Creative Writing, Minor

Grammatical structures that enable students to better comprehend and use academic English are the focus of the course. Students will learn to appreciate the relevance of acquiring and applying grammatical knowledge to express themselves confidently and appropriately in different academic situations, as well as social situations relevant to the American college context.

This course provides short and focused activities to help students improve their English listening and speaking skills. It includes practice in both mastering the larger message and key words, phrases and specific sounds to assist students in developing better speaking and comprehension skills. Students will practice giving academic presentations as well as practice speaking in small groups and individually.

In this course, students will develop the reading skills essential for academic learning and inquiry in the context of authentic academic reading tasks. Students will work to build fluency, comprehension, and vocabulary skills through extensive and intensive reading tasks of increasing complexity. Contemporary academic and literary texts will be used to develop students' critical reading and vocabulary, writing, listening, and speaking skills.

In this course, students will learn and apply the writing skills essential for academic success including sentence, paragraph, and basic essay writing. This course is aimed at students planning to study, or are already studying, at university level in English.

This course provides students with a structured, scheduled academic environment providing the opportunity to complete assignments and work closely with their language instructor. Instructors utilize materials from student courses to facilitate activities and discussions that will increase comprehension of academic material and further students' abilities to work independently in academic settings. Each week, the course will focus on the language skills and vocabulary needed for the students' courses. Additionally, there will be a focus on study skills and time management needed for success in academic settings. Students will leave the course better equipped for university level academic course work and a thorough understanding of time management and appropriate study habits for the university.

This course will focus on high-intermediate grammatical structures that enable students to better comprehend and use academic English. Students will learn to appreciate the relevance of acquiring and applying grammatical knowledge to express themselves confidently and appropriately in different academic situations, as well as social situation relevant to the American college context.

In this course, students will learn and apply the listening, note-taking, and presentation skills essential for academic learning, inquiry, and communication in the context of authentic academic listening and speaking tasks. Students will work to build fluency, comprehension, and vocabulary skills through extensive and intensive listening tasks of increasing complexity. Contemporary academic lectures and seminars will be sued to develop students' critical thinking skills.

In this course, students will study texts across several different academic disciplines in order to deepen their understanding of the rhetorical styles and conventions used and applied within the English language. Students will practice identifying audience, purpose, theme, main ideas, and details within several different genres of writing.  Students will also develop a variety of strategies to improve their reading comprehension and efficiency, including annotation, vocabulary-building, and discussions regarding written materials.

In this course, students will develop a foundation in the writing skills critical to academic success. Students will apply knowledge of audience, purpose, voice, arrangement, and style in varied writing tasks by writing across several different genres. Genres practiced in this course may include, but are not limited to: emails, newsletters, personal narratives, fiction, academic essays, and magazine/news articles. Students will learn grammar and vocabulary conventions as they apply to different genres and apply these skills in writing tasks of increasing complexity throughout the semester.

In this course students will learn and apply listening, note-taking, and presentation skills essential for academic learning, inquiry, and discourse in the context of authentic academic listening and speaking tasks. Students will work to build fluency, comprehension, and vocabulary skills through extensive and intensive listening tasks of increasing complexity. Contemporary academic lectures and seminar will be used to develop students' critical thinking skills.

In this course students will improve upon and apply the reading skills essential for academic learning, inquiry, and discourse in the context of authentic academic reading tasks. Students will build vocabulary through extensive and intensive reading tasks of increasing complexity. Contemporary academic tests about writing will be used to develop students' critical reading, academic vocabulary, and complex writing skills. There will e a number of in-class written tasks and prompts that will stimulate free writing practice and introduce students to various styles of writing. Students will also use these written tasks to develop editing skills through the writing process. The final project will be a collection of these written tasks in the form of a portfolio.

