Semester project

You have two options for the semester project. While I hope this handout is comprehensive, we will discuss the project work quite often in class, considering the ways your drafts approach the questions about computers & writing which are the focus of the course.

Option one: build a web presence

Summary: create a well-developed, usable, sustainable web presence for yourself or a campus or community organization.

The texts we’ll read in the first six weeks of class provide a technical introduction to standards-compliant web design. In weeks seven through fourteen, we build on that foundation by learning qualities which make for successful web sites. But application of these ideas is as critical as learning them in the abstract. The creation of a comprehensive web presence will provide you an opportunity to merge theory with practice, while benefiting from our intensive support environment.

Your web presence should be well-planned, attractively designed, and carefully tested, so that it both meets stakeholder needs and engages others. This need not be a single, static website—in fact, that model is pretty much dead—but can include a mix of web applications hosted on several sites. For example:

You have tremendous latitude in focus, and I will provide suggestions if you are not sure of a suitable project. Furthermore, we will invest considerable class time in activities which support your project work.

Two: write an academic essay

Summary: write an academic essay of publishable quality, engaging one or more of the questions raised by our texts and your investigations into computers & writing.

Computers & Writing is not only the name of this course, but an annual conference and a sub-discipline of rhetoric & composition which focuses on teaching networked writing. The technical issues which open the course have huge implications for C&W and lead to profound questions about the future of English studies—and not just pedagogy.

Using one of the concepts we’ve studied as a point of departure, write an academic essay about computers & writing. Some approaches:

One framework to avoid: “what I do in my classroom.” This approach, all too common at the C&W conference, has been rightly criticized for lack of theoretical sophistication and difficulty (or impossibility!) of broad application. I am happy to provide examples of successful scholarship to you.

Publishable essays have the following qualities:

Strong analysis:
demonstrate a line of reasoning about a topic; write an argument, not just a list of facts or a summary of the thought of others;
Copious evidence:
use multiple well-considered quotations, examples, and other source material to make your argument;
Adequate development:
extend your analysis beyond the obvious or well-known, offering new insights about the concepts you engage;
Articulation:
connect your work to others in English studies and/or other discourses;
Relevance:
select a topic and focus relevant for English studies, or explain why a particular concept is valuable;
Originality:
avoid rehashing other work—find a new perspective, approach, synthesis, or application of existing ideas;
Conventional style:
Use the MLA Style Manual to ensure your format is conventional.

Graduate students, or those considering graduate work, should strongly consider this option.

Common milestones

For either option, you will be asked to complete the following sub-assignments along the way:

Prospectus

A short statement (500 words) which names the option you select, provides details about the particular path you will take, describes your expected format and approach, includes any questions you have about the project, and outlines the sources which you’re considering. While not the final word on your project, your prospectus should show you have ensured the feasibility of your idea by thinking it over carefully. (Here are two sample prospectuses.)

Due October 1.

Rough draft (option one) or claim, outline, & sources (option two)

This preliminary draft provides you an opportunity to get feedback from me before you complete an entire project draft—so the stakes are lower, and revision less painful. For the first option, you might write some of the content for the site, outline software and services you will use or offer, and complete a set of templates. Or compose a detailed outline, including several mockups, which builds on your prospectus and provides basic information about the entire site. Any approach which shows a clear direction for your project is acceptable.

For the second option, spell out your argument (essentially, write the first few paragraphs of your essay), provide an outline which shows your plan for the whole essay, and include an annotated list of sources.

Due October 22.

Presentation & draft

Present your project to the class, using the model of an academic conference—a short talk followed by a discussion. You are free to use audiovisual aids or provide handouts. Note that reading your draft to the class isn’t a proper academic presentation—rather, you need to prepare a separate work, based on your draft, which is suitable for oral delivery.

At the same time, turn in a draft to me for commentary and feedback. Like previous milestones, your draft can include questions and other notations which guide my review. Your draft should be 70% or more complete, both in terms of length (page count) and development (quality and sophistication of ideas). Please submit your previous milestones as well.

Due November 12 (presentation) and November 16 (draft).

Final project

Your final project, plus all previous drafts and milestones on which I have commented. Send me the address, or submit in a plain folder or envelope.

Due December 10—the day of the final examination.

Tips

Regardless of the option you select, the following hold true: