This document outlines the syllabus for an English Composition II course. The course objectives include analyzing, evaluating, and documenting various sources, as well as producing well-reasoned argumentative essays using appropriate research methods. Students will complete three major assignments responding to media and engage with computers, the internet, and social media in their work. To pass the course, students must maintain a passing average on all essays and complete a course notebook with two pages of notes for every class hour. Grading will be based on a scoring guide and focus on content over presentation. Regular attendance is required to pass.

1. 1
English Composition II
12279 - Spring 2014 Syllabus
TR 4:00-5:15PM, Sparks 425
Georgia State University
Prof. Joe Anderson
Course Google page: http://goo.gl/qMVFtC Email: eanderson35@gsu.edu
Twitter: @ProfAnderson (#GSU1102) YouTube channel: http://ow.ly/nU8ic
Office: General Classroom Bldg. (GCB) 960 Instagram: profanderson1979
Office hours: Before and after class, Saxby’s by appointment (GSU University Library), other times TBD
Official Course Description:
A composition course designed to develop writing skills
beyond the levels of proficiency required by English 1101.
Stresses critical reading and writing and incorporates a
variety of more advanced research methods; readings will
be drawn from a wide variety of literary texts. Passing
grade is C.
Course Objectives:
By the end of this course, the successful student will be
able to:
 Analyze, evaluate, document, and draw inferences
from various sources.
 Identify, select, and analyze appropriate research
methods, research questions, and evidence for a
specific rhetorical situation.
 Use argumentative strategies and genres in order to
engage various audiences.
 Integrate others’ ideas with their own.
 Use grammatical, stylistic, and mechanical formats
and conventions appropriate for a variety of audiences.
 Critique their own and others’ work in written and oral
formats.
 Produce well-reasoned, argumentative essays
demonstrating rhetorical engagement.
 Reflect on what contributed to their writing process
and evaluate their own work.
Anderson’s Comments:
Writing is organized thought. So, the goal of this writing
course is to make you a better thinker. Every piece you
complete should be an exercise in pushing your own
boundaries; with every draft, you should be learning at
least as much as you’re trying to show the reader. In doing
so, you will better understand how you’re being shaped by
your environment—and how you can shape it, in turn.
The best thing you can do is develop an argument I
haven’t seen before and makes me think. I love a paper
that teaches me something, discusses something new, or
proposes a novel position. If my feedback repsponds
more to your content than presentation, that’s a big
part of the job done.
Regurgitation, on the other hand (or an hand) really blows:
an essay is not about how well you can rephrase someone
else’s words and throw them up into your reader’s lap.
Avoid straight summary.
This is a tech-intensive course during which we train in
communicating through various modern media forms.
Please be aware that you will be required to engage with
computers, internet technology, and social media. If you
have a laptop or tablet with net access, you are strongly
urged to bring it with you.
Finally, you’ll be called upon to read aloud to your peers,
in small groups, and as an entire class. Please be prepared
to participate fully.
Textbook and other required materials:
Gaillet, Dr. Lyneé, et al. GSU’s First Year Guide to Writing.
College ruled notebook; 1-subject, 10.5 x 8 in. At least 70 pages.
Course Google page access (see top of syllabus)
Regular Twitter access
Regular internet access
Strongly suggested: An internet-enabled laptop or tablet
Twitterfeed
YouTube
Channel
Instagram
feed
Google
coursepage

2. 2
The Jist:
To pass this class you
MUST earn a passing
essay average AND
develop a complete
and passing notebook.
Assignments
COURSE NOTEBOOK:
You’ll be graded for the quality and completeness of your notes. Two full pages of notes are required for every
hour of regular class time (not just per class meeting; there is a difference). If you miss any classes, make sure to
copy a friend’s notes to avoid losing points. Pages will be counted qualitatively, at my own judgement. In order to be
counted, all notes must be fully legible, with pages numbered. Non-note work (responses, email discussions,
presented articles, etc.) should be dated and organized within the notebook. Keep in
mind that this continuing assignment necessitates regular attendance. Sample pages from
passing notebooks can be found on the course Google page. You must develop a passing
notebook in order to pass the class.
