ENGL 202A (GWS) Effective Writing: Writing in the Social Sciences (3): Effective Writing in the Social Sciences: Instruction in writing persuasive arguments about significant issues in the social sciences. (A student may take only one course for credit from ENGL 202A, 202B, 202C, and 202D.) Prerequisite: ENGL 0015 or ENGL 0030; fourth semester standing.
Overview
Welcome to the World Campus and welcome to English 202A: Writing in the Social Sciences. This course is designed so that distance education students can follow as closely as possible the same course that students take at the University Park campus of Penn State. This course requires what any course in writing in the social sciences does: you will be expected to read a great deal of materials, conduct research, and write like scholars in social sciences.
This course will introduce you to ethnographic research and writing. You will choose a local subculture in the beginning of the semester and conduct a semester-long research project on the subculture. Taking a sequenced writing approach, the course is organized around six interconnected major assignments. They are the research proposal, field notes, observation paper, literature review paper, interview paper, and final ethnographic essay. For each of these assignments, you will review a detailed assignment sheet, read two to three samples of the document you are being asked to write, and think about such rhetorical considerations as audience, purpose, and context. You will read each other's first drafts and offer comments and suggestions. As your instructor, I will also respond to your writing with evaluations and suggestions just as if you were in a course on campus. Then you will turn in the final draft for each assignment.
You will see that we will draw upon two major resources for this course: a textbook and our course Web site. The textbook explains some key concepts in ethnographic research and writing and provides many writing samples. The course Web site provides additional resources and electronic access to your instructor via a secure "course mail" utility. The Web site also offers assignment samples written by students who took this course in the past. You will be required to submit your work electronically through the web site.
Course Structure
The course is organized by lessons. Every lesson has a certain theme/focus. Each week, there are reading and writing assignments due by Wednesday and Sunday. Always do the assignments in sequence. Never submit the next major writing assignment before receiving your instructor's comments on the previous one unless an exception is specifically stated. In a course like this, involving the coordination of several different skills, you must build each assignment using skills learned in the one before. Usually you need to revise the major assignments at least once, and you won't know what sections to focus on until you receive feedback. By all means read ahead and work on the smaller writing exercises while you await the return of your previous major assignment.
Course Objectives
The purpose of English 202A is to familiarize you with ethnography, a type of research increasingly used in the social sciences, and to help you learn to formulate ideas and create cohesive pieces of writing from the information you have collected. It will introduce you to a variety of researching strategies from which you should begin to develop your own approach toward research and toward the types of writing that are useful in your future career. The goals for this course include:
- Becoming more comfortable with the writing processes (e.g., developing, drafting, editing, and revising)
- Learning how to identify and explore issues and questions
- Improving critical reading skills
- Developing and implementing your own research strategies
- Learning how to filter and synthesize collected information for use in the development of a convincing and logical argument
- Learning how to write ethically and responsibly, including using appropriate formats to document a variety of sources
- Becoming more experienced with evaluating the work of others (e.g., through peer critique)
Required Course Materials
Most World Campus courses require that students purchase materials (e.g., textbooks, specific software, etc.). To learn about how to order materials, please see the Course Materials page. You should check LionPATH approximately 3–4 weeks before the course begins for a list of required materials.
Library Resources
Many of the University Libraries resources can be utilized from a distance. Through the Libraries website, you can
- access magazine, journal, and newspaper articles online using library databases;
- borrow materials and have them delivered to your doorstep—or even your desktop;
- get research help via email, chat, or phone using the Ask a Librarian service; and
- much more.
You must have an active Penn State Access Account to take full advantage of the Libraries' resources and service. The Off-Campus Users page has additional information about these free services.
Writing Tutoring Available for ENGL 202A Students
Penn State World Campus and the University Learning Centers, the Undergraduate Writing Center, and the Center for Excellence in Writing at Penn State University Park are pleased to announce that students in ENGL 202A can now access tutoring services online. Get tutoring support before those final papers are due!
To meet with a tutor online, complete the form available at:
http://www.worldcampus.psu.edu/online-tutoring.shtml
Once you have sent in your request, a tutor will be in touch to arrange a time for you to meet online. Tutoring sessions will take place in Elluminate Live!, a synchronous audio environment that will allow you to talk to your tutor. When you request your tutoring session you will be provided with information on how to access Elluminate Live!
Software
Students using PCs must use Office 2003, 2007 or 2010; students using Macs must use Office 2004, 2008 or 2011 (MS Word 2007, 2010 and 2008, 2011 users MUST 'Save As" .doc).
