English

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THINKING, READING, AND WRITING CRITICALLY

1   Thinking Like a Writer

1a Why writing is important

1b Thinking like a writer

1c Situation, purpose, and audience

1d Critical thinking

1e Steps in critical thinking

 

2   Reading Critically

2a Critical reading

2b Steps in critical reading

     Determining literal meaning

     Making inferences

     Making evaluations

2c Close and active reading

2d Systematic reading

     Preview

     Read

     Review

2e Connecting critical reading to writing

 

3   Distinguishing Between Summary and Synthesis

3a Summarizing

3b Synthesizing

    Synthesizing multiple sources

     Synthesizing one source

 

4   Viewing Images Critically

4a Viewing images with a critical eye

 

5   Writing and Technology
5a Computers and writers

     Creating documents     

     Finding sources

     Managing your work

     Communicating with others

5b Computers and forms of writing

 

WRITING PROCESS

6   Getting Started

6a The writing process

6b The purposes for writing

     Informing a reader

     Persuading a reader

6c The writer’s "audience"

     Writing for a peer-response group

     Writing for an instructor

     Writing for a supervisor

6d The writer’s tone

6e The writing topic

     Selecting your own topic

     Narrowing or broadening an assigned topic

6f The "writing situation"

6g Finding ideas

     Keeping a journal

     Free writing

     Chatting

     Brainstorming

     Asking and answering questions

     Clustering

6h Thesis statements

6i Outlining

 

7   Drafting

7a Writing a first draft

7b Overcoming writer’s block

 

8   Revising, Editing, and Proofreading

8a Revising strategies

8b Using my thesis statement and essay title to revise

8c Editing strategies

8d Proofreading strategies

 

9   Composing Paragraphs

9a Understanding paragraphs

9b Introductory paragraphs

9c Topic sentences

     Starting with a topic sentence

     Ending with a topic sentence

     Implying a topic sentence

9d Supporting details

9e Coherent paragraphs

     Using transitional expressions

     Using deliberate repetition and parallelism

9f Body paragraphs

    Composing a narration

    Composing a description

    Describing a process

    Composing an example or illustration

    Composing a definition

    Composing a comparison and contrast

    Composing an analysis

    Composing a classification

    Composing an analogy

    Explaining cause and effect

9g  Concluding paragraphs

 

10   Writing to Inform

10a Informative essays

10b Student’s informative essay

 

11   Writing To Argue

11a Understanding argument

11b Choosing a topic and developing a claim

11c Supporting an argument

11d Types of appeals

11e Considering my audience

11f  Structuring an argument

11g Logical fallacies

11h Revising argument essays

11i  Student’s argument essay

WRITING ACROSS THE CURRICULUM

12   An Overview of Writing Across the Curriculum

12a  Writing across the curriculum

 

13   Writing About The Humanities

13a What the humanities are

13b Types of sources

13c Types of papers

      Summaries

      Syntheses

      Responses

      Narratives

      Interpretations

      Critiques

      Analyses

13d   Documentation styles

 

14   Writing about Literature

14a What literature is

14b Writing about literature

14c Writing strategies

14d Types of papers

       Writing a personal response

       Writing an interpretation

       Writing a formal analysis

       Writing a cultural analysis

14e Rules for writing about literature

       Using correct verb tenses

       Using your own ideas and using secondary sources

14f Documentation styles

14g Student’s literature essay

       Working on the assignment

       Learning about the poet, Yusef Komunyakaa

       Student’s essay about literature

 

15   Writing in the Social Sciences

15a What the social sciences are

15b Types of sources

       Surveys and questionnaires

       Observations

       Interviews

       Experiments

15c Purposes and practices

15d Types of papers

       Case studies

       Research reports

       Research papers (or reviews of the literature)

15e Documentation styles

 

16   Writing for the Natural Sciences

16a What the natural sciences are

16b Purposes and practices

16c Types of papers

       Science reports

       Science reviews

16d  Documentation style

 

17   Writing Under Pressure

17a  Practicing under strict time limits

17b  Preparing for essay exams

 

