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How Arguments Work and the College Composition Course Objectives

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    127114

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    California C-ID English 100 is the outline for our most commonly taught course, variously referred to as first-year composition, college composition, or first-year writing.  The C-ID ENGL 100 Descriptor explains, "This is an introductory course that offers instruction in expository and argumentative writing, appropriate and effective use of language, close reading, cogent thinking, research strategies, information literacy, and documentation."

    Table of Resources That Align with California Course Objectives for College Composition

    Objective listed in the C-ID English 100 course descriptor

    How Arguments Work sections centered on this objective 

    Ancillary resources that help students meet the objective 

    Objective #1:

    Read, analyze, and evaluate a variety of primarily non-fiction texts for content, context, and rhetorical merit with consideration of tone, audience, and purpose.
     

    Objective #2:

    Apply a variety of rhetorical strategies in writing unified, well-organized essays with arguable theses and persuasive support.

     
    • Sample Student Essays
    • Practice exercises: Each section of each chapter has at least one practice exercise described at the end of the section.
    • Quizzes: Each of the chapters has an associated self-grading quiz with automated feedback. Preview these by logging into Canvas and visiting How Arguments Work on Canvas Commons.

    Objective #3:

    Develop varied and flexible strategies for generating, drafting, and revising essays.

    Objective #4:

    Analyze stylistic choices in their own writing and the writing of others.
     

    Objective #5:

    Write timed/in-class essays exhibiting acceptable college-level control of mechanics, organization, development, and coherence.

    While How Arguments Work does not yet have a section on timed writing, the following sections build skills students will rely on in those assignments.
    • Practice exercises: Each section of each chapter has at least one practice exercise described at the end of the section.
    • Quizzes: Each of the chapters has an associated self-grading quiz with automated feedback. Preview these by logging into Canvas and visiting How Arguments Work on Canvas Commons.

    Objective #6:

    Integrate the ideas of others through paraphrasing, summarizing, and quoting without plagiarism.

    Objective #7:

    Find, evaluate, analyze, and interpret primary and secondary sources, incorporating them into written essays using appropriate documentation format.

    Objective #8:

    Proofread and edit essays for presentation so they exhibit no disruptive errors in English grammar, usage, or punctuation
    • Practice exercises: Each section of each chapter has at least one practice exercise described at the end of the section.
    • Quizzes: Each of the chapters has an associated self-grading quiz with automated feedback. Preview these by logging into Canvas and visiting How Arguments Work on Canvas Commons.

    Attributions

    By Darya Myers and Anna Mills, licensed CC BY NC 4.0.

    This page titled How Arguments Work and the College Composition Course Objectives is shared under a CC BY-NC 4.0 license and was authored, remixed, and/or curated by Anna Mills (ASCCC Open Educational Resources Initiative) .