Objective: students will examine the arguments of various texts, both published and student-written, and will participate in discussions of the planning, drafting, and revising necessary to produce such texts.

Objective: students will revise their own writing, both in terms of "global" (i.e., large-scale and structural) and "local" (i.e., grammatical and mechanical) revision;

Objective: students will produce a portfolio of their own writing, complete with various stages of drafts, writing exercises, planning, outlines, tentative bibliographies, etc., and at least four finished essays demonstrating competence in the use of standard written English, including an 8-10 page research essay.

Objective: students will read a variety of texts, including literary, instructional, and scholarly texts, and discuss ideas and issues from those readings either in class, online, or in the pages of a reading-response journal;

Objective: students will demonstrate knowledge of formative concepts in literary study through class discussion, research activities, and written assignments.

Objective: students will write essays, and other writing and research exercises, using basic general knowledge and conventions of discourse within the humanities.

Objective: students will discuss–either in class, online, or within the pages of a reading-response journal–a variety of rhetorical features in published texts, relevant to the disciplinary area in which the text was written;

Objective: students will examine and practice standard conventions for integrating and synthesizing material from outside sources;

Objective: students will examine the rhetorical features in each other's written work for the purpose of assessing and justifying rhetorical choices regarding such elements as diction, syntax, punctuation, and tone;

Objective: students will extensively revise and re-think their own rhetorical decisions as a routine part of their ongoing writing and revising practices.

Objective: students will examine–either in class, online, or in the pages of a reading-response journal–the structures of academic argumentation in print and online sources.

Objective: students will analyze the tactics of academic argumentation in order to identify and avoid the dangers of logical fallacies and various other errors in reasoning;

Objective: students will assess and evaluate sources relevant to a particular discussion and ascertain their effectiveness in the development of written argumentation.

Objective: students will produce a portfolio that includes reading-based argumentative essays and one 8-10 page research essay demonstrating well-crafted logical arguments;

Objective: students will examine and analyze peers' written arguments for the effective use of structures of academic argument, avoidance of logical fallacies and other errors in reasoning, and the ethical use of sources.

Objective: students will engage in evaluation of academic arguments, challenging others’ arguments and opinions while respecting others’ feelings and accepting challenges to their own arguments and opinions without feeling personally attacked.

Objective: students will utilize the formatting and editing capabilities of a standard word processing program;

Objective: students will engage in synchronous or asynchronous classroom discussions online, via interactive electronic writing environments, email exchanges, or listservs;

Objective: students will explore and critically evaluate the Internet as a research tool via classroom activities and in relation to specific research projects.

Objective: students will investigate various resources, both print and online, at Bridgewater College through classroom research exercises and through the use of Alexander Mack Memorial Library instruction;

Objective: students will discuss and evaluate print and online sources for authenticity and academic credibility through computer classroom workshops and other classroom research activities.

Objective: students will integrate information and arguments from print and online sources in their writing in ethical ways, through accurate quoting, paraphrasing, summarizing, and attribution.

Objective: students will demonstrate proficiency in MLA documentation, with attention to various rhetorical and stylistic features of the system, not just the documentation procedure itself;

Objective: students will produce, as a portion of their writing portfolio, a finished research essay of 8-10 pages on an approved topic, demonstrating the appropriate use of the rules and conventions of standard written English, and including preliminary outlines, tentative bibliographies, and early drafts as well.

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