CENTRAL OHIO TECHNICAL COLLEGE
Pre-College Education
Winter Quarter 2002
Syllabus Part IICourse Number: 1400
Course Title: Basic Writing Skills
Course Description: This course provides the opportunity to strengthen written language skills with emphasis on the writing process, sentence structure, unified paragraphs, word usage, capitalization, punctuation, and spelling. This course will count neither for elective credit nor toward meeting minimum credit hour requirements for graduation. Course is not open to students with credit for 1110, 1501, or 1510. This course is required for all students scoring in the designated range of the writing section of ASSET or COMPASS.
Credit Hours: 4
Contact Hours: 5 (3 hours lecture, 2 hours lab)
Prerequisites: None
COURSE GOALS:

1.00 The student should apply the writing process.
2.00 The student should demonstrate use of nouns, pronouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs, prepositions, and conjunctions.
3.00 The student should compose simple, compound, and complex sentences.
4.00 The student should apply guidelines for period, question mark, exclamation point, comma, semicolon, colon, quotation marks, dash, and parenthesis usage.
5.00 The student should compose coherent, unified paragraphs.
6.00 The student should analyze organizational characteristics of essay samples.
7.00 The student should apply principles of spelling.
8.00 The student should apply guidelines for correct use of capitalization.PERFORMANCE OBJECTIVES
Objectives: Given presentations by the instructor, textbook references, handouts relative to the course (1400), essay samples and the opportunity to participate in class activities that include revision practice, the student should demonstrate knowledge and competency with models in class as outlined in the following performance objectives by scoring an average of 70% or better on all written work and graded classroom work.
1.00 The student should apply the writing process.
1.01 Explain the writing process.
1.02 Demonstrate methods to gather ideas.
1.03 Utilize Paper Structure Charts and/or outlines as drafting guides.
1.04 Self-evaluate essay drafts.
1.05 Participate in peer revision teams.
1.06 Critique essay and paragraph drafts.
1.07 Provide evidence of the writing process.
2.00 The student should demonstrate use of nouns, pronouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs, prepositions, and conjunctions.
2.01 Define and recognize a noun.
2.02 Demonstrate proper functions of nouns.
2.03 Define and identify a pronoun.
2.04 Define and list pronoun cases.
2.05 Demonstrate appropriate functions of pronouns.
2.06 Define and recognize action and state of being verbs.
2.07 Demonstrate present, past, and future verb tense.
2.08 Demonstrate proper functions of verbs.
2.09 Define and demonstrate appropriate function of adjectives.
2.10 Demonstrate use of phrases functioning as adjectives.
2.11 Define and demonstrate proper functions of adverbs.
2.12 Demonstrate use of phrases functioning as adverbs.
2.13 Define and demonstrate appropriate functions of coordinating and subordinating conjunctions.
3.00 The student should compose simple, compound, and complex sentences.
3.01 Define and write a simple sentence.
3.02 Define and write a compound sentence.
3.03 Define and write a complex sentence.
3.04 Distinguish between restrictive and non-restrictive clauses.
3.05 Demonstrate use of subordinating conjunctions in complex sentences.
3.06 Demonstrate use of relative pronouns in complex sentences.
3.07 Integrate simple, compound, and complex sentences in essays.
4.00 The student should apply guidelines for period, question mark, exclamation point, comma, semicolon, colon, quotation marks, dash, and parenthesis usage.
4.01 Cite guideline usage for periods.
4.02 Cite guideline usage for question marks.
4.03 Cite guideline usage for exclamation point.
4.04 Demonstrate correct usage for period, question mark, and exclamation point.
4.05 Use commas correctly in the following situations;
a. Parenthetical words, phrases, and clauses.
b. Compound sentences.
c. Non-restrictive clauses.
d. Series.
e. Introductory phrases and clauses.
f. Direct address.
g. Short quoted sentences.
h. Exclamatory words.
4.06 Cite guidelines for correct use of semicolons
4.07 Cite guidelines for appropriate use of colons.
4.08 Demonstrate correct usage of comma, semicolons, and colons.
4.09 Distinguish between direct and indirect quotations.
4.10 Demonstrate correct punctuation of sentences containing direct and indirect quotes.
4.11 Cite guidelines for correct use of the dash.
4.12 Cite guidelines for correct use of parenthesis.
4.13 Demonstrate correct usage of quotation marks, the dash, and parenthesis.
5.00 The student should compose coherent, unified paragraphs.
5.01 Define a paragraph.
5.02 Define a topic sentence.
5.03. Define unity.
5.04 Define coherence.
5.05 Compose a unified paragraph given a topic sentence.
5.06 Demonstrate transitional expressions as a strategy for coherence.
5.07 Self-evaluate paragraphs for coherence and unity.
6.00 The student should analyze organizational characteristics of essay samples.
6.01 Identify and apply introduction, body, and conclusion as the basic organization for essays.
6.02 Examine characteristics of effective thesis statements.
6.03 Compose effective thesis statements.
6.04 Analyze body paragraphs for appropriate development of essay topic.
7.00 The student should apply principles of spelling.
7.01 Practice basic guidelines for correct spelling.
7.02 Cite two ways to locate and correct spelling errors.
8.00 The student should apply guidelines for correct use of capitalization.
8.01 Capitalize proper nouns.
8.02 Capitalize appropriate words in a title.
8.03 Capitalize proper adjectives.
8.04 Capitalize the first letter of the first word in a sentence.
8.05 Apply capitalization guidelines to directions.
8.06 Apply capitalization guidelines to seasons.