Faculty Syllabus
ENGL-1302 English Composition II
Lindsay Lawley-Rerecich
Credit Spring 2026
Section(s)
ENGL-1302-024 (16505)
LEC MW 12:00pm - 1:20pm RVS RVSG 9115
ENGL-1302-088 (29050)
LEC TuTh 1:30pm - 3:00pm MCC MCC1 133
Course Requirements
You will complete ten graded assignments in this course. Every assignment has a detailed assignment sheet and grading rubric available on Blackboard.
1: Letter to the Professor: Introduce yourself and discuss your experience with English as an academic subject and language as a concept (600 words)
2: On The Spot Analysis: Analyze an assigned text in response to a prompt in a timed writing (600 words)
3: Something Old, Something New (Co-authored): In a group, write two referential texts defining and explaining an archaic or rare word or phrase and a very new word or phrase (800 words)
4: Something Old, Something New (Individual): Based on your group experience, respond to a prompt about language change or use (600 words)
5: Midterm Exam: An exam covering language and linguistic terminology, grammar, and punctuation
6: Conference Proposal & Literature Review: Propose a research topic in response to a Call for Papers for an academic conference and evaluate at least two credible sources (800 words). The conference theme will be the English Language in the Twenty-First Century.
7: Conference Paper: Write an argument paper on your proposed topic with at least four credible sources (1,200 words)
8: Conference Abstract: Write an academic summary of your conference paper for the whole class to see (200-300 words)
9: Conference Presentation: Present your conference paper to the whole class as part of a panel group (5 minutes)
10: Reflection: Look back on the semester to reassess your views on English as a subject or language as a concept and how this affects you as a writer (600 words)
Readings
Readings Include:
"How Language Came to Be, and Change" by Claudia Dreifus
"Why Even Basic A.I. Use is So Bad for Students" by Anastasia Berg
"Are We Really Willing To Become Dumber?" by David Brooks
"Paper-and-Pen Diaries Are Forever" by Lily Koppel
"Don't Throw Your Dictionary Away" by Alessandro Tersigni
The Great Silence" by Ted Chiang
"Who Decides What Words Mean" by Lane Greene
"My Daughters' Slang Taught Me Something Cool About How Language Evolves" by John McWhorter
"How 'Skibidi' and 'Tradwife' Were Added to the Cambridge Dictionary" by Alisha Haridasani Gupta
"Whatever Happened to 'You'" by John McWhorter
"Every Family Has a Secret Language. Experts Call it 'Familect'" by Caitlin Gibson
"Dear Pedants: Your Fave Grammar Rule is Probably Fake" by Chi Luu
"The Things They Carried" by Tim O'Brien
"The Strange Life of Punctuation!" by Chi Luu
"Girl" by Jamaica Kincaid
"Confessions of a Shinagawa Monkey" by Haruki Murakami
"Language" by David McFarland
"Chirps, Whistles, Clicks: Do any animals have a true language?" by Meeri Kim
"I'm a Marine Biologist. This is How I Talk to Whales" by David Gruber
"Definition," and "Characteristics of Language" in "Language" by Adrienne Kennedy
When That Chickadee Is No Longer 'A Machine With Feathers'" by Brandon Keim
"Fish Cheeks" by Amy Tan
"Sonny's Blues" by James Baldwin
Course Subjects
Part 1: Fundamentals
Week 1: Course Introduction
Week 2: Defining Language, The Rhetorical Triangle
Week 3: Fundamentals of Analysis, Rhetorical Appeals
Week 4: Fundamentals of Organization, Extemporaneous Writing
Part 2: Language Deep Dive
Week 5: Words & Meaning
Week 6: Grammar & Style
Week 7: Punctuation & Process
Week 8: Midterm Exam, Conducting Research
Part 3: Research: The Academic Conference
Week 9: Writing Summaries & Literature Reviews
Week 10: Writing Background/ Statement of Fact
Week 11: Writing Argument: Confirmation & Refutation
Week 12: Writing Effective Introductions & Conclusions
Week 13: Writing Abstracts & Presenting Your Work
Week 14: In-class Academic Conference Presentations
Part 4: Narrative & Reflection
Week 15: Writing Narrative & Reflection
Week 16: Writing Narrative & Reflection
Student Learning Outcomes/Learning Objectives
Upon successful completion of this course, students will:
- Demonstrate knowledge of individual and collaborative research processes.
- Develop ideas and synthesize primary and secondary sources within focused academic arguments, including one or more research-based essays.
- Analyze, interpret, and evaluate a variety of texts for the ethical and logical uses of evidence.
- Write in a style that clearly communicates meaning, builds credibility, and inspires belief or action.
- Apply the conventions of style manuals for specific academic disciplines (e.g., APA, CMS, MLA, etc.)
Office Hours
M W 12:45 PM - 1:00 PM RVS 9139
NOTE (15 minutes before class)T Th 1:00 PM - 1:30 PM MCC 130
NOTE (30 minutes before class)M W 1:20 PM - 1:35 PM RVS 9139
NOTE (15 minutes after class)Published: 01/22/2026 20:03:38