Program Overview
Course Sequence and Placement
As part of the General Education Program, students are required to take two semesters of composition: first, either Intensive College Composition I or College Composition I, and second, College Composition II. Based on their SAT scores, students may be required to take a basic writing course.
Foundations for College Writing
· Basic Writing Course – 3 free elective credits
· Placement: SAT Evidence-based Reading and Writing score of 420 or below
Intensive College Composition I (ICCI)
· Four-Credit Bridge Course
· Gen-Ed Equivalent to College Composition I
· Placement: SAT Evidence-based Reading and Writing score of 430 - 480
College Composition I (CCI)
· Three-Credit Gen-Ed Requirement
· Placement: SAT Evidence-based Reading and Writing score of 490 and above
College Composition II (CCII)
· Three-Credit Gen-Ed Requirement
· Prerequisite: I/CCI
Foundations for College Writing
· Basic Writing Course – 3 free elective credits
· Placement: SAT Evidence-based Reading and Writing score of 420 or below
Intensive College Composition I (ICCI)
· Four-Credit Bridge Course
· Gen-Ed Equivalent to College Composition I
· Placement: SAT Evidence-based Reading and Writing score of 430 - 480
College Composition I (CCI)
· Three-Credit Gen-Ed Requirement
· Placement: SAT Evidence-based Reading and Writing score of 490 and above
College Composition II (CCII)
· Three-Credit Gen-Ed Requirement
· Prerequisite: I/CCI
Course Descriptions
Foundations for College Writing (3 free elective credits)
This is a basic writing course; however, it is not a basic skills course, nor is it a grammar course. Students are introduced to the conventions of academic writing and that writing is a conversation among many who are sharing ideas. The course focuses on close critical reading and how to incorporate ideas from texts/sources into their own writing. Students focus on multi-stage writing and work through revision to develop their ideas into essays, while also working on developmental issues. Students who pass this course take Intensive College Composition I as the first course in the Gen-Ed sequence.
Intensive College Composition I (4 credits)
This is a four-credit version of CCI with same objectives and standards (see below). This course is a bridge course for students who need more support in achieving college-level writing. It integrates goals and learning outcomes of both Foundations and CCI, for example, by focusing on organization and support. As a four-credit course, it meets three days per week instead of two. Some pre-selected sections are three credits for the instructor with the additional credit hour held in the Writing Center and led by a tutor. Again, Intensive CCI meets the first-sequence writing requirement (CCI).
College Composition I (3 credits)
CCI fulfills the Gen-Ed requirement for the first-semester composition course. In CCI, students experience a variety of forms of rhetorically meaningful writing that is shaped by considerations of audience and purpose. Students come to understand writing as a recursive process of thinking, reading, discovery/exploration, researching, drafting, revising, and editing. Through drafts, instructors guide students to develop thoughts, ideas, and complex writing (not just correct errors). Students write essays that combine personal experience, course readings, discussions, and research. CCI assignments are based on instructor-selected readings, which are supplemented by the student.
College Composition II (3 credits)
CCII fulfills the Gen-Ed requirement for the second-semester composition course. This course focuses on purposeful argumentation, research, and information literacy. Students do not write a traditional research paper; rather, they produce a variety of argumentative essays either following a course theme or independent topics, all of which are researched. This course also focuses on information literacy and the ability of students to find, select, evaluate and incorporate both traditional academic and popular sources, including digital and multimedia information. Visual argumentation is also a component and emphasis of the course.
This is a basic writing course; however, it is not a basic skills course, nor is it a grammar course. Students are introduced to the conventions of academic writing and that writing is a conversation among many who are sharing ideas. The course focuses on close critical reading and how to incorporate ideas from texts/sources into their own writing. Students focus on multi-stage writing and work through revision to develop their ideas into essays, while also working on developmental issues. Students who pass this course take Intensive College Composition I as the first course in the Gen-Ed sequence.
Intensive College Composition I (4 credits)
This is a four-credit version of CCI with same objectives and standards (see below). This course is a bridge course for students who need more support in achieving college-level writing. It integrates goals and learning outcomes of both Foundations and CCI, for example, by focusing on organization and support. As a four-credit course, it meets three days per week instead of two. Some pre-selected sections are three credits for the instructor with the additional credit hour held in the Writing Center and led by a tutor. Again, Intensive CCI meets the first-sequence writing requirement (CCI).
College Composition I (3 credits)
CCI fulfills the Gen-Ed requirement for the first-semester composition course. In CCI, students experience a variety of forms of rhetorically meaningful writing that is shaped by considerations of audience and purpose. Students come to understand writing as a recursive process of thinking, reading, discovery/exploration, researching, drafting, revising, and editing. Through drafts, instructors guide students to develop thoughts, ideas, and complex writing (not just correct errors). Students write essays that combine personal experience, course readings, discussions, and research. CCI assignments are based on instructor-selected readings, which are supplemented by the student.
College Composition II (3 credits)
CCII fulfills the Gen-Ed requirement for the second-semester composition course. This course focuses on purposeful argumentation, research, and information literacy. Students do not write a traditional research paper; rather, they produce a variety of argumentative essays either following a course theme or independent topics, all of which are researched. This course also focuses on information literacy and the ability of students to find, select, evaluate and incorporate both traditional academic and popular sources, including digital and multimedia information. Visual argumentation is also a component and emphasis of the course.