

Tentative Course Outline:
Syllabus 120: Spring 2017
January 11
Introduce Class
The process of writing a research paper
Introduce the first paper:
The St Martin’s Guide to Writing
: Starting Points: Speculating
about Causes p. 480; Background pp. 446-449; Basic Features pp. 449-451
January 13
The St Martin’s Guide to Writing
: Readings pp. 451-471; Guide to Writing pp.479-486
January 18
Select a tentative topic for the first paper.
The St Martin’s Guide to Writing
: Arguing: Asserting a Thesis pp. 659-661; Outlining pp.564-
568; Formulating a Thesis; p. 487; Planning and Drafting pp. 487-489
January 20
Thesis statement and working outline due
The St Martin’s Guide to Writing
: Field Research pp. 716-727: Library and Internet Research pp.
728-754
PowerPoint Lecture: Annotated Bibliography
January 23
Library Worksheet due
Lecture: Who owns information? Ethical use of information; Plagiarism: Accidental vs.
deliberate: Online Writing Lab Purdue University
January 25
Lecture: Avoiding plagiarism and note taking
The St Martin’s Guide to Writing
: Using Sources pp. 755-764
Paraphrase worksheet
January 27
Annotated Bibliography due
50 Essays: a Portable anthology:
David Sedaris,
Me Talk Pretty One Day
pp. 378-382; Mike
Rose, “I Just Wanna Be Average” pp. 350-363
Citation, and paraphrase with the original text due
Paraphrase worksheet due
January 30
50 Essays: a Portable anthology:
Malcolm X, “Learning to Read” pp. 281-290; Frederick
Douglass, “Learning to Read and Write” pp. 144-149