English 132
Theme: Food and/as Culture
Section 015
Tuesday/Thursday 3:30-4:45
Ferguson Building Room 181
Instructor: Dr. Megan Condis
Office: LAN 210
Office Hours: Monday 10:00 – 12:00 Wednesday 1:00 – 3:00 Friday 11:00 – 12:00
Also available by appointment for in person or Skype conferences
Email: [email protected]
Course Texts
Graff, Gerald and Cathy Birkenstein. They Say, I Say: The Moves that Matter in Academic Writing. 2nd
Edition. New York: W. W. Norton and Company, 2010. Print.
Lumberjacks Write English Composition Manual
You will also be expected to read various handouts available online at our course website in D2L.
Course Description
Continued study and application of the writing process and the skills of writing with a focus on
the forms of argumentative writing and on research methods, such as gathering, evaluating,
summarizing, synthesizing and citing source information. Prerequisite: C in English 131. Must
earn a C or higher to be admitted to any English 200-level course.
General Education Core Curriculum Objectives
As part of the communication component area, in any given semester one or more of the
following Core Curriculum Objectives for English 131 may be assessed:
Critical Thinking: creative thinking, innovation, inquiry, and analysis, evaluation, and
synthesis of information.
Communication: effective development, interpretation, and expression of ideas through
written, oral, and visual communication.
Teamwork: the ability to consider different points of view and to work effectively with
others to support a shared purpose or goal.
Personal Responsibility: the ability to connect choices, actions, and consequences to
ethical decision-making.
Assessment of these objectives at SFA will be based on student work from all core curriculum
courses. This student work will be collected in D2L through LiveText, the assessment
management system selected by SFA to collect student work for core assessment. LiveText
accounts will be provided to all students enrolled in core courses through the university
technology fee. You will be required to register your LiveText account, and you will be notified
how to register your account through your SFA e-mail account. If you forward your SFA e-mail
to another account and do not receive an e-mail concerning LiveText registration, please be sure
to check your junk mail folder and your spam filter for these e-mails. If you have questions
about LiveText call Ext. 1267 or e-mail [email protected].
The chart below indicates the core objectives addressed by this course, the assignment(s) that will be
used to assess the objectives in this course and uploaded to LiveText this semester, and the date the
assignment(s) should be uploaded to LiveText. Not every assignment will be collected for assessment
every semester. Your instructor will notify you which assignment(s) must be submitted for assessment
in LiveText this semester.
Core Objective
Definition
Course Assignment Title
Date Due in LiveText
Critical Thinking Skills
To include creative thinking,
innovation, inquiry, and analysis,
evaluation and synthesis of
information.
Final Exam
Dec 15
Communication Skills
To include effective development,
interpretation and expression of ideas
though written, oral, and visual
communication.
Final Exam
Dec 15
Teamwork
To include the ability to consider
different points of view and to work
effectively with others to support a
shared purpose or goal.
Final Exam
Dec 15
Personal Responsibility
To include the ability to connect
choices, actions and consequences to
ethical decision-making.
Final Exam
Dec 15
English Program Learning Outcomes
This is a general education core curriculum course and no specific program learning outcomes
for this major are addressed in the course.
English 132 Learning Outcomes
ENG 132 learning outcomes are the goals that students must meet as part of the Freshman
Composition core curriculum requirements, which include:
1. Ability to show appropriate acquisition of CORE objective 1 skills. Students in
composition courses make application of these skills in the writing of personal, expository, and
persuasive essays, which require students to make inquiries into and explorations of topics in
creative, innovative, or analytical ways. Students are expected to complete readings, to engage
in course and group discussions, and to analyze, interpret and synthesize their findings resultant
from these critical engagements into well-developed essays. Written assignments will evidence
the students’ command of these considerations: effective engagement of audience (pathos),
logical development of ideas (logos), and effective use of examples, expertise, or insight (ethos);
a research essay is the culminating writing of this course; students will learn appropriate research
methodologies, how to evaluate secondary sources, and to synthesize the ideas of others in their
arguments.
