Department of Focused Inquiry

Intellectual curiosity is at the heart of our work together. With this in mind, you will partake in a semester-long inquiry project that begins with formulating research questions of your own. You will then pursue them through a systematic and sustained research and writing process. UNIV 200 is a process course, which means that assignments are progressive in design and build on material and skills developed in the preceding assignments. As such, rewriting, rethinking, and revising will be essential throughout the semester as you develop your own ways of thinking and your authority in communicating your ideas. Each major course assignment will ask you to present your evolving thinking using a different modality (mode of presentation). Some of these modalities will look familiar (e.g., “a paper”) and others will challenge you to think more creatively and expansively (*e.g., “a source play” or “visual synthesis” of sources) about the presentation of research and argument. Ultimately, UNIV 200 provides you with the opportunity to develop the skills and strategies you need for success in your upper division research and writing challenges, as well as in your professional and civic life.

Critical Reading and Evidence-Based Argument

You will study a series of texts, along with related material, to examine meaning and the rhetorical strategies and structures that deliver meaning. In particular, you will review argument and the essential role it plays in the process of inquiry and the communication of ideas, and develop a common vocabulary for discussing argument. You will also establish a classroom culture of critical thinking by exploring how questioning a particular text can lead to larger academic inquiry and topic development. And you will begin to consider the importance of understanding a rhetorical situation and how rhetorical appeals and strategies relate to purpose, audience, and situation.

Managing the Research Process

Early in the course, you will develop a research question and begin to structure your inquiry project. To do this, you will design a research strategy, attend a library session, and begin locating sources that will address your research question. This research will ultimately provide the basis of your work on the Researched Argumentative Essay. During this process you will continue to develop your critical reading skills and strategies, along with your ability to evaluate and effectively—and ethically—use research material to gain knowledge and answer your research question.

The Creation and Craft of Argument

Based on the research you have conducted, you will use the writing and drafting process to continue to engage in inquiry and develop the knowledge you need to answer your research question. This answer will come in the form of an argumentative essay that addresses the rhetorical situation you’re writing for, and uses the elements of argument to connect with your audience and share your knowledge and understanding of the topic or issue. During the drafting of your essay, you will develop a plan for its structure and then draw on feedback from your instructor and peers to critically reflect on your draft as you continue to revise and develop your argument.

Remediation of Argument

Here you will explore the various ways that academic work can be shared in traditional and digital platforms. As a class, you will examine the relationship between form, function, and content and consider the influence a writer’s chosen medium may have on the ability to address a rhetorical situation and convey an argument in a different modality.