ESSAYS & MAJOR ASSIGNMENTS
We will explore how argument is presented and audience perceptions influenced within a
variety of contexts. You will complete at least three major assignments (not including
graded revisions) in which you critically respond to media products of your own
choosing. Our in-class discussions will be warm-up exercises for the sort of thinking you’ll be doing in your essays;
you’ll be expected to develop independent, sophisticated conclusions that go well beyond summary. If you do not
complete the required number of essays, you may fail the class, regardless of the grades you receive on the work
you do turn in.
If you earn a failing grade on an essay, you may be required to write an additional reflective piece in which you
review your feedback and outline a plan to improve your performance in the next essay.
QUIZZES, HOMEWORK, OTHER
Some quizzes and other pieces of coursework may be assigned for completion outside of class. Others will be given
during our regular meeting time or made available online. Specific homework may also be assigned to individual
students at the instructor’s discretion.
CLASS PARTICIPATION
As participation is essential to maintain a student-driven course, frequent and well-thought comments and questions
are required. Class participation is counted as:
 Full, intelligent, and respectful participation in all class discussions, whether in the classroom or online
 Completing all assigned readings, activities, and projects
 Acting with politeness and consideration toward classmates and professor in all settings and circumstances
 Participating fully in conferences and any other review activities
There is no standalone participation grade. Instead, this credit will be reflected in other grades. See ‘Attendance’ for
more information.
English Majors:
The English Department at GSU requires an exit portfolio of all students
graduating with a degree in English. Students should work on this every
semester, selecting 1-2 papers from each course and revising them, with
direction from faculty members. The portfolio includes revised work and a
reflective essay about what you’ve learned. Each concentration (literature,
creative writing, rhetoric/composition, and secondary education) within the
major may have specific items to place in the portfolio, so be sure to check
with the front office of the English Department or contact an advisor.
ESSAY EXTRA CREDIT: For
additional points per essay, you may
choose to argue against yourself:
provide a single, complete page
thoroughly outlining your specific
position on an issue and the
ideologies you recognize as
influencing these beliefs. The essay
proper must then deviate from that
established perspective in some
significant way.

3. 3
Grading:
All work submitted for this course must be written at a college-appropriate level.
Assignments which earn a below-average grade (69% or lower) may be failed
outright or returned for total revision.
Your work will be graded using the domain scoring guide found in the introductory
materials and on the course Google page. Some assignments may be graded for all of
the domains, others for a single domain, any combination of domains, or by some
other means. Familiarize yourself with the scoring guide.
I will read your essays carefully and make suggestions for improvement. However, I
will not mark every error. You must review your own writing and use what you
learn from teacher, peer, and tutor feedback to improve your subsequent essays.
It is expected that you will submit the best possible version of each essay for grading,
so please take the time to proofread, revise, and have your work peer reviewed before
turning in a final copy. You should not expect any opportunities for revision once an
assignment is submitted for a final grade. Visiting the Writing Studio, attending
conferences, and regularly coming to office hours are strongly encouraged.
Again, in order to pass the course, you must maintain a passing average on all
essays and pass the notebook requirement.
Formatting:
Many well-written essays have earned lowered scores because of poor formatting.
All pieces of writing, whether submitted via hardcopy or electronically, should be
formatted in the following manner:
E-mail messages and other electronic pieces should be formatted in a similar fashion when possible and parctical (double-
spacing in Word is not the same as hitting ‘Enter’ at the end of every line and will cost you points!) Aside from
worksheets and assignments completed in-class (ex: notebooks), all pieces of writing must be typed; handwritten
submissions will not be accepted. The filename of any submitted essay must include your last name and the assignment
title (ex: Smith essay 2). Consult the syllabus addendum for an example of a properly-formatted essay.
Attendance:
A student who misses more than a week’s-worth of class meetings throughout the semester, for whatever reason, may be
dropped from the class with a grade of “W” or receive an “F”. This could affect veterans’ benefits and financial aid.
However, you should not assume you will be dropped if you stop attending class. You are responsible for withdrawing
by the drop date to avoid receiving a failing grade for the course. See the school’s website for this semester’s deadline.
A high attendance rate does not guarantee a high grade. Those that communicate and participate more often tend to
earn higher grades overall, though; talking is a part of thinking.
Also, please get to class on time. A late arrival invariably causes disruptions and can have a chilling effect on
advancement.