This course will offer English Language Learners a means for analyzing and evaluating the complex social and moral issues that are specific to the social and moral landscape of the United States. As students examine their own cultures and compare them with others, culture shock and cultural conflict may be lessened and appreciation for cultural differences may be strengthened. Students will engage in interactive tasks, including researching and case analysis of topics and social, academic and professional issues, especially those suggested by the extensive reading component of this course. Through the process of reading, discussion, analysis and writing students in this class will enrich their understanding of today's global society while at the same time they are sharpening their academic English skills.

The purpose of this course is to develop the critical thinking skills needed to interpret and assess arguments and information. This course will highlight the language skills essential for critically analyzing and discussing the quality of the information and opinions presented in authentic texts and listening selections. The course will concentrate on detecting errors of reasoning in short and long passages, evaluating evidence in written and verbal arguments, detecting logical inconsistencies, removing vagueness and ambiguity through word choice and phrasing, and identifying the point or purpose of someone's remarks. Through examining these topics, students will be able to thoughtfully respond to others' opinions in a clear, logical, and informed way. Students will leave the course better prepared to collect, synthesize, and evaluate information and feel more confident in presenting their perspectives in an academic setting.

ENGL 0099 is designed to develop student's critical reading and academic writing skills on an individualized basis through tutoring. The course fulfills TSI requirements for reading and writing. TSI compliance staff will approve each student for this course. Approval is based on test score and/or by academic standing.

A support-based course with an additional contact hour focused on writing and reading processes, including strategies for invention, revision, and editing, and techniques of active reading, such as analysis, inference, summary, and evaluating texts. Students will enter ENGL 0101 through Texas Success Initiative (TSI) and will become college-ready once the course is successfully completed. This is a co-requisite course taught in conjunction with ENGL 1301.

A portfolio-based course  with required tutoring (lab) time focused on the writing and reading processes, including strategies for invention, revision, and editing, and techniques of active reading, such as analysis, inference, summary, and evaluating texts. Students will enter ENGL 0399 through Texas Success Initiative (TSI) mandated remediation. (Not counted toward graduation)

English 1301 introduces students to writing studies, rhetoric, academic research, and information literacy. Students will critically read and reflect on threshold concepts in writing studies. They will practice recursive writing and research processes for various situations. Sections will be offered both online and in person each semester.

English 1302 builds on the foundation in writing studies, rhetoric, academic research, and information literacy introduced in ENGL 1301. Students will read, apply, and reflect on the current research and scholarship in writing studies and rhetoric. Students will practice transferring, deepening, and extending their ability to use writing into discipline-specific, workplace, and civic contexts. Sections will be offered both online and in person each semester.

Prerequisite: ENGL 1301.

This course will review current scholarship on writing studies, including threshold concepts, activity theory, and genre studies. It will consider various perspectives on the uses of writing to provide students with an intellectual and practical understanding of writing. This course provides a starting point for the more specific studies of writing that occur in other writing studies courses.

This introductory course will survey the history and development of African American literature and cultural production from the late 17th century into the 21st. Our survey offers students an overview of some of the major texts, genres, methods, and debates that shape contemporary understandings of the United States with a focus on African American writers, artists, and audiences. Although the course is centered on Black writing and aesthetics, we will simultaneously explore histories of embodiment through genders and sexualities. As many scholars of racialization and US culture have noted, the histories of racialization and the histories of genders/sexualities are inextricable in US ideology and discourses. Across the centuries and styles of our survey, we explore and celebrate a broad range of Black cultures and communities, with an emphasis on Black creativity, beauty, experimentation, and citizenship.

As Virginia Woolf reflects, “The title women and fiction might mean, and you may have meant it to mean, women and what they are like; or it might mean women and the fiction they write; or it might mean women and the fiction that is written about them; or it might mean that somehow all three are inextricably mixed together” (A Room of One’s Own 1). We might also approach with the same skepticism “Women Writers”—a rather impossible course to set. This introductory course surveys multiple genres of literatures (poetry, prose fiction, drama, and film) and aims to introduce students to a variety of literary traditions that women writers have developed, shaped, and reshaped.