2. Ability to show appropriate acquisition of CORE objective 2 skills. These skills include
effective development, interpretation and expression of ideas through written, oral and visual
communication. Following instruction about group interaction, students will engage in oral
communication through class discussions and group work (orally in face-to-face courses,
electronically in online courses). Students will have occasion to respond to visual medium, as
found in assigned readings, lectures, power-point presentations, or other media dependent upon
course materials. Students learn processes for writing that help them to form coherent, welldeveloped, well-organized and unified discussions through a variety of writing methodologies,
including persuasive, analytical, and argumentative methodologies. Students will write several
essays; the culminating assignment will be an argumentative, research-based essay, and rubrics
will assess such concerns as development and exploration, mechanical clarity, interpretation or
expression of ideas, and effective use of research methodologies.
3. Ability to show appropriate acquisition of CORE objective 3 skills. These skills include
the ability to consider different points of view and to work effectively with others to support a
shared purpose or goal. Following instruction about peer review processes and small group work,
students will perform peer mentorship on essay assignments and work together on group
projects, which may include collaborative writing occasions, group presentations, or panel
discussions. As peer review is the common teamwork experience, students will be required to
share potentially diverse ideas with one another, to address those views in appropriate ways, and
to help one another to finalize essays for submission.
4. Ability to show appropriate acquisition of CORE objective 4 skills. These skills include
the ability to connect choices, actions and consequences to ethical decision-making. Students
will have opportunity to examine numerous secondary sources, to determine the credibility and
value of those sources, and to understand how argumentative methodologies bear responsibility
and consequence.
Students entering English 132 should…
 be able to formulate a thesis statement.
 understand the meaning and relationship of claim, evidence, and analysis.
 know and apply the concepts of the rhetorical situation (speaker, audience, purpose,
message, context) and the rhetorical appeals (ethos, pathos, logos).
 understand what makes a unified and coherent paragraph and be able to write one.
 produce mechanically sound essays with only minor grammatical, punctuation, and
spelling errors.
 understand what constitutes plagiarism
 be proficient in MLA basics: page formatting, quotation, citation, and Works Cited lists.
Assignments and Requirements
You will be graded upon the following criteria:
Two Short Essay Projects (3-5 pages) which will require you to practice the writing strategies that
we discuss in class. For each of the papers, you’ll receive a prompt detailing the assignment. An
acceptable paper is typed or word-processed in legible ink and stapled. It has 1-inch margins on all
sides to make room for comments. Its mechanics have been checked. Its title is descriptive and
interesting. It is in Times New Roman font (size 12) and is double-spaced. It has a title page and page
numbers in correct MLA format (see Lumberjacks Write for more information). If a paper is
unacceptable, it will face substantial grade penalties (1-letter grade off).
The second of these two short essay projects will be collected for assessment via LiveText in the
D2L system. It will be accompanied by a short reflection by the author on how the peer review
process influenced their own work as well as how their comments influenced their fellow
students.
One Annotated Bibliography (5-6 pages) which will require you to find and assess resources in various
formats for usefulness and credibility and to present those resources in the form of a tool that can be
used by other scholars. An acceptable paper is typed or word-processed in legible ink and stapled. It
has 1-inch margins on all sides to make room for comments. Its mechanics have been checked. Its title
is descriptive and interesting. It is in Times New Roman font (size 12) and is double-spaced. It has a
title page and page numbers in correct MLA format (see Lumberjacks Write for more information). If a
paper is unacceptable, it will face substantial grade penalties (1-letter grade off).
One Research Paper (8-10 pages) which will be completed in several stages and which will require you
to engage with and respond to academic sources. More information about this project will be given as
the semester progresses. An acceptable paper is typed or word-processed in legible ink and stapled. It
has 1-inch margins on all sides to make room for comments. Its mechanics have been checked. Its title
is descriptive and interesting. It is in Times New Roman font (size 12) and is double-spaced. It has a
title page and page numbers in correct MLA format (see Lumberjacks Write for more information). If a
paper is unacceptable, it will face substantial grade penalties (1-letter grade off).
An Infographic which will require students to synthesize and present important information from their
research project in a visual format
A Timed Final Exam in which students will be asked to write a short essay responding to the material
covered in the course.