Anderson On
Grading…
100-90 A
89-80 B
79-70 C
69-60 D
59 & below F
‘C’ is AVERAGE.
If your work displays
the lowest acceptable
level of skill for a
college student, this is
the grade you will earn.
If you believe that you
should be earning better
than an average grade, it
is contingent on you to
do better-than-average
work. Meanwhile, a ‘B’
indicates excellent work,
while an ‘A’ paper is
near-flawless; the higher
the grade is, the harder
and more rarely it is
earned.
 Page size: 8 ½ x 11 inches
 1-inch margins on every side
 Double-spaced
 Page number, student last
name, and course posted in top
right of ALL pages
 12-point font size
 Times New Roman font type
 A Works Cited page (absence
of which will lower the final
grade 10%)

4. 4
Missed or Late Work/Test Make-Up Policy:
Late assignments will not be accepted unless the student makes extension
arrangements with me before the assigned due date, and these opportunities will
be very limited. Only in the case of an extreme documented emergency will any
other considerations be made.
If technical problems prevent you from submitting a paper to the course page or
via email, you may submit a hard copy. To do that, you must either hand it to me
personally by the deadline, or:
1. Hand the paper to an administrative aide in the English office before the
deadline, and
2. Ask that aide to write the date and time on the paper, sign it, and put it
in my mailbox
Academic Dishonesty/Plagiarism:
Georgia State University defines plagiarism as “any paraphrasing or
summarizing of the works of another person without acknowledgement,
including the submitting of another student's work as one's own. Plagiarism
frequently involves a failure to acknowledge in the text, notes, or footnotes the
quotation of the paragraphs, sentences, or even a few phrases written or spoken
by someone else. The submission of research or completed papers or projects by
someone else is plagiarism, as is the unacknowledged use of research sources
gathered by someone else when that use is specifically forbidden by the faculty
member. Failure to indicate the extent and nature of one's reliance on other
sources is also a form of plagiarism. Finally, there may be forms of plagiarism
that are unique to an individual discipline or course, examples of which should
be provided in advanced by the faculty member. The student is responsible for
understanding the legitimate use of sources, the appropriate ways of acknowledging academic, scholarly or creative
indebtedness, and the consequences of violating this responsibility.”
Using a paper for multiple courses without the consent of each instructor does not constitute plagiarism per se, but it does
count as academic dishonesty and will be treated accordingly. Academic dishonesty of any kind, plagiarism or otherwise,
is grounds for failure on the assignment in question, failure for the entire course, or referral to the appropriate dean for
additional sanctions. I reserve the right to submit any assignment for analysis by any plagiarism software or service at my
disposal.
For more on GSU’s policies, refer to ‘Academic Honesty’ in the Student Catalog, available at
http://goo.gl/EGW1Uj
Classroom Etiquette:
Students who violate classroom decorum and do not
respect the rights of their fellow students to enjoy an
atmosphere conducive to learning will be asked to leave
and will be counted as absent. This may be expanded to a
permanent removal from the class at my discretion. Please
consult the Student Code of Conduct
(http://goo.gl/37YQVW) for more information.
Incompletes:
The notation of "I" may be given to a student who, for
nonacademic reasons beyond his or her control, is unable
to meet the full requirements of a course. In order to
qualify for an "I", a student must:
 Have completed most of the major assignments of
the course (generally all but one), and
Emailing w/ Anderson: Some tips
 Are you using a professional-
sounding email address?
 Have you filled out the subject
line? Is it brief but clear?
 Are you opening the message
with a salutation, such as “Dear
Prof. Anderson,”?
 Are you clearly identifying
yourself (first and last name) in
the body? Have you included a
signature line?
 Are you paying attention to
conventions? Have you
proofread? Have you included
complete sentences and
appropriate punctuation? Is all
spelling correct?
 Have you remembered to
attach any necessary materials?
This is particularly relevant
during grade review.
If the answer to any of these is ‘no’
or ‘I don’t know’, review the
message again before you send it!
To avoid plagiarism, give proper credit to borrowed
material whenever you:
 Directly quote another person’s actual words,
whether oral or written;
 Paraphrase the words, ideas, opinions, or theories of
others;
 Use another person’s ideas, opinions, or theories;
 Borrow facts, statistics, or illustrative material;
 Offer materials assembled or collected by others in
the form of projects or collections without
acknowledgment.
adapted from Indiana University Code of Student Rights,
Responsibilities and Conduct

5. 5
 Be earning a passing grade in the course (aside from the assignments not completed) in the judgment of the
instructor.
When a student has a nonacademic reason for not completing one or more of the assignments for a course, including
examinations, and wishes to receive an incomplete, it is the responsibility of the student to inform the instructor of the
reason, either in person or in writing. The grade of "I" is assigned at the discretion of the instructor and is not the
prerogative of the student. Conditions to be met for removing an "I" are established by the instructor.
Withdrawals:
An official last day to withdrawal from a course with a grade of “W” is established each semester and can be found by
contacting the registrar’s office or the school academic calendar. It is the student’s option and responsibility to withdraw
from the course by this date.
Students with Disabilities:
Georgia State University complies with Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act and the Americans with Disabilities Act.
Students who wish to request accommodation for a disability may do so by registering with the Office of Disability
Services. Students may only be accommodated upon issuance by the Office of Disability Services of a signed
Accommodation Plan and are responsible for providing a copy of that plan to instructors of all classes in which an
accommodation is sought.
Class Cancellation Policy:
On occasion, GSU will announce a late opening or early closing of a specific campus or the entire college because of
weather conditions or other emergencies. Since classes begin at various times throughout the day, a late opening or early
closing may occur during a scheduled class period. Consult the GSU homepage (www.gsu.edu) for the most current
cancellation information.
Additionally, if I need to cancel our class on a last-minute basis, I will most likely notify students via Twitter, the course
Google page, or both. Please make sure that you check these resources regularly.
Online Evaluation of Instructor:
Your constructive assessment of this course plays an indispensable role in shaping education at GSU. Upon completing
the course, please take time to fill out the online course evaluation.
Additionally, you are encouraged contribute to the instructor’s public evaluations at RateMyProfessor.com
Syllabus Contract: Please copy the following into the box below, complete
the remainder of the form, detach and return. No grades will be assigned
until this contract is completed and returned.
I have read and understood the policies described in the syllabus, including the
information regarding plagiarism and other forms of academic dishonesty. I
agree to work and produce material in a responsible and ethical manner, as
defined by the Georgia State University Student Code of Conduct, and to adhere
to all other guidelines stated in this syllabus.
Name (printed):__________________Signature:_________________________
Course title and times:________________ Today’s date:______________
Assignment 1: List three
questions you have about the
syllabus. These may be
referred to in class.
1.
2.
3.
_________________________
Assignment 2: Visit
http://goo.gl/zeG2RU and take
each of the three grammar tests
you find there. Print the results
and staple them into your
notebook. Show me as you’re
submitting this completed slip.

6. Syllabus Addendum
What follows on the next three pages is a sample essay and Works Cited page, formatted
according to the most recent MLA requirements. If you are formatting according to MLA specs
and your essay deviates from that of this sample, it is wrong and you will lose points. Also,
make sure to read the text of the sample thoroughly, as it will provide you with further important
instruction.
As for the rest of the introductory material, make sure you review everything and complete the
syllabus test and contract, as none of your work will be counted in the gradebook until you have
done so.
-Anderson

7. Writer's Name
Course Title / Instructor's Last Name
Assignment Name
Date
Format (here: MLA)
No feedback requested
This is a Left-Justified Title, in Same Size and Type as Text. You can set your title in bold or
italics if you wish, but it isn’t required. A title is optional, but encouraged. Usually, the title
should not be more than one line or sentence long (unlike this title).
This is the text of an MLA-formatted essay: if you are composing an MLA-formatted
paper, it should resemble this. It must be double-spaced, in either Times New Roman or Arial
font, 12-point type. The heading and title can be single-spaced or 1½ spacing, but the body of
the work must be double-spaced to allow for instructor comments. The margins should be one
inch all the way around; left and right, top and bottom. Do not include a page number on the
first page; subsequent pages should be marked at the top right with the author's last name and
page number. If you’re not familiar with MS Word’s ‘insert page number’ function, consult the
Word help menu or look for a formatting how-to on YouTube (usually linked directly from our
coursepage). Do not use the first line of each page to manually insert page numbers, as this will
lead to messy formatting if you are sending the file electronically. See the next page for an
example of proper page numbering.
