Course Outline

ENCS 272 Winter 2013
Argumentation and English Composition for Engineers

Professor: Ken Grimes
Lecture Time: Monday 17.45 – 20.15
Tutorial Time: Mon/Tue/Wed. 16.15 – 17.05
Email: grimes@encs.concordia.ca
Office : EV-2.253. Phone: Ex 5447
Office Hours: Mon. 16.00 – 17.00; Tue. & Thu. 16.15 – 17.15.

Course Description ENCS 272. Three-credit course.
ENCS 272 teaches the fundamentals of English composition and argumentation: grammar; reasoning and persuasion; persuasive proofs; argumentation; structuring and outlining; the problem statement; the body; and the conclusions. Engineers and computer scientists develop skills in the essential professional areas of effective, persuasive communication, and cultivate critical thinking in their writing. Lectures: three hours per week; tutorial : one hour per week. Pre-requisites: all ESL course if any required. NOTE: Students passing this course with C- or higher will fulfill the ENCS Writing Requirement, will not need to take the Engineering Writing Test (EWT), and will be eligible to enroll in ENCS 282.

Course Objectives
Students will acquire the tools necessary for to develop written and oral communication skills for professional engineering and computer science practice.

Attendance and Participation Policy
Prompt attendance and class preparation are basic expectations. Students are required to attend all class and the tutorial sessions. Class participation is compulsory, both in lecture and tutorial. Absence from tutorials or lecture will result in reduction in the final course grade. Falsifying attendance sheets for another person is considered personation (see Academic misconduct below.) Students who attend but have not completed assigned work or do not complete in-class assignments will be counted absent.

Class Etiquette
It is expected that all students will contribute to a supportive and non-discriminatory learning environment by respecting basic classroom courtesy and displaying professional behavior. Late arrivals, early departures, cell phones, text messaging and eating are all disruptive activities that negatively affect classroom learning, reflecting disrespect and inattention to colleagues. Students are expected to conduct themselves professionally, participate in class discussions, offer their considered observations, and listen respectfully to others’ opinions, even if these are in disagreement with their own.

Academic Misconduct
Concordia University recognizes as a punishable offence “any form of cheating, plagiarism, personation, falsification of a document as well as any other form of dishonest behaviour related to the obtention of academic gain or the avoidance of evaluative exercises” (Code of Academic Conduct, Section 16.3.14, Paragraph III.) Any instance of plagiarism or other punishable offence will be referred for disciplinary action. This is defined as the presentation of the work of another person as one’s own without proper acknowledgement. This could be material copied word for word from books, journals internet sites, professor’s course notes, etc. It could be material that is paraphrased but closely resembles the original sources. It could be the work of a fellow student, for example, a paper or assignment completed by another student. It might be a paper purchased. Plagiarism also includes copying images, graphs, tables, oral presentations, and ideas.

Course Assignments
Assignments written outside class are submitted in the lecture hall, and due before class begins on the day specified in the schedule. Assignments turned in after the beginning of class are considered late assignments and will receive a zero. All assignments written in class must be handed in before the end of the class period. No late assignments will be accepted without prior instructor approval. Home assignments must be typed, double spaced, on one side only; in-class work must be submitted in ink, double spaced, written on one side only.

Your Final Project – Assignment 6 – will be a full-length formal Engineering Report. The preceding shorter Assignments (2, 3 & 4) will help you to identify a topic and plan your treatment for this Report.

Assignment 1: Audience Adaptation 5%
Students will adapt a technical text to a general audience. This will be discussed & written in class.

Assignment 2: Topic Approval Memo 5%
In memo format, students will propose a topic for their final Report, outlining important concerns.

Assignment 3: Expository Essay 10%
In an expository essay of approximately 400 words, students will explore the topic area or field from which the topic for the formal Report was selected. The essay should apply the effective writing techniques demonstrated in previous classes, should begin with a thesis statement, be developed by quality support, and terminate with an appropriate conclusion.

