Florida State College at Jacksonville - Advanced English Composition: Research for Writers (2008)

How do we keep up with the ever-changing demands of electronic documentation while maintaining the form and structure of good research and writing? Is there a place for literary analysis in writing research? Do elements of the essay need to be reviewed in a second-level course? Do grammar and mechanics need to be revisited?

When attempting to update and revise the popular and long-running telecourse Read, Write and Research, the producers of the course, Florida State College at Jacksonville, directed these and other salient questions to current distance education faculty, students and administrators throughout the country. By surveying over 100 community colleges, technical schools, and universities nationwide, they learned that instructors need up-to-date information not only on electronic documentation, but also on evaluating electronic sources. And that while students continue to struggle with finding a good idea and narrowing their topic, they look for practical applications in the workplace. They also discovered that while business writing continues to be in demand, technical writing is also needed.

This Advanced English Composition course introduces students to valuable research sources and techniques, while also providing writing instruction for a wide range of non-fiction formats. In addition to new methods for gathering information and tips on the use of electronic sources, students will also get expert advice on crafting:

 Essays
 Abstracts
 Arguments
 Technical Papers
 Business papers

Featuring interviews with best-selling authors, a simulated newscast, and a friendly, informative teaching style, this second level English course will show you the best and easiest ways to find your facts, organize them and express them. Research for Writers provides concise presentations of concepts; a business like, news-anchor approach with male and female co-hosts; and timely, real-life examples of researchable topics. Violence in the schools, clothing as a form of identity, alternatives to the death penalty, the pros and cons of home schooling, motorcycle helmet laws, graffiti as artistic expression, social services for senior citizens, horseback riding for exercise and as therapy for victims of trauma are only a few of the many lively examples offered.

To be used strictly as a resource for writing research papers, these classes focus on studying non-fiction writing in its many forms .The student will develop a proficiency in evaluating texts and writing analytically about these texts.

Classes

01 - Getting Started
02 - Writing a Research Essay
03 - Using the Library
04 - Narrowing the Focus
05 - Bibliography and Thesis
06 - Gathering Information
07 - Tentative Outline
08 - Argumentative Paper
09 - Critiquing the Argument
10 - Writing the First Draft
11 - Critiquing the First Draft
12 - Documenting Your Sources
13 - Using Electronic Sources
14 - Revising and Editing
15 - Grammatical and Mechanical Errors
16 - Critiquing the Second Draft
17 - Explication and Critique
18 - Critiquing in the Classroom
19 - Writing the Abstract
20 - Technical Writing
21 - Writing for Business
22 - One Draft Only - Pressure Writing
23 - Interpreting Literature
24 - Looking for Pattern in Literatures