| LAE-Liberal Arts and Sciences-English |
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| LAE101 |
English Composition I |
| First in a two-term sequence of composition courses. Expository, illustrative, and persuasive writing with emphasis on the short essay. Introduction to research and documentation. Counts in the Communications Area of General Education Requirements. 5 quarter hours. |
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| LAE102 |
English Composition II |
| Second in a sequence of composition courses. Continued practice in expository writing, including persuasive writing and research paper. Counts in the Communications Area of General Education Requirements 5 quarter hours. |
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| LAE104 |
Report Writing |
| An introduction to the types of writing required in public agencies or businesses, including the writing of reports or proposals (which have specific guidelines), as well as memoranda, formal and informal letters, summaries, recommendations, and persuasive memos or other arguments. Prerequisite: Placement. Counts in the Communications Area of General Education Requirements 5 quarter hours |
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| LAE120 |
Content Area Writing A |
| A course in expository and research writing, with emphasis on the writing process, editing, and use of a variety of informational sources. Content Area Writing A is taught in combination with Introduction to American Politics, and the writing assignments are on subjects relevant to the Politics course. Counts in the Communications Area of General Education Requirements 5 quarter hours |
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| LAE125 |
Content Area Writing B |
| A course in persuasive and research writing, with emphasis on the research and writing process, development of planning documents, and editing. Content Area Writing B is taught in combination with Introduction to Sociology, and the writing assignments are on subjects relevant to the Sociology course. Counts in the Communications Area of General Education Requirements 5 quarter hours |
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| LAE201 |
Intermediate Composition |
| A course by arrangement for students needing further work in fundamentals of expository writing. This course adapts to the needs of the student or students currently enrolled. Prerequisite: LAE101 or equivalent. Counts in the Communications Area of General Education Requirements 2-5 quarter hours |
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| LAE210 |
Writing in the Workplace |
| An interdisciplinary introduction to various writing tasks which integrate data presentations and economic principles using word processing and computer software applicable to office and workplace writing. Prerequisites: Sophomore standing and academic skills assessment. Concurrent enrollment in LAM225 and LAS253. Counts in the Communications Area of General Education Requirements 5 quarter hours |
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| LAE220 |
Introduction to Literature |
| Techniques of reading and analyzing fiction, poetry and drama are taught by using primarily selections from 20th century American and British works. Students develop short papers of literary analysis into longer, more polished essays in which they express and support their interpretations of selected short stories, poems, plays and one short novel. Counts in the Humanities Area of General Education Requirements 5 quarter hours |
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| LAE301 |
Advanced Composition |
| Advanced instruction and practice in a variety of expository and other writing tasks. Special emphasis on writing with style, clarity, and effectiveness for various audiences. Prerequisite: LAE102 or equivalent. Counts in the Communications Area of General Education Requirements 2-5 quarter hours |
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| LAE302 |
Introduction to Creative Writing |
| Basic techniques of fiction and poetry. Individual instructor may stress one or the other. (Students can inquire ahead.) Wide reading expected as a stimulus to creative expression. Prerequisites: LAE102 or equivalent. Counts in the Communications Area of General Education Requirements. 5 quarter hours |
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| LAE305 |
Major British Writers I: Beginnings to 1750 |
| A survey of the most important British authors to 1750. Includes such writers as Chaucer, Shakespeare, Donne, and the metaphysical poets, Milton, Pope, Swift. Covers historical-cultural backgrounds and major developments in the history of ideas. Prerequisite: LAE102 or equivalent. Counts in the Humanities Area of General Education Requirements 5 quarter hours |
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| LAE306 |
Major British Writers II: 1750 to 1900 |
| A survey of the most important British authors from 1750 to 1900. Includes such writers as Fielding, Sheridan, Austen, Wordsworth, and the Romantic poets, Dickens, Shaw. Covers historical-cultural backgrounds and major developments in the history of ideas. Prerequisite: LAE102 or equivalent. Counts in the Humanities Area of General Education Requirements 5 quarter hours |
