Course Syllabus

English 0802: Analytical Reading and Writing

Section 703, CRN 9575, Fall 2025

Instructor: Professor Autumn Thomas (she/they)

Office hours: Mondays 12:00-3:00 in person, OFFICE 1150 MAZUR or on Zoom via appointment.

Email: autumn.thomas0002@temple.edu ; Email is the best way to reach me. I will aim to respond within 48 hours of your email Monday through Friday. If you write over the weekend, I will get back to you on Monday.

Class Meetings: Mondays 10am-11:40am, Tuttleman Learning Center room 0405B

Course Description

Welcome to English 802! This course will introduce you to the challenges and pleasures of college- level reading and writing. Once you have completed English 802 with a C- or better, you will have completed one of the required foundational courses in the General Education program. These are our course goals and objectives:

identify key arguments in published texts and the writing of your peers;
create and defend arguments of your own through effective rhetorical strategies and synthesis of others’ ideas;
use the conventions of academic discourse, including
- coherent and logical organization
- correct citation and evaluation of research sources;
revise your writing through multiple drafts and reflect on your own writing

Course Theme

Our course theme is literacy in the age of AI and conspiracy theories. In Unit One, we will read about the concept of literacy, and you will write a rhetorical analysis of a course text. In Unit Two, we will explore literacy and generative AI (artificial intelligence). You will write a paper that synthesizes multiple texts and responds to ideas from this unit. In Unit Three, we will explore literacy and conspiracy theories (and other related topics, such as misinformation, disinformation, hoaxes, and “fake news”). You will write a well-researched persuasive argument on a topic related to the unit theme. In Unit Four, we will reflect on what we have learned this semester, and you will revise your papers into a Final Portfolio to demonstrate that you have achieved our course goals.

I do not presume that you are experts on these topics, and I chose them because they are somewhat familiar and yet they are also academically complex. They are interdisciplinary topics, too, and students from all majors should be able to find ways to connect our course topics to their own interests. In fact, I strongly encourage you to use your interests, majors, and personal experiences to develop your papers and engage in class activities.

There are no right or wrong answers or opinions about our course topics. As we will discuss, academic discourse involves weighing evidence and presenting strong, well-argued positions. When you complete this course, you will have stronger critical thinking, reading and writing skills, and you will have established good practices and habits that will be useful throughout your college career and beyond.

Required Course Materials and Technology Specifications

You will not need to purchase books for this course, and we will not require any fees or other expenses. All readings and videos will be posted on Canvas through the Charles Library course reserves.

Using Canvas and your Temple email are required for this course. Please familiarize yourself with our Canvas course site so that you understand where and when readings are posted. Please note that readings will often be available if you want to read ahead, but if you read ahead, you won’t have the benefit of getting more context or trigger warnings in advance. Please check the technology specifications for using Canvas from computers and networks off campus. You will be submitting work online through Canvas for this course, and you must have regular access to Microsoft Word which you can download for free through TU Portal (Microsoft Office 365) or use in any Temple computer lab. If you use Google Docs, you will need to learn how to convert your document into Word in order to submit your papers (it’s easy!). Feel free to consult Temple’s Information Technology Services for support: https://its.temple.edu/. Limited resources may be available for students who do not have the technology they need for class. Check the Dean of Students Support and Resources webpage for details.

Course Mode and Expected Student Workload

This course meets once a week in person for in-class activities, discussion of readings, and to review and plan to write the major papers of the course. We will have Canvas assignments every week in addition to the work we do in class as this is a hybrid-style class. Students in all sections of English 802 regardless of course mode should expect to spend a minimum of 8-10 hours a week on this course including class time.

Course Requirements

Attend every class

Being present and engaged in this course is vital to your development as a college-level writer and thinker. Thus, you must attend every class meeting. To allow for illness or other emergencies, you may miss up to two (2) classes without penalty. I recommend you save your absences as long as possible because you cannot predict when and how often you might become ill as the semester goes on. In fact, I would strongly prefer that you not use any absences at all, as our class is intended to function as a cohesive writing community. But I do not want you to come to class if you are unable to participate and/or potentially infectious with COVID, the flu, or other transmissible illness. If you miss class, you should do all weekly coursework and get notes about what you missed from a classmate. Doing weekly coursework does not substitute for a missed class, and any activities done in class while you are not present cannot be made up, but at least you will be less likely to fall behind. There will be no Zoom option if you’re absent because watching class on Zoom is not the same as participating in class. If you miss more than 3 absences, it will mean automatic failure for the course.

Please note that one-on-one conferences are considered equivalent to a class meeting for the purposes of the attendance policy; if you miss a scheduled conference, it will count as a full class absence. Also, if you are not prepared for class or not paying attention and it is distracting or detrimental to our community, I may ask you to leave and take an absence. This is especially true on peer review days where you must have a completed draft to participate.

I do not distinguish between “excused” or “unexcused” absences, and I do not wish to see doctor’s notes or other documentation of your illness. Why you miss class is your business, and I don’t need to know about it. If you have DRS accommodations that allow extra absences, you must confer with me early in the semester so we can come to an agreement about how many additional absences are right for this course.

Read and annotate our assigned readings before

Every paper you write in this class derives in part from our assigned readings and the discussions we have about them. When you read, take notes in the margins and/or keep a list of thoughts and questions to bring up in class. Sometimes, you may need to read a paragraph or a section more than once before it makes sense, and this is completely normal when reading dense academic publications or other types of long readings. I recommend that you talk to friends and family about our readings, too. I dislike giving reading quizzes, but I will do so as needed if it seems that too many of us are reading too quickly or aren’t thinking carefully about the readings before coming to class. As noted above, if you come to class unprepared, I may ask you to leave and take an absence, particularly if your inability to participate in class activities is disruptive to our activities. Also, interacting with others respectfully is important, and a full policy on how to interact in class and on Canvas is included below.

Complete all weekly coursework as announced in class or assigned on

Weekly coursework consists of small assignments and activities that we do on Canvas or in class meetings, and may include in-class writing, small group work, quizzes, and Canvas discussion posts or journal entries. Weekly coursework is essential for learning, and it will be graded as Complete (full credit) or Incomplete (no credit). Together, these activities will be worth 20% of your final grade. In general, I will give you a grade of Complete if you’ve met the basic requirements outlined by the assignment, and if you do not follow directions or submit your work on time, you will get a grade of Incomplete. A full policy about late weekly coursework is included below.