Introduction to literatures that raise aesthetic, cultural, social, and/or political issues that affect and reflect the human condition across regions, cultures, and nations.  Sample topics:  Crossing Borders, The City in Literature, Islands and Islanders, Science and Fiction. 

Study of important literary texts from the Ancient World to the Renaissance.

Study of important literary texts from the Enlightenment to the present.

In this class, we explore how language reflects, and is reflected upon, one facet of our identities: gender. We will explore the complex relationships between gender and aspects of language such as conversation, narrative, pronunciation, grammar, and pragmatic norms. We will also discuss the intersection of gender and other social factors, such as race or culture, as manifested in the language use. Students will also have an opportunity to discuss how gender is represented in the media and online, as well as how gender is situated in institutional contexts, such as home, school, work, and law. There is no prior knowledge of linguistics or social theory required for this class. Course activities include lectures, class discussions, in-class article presentation, language observations, hands-on data analysis, and a final project.

An introduction to literary analysis and scholarship for the intermediate writer. Emphasis placed on genres of literature, literary research, and expository and analytical composition. Familiarizes students with the various disciplines and related conversations within English Studies. Should be taken by sophomore-level English majors in the Literary Studies emphasis, and by Literary Studies and Creative Writing minors.

Prerequisite: ENGL 1302.

In this course we will examine and discuss current issues related to social media within a rhetorical framework. We will use different social media platforms to share and discuss in order to provide hands-on experience in these environments. Social media will be explored at the micro level as students will review their online social media presence to better understand how readers view them online. From the macro level we will identify current topics that affect the design and use of social media platforms and applications.

Daily writing relieves stress, promotes mental health and decision-making (both personally and at work), and generates income. This course will help students explore various kinds of personal writing and identify those which are most helpful for them.

Students pursuing the Advanced TESOL Certificate will supplement ENGL 3367 (TESOL Seminar: Methods) with practical experience tutoring English learners. Students will write reflectively about those experiences. As needed, students will undergo site-specific training.

A course designed to help students gain practical experience in finding and interpreting information and writing reports and documents for specialized audiences in the technical and professional world. ENGL 3301 will be held in a computer-assisted classroom.

Introduces students to the theoretical knowledge and practical experience used in creative writing. Focuses on poetry, creative nonfiction, and short fiction. For all majors.

Designed specifically for computer science majors, this course focuses on developing students ability to (1) use writing to communicate effectively with a range of audiences about technology; (2) identify, analyze, and appropriately integrate relevant information in their writing; (3) make informed judgments about their uses of writing based on ACM's and IEEE's code of ethics; and (4) develop their ability to function effectively individually and as members of a team to establish goals, plan tasks, meet deadlines, manage risk, and produce deliverables. 

3 sem. hrs. Studies the connections between the formal elements of literature and of film, with emphasis on theme, narrative style, and genre. By viewing films based on literary sources, students will analyze how literature is adapted into film as well as identify strategies to view and read critically. For all majors.

Literary study of young adult literature through analysis, discussion, and interpretation. The course emphasizes literary issues connected with society, culture, history, and genre.

In recent decades, it has become common to study literature in light of other disciplinary perspectives and to study other disciplines as they are depicted in literature. From these interdisciplinary approaches has emerged a distinct mode of analysis that examines texts within their broader social and cultural milieu. In this course students will earn to use cross-disciplinary methods to interpret literature and culture. Topics will vary, but may include Environmental Crisis, Religion, Medicine, and American Literature, Disability Narratives in the Eighteenth Century, Trauma and the City in Twentieth-Century Literature.

This course serves as an introduction to the field of World Literature, with an especial focus on non-“Western” writers. Our readings span cultures and historical periods, allowing us to reflect on the recurring themes, styles, and ethical problematics of several literary traditions around the globe. Through close reading and critical analysis, students will delve into themes such as colonial hegemony, resistance, and the impacts of globalization on literary narratives. We will also consider the complexities and implications of translation, analyzing how linguistic and cultural barriers can both hinder and enrich the process of transnational literary transmission. By the semester’s end, students will have developed a nuanced understanding of the diversity and interconnectedness of global literatures, and will be better equipped to think critically about literary canon formation.

