Online Writing Course

Online Course CEP 820

Created by: Jean-Claude Aura Date: May 2010

Survey 1. How do you feel when you write?

How do you feel when you write? happy/excited/interested

tired/bored

frustrated/confused/lost

It depends on the topic, time of day, my mood, etc. 2. What would you most compare writing to?

What would you most compare writing to? Drawing

Programming

Manufacturing

Networking

Exercising

Other (please try to specify)

3. What do you normally write?

What do you normally write? E-mails

Text messages

Cards (greeting, holiday, etc.)

Lists (shopping, things to do, etc.)

Letters

Academic assignments (essays, articles, reports, etc.)

I hardly ever write.

Other (please specify)



4. What would be your favorite writing topic?

What would be your favorite writing topic? What are the advantages and disadvantages of using computers in the classroom?

Should animals be used for scientific research? Is it humanly?

Should drivers of automobiles be prohibited from using cellular phones?

What are some of the best ways to lose weight? Present the pros and cons of each.

Other (please write your topic in the box below)

5. Where would be your ideal place for writing?

Where would be your ideal place for writing? Home

School library

Class

Outdoor (coffee shop, garden, etc.)

6. When would be the best time for you to write?

When would be the best time for you to write? (early) morning

Afternoon

evening/night

any time



7. I would like to write my next piece ...

I would like to write my next piece ... to my teacher

to my friends

to my classmates

for publishing (newspaper, magazine, website, blog, etc.)


8. How often do you write essays?

How often do you write essays? Once a week or more

Once a month or more

Once a year or more

Never

9. How do you like to submit your writing assignment?

How do you like to submit your writing assignment? I like to submit it as a hard copy.

I like to submit it on a flash memory.

I like to type it into an email and send it.


I

like to attach

it to an

email.

I like to

share it

online (Google

Docs,



Zoho,

etc.)

INTRODUCTION

Meet your instructor

Click on the link below to listen to the INTRODUCTION.

Audio version of the INTRODUCTION

Welcome to the Essay Writing Online Course

First of all, I would like to welcome all those who are taking this course with us online. Before we embark on a long, and hopefully pleasant, journey towards essay writing, I have included some questions and answers that you might be interested in reading. If your question is not here, just send me an email and I will do my best to get back to you within the next 24 hours (it usually takes much less). 1. Why do I need this course?

This course will improve your writing skills. No matter where you end up in life, at one point you will need to communicate with people in writing. Since communicating in writing is much harder than in speaking, you will need to acquire special skills to convey the exact message you have in mind. This course in particular will teach you how to write argumentative essays. This kind of essay helps you influence other people's decisions.

http://maet.fts.educ.msu.edu/cep820/file.php/8/Introduction.mp3



2. How can we communicate with other participants in this course?

Generally speaking, people communicate better when they know their interlocutor (the person they are talking to). So, the first step will be for you to introduce yourself to the rest of the class in the discussion forum. This is a good place to start communicating with other participants where you can also post a reply. Below is the list of all the communication tools and the time you can use each.

Communication tool Time to use Purpose

Cyber Cafe Any time Exchange ideas with others freely. Not graded.

Discussion forum

1. Any time you feel you need help or would like to share something with the rest of the class.

2. Whenever required in the course.

Ask for help when facing problems during the course. Not graded. Post the required assignments as indicated in the lesson. Graded.

Chat room

1. At your own leisure.

2. Whenever scheduled in the course.

Chat synchronously with other participants about personal issues. Not graded. Chat synchronously with other participants about issues highlighted in the course. Graded.

Skype

1. At your own leisure.

2. Whenever scheduled in the course.

Watch/Talk with other participants about personal issues. Not graded. Participate in a live conference to discuss specific parts of the course. Not graded.

http://maet.fts.educ.msu.edu/cep820/mod/forum/view.php?id=438


http://maet.fts.educ.msu.edu/cep820/mod/chat/view.php?id=73

http://www.brothersoft.com/downloads/skype.html



3. How can we communicate with the teacher in this course?

Communication tool Time to use Purpose

E-mail Any time Help and inquiries.

