Topics That Came Up In Class during the Fall of 2009
UWP 104D with Andy Jones
Note: Much of this information from the Fall 2009 section of UWP 104D is still relevant.
September 29
Maxine Hairston’s Elements of Successful Writing:
- Substantive
- Clear
- Unified
- Economical
- Grammatically Correct
See also “Elements of a Good Writing Style” by Roger Griffin
October 1
As Janice Hewitt at Rice University says, “Choose active, precise verbs”
See Dennis Jerz on “Active and Passive Verbs”
Review the “General characteristics by letter grade of university-level student papers” (download PDF)
Another version of this document in HTML: Grading Standards for Advanced Writing Courses
The Student Academic Success Center is a great place to receive feedback on rough drafts.
October 6
Consider purchasing an anthology of the best of recent student writing at UC Davis — the latest Prized Writing anthology is available at the campus bookstore.
Concerns and Reflections from Your First Drafts on Essay #1: Narrative and Analysis
- Lack of an argument regarding what it was that called you to teach
- Introductions that are too long, too vague, or somewhat irrelevant
- Lack of clear causality — does your essay explain what caused what (in other words, what, specifically, caused you to resolve to teach)
- Lack of a specific narrative — a telling of the story of how it was you were called to teach
- Specific evidence to support claims — show your narrative to your reader
- Lack of analysis of that narrative
- Economy: Paying attention to the word count, as well as avoiding needless repetition
October 8
Resources to review as you prepare to write your Statement of Purpose:
- Glenn M. Callaghan, San Jose State University, “Writing a Statement of Purpose”
- http://www.sjsu.edu/faculty/gcallaghan/graduate/winningstatement.htm
- Melissa Wensel, University of Washington, “Writing Statements of Purpose for Admission to Graduate Programs in English”
- http://depts.washington.edu/engl/advising/gradschool/SoP1.php
- UC Santa Barbara, “Preparing Your Statement of Purpose and Personal Statement”
- http://www.english.ucsb.edu/undergrad/aftermajor/statement-of-purpose.asp
The Second C of Style: Check for Action
October 13
I received an excellent position paper question from one of you that I would like to answer here:
Question: Hi, If there are two people writing a position paper on the same reading, are they supposed to write a collaborative paper or just share ideas. Also, should they try to take on opposing positions?
Answer: Because the position paper assignment is meant to encourage risk-taking, personal and individual responses, and even the adoption of positions that you may not fully espouse, I expect many sorts of innovative responses. As a result, two or more people may write a collaborative paper from the same point of view, they may write a “debate” of sorts that presents a “pro and con” approach, and you may even use visuals, props, or multi-media support. The only requirements are that the essay take a position (that is, present a personal argument that a thinking person might dispute), that it support its assertion with specific evidence (including especially empirical evidence), and that it be short (that is, two pages or shorter for one author, and up to three pages for two or more authors). If you are not sure about the correct approach to present and support an argument, try something unusual or risky, and that will be a correct approach.
October 20
Words and Phrases to Beware / Avoid in your SOP
- To have an impact
- To make a difference
- Ability/Able
- “To Be”
- Promote an environment
- Use the word “teach”
- Focus on SVO syntax
October 22
Some Advice on One Student’s Statement of Purpose
Paragraph
- What is my topic sentence?
- Does each subsequent sentence support this topic sentence?
- Does this paragraph ever repeat itself needlessly?
- Is there adequate specific evidence to support claims?
Sentence
- Does this sentence support my TS?
- Is it connected clearly with necessary transitions to the sentences before and after it?
- To the extent necessary, does it represent a complex thought?
- How could short sentences be cut and combined with others?
Evidence (the case of Catherine)
- Introduce Catherine in a particular educational context
- Clarify how your Catherine stories and experiences function to support assertions
- Show your reader how you helped her, rather than just reporting about Catherine
- How did you KNOW (what did you see?) that there was a problem with Catherine? Show me evidence.
- How did you KNOW (what did you see?) that you were making progress with her? Show me evidence.
- How did you KNOW (what did you see?) that she was a much stronger student after your work with her? Show me evidence.
November 3
