfactory out-of-class essay

1. is a minimum of two typed double-spaced pages

2. demonstrates evidence of having been edited and proofread

If the essay includes outside sources, the paper may include all or some of the following:

3. a balance between the student's own voice and the sources

4. competent summarizing and paraphrasing with reference to sources

5. accurate documentation

6. multiple sources

7. library and internet research

8. a works cited page