NORTHAMPTON COMMUNITY COLLEGE

Syllabus   -- Fall 2009

ENGL 151:  ENGLISH II     --     Report Writing

Instructor:  Dr. J. Von Schilling

Office:  College Center 353A     861-4178      

Email:  jvonschilling@northampton.edu 

Office Hours:  Monday and Wednesday 1:00-2:00; Tuesday and Thursday 2:00-3:00 

Course Text: Successful Writing at Work: Concise Second Edition  (Philip C. Kolin, 2009)

Course Description: 

English II is primarily a composition course that develops and adds to the writing skills introduced in English I.  The Report Writing option focuses in part on the concepts and terms of workplace-related writing and to such forms as memos, email, letters, and short reports.  Most assignments in this course will make use of computers throughout the writing process.

Students will practice research and writing skills appropriate for topics within their career fields.  In addition, students will also read, analyze, and interpret material dealing with computer skills and information literacy in college and in the workplace.          

Course Outcomes:

 1.  Students will understand and know how to follow the stages of the writing process (prewriting, writing, and editing) and apply them to workplace writing situations.

 2.  Students will recognize and understand the basic components of memos, email, letters, short reports, and other common forms of workplace writing.

 3.  Students will be able to produce reports on topics related to computer skills and information literacy in college and the workplace, and they will have improved their ability to write clearly, coherently, and accurately.

4.  Students will be skilled in using basic sources and methods of research and documentation on topics in their career fields.  They will be able to synthesize and integrate material from secondary sources with their own ideas in an MLA-documented research paper.  

5. Students will be experienced with using computers in work-related writing and with researching the Internet for information in their fields.

6.  Students will know how to use office and home technology to prepare career-related documents, such as a “PowerPoint”-type slide presentation and a short report with visuals and other enhancements. 

Course Outline and Assignments:

 Week 1 (Aug. 25-27)  Introduction to Report Writing

• General Topic:  Course introduction
• Due:  Student information paragraph

Week 2 (Sept. 1-3) Job Application/Transfer Cover Letter

• Reading Assignment: (Course text) 81-89, 137-139, 151-158
• General Topic: How to write effective cover letters
• Due:  Job Application/Transfer Cover Letter (rough draft)

Week 3 (Sept. 8-10) Workplace Writing Formats and Principles

• Reading Assignment: 12-17, 27-28, 33-34, 37-45
• General Topic: Document format – Workplace vs. college writing
• Due:  Job Application/Transfer Cover Letter (final draft)