18   Making Oral Presentations and Using Multimedia

18a  What oral presentations are

18b  Focusing on purpose

18c  Adapting for my listening audience

18d  Organizing a presentation

        Introducing yourself and your topic

        Following your road map

        Wrapping up your presentation

18e  Appropriate language and tone

18f   Incorporating multimedia

        Using traditional visual aids

        Using electronic media

        Planning for multimedia in your presentation

18g  Presentation styles

        Memorizing your presentation

        Reading your presentation

        Mapping your presentation

18h  Effective voice

18i   Nonverbal communication

18j   Overcoming stage fright

18k  Collaborative presentations

 
WRITING TO CONNECT WITH THE WORLD

19   Writing for Work

19a Workplace writing purposes

19b Features of work-related correspondence

19c Work-related e-mail

19d Netiquette

19e Memos

19f  Business letters

19g Other business documents

       Formatting and writing a proposal

19h Resumes

19i  Job application letters

 

20   Public Writing

20a  What public writing is

20b  Public reports

20c  Public letters

20d  Other public writing

20e  Blogs

 

21   Designing Documents

21a  About document design

21b  Basic design principles

21c  Designing with text

        Highlighting text

        Justifying

        Indentation

21d  Headings

21e  Visuals

        Charts, graphs, and tables

        Images

21f   Page layout

        Using white space

 

22   Writing for the Web

22a  Web sites and Web pages

22b  The Web writing process

22c  Web site content

22d  Web site structure

22e  Web page design

22f   Web writing software

22g  Images in Web pages

22h  Editing and testing usability

22i   Displaying Web pages

        Finding space on the Web    

        Uploading image or sound files

22j   Maintaining Web sites

 

RESEARCH

23   Starting a Research Project

23a What research writing is

23b Choosing a research topic

23c What a research question is

23d Planning a research project

23e What a research log is

 

24   Developing a Search Strategy

24a Search strategies

24b Sources

24c Field research

       Observing and surveying

       Interviewing an expert

24d Documentation styles

24e Working bibliographies

24f  Annotated bibliographies

24g Content notes

 

25   Finding and Evaluating Library-Based Sources

25a Finding library-based resources

25b Using databases

       Using keywords

       Using guided searches

       Using Boolean expressions

25c Finding books

25d Finding periodicals

       Locating the articles themselves
25e Using reference works

       General reference works

       Specialized reference works

25f  Finding sources outside the library

25g Finding government documents

25h Evaluating sources

 

26   Researching the Web Wisely

26a Reasons to use the Web “wisely”

26b Searching the Web

26c Using keywords

26d Using subject directories

26e Evaluating Web sources

26f  Information from Web sources

 

27   Using Sources and Avoiding Plagiarism

27a What plagiarism is

27b Avoiding plagiarism

27c Avoid plagiarism with Internet sources

27d What not to document

27e Integrating sources

27f  Using quotations effectively

       Making quotations fit smoothly with your sentences

       Using brackets to add words

       Using ellipsis to delete words

       Integrating author names, source titles, and other information

27g Good paraphrases

27h Good summaries

27i  Verbs for weaving source material

 

28   Drafting and Revising a Research Paper

28a  Writing process and research papers

28b  Drafting a research paper

28c  Revising a research paper

 

MLA DOCUMENTATION 

29   MLA In-Text Citations

29a What MLA documentation style is

29b What MLA parenthetical documentation is

29c MLA guidelines for in-text citations

29d MLA guidelines for commentary or bibliographic notes

 

30   MLA Works Cited List

30a MLA guidelines for a Works Cited list

30b MLA guidelines for sources in a Works Cited list

 

31   A Student’s MLA-STYLE Research Paper

31a MLA format guidelines for research papers

       General instructions—MLA

       Order of parts—MLA

       Name-and-page number lines for all pages—MLA

       First page—MLA

       Set-off quotations—MLA

       Notes—MLA

       Works Cited list—MLA

31b A student's MLA-style research paper

 

MLA IN-TEXT CITATIONS DIRECTORY

MLA WORKS CITED LIST DIRECTORY

 

APA, CM, AND CSE DOCUMENTATION 

32   APA In-Text Citations

32a What APA documentation style is

32b What APA parenthetical in-text citations are

       Formatting long quotations

       Multiple citations in one paragraph

32c APA guidelines for in-text citations

32d APA guidelines for writing an abstract

32e APA guidelines for content notes

 