In-Class Participation I expect all students to attend each class meeting and to abstain from behaviors
like texting on their cell phones, checking their Facebook pages, reading newspapers, and working on
assignments for other courses. Any time that you miss a class meeting, come to class unprepared, or
engage in any of the above distracting behaviors (or any others that I have failed to list), you will be
marked absent for that class. I recognize that unforeseeable circumstances occur and so I will allow
you to miss up to 4 classes without penalty during the course of the semester for any reason, no excuse
necessary. However, any subsequent losses no matter what their cause will cause you to lose 2%
out of the 10% of your overall grade for the course allotted for In-Class Participation. These
“free” absences are not built into the syllabus in order to give you vacation days. They are there for
when you are sick or for when you have an emergency. If you use up all of your free days, illnesses
and emergencies will not get you out of this penalty unless your situation is severe enough that the
emergency dean is involved.
As mentioned above, if a student comes to class unprepared (has not done the reading or does not
have the necessary text with them in order to participate in class), then he or she will be counted
as absent for the day.
Students who are absent ten or more times during the course of the semester will receive a failing
grade in the course.
Grading
In order to receive a passing grade for this class, you will need to complete all of the major
writing assignments (the two major essays, the research paper, and the final portfolio). Assuming
that this basic requirement has been met, your grade will be calculated as follows:
Essay 1 First Draft (5%) and Final Revisions (10%): 15%
Essay 2: 15%
Annotated Bibliography: 10%
Research Paper: 25%
Infographic: 10%
Final Exam: 15%
In-Class Participation: 10%
A Note Regarding Grades
In college, the grading scale used by your instructors to assess your work is likely very different from
the one by your high school. In college, “A” work is truly exceptional, both in the sense that it is
extremely high in quality and in the sense that it bears the unique stamp of the individual who created
it. “B” work exceeds expectations, but is more expected or less insightful than “A” work. “C” work
meets expectations for the assignment and goes no further. “D” and “F” work both have serious issues
that need fixing if the student hopes to move forward in the course. Keep this in mind as you work on
your assignments for the semester.
Grading Scale
A (excellent performance): 90-100.
B (above average performance): 80-89.
C (average performance): 70-79.
D (below average performance): 60-69.
F (failure): 0-59.
Late Work
All assignments must be completed in the order in which they are given, and you must complete
all the major assignments and the final exam in order to pass this course.
Late work will receive a 5% penalty per day up to 7 days after which the assignment will receive
a zero.
All assignments will be turned in via D2L by 5 pm on their scheduled due date. We will go over how
to do this in class. Technical difficulties with D2L will not be an acceptable excuse for late work. If
you have questions about how to turn in an assignment, you need to let me know in advance so we
can work on it together.
If you foresee that you will have difficulty meeting a due date, let me know in advance and we can
work out an accommodation. Otherwise, the penalty outlined above will apply.
Assignments will not be accepted via email.
Plagiarism/Academic Integrity
Academic Integrity: Adhering to academic integrity standards at all times by producing your own
work and successfully attributing others’ ideas to them is a necessary aspect of university
communication.
Academic dishonesty includes both cheating and plagiarism. Cheating includes, but is not limited to:
(1) using or attempting to use unauthorized materials to aid in achieving a better grade on a component
of a class; (2) falsification or invention of any information, including citations, on an assignment;
and/or (3) helping or attempting to help another in an act of cheating or plagiarism.
Plagiarism is presenting the words or ideas of another person as if they were your own. Examples of
plagiarism include, but are not limited to: (1) submitting an assignment as if it were one's own work
when, in fact, it is at least partly the work of another; (2) submitting a work that has been purchased or
otherwise obtained from the Internet or another source; and (3) incorporating the words or ideas of an
author into one's paper or presentation without giving the author due credit.
Any appeals on academic integrity cases must be made within thirty days after the first class day of the
next long semester. Students should appeal to the instructor first then to the chair if the situation is not
resolved. Further appeals can be made to the dean and provost if necessary.
Please read the complete policies at: http://www.sfasu.edu/policies/academic_integrity.asp and
http://www.sfasu.edu/policies/academic-appeals-by-students.pdf.
My policy is simple: plagiarism or academic dishonesty will result in a zero for that assignment,
or a failing grade for the course depending on the severity of the violation.
We will be discussing the proper way to cite your sources during this class, but in the meantime, if you
have any questions about this definition or about a particular case in any of your courses, it is up to you
to approach me (or any of your other instructors) for help.