One of the benefits of being a registered Penn State student is that you are eligible to receive educational discounts on many software titles. If you are interested in learning more about purchasing software through our affiliate vendor, please visit the Buying Software section of the Course Materials page.
Technical Specifications
| Operating System | Windows Vista, Windows 7, Windows 8*; Mac OS X 10.5 or higher *Windows 8 support excludes the tablet only RT version |
|---|---|
| Processor | 2 GHz or higher |
| Memory | 1 GB of RAM |
| Hard Drive Space | 20 GB free disk space |
| Browser | We recommend the latest ANGEL-supported version of Firefox or
Internet Explorer. To determine if your browser fits this criterion,
and for advice on downloading a supported version,
please refer to the following ITS knowledge base article: Supported Browsers and Recommended Computers.
Note: Cookies, Java, and JavaScript must be enabled. Pop-up blockers should be configured to permit new windows from Penn State websites. Due to nonstandard handling of CSS, JavaScript and caching, older versions of Internet Explorer (such as IE 6 or earlier) do not work with our courses. |
| Plug-ins | Adobe Reader [Download from Adobe]
Flash Player (v7.0 or later) [Download from Adobe] |
| Additional Software | Microsoft Office (2007 or later) |
| Internet Connection | Broadband (cable or DSL) connection required |
| Printer | Access to graphics-capable printer |
| DVD-ROM | Required |
| Sound Card, Microphone, and Speakers | Required |
| Monitor | Capable of at least 1024 x 768 resolution |
If you need technical assistance at any point during the course, please contact the Service Desk.
For registration, advising, disability services, help with materials, exams, general problem solving, visit World Campus Student Services!
Course Assignments
There are six major writing assignments in this course:
- Research Proposal: The Research Proposal asks you to pick a local subculture and a field site for the semester long ethnographic research project and to assess the feasibility of working around this subculture. You must pick a site in your local area that you can access easily because you will need to visit this site once a week over the course of the semester. You also must pick the site where the people of the subculture you wish to study will give you permission to hang around, take pictures, conduct interviews, make observations, etc. You must visit your field site and/or talk to them on the phone before you finish your proposal.
- Field Notes: You will take Field Notes every time you visit your field site. It is critical that you record objective facts and details as well as your reactions, thoughts, and responses to these facts. You should develop a system of field notes that is comfortable for you and easy for you to work with. It is important that you sit down with your notes after each visit to your site for 20-30 minutes. In this time, you should read through the observations you have made, add reflections when ideas occur to you, and make sure you (and your instructor and group members) will be able to read your notes in the future. You will need to turn in your notes three times during the semester.
- Observation Paper: The Observation Paper asks you to observe your subculture and field site closely and write about one or two visits based on your field notes. In this paper, you will develop the descriptive and reflective style of writing that you will need to create the final ethnographic essay. I'd like to see you take this opportunity to develop an engaging and lively writing style through the use of the first person ("I," "me"), vivid details, original metaphors, and reflection on your field site and subculture.
- Literature Review: The Literature Review paper asks you to look for four pieces of publicly available published material related to your subculture. You will summarize each of them wholly or selectively. The published materials may be articles in journals, magazines, or newspapers, or material from websites. Locate four publications you think will give you information that will be helpful in your final ethnographic report. You should conclude the paper by discussing new knowledge that you have gained from the literature pieces and how the new knowledge has informed you about the next step of your research.
- Interview Paper: The Interview Paper asks you to interview a few key informants and report what they have said about your subculture. The interview paper allows you to gain an insider's perspective on your field site and subculture. Your interviewee has insight about your subculture, and you give it order by identifying themes and issues and by unifying the information you collect into a fine piece of writing. This writing needs to embody the feeling of the interview—the sense of place and of the person you have interviewed.
- Ethnographic Essay: The Ethnographic Essay asks you to synthesize all of your hard work into a damn fine piece of writing. Unfortunately you will not be able to include every bit of information you have collected through observation, reflection, interview, and library research; you will have to be selective. You will have to give your readers a comprehensive view of your field site, and you'll need to choose information that develops the angle that you are taking on your subculture.
Specific directions, peer review sheets, and examples of previous students' work for each of the major writing assignments will be provided throughout the course content.
Additionally, you will be evaluated based on nine short writing assignments, six forum questions, and one reading quiz.