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| LAE307 |
Literature for Children |
| A general overview recommended for students entering the teaching profession. Survey of best of the old and new in prose and verse from the nursery level through elementary grades. Techniques of presentation are discussed. Major emphasis on content and quality of literature. (May be taken as separate modules according to age level: LAE307A Early Childhood for 2 quarter hours;or LAE307B Middle School for 3 quarter hours. Prerequisite: LAE102 or equivalent. Counts in the Humanities Area of General Education Requirements 5 quarter hours |
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| LAE308 |
World Literature |
| Masterpieces of world literature from the earliest times to the present, in translation. Syllabus includes primarily western literature û Greek, Italian, Spanish, German, French, Russian û but some attention also given to non-western literature. Prerequisite: LAE102 or equivalent. Counts in the Humanities Area of General Education Requirements 5 quarter hours |
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| LAE309 |
Minority Voices in American Literature |
| A study of important literary works by representatives of minority groups. Specific focus is determined by the individual instructor and can be limited to a particular group, time period, and/or literary type. Students examine how literature functions as protest and in the search for identity. Prerequisite: LAE102 or equivalent. Counts in the Humanities Area of General Education Requirements 5 quarter hours |
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| LAE310 |
The Novel |
| A broad study of technique, structure, and rhetoric of the novel. Individual instructor may focus on the origins and development of the novel, concentrating on the growth of technique and changing cultural concerns, or on representative types of the novel. Prerequisite: LAE102 or equivalent. Counts in the Humanities Area of General Education Requirements 5 quarter hours |
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| LAE311 |
The Short Story |
| Examination of the short story as a literary form. Students learn the tools needed for criticism of fiction. Course can be presented using a historical approach or it may be structured by type. Prerequisite: LAE102 or equivalent. Counts in the Humanities Area of General Education Requirements 5 quarter hours |
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| LAE312 |
Poetry |
| Examination of poetry as a literary genre through critical analysis. Prerequisite: LAE102 or equivalent. Counts in the Humanities Area of General Education Requirements 5 quarter hours |
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| LAE313 |
Myth and Mythology |
| A study of examples of mythology from two or more cultural traditions, possibly including ancient and modern, western and non-western traditions. The mythology will be studied as literature and from the perspective of several major twentieth-century theories of myth. Prerequisites: LAE102 or equivalent Counts in the Humanities Area of General Education Requirements. 5 quarter hours. |
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| LAE314 |
History of the English Language |
| An introduction to the study of language, with emphasis on historical study and on the English language. Covers characteristics, origins and development of language; origins and historical development of the English language in Great Britain and America; descriptive and prescriptive grammar; varieties of American English. Prerequisites: LAE102 or equivalent. Counts in the Communications or Humanities Area of General Education Requirements 5 quarter hours |
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| LAE315 |
Art of the Film |
| An introduction to film theory and film technique, with some reference to the history of film. Emphasis will be placed on the tools used to tell stories in film, e.g., cinematography, editing and sound. Both American and foreign films will be screened and discussed; Intolerance, Metropolis, Citizen Kane, My Darling Clementine, Shoot the Piano Player, The Seventh Seal and 8 + are typical of the films covered. Students will also view movies outside of class and write papers analyzing various aspects of filmmaking. Prerequisite: LAE102 or equivalent. Counts in the Humanities Area of General Education Requirements 5 quarter hours |
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| LAE316 |
Prose Forms and Styles |
| A survey of the major forms of contemporary prose writing: novel, essay, short story, non-fiction narrative. Emphasis will be on analysis of each author's style and voice, and of the narrative techniques he or she employs to tell the story most effectively. Works vary from quarter to quarter and may from time to time include some non-English works in translation. Prerequisites: LAE102 or equivalent. Counts in the Communications or Humanities Area of General Education Requirements 5 quarter hours |
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| LAE340 |
Literature for High School Teachers |
