ENGL 563 A: Research Methods in Language and Rhetoric

Course Description

ENGL 563: Cultural Research Methods offers an introduction to cultural studies for scholars of technical and professional communication (TPC) and rhetoric. We will explore how TPC and rhetoric scholars have drawn in their research and pedagogies from cultural studies frameworks such as disability studies, feminism, intersectionality, queer theory, critical race theory, postcolonialism, and decoloniality. Students will work to contribute to these and related areas by producing a project proposal and an annotated bibliography for a conference paper, journal article, or work of public scholarship.

The goal of the course is to help you learn how these cultural research methods have been applied in academia or industry and learn how to apply them yourself. We will develop a critical vocabulary and knowledge of the ethical, historical, political, and social contexts that impact and are impacted by these frameworks. By the end of the course, you should have a strong foundational understanding of the differences in these methods, understand why each is a valid form of knowledge-making, and understand that there is more research that needs to be done in these areas.

While there will be an emphasis on technical communication and rhetoric scholarship in the course, these methods are often applied in other research disciplines as well. I welcome students from other disciplines, and I will work with you to apply these methods to your own research projects.

You are expected to read through this entire syllabus. Please note that the schedule and/or readings may need to be revised throughout the quarter to accommodate our pace through the course material. Because of this, I ask that you try not to read too far ahead of the scheduled deadlines. If changes need to be made, you will be notified in advance, but please be comfortable with the information on this website and pace yourself throughout the quarter. I will send out regular emails to make sure we are all on the same page, but please don't hesitate to contact me if you are unsure of what is required of you.

Course Objectives

In the above rationale, I argue that "By the end of the course, you should have a strong foundational understanding of the differences in cultural research methods, understand why each is a valid form of knowledge-making, and understand that there is more research that needs to be done in these areas." In relation to learning objectives, then, this course is designed to help students learn the following:

1. Gaining a basic understanding of the subject (e.g., factual knowledge, methods, principles, generalizations, theories)
   • Assignments: Reading assignments, reading discussions, mid-term exam
2. Learning to analyze and critically evaluate ideas, arguments, and points of view
   • Assignments: Discussion participation, Double Entry Journal 1 and Double Entry Journal 2
3. Learning to apply course material (to improve thinking, problem-solving, and decisions)
   • Assignments: Mid-term exam, Annotated bibliography

Course Reading Requirements

• All required readings will be provided on Canvas.

Overview of Assignments and Grading Policies

In addition to completing regular reflections on the assigned reading, students will engage in research and writing projects. All assignment due dates/times will be clarified in Canvas, but they are generally by class time on the due date. 

Double Entry Journal 1 and 2. Reflect on and respond to each of the assigned readings. The journal will be turned in twice for a grade. Your journal entries will help you in class discussion and provide a starting place for your research project. Keeping good notes will also help you with your take-home exam.

Discussion leader. At least twice throughout the quarter, lead the discussion by preparing questions and relevant examples for analyzing issues/methods arising from the readings. You will earn five points per day you serve as discussion leader.  

Research Project. Your research project will have three parts.

1. Project proposal. You will propose a topic for your project, to culminate in an annotated bibliography. 
2. Take-home Exam. During week 5, I will assign a take-home essay exam that will ask you a series of short essay questions related to the course readings up to this point in the course. I will also ask you to reference some readings from your annotated bibliography (which won't be due until later in the course, but you should have been working on already). You will be required to reference, explain, and apply materials we have discussed to this point in the course. The exam will be available early Monday morning, and you will have until Friday before midnight to turn it in. All students will be required to take this exam.
3. Annotated bibliography. As part of your research for this class, you must prepare an annotated bibliography. I also hope this assignment allows you to pursue research surrounding a topic of your own interest in a fairly low stakes way. This annotated bib must contextualize, summarize, and reflect on 7-15 academic sources outside of the class readings (7-10 for master's students; 11-15 for Ph.D. students).

