WRIT 1202

Writing and Information Literacy 1202

Instructor: Liza Chakravarty

Semester and Year: Fall Semester 2022-23
Prerequisite: Writing and Information Literacy 1101
Office: Blackboard Collaborate
Office hours: Fridays: 11:00- 13:00 pm
Class Time: Monday: 8:30 -9:45am /Tuesday: 8:30-9:45am /Wednesday: 8:30-9:45am /
Thursday: 8:30-9:45am
Number of Credits: 6
Phone: +971526984930
E-mail: lchakravaty@ada.edu.az

Course Description

This Course is designed as a Research-based Writing Course that will help you improve your Academic
language as well as Critical Thinking skills. All the writing assignments in this course aims at further
development of your writing skills, as well as require a critical approach to reading and interpretation of the
texts.
Course Goals
The general goals of this course are to:
- Help students improve their general and academic use of English.
- Broaden students’ perspective concerning intellectual and literary issues.
- Engage students in their own critical, creative and reflective learning process.
- Create rhetorically appropriate work that demonstrates an understanding of purpose, audience,
context and genre conventions.
- Analyze, synthesize and evaluate information from various scholarly / non-scholarly texts, attending
especially to relationships between assertion and evidence and to patterns of organization.

Intended Learning Outcomes

By the end of the course, students will be able to:

• Summarize adequately the overall idea of an academic article or book chapter, or the idea of a part.
• Paraphrase adequately short extracts from academic texts.
• Evaluate evidence and arguments and recognize bias.
• Narrow down topics and formulate an effective research question.
• Avoid plagiarism and document sources correctly according to APA style
 • Use critical reading strategies, such as previewing, annotating, making inferences, identifying logical
fallacies, evaluating an argument.
• Understand the relationship between ideas in different texts so as to be able to interrelate them when
reviewing literature.
• Effectively present orally the findings from secondary sources on the chosen research topic.
• Further develop research skills, using databases, other online sources, and print materials in the
library to write research essay.
• Write coherent and clear arguments that reflect adequate knowledge of the subject about which they
are writing, considering purpose and audience, incorporating their own voice.
• Write a library research paper on the chosen topic.

My expectations from students:

• Actively participate in class activities, thus creating a positive learning environment.
• Fix appointments via email in order to see your teacher during her office hours.
• Be supportive of classmates and treat everyone with respect.
• Plan your work schedule and keep to it.
• Meet all deadlines that have been allocated to the work set. Deadlines are not negotiable.
• Come to class on time. Major announcements and quizzes will be taking place at beginning of each
class.
• Bring the required texts, pens and other required materials to every class.
• Switch off your mobile phones.
• Students are required to take notes in class. PPTs may not be uploaded on Blackboard or sent to
students.

NOTE: Any paper written by a “friend” or “a family member” will not be accepted and graded.

I reserve the right to ask students to leave the class if they are unprepared, unengaged and/or
disturbing others.

UNIVERSITY POLICIES

ADA HONOR CODE:

“Student members of the ADA University community pledge not to cheat, plagiarize, steal, or lie in matters
related to academic work”. You can get more detailed information about Honor Code in the link below:

https://www.ada.edu.az/frq-content/plugins/policies_x1/entry/20210820115209_06140500.pdf

Plagiarism. Academic Honesty:

The academic community assumes that you understand the ethical violation of plagiarism. Successful
academic and professional writing involves careful reading and composing skills so as to avoid any
semblance of plagiarism. Be sure to give yourself plenty of time to complete various assignments in order
that you will never be overwhelmed that you are tempted to, or inadvertently, claim another’s work as your
own. Clearly, you will not learn or benefit cognitively by plagiarizing. Strict standards of academic honesty
will be enforced in this course. Serious repercussions will be issued if you are caught plagiarizing. The
consequences may include failure of the course.

Plagiarism can include any of the following:

• Making use of or reproducing another person’s writing, data or ideas without complete and correct
acknowledgement of the sources;
• failing to clearly indicate in-text citations;
• paraphrasing the contents of another person’s writing without sufficient reference to the sources;
• reproducing another person’s audio, visual, data, or writing without reference to the sources, and in
doing so passing these off as one’s own work;
• presenting the structure or central body of ideas taken from third-party sources as one’s own work or
ideas, even if a reference to other authors the information is taken from is included;
• submitting a text that has previously been submitted, or is similar to a text that has previously been
submitted, in the context of assignments for other courses;
• reproducing the work of fellow students and passing it off as one’s own;
• submitting papers obtained from a commercial agency or written (whether or not for payment) by
another person.

