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ENG 101-13 Expository Writing: Climate Change and Multimedia

Fall, 2018Mondays and Wednesdays, 10-11:15 a.m.

Cox 230C

INSTRUCTOR: Sheila Tefft, Senior Lecturer, Emory Writing Program, Department of English

OFFICE HOURS: Mondays, noon-3 p.m. and Wednesday, 11:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m.,

CallawayCenter S413 or by appointmentEMAIL CONTACT: [email protected]                           404-727-6930

About Climate Change and Multimedia                      Every day environmental issues grow in importance and complexity. Global warming has emerged as the major threat to the world around us as carbon dioxide emissions and severe weather incidents increase. After decades of delay, widespread consensus that climate change is taking place produced an international accord in December, 2015 on steps to limit the growth of greenhouse gasses and mitigate global warming. Officials from almost 200 countries, meeting in Paris at the 21st session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC COP 21), agreed to efforts aimed at curbing carbon dioxide emissions, holding the temperature increase below 2 degrees Celsius, and strengthening the capacity to deal with climate change impacts. In 2017, the Trump administration withdrew the United States from the Paris agreement on climate change.

This expository writing course builds upon these initiatives and developments and presents opportunities for you to write in various genres about climate science and the interdisciplinary ways climate change plays out in politics, the economy, business, societies and cultures. Your work will go beyond just exploration of the problem and will seek ways to lessen the impact of global warming for the present and the future. In the process, you will build a semester portfolio encompassing a variety of genres written for specific audiences and reflect often on your growth as a writer about climate complexities. Your capstone effort will be a reflection letter about your success in developing a theory of writing and meeting the learning outcomes set down for this course.

Our class will function as a workshop on the process of writing. The course assignments will combine traditional composition that will prepare you to produce well-argued essays throughout your career at Emory and multimedia that will equip you to use technology and communicate with the general public. The media are the public’s primary sources of information on science and climate change and shape the decisions of governments,

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institutions, businesses and individuals. Nuanced writing, technology knowhow and a grasp of the issues are key to communicating climate challenges and options to a broad audience. To showcase your work, you will create and develop your own website and publish your multimodal writing.

Climate change is a developing news story, and you should be regularly reading The New York Times and following climate change developments in the news. This course does not assume any background in climate science, composition, media writing or journalism.

Course Learning OutcomesBy the end of this course you will be able to

Compose texts in multiple genres, using multiple modes with attention to rhetorical situations.

Summarize, analyze, synthesize, and evaluate the ideas of others as you undertake scholarly inquiry in order produce your own arguments.

Practice writing as a process, recursively implementing strategies of research, drafting, revision, editing, and reflection.

Understand basic principles and issues of climate science and distill and explain them for the public.

Use web and podcast technologies to produce multimodal reports on climate change for a general audience.

Schedule Note I will be away roughly Dec. 1-14 to attend the United Nations climate talks in Katowice, Poland with an Emory student delegation. During this time, I will schedule class assignments and activities to complete and submit online while you also work on the major assignments. I will be in regular contact with you via Canvas and email.   

Required TextsSix Degrees: Our Future on a Hotter Planet, Mark Lynas, National Geographic Society, 2008.Other readings will be available on Course Reserves.

Course Requirements and GradingThis is a writing-intensive course. We will emphasize clear, concise expression, solid research and reporting, and the accurate presentation of facts. We will pay close attention to the mechanics of good writing: grammar, spelling, punctuation, precise word choice, strong sentences and well-organized paragraphs. We will use these building blocks to develop clarity in all your writing, a well-structured argument in your essay, and ease in communicating with an academic audience and the general public.

As writers, we will concentrate on producing original work through stages of writing, critique and revision. Each major writing assignment will involve several parts including rough drafts, peer editing, my comments, and the final draft. You will submit rough drafts

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for peer editing and my critique. I will be available to meet and discuss revisions. You will then rewrite, revise and submit a final draft. All assignments must be submitted on the designated due date and time. You are required to submit all parts of an assignment. Failure to do so will result in reduction of the final grade by a half-grade for each part missed.

I will not give a final exam in the class.

1.Final portfolio with 3-5-page reflection letter, 15 percentThroughout the semester you will assemble a portfolio of your work. The portfolio will include short writing assignments, drafts, reflections about writing in progress, and final drafts. Toward the end of the semester, you will use this collection as evidence to argue in a reflective essay that you have achieved the learning outcomes for the course.