Write and revise 4 substantial papers through multiple

You will write four papers and submit them to me for feedback and guidance. Then, you will revise these drafts into final versions due in a final portfolio at the end of the semester. I will give you feedback for Papers 1, 2 and 3, and this feedback will be formative and intended to help you revise. You will not receive a binding grade on these drafts because I want you to revise them as many times as possible before the final portfolio.

My feedback will also give you an idea of where your grade might stand on a draft if it were submitted in the final portfolio as is and without any revision, and it will give you a baseline of your progress. It is relatively normal for students to receive feedback that indicates a draft is not yet passing in its current condition, and I do not want you to be discouraged by this. It simply means you have work to do, and because draft grades are not binding, there is no penalty for having a draft that is not yet passing. If you ever feel discouraged, talk to me, and I can help you plan for revision and feel hopeful about making improvement in your writing.

I give feedback on each draft of papers 1-3 only once if it is submitted on time, but we can talk about your drafts and revisions as many times as you wish if you bring them to me to discuss during conferences and office hours. Keep in mind that you may also bring your papers to the Writing Center at any stage in the writing process, and I encourage everyone to visit the Writing Center on a regular basis for this and other classes. More information about this is included below.

Participate in peer review

Peer review workshops allow you to read each other’s papers and practice giving suggestions for improvement that may result in deeper insights for your own writing process. We will do at least three peer review workshops (for Papers 1, 2, and 3), and these are clearly marked in the course schedule. The 10% of your final grade reflects whether or not you participated in these workshops, and like weekly coursework, peer review is assessed with either a Complete or Incomplete as follows: if you meet all deadlines and expectations for peer review, you will get a grade of Complete for a workshop, but if you miss a deadline in the workshop process or if you do not complete the required steps in giving feedback to your peers, you will get a grade of Incomplete for a workshop. For the 10% that represents peer review in the final grade, three Completes will be an A, two Completes will be a B, and one Complete will be a C. Three Incompletes will be an F (or 0 credit) for the 10% that represents peer review in the final grade. If we do additional peer review workshops, they will be included in weekly coursework and not in the peer review portion of the final grade.

Meet with me twice for individual conferences outside of

We will meet for conferences in my office or on Zoom to discuss your progress, and I will offer you an optional conference at the end of the semester in case you need it. Dates, times, and modes for our conferences will be mutually arranged. I will let you know in class what you need to prepare for each conference, and if you arrive without it, I reserve the right to cancel our conference and give you an absence. If you fail to show up at a scheduled conference, it counts as an absence for the attendance policy. If I can reschedule a missed conference, I will, but even if we meet for a rescheduled conference, the initial absence will still apply.

Reflect on your writing process and your progress towards our course

Evidence shows that self-reflection enhances learning and improves outcomes, and I will assign many opportunities for you to reflect on your work in this course. Short reflections will also be used in Paper 4 and will be important in our assessment of your final portfolio.

Submit a well-revised final portfolio at the end of the

Your final portfolio will consist of four papers that you have revised multiple times. The grade on your final portfolio (60%) and the grade on the quality of your revisions (10%) are the majority of your final grade in the course. A rubric for final portfolios is included below, as is a detailed explanation of my grading process.

When you revise, you should do so as thoroughly as possible, which means addressing the issues noted in my feedback on your drafts and going above and beyond to address all of the ideas and suggestions that we discuss throughout the semester. For instance, our class readings serve as models of good writing to emulate and use as inspiration. Your weekly coursework, our in-class activities and my mini-lectures and explanations will give you ideas and plenty of practice for successful college writing. Individual conferences and peer review workshops will allow you to reflect on your progress and grow as a reader, writer and thinker. Final portfolios in which revisions only “fix” simple errors or address only things mentioned in my feedback are unlikely to result in grades of A or B for revision in your final grade, and a lack of serious revision will prevent final portfolio grades from being in the A range altogether.

How To Succeed in This Course

Be respectful when interacting with others in class and on Canvas.

Some of our readings include ideas that you might find controversial or uncomfortable. In college, students are meant to build critical thinking skills in a variety of contexts, and we want you to feel appropriately challenged and inspired by our course materials. We recommend that you use our classroom and Canvas site as a space where we can collaborate to examine ideas and arguments for mutual learning. As such, we all have a responsibility to try to make others feel comfortable learning, participating, and asking questions. Here are some ground rules for respectful interaction with me and your classmates:

Everyone may have an opinion, but everyone must recognize that an opinion is not a
Everyone may write or say something that “comes out ” If you do so, simply admit that what you said or wrote wasn’t quite what you meant and try again.
Everyone may change their mind (including me!).
Everyone has the responsibility to challenge others or disagree in a respectful, polite way:
- “I respectfully disagree.... ”
- “I hear you, but you might not have considered every perspective….”
- “In my experience, that hasn’t been true….”
- “Can you share your evidence to support that?”

Everyone must accept that their opinion may be challenged without getting defensive or upset (this can be hard!). When someone challenges your opinion, take a deep breath and consider what the other person is saying carefully before you respond.

Our differences, some of which are outlined in the University’s nondiscrimination statement, will add richness to this learning experience. We are all here to learn and work with others, and any activity that runs contrary to the spirit of learning and collaboration will not be tolerated. I am here to help foster a respectful and accountable space, and if a student seems not to participate in this space as described above, I will speak with them about it. However, explicitly hostile or hateful language, discrimination or abuse will not be tolerated.

Netiquette

Whenever we are engaged in online work through Canvas, we must be as appropriate and collaborative as we are in person. The term “netiquette” refers to standards of behavior appropriate for an online learning environment. The netiquette policy for this course is adapted from these core rules:

Remember the Human: When you aren’t face-to-face it can be easy to forget that you are communicating with a person who has feelings and emotions just like any other person. Please show respect for your instructor and for your classmates by being courteous in all written communication. Avoid sarcasm, which can be difficult to interpret in cyberspace.
NO YELLING, PLEASE: Using all capitals letter is often considered yelling
Read First, then Submit: Make sure you take time to carefully read instructions before beginning an assignment. Similarly, please read what you typed before submitting an assignment to check for grammar, typos, and other errors. Reading aloud before submitting is highly recommended.
Find Answers: Before asking a question, read the syllabus, check Canvas, and conduct an Internet search to see if the answer is easy to find. If these do not provide you with an answer, do not hesitate to contact me.

Lastly, we will sometimes use devices (phones, laptops) in class, and I expect you to use devices respectfully, which means staying on task and avoiding disruption to your classmates.

Consult with me during office hours and practice good time management.

I welcome you to visit me during office hours as listed on the first page of the syllabus. You can come see me for many reasons, including to say hello, to talk about one or more of your papers, and to discuss readings or ideas that have come up in class. Or, if you are struggling in the course and need help setting voluntary deadlines or figuring out how to approach an assignment, I encourage you to talk to me and see if I can help. If you are unavailable during my office hours, email me and we’ll try to find another time.

You may find that one of the biggest challenges in college is keeping track of your assignments and budgeting your time. I strongly recommend using a non-Canvas calendar, whether paper or digital, to keep track of due dates and course requirements. The calendar built into Canvas may seem helpful at first, but do not rely on it! Many students have made the error of assuming that the Canvas calendar is comprehensive only to find that they’ve missed an assignment or fallen behind in a course. Don’t make this mistake—trust me and use a secondary calendar.

Take advantage of campus resources.

Did you know Temple’s Student Success Center (SSC) offers tutoring for writers a t the Writing Center? Writing Center tutors can help you understand and get started on your assignments, and they can also provide you with engaged, kind, and critical feedback on drafts of your work. The tutors are graduate and undergraduate students who are successful writers and experienced readers; all tutors have completed

training in effective methods of coaching writers. Tutoring is free of charge and available by same-day session or pre-scheduled appointment. More information about the Writing Center, as well as other resources offered by the SSC by clicking the links above, by calling 215-204-0702, or visiting our “Front Desk” Zoom room via the Meeting ID at 929-916-654. You can also get help (even through live chat) with your research from the Charles Library.

Also, it is common for your first year at a new school to be stressful, and I want you to know you’re not alone and there are resources here at the university, such as Tuttleman Counseling Services and the Dean of Students. The Dean of Students offers a wide range of support for students who do not have enough food, who struggle with access to secure housing, who need emergency student aid, who are dealing with sexual assault, and who have similar problems and are unsure where to turn. Further, the Dean of Students provides specific forms of outreach and support for LGBTQIA students, international students, and veterans, among others. I strongly encourage you to seek out help from the Dean of Students when needed, and if you’re having trouble connecting to the proper resources, let me know and I’ll do my best to help by filing a CARE TEAM report or asking the team in First Year Writing for assistance.

Late Policies

Weekly Coursework and Peer Review Workshops

Weekly coursework deadlines are firm because we sometimes use it as the basis for in-class discussions and activities. Also, weekly coursework is intended to build skills and habits over time. I will do my best to make deadlines clear on Canvas and to post announcements and other reminders on a regular basis. But ultimately, you are responsible for checking Canvas often and keeping track of weekly coursework.

Drafts Submitted During the Semester for My Feedback

Drafts of your papers must be submitted on time. If an extreme situation or sudden crisis arises that prevents you from submitting a draft for feedback on time, you may ask me for a one-week extension and I will say yes, no questions asked. However, your final portfolio must contain revisions of papers I have seen in draft form during the semester, and if you have not submitted a draft on time or within one week (using the extension), your final portfolio will receive a failing grade and you will have to repeat English 802, even if your other work is of passing quality or was marked complete.

I know this sounds harsh, but the reason for this strict policy is that I must see your drafts in a timely manner so that I can encourage continual improvement. Much like faculty in a math course, writing faculty need to see how you get from point A to point B to be sure you understand the process of writing that we are teaching in this course. The only possible exception to this late policy for drafts would be if you have a situation so significant that the Dean of Students or the CARE Team have reached out to me to ask for extra time or if you have already alerted me to a DRS accommodation that requires me to give you longer than one week extension; in these cases, we will work out arrangements and you will still be subject to the above policy using the newly agreed-upon revised due dates.

Also, if you decide to re-write a paper from scratch after I have seen a version of it and given you feedback, you must submit the new draft to me before it goes into your final portfolio. If you do not, your portfolio will violate the above policy for having one or more papers I have not seen in draft form during the semester. If you are ever in doubt that you are working on a draft that is fundamentally “new” and unlike the one I gave feedback on, contact me to discuss. The purpose of this is to prevent plagiarism and to ensure, as stated above, that I can see your progress with a draft over time. If a paper appears to be wholly new and does not show how you got from point A to point B, the portfolio cannot be passing even if the quality of the new paper is satisfactory or above. I will not necessarily give you written feedback if you produce a wholly new draft, nor will we need to meet or discuss it unless I see a problem with what

you’ve done. But I will be glad to support you starting fresh or improving a draft so much that it is unrecognizable from a first draft as long as you keep me in the loop and show me what you’re doing before the final portfolio is due.

The Final Portfolio

The final portfolio due date is listed on the schedule, and I have already incorporated an automatic, no questions asked, extension if you need it. But after the due date and the automatic extension date have passed, I cannot accept final portfolios and you will be given a failing grade for the course. The reason for this policy is that I need time to read final portfolios, to discuss final portfolios with other faculty in First Year Writing, and to calculate and enter final grades in TU Portal.

Occasionally, a student who had been making good progress has a true medical emergency at the very end of the semester that would make it impossible to complete a final portfolio on time. In cases like these, contact me to discuss an Incomplete, which is an arrangement that requires formal documentation of the emergency and approval of the Dean and other university officials. To qualify for an Incomplete, you must be in good standing in the course and have submitted drafts of Papers 1, 2, and 3 (that is, you must have completed the equivalent of more than 50% of the coursework and must be able to complete the remaining revisions on your own without guidance). If you believe you qualify for an Incomplete, you must speak to me about it before Monday, December 11 (the last day of classes) so that I can send you the paperwork and start the process of getting formal approval. Again, an Incomplete is not a casual arrangement and it does not apply in situations that are not true emergencies. It is not possible to arrange an Incomplete after the semester is over. For more information, see the full policy in the Undergraduate Bulletin.

Calculating Your Final Grade

Most of your final grade is determined by your final portfolio, worth 60%. The quality of your revisions and participation in peer review are each worth 10%, and weekly coursework is worth 20%.

Your final portfolio will include fully revised versions of each paper, along with one or more of your previous drafts to show your progress and document how you got from the first to the final draft. What I expect to see in your final portfolio is that your writing has improved over time and that you have met our course goals and objectives. To complete this course and get ARW credit in GenEd, you must receive a final grade of C- or above; a grade of D+ or below will require you to repeat the course.

Final portfolios are graded by committees of faculty from First Year Writing called Teaching Circles. We use a standard rubric to ensure that portfolios are read by more than one person and that grades across multiple sections are fair and consistent. That is, this system ensures that a C in one section of English 802 is equivalent to a C in another section of English 802, and all students can be assured that their work has been reviewed fairly and free from intentional bias. All faculty in First Year Writing participate in Teaching Circles, and this system of grading has been used successfully for decades at TU and in many other writing programs around the world.