| Students read, discuss and write papers on selections of literature commonly taught in Illinois high schools. They learn to lead discussions on the assigned literature with special attention to the interests and potential of high school students. Materials are clustered around a theme with special relevance or curricular usefulness for this group, such as "Coming of Age," "Young Americans During the Great Depression," or "Families in Transition." Counts in the Humanities Area of General Education Requirements 5 quarter hours. |
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| LAE405 |
American Writers I: Beginning to 1900: Selected Topics |
| A brief look at early Puritan literature followed by readings from fiction writers such as Hawthorne, Melville, Irving, Cooper, Poe, Twain, and from poets such as Whittier, Longfellow, Whitman and Dickinson. Emphasis on the influence of social forces on literature and on the emergence of literary forms and conventions. Prerequisite: LAE102 or equivalent. Counts in the Humanities Area of General Education Requirements 5 quarter hours; 3 semester hours |
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| LAE406 |
American Writers II: 1900-1945 |
| A survey of classic 20th century novelists such as Wharton, Dreiser, Lewis, Fitzgerald, Hemingway, Faulkner, Wright, and Steinbeck. Students examine types of fiction such as realism, naturalism, proletarianism, impressionism. Prerequisite: LAE102 or equivalent. Counts in the Humanities Area of General Education Requirements 5 quarter hours; 3 semester hours |
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| LAE407 |
American Writers III: 1945-1970 |
| A survey of the best and most influential writers following World War II and continuing through to the close of the turbulent sixties. Includes primarily fiction writers such as Mailer, O'Hara, Salinger, Cheever, Updike, O'Connor, Baldwin, Kesey, Heller, Roth, Bellow, Malamud, and Nabokov. Takes a look at the stunning contrasts between the fifties and the sixties, politically, socially, ethically, artistically, and psychologically. Prerequisite: LAE102 or equivalent. Counts in the Humanities Area of General Education Requirements 5 quarter hours; 3 semester hours |
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| LAE408 |
Contemporary American Literature: 1970 to the Present |
| A dynamic overview of the most critically esteemed and widely read writers of the students' own lifetime. Stressing fiction, it includes such names as Updike, Bellow, Pynchon, Barth, Vonnegut, Wolfe, Irving, Roth, Morrison and Walker. Assesses the impact of the sixties and examines literary phenomena such as absurdism and the "new journalism" against the on-going tradition of realism. Prerequisite: LAE102 or equivalent. Counts in the Humanities Area of General Education Requirements 5 quarter hours; 3 semester hours |
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| LAE409 |
20th Century American Women Writers |
| A survey of American women writers, which examines the special characteristics of writing by women, the growth of protest, and women's role in the 20th century history of American literature. Individual instructors may choose to focus primarily on fiction, on non-fiction, or on poetry; or an instructor may limit the survey to a particular 20th century time period or theme. See English Department for details. Prerequisite: LAE102 or equivalent. Counts in the Humanities Area of General Education Requirements 5 quarter hours; 3 semester hours |
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| LAE410 |
Modern British Fiction: 1900-1950 |
| A survey of classic 20th-century British novelists such as James, Lawrence, Joyce, Forster, Woolf, Greene, Orwell, Huxley and Amis. Focuses on the growth and development of technique and on the ethical, psychological, and political concerns of the period. Prerequisite: LAE102 or equivalent. Counts in the Humanities Area of General Education Requirements 5 quarter hours; 3 semester hours |
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| LAE415 |
Popular Literature |
| Study of well-known types of popular literature (murder mysteries, spy stories, science fiction, romance, westerns, horror stories, etc.) with particular attention to the sociology, psychology and politics of each type. Prerequisite: LAE102 or equivalent. Counts in the Humanities Area of General Education Requirements 5 quarter hours; 3 semester hours |
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| LAE416 |
Women's Lives into Literature |
| Women's Lives into Literature examines the process of transforming life experience into fiction plays and poetry- what is left out, what is added, how elements are altered considering the special skills of each writer. The historical context and specific cultural influences on American writers of the late nineteenth and twentieth centuries will be considered using the works of Kate Chopin, Charlotte Perkins Gilman, Sylvia Plath, Lillian Hellman, Lorraine Hansberry, and Wendy Wasserstein. Prerequisites: Admission to the Master of Science in Written Communication or Consent of the Instructor. Counts in the Humanities Area of General Education Requirements 5 quarter hours; 3 semester hours. |
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| LAE420 |
Current Issues in College Composition |
