A GUIDE TO WRITING AT IVY TECH COMMUNITY COLLEGE RICHMOND

Transcription

1 A GUIDE TO WRITING AT IVY TECH COMMUNITY COLLEGE RICHMOND PREFACE This guide to writing is intended to give student writers at Ivy Tech Community College of Indiana Richmond the tools to succeed in writing not only in English classes, but across all subjects. Ivy Tech s philosophy of education includes embracing language arts... across the curriculum; this idea is reflected in the Writing Across the Curriculum program. Unless your instructor tells you otherwise, each course you will be taking participates in the program. The goal of Writing Across the Curriculum is for all of your writing assignments to reach certain standards in Prepared August 2005 Revised September 28, 2005 Updated August 10, 2009 By Mary Ramey English Instructor English composition. You will be required to word process your assignments Page 1

2 using MLA or APA format, to exhibit correct grammar and spelling, and to develop a thesis statement (main point) following basic Remember, learning to express yourself effectively is one of the most important aspects of success in any career you may choose. composition principles. In this brochure, you will learn what is required of college-level writers and the specific expectations your instructors and Ivy Tech have for essays, technical reports, research papers, and other types of writing. The concept of Writing Across the Curriculum means that, across every course, student writings at Ivy Tech are evaluated using the same criteria. The student guide will take you through these six-point criteria to give you guidelines on how By using this pamphlet as a guide, you will discover your own voice and celebrate yourself as a writer. your written work will be evaluated for all of your course work at Ivy Tech. Page 2 Page 3

3 Criteria for Writing Across the Curriculum Purpose/Focus/Clarity Organization/Coherence Correctness/Writing Conventions Style Critical Thinking References thesis statement. Thesis statements should express opinions, not accepted facts. When writing is focused, it stays clearly on a topic narrow enough to be discussed within the length of the assignment. Focused writing also involves targeting a specific audience for your writing. To stay focused, writers should present a single point of view and not stray into issues unrelated WHAT DO THESE CRITERIA MEAN? I. Purpose/Focus/Clarity: to their main point. Clarity in writing basically means A writer s purpose is his or her main point, expressing yourself clearly. If your clearly expressed (or sometimes implied) in all forms of writing. The purpose of a piece of writing is usually summed up in its writing is unclear, your readers are likely to become confused and disinterested. Page 4 Page 5

4 II. Organization/Coherence: When a writer has found his or her purpose body paragraphs (which support the thesis), for writing an assignment, the next step is to think about how to organize it logically. The goal of writing is to convince your audience that your main idea is and a conclusion (which summarizes and restates the main point in different words). Your supporting details and information should be specific and clearly related to your reasonable. If readers cannot follow your thesis statement. Coherence refers to the argument, they probably will not accept it. Writers are responsible for providing supporting information to back up their opinions in a logical way. An outline is one effective way to map out the organization of your writing assignment. A piece of writing is usually organized with an introduction (which contains the thesis flow of writing; it involves connecting your ideas in a way that makes your essay seem to be a complete piece. Varied sentence structure (simple sentences combined with more complicated ones) and transitions help your writings achieve coherence. Transitional words and phrases connect ideas and should be used not only between paragraphs, but statement), Page 6 Page 7

5 also between sentences. By using transitions, your writing flows evenly, and your logic is clearer to your audience. III. Correctness/Writing Conventions: Correctness refers to all of those red pen issues like grammar and mechanics. Grammar and mechanics are simply rules of English like subject/verb agreement, capitalization, and spelling. Correctness also includes consistency in the use of first person voice (I, we), second comma), and run-on or fused sentences (two complete sentences combined with no punctuation between them). Here are some examples of these sentence errors: FRAGMENT Chopped down the cherry tree. COMMA SPLICE George Washington chopped down the cherry tree, his father asked him who was responsible. RUN-ON or FUSED SENTENCE George Washington chopped down the cherry tree his father person voice (you), and third person voice (he, asked him who was responsible. These she, it, they). Major sentence errors to avoid in your writing include sentence fragments (incomplete sentences), comma splices (two complete sentences joined only by a errors must be fixed for your sentences to be effective. Fragments need to have subjects and verbs and be able to stand alone as independent clauses. Page 8 Page 9