Face to face By appointment only (send me an email for that)

Discuss issues that are too long and hard to handle in writing.

Phone Between (period when I can answer calls - 1 hour max)

When no other communication tool works.

Text messaging Any time For short and quick requests, like when unable to log on to a live conference.

Skype Whenever scheduled in the course. Discuss issues highlighted in the course, or other course relevant issues.

4. How long is this course?

The entire course lasts 7 weeks; each lesson lasts 1 week, except for lesson 6 which lasts 2 weeks. This is due to submitting the final essay in parts before it is submitted for marking.

5. How good should my computer knowledge be?

You don't need to be a computer expert to take this online course. You simply need to be familiar with your operating system (windows/MAC), know how to download and upload files, download some applications when necessary, and surf the web for information.

6. Who do I contact for technical support?

You can contact the help desk at (phone number) or email them at (email address).

http://www.brothersoft.com/downloads/skype.html



A final word regarding this online course. This is a learning experience, so mutual respect is expected in every part of the course. Below are a couple of tips to avoid unpleasant situations:

1. It's true people won't be able to see you, but remember that they know who you are. 2. Be careful about the tone of voice and choice of words you use when posting a comment or replying to someone; other

people can't see your facial expressions or body language, so they solely rely on the 'sound' of your written words. 3. Be very considerate when giving feedback; it should be constructive to help others learn. This is not a place to settle scores. 4. Don't make fun of others, no matter how little knowledge they bring with them to the course. You all have different levels of

expertise, so tolerance is a must.

That's all. Now go on to the LECTURE and enjoy the course.

http://maet.fts.educ.msu.edu/cep820/mod/resource/view.php?inpopup=true&id=265



LECTURE

Click on the link below to listen to the LECTURE.

Audio version of the LECTURE

What is BRAINSTORMING?

Brainstorming is the initial stage of any writing activity. It consists of writing down as many ideas that come to mind as possible without worrying about whether you're going to use them all or not. If you start writing your essay immediately, you may forget what you wanted to write next, or how you were going to develop your topic. This is a weakness of human memory. To remedy this situation, you can start by brainstorming. Once your ideas are on paper, you can focus on developing your essay without worrying about ideas slipping away; you can always take a look at the paper where you

brainstormed your ideas, or in our case, at the mind-mapping tool.

Think about brainstorming as the initial stage of any activity. Take an engineer for example. An engineer needs a blueprint before

building a structure.

Take a look at these blueprints made by designers from different fields.

http://maet.fts.educ.msu.edu/cep820/file.php/8/Lecture.mp3



This is the modern blueprint of the French galleon La Belle commissioned by Louis XIV, King of France.

Here is another complex blueprint developed by Keaton Batmobile and a picture of the real car below.



Imagine what would happen if one of those engineers started the construction work, then somewhere in the middle they discovered

that the brakes were not producing the required power, or that the exhaust system was inadequate. They would have to redesign the

system or even re-manufacture the entire structure. This would cost time and money.

oooooo

Of course these are 2 extremely complex blueprints, but at least you realize by now the importance of thinking about the design

before attempting any work due to the complex nature of the structure. Don't think any less of an essay. An essay could turn into a

nightmare if not properly planned. If you start your essay without brainstorming, and somewhere in the middle you discover that you

did something wrong (went off topic, mentioned an irrelevant idea, etc), you may have to rewrite your essay all over again. This will

cost you valuable time, a luxury you don't have in an exam. You normally have between 30 to 40 minutes to develop a well-organized

essay, and this is hardly enough time to write your essay and proofread it. We will tackle proofreading in a later lesson.

So how much time should you spend on the brainstorming activity? In an exam, you may spend between 2 to 3 minutes. This should

be enough for you to jot down as many ideas as you can think of pertaining to your topic. However, in the practice stage, doing it

right is more important than doing it quickly. So for now I will ask you to take as much time as you need to work on your

brainstorming skills. With practice, you will be able to reduce this time to 2 to 3 minutes.