Classroom Conduct
In order for our classroom sessions to be productive, we need to create an environment in which none
of us are afraid to put ourselves out there in front of each other. Rudeness will not be tolerated. We
may discuss “hot button” issues, but we need to be respectful of the opinions, feelings, and life
experiences of others. Hateful language or behavior such as racism, sexism, homophobia, etc is not
acceptable. Students who engage in this behavior will be asked to leave the classroom and may be
subject to further disciplinary action.
Withheld Grades Semester Grades
Ordinarily, at the discretion of the instructor of record and with the approval of the academic
chair/director, a grade of WH will be assigned only if the student cannot complete the course work
because of unavoidable circumstances. Students must complete the work within one calendar year from
the end of the semester in which they receive a WH, or the grade automatically becomes an F. If
students register for the same course in future terms the WH will automatically become an F and will
be counted as a repeated course for the purpose of computing the grade point average.
Special Accommodations
To obtain disability related accommodations, alternate formats and/or auxiliary aids, students with
disabilities must contact the Office of Disability Services (ODS), Human Services Building, and Room
325, 468-3004 / 468-1004 (TDD) as early as possible in the semester. Once verified, ODS will notify
your instructors and outline the accommodation and/or auxiliary aids to be provided.
Failure to request services in a timely manner may delay your accommodations, and no
accommodations can be made except through the ODS. For additional information, go to
http://www.sfasu.edu/disabilityservices/.
Resources
The AARC offer free writing tutoring, which is available on a walk-in and appointment basis. They
also offer online writing tutoring services and workshops about writing-related topics. For more
information, go to http://library.sfasu.edu/aarc/, visit them on the first floor of the Steen Library, or call
them at 936-468-4108.
Course Calendar
Week 1
Tuesday
Introduction to the course
 In-class activity: Go over the syllabus
 Diagnostic Introductory Essay
Thursday
Introduction to Argumentation and Logic/Logos
 Before class: Read John D. Ramage, John C. Bean, and June Johnson (eds), "Argument: An
Introduction" in Writing Arguments: A Rhetoric with Readings. New York: Pearson
Longman, 2004. 3-12. Omit section titled "Argument and the Problem of Truth."
 Before class: Read Scott Adams, "You Are Wrong Because" in The Joy of Work: Dilbert's
Guide to Finding Happiness at the Expense of Your Co-Workers. New York: Collins
Business, 1998.
 In-class activity: What is an argument? Premises and conclusions
 In-class activity: How does one object to an argument? Attacking the truth value of claims,
attacking an argument's validity, logical fallacies
 In-class activity: Making bad arguments – Groups will work together to provide examples
of arguments that engage in logical fallacies
Week 2
Tuesday
Plagiarism and Citation in the MLA Format
 Before class: Read Plagiarism Today on Recipe Stealing and The New York Times on “Soul
Sisters in the Kitchen”
https://www.plagiarismtoday.com/2015/03/24/recipes-copyright-and-plagiarism/
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/07/30/opinion/the-soul-sisters-in-the-kitchen.html
 Bring Lumberjacks Write with you to class
 In-class activity: Discuss and define plagiarism
 In-class activity: Go over proper citation in the MLA format
 In-class activity: Bibliolympics
Thursday
Introduction to Food and Culture
 Before class: Read Food is Culture excerpt
 In-class activity: What is food culture? How does culture influence food? How does food
influence culture?
 In-class activity: Food association game
Week 3
Tuesday
Summarizing the Arguments of Experts, Objecting to Arguments, Anticipating Objections
 Before class: Read They Say, I Say: Preface to the Second Edition, Preface, Introduction,
and all of Part 1: "They Say." Bring it with you to class.
 Before class: Read The Guardian on the ethics of eating animals we consider pets
http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2015/jun/22/eat-cats-dogs-meat-china
 In-class activity: Summarizing arguments, anticipating objections, what constitutes a
legitimate objection?
Thursday
The Rhetorical Triangle: Ethos, Pathos, and the Writerly Voice
 Before class: Read the following sections of Peter Elbow, "Voice in Writing Again:
Embracing Contraries" in College English 70.2 (November 2007) pages 168-188: "Reasons
for Attending to Voice in Texts" and "Reasons for Not Attending to Voice in Texts"
 Before class: Read "Moving Your Audience: Ethos and Pathos" in Writing Arguments: A
Rhetoric with Readings. New York: Pearson Longman, 2004. 129-139.
