The student will be able to:
Writing
A. Write extended expository text-based compositions, including a research paper, that synthesize readings and extend ideas gained from 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. Use a variety of sentence structures.
E. Use vocabulary appropriate to audience and the sophistication of the writing task.
F. Proofread for, and revise, errors in language and mechanics to the degree that the nature and frequency of errors do not become distracting.
G. Use research techniques, textual citations, and MLA documentation.
H. Produce a collaborative report in a written or multi-media format.
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. Critique texts and sources.
G. Recognize differences in value systems based on culture in a given text.
H. Apply academic ideas and theoretical models to personal and real-life experience.

Writing
A. Write a total of at least 8,000 words: Thesis-driven compositions, the shortest of which will be 750 words, and journal responses to assigned readings
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, to include:
a. Discussion, brainstorming, journal-keeping
b. Mapping, outlining
2. Organization, development, concession and other argument strategies
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 the following:
1. Main idea, support, organizational pattern
2. Rhetorical form, style, voice, and purpose
3. Genre and cultural context
4. Basic concepts of critical thinking, to include:
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 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

Not applicable.

Collaborative projects
Tests and quizzes
Write a total of at least 8,000 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

Lectures
Discussions
Structured small-group exercises

At least two full-length books (including an anthology), primarily focusing on non-fiction; supplemented with additional readings or handbook. The following are suggested texts for the course:

Behrens, Laurence, and Leonard J. Rosen. Writing and Reading Across the Curriculum. 14th ed. New York: Longman, 2018.
Bullock, Richard, et al. The Norton Field Guide to Writing, with Readings and Handbook. New York: Norton, 2019.
Hacker, Diana, and Nancy Sommers. A Writer's Reference. 10th ed. New York: Bedford/St. Martin's, 2021.
Graff, Gerald, and Cathy Berkenstein. They Say/I Say: The Moves that Matter in Academic Writing with Readings. 5th ed. New York: Norton, 2021.
Mott, Valerie. College Writing Handbook. Open Educational Resources, 2020. courses.lumenlearning.com/suny-jeffersoncc-styleguide/

The following are suggested single author non-fiction books for the course:
Jamail, Dahr. The End of Ice: Bearing Witness and Finding Meaning in the Path of Climate Disruption. New York: New Press, 2020.
Kendi, Ibram X. How to Be an Antiracist. New York: One World, 2019.
Mann, Charles C. The Wizard and the Prophet: Two Remarkable Scientists and Their Dueling Visions to Shape Tomorrow's World. New York: Vintage, 2019.
Moraga, Cherríe. Native Country of the Heart: A Memoir. New York: Picador, 2020.
Tufecki, Zeynep. Twitter and Teargas: The Power and Fragility of Networked Protest. New Haven: Yale, 2018.
Wallace-Wells, David. The Uninhabitable Earth: Life after Warming. New York: Tim Duggan Books, 2020.

A. Reading non-fiction essays and at least one book-length work
B. Collaborative presentation in response to readings
C. Writing formal analyses of readings in college academic essay format