| A survey of current issues in composition and rhetoric research with emphasis on their relationships to teaching college writing courses. Such issues include social and cognitive and/or technological influences on academic writers. Prerequisites: LAE102 or equivalent, junior standing or above. Counts in the Communications Area of General Education Requirements 5 quarter hours; 3 semester hours. |
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| LAE425 |
Literary Criticism and Interpretation |
| A survey of the major theories and schools of literary criticism with emphasis on twentieth-century approaches such as new criticism, semiotics, deconstruction, reader-response theory and including such special perspectives as psychoanalytic, Marxist and feminist criticism. Prerequisite: LAE102 or equivalent. Counts in the Humanities Area of General Education Requirements 5 quarter hours; 3 semester hours. |
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| LAE434 |
Shakespeare and Elizabethan Drama |
| Study of the Elizabethan stage and Elizabethan-Jacobean drama and the development of Shakespeare's dramatic art. Students read selected comedies, tragedies and histories by Shakespeare and some of his contemporaries. Prerequisite: LAE102 or equivalent. Counts in the Humanities Area of General Education Requirements 5 quarter hours; 3 semester hours |
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| LAE450 |
Fundamentals of Journalism |
| Introduction to various kinds of journalistic writing appropriate to newspapers, magazines and other periodicals. News-writing, feature-writing, and interviewing are some of the journalistic types covered. Liability laws, guidelines pertaining to plagiarism, copyright laws, and journalistic ethics are discussed. Prerequisite: LAE102 or equivalent. Counts in the Communications Area of General Education Requirements 5 quarter hours; 3 semester hours |
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| LAE460 |
Editing and Publishing the Small Journal |
| A course introducing students to the practical skills involved in editing, managing, and publishing a small periodical-for a school, a corporation, or any other enterprise which needs to publish information for its own corporate community or for the public. Some students may get hands-on experience by working with the college's own public relations office or possibly with the school yearbook or newspaper. Journalistic ethics, reporting techniques, and liability laws will also be covered. Most importantly, course introduces students to desktop-publishing software-both Apple and IBM-compatible. More traditional methods of working with printers are also explained. Prerequisite: LAE102 or equivalent. Counts in the Communications Area of General Education Requirements 5 quarter hours; 3 semester hours |
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| LAE461 |
Writing Promotional and Advertising Copy |
| A course taught by professionals in the field of advertising and promotion. Students receive coaching and practice in writing spots for radio and television, as well as layout and design for print media and direct mail. Public relations strategies are introduced: how advertising builds and communicates the corporate image. Available markets for writers will be explored. Speakers will discuss working for agencies and writing free-lance. Prerequisite: LAE102 or equivalent. Counts in the Communications Area of General Education Requirements 5 quarter hours; 3 semester hours |
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| LAE465 |
Creative Writing: Humor |
| An initial discussion of the basic principles of humor, followed by an overview of specific types of humor-writing. This course analyzes various styles of humor, such as iconoclasm, absurdism, exaggeration, "gallows humor," "Jewish humor," etc., in order to imitate their techniques in weekly written assignments. Each student works on development of his or her own comic "voice." Prerequisite: LAE102 or equivalent. Counts in the Communications Area of General Education Requirements 5 quarter hours; 3 semester hours |
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| LAE490 |
English Independent Study |
| Opportunity for students in this major or concentration to pursue acceptable study in an aspect of literature or writing independently. Students are assigned to department advisors for guidance and tutoring. 2-5 quarter hours |
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| LAE492A, LAE492B, LAE492C |
| Methods of Research for Writers I, II, and III |
| A course which teaches writers how to do basic secondary research in a variety of areas likely to be relevant to their future writing, such as: psychology, physiology and medicine, education, literature and the arts, history, natural science, etc. Students must show they can use traditional printed materials as well as computer-assisted research. Instructor reviews guidelines pertaining to plagiarism and copyright laws. Students write a brief, researched paper. |