Justify only the left margin, leaving the right 'ragged'. Indent the first line of each
paragraph. Do not put extra spaces between paragraphs. Do not use fancy types, italics, or bold.
When you submit essays to be graded, professors want good writing in a simple, professional
format; we don’t want to be distracted by frills. Again, your typed pages should look like these.
You will be asked to include a 'Works Cited' page for research assignments; this is
different from a 'Bibliography' page or a 'Works Consulted' page, as will be explained later in the
semester. The ‘Works Cited’ page should be arranged alphabetically, using hanging indents, as

8. Anderson 2
2
in the sample that follows. To format source citations according to MLA specifications, you can
refer to almost any reputable writer’s guide, such as Easy Writer or The Little Brown Handbook.
Within the essay, list the source immediately after the quote or paraphrase, using only the
author's last name and the page number, as in this example (Smith 3). If the source is electronic,
some instructors will just allow you to cite by last name, but others will require you to cite the
paragraph the information is taken from. Pay attention to the requirements of individual
instructors.
Within the essay and on the 'Works Cited' page, book titles such as Gone with the Wind
should be italicized or underlined, but not both; whichever format you choose, be consistent
throughout the essay. Short story or article titles, such as “The Ransom of Red Chief,” should be
in quotes. All titles should be placed in title case, as in the above examples. Also, you’ll see a
sample of an annotation along with the first entry of the Works Cited; you usually won’t need to
annotate sources unless it’s explicitly required, but in such cases all entries should resemble the
first. When you’re not being asked to annotated, your entries should resemble the rest of the
sample Works cited page.
The last page must be ¾ full to count as a full page. Therefore, this sample would qualify
as a 2-page paper.
Again, these guidelines are designed to make your writing look like everyone else's. The
only factor that will differentiate your paper from those of your peers is the quality of the writing
itself, so make sure to give your very best effort and that you get whatever help you can from the
Writing Studio or a personal tutor.

9. Anderson 3
3
Works Cited
"Blueprint Lays Out Clear Path for Climate Action." Environmental Defense Fund.
Environmental Defense Fund, 8 May 2007. Web. 24 May 2009.
Occasionally, you might be asked to provide an annotated bibliography. The annotation
of a bibliographic (or Works Cited, or Works Consulted) entry will usually just be a few
sentences summarizing the piece or providing some form of relevant commentary.
Format annotations similar to the rest of paper, with appropriate indentation.
Clinton, Bill. Interview by Andrew C. Revkin. “Clinton on Climate Change.” New York Times.
New York Times, May 2007. Web. 25 May 2009.
Dean, Cornelia. "Executive on a Mission: Saving the Planet." New York Times. New York
Times, 22 May 2007. Web. 25 May 2009.
Ebert, Roger. "An Inconvenient Truth." Rev. of An Inconvenient Truth, dir. Davis Guggenheim.
Rogerebert.com. Sun-Times News Group, 2 June 2006. Web. 24 May 2009.
GlobalWarming.org. Cooler Heads Coalition, 2007. Web. 24 May 2009.
Gowdy, John. "Avoiding Self-organized Extinction: Toward a Co-evolutionary Economics of
Sustainability." International Journal of Sustainable Development and World Ecology
14.1 (2007): 27-36. Print.
An Inconvenient Truth. Dir. Davis Guggenheim. Perf. Al Gore, Billy West. Paramount, 2006.
DVD.
Leroux, Marcel. Global Warming: Myth Or Reality?: The Erring Ways of Climatology. New
York: Springer, 2005. Print.

10. 4
The Essentials: Commonsense Tips to Keep in Mind if You Really Want to Pass
This Course
The Internet
 You'll need regular access to the internet. Check the website and your email often. I’ll go over the course website if
time permits, but you’re responsible for being able to access and navigate that resource.
 Do not attempt to send anything to my regular email, as it will probably be automatically deleted. If you can’t talk to
me face-to-face, your best bet is to Tweet me at the handle posted at the top of the first page of the syllabus.
 Do not ask if something “is going to be on the website”; I will always
tell you ‘no’, even if the answer is actually ‘yes’. If it sounds
important, write it down.
