This is the first of a required two-course expository writing sequence, which focuses on informative prose and builds toward the art of arguments and persuasion. Students develop an understanding of themselves as writers as they participate in public discourse about writing; examine the relationship among writer, audience and purpose; and practice writing prose through a recursive process.

Overall Course Objectives

Upon completion of this course, you will be able to select and use a variety of techniques for generating and gathering information. You will learn how to analyze your audience; organize ideas logically and effectively; and present appropriate support for your theses. You will perform basic research using a variety of sources and incorporate source material into your writing.

Major Course Topics

• Writing several different types of essays
• Grammar and style review
• Selecting and researching various topics

Course Format

This course:

• Is not self-paced. We will work together on a weekly schedule of required readings, written responses, and drafts. I will give you a schedule with the due dates of all major assignments during the first week of classes. The workload, course content, and writing assignments are equal to those in a regular classroom section of English 121.
• does have a course WebCT page that you will access several times a week at your own convenience. All class readings and assignments will be discussed on this site.
• Does require an on-campus final exam, to be taken in the HCC Test Center. Does not require real-time chats. We will communicate with emails and weekly postings on an online bulletin board.
•  If you decide to take ENGL 121 in this format, you should like working on computers, be self-motivated, and be prepared to do significant amounts of work outside of class. This format is not for you if you have a tendency to procrastinate.

Orientation

This course does not have a face-to-face orientation. There is an online orientation highlighted on the opening page of our class WebCT page. Please check my email message to you on tfirst day of class for more information about the orientation. If this is your first WebCT class and/or you would feel more comfortable meeting before class starts for a face-to-face orientation, just email me at awood@howardcc.edu.

Course Requirements

• Review the "What you should know before you register" section of the Distance Learning Homepage.
• Formal Essays, including a final essay written in the Test Center.
• Weekly repsonses to various readings.
• Weekly peer responses.
• Weekly online contact with the instrucor via email.

Texts and Materials

Required:

• Hacker, D. The Bedford Handbook, 7th Edition, Bedford/St. Martins.
• Lunsford, A. & Ruszkiewicz, J. The Presence of Others, 4th Edition, Bedford/St. Martins.

Buy your textbooks from our online Bookstore.

Technical Requirements and Plug-Ins:

Review the Technical Requirements link above. Use the Plug-Ins link abouve to download and install the following plug-ins which are required for this course:

• Internet Explorer
• Word Viewer, if you don't have the full version of Microsoft Word

Exams

This course has a proctored final exam at the HCC Test Center for students in the local region of at a regional institution for remote students. The exam will have a flexible window of the time during which it needs to be taken rather than a single date and time.