You may occasionally feel frustrated with our grading system because, unlike other courses where you can check Canvas and receive an immediate projected final grade, you will not receive a binding grade on your biggest assignments until the final portfolio is submitted. But try to remember that our system works to your advantage. You are the one who ultimately decides your grade through completing (or not completing) weekly coursework, participating (or not participating) in peer review, and revising (or not revising) your papers for the final portfolio. Your final portfolio is being graded not on where you began the semester but on the cumulative result of your work since the first day of class. If you think about it, giving early binding grades would be quite unfair in a course designed to see progress over time. There is some other good news, too: you may encounter a similar style of grading later in your coursework, such as in advanced major-specific Writing Intensive courses or senior capstone courses, and if so, we hope you’ll think back to all you learned in English 802. If you are ever feeling completely unsure of where your grade might be heading or how you’re doing in the course, please check in with me at conferences, at office hours or by appointment. I am always happy to talk about your papers in person or on Zoom, and I never want you to feel like your entire grade is up in the air or uncertain.

Course grading scheme:

A 93-100%	C 73-76%
A- 90-92%	C- 70-72%
B+ 87-89%	D+ 67-69%
B 83-86%	D 63-66%
B- 80-82%	D- 60-62%
C+ 77-79%	F 0-59%

University Policies

Policy on Recording Class Meetings or Conferences

This course will not meet on Zoom unless mandated by the university, which is highly unlikely. But we may meet on Zoom for conferences, and this is the official policy from the university that is applicable to conferences, which are official class business and similar to a class meeting: “recordings of class meetings will be allowed at [faculty] discretion [and particularly if a student in the class has an accommodation requiring such recordings]. Any recordings permitted in this class can only be used for the student’s personal educational use. Students are not permitted to copy, publish, or redistribute audio or video recordings of any portion of the class session to individuals who are not students in the course or academic program without the express permission of the faculty member and of any students who are recorded. Distribution without permission may be a violation of educational privacy law, known as FERPA as well as certain copyright laws. Any recordings made by the instructor or university of this course are the property of Temple University.”

Disability Accommodations Policy

Any student who has a need for accommodation based on the impact of a disability should contact Disability Resources and Services at 215- 204-1280 or in 100 Ritter Annex to coordinate reasonable accommodations for students with documented disabilities.

If you are not sure whether you qualify for accommodations, go to DRS to get more information. DRS understands that some students may not arrive at Temple University with documentation for their accommodations, and they will work with you to figure out how best to proceed. It is up to you whether you want to send me your accommodations, but keep in mind that accommodations cannot be applied retroactively. It is highly advisable to reach out to me about your accommodation so that we can discuss it. Students should seek out assistance from DRS.

Student and Faculty Academic Rights and Responsibilities Policy

Freedom to teach and freedom to learn are inseparable facets of academic freedom. Please read the university’s policy on Student and Faculty Academic Rights and Responsibilities (Policy #03.70.02).

Policy on Academic Honesty

To protect yourself from engaging in academic misconduct, please read Temple University Statement on Academic Honesty for Students in Undergraduate Courses.

In general, all sources of information that you use in your papers must be identified as clearly, accurately, and thoroughly as possible. Plagiarism occurs when sources are used but not acknowledged and appear to be presented as your own original ideas. Of course, we do not want to discourage you from using other people’s ideas or data. Our aim is exactly the opposite – academic writing often involves a conversation with other writers. But you must always make clear your sources and you must always be sure that the work you submit is your own. Academic cheating, in general terms, is the breaking of the general rules of academic work and/or the specific rules of individual courses. It includes falsifying data or sources; submitting work in one course that was done for another course without the instructor's approval; having someone else complete your papers or any of your course work for you; or actually doing another person’s work.

If you plagiarize on a draft of a paper submitted before the final portfolio, I will give you one very serious warning and you will have a chance to revise the paper right away so that I can re-read it and see that you’ve corrected the errors. But if you plagiarize a second time or if plagiarism is found in your final portfolio, you will fail the course and will be reported to the University for academic misconduct. This policy is not negotiable. If you are uncertain about what constitutes plagiarism, ask BEFORE you hand in the work. It will be too late afterwards.

Acceptable and Unacceptable Use of Generative AI Tools in This Course

Generative AI such as ChatGPT are exciting new tools that you may find useful in this class. As such, I have not banned them outright, and we may even use them occasionally in class activities. But AI cannot replace real human thinking and writing, and you should never use AI generated writing in place of your own work. Even in its most updated forms, AI has been known to reproduce biases, generate fake research sources, provide ideas within incorrect contexts, and spread disinformation and other harmful ideas. Human writing is the purpose of English 802, and we expect to see your genuine, human writing throughout the semester and in your final portfolios.

Generative AI tools are permitted in this course for the following activities:

brainstorming and refining your ideas;
coming up with a variety of prompts for library research;
drafting outlines;
suggesting alternate perspectives or adjacent ideas;
organizing your

If you use AI in any form, you must acknowledge having done so in writing on anything you submit for this course. This site gives directions for citing AI in your papers, and if you use it for weekly coursework or other assignments, you must include a note at the end explaining how you used AI and why it was useful. Also, you are responsible for the information you submit based on an AI query (for instance, that it does not violate intellectual property laws or contain misinformation or unethical content).

Generative AI tools are not permitted in this course for the following activities:

To complete assignments or other writing that requires self-reflection or personal
To generate full sentences or paragraphs that you incorporate into your own writing without
To do group work unless I have specifically directed you to do
To peer review a classmate’s
To generate full drafts or revisions (even if the revision is on your own, original draft).

If you are found to have used AI without acknowledgement on a small assignment, the penalty will range from an Incomplete on the assignment to an F for the course depending on the severity of the situation. If you are found to have used AI without acknowledgement on a draft submitted for peer review or my feedback, you will have one week to revise and resubmit or you will receive an F for the course. If you are found to have used AI without acknowledgement in your final portfolio, the penalty will be an F for the course.

Course Schedule

This schedule is subject to minor changes; all changes will be announced on Canvas.

Unit One: Understanding Literacy

In Unit 1, we will read, discuss, and write about what literacy means to us and how literacy may be declining or changing due to technology and other cultural phenomena. In this unit, we will also begin practicing rhetorical analysis, which is a way of understanding texts by analyzing credibility, purpose, audience, genre, and context. These analytical tools will be useful in all our course activities and assignments.