• Teaching Methodology

Since the course consists of theoretical and practical materials, it will be taught through lectures,
discussions, and the workshops. The course will employ student-and learning centered approach.
Discussions based on student contributions add a vital and dynamic element to the class. The classes
will be held twice a week. As a rule of thumb, everyone should come to class with comments or
questions from the core readings and about writing assignments.

• Grading System:

The following letter grades are used for all classes in degree programs: A, B, C, D, F. The ADA University
grading system includes plus (+) and minus (-) modifiers for use with the letter grades. The letter grade D
has a (+) modifier only. A few courses at ADA University may have P (Pass) and F (Fail) grades. This grade
does not affect the overall GPA. The office of the Registrar identifies the courses with Pass/Fail grading on
the course list after the Faculty Senate’s approval of the curriculum. An incomplete (I) grade will be given
when a student has failed for reasons outside their control, to complete some part of the coursework by the
end of the final exam week. Faculties have the discretion then to award an incomplete (I) and to specify how
it can be completed. Incomplete grades will automatically be changed to F if the student fails to hand in all
completed assignments no later than eight (8) weeks after the end of the final exam week.

• Incomplete:

When special circumstances occur, the instructor may postpone the assignment of the student’s final grade
in a course by use of an I-Incomplete. The I-Incomplete may be given only if the student has completed at
least 80% of the term of instruction, but is unable to complete the class work and/or take the final
examination because of illness or other compelling reasons. Provided that these conditions are met, the
instructor electing to give I-Incomplete will fill in a special form at the time course grades are due. This
agreement specifies what the student must do, and when, to remove the I-Incomplete. The dean’s office
gives a copy to the student, and retains a copy for at least one year. The required work must be completed,
and a grade must be reported to the Office of the Registrar, no later than eight weeks after the end of the
grading period. Failure to complete the required work by the due date will result in a grade of F or a final
grade based on grades earned by the deadline given.
 • Grade Appeal:

The responsibility to assign grades lies with the course instructor. Students who contend that their grade is
not an accurate reflection of their accomplishments in a class should first discuss their grade assessment
with the instructor. If, after the discussion, the instructor is persuaded to change the grade, he/she will
immediately inform the Registrar and the Dean as soon as possible. In the case of data input or
communication error, notification to the Registrar will be sufficient. If, after the student has discussed the
grade with the instructor, the student remains dissatisfied, it is possible to initiate a grade appeal process.
This appeal is admissible in a case where the student feels the instructor’s grade is in error. A grade appeal
must be filed within five working days after reception of the final grade. The appeal must be sent to the
Dean of the college in which the course is offered and must include a detailed description of why the student
feels the grading assessment was in error. The student may withdraw the appeal at any point during the
process. It is the Dean who will make the decision of whether or not the student’s appeal has merit. If the
Dean decides the appeal is unfounded, the appeal will be denied; however, if the Dean finds the appeal has
merit, he/she will convene a committee consisting of the Dean and two neutral faculty members to discuss
the appeal. The committee shall have the right to consult with both the instructor and the student during the
appeal process. The Dean will make a decision about the case within one week after the reception of the
appeal. The decision will be made in writing and will be communicated to both the student and the
instructor. The committee’s decision is final. It is important that the student be alerted to the fact that the
committee’s decision may result in the original grade being lowered.

• Extra Credit Opportunities:

There are no extra credit opportunities in this course.

• Withdrawal:

If a student drops a course after the end of the drop/add period and before the beginning of the eighth
week, he/she will receive a grade of “W” (withdrawal). The grade of “W” will not affect the calculation
of a student’s GPA. Effective from September 2015, all undergraduate students are limited to three (3)
course withdrawals during their enrollment at ADA University. Master’s students are limited to only one
(1) course withdrawal during their studies. Students cannot withdraw from more than one class per
semester. In addition, students cannot withdraw after the eighth week of classes. No tuition refund is
available for withdrawals from classes that occur after the drop/add period. All probation and expulsion
rules apply regardless of a withdrawal. All withdrawals are noted on a student’s transcript. Students
should be careful when withdrawing from a class in order to avoid being expelled from the university for
failure to fulfill the requirements of their academic school. Students cannot apply for ADA University
scholarships or tuition waivers in a semester following the one in which they have withdrawn from a
class. In order to initiate a withdrawal, students first must talk to their Deans and fill out a Course
Withdrawal Form, which may be obtained from the Office of the Registrar.