Assignment 4: Abstract 5%
Students will revise the Topic Approval Memo and Expository Essay. Students will write a 100 word ‘pre-submission’ Report Abstract, revising and/or restricting the topic, giving concerns, arguments and/or solutions. Revision and improvement of this text form part of the assignment.

Assignment 5: Source Review 10%
Students will select for critical analysis a website/s or text/s they discover while researching their final Report. The 400-500 word essay will introduce the text/s, examine the appropriateness and effectiveness of content presentation, persuasive qualities, strengths, weaknesses, and end with recommendations.

Assignment 6: Final Project – Report 20%
Students will use the argumentation and composition strategies presented in lectures to create a well-researched argument about a real-world problem in the form of a full-length formal Engineering Report. A detailed description of this Assignment will take place over several classes.

Oral Presentation 10%
Students will form groups and prepare group oral presentations to present to a small audience. A description of this assignment will be given in class.

Class Participation 5%
The class participation grade reflects participation, and completion of in-class assignments.

Tutorial Assignments and Attendance 10%
The tutorial grade reflects participation, and completion of in-class assignments.

Final Exam: in-class and home 20%

Course Outline 2013 (Subject to adjustment) Week/Date | Topic and in-class work*; (Assigned homework in brackets) | AssignmentHomework | 1Jan 7th | Introduction to syllabus. 5 elements of professional writing:TAPSS – Topic/Audience/Purpose/Structure/Style. Focus on audience and purpose. | | 2Jan 14th | Review of different audience needs. Composition 1: paragraph structure. First Assignment – Audience Adaptation – written in-class. | 1) Audience Adaptation done | 3Jan 21st | Introduction to formal engineering research report. Choosing a topic. Topics v. theses. Thesis statements. Memorandum forms.(Formal report assigned, due class 12. Memo assigned, due class 4). | | 4Jan 28th | Composition 2: Introductions & Conclusions. The 5-Paragraph essay. Transition from Topic Memo to Expository Essay (Expository essay of topic area assigned, due class 6). | 2) Topic Approval Memo due | 5Feb 4th | Referencing; documentation and citation. Plagiarism. E-Library tour. Choosing research articles. | | 6Feb 11th | Composition 3: Formal Report style and structure. Abstract writing. Memo revised into 125-word pre-submission Abstract, drafted in-class. (Revised Abstract assigned, due class 7). | 3) Expository Essay due | Feb 18th | MID-TERM BREAK | | 7Feb 25th | Critical thinking/Rhetorical analysis. Introduction to (Website Review assigned, due class 10). | 4) Revised Abstract due | 8Mar 4th | Formal report reviewed. How to revise and edit: conceptual/structural/linguistic issues. Referencing. Grading rubric and criteria for success. Analysis of concrete examples. | | 9Mar 11th | Oral presentation. Spontaneous biographies. Group formation for group orals. Powerpoint: use & abuse. | 5) Website Review due | 10Mar 18th | Course revision and Exam preparation. | | 11Mar 25th | Group Oral Presentations I. | | 12April 1st | Group Oral Presentations II. | 6) Final Reports due | 13April 8th | Exam | |

* Note that each lesson will also feature some English language input, with feedback from students’ writing tasks, and specific exercises designed to address grammar and other language issues typical of international students on this course.

Grade Conversions
Final grades will be calculated according to the following formula:
A+ = 100-90 A = 89-85 A- = 84-80
B+ = 79-77 B = 76-73 B- = 72-70
C+ = 69-68 C = 67-63 C- = 62-60
D+ = 59-57 D = 56-53 D- = 52-50 F = less than 50

Office Hours
If you have questions that were not addressed during class, please come to see me during office hours. Office hours are for questions about the course and course material, NOT negotiating your grades. If you feel you have a legitimate grade complaint, please write me a hard copy letter outlining your reasoning in the specific areas you wish to question.