Beware: A lot of people consider brainstorming a waste of time. I can assure you it is not. There will come a time when you may be

able to develop a well-organized essay without first brainstorming. This is possible only if you have already developed an essay on a

similar topic or on a topic close to the one you are asked to develop. Still, I would always recommend spending a few minutes on

jotting down ideas. Remember: Memory never serves us as well as we would like it to.

Before you move on to the lecture, click on Assignment for some fun!

Now that you know what brainstorming is all about, you should be ready to move on to the Lab.

http://maet.fts.educ.msu.edu/cep820/mod/assignment/view.php?id=267

http://maet.fts.educ.msu.edu/cep820/mod/resource/view.php?inpopup=true&id=266



LAB

Click on the link below to listen to the LAB.

Audio version of the LAB

What is MIND-MAPPING?

In the Lecture part, you learnt that brainstorming consists of writing down as many ideas as you can that are relevant to your topic. Mind-Mapping consists of organizing those ideas around a central word. As Wikipedia defines it: "A mind map is a diagram used to represent words, ideas, tasks, or other items linked to and arranged around a central key word or idea. Mind maps are used to generate, visualize, structure, and classify ideas,and as an aid in ... writing." To better understand the

mind-mapping concept, listen to a talk by Tony Buzan on mind-mapping.

http://maet.fts.educ.msu.edu/cep820/file.php/8/Lab.mp3

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mind_mapping

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=33PCtkSlEf4&feature=player_embedded



Some more tips on mind-mapping.

You can read more about Tony Buzan at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tony_Buzan and http://mindmapblog.wordpress.com/2008/06/07/tony-buzan-the-founder-of-mindmapping/ or watch this video to learn more about mind-mapping.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tony_Buzan

http://mindmapblog.wordpress.com/2008/06/07/tony-buzan-the-founder-of-mindmapping/

http://mindmapblog.wordpress.com/2008/06/07/tony-buzan-the-founder-of-mindmapping/

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0UCXalYcoko&feature=player_embedded



Once you become skilled in mind-mapping, brainstorming will become an integral part of mind-mapping. This means you will be able to start drawing diagrams with the different relationships between the ideas without having to brainstorm per se. This is called mind-map brainstorming.

iMindMap is an excellent commercial mind-mapping tool that you can try for free. It allows you to draw mind maps right on your screen with a stylus. Here are a couple of Mind-Mapping samples. Notice the use of colors. Look at the shape of the

branches; they aren't straight, rigid lines. They are curvilinear, just like the brain pictures the relationship between ideas. As Tony Buzan said, the brain 'thinks organically', not in lists or menus. Colors also help the brain make associations leading to

stronger connections between the words.

http://www.thinkbuzan.com/ar/products

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MlabrWv25qQ&feature=player_embedded



However, for this course, we will be content to use a free mind mapping tool. There is a wide range of free mind mapping software that allows you to draw great diagrams. For a list of these applications, please

visit http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_mind_mapping_software.

For this course, I would like you to download the free application Compendium. You won't be able to draw mind maps off your monitor using a stylus like with iMindMap, but you will be able to use your mouse and keyboard to draw branches and type words. What's important here is to understand the principle that lies behind mind-mapping. Once you have downloaded it, play with it and explore the richness of its features. For example, you can create nodes at any point and annotate them with

signs, numbers, letters, and many other symbols to make your chart easier to read. Below is a screenshot of a possible mind map about different types of animals (central word). As you can see, I have decided that first I will write about mammals, then about reptiles, and finally about birds. These annotations become important when

you have a lot of ideas on your map and need a way to organize them.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_mind_mapping_software

http://www.brothersoft.com/compendium-ta-21341.html



My philosophy is that people learn best when they are having fun. So have fun and play with this free mind mapping tool. Once you

are done, I would like you to create a similar mind map for each of these 3 central words: technology, pollution, sports. Take a

snapshot of each map and post it in Assignment 2. I would also like you to post them in theDiscussion Forum on Mind-Mapping so

others can see them easily and comment on them. I hope that this will give each of you some insight into the importance of mind-

mapping and how it differs from one person to another. It shows you how people can tackle the same topic from a different

perspective/angle.

