This document outlines the agenda and content of a university writing course. It discusses that in the second half of the course, students will choose their own writing topics and readings, and essays will be read by the professor and peers. The goal is for students to write a publishable-quality paper on a topic of their choice. Feedback from previous assignments is positive, though some students dislike the reading engagement logs. Students will have workshop time to find sources for their chosen paper topics and receive guidance on the upcoming Assignment 6. They are assigned to send their paper proposals and reference lists by the weekend deadline.

1. Over to you
(Week 8/9)
W R I T I N G I V
(HE285)
Prof. Dr. Ron Martinez
drronmartinez@gmail.com

2. Today’s agenda
• Midterm miscellanea
• Discuss next phase of course
• Mid-course evaluation

3. Midterm paper
• Any questions or concerns?
• Feedback next Wednesday
• So far so good...

4. So far...
1st half of course 2nd half of
course
Writing topic(s) Chosen by
professor
Reading Chosen by
professor
Essays Read by
professor

5. Now...
1st half of course 2nd half of
course
Writing topic(s) Chosen by
professor
Chosen by
student

6. Now...
1st half of course 2nd half of
course
Writing topic(s) Chosen by
professor
Chosen by
student
Reading Chosen by
professor
Chosen by
students

7. Now...
1st half of course 2nd half of
course
Writing topic(s) Chosen by
professor
Chosen by
student
Reading Chosen by
professor
Chosen by
students
Essays Read by
professor
Read by
professor and
peers

8. Now...
1st half of course 2nd half of
course
Writing topic(s) Chosen by
professor
Chosen by
student
Reading Chosen by
professor
Chosen by
students
Essays Read by
professor
Read by
professor and
peers

9. Same, but different:
• Will still have to write, but more freedom in
terms of topic.
• Will still have RELs, but these will be more
student-driven.
• Will still have focus on form in writing, but
somewhat less on rhetorical elements, more
on features of lexis, discourse, and style.

10. Ultimate goal:
• Produce a polished text of a publishable
quality that is of relevance to the student
author and student body as a readership.
• These texts, which also count as the final
exam, will be published in an online “webzine”
that will be partly organized by the students
themselves.

11. Over to you...
Considering that you will ultimately need to
write an argumentative paper (one that will
involve problematization on some level),
discuss the following:
1. What topic(s) might you be interested in
writing about?
2. How would you focus the paper?

12. Feedback
• Please fill out the online course feedback
form.
• Remember that the feedback is anonymous
(so please answer honestly).
• When finished, you may feel free to leave – no
homework this weekend!

13. “So far in the course, what have you
liked?”
• FEEDBACK
• “The organization of the classes and the
detailed feedbacks.”
• “I really liked the feedback videos!”
• “The feedbacks are delivered in a clear way…”
• “How the feedback was given to us…”

14. “So far in the course, what have you
liked?”
• SCAFFOLDED ASSIGNMENTS
• “I was bummed at first with the many essay
assignments, but then I realized they were not
all from scratch! I liked that our midterm was
the result of all that.”
• “We had many opportunities to improve the
same essay…”
• “…the fact that we were able to improve our
texts.”

15. “So far in the course, is there anything
you did not like?”
• READING ENGAGEMENT LOGS
• “I´m not very excited about the whole ‘reading
engagement log’ thing.”
• “Reading engagement logs.”
• “Reading Log and essay every week…”
• “I think that it is ok, maybe not so much
engagement logs on weekends...”

17. Online poll: please discuss!

19. Your “homework” from last week
Considering that you will ultimately need to
write an argumentative paper (one that will
involve problematization on some level),
discuss the following:
1. What topic(s) might you be interested in
writing about?
2. How would you focus the paper?

20. Feedback is coming...

21. Online poll: please discuss!

22. R.E.L. Survey Results (N = 16)
Option Number of votes
I like them exactly the way
they are now. No change.
1
Eliminate them! 0
Keep the current format, but
make them less frequent.
9
Simplify the format. 3
Other 1 “Keep everything the same,
but smaller articles.”
Other 2 “Format and frequency are
fine, but make deadline
Wednesday instead of
Sunday.”
Other 3 “Make them optional.”

23. Today’s agenda
• Intensive resources workshop to help narrow
down topic.
• Discuss assignment 6.

25. Finding Sources
1. Where do you start?
2. Why start there?
3. What problems have you encountered?
4. What about the UFPR library resources (i.e.
book holdings). Have you used them before?
What was your experience?

27. CHALLENGE!
• You have 45 minutes to find 5 sources that will
be useful for you.
• Remember, one purpose of this exercise is to
narrow down your topic, so don’t be surprised
if you find yourself changing topics in the
course of this exercise – that’s normal!
• These 5 sources will be part of your
assignment for Sunday.

28. WEEKEND
HOMEWORK

29. By Sunday
1. Send me your proposals (see sample online).
2. There is a rubric for this assignment (online).
3. All proposals must also come with a list of
references at the end. (Yes, I realize that a
reference list is not what one would normally
find in a cover letter, but...)