Short Writing Assignments The short writing assignments are designed for various purposes. Requiring between 100 and 300 words, they will help you brainstorm for your field research, cultivate a particular writing skill, or examine your field notes from multiple perspectives. These short writing assignments include:
- "The Uniqueness of My Community"
- "Research topic"
- "Spatial gaze"
- "Summary of 'In Roadville"
- "Field notes analysis"
- "Cultural terms"
- "Verbal performance"
- "Questioning your draft"
- "Reflection paper"
Discussion Forum Questions: The discussion forum questions encourage you to exchange your field research experiences with your group members and discuss how you can apply textbook concepts in your own fieldwork and writing. You will first submit your answers to the questions online, and then respond to other members' answers by offering your own insights. Please limit your answers and responses to between 70 to 100 words per post. There is an optional forum question in Lesson 10. By answering this question, you will receive 5 bonus points.
- Cultural Artifacts
- Behavioral Patterns and the Focal Point of Your Subculture
- Comparing "In Roadville and in Trackton" and "Friday Night at Iowa 80"
- Relationship between the Field Site and Your Subculture's Behaviors, Values, or Speech
- Frustrations and Solutions in Your Fieldwork
- Culture, Body Language, and Space
The reading quiz asks that you study the APA documentation style in the textbook very carefully and then complete an APA style exercise. After you have completed and submitted the exercise online, you will automatically receive a corrected version. It is important that you master the APA style, as it is graded in your literature review, interview, and final ethnographic essays.
Grading
Your final grade will be calculated based on your total earning of a possible 200 points, as shown in the following table:
| Assignment | Points |
|---|---|
|
Research Proposal (3-4 pages) |
20 |
|
Field Notes (3 sets @ 10 points/set) |
30 |
|
Observation Paper (4-5 pages) |
20 |
|
Literature Review (4-5 pages) |
20 |
|
Interview Paper (4-5 pages) |
20 |
|
Ethnographic Essay (10-15 pages) |
40 |
|
Short Writing Assignments (9 @ 3 points each) |
27 |
|
Discussion Forum Questions (6 posts @ 3 points each) |
18 |
| Reading Quiz | 5 |
| Total Points | 200 |
Your final grade will be calculated according to the following scale:
Grading Scale
| Points | Letter Grade |
|---|---|
| 186-200 | A |
| 180-185 | A- |
| 170-179 | B+ |
| 165-169 | B |
| 160-164 | B- |
| 150-159 | C+ |
| 140-149 | C |
| 120-139 | D |
| 0-119 | F |
Grades are assigned the following grade-point equivalents:
|
Grade |
Grade-Point Equivalent |
|---|---|
| A | 4.00 |
| A- | 3.67 |
| B+ | 3.33 |
| B | 3.00 |
| B- | 2.67 |
| C+ | 2.33 |
| C | 2.00 |
| D | 1.00 |
| F | 0 |
Please refer to the University Grading Policy for Undergraduate Courses for additional information about University grading policies. If, for reasons beyond the student's control, a student is prevented from completing a course within the prescribed time, the grade in that course may be deferred with the concurrence of the instructor. The symbol DF appears on the student's transcript until the course has been completed. Non-emergency permission for filing a deferred grade must be requested by the student before the beginning of the final examination period. In an emergency situation, an instructor can approve a deferred grade after the final exam period has started. Under emergency conditions during which the instructor is unavailable, authorization is required from one of the following: the dean of the college in which the candidate is enrolled; the executive director of the Division of Undergraduate Studies if the student is enrolled in that division or is a provisional student; or the campus chancellor of the student's associated Penn State campus.
For additional information please refer to the Deferring a Grade page.
Course Schedule
The schedule below outlines the topics we will be covering in this course, along with the associated time frames and assignments. Note that assignments are due based on the Eastern Time (EDT/EST). This ensures that all students have the same deadlines regardless of where they live.