 Consider the “Any Fool” test: Can a source have been posted by
any fool, or has it been posted by someone who had to identify
themselves and jump through some meaningful hoops in order to
disseminate this information? Any fool can write a blog or post a
website, but not everyone can be published in a newspaper, trade
publication, industry journal, etc.
 Wikipedia—or any encyclopedia—is not a valid essay source.
 YouTube is the video equivalent of Wikipedia, and just as acceptable
of a source.
In Class
 This is a course for adults seeking to develop their writing abilities. No
kids allowed.
 Say your name when I call on you, and I should have it down within
the first few weeks. If I'm not calling you by name, it's because I don't
know it. And if I don’t know your name, how well do you think you’re
doing in the course?
 Contribute to class discussions as often as possible. If you don’t, the
person who does will get the grade you could be getting.
 Every once in a while, I might give an extra point or two to all the
names I can connect with faces or people who have gone to the writing
center and let me know about it. Will you be getting those points?
 High marks in other courses or schools do not entitle you to high marks
here. Keep this in mind when you wish to complain about your final
grade.
 There is no allowance for half-assing. If it looks like you didn’t do
your best, if the work looks rushed, if it seems like you didn’t care, or
if you assumed you’d get a good grade just because you’re you, I will
stop reading immediately; you earn an ‘F’.
 I’ll get papers back to you as soon as I can, but they may take a while.
Don’t start bugging me right away.
 If you need to ask if it’s still possible for you to pass the class, the
answer is very probably ‘no’.
 Don’t assume that you’re passing just because I’m being cordial during
class. I’m just a nice guy.
 Don’t expect friendly warnings or second chances. Stay on top of your
own grade.
 Attendance is not enough. Part of thinking is talking, and those who
communicate and participate tend to get better grades.
 In discussion or on paper, ‘it depends on who you are,’(or any variation
thereof) is never an acceptable answer by itself.
Highlight: How to get the grade you
want by working smarter!
Complete all work fully and by
deadline.
Pay strict attention to assignment
sheets, specific requirements, and
deadline calendars.
Read essay feedback! This is how you
learn what you need to fix to get a
better grade!
Talk to me about your work as often as
possible. The best way is to see me
before or after class, but don’t forget
office hours and Twitter.
If you have a question or concern, ask
immediately. Also, have specific
questions in mind when you
communicate with me outside of class
and during conferences.
Don’t go easy on yourself. Revise and
proofread as often as necessary. Then,
do it a few more times.
More specifically: print your essay and
read it out loud, slowly. Mark errors as
you notice them. Make corrections and
repeat the process; at least three times
for every essay.
Go to the Writing Center at least once a
week. Consider it a lab and make time
in your schedule for it.
Attend every class meeting, don’t ever
be late, bring all necessary materials
every single time, and take copious
notes (in some cases, the more notes
you take, the more points you get).

11. 5
Your Work
 Brevity is key. Say less; communicate more.
 How ever deep your analysis is, it’s not deep enough. Make connections. Go deeper.
 Moral stances make for poorly-supported arguments. Morals aren’t a good foundation for an objective paper because
they’re not objective.
 The three most common writing mistakes are repetition, awkward phrasing, and comma errors. If you’re going to mess
something up, at least be original about it.
 An email message is a professional document. Treat it as such. Otherwise, I will not read it.
 Don’t use contractions in professional writing. This includes email.
 Numbers under ten should be spelled out. Other classes may say different,
but it’s standard for this class.
 ‘I added detail’ does not qualify as significant revision.
 Do not pad. Ever. This includes mega-quotes; unnecessary summary
(more than 3 brief sentences per essay); spaces between paragraphs;
wordiness; oversized margins, line spacing, and fonts; or anything else that
makes it look like you half-assed it.
 Avoid hypotheticals (‘what if’, ‘should have’, ‘could have’ etc.). Work
with what you have.
 Don’t “think” it or “believe” it or “guess” it. Know it and show it.
 Remove ‘it seems’ from your vocabulary; it is or it isn’t.
 ‘Got’ is slang. Do not use it.
 “He or she?” “He/she”? “(S)He?” None of the above: If you don’t know
the gender, pick one and stick with it.
 “And/or” is even worse than “He/she”. When in doubt, go with ‘or’.
