The City College of New York
Writing for Science—Public/Community Science
210.03 Writing for Science – Hybrid Instructor: Pamela Stemberg
Tuesday / Thursday 2 – 3:15 pamela.stemberg@gmail.com
NAC 1/301Z Office NAC 6/216B
Phone & Text 914 565 1774 Office Hours: By Appointment
Course Description
Writing for the Sciences primary purpose is to help students better understand the principles of reading and writing in the sciences. 210.03 will also give students practice of some of the specific forms and techniques used in scientific disciplines. Students will accomplish this by becoming engaged, analytical readers of scientific papers, lab reports, and other scientific writing and by observing, considering, and questioning science, the scientific method, and the epistemology and nature of inquiry. Students will learn that science writing is an act of communicating ideas to those in their field and to the general public. A passing grade (not Incomplete) in Engl. 110, FIQWS, or an equivalent will meet the prerequisite requirement.
Course Outcomes
English 210 Course Learning Outcomes
Over the course of the semester, you will
- acknowledge your and others’ range of linguistic differences as resources, and draw on those resources to develop rhetorical sensibility
- enhance strategies for reading, drafting, revising, editing, and self-assessment
- negotiate your own writing goals and audience expectations regarding conventions of genre, medium, and rhetorical situation
- develop and engage in the collaborative and social aspects of writing processes
- engage in genre analysis and multimodal composing to explore effective writing across disciplinary contexts and beyond
- formulate and articulate a stance through and in your writing
- practice using various library resources, online databases, and the Internet to locate sources appropriate to your writing projects
- strengthen your source use practices (including evaluating, integrating, quoting, paraphrasing, summarizing, synthesizing, analyzing, and citing sources)
In the Classroom
Be prepared for class. Be on time. Meet your classmates, exchange phone numbers with your assigned groups. The classroom is a forum for ideas—don’t be afraid to ask questions or share your opinions. Disrespectful behavior will not be tolerated. Do not bring food to class, but drinking water is allowed. The library does not allow the eating of food or drinking anything but water. Set all electronic devices to silent, but if you have a laptop or other device you would like to use in class, please bring it. Your participation is necessary. The topics we will discuss have no right answers. Each of our classes is meant to be a discussion and a forum for ideas, your ideas. Read every assignment twice and come to class ready to talk.
Grades/Assignments
• Portfolio = 20%
• Infographic=10%
• Multimedia Project/Wiki = 10%
• Blogs = 20% Multiple
• Group Literature Review = 20% •
• Oral Presentation = 10%
• Group Participation = 10%
Absence/Lateness Policy
• The fourth and every following absence from class will result in a deduction from the final grade.
• The third and every following late entrance to class will result in a one-point deduction from the final grade.
Plagiarism/References
Plagiarism is the act of presenting another person’s ideas, research, or writings as your own. The following are some examples of plagiarism, but these instances are not exhaustive: a) Copying another person’s actual words without the use of quotation marks and footnotes attributing the words to their source; b) Presenting another person’s ideas or theories in your own words without acknowledging the source; c) Using information that is not common knowledge without acknowledging the source; d) Failing to acknowledge collaborators on homework and laboratory assignments; e) Internet plagiarism (which includes submitting downloaded term papers or parts of term papers, paraphrasing or copying information from the internet without citing the source, and “cutting & pasting” from various sources without proper attribution. Please refer to the CUNY Policy on Academic Integrity other examples of Academic Dishonesty and the related consequences: http://www.cuny.edu/about/info/policies/academic-integrity.pdf
The Writing Center
All students are encouraged to use The Writing Center. According to their website: “You should visit [the Writing Center] whenever you need someone to listen to your ideas, discuss your topics or assignments, and read your drafts. Writing consultants will work with you on planning, drafting, and revising — all of the important steps in your writing process.” For further information, or to schedule an appointment, go to their website:
Remember to always bring a copy of your assignment sheet to the Writing Center in order to help your tutor better understand what needs to be done.
http://www1.ccny.cuny.edu/prospective/humanities/writingcenter/
Assignments
We will use safe assign on Blackboard for papers and any other written graded assignments. I will not accept hardcopy in the classroom of any assignment. The Tech center on the first floor has computers for your use. Assignment links are located in the Assignment and/or Blog area and will be available on the Blackboard menu which is on the left side of the screen. You must use your school email for all communication from our class as. Make sure you check your email as our class schedule will change based.
| Date | Lesson | Assignment Due |
| January 29/31 | Syllabus Review/Time Line/Assignments | |
| February 2 | Group Selection/Working in Groups | |
| 4 | Service Learning Commitments | |
| 5 | Primary vs. Secondary Literature / | Topic Selection |
| 7 | Research | |
| 14 | Research Tools | 2/15 Awareness Campaigns |
| 19 | 2/21 Research Articles | |
| 21 | Online | |
| 26 | Narrative | 3/6 Narrative |
| 28 | Narrative in Science Writing | |
| March 5 | Narrative Multi Media Presentations | 3/13 Blogs Examples Due |
| 7 | Blogs | 3/15 Blog Topics Due |
| 12 | Blogs | |
| 14 | Peer Review Multi Media Presentation | 3/20 Draft Multimedia project Due in class |
| 19 | Peer Review Blogs | |
| 21 | Preview of Literature Reviews | 3/27 Blogs Due |
| 26 | Peer Review of Entire Projects | Draft of Projects Due in Class |
| 28 | Project Presentations | 4/10 Awareness Campaign Projects Due |
| April 2 -4 | Project Presentations | |
| 9 | Literature Reviews | 4/15 Reflections of Campaign Due |
| 11 | Introduction/Methods | |
| 16 | Results/Discussion/Abstracts | |
| 18 | Parts of Review Continued | Bring Copy of draft with abstract |
| 30 | Literature Review Workshop | Literature Review Due |
| May 2 | Oral Presentations | |
| 7 – 14 | Oral Presentations | |
| 10 | Oral Presentations | |
| 15 | Oral Presentations | Literature Review Due 5/14 |