6 Correctness/ Writing Conventions (continued) To correct the fragment above, you just else (classmates, family members or need to add a subject (George Washington friends) to read your work. In most chopped down the cherry tree). Comma splices and run-ons can be corrected in a number of ways, including using a English courses, you will have peer editing sessions where you trade papers with your classmates and provide coordinating conjunction (George feedback for them. In turn, you Washington chopped down the cherry tree, and his father asked him who was responsible.) or using a subordinating consider the feedback they have given you and revise your work to incorporate suggestions you feel are reasonable. conjunction (When George Washington Writing conventions refer to specific chopped down the cherry tree, his father asked him who was responsible.). To correct your writing, proofread your rules for the assignment type. You will format your essay and document your sources according to the assignment and draft more than once. Read it aloud; your instructor. Examples of formatting you can often hear problems you might would include headers, spacing, and title not otherwise notice. Ask someone page. Although formatting and Page 10 Page 11

7 documentation styles vary for different courses, all your writing should follow the conventions for each particular assignment. IV. Style: A writer s style is what makes him or her that they become willing to consider your ideas. The use of graphics in an assignment is also a style issue. When appropriate, photographs, charts or graphs can help you communicate your unique. It means that the writer uses a meaning to your audience. Graphics consistent voice and an appropriate tone throughout the work. Word choice is also an important aspect of style; you should search for words that best convey what you want your reader to understand. The tone of a piece of writing is your emotional attitude toward your topic and your intended should not only look good but also make sense to the reader in the context of your writing assignment. V. Critical Thinking: The phrase critical thinking does not mean criticizing or being negative. Rather, it means questioning the ideas audience. Your tone should allow your and opinions of others and of yourself. readers to connect with you in such a way When writing an argumentative essay, Page 12 Page 13

8 for example, be willing to question your established ways of thinking and admit your lack of understanding or information about a If you include information in your assignment that is neither common knowledge nor your own ideas, you must subject. As you explore other viewpoints, give credit to the source from which the evaluate evidence, and discover new facts, your own point of view may change. Thinking critically often requires us to admit, I don t know, but I want to find out. VI. References: If your writing assignment requires the use of outside sources, they should be logically and smoothly incorporated into your paper. You need to know how to paraphrase and summarize others ideas and use direct quotations in an effective way. information came. If you do not give credit where it is due, you have committed plagiarism (presenting someone else s ideas as your own). Plagiarism is an academic offense which will result in serious consequences for a student. It must be avoided at all costs. References you make to your sources must be documented in the style appropriate for the assignment. Your audience should be able to understand where your ideas end and Page 14 Page 15

9 your sources begin, both within your paragraphs and on a list of sources cited at the end of the writing. This list should be formatted according to the appropriate documentation style and include all information a reader would need to find the sources you used in your work. Again, different courses will require different types of documentation. Ivy Tech Community College of Indiana believes in your potential as a writer. Through developmental and college-level coursework, you will learn how to express yourself more effectively in the work world through clearer communication, both oral and written. Ivy Tech s faculty encourage you to become a critical thinker, an asker of questions, an openminded individual willing to share your ideas through your writing. Everyone s life experience is valuable, and if we share our experiences and ideas with others, we enjoy the diversity of a multifaceted community of learners. Page 16 Page 17

10 We hope this guide will prove helpful to you as you complete your course work at Ivy Tech. It is intended as a reference for all of your writing assignments. As you can tell, faculty will judge your writing assignment as a whole by using several criteria. Instructors are not just looking at grammar; they want you to learn how to express your opinion fairly and effectively in writing. Good luck in all your writing endeavors, and never stop asking questions. WHAT IF I NEED EXTRA HELP? If you find yourself having difficulty with any aspect of your writing, from grammar to effectively supporting your opinion, you can find help in the LRC. For free individualized tutoring, come to the Learning Resource Center. We have qualified tutors who would be happy to assist you. LRC Hours of Operation: Richmond Monday through Thursday 9 am 7 pm Friday 9 am 6 pm Saturday 9 am 12 noon Phone: (765) , ext Fax: (765) speterson61@ivytech.edu Connersville LRC computers available Monday Thursday 8 am 8 pm Friday 8 am 4 pm Tutoring and Test Proctoring by appointment Phone: (765) bray@ivytech.edu Page 18 * * * * * * * * Hours may be subject to change during the semester due to scheduling. Please call to confirm hours.