Introductory survey course covering phonetics, morphology, syntax, semantics, sociolinguistics, neurolinguistics, and language acquisition.

Presents a general descriptive overview of English grammar and provides a structural framework for analyzing English sentences.

Study of significant works of British poetry, drama, and prose with emphasis on historical context and the exploration of literary and cultural values through written texts.

A genre-oriented study of literature, using a wide range of texts. Variable content.

Study of significant works of American poetry, drama, and prose with emphasis on historical context and the exploration of literary and cultural values through written texts.

Prepares prospective teachers to create developmentally appropriate learning environments and tasks that enable student success in writing and the study of literature in Language Arts and English courses.  Prepares students to meet the increased writing and reading expectations in all subject areas, including their own writing. 

Students will practice-writing in situated contexts (such as their majors, careers, and/or other professional interests) and across genres to develop more advanced and reflective writing strategies. By studying theories of writing; engaging in writing as a craft; and drafting, revising, and editing texts; students will refine and become more reflective in their writing processes. 

Develops students' skills as critics and writers of fiction, poetry, and creative nonfiction in a workshop setting. For all majors.

This course will study the historical and theoretical development of rhetoric through the works of principal thinkers. Students will analyze rhetorical concepts in their relation to civic, cultural, political, and pedagogical developments and the construction of knowledge and will use rhetorical concepts to produce logical, ethical, and moral arguments.

The course focuses on writing creative nonfiction through contemporary published works of experienced writers in the field and through peer work-in-progress. The course explores the benefits of creative writing across different disciplines, while students practice memoir writing, the lyric essay, and literary journalism among other genres that make up this ever-evolving hybrid genre.

This course is an introduction to second language acquisition.  The course is designed to be accessible to students from a wide variety of backgrounds and no basic knowledge of the linguistic structure of English will be assumed.  This course will address issues related to how second language is learned by both children and adults.

An introduction to the study of language as a function of several societal variables. Introduces basic concepts of language such as linguistic varieties, dialect, speech communities, and linguistic attitudes.

This course presents an introduction to and a critique of current and traditional methodologies of teaching English to speakers of other languages, with emphasis on aural comprehension; speaking, reading, and writing skills; testing and assessment; and linguistic-cultural differences.  This course is open to all majors, but is required for students seeking the Certificate in TESOL.

Prerequisite: ENGL 3365.

Exploration of topics such as second language acquisition, language assessment, history of English, and contrastive analysis. May be repeated when topics vary.

Focuses on the integration of text and visual rhetoric, such as graphics, for all kinds of professional publications including technical documents, media, public relations pieces, and advertisements.

Emphasizes practical concepts related to writing and communication on the internet and the World Wide Web. Attention is given to finding and analyzing information; analyzing and designing WWW sites and other digital, hypertextual environments; and analyzing and composing hypertext-hypermedia materials for digital, networked environments. For all majors.

Focuses on the analysis, design, and production of visual representations and multi-modal texts that integrate visual elements.

Students will gain practical experience with a nonprofit agency by developing a significant project that meets an agency identified need. Students should take this course in the last semester of their nonprofit certificate program in conjunction with one of the following: ENGL 3378, ENGL 3379, ENGL 4322, or ENGL 4321. The students' professor in the regular course will be the instructor of record for a the projects course.

Working with a range of print media, students will learn to analyze the interplay between the text's content and its formal features. Students will build the skills to think and write analytically about the materiality of texts.

This course studies the significant works of a major literary author. Texts are viewed through a variety of critical perspectives and placed in the context of the writer's life and of the society, culture, and history of the times. May be repeated once for credit when authors vary.

This course is tailored for individual students' writing and publishing projects in their disciplines.