Week 1 (August 25-31)

Before class:

Check out our Canvas site and read our course syllabus

In class:

Introductions and Ice Breakers
Review course syllabus and discuss our goals and objectives
Review the assignment for Paper #1

After class:

On Canvas, write about your experiences as a reader and writer (due by Friday 8/29 at midnight)

Week 2 (September 1-7)

Before class:

Read Guess, “A Crisis of Literacy or a Systemic Issue in Society?”
Read Parker, “We’ve Forgotten What College Is For: It’s For Probing the Human Condition, Not Lining Up a Good Internship”

No class this week due to Labor Day:

On Canvas, discuss Guess and Parker

After class:

canvas activity

Week 3 (September 8-14)

Before class:

Read Waldman, “What Are We Protecting Children From By Banning Books?”

In class:

Discuss Guess, Parker, and Waldman
Re-review the assignment for Paper #1 and practice rhetorical analysis

After class:

Start working on Paper #1. Your first draft will be due soon (on Sunday 9/21)!
Canvas activity

Week 4

(September 15-21)

In class:

Go over the templates from They Say, I Say

Discuss your progress on Paper #1 in small groups

After class:

On Canvas, submit your draft of Paper #1 for Peer Review. Remember that everyone’s first draft will be rough. The point of Peer Review is to share ideas and encourage each other’s progress. Even if you are not happy with your first draft of Paper #1, submit it and trust the process. (due by Sunday 9/21 at midnight)
Canvas activity

Unit Two: Generative AI and Literacy

In Unit Two, we will read, discuss, and write about generative AI. We will explore questions such as, if generative AI can “read” and “write” for us, should we continue developing these skills or leave them to the machines? Literacy rates are decreasing in the US and around the world; should we care? Is there any area of human life we think should be off-limits to AI? Are reading and writing activities that are unique to humans?

Week 5 (September 22-28)

In class:

Review the process for our upcoming Peer Review workshop
Discuss our topic for Unit Two (generative AI)
Review the assignment for Paper #2

After class:

On Canvas, complete your assigned Peer Reviews (due by Wednesday 9/24 at midnight)
Revise Paper #1 for Instructor Feedback
On Canvas, submit your revised Paper #1 for Instructor Feedback on Canvas (due by Friday 9/26 at midnight)
On Canvas, sign up for an Individual Conference

Week 6 (September 29-October 5)

Before class:

Read Jones, “Does Using ChatGPT Change Your Brain Activity?”
Read Hofmann, et al., “AI Generates Covertly Racist Decisions About People Based on Their Dialect”

In class:

Discuss Jones and Hofmann
Watch and discuss Skyers, “In the Age of AI Art, What Can Originality Look Like?” (Ted Talk)

After class:

On Canvas, submit a reflection about Paper #1 (due Sunday 10/5 at midnight)
On Canvas, complete the first library module (due Sunday 10/5 at midnight)

Week 7 (October 6-12)

Before class:

Read Sternberg, “Do Not Worry that Generative AI May Compromise Human Creativity or Intelligence in the Future: It Already Has”
Read Walter, “The Emerging ‘AI Artists’: Breaking the Metacrisis and the Fear of Losing Human Creativity”

No class meeting:

Class is canceled this week to allow time for conferences
In lieu of class, you will participate in one or more Canvas activities about Sternberg and Walter (due by Monday 10/6 at midnight)

After class:

Find your third article for Paper #2 and share the citation and a one or two sentence summary on Canvas (due Sunday 10/12 at midnight)
Canvas activity

Week 8

(October 13-19)

Before class:

For class this week, bring your three articles for Paper #2 (printed or on a laptop). You will need them for an in-class synthesis mapping exercise.
Work on Paper #2. Your first draft for Peer Review will be due on Sunday!

In class:

Briefly discuss the readings from last week (Sternberg and Walter)
Create a synthesis map of your three readings.
Discuss your synthesis maps and your progress on Paper #2: What is going well so far? Where are you feeling stuck or confused? Have you figured out what your response will be?

After class:

On Canvas, submit your first draft of Paper #2 for Peer Review. Remember, the point of Peer Review is to share ideas and encourage each other’s progress. Even if you are not happy with your first draft of Paper #2, submit it and trust the process. (due Sunday 10/19 at midnight)

Unit Three

In Unit Three, we will explore misinformation, disinformation, and conspiracy theories, all of which require strong literacy skills to understand, engage, and combat. Through our course readings, we will discuss questions such as, are these phenomena pervasive and how much should we be concerned about them? When it is right to challenge people in authority or power, and how can we tell when a potentially legitimate challenge to authority or power has morphed into conspiratorial thinking or is saturated with misinformation and disinformation? What literacy tools work best to combat bad information and conspiracy theories? What is the role of experts, expertise, librarians, and library research in confronting misinformation, disinformation, and conspiracy theories?

Week 9 (October 20-26)

In class:

Complete the second library module (together, in class)
Review the assignment for Paper #3
Watch and discuss “Birds Aren’t Real? How a Conspiracy Takes Flight” and begin discussing conspiracy theories (what are they, where can we find examples of them, and how widespread or important are they)

After class:

Complete your assigned peer reviews (due Tuesday 10/21 at midnight)
On Canvas, submit a revised Paper #2 for Instructor Feedback (due Friday 10/24 at midnight)
On Canvas, free-write about the prompts for Paper #3 (due Sunday 10/26 at midnight)

Week 10 (October 27-November 2)

Before class:

Read Irene Rubin, “Recognizing Exaggerations, Distortions, and Lies” and “Conspiracy Theories”
Read Van Der Linden, “Why People Believe in Conspiracy Theories”
Read Jolley & Douglas, “Conspiracy Theories Fuel Prejudice Towards Minority Groups”
Sign up for an Individual Conference

In class:

Discuss Rubin, Van Der Linden, and Jolley & Douglas

After class:

On Canvas, participate in an activity related to Paper #3 and/or the readings (due Sunday 10/26 at midnight)
On Canvas, submit a reflection about Paper #2 (due Sunday 10/26 at midnight)

Week 11 (November 3-9)

Before class:

Read Mack, “How a Son Spent a Year Trying to Save His Father From Conspiracy Theories”
Read Allen, “How Social Media Rewards Misinformation”
Read Uscinski & Enders, “Don’t Blame Social Media…”

No class meeting:

Class is canceled to allow time for conferences
In lieu of class, you will participate in a Canvas activity about this week’s readings (due Monday, 11/3 at midnight)

After class:

Work on Paper #3 and assemble a list of your possible sources (at least five sources, not including course texts).
On Canvas, submit your list of sources, and write a few sentences about each one (what it’s about, why it might be useful for Paper #3) (due Sunday 11/9 at midnight)

Week 12 (November 10-16)

Before class:

Work on Paper #3

In class:

As a class and in small groups, compare your sources and discuss your progress with Paper #3

After class:

Keep working on Paper #3. Your first draft for peer review will be due on Sunday of next week!

