wp home > junior year writing > sourcebook for instructors > economics 397w
Economics 397W: Writing in Economics
John Stifler, Spring 2007
Books:
-
Thomas L. Friedman, The World Is Flat
-
Charles Fishman, The Wal-Mart Effect
-
Aldous Huxley, Brave New World
-
William Strunk and E.B. White, The Elements of Style
-
William Zinsser, On Writing Well
-
Brent Beebe, John Stifler, etc., A Street-Fighter's Guide to Writing for Economics Majors
The first five are stocked for this course at Food For Thought Books in Amherst; the sixth is the course packet, available at Collective Copies in Amherst. Readings from the first three will be assigned and listed on the syllabus below. So will some readings in On Writing Well. Whenever we have a current reading assignment in one of the first three books, bring the book to class. Bring The Elements of Style and the course packet to every class.
Besides pens, computer, paper, dictionary, etc., you will need (1) a spiral notebook or folder to use as a journal and (2) a highlighter.
* * *
Hi.
Read this syllabus and be responsible for its contents.
The Economics Department has offered (and required) the Junior Year Writing Course since 1984, the year the university created the Junior Year Writing Program. I've been teaching it since its inception, in a variety of formats. This year's format is quite new, and some of the announced schedule may be subject to some changes as we go along. Watch the course Web page for updates, and pay close attention in class.
Speaking of class, before we go any further, here's the word on attendance: Come to every class. Absences will be excused for obvious reasons (religious holiday, family emergency, sickness), but it is your responsibility to let me know in advance if you must miss a class or else to follow up as soon as possible with the appropriate documentation. If you miss class, you are still 100 percent responsible for knowing what went on in it. No other absences will be excused. If you miss one class, I will notice. If you miss more than one class, you will notice.
This attendance policy is not a professorial ego trip. It's a natural fact of how the course is set up: your attendance in class is a significant part of the work for Econ. 397W. On a related note, this is not a good class for falling behind and then trying to catch up.
Assignments
There will be many writing assignments, plus readings that will cover all of The World Is Flat, The Wal-Mart Effect and Brave New World. Expect probably ten short assignments, "short" meaning somewhere between 300 words and three pages, as explained in the particular assignment. There will be three longer assignments, "longer" meaning 5-7 pages. The longer assignments in particular will involve a good deal of revision and editing.
Grades
There is no numerical formula for computing grades in this course, but in general your grade will be a function of these things:
-
Quality of your writing. Show your reader the very best writing you can do.
-
Quality of your revising. Reviewing, revising, rewriting what you have written is possibly the most distinctive feature of this course and the biggest part of how this course may help you learn to write better.
-
Punctuality with assignments.
-
Attendance. I expect to see you in every class. See exceptions as noted above.
-
Collaboration. Part of the course work involves class discussion, discussion in small groups, review of each other's papers.
If you attend every class, hand in every assignment on time, and make a substantial effort to practice writing and rewriting, you are almost certain to get a grade of at least a B-. Last semester, a semester in which attendance and participation were excellent, most students in the course earned a grade of B or higher.
Academic Honesty
You've been in college long enough to know what this phrase refers to: using someone else's writing, ideas, etc., in your own writing and presenting them as if they were your own words, ideas, etc. You've also been living in an Internet-oriented world long enough to know that it is never all right to copy words or other information from a Web site into your own writing without clearly identifying the source. We'll review citation practices you should observe.
It is really easy to avoid plagiarism in this class. Your own writing is the most interesting thing you can give your reader to look at in this course. Anything else can, and should, be plainly identified as such. For example, if you find good ideas on the Internet in response to an idea you are writing about, you simply need to tell your reader where these ideas come from, using appropriate citation. Same goes for ideas you get from fellow students and other people. That’s a big part of what academic work is.
Punctuality
This is a bad course to fall behind in. If you sense that you are falling behind, talk to me about that fact as soon as possible. My job includes helping you figure out how to get it done. Whatever you do in this class, don't hide.
Ever been bored in a course? In this course, it’s your own job not to be bored. If you can figure out how to make the work interesting for yourself, you’re probably doing it right. And don’t be afraid to take risks.
Additional materials available online at http://courses.umass.edu/ec397w01/.
Updated September 3, 2008