33   APA References List

33a APA guidelines for a References list

33b APA guidelines for sources in a References list

 

34   A Student’s APA-Style Paper  

34a APA format guidelines for research papers

       General instructions–APA

       Order of parts–APA

       Title-and-page number line for all pages–APA

       Title page–APA

       Abstract–APA

       Set-off quotations–APA

       References list–APA

       Notes–APA

34b  A student’s APA-style research paper

 

35   CM-Style Documentation
35a  What CM style documentation is

       The full bibliographic note system in CM style

       The abbreviated bibliographic note system, plus bibliography, in CM style

35b CM guidelines for bibliographic notes

 

CM-Style Directory

 

36   CSE-Style Documentation

36a  What CSE style documentation is

36b  CSE guidelines for sources in a list of references

 

CSE-Style Directory 

 

APA IN-TEXT CITATIONS DIRECTORY

APA REFERENCES LIST DIRECTORY

 

GRAMMAR BASICS
37   Parts of Speech and Parts of Sentences

Parts of Speech

37a  Nouns

37b  Pronouns

37c  Verbs

37d  Verbals

37e  Adjectives

37f   Adverbs

37g  Prepositions

37h  Conjunctions

37i   Interjections

37j   Subjects and predicates

37k  Direct and indirect objects

37l   Complements, modifiers, and appositives

        Recognizing complements

        Recognizing modifiers

        Recognizing appositives

37m Phrases

37n  Clauses

        Recognizing independent clauses

        Recognizing dependent clauses

37o  Sentence types

 

38  Verbs

38a How verbs function

38b Forms of main verbs

       Regular verbs

       Irregular verbs

       -s  form of verbs

38c Auxiliary verbs

38d Using lie or lay

38e Verb tenses

     Simple present tense

       Tense sequence

38f  Indicative, imperative, and subjunctive moods

       if, as if, as though, and unless clauses  

       that clauses

38g “Voice” in verbs

 

39   Subject–Verb Agreement

39a What subject–verb agreement is

39b Ignoring words between a subject and its verb

       one of the

36c Verbs when and  connect subjects

     each  and every

36d Verbs when or  connects subjects

36e Verbs with indefinite pronouns

36f  Verbs with who, which, and that

36g Verbs with one of the . . . who

36h Other complicated cases

       Inverted word order

       Expletive constructions

       Subject complements

       Collective nouns

       “Amount” subjects

       Singular subjects in plural form

       Titles, terms, and plurals representing a single unit

 

40 Pronouns: Agreement, Reference, and Case

 Pronoun-Antecedent Agreement

40a What pronoun-antecedent agreement is

40b Pronouns when and  connects antecedents

40c Pronouns when or  connects antecedents

40d Pronouns when antecedents are indefinite pronouns

40e Pronouns when antecedents are collective pronouns

 Pronoun Reference

40f   Avoiding unclear pronoun reference

40g  Pronouns with it, that, this, and which

40h  Using you  for direct address

40i   Using who, which, and that

 Pronoun Case

40j   Pronoun case

40k  Personal pronouns

40l   Selecting the correct case

40m Case when and  connects pronouns

40n Matching case in appositives

40o Subjective case after linking verbs

40p Using who, whoever, whom, and whomever

40q Case after than and as

40r Case with infinitives and -ing  words

40s Case for -self  pronouns

 

41   Adjectives and Adverbs

41a Differences between adjectives and adverbs

41b Using adverbs and not adjectives as modifiers

41c Double negatives

41d Adjectives or adverbs after linking verbs

       bad and badly

       good and well

41e Comparative and superlative forms

      Regular forms

      Irregular forms

41f Nouns as modifiers

 

TIPS FOR MULTILINGUAL WRITERS

Message from Lynn Troyka and Doug Hesse to Multilingual Writers

 

42   Singulars and Plurals

42a Count and noncount nouns

42b Determiners with singular and plural nouns

42c Nouns used as adjectives

 

43   Articles

43a Singular count nouns

43b Count and noncount nouns

       Plural count nouns

       Noncount nouns

       Plural and noncount nouns

43c Using the with proper nouns

 

44   Word Order

44a Standard and inverted word orders

44b Placing adjectives

44c Placing adverbs

 