2. An inquiry-based research essay on a topic from Six Degrees: Our Future on a Hotter Planet, 20 percent.This project will employ techniques of close reading, research and argumentation to analyze and present information from diverse sources on a news media-related topic.

3. Podcast assignment, 15 percent. A podcast script to use with recorded interviews in producing an audio report.

4. Carbon Footprint Bogs Project and other blogs, 25 percent.                We will undertake a semester-long project to compute our carbon footprints in your home environment and at school. After analyzing your footprints, you will write a series of blogs explaining your findings and suggesting ways to reduce the impact of your activities and lifestyle.

I also will ask you to blog about events and films during the semester. 5. Twitter posts and other social media, 5 percent

6. WordPress website that serve as your portfolio for the course, 10 percent.

7. Class participation, 10 percent We live in lively and challenging times. A significant part of your grade will rest on active, thoughtful and consistent participation in class. Attendance is only part of your class participation grade; you cannot receive an A in class participation merely by showing up. I expect you to prepare for class discussions and writing assignments by completing the assigned reading and viewing presentations. By this I mean researching reading, engaging in the class, speaking up and respectfully responding to others in your midst. When you are reading and responding to personal emails, you are not participating; this will count significantly against assessment of your participation. Exceptional engagement will improve your grade while a lack of involvement will hurt the final outcome.

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Course AssessmentExplanation of Letter Grades A: An excellent response to the assignment. Demonstrates a sophisticated use of rhetorical knowledge, writing, and design techniques.

B: A good response to the assignment. Demonstrates an effective use of rhetorical knowledge, writing, and design techniques. May have minor problems that distract reader.

C: An average response to the assignment. Demonstrates acceptable use of rhetorical knowledge, writing, and design technique. May have problems that distract reader.

D: A poor response to the assignment. Demonstrates a lack of rhetorical knowledge and writing and design technique. May have significant problems that distract reader.

F: A failure to respond to the assignment appropriately.

Grading ScalePercentage Letter Emory Quality Points93.00-100 A 4.090.00-92.99 A- 3.786.00-89.99 B+ 3.383.00-85.99 B 3.080.00-82.99 B- 2.776.00-79.99 C+ 2.373.00-75.99 C 2.070.00-72.99 C- 1.766.00-69.99 D+ 1.360.00-65.99 D 1.000.00-59.99 F 0.0

Your Responsibilities I place great emphasis upon these responsibilities:

1. Absences and PunctualityAttending every class and arriving on time is essential. We will often complete writing assignments in class. Everyone’s input is important to a rich and beneficial experience. I will take attendance at the beginning of each class and expect everyone to be present. Late arrivals are very disruptive and disrespectful to your classmates and to me; habitual tardiness will hurt your final grade.I consider more than two unexcused absences excessive and will reduce your grade by one-third of a letter for every class you miss after the two allowed. Other absences for illness or personal emergencies need to be documented in writing. In-class participation represents a significant portion of your grade. It is important for you to attend every class meeting and be engaged.

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2.AccuracyYou will be writing about the many facets and complexities of climate change: science, politics, economics, and culture. Getting the information right is the first job of any writer. Your credibility depends upon it. A major factual error on a paper, such as the misspelling of a name, will result in a one-grade reduction in the final grade on the assignment.

3. DeadlinesAll assignments are due by the time and date specified. On major assignments, I will not accept late work without granting advance permission via email, and permission is not guaranteed. Even with advance arrangement, late work will cause your grade for the assignment to decrease by one-half of a letter grade for each class period the assignment is late, except in the case of a documented illness or personal/family emergency. Meet with me if you feel your situation warrants an exception to this rule. Bring appropriate documentation to this meeting.

4. Contact/CommunicationEmail is the best way to contact me if you have questions or concerns. Generally, I will respond to all student emails within 24 hours (although on weekends and holidays, it may take a little longer). Likewise, there may be instances when I will need to contact you by email. It is your responsibility to check your Emory-based email account at least once every 24 hours.