| This course is usually taught in modules of 2 quarter hours or 1 semester hour per module with a different module being offered each term: LAE 492A in fall, LAE 492B in winter, LAE 492C in spring. Each module covers different discipline areas, responding to student needs. Students can request current academic year's agenda from the English Department. (This is not a writing-intensive course; Contrast LAE501: Writing from Reading.) Counts in the Communications Area of General Education Requirements 2 quarter hours per module; 1 semester hour per module.) |
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| LAE495 |
English Special Topic |
| Opportunity for students and faculty to create a course topic not on the regular schedule. (A recent example: The Sixties: Evolution and Revolution.) Students may register for more than one Special Topic in the course of their degree program. 2-5 quarter hours |
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| LAE499 |
English Seminar |
| A course designed by faculty and students, from time to time, in which students assume a major responsibility for course materials and content, in conventional seminar fashion, with the instructor acting primarily as advisor and evaluator. Prerequisite: consent of instructor. 1-5 quarter hours; 1-3 semester hours |
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| LAE500 |
Advanced Expository Writing |
| A wide-ranging course to develop techniques which increase clarity, interest, cogency, and coherence. Exercises in and out of class lead students to grace and style, sometimes through techniques of style analysis and modeling. Writer flexibility is encouraged by creating a diversity of tasks and imaginary audiences. Basic plagiarism and copyright guidelines are reviewed. 3 semester hours |
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| LAE501 |
Writing from Reading: Research, Reports, and Summaries |
| Practice in preparing expository material from previously published information. Reports, reviews, summaries, research projects, and light feature material based on background reading are the major focus. Methods of formal and informal research are taught, including computer-assisted searches. Students learn correct methods of documentation, and the laws that apply. Reader-interest, organization and clarity are the primary concerns. Students become familiar with what many staff (and freelance) writers do for a living. This is a writing-intensive course. (Contrast: LAE492 Methods of Research). 3 semester hours |
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| LAE502 |
Creative Writing: Fiction |
| A course which strengthens techniques of description, characterization, narration, exposition, pacing, imagery, and diction. Students are encouraged to develop independence in seeing options and making creative decisions. Each student works at development of his or her own "voice". Manuscripts are evaluated by a published fiction writer. Students read and react to each other's work. 3 semester hours |
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| LAE503 |
Creative Writing: Poetry |
| A course which develops mature concepts about the nature of "poetry" and its relation to prose. Techniques of imagery, diction, tone, and organization are developed in relation to each student's style and thematic directions. Students learn how to develop and control the emotional impact of the poem. Students read and react to each other's work. This course is usually offered to one or a few students by arrangement. 3 semester hours |
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| LAE504 |
Creative Writing: Children's Books |
| A course taught by published writers of children's literature. Course improves basic techniques in fiction and poetry (see descriptions for other creative writing courses) but focuses on specifications for various younger age groups. Students learn publisher guidelines for each age level as well as what kinds of pieces publishers prefer. Formats and conventions are examined. Problems in maintaining racial, ethnic, and religious fairness are examined. Available markets are surveyed. Students read and react to each other's work. 3 semester hours |
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| LAE510 |
Rhetorical Theory: History and Practice |
| A course which examines the age-old question of "What works?" from an historical perspective. Students are introduced to classical and modern theories of rhetorical effectiveness and literary analysis. Course also offers an overview of accepted and experimental methods to improve writing skills. Weekly exercises apply various theories and methods. Students become familiar with the vocabulary of rhetoric, old and recent. 3 semester hours |
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| LAE512A, LAE512B, LAE512C |
| The Professional Writer: Markets, Materials, Methods I, II, and III |
| A course dealing with the practical side of professional writing: career opportunities for the staff writer and publishing opportunities for the free-lancer. Students learn manuscript forms, survey available markets, discuss where professional writers get their "ideas" from, etc. Course also covers pay scales for writers, copyright laws, liability laws, and income tax tips.This course is usually offered in modules of one semester hour each in fall, winter, spring. LAE512A, LAE512B, LAE512C. |
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| LAE515 |
Feature Writing |