http://maet.fts.educ.msu.edu/cep820/mod/assignment/view.php?id=57




Hungry for more on mind maps? Good for you Click on the links below and enjoy!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HJGpIhqzNBc&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wz_2undwiqY&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XVYDcTNI-_s&feature=related

See? That wasn't so hard after all, was it? Take the quiz and see how good you have become at mind-mapping.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HJGpIhqzNBc&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wz_2undwiqY&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XVYDcTNI-_s&feature=related

http://maet.fts.educ.msu.edu/cep820/mod/quiz/view.php?id=35



Glossary

A

aid

Here: A device that helps you organize your ideas.

annotate

Furnishing critical commentary or explanatory notes; provide a critical or explanatory note or commentary.

B

brainstorming

A group creativity technique designed to generate a large number of ideas for the solution of a problem.

C

central word

The word in the middle of your mind map from which other related words branch out.

E

essay

A short piece of writing which is quite often written from an author's personal point of view.

M

mind map A diagram used to represent words, ideas, tasks, or other items linked to and arranged around a central key word or idea.



mind mapping software

Software used to create diagrams of relationships between ideas or other pieces of information. It has been suggested that the mind mapping technique can improve learning/study efficiency up to 15% over conventional note taking.

mind-map brainstorming

Also known as mind-mapping; a brainstorming activity that helps you organize your thoughts around a central key word or idea.

N

node

A point in a mind map at which words or ideas intersect or branch.

P

proofread

Read a proof copy of a text in order to detect and correct any errors.

S

stylus

A small pen-shaped instrument that is used to input commands to a computer screen, mobile device or graphics tablet. With touchscreen devices a user places a stylus on the surface of the screen to draw or make selections by tapping the stylus on the screen.



Assignment 1

For this assignment, you are going to write down as many words as possible that come to mind when you see a key word(s). For example, if the key word is 'animals', my list will consist of the following animals: cows, tigers, elephants, mice, whales, horses, etc.

Spend some time brainstorming the 3 key words below:

1. technology 2. pollution

3. sports

When you are done, post your 3 lists in the Discussion Forum on Brainstorming.

Assignment 1 Rubric

0 point 1 point 2 points

None of the topics is properly brainstormed. The ideas are

irrelevant and do not indicate a

clear progression towards a

logical development of the topic.

One of the topics presents ideas that are not wholly

logical. The ideas presented

are mostly irrelevant and do

not indicate a clear progression of the

development of the topic.

All the topics are well brainstormed. The ideas

presented are completely

relevant to the topic and

indicate a clear progression towards a logical development

of the topic.




Assignment 2

Draw a mind map for each of these central words:

1. technology 2. pollution 3. sports

When you are done, post a snapshot of each mind map in the Discussion Forum on Mind-Mapping.

Assignment 2 Rubric

Clarity of map Use of colors and

labels Relevance of ideas to topic Sub-branching

2 points Map can be read easily.

All the ideas are clearly

stated and the font is legible. Map clearly

conveys chain of

thoughts.

Each idea has a separate

color. Each idea is

labeled indicating its priority in the

development.

All the ideas are relevant to

the topic and can be easily

developed.

Sub-branching is used

skillfully. All the ideas

have more or less an equal number of sub-

branches. All the ideas

are equally weighted.

1 point Map can be ambiguous is some places. Some

ideas may be hard to

follow.

Some ideas may have the same color. Labeling

may not always be

logical, and some ideas may not be labeled at

all.

Some ideas may be irrelevant to the topic. Those

included do not necessarily

add any information to the topic.

Sub-branching may be used to some good effect.

Some ideas are more

weighted than others, causing unbalance in the

overall development of

the essay.

0 point Map is difficult to read. The font is illegible, and

the ideas may not be

clearly stated.

Colors and labels lack consistency or may not

exist at all.

Most ideas are irrelevant to the topic. Those presented

may show a tangential

approach to the development

of the topic.

Sub-branching may not exist at all or may cause a

severe unbalance between

ideas, causing bias in

some cases.


Online Writing Course

Documents

Transcript of Online Writing Course