Portland Community College | Portland, Oregon

Students will be able to work through multiple drafts of several pieces of writing with time to separate the acts of writing and revising. In addition, students will be able to read, reread, reflect, respond to, interpret, analyze, and evaluate a variety of texts.
Upon completion of Writing 121 with a C or better, students will be able to work through multiple drafts of several pieces of writing with time to separate the acts of writing and revising. In addition, students will be able to read, reread, reflect, respond to, interpret, analyze, and evaluate a variety of texts.

Upon completion of this course students should be able to:
1. Apply rhetorical concepts through analyzing and composing a variety of texts.
2. Engage texts critically, ethically, and strategically to support writing goals.
3. Develop flexible composing, revising, and editing strategies for a variety of purposes, audiences, writing situations, and genres.
4. Reflect on knowledge and skills developed in this course and their potential applications in other writing contexts.
5. Enhances the experience of the traditional WR121 course by enabling students to use critical thought to recognize explicit and implicit assumptions in written materials; articulate connections and relationships among course materials; employ leadership skills to organize and problem solve in group settings; and apply principles of meta-cognition to visual, written, and/or oral sources.

• Students read, reread, reflect, respond to, interpret, analyze, and evaluate a variety of texts. Students compose several essays using a variety of strategies to present evidence in support of a thesis.
• The instructor guides students’ writing development via written feedback and individual conferences.
• Class presentations on independent projects provide the course with additional source material.

Reading and writing assessment tasks will include the following—
* At least one essay with sustained development (1,500-2,000 words) which explores multiple facets of a controlling idea and reaches a significant conclusion. One paper must include outside research with properly documented and integrated sources.
* Two out-of-class conferences.
Reading and writing assessment tasks may include the following—
* Instructor and peer evaluation.
* Presentations by individuals and groups.
* Peer analysis.
* Self-analysis.
* Examinations and Quizzes.
* In-class essays.
* Evaluation of small- and full-group discussion.
Portfolio of course writings and essays.
Attendance policies vary with instructors: Students missing a week's worth of classes may not expect an A; those missing two weeks' worth may not pass the course.

* Implicit/explicit thesis
* Audience
* Paragraphing
* Evidence/support
* Concrete detail
* Writing as a process
* Peer review
* Generating ideas/topic selection
* Diction/tone/voice
* Proper grammar usage
* Writing modes
* Writing as a method of inquiry
* Personal/reflective essay
* Thesis statement/topic sentences
* Critical reading of a variety of texts
* Proper documentation; use and methods of research; evaluating and incorporating sources; selection, editing, placement and analysis of quotations
* Use of rhetorical strategies, persuasion, logic, and reasoning; awareness of audience
Competencies and Skills
* Understanding distinct conventions of various writing situations and modes of writing
*Awareness of writing as a process
*Identifying a writer’s stated or implied central and secondary ideas
*Summarizing and paraphrasing ideas presented in a text other than one’s own
*Developing and organizing a text by using details, examples, data, metaphor
*Critically analyzing reading for assumptions, purposes, style, logic, and general use or misuse of rhetorical and argumentative forms
*Developing skills in observation, description, analysis, research, and/or the creative process for use in writing
*Editing texts for appropriate grammar
*Documenting using MLA; awareness of other citation styles
*Using writing as a method of inquiry
*Articulating an understanding of the works of other writers within a given historical, cultural, or social context
*Speaking and listening reflectively
*Applying appropriate techniques for exploring assumptions and expressing viewpoints
*Measuring a writer’s viewpoint against personal experiences and the experiences of others
*Understanding self as part of a larger community
*Appreciating and reflecting on new ideas in a spirit of open interaction
*Appraising own writing skills and abilities, and those of others through revision process
*Revising written work from peer or instructor feedback to achieve clarity, coherence, and effectiveness
*Seeking knowledge and acquiring skills toward achieving academic, career, and personal goals
*Researching independently and incorporating of outside sources within student writing.
*Classroom leadership
*Meta-cognition
*Independent inquiry
*Interdisciplinary integration