| A course which examines the design of feature stories for newspapers and magazines and the style-range possibilities. Interviewing skills are a primary focus. Assignments include news-features, profiles, and personal experience essays, among others. Students learn the standard organizational format for magazine features ("the magazine formula") and alternatives. Students are introduced to the idea processes which generate concepts for stories. 3 semester hours |
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| LAE516 |
Screenwriting |
| A course in the special techniques and format of writing the narrative film, with emphasis on dramatic structure, character development, creating visual metaphors and orchestrating these elements around a coherent dramatic question or premise. Viewing and reading of noteworthy screenplays is combined with the development of an original screenplay idea and the execution of a portion of that screenplay into proper format. Prerequisites: Graduate status or department permission. 3 semester hours |
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| LAE517 |
Technical Writing |
| A flexible course designed to meet the career goals of students in the Written Communication program. The course teaches strategies for writing complex, specialized or industry-specific information in a clear and effective manner. Students learn how to analyze and adjust levels of prose complexity, how formatting can enhance communication and how to address readers of differing levels of expertise and interest. Some assignments allow students to use actual projects from their own workplaces. 3 semester hours |
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| LAE518 |
Narrative Forms |
| An examination of the ways in which writers tell stories, both fictional and otherwise. Attention will be paid to the various types of first- and third-person narrative techniques, the use of chronology and alternate time schemes, the cross-cut and the subplot. Primarily a reading course for students in the M.S. in Written Communications program. 3 semester hours |
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| LAE520 |
Teaching Freshman English Composition |
| This course will introduce the graduate student/writer to the strategies needed to teach general education freshman/lower division (non-developmental) writing courses. It concludes a survey of relevant literature concerning instructional issues and applications in the classroom (i.e., process approaches, peer/collaborative activities, writing across disciplines, teaching writing with computers, writing assessment). Emphasis is given also to utilizing the writer/graduate student's writing practices and experience. Students will develop appropriate instructional materials. 3 semester hours |
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| LAE521 |
Teaching Literature to Undergraduates |
| This course will introduce the student to the strategies needed to teach postsecondary lower division, introductory literature courses. It includes a survey of relevant literature concerning instructional issues and applications in the classroom (i.e., reader response, collaborative activities, appropriate critical approaches, integration of writing activities). Students will develop appropriate teaching materials. 3 semester hours |
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| LAE592 |
Practicum/Internship in Teaching English Courses to Undergraduates |
| This course provides a closely supervised actual teaching experience with instruction and mentoring for the graduate student. Students will teach an English Department, first or second term freshman composition course or other lower division composition or literature course (as available) or give instruction in an appropriate tutorial setting. 3 semester hours |
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| LAE594 |
Independent Study |
| An opportunity for students in the Masters program to pursue an area of writing and/or research independently. Students are assigned to a faculty member for guidance and coaching. 1-3 semester hours |
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| LAE595 |
Special Topic |
| Opportunity for students and faculty to create a course topic not on the regular schedule. Students may register for more than one Special Topic in the course of their degree program. 1-3 semester hours |
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| LAE599 |
Thesis Project |
| The final showcase piece in the student's portfolio. It is tailored to fit the student's individual program. Examples of thesis projects might be: a collection of short stories, a short novel, a series of poems, a lengthy report for publication or for use in an organization, a series of articles, one long or several short children's books, a series of periodical journals which the student has edited and managed for an organization, etc. The length and difficulty of the project will determine the credit hours to be awarded (3, 4, 5 or 6). Work may be based on previous course work but must show extensive rewriting and augmentation. Student is assigned to a faculty member for coaching and evaluation. 1-6 semester hours |
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