| Getting Started and Lesson 1: Introducing Ethnographic Research | |
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Acitivites: |
For Wednesday:
Assignments are due by 11:59 pm EST/EDT, Wednesday night of the week. For Sunday:
Assignments are due by 11:59 pm EST/EDT, Sunday night of the week. |
| Lesson 2: Stepping In and Stepping Out | |
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Readings: |
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Activities: |
For Wednesday:
Assignments are due by 11:59 pm EST/EDT, Wednesday night of the week. For Sunday:
Assignments are due by 11:59 pm EST/EDT, Sunday night of the week. |
| Lesson 3: Research Proposal | |
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Readings: |
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Activities: |
For Wednesday:
Assignments are due by 11:59 pm EST/EDT, Wednesday night of the week. For Sunday:
Assignments are due by 11:59 pm EST/EDT, Sunday night of the week. |
| Lesson 4: Field Notes | |
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Readings: |
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Assignments: |
For Wednesday:
Assignments are due by 11:59 pm EST/EDT, Wednesday night of the week. For Sunday:
Assignments are due by 11:59 pm EST/EDT, Sunday night of the week. |
| Lesson 5: Learning How to Look | |
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Readings: |
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Activities: |
For Wednesday:
Assignments are due by 11:59 pm EST/EDT, Wednesday night of the week. For Sunday:
Assignments are due by 11:59 pm EST/EDT, Sunday night of the week. |
| Lesson 6: Observation Paper | |
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Readings: |
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Activities: |
For Wednesday:
Assignments are due by 11:59 pm EST/EDT, Wednesday night of the week. For Sunday:
Assignments are due by 11:59 pm EST/EDT, Sunday night of the week. |
| Lesson 7: Field Notes | |
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Readings: |
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Activities: |
For Wednesday:
Assignments are due by 11:59 pm EST/EDT, Wednesday night of the week. For Sunday:
Assignments are due by 11:59 pm EST/EDT, Sunday night of the week. |
| Lesson 8: Workshops on Fieldwork | |
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Readings: |
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Activities: |
For Wednesday:
Assignments are due by 11:59 pm EST/EDT, Wednesday night of the week. For Sunday:
Assignments are due by 11:59 pm EST/EDT, Sunday night of the week. |
| Lesson 9: Literature Review | |
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Readings: |
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Activities: |
For Wednesday:
Assignments are due by 11:59 pm EST/EDT, Wednesday night of the week. For Sunday:
Assignments are due by 11:59 pm EST/EDT, Sunday night of the week. |
| Lesson 10: Researching Language | |
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Readings: |
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Activities: |
For Wednesday:
Assignments are due by 11:59 pm EST/EDT, Wednesday night of the week. For Sunday:
Assignments are due by 11:59 pm EST/EDT, Sunday night of the week. |
| Lesson 11: Workshops on Fieldwork | |
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Readings: |
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Activities: |
For Wednesday:
Assignments are due by 11:59 pm EST/EDT, Wednesday night of the week. For Sunday:
Assignments are due by 11:59 pm EST/EDT, Sunday night of the week. |
| Lesson 12: Interview Paper | |
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Activities: |
For Wednesday:
Assignments are due by 11:59 pm EST/EDT, Wednesday night of the week. For Sunday:
Assignments are due by 11:59 pm EST/EDT, Sunday night of the week. |
| Lesson 13: Questioning Your Draft | |
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Activities: |
For Wednesday:
Assignments are due by 11:59 pm EST/EDT, Wednesday night of the week. For Sunday:
Assignments are due by 11:59 pm EST/EDT, Sunday night of the week. |
| Lesson 14: Final Ethnographic Essay | |
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Activities: |
For Wednesday:
Assignments are due by 11:59 pm EST/EDT, Wednesday night of the week. For Sunday:
Assignments are due by 11:59 pm EST/EDT, Sunday night of the week. |
| Lesson 15: Writing and Reflection | |
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For Wednesday:
Assignments are due by 11:59 pm EST/EDT, Wednesday night of the week. For Friday:
Assignments are due by 11:59 pm EST/EDT, Friday night of the week. |
Note: If you are planning to graduate this semester, please communicate your intent to graduate to your instructor. This will alert your instructor to the need to submit your final grade in time to meet the published graduation deadlines. For more information about graduation policies and deadlines, please refer to Graduation at the Chaiken Center for Student Success.
Formal instruction will end on the last day of class. Provided that you have an active Penn State Access Account user ID and password, you will continue to be able to access the course materials for one year, starting from the end date of the academic semester in which the course was offered (with the exception of library reserves and other external resources that may have a shorter archival period). After one year, you might be able to access the course based on the policies of the program or department offering the course material, up to a maximum of three years from the end date of the academic semester in which the course was offered. For more information, please review the University Course Archival Policy.