This course will teach students the grant proposal writing process, including identifying sources of funding, conducting research to support funding applications, and tailoring each proposal to a specific funding agency. Students will receive experience writing actual proposals on behalf of local organizations and agencies.

Focuses on the specific kinds writing of professionals in the nonprofit world do, including internal communication in an agency, writing for the public, document creation, fund raising, board relations, and other relevant topics.

Practice in methods, tools, and principles of editing for nonfiction and technical publications. Emphasis on a rhetorical understanding of levels of editing, managing the editorial process, and grammar and style.

Through writing, students will study how groups perceive, understand, and communicate with and about each other. The course may focus on a specific type of writing (cross cultural expository writing, travel writing, cross cultural writing in industry), or on the linguistic and rhetorical practices of a cross-cultural community (latino/a rhetoric, African-American rhetorics, etc).

Practice in writing and developing social web content for professional and organizational purposes. Emphasis on accessibility, content strategy, delivery and circulation, misinformation, disinformation, and ethics and justice in social media.

Develops students' skills as critics and writers of fiction, poetry, and creative nonfiction in a studio setting. Guides students to focus on a major project in one genre with sustained practice of techniques and revision. Open to students of all levels, from the novice to the advanced. For all majors.

Students practice poetry techniques across culturally diverse movements, from ancient to contemporary. The course explores how poets respond to their own social milieu and shape literary thought and form, intersecting with artists and scientists from different disciplines. Students write their own poems in traditional forms and innovation of form (i.e. their own spin and fusions).

A study of literature in English for graduating seniors in the Literary Studies Emphasis. Emphasis is placed on genre, research, and analytical expository writing. 

Prerequisite: ENGL 2370, 3303 or 2303.

This course is the culminating experience for the Writing Studies emphasis in English. Students review, reflect on, integrate, and apply their learning from previous courses and experiences. Students create digital portfolios for career and publishing opportunities, emphasizing selection, revision, reflection, and presentation. In addition, students identify, evaluate, and annotate texts and resources to include in a curated digital collection/publication that will be available for students in future Writing Studies courses.

This course is the culminating experience for students from any emphasis in English. The course invites students to reflect on, integrate, and apply learning from previous courses and experiences across the English Department. Students will create portfolios and documents for summative reflection and geared toward professional development, emphasizing selection, revision, reflection, research, and presentation.

Prerequisite: (ENGL 2303 or 2370) and ENGL 3339.

This course introduces students to literature that explores issues of gender and sexuality. It focuses on relevant literary periods and conventions, as well as on the historical, social, and cultural contexts of artistic productions.  Sample topics:  women's literature, queer literature, literature and masculinity.

Topics focus on a variety of cross-cultural issues in historical and/or contemporary texts by Caribbean, British Indian, Native American, African American, Chicano/a, and/or other underrepresented authors.

A study, primarily through the medium of performance, of various types and forms of literature for children. Strongly oriented toward teaching literature in the elementary school classroom. (Credit may not be given for both this course or THEA 4323.)

A study of selected perspectives and critical approaches to literature and culture, including an examination of some of the theoretical assumptions upon which they are based, as well as their implications for the way we think about literature, human identity, and the power of language.

Prerequisite: ENGL 2370.

The first half of the course is designed to help students develop a sense of craft as writers and editors while they work on all phases of production of the next volume of the Windward Review. The second half of the course is designed to help students revise their own creative projects and learn how to identify or create the literary publication markets most suitable for their own work.

May be repeated when topics vary—see S.A.I.L. or advisor for further information.

May be repeated when topics vary--see S.A.I.L. or advisor for further information.

See College description.

See College description.

Practical experience teaching English to second language learners.  Students will observe, plan, and teach ESL lessons.  Instructional support provides opportunities to discuss and reflect upon teaching experiences and help students connect theory, methods, and practice.  This course enhances the TESOL Certification, but is not required for it.  Cannot be repeated for credit.