45   Prepositions

45a Using In, at, and on with time and place

45b Phrasal verbs

45c Passive voice

45d Expressions

 

46   Gerunds and Infinitives

46a Gerund objects

       After go

       After be + complement + preposition

46b Infinitive objects

       After be + some complements

       Unmarked infinitive objects

46c Using stop, remember, or forget

46d Sense verbs

46e Choosing between -ing and -ed adjectives

 

47   Modal Auxiliary Verbs

47a How modals differ from be, do, and have

47b Expressing ability, necessity, advisability, or probability

       Ability

       Necessity

       Advisability

       Probability

46c Expressing preference, plan, or past habit

       Preferences

       Plan or obligation

       Past habit

 

SENTENCES AND WORDS

48   Sentence Fragments

48a What a sentence fragment is

48b Recognizing fragments

48c Correcting fragments that start with a subordinating word

48d Correcting phrase fragments

48e Correcting fragments in a compound predicate

48f  Intentional fragments

 

49  Comma Splices and Run-on Sentences

49a What comma splices and run-ons are

49b Correcting comma splices and run-ons

       Using punctuation

       Using a coordinating conjunction

       Revising an independent clause into a dependent clause

 

50   Problems with Sentence Shifts

50a Consistent person and number

50b Consistent subject, voice, and mood

50c Consistent verb tense

50d Consistent direct and indirect discourse

50e Sentences with mixed parts

       Avoiding mixed clauses

       Avoiding mixed constructions

       Avoiding faulty predication

50f  Ellipticals and comparisons

 

51  Misplaced Modifiers

51a Misplaced modifiers

51b Squinting modifiers

51c Split infinitives

51d Modifiers that disrupt a sentence

51e Dangling modifiers

 

52  Conciseness

52a Writing concisely

52b Avoiding redundancies

52c Avoiding wordy sentence structures

       Avoiding expletive constructions

       Using the passive voice

52d Combining sentence elements

52e Verbs and conciseness

 

53  Coordination and Subordination

53a Coordination: Expressing equivalent ideas

53b Coordination: Avoiding problems

53c Subordination: Expressing nonequivalent ideas

53d Subordination: Avoiding problems

 

54   Sentence Style

54a Understanding parallelism

54b Avoiding faulty parallelism

54c Parallelism with conjunctions

54d Strengthening a message with parallelism

54e Understanding sentence variety

       Revising strings of short sentences

       Revising for a mix of sentence lengths

54f  Emphatic sentence subjects

54g Adding modifiers

54h Inverting standard word order

 

55   Usage Glossary

56   Word Meanings and Word Impact

56a Words and meanings

56b Exact words

       Denotation and connotation

       Specific and concrete language

56c Increasing vocabulary

56d Suitable language

       Appropriate language

       Levels of formality

       Edited American English

     Slang, colloquialisms, and regionalisms

56e Figurative language

56f  Clichés

56g The effect of tone in writing

       Slanted language

       Pretentious language

       Jargon

       Euphemisms

 

57   Using Inclusive Language

57a Gender in English

57b Gender-neutral language

 

58   Spelling

58a Plurals

58b Suffixes

58c The ie, ei  rule

58d Homonyms and other frequently confused words

58e Other spelling errors

 

PUNCTUATION AND MECHANICS

59   Commas

59a When to use commas

59b With introductory words

59c Before coordinating conjunctions

59d With a series

59e Between adjectives

59f  With nonrestrictive and restrictive elements

       Nonrestrictive and restrictive clauses

       Nonrestrictive and restrictive phrases

       Nonrestrictive and restrictive appositives

59g With quoted words

59h Other word groups to set off

59i  In dates, names, addresses, letter format, and numbers

59j   Preventing misreadings

59k  Avoiding comma errors

 

60   Semicolons

60a Instead of periods

60b Instead of commas

 

61   Colons

61a Lists, appositives, or quotations

61b Between sentences

61c Conventional formats

 

62   Apostrophes

62a Possessive nouns

62b Possessive indefinite pronouns

62c Possessive pronouns: hers, his, its, ours, yours, and theirs

62d Verbs that end in -s

62e Contractions

62f  Letters, numerals, symbols, and terms

 

63   Quotation Marks

63a Short direct quotations

       Double quotation marks (“ ”)