Academic Integrity
According to Penn State policy G-9: Academic Integrity , an academic integrity violation is “an intentional, unintentional, or attempted violation of course or assessment policies to gain an academic advantage or to advantage or disadvantage another student academically.” Unless your instructor tells you otherwise, you must complete all course work entirely on your own, using only sources that have been permitted by your instructor, and you may not assist other students with papers, quizzes, exams, or other assessments. If your instructor allows you to use ideas, images, or word phrases created by another person (e.g., from Course Hero or Chegg) or by generative technology, such as ChatGPT, you must identify their source. You may not submit false or fabricated information, use the same academic work for credit in multiple courses, or share instructional content. Students with questions about academic integrity should ask their instructor before submitting work.
Students facing allegations of academic misconduct may not drop/withdraw from the affected course unless they are cleared of wrongdoing (see G-9: Academic Integrity ). Attempted drops will be prevented or reversed, and students will be expected to complete course work and meet course deadlines. Students who are found responsible for academic integrity violations face academic outcomes, which can be severe, and put themselves at jeopardy for other outcomes which may include ineligibility for Dean’s List, pass/fail elections, and grade forgiveness. Students may also face consequences from their home/major program and/or The Schreyer Honors College.
How Academic Integrity Violations Are Handled
World Campus students are expected to act with civility and
personal integrity; respect other students' dignity, rights, and
property; and help create and maintain an environment in which all
can succeed through the fruits of their own efforts. An environment
of academic integrity is requisite to respect for oneself and
others, as well as a civil community.
In cases where academic integrity is questioned, the Policy on Academic Integrity indicates that procedure requires an instructor to inform the student of the allegation. Procedures allow a student to accept or contest a charge. If a student chooses to contest a charge, the case will then be managed by the respective college or campus Academic Integrity Committee. If that committee recommends an administrative sanction (Formal Warning, Conduct Probation, Suspension, Expulsion), the claim will be referred to the Office of Student Accountability and Conflict Response.
All Penn State colleges abide by this Penn State policy, but review procedures may vary by college when academic dishonesty is suspected. Information about Penn State's academic integrity policy and college review procedures is included in the information that students receive upon enrolling in a course. To obtain that information in advance of enrolling in a course, please contact us by going to the Contacts & Help page .
Accommodating Disabilities
Late Assignment Policy
Please review the due dates as outlined in the course schedule. If you believe you will not have access to a computer close to an assignment's due date, you should plan ahead and submit your work early.
Anything submitted after 11:59 PM on the due date will be considered late, and the following late deductions will apply:
- There will be a 10% grade deduction for any late work including assignments, draft work, and discussion forum postings and replies. After 2 days past the original due date, I will no longer accept any late work, nor will I accept a batch posting of late work at the end of the semester.
- All assignment grades will be posted to your grade book within 5 days after the due date. If you do not receive a grade by the start of the next lesson, then I have not received your assignment in the proper drop box. It is your responsibility to review your grade book throughout the semester.
If you have questions or concerns about assignments or grades, please contact me ASAP. Do not wait until final grades have been posted to discuss assignments or grades with me.
Instructor Comments
Your instructor may use the "Comments" tool in Microsoft Word to respond to your writing. To view and receive these comments, you must choose "Markup" from the "View" pulldown menu in MS Word. The words "Final Showing Markup" will appear in the reviewing toolbar above your document.
ENGL 202A Academic Integrity
You must do your own original work in English 202A and appropriately identify that portion of your work which is collaborative with others, or borrowed from others, or which is your own work from other contexts. Whenever you quote passages or use ideas from others, you are legally and ethically obliged to acknowledge that use following appropriate conventions for documenting sources. To borrow someone elses work without acknowledging that use is an act of academic as well as professional dishonesty, whether you borrow an entire report, a single sentence or an original idea.
If you have doubts about whether or not your use of your own or others writing is plagiarism, please contact me and I will be happy to discuss it with you. Following this primary principle: Be up front and honest about what you are doing and about what you have contributed to a project. Any act of plagiarism will result in an F for this course and may lead to disciplinary action by Penn State University.
In addition to following the basic principles of fair use of others work, you are expected to adhere to another basic principle: treat others with the respect that you would wish them to grant you. Others includes the people you work for and with (classmates and instructor); the people you write to (audience); and the people you write about (your informants). In the virtual classroom, this principle includes respecting others opinions even when they differ from your own.
Additional Policies
For information about additional policies regarding Penn State Access Accounts; credit by examination; course tuition, fees, and refund schedules; and drops and withdrawals, please see the World Campus Student Center website.
Disclaimer: Please note that the specifics of this Course Syllabus are subject to change, and you will be responsible for abiding by any such changes. Your instructor will notify you of any changes.