Week 13 (November 17-23)

Before class:

On Canvas, submit your draft of Paper #3 for Peer Review AND submit it for my feedback (two separate submissions on Canvas). As always, remember that the point of Peer Review is to share ideas and be encouraging of each other. Even if you are not happy with your first draft of Paper #3, submit it and trust the process. (due on Sunday 11/16 at midnight)
If you want an optional conference during the last week of classes, you must arrange it with me before the start of Fall Break (11/24). Remember, I will not read your revised papers via email. I will only look at revisions if you come to office hours or an optional conference. In either case, you must come prepared to show me certain parts of your revisions or have questions for me to answer, as I may not have time to read all papers at once. Also, don’t forget that we have a wonderful Writing Center!

In class:

Review the assignment for Paper #4
Discuss the Final Portfolio and the course grading policy
Work on completing your assigned Peer Reviews, if time allows

After class:

On Canvas, complete your assigned Peer Reviews on Canvas on Tuesday (11/18) at midnight

Unit 4

In the final unit of this course, you will focus on revising your papers into the final portfolio. This is a highly reflective time of the semester, and as you revise, pay attention to what is going well, what you find yourself struggling with, and where you feel your reading, writing, and thinking skills have improved.

Week 14: Fall Break (November 24-30): Enjoy your break, but don’t forget to budget time to work on revising Papers #1, #2, and #3. Once we return from break, the end of the semester comes fast.

Week 15 (December 1-7)

In class:

Do a reflective activity related to Paper #4
Work on Paper #4 in class

After class:

Revise, revise, revise!

Week 16 (December 8)

Before class:

Continue revising and preparing your papers for the Final Portfolio

In class:

Do a Peer Review session for a paper of your choice (bring a printed version of your paper; this peer review will not be done on Canvas)
Complete other final reflective activities

After class:

Revise, revise, revise!

Wednesday, December 10: Final Portfolios are due on Canvas by midnight. If you need a few extra days, you may submit your final portfolio until Friday, December 12 at midnight, no questions asked, and no late penalty applied.

After Friday, December 12 at midnight, it is too late to submit your final portfolio, and you will receive an F for the course.

There is no final exam for this course. Once you submit the final portfolio, you have completed your work for English 0802. I will grade your final portfolio and calculate your final grade, and then I will enter final grades on Banner before the end of the grading period.

Please note that I do not upload comments on final portfolios because you’ll have already gotten plenty of feedback from me throughout the semester. But if you want some brief feedback on your final portfolio or if you have any questions about your final grade, you may contact me via email. I will do my best to respond to you in a timely manner.

Paper Assignments

Paper #1: Rhetorical Analysis

Write a rhetorical analysis of an article from Unit One. The purpose of a rhetorical analysis is to assess a text’s persuasiveness and effectiveness. These questions should guide your analysis:

The rhetorical situation:
Where was this text published, and who is the audience for that site or publication venue?
When was it published, and was it responding to a specific incident or cultural experience?
Who is the author, and have they written or studied about their topic before? What can you find out about them through a simple internet search?

Ethos, which is a term for appeals to ethics, credibility, qualifications, or character:
Does the author establish themselves as experts in the text (through education, experience, research…)?
If the author cites examples or research, do they seem reliable, and can you trust where they come from? Or is the author asking us to trust them based on their character or personal experience alone?
What might be the author’s agenda? Think about their main point, or argument, and consider if their motivation is to spread awareness, persuade you to do something specific/concrete, or if they are asking questions or speaking up to power. These are all legitimate agendas, and it’s fine for authors to have an agenda (aka a purpose), but in a rhetorical analysis, we want to understand what agenda(s) underlie the text.
Does the author build credibility through their argument by being reasonable, thoughtful, careful about jumping to conclusions, and avoiding wild or reckless assertions?

Logos, which is a term for appeals to logic and reason:
How clear and coherent is the author’s argument? Is their purpose for writing the article clear, and do they fulfill their purpose?
Has the author situated their argument within an ongoing conversation about the topic? Do they refer to other experts to demonstrate that conversation?
Is the author relying on any logical fallacies?
If the author is attributing their concerns to an institution or person, is their attribution of blame or concern fair and reasonable?
Does the author explain key terms and ideas well enough for a non-expert to understand?

Pathos, which is a term for appeals to emotions, values, and beliefs:
How well does the author connect with their audience?
Are the author’s descriptions, stories, or examples vivid and effective? Do they use language that helps readers fully understand what they mean?
Does the author invoke any values or beliefs that they assume their audience will agree with? Is the author redefining any existing values or beliefs in new ways?
Is the author trying to make the audience feel a certain way (anxious, concern, fear, panic, envy, curiosity, excitement, anger…). If so, does the emotion seem appropriate or useful in achieving their purpose? Are there multiple or contradictory emotions, and if so, do they make sense for the topic and argument?

Once you have considered these questions, you should arrive at an argument of your own about the article’s effectiveness and persuasiveness. This is a useful guide to writing a thesis statement for your argument. As you will see, it is common to say that an article is mostly or somewhat effective and persuasive for XYZ reasons. Or, it could be fine to say that an article is effective but not as persuasive as it could be because XYZ reasons.

Your paper should start with an introduction in which you state the article’s author and title, give a description of what the article is about and what you know about the author (briefly—not everything you know, but whatever seems relevant), and provide an explanation of where the article was published and who is in the intended audience. Then, you end the introduction with your thesis statement. It can also be smart to include an opening anecdote to grab your reader’s attention and connect YOU with your audience, and if so, it should fit in your introduction or near the beginning of your paper.

The body of your paper should develop your argument by discussing your rhetorical analysis. Support your ideas with as many examples from the article as possible because you must persuade your reader, and too few or poorly chosen examples will make you less credible and your purpose unfulfilled. Examples may be any of the following: quotes from the article (only a few—too many quotes undermine your own voice), ideas from the article restated in your own words, and real-life examples from your own experience or your imagination.