• Disability Statement

ADA University provides upon request appropriate academic accommodations for qualified students with
documented disabilities. Any student who feels s/he may need an accommodation based on the impact of a
disability should notify the Office of Disability Services and Inclusive Education about his/her needs before
the start of the academic term. Please contact Mr. Elnur Eyvazov, Director of the Office of Disability
Services and Inclusive Education; Phone: 4373235/ext249; Email: eeyvazov@ada.edu.az

• Student Counselling Services

In this new environment for you, you might need help and advice of experienced and professional people.
Whether you face time management and procrastination problems or feel academic or personal stress and
are worried about grades, the Office of Student Academic Support Services is ready to support you through
individual meetings and workshop sessions. The main goal of counselling services is to help ADA
University students work through struggles, overcome academic and personal challenges, and achieve
academic success. Do not hesitate to contact ADA University Counselor if you need to receive advice of a
professional. In accordance with ethical codes, personal information of students who apply to the office is
kept confidential.
Please visit the Office of Student Academic Support Service, Room D123 or e-mail erizayev@ada.edu.az to
make an appointment.
• Disclaimer
Instructor can modify the schedule of the syllabus as necessary.

COURSE POLICIES

Attendance and Punctuality

Attendance refers to the student’s physical presence in class and participation in class discussions and
activities. Students should attend all classes and be active participants in discussions and activities.
In compliance with Azerbaijani legislation, instructors are required to monitor attendance and inform the
Registrar and the Dean of the student’s respective School when students miss significant amounts of class
time. Azerbaijani legislation mandates that students who fail to attend at least 75% of classes will fail the
course.

Emergencies:

Students who face emergencies, such as a death in the family, the serious illness of a family member,
hazardous weather that makes attendance impossible, or other situations beyond their control that preclude
class attendance, should notify their instructors immediately. Even with advance notice, whether a student
will be allowed to make up course work missed because of an emergency will depend on the attendance
policy stated in the course syllabus. There always must be an acceptable reason for any absence.

Make up:

There will be no make up for any graded assignment.

Late Work

Students are responsible for turning in their assignments on the day they are due. These assignments are
very important and the deadlines for the assignments are non- negotiable. Work that is turned in late will
lose 20% of the grade for the relevant assignment for each day it is late.

Tutorials

Your instructor will provide tutorial support for all the students of your section. If you are having difficulty
with the revision of your papers, you can arrange an appointment with your instructor. Some of the tutorials
will be required, and the attendance of such tutorials is compulsory. You are required to inform your
instructor in advance in case you cannot make the tutorial or might be late. English is the language used in
tutorials.

Note: You should come to the tutorial with specific questions related to different parts of your paper where
you have difficulties. You should not expect the instructor to proofread and edit your paper. This is totally
students' responsibility.

Writing Centre:
Students are also recommended to visit Writing Centre if they need extra help in any stage of the writing
process. Below is the link where you can find relevant and needed information about Writing Centre.
 https://adawritingcenter.wordpress.com/about/

Note: If the instructor has not seen or given feedback on an outline and draft of the paper, it will
affect the final grade. Papers submitted without outline and first draft will lose 10% out of final
grade.

Course Assessments

Graded Assignments Weight %

1. Introduction 15%
2. Literature Review 25%
3. Research-based presentation 10%
4. Final Research Paper (Intro, 30%
Methodology, Discussion, Conclusion)
5. Final Quiz 20%

Important!!!
Those students whose final grade in Writing and Information Literacy 1202 is below C- (70%)
will have to repeat the course.

Feedback
Another important aspect of this course will focus on receiving, and to some extent, giving feedback. Every
writer needs a reader – someone to comment on and help the writer “see” his paper through a reader’s eyes.
This feedback can come from many different places. This course will give you a chance to receive feedback
from your instructor, from Writing Center consultants and even yourself, through a self-evaluation process.
Your ability to incorporate feedback and make substantive changes in your work will be an important part of
your essay grades.

Guidelines for submitting papers. These guidelines are not optional!

• All papers must be Word-processed using software that is compatible with software on our library
computers.
• When using word processing, spell-check all papers, including rough drafts. Papers showing
evidence of no or poor spell-checking does not meet the minimum submission criteria.
• Papers must be double-spaced. Indent each new paragraph. Standard font and size in this course is
Times New Roman twelve point. Do not use a font smaller than Times New Roman twelve point or
any decorative fonts. Generally, you will use the default setting on your word processing program.
If your default settings exceed those listed here, your paper will not meet submission standards.
• For any assignment you will use a title page.