 In-class activity: Discuss the ways in which your writerly voice can either augment or
destroy your credibility with a particular audience
 In-class activity: Assess the writerly voices employed by two brands within the diet
industry: Skinny Bitch and The Primal Blueprint. Who do you think these writers imagine
their audience to be? How does their mode of address help them to appeal to this audience?
Do you think that these appeals were successful?
 In-class activity: Discuss the genre of the college research paper. Who might potentially be
a part of your audience? What kind of voice do you think would be appropriate for that
audience?
Week 4
Tuesday
Preparing for Essay #1 – Food Advertisements
 Before class: Read Susan Bordo, “Hunger as Ideology” in Unbearable Weight: Feminism,
Western Culture, and the Body. 10th Anniversary Edition. Berkeley: University of
California Press, 2003. 99-138.
 Before class: Read Paul Campos, “Lost in the Supermarket” in The Obesity Myth: Why
America’s Obsession with Weight is Hazardous to Your Health. New York: Gotham Books,
2004. 70-78.
 In-class activity: Summarize Bordo’s and Campos’s arguments using templates from They
Say, I Say
 In-class activity: Analyze television and print commercials for a food.
Thursday
Preparing for Essay #1: Internet Memes and Thinspiration
 Before class: Read The Nation and Independent on Thinspiration and Social Media
http://www.thenation.com/article/thinspiration-behind-impossible-ideal-beauty/
http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/health-and-families/health-news/people-runningthinspiration-or-proanorexia-websites-in-france-will-now-face-a-prison-sentence-andmaximum-7000-fine-10153909.html
 In-class activity: Closely read sample memes
Week 5
Tuesday
Begin Research for Essay #1
Meet in computer lab
 Before class: Read They Say, I Say: All of Part 2: "I Say" Bring it with you to class.
 In-class activity: Search for subject of Essay #1
 In-class activity: Relate data about your advertisement to the arguments made by the authors
we have read
 In-class activity: Begin to draft Essay #1
Thursday
The Academic Essay: Crafting the Thesis Statement
Essay #1 First Draft Due Today – Print it out and bring it with you to class.
 Before class: Look over They Say, I Say Part 2 once again. Bring it with you to class.
 Before class: Read Fast Food Nation excerpt
 In-class activity: Discuss the three major parts of an argumentative essay: Introduction,
Body, Conclusions
 In-class activity: Define the Thesis Statement: A Road Map and a So What?
 In-class activity: Define the Conclusion: Summary and Call to Action
 In-class activity: Write a thesis statement and a conclusion Fast Food Nation excerpt
 In-class activity: Write a thesis statement and a conclusion for Essay #1
Week 6
Tuesday
The Argumentative Essay: Organization and Transitions
Print it new version of Essay #1 with thesis statement and conclusion and bring it with you to
class.
 Before class: Read They Say, I Say Part 3. Bring it with you to class.
 Before class: Read The Omnivore’s Dilemma excerpt.
 In-class activity: Discuss transition statements and metacommentary
 In-class activity: Add transition statements and metacommentary to Essay #1
Thursday
Peer Review Essay #1
 Before class: Write a rough draft of Essay #1, print it out, and bring it with you to
class.
 In-class activity: Peer Review Essay #1
Week 7
Tuesday
Entering the Conversation
Essay #1 Final Revisions Due Today
 Before class: Read They Say, I Say Part 4. Bring it with you to class.
 Before class: Read Huffington Post, Eater, Slate, and Gene Marks on tipping.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/10/17/abolish-tipping_n_5991796.html
http://www.eater.com/2015/3/13/8187659/restaurant-server-explains-why-we-should-notabolish-tipping
http://www.slate.com/articles/business/moneybox/2013/07/abolish_tipping_it_s_bad_for_se
rvers_customers_and_restaurants.html
http://www.slate.com/articles/life/culturebox/2013/08/tipless_restaurants_the_linkery_s_ow
ner_explains_why_abolishing_tipping.html
https://genemarksblog.wordpress.com/2015/01/14/abolish-tipping-the-practice-shouldactually-be-expanded/
 In-class activity: Use transition statements and metacommentary to put multiple writers in
conversation with one another
Thursday
Oral Debate
 Before class: Watch “What is a Rogerian Argument” and “Traditional vs. Rogerian
Argument Style”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z9knvRXU8zQ
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H_fS6M-wQxo
 Before class: Read The Toulmin Method
http://writing.colostate.edu/guides/pdfs/guide58.pdf
 In-class activity: Debate – “Should We Abolish Tipping?”
