Academic Catalog

ENGL 1A: COMPOSITION & READING

Foothill College Course Outline of Record

Foothill College Course Outline of Record
Heading Value
Effective Term: Summer 2021
Units: 5
Hours: 5 lecture per week (60 total per quarter)
Prerequisite: Demonstrated proficiency in English by placement via multiple measures OR through an equivalent placement process OR completion of ESLL 125 & ESLL 249.
Corequisite: For students who do not meet the prerequisite requirement, concurrent enrollment in ENGL 246A or ESLL 201A or NCEN 401A is required, depending on placement by multiple measures.
Advisory: Not open to students with credit in ENGL 1AH; students may enroll in ENGL 1A or 1T, but not both, for credit.
Degree & Credit Status: Degree-Applicable Credit Course
Foothill GE: Area II: English
Transferable: CSU/UC
Grade Type: Letter Grade (Request for Pass/No Pass)
Repeatability: Not Repeatable

Student Learning Outcomes

  • Students can articulate and develop a main idea at paragraph level.
  • Students can integrate information from texts to develop a main idea.
  • Students can articulate a main idea at essay level.
  • Student can make inferences from college-level texts.
  • Students can develop a main idea at the essay level.

Description

Techniques and practice of expository and argumentative writing based on critical reading and thinking about texts. Reading focused primarily on works of non-fiction prose, chosen to represent a broad spectrum of opinions and ideas, writing styles, and cultural experiences. Fulfills the Foothill College reading and composition requirement for the AA/AS degree and the university-transfer general education requirement in English reading and written composition.

Course Objectives

The student will be able to:
Writing
A. Write extended expository text-based compositions on readings and class discussion.
B. Formulate an arguable thesis and substantiate it through analysis, logical and systematic organization, supporting evidence, and clarity of expression.
C. Use diction and tone appropriate to the academic community and the purpose of the specific writing task.
D. Proofread for errors in language and mechanics to the degree that the nature and frequency of errors do not become distracting.
E. Use techniques of research, especially textual citations and MLA documentation.
Reading
A. Analyze college-level expository, narrative, and argumentative non-fiction prose written on a level of difficulty equivalent to the public letters of Martin Luther King, Jr. ("Letter from the Birmingham Jail"), the social commentary of Joan Didion ("Slouching Towards Bethlehem"), the essays of Richard Rodriguez ("Toward an American Language").
B. Comprehend and evaluate the author's line of reasoning, the overall main point, and the kind of evidence or development presented.
C. Identify the author's intended audience and rhetorical purpose for addressing that audience.
D. Draw comparisons to other works.
E. Draw reasoned inferences based on careful reading of a text.
F. Recognize differences in value systems based on culture in a given text.

Course Content

Writing
A. Write a total of at least 6000 words: Thesis-based compositions increasing in length and complexity, the shortest of which will be 500 words
B. Focus on writing about course readings:
1. Paraphrasing
2. Summarizing
3. Synthesizing
4. Quoting and documenting (MLA)
C. Focus on writing as process (discovery and synthesis):
1. Invention, generation, collection of ideas
a. Discussion, brainstorming, journal-keeping
b. Mapping, outlining
2. Organization, development, concession
3. Formulation of arguable thesis
4. Drafting, revision, editing
D. Focus on writing as product:
1. Synthesis of texts and student ideas
2. Rhetorical features (structure, analysis, insight)
3. Readability
4. Volume
5. On-task
E. Focus on patterns of error and methods of correction
F. Focus on variety of sources (print/non-print/electronic) with evaluation of credibility and relevance of same
Reading
A. Read a minimum of two book-length works (including anthologies), supplemented at instructor's discretion by additional readings, handbook, reference, and/or rhetoric
B. Complete a sequence of reading assignments arranged in order of relatively less difficult to more complex, taking into consideration such factors as overall number of words or pages, complexity of syntax, level and range of vocabulary
C. Analyze prose for:
1. Main idea, support, organizational pattern
2. Rhetorical form, style, voice, and purpose
3. Genre and cultural context
4. Basic concepts of critical thinking
a. Assumptions from which arguments are developed
b. Logical use of evidence
c. Internal consistency
D. Determine how the author's assumptions on the reader's background knowledge/experience and the author's purpose contribute to the organization of the text
E. Examine connections among resources, e.g., personal experiences, course texts, and other materials
F. Evaluate points of view, development of arguments, and ideas in texts
G. Analyze the effects of culture on written form and content

Lab Content

Not applicable.

Special Facilities and/or Equipment

When taught as a fully online course, the faculty shall employ one or more of the following methods of regular, timely, and effective student/faculty contact:
A. Private messages within the course management system
B. Personal email outside of the course management system
C. Telephone contact/weekly announcements in the course management system
D. Chat room within the course management system
E. Timely feedback and return of student work (tasks, tests, surveys, and discussions) in the course management system by methods clarified in the syllabus
F. Discussion forums with appropriate facilitation and/or substantive instructor participation
G. E-portfolios/blogs/wiki for sharing student works in progress; provide feedback from fellow students and faculty in a collaborative manner, and to demonstrate mastery, comprehension, application, and synthesis of a given set of concepts
H. Field trips

Method(s) of Evaluation

Methods of Evaluation may include but are not limited to the following:

Journals
Tests and quizzes
Write a total of at least 6,000 words: a minimum of three untimed, formal essays (in-class or online) and two timed, informal essay exams (in-class or online)
Final examination: a composition or other written project to be completed within the allotted two hour period

Method(s) of Instruction

Methods of Instruction may include but are not limited to the following:

Lectures
Discussions
Structured small-group-exercises

Representative Text(s) and Other Materials

At least two full-length books (including an anthology), primarily focusing on non-fiction; supplemented at instructor's discretion with additional readings or handbook.

A. The following are suggested rhetorics/anthologies for the course:
1. Behrens and Rosen. Writing and Reading Across the Curriculum. New York: Longman, 2016.
2. Graff and Berkenstein. They Say/I Say: The Moves that Matter in Academic Writing with Readings. New York: Norton, 2018.
B. The following are suggested single author non-fiction books for the course:
1. Douglass, Frederick. A Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass. New York: Norton Critical Editions, 2016.
2. Gladwell, Malcolm. David and Goliath: Underdogs, Misfits, and the Art of Battling Giants. New York: Little, Brown, 2015.
3. Mock, Janet. Surpassing Realness: What My Twenties Taught Me. New York: Atria Books, 2017.
4. Noah, Trevor. Born a Crime: Tales from a South African Childhood. New York: John Murray, 2016.
5. Tufekci, Zeynep. Twitter and Teargas: The Power and Fragility of Networked Protest. New Haven: Yale, 2018.
6. Yunnus, Muhammad. A World of Three Zeros. New York: Hachette, 2017.

Types and/or Examples of Required Reading, Writing, and Outside of Class Assignments

A. Reading non-fiction essays and at least one book-length non-fiction work
B. Journal responses to assigned readings
C. Formal academic written analysis of assigned readings

Discipline(s)

English