Grades will be assessed using the following general criteria/grade descriptions:

A (Excellent) Most teachers recognize an A paper as one with a spark of true originality. Its thesis is
specific, insightful, and intriguing. The discussion of primary support ideas is generous and
thoughtful, and the supporting secondary evidence is explicit, coherent, and interesting. The
organization of ideas exemplifies a carefully planned, thoughtful consideration of audience and of the
elements of persuasion. It has smooth transitions, exceptional details, consistent diction and tone,
sophisticated sentence structure, and no grammatical and/or mechanical errors. The paper meets or
exceeds all of the assignment requirements.
An A is earned by excellence. Merely doing the assignment does not constitute grounds for an A. By
definition, an A is markedly superior in quality and integrity. The amount of time a student spends on
an assignment is not the basis for the grade. It is possible to work for hours on an assignment and,
unfortunately, complete the work incorrectly.

B (Very good) A B paper is one in which the thesis, while perhaps not as insightful or original as in an
A paper, is nevertheless neither dull nor ordinary. The writer organizes the material into coherent,
well-unified paragraphs that have clear topic sentences. The writer does not violate the tone by
shifting levels of diction, nor does the writer make serious or numerous grammatical and/or
mechanical errors. A generous discussion of primary support ideas is attempted, the secondary
supporting evidence is fairly detailed, and the sentences are somewhat varied in terms of structure
and length. The paper meets most of the assignment requirements.

A B is earned by outstanding work. By definition, a B is more than a measure of competency, more

than mere completion of the required work. Again, the amount of time a student spends on an
assignment is not the basis for the grade.

C (Acceptable) In a C paper, teachers find evidence that the student is learning. C is not a negative
grade: it means “satisfactory.” Students often think that this grade means “mediocre” or
“unsatisfactory,” but a grade of C means that the work has been completed with a measure of
competence and skill that reflects a solid level of accomplishment. A C paper usually has several
serious grammatical/mechanical errors, and it may have problems in content. Its thesis may need to
be narrowed, primary support ideas may be offered, but not sufficiently discussed, and the paper
often needs more detail and secondary supporting evidence. The organization often lacks careful
planning and a consideration of audience. The paper may need better transitions both within and
between the paragraphs, and some paragraphs may need better topic sentences. This kind of paper
typically is wordy and has inadequate subordination as well as illogical coordination. Its sentences are
often monotonous in terms of structure and length. The paper may shift tone and levels of language.
The paper meets some of the assignment requirements.

A C is earned by student effort, attention to assignment details, and writing competence. Merely doing
the assignment does not constitute grounds for a C. By definition, a C indicates persistent student
learning and adherence with assignment parameters. The amount of time a student spends on an
assignment is not the basis for the grade. It is possible to work for hours on an assignment and,
unfortunately, complete the work incorrectly.

D A D paper is one that has numerous grammatical and mechanical errors, including some
problems in sentence boundaries (e.g. comma splices, fragments, fused sentences) that make the ideas
unclear. Usually it lacks a clear thesis and clear organization, and its language is often much too
general and dull. It offers no real evidence to support its points. Its sentences are wordy and unvaried
in terms of length and structure. This kind of a paper often shifts levels of language and tone. A D
paper can, however, be relatively free of mechanical errors but have so many serious problems with
content and organization that it seems unfocused and even garbled. A D paper is often one that
ignores or fails to meet the basic requirements of the assignment.

F (Unacceptable) An F paper is one that has no clear thesis, no clear organization, few specific details,
and many grammatical and/or mechanical errors, especially problems with sentence boundaries (e.g.
comma splices, fragments, and fused sentences). This kind of paper usually has problems with diction
and wordiness, and its sentences are unvaried in terms of structure and length. The writer often
coordinates ideas that do not belong together. Paragraphs lack coherence and unity. Numerous
rhetorical errors and a failure to meet basic assignment requirements ensure an unsatisfactory grade.
Students will be graded on absolute scale provided below.

A 94-100% A- 90 – 93% B+ 87 – 89% B 83 – 86% B- 80 – 82%

C+ 77 – 79% C 73 – 76% C- 70 – 72% D+ 67 – 69% D 60 – 66% F 0 – 59%

Submission Policy: All the graded written assignments MUST BE submitted to Blackboard by students
on the due date. The assignments that will not be uploaded to Blackboard but sent via email will lose
5% even if it is not a late submission.

Email Policy: You may email the instructor if you have any questions related to the course. I will answer
your emails during the working days and hours. However, if you write an email late at night or during the
weekend, I may not reply. Students cannot write emails to the instructor asking to increase their grades
or excuse their absences. Such kind of emails will not be answered. Also, students are not expected to write
the instructor emails to ask what the homework is. You must be very attentive during the class, or if you
were absent, you should ask your group mates.

Graded Elements of the Course

Introduction

The Introduction of Research Writing serves the purpose of leading the reader from a general subject area to a
particular field of research. It establishes the context of the research being conducted by summarizing
current understanding and background information about the topic, stating the purpose of the work in
the form of the hypothesis, question, or research problem, briefly explaining your rationale, methodological
approach, highlighting the potential. You must write a Research Introduction of 250-300 words.