Week 8
Tuesday
Peer Review Essay #2
 Before class: Write a rough draft of Essay #2, print it out, and bring it with you to
class.
 In-class activity: Peer Review First Draft of Essay #2
Thursday
Essay #2 Due Today
 Before class: Read NPR, KCP Student Life, The Smithsonian Magazine, and Interfaith
Family on food traditions
http://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2013/12/25/256605220/why-we-hold-tight-to-ourfamilys-holiday-food-traditions
http://www.kcpstudentlife.com/culture/tea-ceremony/
http://www.interfaithfamily.com/holidays/shabbat_and_other_holidays/Understanding_Jewi
sh_Food_Traditions.shtml
http://www.smithsonianmag.com/arts-culture/why-do-we-eat-popcorn-at-the-movies475063/?no-ist
 In-class activity: Discuss sources of food traditions
 In-class activity: Brainstorm potential topics for food tradition annotated bibliography
Week 9
Tuesday
Introduction to the library
Meet in the library today
 In-class activity: Librarian workshop
Thursday
Evaluating Print Resources
 In-class activity: How to preview a book and take notes
Week 10
Tuesday
The Annotated Bibliography
Bring at least two books or print articles (newspapers, magazines, journals etcetera) on your
topic with you to class
 Before class: Read "Annotated Bibliographies" on the Purdue OWL website
http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/614/01/.
 Before class: Read sample annotated bibliography
http://sites.lafayette.edu/egrs251-fa11-fooddeserts/resources/complete-annotatedbibliography/
 In-class activity: work on sample entries Annotated bibliography
Thursday
Evaluating Online Resources
Meet in the computer lab
 Before class: Read "Evaluating Online Sources" by Bruce Ballenger in The Curious
Researcher (New York: Longman, 2004). 73-77.
 In-class activity: Assessing the trustworthiness of Internet resources.
 In-class activity: Look for online resources to use for your annotated bibliography
Week 11
Tuesday
Peer Review Annotated Bibliography
 Before class: Write a rough draft of the Annotated Bibliography, print it out, and bring it
with you to class.
 In-class activity: Peer review annotated bibliography
Thursday
Introducing the Research Project
Annotated Bibliography Final Draft Due Today
 In-class activity: What is the difference between a research topic and a research question?
 In-class activity: Key to a generative research question: it must be both researchable and
controversial.
 In-class activity: Go over the prompt for the research project
 Take an interest inventory re: food and culture
Week 12
INDIVIDUAL CONFERENCES RESEARCH PAPER PROPOSALS
NO REGULAR CLASSES WILL BE HELD
Instead, students will schedule one-on-one conferences with me about their proposals for the research
paper project.
Students are expected to bring a paper copy of their draft and a written list of at least 3
substantial questions (ie: not spelling or grammar questions) to their meeting.
Failure to attend your scheduled meeting or to bring the required materials will be counted as two
absences (resulting in a loss of two participation points).
Week 13
Tuesday
Editing for Clarity and Style
 In-class activity: Editing exercise
Thursday
THANKSGIVING BREAK! NO CLASS
Week 14
Tuesday
Peer Review Research Paper
 Before class: Write a rough draft of the research paper, print it out, and bring it with you to
class.
 In-class activity: Peer review research paper
Thursday
The Infographic
 In-class activity: The art of the infographic
Week 15
Tuesday
Meet in the computer lab
Infographic workshop
 In-class activity: Work on infographics
Thursday
Peer Review Infographics
 Before class: Create a rough draft of your infographic, print it out, and bring it with you to
class.
 In-class activity: Peer review infographics
 In-class activity: Wrap up and student evaluations
Week 16
Final Exam Tuesday December 15, 2015 1:00 – 3:00 pm
Location TBA
Infographic Final Draft Due during Final Exam