EH 102:

THE SEMINAR IN CRITICAL THINKING AND WRITING

Fall2020

 

SYLLABUS BASICS

 

OFFICE: HUMANITIES CENTER 302

OFFICE PHONE: (226) 7831

OFFICE HOURS: e- mail for an appointment- Best Times:M/W/F 9:00-10:30; T/TH 10:30-11:30

Teaching Assistant and source of wisdom and good advice: Mallory Schirm

 

TEXTS:     The BSC Handbook for all EH 102 Classes

                   Southern Academic Review (Distributed in Class)

                   THE BSC CATALOG [https://www.bsc.edu/academics/catalog/index.html]

                   AND LOTS OF LIBRARY AND ON-LINE READING.

                

 

Good morning; welcome to EH 102D- THE Seminar in Critical Thinking and Writing. We will do our best to work as a seminar. If we all work together in our individual ways we can create the kind of learning community implied by the term Seminar. What exactly is a seminar and why is it the form taken by EH 102? At its best, a seminar is an interactive community of interested and engaged people who share ideas, evidence, facts, respectful opinions, questions, perspectives, puzzlements, and more—all in pursuit of a richer and deeper understanding.

First General Comment:

Join the Conversation

Most topics arise from earlier work and study, that is why we say “join” a conversation. Find an interesting topic and read/ listen to get a sense of the “conversation-“ then join in. Be a participant. Nod in agreement, but add something, or explain why you agree. Get used to phrases like

According to

We want to be clear about what we think and why and how it arises from evidence or observation or claims from others. When you read academic studies, you see how many references and sources are cited. We don’t always agree with those sources. Indeed, oftentimes, discussions begin by identifying the nature of the disagreement or by exploring options and divergent perspectives.

 

Course Structure

We are all dealing with a range of challenges, and our class presents some special issues and opportunities. I hope all students can attend the physical classroom at the scheduled hour. Mallory Schirm- our Teaching Assistant and problem solver- will be there in person. I will be a virtual presence via Microsoft TEAMS and our newly installed web cam. I hope we can talk and share as if I were there directly in the designated teaching lane. This way, since I will be in a safe and isolated space, I can talk without the mask- but all of you will be appropriately covered. I assume all of you have portable digital devices- laptops, I-pads- phones to access TEAMS in case we need to – and also for conferences and smaller discussions. If we can proceed as I hope, we will have a real community that qualifies as an effective seminar. From time to time, we might have class as on-line small group conferences also via TEAMS. I will check email regularly.

Writing Center- all of you will work periodically with the Writing Center staff. It will be beneficial for all participants. Let’s keep the staff busy and give you a chance to benefit from more “conversations” while getting practical assistance.

 

ASSIGNMENTS: We will do as many writing, reading, and discussing assignments as you and I can squeeze in this term. Basically, the primary limitation on the amount of work you do is the time I have to grade it. After all, writing is a skill best improved by practice, and that practice needs analysis and response. More Specifically: Our primary task will be to practice the thinking and reading and writing that produces consequential ACADEMIC papers. Most of our papers will use sources in one way or another. But Academic writing should not ignore those virtues most of us tend to associate with "creative" writing, so we will do a number of creative assignments. Writing at its best is a kind of dialogue with other writers, so we will do substantial reading and study of other writers. In most cases, you will have lots of room to select your own focus and area of interest. You will Join the Conversation because you will have things you want to say and things you will want to listen to. All students will need to participate in conversations both orally and in written form.

 

ATTENDANCE: Students are expected to attend every class. Our classroom activity is as important as our out of class work. If you do not attend, you will not pass. You must also attend actively: sometimes this will mean direct participation; sometimes this will mean active listening and awareness. You will have to speak up in class and make a few oral presentations during the semester. We all need to commit to the ideals of a seminar: a shared intellectual enterprise that engages each of in a range of activities. Much of our classroom time will be devoted exploring and testing ideas and theories and ways of understanding.

 

GRADES: I have long since given up simplistic numerical formulas for grading. I will give some kind of "grade" to each assignment. Your final grade will reflect my best assessment of your skills as a writer and thinker as the semester comes to an end.

 

GENERAL PRINCIPLES: I want to focus on the relationship between writing, thinking, and reading. We will work on the Writing/Thinking/Reading –Action process all term. We will study this process at both the general conceptual level and at the level of discrete practical skills. To make your writing better, we must make your thinking better; to make your thinking better, we must make your expression of that thinking better. A “semester” [We have Terms, not Semesters.] is not long enough to do everything. A year would not be enough. But I hope to make substantial progress and point you in important, useful, and real directions. I hope that you can then continue to move in that direction.

Writing interacts with Thinking interacts with Reading which should lead to Action. We use present participles to show that each of the first three is continuous and that one may start with any of the three. White Writing keep Reading and Thinking. You can fill out the rest. But do remember, the process should produce some Action: A paper, a discussion, a response, a project. Be thoughtful and thorough, but be finished.

 

 

 

EH 102 Fall 2020

FIRST WRITING ASSIGNMENT

 

Your task is simple: Read the “Mission of the College” it is one paragraph on page six of the catalog- the link is on the first page of this syllabus. Then skip forward to page 34 and read through to the top of page 39- the sections about Academic Programs. Pay special attention to the “Explorations Curriculum Requirements. We will discuss them in class. Consider them in a positive, yet critical, fashion. How do they help fulfil the “Mission of the College”? If you could, would you add, subtract, or modify to better fulfil the Mission of the College? Unfortunately, for this brief essay, you cannot argue that there should be NO requirements- nor can you create a whole new slate. Just add, subtract or modify one or two. Think broadly; perhaps something beyond a class should be required. Think personally; what would be best for you- or not needed for you? Be ready to talk specifics and perspectives in class. Then you will write your brief essay for our next class meeting.

Two pages should suffice- do not write more than three. Using your experience in writing papers, create an effective essay n which you make the case for a change in requirements—you can even argue that they are just right as they are. Be sure to directly cite the Catalog as you make your claim. Assume an audience generally familiar with issues, but one that needs a brief reminder of specifics. Think deeply and write effectively.

12-point type. Send it to me via email as a document, making sure it can be easily accessed: DOCX or PDF

 

Separate from your written essay, I want you to begin to explore your own process of thinking and writing. This exploration will not appear directly in your paper, but you need to do it. We will begin discussing the process of thinking and writing during our next meeting, and you will need to draw on your own experience as we continue.

 

This Brief Essay is due Next Wednesday. Your ideas and papers and readings will form the basis for much of our discussion on Wednesday. Be ready to share and reply.

 

 

Begin to think about your prose at the functional level.

What do your sentences look like? How are they constructed? What sort of variety do you use? How does the pattern of your writing match the pattern of your thinking?

Look at, or think back to, essays you have written. What does a page of your prose look like? What does your whole essay look like? Start to think about Texture.