Your grade for the course overall is calculated based on the following mapping. You can view your calculated grade in Canvas.

Late assignments are accepted, but will receive a reduced grade in line with how late the assignment is and any mitigating factors. Please write an explanation with any late submission. 

Transparency and Reflectivity Around LLM Text Generation (Co-Pilot) This class does not ban you from using Co-Pilot, ChatGPT, or other large language model (LLM) text generators. I believe these technologies are tools that can aid learning and reflection around genre and rhetorical purpose. Instead of banning them, I will encourage you to analyze them reflectively and critically as rhetorical artifacts and methods; for example, we will sometimes work collaboratively to analyze and study the technology's output. Most importantly, we will regularly discuss what rubric categories and other rhetorical standards for these documents that ChatGPT cannot help you to meet. 

I believe this approach is more realistic to the role these technologies may increasingly play in your professional life in the future. I also believe it de-stigmatizes the technology and represents a less punitive approach to the writing classroom as a space of learning (not old school discipline). However, given the topic of our course, we will also engage with critical conversations about the socio-poliical implications of these technologies, such as the ways they amplify structural biases already endemic to digital culture.  

Attendance & Emailing Me about Absences

This is an in-person class where attendance is required in order to receive the maximum possible amounts of points. Until an accommodation is in place, you will need to participate synchronously during class meetings. Attendance itself is not graded, but the only way to succeed fully in the course is by attending as often as possible. 

Unless you have a specific question related to an assignment or other aspect of a class meeting, please do not email me to tell that you will be absent. An example of this type of email would be one you send to me a half hour before class telling me that you woke up feeling slightly tired and cannot make it. I have no interest in the specific circumstances of your absences unless: they are genuine emergencies that I need to be aware of; they involve logistics related to university-sanctioned activities or school-work; or there is some other specific reason for me to be contacted about them. Overall, these absence-justifying emails typically have no practical purpose and clog up my inbox, adding unnecessary labor that is not part of my job description. Keep in mind the amount of email that university faculty members receive on a daily basis and try to show care in your communication with me. 

Grading Policy & Resubmission

I have found that conventional grading often leads my students to think more about grades than about writing; to worry more about pleasing me or psyching me out than about figuring out what you really want to say or how you want to say it; to be reluctant to take risks with your writing. Grading even makes some students feel they are working against me.

- Writing Studies Scholar Peter Elbow

The goal of this course is not to determine who is a "good" writer and who is a "less-good" writer. The goal of this course is for everyone to become a better and more confident researcher in technical and professional communication, rhetoric, and related fields/disciplines.

The grading policy for the course is based on rewarding work that contributes to that goal of improving your writing. If you actively engage in class sessions and activities, provide constructive and thoughtful peer feedback, and work on improving your writing with each draft, you will receive a good grade.

You will still receive critical feedback about your writing from me and from your peers, but that feedback will always be about helping you to improve your writing, not about deducting grading points. You will not be graded down for minor grammar issues, a document that doesn't quite flow, or trying something new that doesn't quite work--unless you do not make an effort to improve these issues.

Grading criteria are focused on how engaged you are in improving your writing and are listed in each assignment description.

Your grade for the course overall is calculated based on the following mapping. You can view your calculated grade in Canvas.

Late assignments are accepted, but will receive a reduced grade in line with how late the assignment is and any mitigating factors. Please write an explanation with any late submission. 

Resubmission of Minor and Major Assignments

In this class, we treat writing and communication design as an iterative process of learning, designing, writing, editing, and revising. Thus, you may ask for clarification about or contest any assignment grade that you receive. For minor assignments, questions about grades must be submitted via email no sooner than 24 hours and no later than one week after the grade is released in Canvas.

Syllabus Changes

I reserve the right to change this syllabus and the schedule as we progress throughout the course. I will provide clear written communication of such changes if they occur, typically via email to the entire class.