Literature Review

It is an evaluative report of information found in the literature related to your selected area of study.
The review should describe, summarize, evaluate, and clarify this literature. It should give a theoretical
base for the research and help you (the author) determine the nature of your research. All works included in
the review must be read, evaluated and analyzed, but relationships between the literatures must also be
identified and articulated, in relation to your field of research. You must write a review of 8-10 sources.

Research-based Presentation

You will be asked to present in 7-8 minutes your research to your classmates before you have to turn in your
final paper. This is a great opportunity to receive feedback and to polish your argument for the final
submission. One helpful way to prepare your presentation is to focus on what, who, how, and why:

• What is the problem or issue?

• Who is involved, affected, etc.?
• Why is this problem or issue important?
• How did you research or analyze the problem or issue?
• What are your findings?
• What do these findings tell us?
• What are your conclusions?
 Final Research Essay

The research essay requires students to use multiple sources in order to establish a context within which they
will situate their original thesis. It is both the longest and most complex essay of the semester and, therefore,
requires a carefully considered sequence of pre-draft assignments that encourage students to develop their
original idea, build a researched context for their argument, and structure their essay effectively.

Goals

• Teaching students to take part in academic dialogue by situating their own ideas in a researched
context;

• Familiarizing students with the skills and resources used in college level research.

Your research essay will report on the results of your inquiry. The paper must be maximum of 2000 words
except title page, reference page, and appendix.
It should include the following sections:
Introduction – general information/description of the problem
Methodology – information about the process of data collection
Literature Review - review of relevant articles
Discussion and Conclusion – summary of the research and suggestions for the further research
Suggested Topics for the research:
1. Leadership
2. COVID-19
3. Depression
4. Online education
5. Media violence and children
6. Academic motivation
7. Inclusive society
8. Consumerism
9. Immigration and Assimilation
10. At-risk youth and deviant behavior
11. Poverty
12. Other

Quiz

You will have quiz on Blackboard based on the materials covered in the previous lecturers.

Course Calendar
WEEK TOPIC
Week 1 Introduction to course syllabus
Sept :12-15
Choosing broad topics for research

Week 2 Academic Integrity;

Sept: 19-22
Avoiding Plagiarism
(Academic Research, Writing, Referencing, M. Deane, p.8-24)
 Using Academic Sources Responsibly. Understanding Plagiarism (Academic Research
and Writing, Linda S. Bergman, chapter 3 pp. 47-59)

Fallacies.
Activities on common logical and emotional fallacies

Revision of summarizing. Using Sources Effectively. Skills for Academic Inquiry:

Quotation, Paraphrase, Summary, and Synthesis. (Academic Research and Writing,
Linda S. Bergman, chapter 6 pp. 101-110)

Week 3
Sept: 26 - 29 Finding topics and moving from topic to question/problem. In class activity: Free
writing.

Writing a research question

From identifying issues to forming questions. (From Inquiry to Academic Writing,

Stuart Greene, p. 65-82)

Introduction

Week 4 Library Session:

Oct: 3-6 Introducing electronic databases.
Evaluating sources

Week 5 Writing annotated bibliography

Oct: 10 -13
In-class activity: Finding sources related to research topic

Week 6 Brief presentation of the sources (purpose, situation, claim, audience)

Oct: 17-20 Writing an Annotated Bibliography (Academic Research and Writing, Linda S.
Bergman, chapter 6 pp. 111-118)

Week 7 Writing Literature Review (Academic Research and Writing, Linda S. Bergman, chapter
Oct:24-27 6 pp. 119-124)

Activities on literature review

Week 8
Oct: 31-3Nov Working on Literature Review

Matrix
Week 9
Nov: 7-10 8th & 9th November Academic Calendar Holidays

Practice Session of Literature Review

How to prepare a Research-based presentation (lecture)

Week 10 Literature Review Matrix reports

Nov:14-17 How to design Research –based Presentations

Week 11 Research-based presentations

Nov: 21-24

Week 12
Nov:28 -1
Research-based presentations
Dec

Week 13 Writing introductions

Dec 5-8 Analyzing sample research essay introductions

Writing discussion part

Analysis of sample discussion parts

Writing conclusions
Analysis of sample conclusions
Literature Review Final

Week 14 In-class writing: draft of discussion part

Dec 12 -15 T/S consultations

Week 15 Consultations
Dec 19-22 Final Research Essay (graded)

Final Quiz

Readings: Required readings will be shared with students via Blackboard.