Courses and Syllabi
- CLL 190—Writing and the Environment
- CLL 290—Writing, Humanities, and the Environment: the View From the Field
- CLL 390—Introduction To The Literature of Nature
- CLL 405—Writing for the Science Professional
- CLL 410—Writing for Environmental Professionals
- CLL 490—Literature of Nature
- CLL 496—Environmental Journalism
Students, Faculty, Advisors! Visit our Department's Course Summary Page to see which classes suit your needs.
TOP
CLL 190 Writing and the Environment
This course, taken by most ESF students their first semester on campus, is an introduction to writing and reading at the college level. The course includes frequent informal writing assignments, weekly reading assignments, participation in class discussion, an oral presentation, and at least two formal writing assignments. There is an emphasis on critical thinking; our relationship to nature is the topic of inquiry.
Students develop the skills to critique their own writing and the writing of their peers in terms of style, organization, development, format, and other rhetorical considerations. Students are exposed to a wide range of activities such as brainstorming, freewriting, drafting, and revising. The course includes group work with students expected to reflect on the collaborative process.
TOP
CLL 290 Writing, Humanities, and the Environment: the View From the Field
CLL 290 is a writing course with a significant literature and humanities component. The course includes frequent informal writing assignments, weekly reading assignments, discussion, an oral presentation, a collaborative project, and at least two formal writing assignments.
Students edit and revise their own writing in terms of style, organization, development, and format.
Through peer review, audience analysis, and revision, students improve their writing processes. They learn to recognize, apply, and critique the conventions of different discourse communitities.
Students examine the rhetorical strategies writers use and learn to apply the principles of rhetorical analysis to different kinds of text. Students develop critical thinking skills while investigating the environmental movement.
This course, taken by most students the spring of their sophomore year, is intended for students who have completed CLL 190.
TOP
CLL 390 Introduction to the Literature of Nature
This course presents an overview of representative authors of the nineteenth and twentieth century who used nature as a theme. Authors include Audubon, Thoreau, Emerson, Austin, Muir, Leopold, and Carson. Through reading, discussing, and writing, we explore the aesthetics, the socio-politico climate and the prevailing attitudes toward nature that formed the backdrop for the literature.
Students examine differences in attitudes towards nature and explore the different points of view held by different authors. The course begins with creation myths and covers representative nature writers up to Rachel Carson.
Requirements include weekly reading assignments, class discussions, journal entries, a collaborative project, and two formal papers.
This course is an elective for sophomores and juniors who seek to complement their scientific and technical studies with a liberal arts perspective.
TOP
CLL 405 Writing for the Science Professional
In this writing course, students have an opportunity to examine their own writing processes, learning to revise and edit their own work. Students improve their writing through peer review, audience analysis, and collaborative work. We look carefully at style, organization, format, and development. Students critique the writing of their peers (both in the classroom and in the field).
Students have the opportunity to analyze writing as a way of learning and thinking. We analyze the way language is used by the scientific community and examine some of the communication problems between the scientific community and the rest of the world. We use writing to examine controversial issues and challenge some of the basic assumptions held by the scientific community.
Writing projects include: weekly journal entries, resume, cover letter, memo, definitions, analysis and proposal, abstract, report, and oral presentation.
This course is designed for sophomore and junior EFB students.
TOP
CLL 410 Writing for the Environmental Professional
Sections of this technical writing course are designated for ES students or LA students.
Writing assignments include: weekly journal entries, resume, cover letter, memo, definitions, analysis and proposal, abstract, report, and oral presentation.
Students learn to edit and revise their own writing, looking at style, organization, format, and development. The course includes peer review, collaborative learning, and audience analysis. Students will use writing to examine some of the controversial issues in their field.
TOP
CLL 490 Literature of Nature
In this literature course, we examine the views of nature and the environment presented by writers, poets, and essayists of the twentieth century. We primarily focus on writers and movements after Rachel Carson.
The readings include voices which pose new ways of looking at our relationship with the earth: deep ecologists, native Americans, ecofeminists, animal rights activists, and advocates of the green movement. We also consider the ways in which media and pop culture representations of nature construct and influence attitudes.
Requirements include weekly reading assignments, class discussions, frequent informal writing assignments, a collaborative project, and two formal papers.
This course is an elective for juniors and seniors who seek to complement their scientific and technical studies with a liberal arts perspective.
TOP
CLL 496: Environmental Journalism
This is a pilot variable credit course offered to address very specific needs of the staff of the Knothole. Through the semester, we will cover a range of topics related to journalism: interviewing, writing the lead, style, writing and organizing the story, layout, editing and revising, writing features and follow-up stories, covering speeches, etc. In addition, we will explore how the media covers scientific and environmental issues. There are several relevant aspects that need to be considered: translating technical terms into a more accessible language, putting stories into the context of the social and economic issues, and understanding the political implications of scientific research and controversial environmental situations.
The course has five components:
- Writing for the Knothole: Enrollment in this course means you are part of the Knothole staff, and, as such, you are expected to submit articles for publication.
- Guest Speakers: We hope to have a variety of speakers who will cover a range of topics. Some of these speakers will be affiliated with local environmental publications, the Syracuse newspapers, Newhouse, and ESF faculty experienced with environmental writing.
- Critiques: We will critique recent issues of the Knothole and other relevant publications.
- Readings: There will be weekly reading assignments from a text which will be assigned and misc. material provided by your instructor.
- Portfolio: At the end of the semester you will be asked to submit a portfolio of your work and offer a two page summary and critique of what you accomplished during the semester.
Even if you have no intention of becoming a journalist, this course should address concerns which are critical to most programs on campus. How do we communicate effectively? How do we capture the attention of the public? How do we tell our story fairly and objectively? Is there really such a thing as objectivity?
In addition, we will work on writing skills--from basic editing techniques to more sophisticated areas of style.
