This document outlines the agenda and requirements for a Writing II course taught by Dr. Ron Martinez. The course will focus on developing quality writing skills through discussions on grammar, vocabulary, style and real case examples. Students will be evaluated based on a portfolio, midterm essay, final essay and participation. They will need to maintain a vocabulary notebook and submit regular blog posts and oral summaries. The class will also include an introductory activity, online quiz and assigning a homework to exchange introductory emails with another student.

1. Writing II – An Introduction
Dr. Ron Martinez
Universidade Federal do Paraná

2. Today’s agenda
• Get to know each other
• Get to know the course
• Talk about features of quality writing
• Examine real cases

3. Discuss: What makes good writing?
• Perfect grammar?
• Sophisticated vocabulary?
• “Style”?
• Other?

4. What do you need for this course?
• Access to the internet
• Vocabulary notebook
• Perseverance!

5. How will you be evaluated?
• “Portfolio” assessment
• e-Portfolio
• Checklist of items comprising 50% of total
grade
• Midterm essay (15%)
• Final essay (30%)
• Participation (including, for example,
vocabulary notebook) (5%)

6. Vocabulary notebook
• Will be collected from time to time, and will
be checked regularly for updating
• If you do not have one of your own, I can
supply one for you

7. Oral article summaries
• Main purpose: vocabulary development
• Why “oral”?
• Usually short (about 5 minutes)
• Usually once a week
• Often tied to a common theme

8. e-Portfolio
• Regular (usually) short writings, posted on
your individual student blogs
• Generally speaking, assignments will be due
weekly.

9. Over to you!
• Introduce yourselves
• Take online quiz

10. Rate the paragraph (1-10)

11. Homework for Friday
• Download worksheet online:
http://www.drronmartinez.com/writing-ii-
20161.).
• Give a score to the four paragraphs.
• Print and bring to class Friday.

12. Your turn
• Exchange emails with a classmate (preferably
one you did not know already before today’s
class)
• In an email to that person, write a paragraph
on the following topic: “Something I am proud
of”
• Copy me in the email:
drronmartinez@gmail.com

13. Example
Something I am proud of
There are many things I am proud of in life (and
probably just as many things I am not so proud of),
but one I am especially proud of is how I got to
become a professor of English. It all started when I
was in my early twenties, when I was working for my
father at his car repair business. At that time, I did
not know what career path I wanted to follow, but
certainly “teacher” was not among those in my short
list. However, one day…