Research is not required for this paper other than a basic internet search to learn more about the author and publication venue. Also, you may not use AI to write this paper. If you are in the habit of using a program enhanced by AI, such as Grammarly, you should disable it for this paper. The only use of AI that is acceptable is the Editor function in Word, and even with Editor, I recommend you ignore suggestions when they are invasive or change too many of your words or ideas. As we will discuss throughout the semester, AI suggestions make writing sound generic and robotic. I want to get to know your own, real, voice, even if there are minor grammatical errors and other flaws. You will find that most of your professors at Temple also want you to sound like a person, not a robot. If I discover that you have used any form of AI for this paper other than Word’s Editor function, you will need to rewrite the paper using a different article.

Your paper should be at least 5 pages long, not including the Works Cited page.

Paper #2: Write an Academic Response Paper (10 points)

Write a paper in which you synthesize and respond to three articles on a topic related to our themes in Unit Two. Two articles will be from our course readings, and you will find the third (a peer-reviewed journal article of your choice on the same topic) in our library databases Think of this paper as a conversation you create in which you identify similarities and differences among three authors in the first half of the paper. In the second half of the paper, you join the conversation by stating an idea, question, or concern of your own that relates to what the authors have said. This paper teaches you how to synthesize complex arguments and ideas at the college level, and it introduces you to a common college assignment, the academic response paper.

Your introduction should describe the topic of your three articles (not just “AI,” but describe what specifically is being discussed about AI in your texts). Then, in the next several paragraphs, you should fairly and accurately describe the conversation among the three articles, describing the similarities and differences in their positions, their evidence, and their intended audiences or purposes. Use quotes and examples throughout this section of your paper to give a full picture of what they say and how they relate to one another. Use your skills from Paper #1 (rhetorical analysis) to make sense of where and why these articles connect and diverge.

For your response, think about where you agree or disagree with the authors. What questions from the articles strike you as most or least valuable? What concerns do you think are most vital that comes out of this conversation? If this were a verbal conversation, what would you say when it was your turn? Possible responses include, but are not limited to: agreeing or disagreeing with a point that is shared in all three articles; agreeing with one of the authors but not the other two (or two but not one); finding a middle ground among all three authors; posing a new question that results from the conversation; and offering an example that complicates or challenges something the authors have said.

Additional research beyond finding one peer-reviewed journal article is unnecessary for this paper. You should use the templates from They Say, I Say when needed, and you must include a Works Cited page listing your three articles. Your audience is me, your classmates, and the faculty of the First Year Writing Program. Do not assume that we have read any of your articles. You may assume that we have a layperson’s understanding of AI.

You may not use generative AI to write your paper; the policy for using AI for writing is the same for this paper as for Paper #1 (i.e., no to Grammarly, no to direct use of AI such as Chat GPT, yes to Word’s Editor, if used in a limited way). However, for this paper you may experiment with AI if you wish to test out any ideas raised by the course readings. In some cases, you may be able to use what you learn from experimentation in your response. That said, I support you NOT using AI to explore these issues or concerns, and you can likely find enough examples for your response from our class discussions and other activities. If I find that you used AI to write your paper in violation of the policy stated above, you will need to rewrite this paper using three different articles.

Your paper should be written in the first person (using “I” when referring to your own response), and it must be at least five (5) pages long, not including the Works Cited page.

Paper #3: Write a Persuasive and Well-Researched Argument

Write a paper with a persuasive and well-researched argument. Choose one of the following topics:

Research and analyze a recent conspiracy theory:

Choose a conspiracy theory that has been actively debated within the last two or three years (2022-present), and write a persuasive paper about why this conspiracy theory exists, what cultural values or discourses underlie this conspiracy theory, why people believe it, and what experts have said about it (or about theories like it). Your goal is not to prove the theory to be true or false. Instead, your goal is to show what this theory can tell us about our culture, our values, and the role of literacy in the public sphere. In your conclusion, you should discuss what we should do or think because of your analysis. Do you think that if people had better literacy skills, this theory would still exist? Do you think this theory is harmless fun, or is it potentially dangerous?

Choosing a theory might be difficult, but there are plenty of conspiracy theories out there that are both entertaining and viable for this project. I do not recommend choosing a theory you believe, as it makes it difficult to maintain critical, academic distance for analysis. I also recommend that you talk to me about your choice of conspiracy theory unless you choose something we have talked about in class that I already said might be good for this assignment. I don’t want you to get too far into your research and analysis, only to find that there is a potential problem with your choice.

Write about education and media literacy:

Is education an effective way to counteract conspiracy theories, misinformation, and disinformation, and if so, what kind of education? To get into this topic, research existing educational solutions and choose one that you think has potential, especially if our society were to invest money and time to help it be successful. You may define “education” however you wish, including traditional forms of education (such as K-12 and/or college), or community-based education, such as social media companies’ initiatives to fact-check or add community notes.

Support your argument with at least one central example of a recent (2022-present) conspiracy theory or piece of misinformation/disinformation that your solution might effectively address. Your conclusion should describe what actions readers should take or what additional research they should do if they are persuaded by your argument.

Write about the pervasive lack of trust in experts and expertise in contemporary culture:

We are living in a time when some people are suspicious of experts and expertise. This is not necessarily new for Americans, as American culture has long been obsessed with conspiratorial thinking. Suspicion of experts and expertise is not always wrong, either. It can be good to be skeptical of dominant narratives and to ask questions of powerful people and institutions. But because of social media and modern technology, mistrust in experts and expertise is easy to twist into support for conspiracy theories, misinformation, and disinformation. Write a persuasive argument about this complicated phenomenon: what are the benefits of being skeptical and where does skepticism cross a line to become conspiratorial thinking and turn into a rejection of expert knowledge, facts, and reality? How can we restore confidence in experts and expertise while preserving the ability to ask legitimate and important questions of powerful people and institutions?

Support your argument using at least one central example of a recent (2022-present) conspiracy theory or piece of misinformation or disinformation. Make sure you discuss how much the lack of trust in experts has to do with the decline in literacy. Your conclusion should leave readers thinking about why this topic is important and what they should do or research if they are persuaded by your argument.

Research requirements for Paper #3: You must refer to at least one of our course texts in your paper. You must also find and include five or more sources from the library databases. At least two of your sources must be peer-reviewed journal articles. Sources will be used to enhance your descriptions of important context, explain your ideas, provide examples, and suggest alternative viewpoints (also known as counterarguments).

Your goal is to be persuasive, and your audience is me, your classmates, and the faculty of the First Year Writing Program. Please note that this is not a “research paper” in which you demonstrate how much you know about your topic. You are also not trying to “win” a debate. Academic arguments focus on persuading readers that an argument is valid and worthy of consideration. Always remember that academic writing is about being part of an ongoing conversation. In this paper, you are adding to the conversation, not ending it. Your paper should be written in the first person (using “I”) because this is your argument. It is not necessary to write in a generic third person voice, though some academic papers are written that way, and it is always good to ask your professor which they prefer.