 “Try and-” (as in “I will try and go to the bathroom, but I think I’m too
drunk.”) is a mixture of wordiness, slang, and poor grammar. Keep it
simple; “I will run barefoot across those rusty nails” or “I am going to use
the gas oven to blow-dry my hair.”
 ‘This’ and ‘that’ can be vague. Make sure the reader knows what these
pronouns refer to.
 Don’t go with the easiest or most obvious approach; everyone has the
same first five ideas, and they’ll all earn you a ‘C’. What’s going to make
your essay stand out?
 Don’t assume universal truths based on limited information. If you do, it
just takes one exception to prove you wrong.
 Proper formatting is law. Otherwise good writers get failing grades
because of padding, misquotes, Wikipedia citations, and other expressions
of their own sloppiness, laziness, and lack of attention.
 Can’t make it to the Writing Center? Find a partner in class and set up an
peer review partnership. Even better, find a bunch of people and set up a
peer review network. If that fails, hire a tutor. There is no excuse for not
getting your work read by somebody other than you and your instructor.
 Incorrect subject line and filename formatting will cost you points. The
correct form is in the syllabus under ‘Formatting’. Also, see the sample
essay in this packet.
 On average, those who go to the Writing Center regularly, attend
conferences, and come to my office hours earn higher grades than those
who don’t.
 No ‘I will’ statements, or any variation thereof explicitly defining authorial
intention. Have some finesse about it..
 One more time: Grammar and mechanics errors are the main reasons
papers fail. Get your grammar and mechanics down pat early on and make
sure that you proofread to eliminate typos; I am much happier
commenting on what you say than on how you say it.
Highlight: A few ways to lose essay
points INSTANTLY!
Open or close a paragraph or essay
with a quote or definition.
Attach a ‘Bibliography’ vs. a ‘Works
Cited’ page
Include any formatting non-standard to
the stated specs. See the sample
(previous) for a properly-formatted
MLA essay.
Distract me from your argument with
your language. I love to object to
arguments. I hate to have to take time
away from that by focusing on
proofreading and revision errors. A
paper that pulls me in with its ideas,
where language is simply the vehicle
for those ideas and doesn’t get in the
way, is the goal.
Claim in your argument that
something is ‘unfair’ without including
a definition of fairness, identifying to
whom the situation is unfair,
identifying who must be benefitting
from this lack of fairness, and why the
reader should care about any of it.
Use ‘In today’s society’ any variation
thereof, or any other pat ambiguities.
Make the same mistakes in your
current essay that you made in your
last essay. This indicates that you’re
not reading feedback comments nor,
commensurately, giving this class the
necessary attention. This behavior
may incur its own penalty, to be
determined on a case-by-case basis.

12. 6
Highlight: Common
Editing Marks
? – unclear/irrelevant
awk – awkward phrasing
comb – combine element
[with x]
conv. – conversational
tone
estab. – previously-
established point
frag. – sentence fragment
its – ‘In today’s society’
mw – missing word*
nt? – Do you need this?
obv. – obvious point
oop – out of place
element
punc. – punctuation error
red. – redundant
rel.? – relevance?
Rep. – repetitive
sp. – spelling
struc. – structure error
suf. – suffix error
ts – unnecessary tense
shift*
w – wordy
wc – questionable word
choice
wop – worn-out phrase
(cliché, etc.)
And remember to ask about
any unclear marks or
comments immediately.
Focus Content Organization Engagement Conventions
Parameters for study,
developed by the author,
which allow the argument to
go into greater depth about a
narrow range of elements.
The elements of the
argument; may be crafted
from outside information,
but must always be refined
and made relevant by the
author.
The evident sensibility of
the arrangement of the
elements. Must be
reviewed at the sentence,
paragraph, and whole-
essay levels.
How a reader might react
to the piece; the ‘so
what?’ test. Includes but
is not limited to word
choice and sentence
variety. Also includes A/V
when fitting.
Grammar, mechanics,
spelling, word choice,
punctuation, etc.
4 A complex argument is
developed and sustained, with
divergences from the main
point only when necessary to
understanding, and made in
the most elegant and clearly-
relevant way possible.
Complete clarity of content.
