論述寫作

Google Meet link: http://meet.google.com/wmt-nvvv-mrp Google Classroom code: gop4h4h Argumentative essays are essays that attempt to establish a position regarding a particular topic. They require the synthesis of a number of writing skills, including description, summary, interpretation, analysis, argument, and counterargument. The writing sections of standardized tests like the GRE and TOEFL test for these skills, and they do so for good reason. This genre of writing is practiced throughout the sciences and humanities, and many of the scholarly publications in these fields are, in essence, argumentative essays. In this course, students will go through a guided process of reading, prewriting, writing, revising, editing, and rewriting. Throughout this process, they will receive and incorporate feedback from their instructor and from their peers. Students will thereby sharpen their academic writing skills and produce two argumentative essays over the course of the semester. The central aim of this course is to enhance students’ academic writing abilities in English. Students will learn how to • read and respond to a writing assignment; • quote, paraphrase, and summarize sources accurately; • develop a thesis, defend it with arguments, and anticipate and refute counterarguments; • organize an essay; • title an essay; • structure a paragraph; • write introductions and conclusions; • compare and contrast distinct positions regarding a given issue; • cite sources, evaluate their reliability, and use them in a variety of ways; • recognize plagiarism and other misuse of sources; • revise and edit an essay; and • respond thoughtfully to a peer’s essay and to peers’ comments on their own essays.

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Lectures: Students will listen to short lectures delivered by the instructor. Activities: Through a mixture of handouts, group work, and class discussion, students will learn some of the central skills required to compose their essays. Workshops: Students will examine the written work of their peers, identify both the strengths and the weaknesses of that work, and make suggestions regarding how to improve it. Students will write essays about two of the following four articles: Asma, Stephen T. (2022, 26 May). Imaginology. Aeon. https://aeon.co/essays/why-we-need-a-new-kind-of-education-imagination-studies Humphrey, Nicholas (2022, 3 October). Seeing and somethingness. Aeon. https://aeon.co/essays/how-blindsight-answers-the-hard-problem-of-consciousness Lupyan, Gary and Clark, Andy (2023, 6 February). Super-cooperators. Aeon. https://aeon.co/essays/how-might-telepathy-actually-work-outside-the-realm-of-sci-fi Uzan, Elad (2022, 28 November). Moral mathematics. Aeon. https://aeon.co/essays/how-to-solve-moral-problems-with-formal-logic-and-probability The other required readings for the course will be handouts regarding various aspects of essay writing. Students will also be required to read and evaluate their classmates’ work in progress.

Essay 1 (3-4 pages): 40% and Essay 2 (3-4 pages): 40% • Essays will be graded on a letter scale. Pre-draft assignments (summaries and introductions: about 1 page each) and drafts: 10% • Pre-draft assignments and drafts will be graded pass-fail. Students who submit a completed assignment on time will receive full credit. Attendance and participation: 10% • The attendance-and-participation grade for weeks 1 and 18 (the flexible teaching weeks) will be determined by whether students submit the take-home activities on time (see the course schedule below for more information). Late assignments will be penalized. There will be no exams for this course.

There is no textbook for the course. Please see "Description of Course Details" for the readings.

地點

Online

時間

By appointment

聯絡方式

jhricko@nycu.edu.tw