5. Electronic DevicesCell phones should be silenced and stowed during class. I also ask that you store all electronic devices when we have class guests or make field trips so that you can give speakers your undivided attention. I allow the use of laptops for class-related work but not for checking personal email. If you have compelling personal business to conduct, please leave the classroom and take care of it. Checking personal email during class time on a frequent basis will result in a one-grade reduction in the grade for class participation.

6. Academic IntegrityThe Honor Code (http://catalog.college.emory.edu/academic/policies-regulations/honor-code.html) is in effect throughout the semester. By taking this course, you affirm that it is a violation of the code to cheat on exams, to plagiarize, to deviate from the teacher's instructions about collaboration on work that is submitted for grades, to give false information to a faculty member, and to undertake any other form of academic misconduct. You agree that the instructor is entitled to move you to another seat during examinations, without explanation. You also affirm that if you witness others violating the code you have a duty to report them to the honor council.

I take plagiarism and other forms of academic dishonesty seriously. Should I suspect that you engage in academic dishonesty in this course, I will refer the case to Emory’s Honor Council. You may also receive an F on the assignment(s) in question.

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Policy for University Closures Short Term University Closures (one or two days)In the event of short term closures due to inclement weather or emergency, we will revise our course schedule and use email and Canvas to accommodate the disruption.

 Long Term University Closures (three or more days)If the university should close for three days or longer, we will meet for make-up sessions. These school-appointed make-up dates are as follows:

·         Saturday, November 3 & Sunday, November 4 ·         Saturday, November 17 & Sunday, November 18

Student Success ResourcesAccess and Disability ResourcesI strive to create an inclusive learning environment for all. I am invested in your success in this class and at Emory, so please let me know if anything is standing in the way of your doing your best work. This can include your own learning strengths, any classroom dynamics that you find uncomfortable, ESL issues, disability or chronic illness, and/or personal issues that impact your work. I will hold such conversations in strict confidence.

Students with medical/health conditions that might impact academic success should visit Access, Disability Services and Resources (http://www.ods.emory.edu/index.html) to determine eligibility for appropriate accommodations. Students who receive accommodations must present the Accommodation Letter from ADSR to your professor at the beginning of the semester, or when the letter is received.

Peer Tutoring Writing SupportTutors in the Emory Writing Center (http://writingcenter.emory.edu/) and the ESL Program (http://college.emory.edu/oue/student-support/esl-program/) are available to support Emory College students as they work on any type of writing assignment, at any stage of the composing process. Tutors can assist with a range of projects, from traditional papers and presentations to websites and other multimedia projects. Writing Center and ESL tutors take a similar approach as they work with students on concerns including idea development, structure, use of sources, grammar, and word choice. They do not proofread for students. Instead, they discuss strategies and resources students can use as they write, revise, and edit their own work. Students who are non-native speakers of English are welcome to visit either the Writing Center tutors or the ESL tutors. All other students in the college should see Writing Center tutors. Learn more and make an appointment by visiting the websites of the ESL Program and the Writing Center. Please review tutoring policies before your visit.

Emory Counseling Services Free and confidential counseling services and support are available from the EmoryCounseling Center (404) 727-7450. This can be an invaluable resource when stress makes your work more challenging than it ought to be. http://studenthealth.emory.edu/cs/

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MEET THE INSTRUCTORSheila L. Tefft, a senior lecturer in The Emory Writing Program specializing in composition, multimedia journalism, and science writing about health and climate change, was a reporter, editor and foreign correspondent for almost 25 years. She served as Emory Journalism director 2000-2009 and has been involved in developing science-writing programs and teaching workshops and courses for undergraduate and graduate science writers for more than a decade. Prior to joining Emory, she taught journalism and writing courses at Louisiana State University. She spent 12 years in Asia where she was a correspondent and bureau chief for The Christian Science Monitor in Beijing, Bangkok and New Delhi. She attended Marquette University and holds a bachelor's degree in journalism from the University of Wisconsin. She received a M.Sc. degree in economic history from the London School of Economics and Political Science in 1977. She also worked as a business reporter and editor for the Chicago Tribune and The Atlanta Constitution and freelanced for many other publications, including BusinessWeek, The Washington Post and Smithsonian Magazine.

Did I Plagiarize? Source: The Visual Communications Guy http://thevisualcommunicationguy.com/2014/09/16/did-i-plagiarize-the-types-and-severity-of-plagiarism-violations/

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