Faculty Syllabus
ENGL-1302 English Composition II
Amber Clontz
Credit Spring 2026
Section(s)
ENGL-1302-021 (16502)
LEC MW 1:30pm - 2:50pm HLC HLC1 2212
ENGL-1302-160 (28725)
LEC SHS ONL DIL
ENGL-1302-191 (16607)
LEC SHS ONL DIL
ENGL-1302-207 (33979)
LEC TuTh 10:30am - 11:50am NRG NRG4 4202
ENGL-1302-208 (33980)
LEC TuTh 1:30pm - 2:50pm NRG NRG4 4201
Topical Focus
Liberal Arts Gateway Course: “Everything Change: Reading Climate Fiction and Non-Fiction"This is a ZTC (Zero Textbook Cost) section. In place of required textbooks, all textbook materials needed for the class will be available online to students free of charge. Students may print copies of the resources but will be responsible for printing costs. Course materials may be Open Educational Resources (OER), see syllabus for specifics.
Course Requirements
Writing Assignment 1 - Interpreting a Text: Making an Argument about Audience with Secondary Sources as Rhetorical Context. Identify and explain the rhetorical effect of different writing decisions in Dr. Seuss’ “The Lorax”. Three revisions and a Works Cited page in MLA required. Maximum 1,000 words/ 4 pages. Submitted on Blackboard in Week 4.
Writing Assignment 2 – Analyzing a Text: Texts in Conversation about Climate Fiction Conventions. Choose 1 of 4 short CliFi stories to build an argument about the significance of “everything change” in each story. Describe character, conflict, plot, world, and argue how the authors communicate meaning, builds credibility, and/or inspires belief or action. Three revisions and a Works Cited page in MLA required. Max 1,500 words/6 pages. Submitted on Blackboard in Week 8. *Outside research optional
Writing Assignment 3 - Imitating a Text: Applied Annotated Bibliography Assignment. Students will be in thematic reading/research groups. Three revisions, an annotated bibliography, and a Works Cited page in MLA required. Minimum 6 sources. Submitted on Blackboard in Week 14. *Outside research required
Readings
One of the ways that this class will help you think about writing is to read more. The best writers are constant readers. The more you read, the more aware you will become of the stylistic and rhetorical choices you have in your own work. To accomplish these choices, we read a variety of texts. And reread them. And talk about this reading. And then write about this reading and imitate it in our writing exercises. All readings will be posted in weekly Blackboard modules. To be clear, there is no shortcut to this kind of serious brain work. College-level reading requires concentration. Put your phone in another room, disable all push notifications to your screen. Multitasking is a lie. Eliminate these distractions and reading for this course will be manageable. Allow yourself to be distracted and a 12 page Climate Fiction story will take you hours to read and you won’t understand, let alone retain, what you read.
Course Subjects
Welcome to Composition 1302. In this course, we are going to explore your questions about writing and build on past communication skills you bring to the course. I look forward to learning about your individual interests, which may become the foundation for future meaningful multimodal writing projects.
This Dual Credit section of Comp II offers students a chance to explore their own questions related to Climate Change. If you do not believe in human-caused global warming, you can still succeed in this course. Throughout the semester, students will improve their critical thinking and communication skills in a collaborative learning environment, where they read, write, and discuss works that explore our shared social and personal responsibilities as humans on earth. We will alternate between reading fiction and non-fiction genres to study and practice strategies and techniques for developing research-based expository and persuasive texts. These texts introduce opportunities for effective, ethical rhetorical inquiry, leading to assignments and projects that require the integration of primary and secondary source research methods. Course assignments require students to read verbal, visual, and multimedia texts critically. This work is scaffolded through a variety of class activities designed to guide students through systematic evaluation, synthesis, and documentation of information sources, asking them to think critically about evidence and their own conclusions.
Student Learning Outcomes/Learning Objectives
When you complete ENGL 1302, you should be able to
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● Analyze and interpret a variety of texts through literary, critical, and/or contextual approaches
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● Write objectively, concisely, and analytically in a style that clearly communicates meaning, builds
credibility, and inspires belief or action
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● Demonstrate knowledge of individual and collaborative research processes
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● Develop ideas and synthesize primary and secondary sources within focused academic arguments,
including two or more research-based essays;
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● Analyze, interpret, and evaluate a variety of texts for the ethical and logical uses of evidence
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● Apply the conventions of style manual appropriate to the English discipline (MLA)
Office Hours
F 2:00 PM - 3:00 PM Zoom
NOTE If you can't meet during this time, email me your availability (M-F, 9 am - 4 pm) to set up an alternative time! I'm flexible :)F 2:00 PM - 3:00 PM Zoom
NOTE I have a very flexible schedule. If 2-3 pm on Fridays doesn't work for you, email me your availability and we can schedule a different time to meet.Published: 01/21/2026 15:35:45