Course Descriptions

Foundations Program

ELD 150 (3 CREDITS)
Fundamentals of Academic Syntax
This course aims to make students more fully conversant with the grammatical and syntactical complexities of written academic English. Grammatical and syntactical structures are revised and extended; ample written practice is given. The student is encouraged to be both adventurous as well as accurate in his/her academic written expression. Students require a minimum grade of C for this course in order to be able to progress to the ELD 160 sequence.

ELD 151 (3 CREDITS)
Fundamentals of Academic Reading
The focus in this course is on developing students' academic reading skills. Students' reading skills are built up progressively, using texts covering a wide range of subjects from Business-related topics to themes covered in introductory Social Science courses. Students are taught a variety of reading strategies; they also receive regular practice in the skills of skimming, scanning, paraphrasing and summarising. Students need to obtain a minimum grade of C for this course in order to be able to progress to the ELD 160 sequence.

ELD 152 (3 CREDITS)
Fundamentals of Academic Writing
Students taking this course are expected to show considerable development in their academic writing skills. Students are taught the importance of the following: analysing the essay question; brainstorming; planning; producing paragraphs that have a clear, controlling idea; ensuring smooth transitions both within paragraphs and from one paragraph to the next; proofreading their work and presenting it in an appropriate format. Students are expected to produce essays on a wide range of topics, for which relevant reading will have been covered in advance. Students require a minimum grade of C for this course in order to progress to the ELD 160 sequence.

ELD 160 (3 CREDITS)
Fundamentals of Conceptual Thinking
The focus of this course is on developing a student’s ability to deal with concepts. Students are shown how concepts can be both assimilated and manipulated. This is an essential skill to master, as it lays the foundation for the critical thinking skills that form an integral part of degree level work. Practice is given in using conceptual vocabulary in essays and discussions, and students are expected to summarise different and sometimes contradictory theories and apply them critically. A minimum grade of C for this course is required for students to progress to ENG 115, Principles of Academic Writing.

ELD 161 (3 CREDITS)
Fundamentals of Academic Research
This course seeks to develop the reading and study skills that students need for university-level work. Students receive ample practice in skimming, scanning, and paraphrasing, as well as in note-taking from written texts. Students are also taught how to cite and document sources according to a specific system. They are given regular, graded practice in summary and synthesis work and they are guided through each of the stages that lead to the production of a term paper. A minimum grade of C for this course is required if students are to progress to ENG 115, Principles of Academic Writing.

ELD 162 (3 CREDITS)
Fundamentals of Academic Communication
The emphasis in this course is on the development of students' academic writing skills. Students revise the grammatical and syntactical structures that underlie effective academic prose. They learn how to extract information from reading materials, drawn from a wide range of sources, in order to inform and give substance to their own written work. They learn how to respond to the key terms in essay questions and implement the appropriate rhetorical model (comparison/contrast etc.) in order to fully address the task requirements. Students must obtain a minimum grade of C for this course in order to progress to ENG 115, Principles of Academic Writing.

Academic Research and Writing Program

ENG 115 (3 CREDITS)
Principles of Academic Writing
This course concentrates on developing the students’ ability to produce effective and appropriate academic writing across the curriculum by focusing on a range of papers each of which typifies the requirements and expectations of a different academic discipline. As students in their first year of study not only take courses in their major area of study but also in other disciplines as part of the Core Curriculum, ENG 115 is directly applicable to their academic writing needs. The course further concentrates on developing the critical reading and thinking strategies that academic writing requires, in addition to skills for oral presentation. A process approach to effective and appropriate academic writing is implemented throughout the course, with students receiving individual instruction in addition to class tuition. This is the first course in the Richmond academic research and writing sequence.

ENG 215 (4 CREDITS)
Principles of Academic Research
This 4-credit course builds on ENG 115, Principles of Academic Writing. It focuses upon key elements of effectively written academic research papers, and includes task analysis, information retrieval, evaluation and referencing of sources, critical reading, critical thinking, and the appropriate and effective presentation of research. The first session of each week is held in class, with students and their instructor discussing and preparing an academic research paper. In the second session, students meet with an information literacy tutor for training in library and electronic based research skills (the first 7 weeks of the semester). The third session of each week is held in the computer laboratory during which the class instructor provides students with individual tutoring as they work on their academic research papers.
Prerequisite: ENG 115 with a grade C- or above. For summer courses, a grade of B- or above is required for ENG 115. A student failing to achieve this grade must repeat ENG 115. Only the second grade will count toward the GPA.

New students eligible to take ENG 115 have four consecutive semesters from their first semester of entry to the university to pass both ENG 115 (with a minimum grade of C-) and ENG 215. New students eligible to take ENG 215 have two consecutive semesters from their first semester of entry to the university to pass this course. Students admitted into the Foundations Program have four consecutive semesters to pass both ENG 115 (with a minimum grade of C-) and ENG 215 when they become eligible to take ENG 115. Students who do not complete these courses within the required time frame will normally be dismissed from the university.

Creative Writing

ENG 270 (3 CREDITS)
Writing from the Creative Impulse
During interactive class sessions, student creative writing is investigated, developed and refined. As part of this process, similarities and differences that exist between academic and creative writing are identified. Through class work that explores the creative impulse and fosters engagement with a variety of texts as a springboard, students are steered through multiple drafts of their work towards the attainment of a professional level of written presentation. Each student creates a portfolio of work during the semester, and this is assessed at the end of the course.
Course pre- or corequisite: ENG 115.

ENG 370 (3 CREDITS)
Creative Writing - Towards a Collection
In this writers' workshop students submit examples of their work for critical consideration by the instructor and other members of the class. Impetus is given to the writing tasks through the close reading and discussion of a selection of writing from different genres and cultures. Students identify aspects of poets' and fictionists' craft and develop an awareness of narrative structure with which to shape their own projects through a feedback-driven revision process. By the end of the semester, each student has produced a collection of finished poems and pieces of short fiction.
Course prerequisite: ENG 215.