The development of the
content truly shows that the
author has learned at least
as much in developing the
paper as they are trying to
communicate through it.
Arrangement of elements
at all levels is
sophisticated, consistent,
and practically useful in
some regard.
Highly engaging. A
combination of strong
construction and smart
presentation with no
evident weak points.
Brief when possible.
Moving.
Word choice and
sentence structure are
invisible; the actual
writing is not noticed
except for where it
shines. No errors
worth mentioning.
3 Focus is maintained and the
argument is allowed to
develop to a sufficient depth,
but something more is
possible. Were the most
interesting paths of
investigation pursued?
Essay is constructed out of a
clear line of reasoning that
comes to an original,
contextually-sensible
conclusion.
Some revision at one or
more of the organizational
levels is necessary, but
not in any way that would
impinge on understanding
or engagement.
Author consistently
executes an earnest
strategy to interest the
reader. An honest
attempt at engagement,
even if it falls flat, will
earn you a three here. If
you don’t, come see me.
Functional
communication of the
information, with few
instances of language
or construction that
hinders readability.
2 This is likely a puddle paper;
rather than pursuing a specific,
limited topic for a sustained
duration and to the greatest
intellectual depth possible,
only a few major ideas are
reviewed, and none with any
intellectual vigor.
This is likely a puddle
paper; a few different large
points about the topic are
reviewed, but nothing is
explored in great depth, nor
are any personal
discoveries made.
Serious errors, usually of
the kind that confuse or
alienate the reader, such
as chronological confusion
or unexplained tense shift.
Argument is probably
wordy, often awkwardly
phrased, ambiguous,
repetitious, obviously
poorly-founded, or some
combination thereof.
Evident lack of either
basic understanding of the
language, motivation, or
both.
The intended message
is significantly
obscured or detracted
from by
inapprpropriate word
choice, wordiness,
awkward phrasing, or
punctuation errors.
Errors are consistent,
however, and display
a need for specific
remediation.
1 The subject of the
argument—and the intentions
of the author—are unclear.
The reader is unengaged with
the topic, if they even bother
finishing the piece.
No effort made to develop
significant content. A lack
of content may be manifest
in a lack of overall length or
an abundance of irrelevant
or nonsensical material.
Nothing more than the
most basic, necessary
arrangement of words and
sentences, with no
thought given to the
effectiveness of that
arrangement.
No acknowledgement of
the audience and no
desire to communicate
the argument. An “I don’t
give a shit” paper usually
gets all 1s.
No apparent attention
paid to word choice,
sentence structure, or
any other
conventional
concerns. Errors are
scattershot, indicating
no attempt at
proofreading or
revision.
0
Scoring
The essay:Was not turned in
Is effectively illegible
Is incoherent
Is entirely off-prompt
Is otherwise insufficient
Anderson’sDomainScoringGuide

13. 7
A word about the Writing Center…
GO TO THE
WRITING STUDIO.
THEY WILL
HELP YOU
FOR FREE.
The GSU Writing Studio is located in 25 Park Place, room 2420
(24th floor). For scheduling, an FAQ, and further information
about available services, visit
http://www.writingstudio.gsu.edu/index.html
Phone: (404) 413-5840
Fax: (404) 413-5830
THE WRITING STUDIO WILL SEND
YOU A CONFIRMATION OF YOUR
APPOINTMENT: FORWARD THIS TO
YOUR PROFESSOR FOR POINTS!!!
Highlight: Anderson’s Tips On Writing
Centers
It might sound stupid, but think of
visiting a writing center like going on a
date. If you’re lucky, you’ll click with
the first person you meet and you’ll
clearly see the benefits right away.
Unfortunately, it’s not usually that easy;
instead, see as many people as you can
until you find the one you work with
best.
This is where a writing center stops
being like a date, though. You may find
that you get along with someone really
well, but does that translate into a higher
grade? Are they addressing your writing
issues in the way you need them to? If
not, no matter how friendly you are,
move on (but at least get their number).
And, of course, once you’ve found that
special tutor, ask the receptionist about
their Writing Studio schedule and adjust
your own accordingly.
Also, don’t stop going to the Writing
Studio even when you’re not in a writing
course anymore. They can help you
with writing for all subjects, as well as
with professional documents, like
resumes and cover letters.

14. 8