       Single quotation marks (‘ ’)

63b Long direct quotations

63c Spoken words

63d Titles

63e Terms, translations, and irony

63f  When quotation marks are wrong

63g With other punctuation

 

64   Periods, Question Marks, and Exclamation Points

64a Periods

64b Question marks

64c Exclamation points

 

65   Other Punctuation Marks

65a Dashes

65b Parentheses

       To add information

       With numbers or letters

       With other punctuation

65c Brackets

65d Ellipsis points

       In prose quotations

       In quotations from poetry

65e Slashes

 

66   Hyphens

66a End of a line

66b Prefixes and suffixes

66c Compound words

66d Spelled-out numbers

 

67   Capitals

67a “First” words

67b Quotations

67c Nouns and adjectives

 

68   Italics (Underlining)

68a Italics versus quotation marks

68b For emphasis

 

69   Abbreviations

69a Times and amounts

69b People’s names

69c Jr., Sr., II, III, 2^nd, and  3^rd     

69d Names of countries, organizations, and government agencies

69e Addresses

69f  Using etc. and other Latin abbreviations

 

70   Numbers

70a Spelled-out numbers

70b Dates, addresses, times, and other numbers

 

GLOSSARY

QUICK BOX INDEX

ESL INDEX

GENERAL INDEX

LYNN QUITMAN TROYKA, Professor of Writing, at the City University of New York (CUNY), has taught at Queensborough Community College and in the graduate Language and Literacy program at City College. Former editor of the Journal of Basic Writing, her writing and research appears in major journals and various scholarly collections. She conducts workshops in the teaching of writing. Lynn is co-author of Quick Access Reference for Writers, Fifth Edition, Prentice Hall (2007), QA Compact, First Edition, Prentice Hall (2007), Canadian editions of her Simon & Schuster Handbook for Writers and Quick Access Reference for Writers, Structured Reading, Seventh Edition, Prentice Hall (2007), and Steps in Composition, Eighth Edition, Prentice Hall (2004).  Dr. Troyka received the 2001 CCCC Exemplar Award, the highest CCCC award for scholarship, teaching, and service; the Rhetorician of the Year Award; and the TYCA Pickett Award for Service. She is a past chair of the Conference on College Composition and Communication (CCCC); the Two-Year College Association (TYCA) of the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE); the College Section of NCTE; and the Writing Division of the Modern Language Association.  ”This information,” says Dr. Troyka, “tells what I’ve done, not who I am. I am a teacher. Teaching is my life’s work, and I love it.”

 

 

 

 

DOUG HESSE, Professor of English and Director of Writing at the University of Denver as of fall 2006, previously held several positions at Illinois State University, including Director of the Honors Program, Director of Writing Programs, and Director of the Center for the Advancement of Teaching. Dr. Hesse earned his Ph.D. from the University of Iowa.  In addition to teaching at Illinois State, he’s also taught at the University of Findlay, Miami University (as Wiepking Distinguished Visiting Professor), and Michigan Tech.  Dr. Hesse has had numerous national leadership roles in the teaching of writing. He is past Chair of the Conference on College Composition and Communication (CCCC), the nation’s largest professional association of college writing instructors. A past president, as well, of the Council of Writing Program Administrators (WPA), Hesse edited that organization’s journal, Writing Program Administration. He is a member of the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) Executive Committee and the Modern Language Association (MLA) Division on Teaching as a Profession Executive Committee. He is the author of 45 articles and book chapters, in such journals as College Composition and Communication, College English, JAC, Rhetoric Review, the Journal of Teaching Writing, and others, and in such books as Essays on the Essay; Writing Theory and Critical Theory; The Writing Program Administrator’s Sourcebook; Literary Nonfiction; The Private, the Public, and the Published; Passions, Pedagogies, and 21st Century Technologies; and others. He is also co-author, with LynnTroyka, of the Quick Access Reference for Writers, Fifth Edition, Prentice Hall (2007) and Quick Access Compact, First Edition, Prentice Hall (2007). Illinois State University named him Outstanding University Researcher.  “Of all these accomplishments,” says Dr. Hesse, “the one that matters most to me is being named Distinguished Humanities Teacher at Illinois State. That one came from my students and suggests that, in however small a way, I’ve mattered in their educations and lives.”