Week 1

Dear students,
Today you will sign in (as you will do every class). 

attendance

Then, I would like to ask you to participate in a pre-course survey.

pre-course survey

After that, please write a two-paragraph essay about a novel that you have read recently. The first paragraph should be a summary and include an in-text citation. The second paragraph should be your opinion of the novel. Finally, write a reference for the book in APA format.

Summary of a novel


Kind regards,
Chris Elvin

Welcome to Chris Elvin's 2019 Academic Writing Class

Dear students,
Welcome to academic writing. Last year many students failed this course, so please be aware that you may fail if you do not apply yourself properly from the outset.

Some reasons for failing include:

* underlength final papers
* a lack of knowledge of academic writing 
* hubris (over-confidence in one's ability)
* cheating (copying from the Internet, for example)
* a naive and unfounded shared belief that everyone will pass the course

Grading Criteria

50 points:

A final paper of a minimum of 1500 words which includes at least seven references in the appropriate format (APA).

30 points:

A completed class workbook. This should show your integrity and learning. Therefore, do not copy from a friend (unless the teacher asks you to work in pairs), or from the internet, for example, and do not invent references for your annotated bibliography. Academic honesty is an integral part of academic writing.

class workbook

(Every week you will do one chapter of the workbook which you are expected to download and bring to class yourselves).

20 points:

A mid-term in-class test and a final in-class test

Attendance:

You should attend all classes. Once you arrive in class, please submit the form below. Do not abuse your attendance record.

Academic Writing Attendance Form

Kind regards,
Chris Elvin