Also, you may not use AI to write this paper. Like the policy for Papers #1 and #2, you should disable Grammarly or other AI-powered writing tools, if you use them regularly, and you may use Word’s Editor function in a limited and thoughtful way. I will allow you to use AI to brainstorm, organize your thoughts, and identify counter-arguments if you disclose such use in your reflection for Paper #3 and talk about it in Paper #4. I also support you not using AI, and use of AI is not required for this assignment. Remember that there is a difference between using AI to assist your thinking and using it to replace your own, genuine, human writing process. If I discover that you have AI other than Word’s Editor function to write this paper, you will need to rewrite the paper using a different topic. As the end of the semester is approaching, it will potentially mean you will need to withdraw from the course if you are required to rewrite the paper in full because we are almost out of time.

Paper #4: The Reflective Letter for the Final Portfolio

In our final unit, you will work on revising your papers for the Final Portfolio, and you will write a Reflective Letter about what you have learned in English 802. Your audience for this letter is me and the portfolio review committee, which consists of other instructors in the First Year Writing Program. Your Reflective Letter serves as an introduction to your Final Portfolio.

Some of the questions you should answer in your reflective letter are: How did your writing process evolve over time? Which papers or assignments did you find most or least interesting or complicated, and why? What do you hope we focus on when we read your Final Portfolio? What are some good examples from your Final Portfolio that demonstrate you achieved our course goals, as described in the course syllabus? What have you learned about yourself as a critical thinker, reader, and writer because of our class meetings, course readings, and assignments? What changes in your habits or reading and writing were most surprising or helpful? What aspects of reading and writing do you plan to improve in your next few years at Temple University?

Final Portfolio

You will submit a Final Portfolio at the end of the semester that includes:

Paper #4 (Reflective Letter)
A revised and improved version of Paper #1
A revised and improved version of Paper #2
A revised and improved version of Paper #3

In the First Year Writing Program, Final Portfolios are graded holistically, which means that we are not averaging your papers to come up with a grade. Instead, we consider how well your Reflective Letter makes a case for your overall work, and we read your papers to assess how well you understood and practiced the writing process and achieved the course goals.

Please remember that Papers #1, #2, and #3 must be of passing quality for your portfolio to receive a passing grade. A portfolio where one of those papers is a D or F will result in a failing portfolio grade, even if the other two papers are at C- or above. Also, please remember that a final portfolio containing a paper I have not seen before in draft form during the semester will result in an F for the final portfolio and the course, even if your other work has been Complete and/or satisfactory.

English 802 Portfolio Grading Criteria

A-range portfolios:

The writer demonstrates facility in making nuanced, original, and well-researched arguments addressed to the course theme.
The writer accurately represents others’ ideas and constructs subtle and complex arguments in relation to others’ ideas in all three papers.
The writer demonstrates full awareness of academic audience in all three papers, the papers are well-organized and the research is well-integrated.
There are virtually no errors in syntax, grammar, mechanics, usage, style, and
The portfolio demonstrates that the writer has improved over the course of the semester, and it is clear that the writer worked hard to revise and edit their The writer is reflective about their progress and demonstrates an excellent understanding of their own writing process and development as a writer.

B-range portfolios:

The writer demonstrates facility in making thoughtful and well-researched arguments addressed to the course theme.
The writer accurately represents others’ ideas, with only minor exceptions, and constructs clear and sometimes complex arguments in relation to others’ ideas in all three Occasionally, the writer may make reductive or black-and-white analyses in one or more of the three papers, but these are minor and do not negate or seriously undermine the arguments.
The writer demonstrates good awareness of academic audience in all three papers, and the papers are generally organized well and the research is nicely integrated, though one or two sources may be not credible.
There may be a few errors in syntax, grammar, mechanics, usage, style and documentation, but none of these errors impede the reader’s understanding of the writer’s arguments.
The portfolio demonstrates that the writer has improved over the course of the semester, and there may be indications that the writer of the portfolio worked hard to revise and edit their The writer is reflective about their progress and demonstrates solid self-awareness about their development as a writer.

C-range portfolios:

The writer makes good arguments addressed to the course
The writer accurately represents others’ ideas, though the articulation of these ideas may be limited or confusing in one or more of the three
Research for the arguments is generally done at an adequate level, meeting requirements for the assignments, and the writer may show some difficulty in connecting research to their own arguments in one or more of the There may also be one or more papers in which some sources are not credible.
The writer demonstrates some awareness of academic audience in all three papers, and the papers are organized well enough to follow the arguments, but the organization of one or more of the papers may be reductive, simplistic, confusing, and/or under-developed. Sometimes C-range portfolios contain one or more papers that include padding or sections in which the writer has made leaps of logic.
There may be one or more papers in which there are serious errors of syntax, grammar, mechanics, usage, style and documentation, but these errors should not seriously undermine the comprehensibility of the arguments.

The portfolio demonstrates that the writer has improved over the course of the semester, but there may be indications that the writer of the portfolio did not pay close enough attention to revision or editing of all three The writer is at least somewhat reflective about their progress and development as a writer, but it may be lacking in quality and possibly quantity.

Failing (D and F) portfolios:

The writer demonstrates an inadequate ability to make arguments addressed to the course
The writer has not represented others’ ideas correctly in one or more of the three papers, and it is likely that the writer makes reductive or black-and-white analyses. The writer may demonstrate some awareness of academic audience, but there are serious organizational problems in one or more of the three papers that make it difficult or impossible to follow the arguments, and one or more papers includes simplistic, confusing, or under-developed ideas.
Research for the arguments is generally done at a basic or level, possibly meeting requirements for the But with respect to research, the writer cannot adequately connect others’ ideas to their own arguments in one or more of the papers. There may also be one or more papers in which the required number of sources is missing and/or in which sources are not credible.
One or more of the three papers may not show basic formal achievement in sentence structure, transitional words and phrases, appropriate pronoun use, and other elements of writing necessary for full comprehensibility of the writer’s arguments.
The portfolio may demonstrate that the writer has improved over the course of the semester, and the papers may show considerable improvement from first drafts, but the writer may not yet be able to revise or edit well enough to complete the papers at a C-range or above
The writer may be reflective about their progress, but it is lacking in quality and possibly
Sometimes, failing portfolios themselves are inconsistent and contain two passing-level papers and one failing paper, but in these cases, the entire portfolio receives a failing grade because all three papers must be at or above a C- grade to pass the