To: Board of Undergraduate Studies
From: Patricia Tersigni, Director, Academic Programs and Policies
CC: Gwen Chapman, Provost and Vice-President Academic Cate Dewey, Associate Vice-President (Academic)
Date: May 10, 2021
Re: Proposal for new Honours Major – Bachelor of Arts in Creative Writing
Please find enclosed a proposal for a new honours major, Creative Writing, in the Bachelor of Arts program, requiring the recommendation for approval to Senate.
The proposal has the support of the Provost and AVPA, the COA Dean and Associate Dean (Academic) and approval and support of the Bachelor of Arts Degree Program Committee. The new program was subject to an external review per the University of Guelph’s Institutional Quality Assurance Process (IQAP) and the reviewers’ report is included in the package. The additional material for the proposed major includes the schedule of studies, program learning outcomes, the full new program brief, memos of support from all of the sponsoring units and colleges, and the responses from the Chair and Dean to the external review report and corresponding curriculum additions and changes. A list of documentation is included below in order as it appears in the submission.
Should a member have questions in advance regarding this proposal or wish to review any of the supporting documentation held on file, please contact me or the staff in our office: Alyssa Voigt, Manager, Curriculum and Academic Quality Assurance Clarke Mathany, Manager, Curriculum and Academic Quality Assurance
The Director, School of English and Theatre Studies, the Chair of the Working Group, and the Associate Dean Academic, College of Arts, will also attend the meeting to provide an overview and answer questions from BUGS members.
If approved by BUGS and Senate, the proposed new program undergoes external review and approval by the Ontario Universities Council on Quality Assurance (OUCQA) and the Ministry of Colleges and Universities (MCU). The expected first intake will be Fall 2022.
List of Documents included in the proposal package:
• New Program Proposal Brief, including list of faculty dedicated to teaching courses in BA.CRWR • Appendix C: Learning Outcomes – Program Learning Outcomes and Undergraduate Degree Learning Outcomes Alignment Template • External Reviewers Assessment Report • Site Visit Itinerary • Program Lead’s Response to External Reviewers’ Assessment Report • College of Arts, Dean’s Response to External Reviewers’ Assessment Report • Curriculum Changes – Summary of new courses • Curriculum Templates
NB: Additional appendices held on file include:
• Appendix A: College of Arts, Dean’s Letter of Support • Appendix A: School of English and Theatre Studies, Acting Director’s Letter of Support • Appendix A: Student Letters of Support • Appendix B: List of Course Details and New Courses • Appendix D: Library Assessment • Appendix E: Faculty CV’s • Appendix F: Consultation with other units • Appendix G: Student Progression through the Program • Appendix H: Course Implementation Plan
May 10, 2021
Dr. Cate Dewey Associate Vice-President (Academic) University of Guelph
Dear Dr. Dewey,
The College of Arts (COA) would like to thank everyone involved with this proposal for a new major in creative writing, especially the reviewers, Drs. Emily Pohl-Weary and Daniel Scott Tysdal, who undertook this review virtually. We would also like to thank the School of English and Theatre Studies, all committees and their members involved in moving this proposal forward.
Full-time Faculty Hiring The COA is currently in the process of hiring a tenure-track assistant professor in Creative Writing who will take over our MFA coordination, while the current MFA coordinator, Catherine Bush, will be joining the undergraduate faculty. In the future we expect Creative Writing faculty to rotate through the MFA coordination to distribute the work more fairly and to better integrate the MFA with the new undergraduate major. We also plan to hire a contractually limited appointment (CLA), who will have a 3-3 teaching load. These two additional positions will mean a sufficient faculty complement to deliver the creative writing curriculum when we welcome our first our cohort to the new major. Should we need to offer additional sections in the short term, we plan to hire sessionals, particularly professional writers who welcome the opportunity to teach but are not necessarily interested in full academic positions. The hiring practice of the COA is that we hire in programs of proven strength and need, a strategy that will also apply to this new major.
Connections: Major and MFA in Creative Writing Connections between the new major and the MFA in Creating Writing are a goal of both programs and offer great opportunities. The COA is supportive of the initiatives outlined in the response from the Director of the School of English and Theatre Studies and the Chair of the Working Group, such as the MFA coordinator position rotating among Creative Writing faculty and the undergraduate program offering MFA students the opportunity to work as teaching assistants. These teaching-assistant positions will provide valuable experience to the MFA students. The program will also allow upper- year students to collaborate with MFA students on the interdisciplinary journal, HELD, which will enhance connections between the programs.
College of Arts - Dean’s Office MacKinnon Building, University of Guelph 50 Stone Road East Guelph, Ontario, Canada N1G 2W1 T 1-519-824-4120 x53301 uoguelph.ca/arts
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Admission Guidelines The COA is excited by the prospect of this new major and expects it to be successful due to its design, theme, and innovative approaches. We are absolutely committed to providing a program that we can support and will apply all necessary mechanisms to grow and maintain the program at a manageable level. To this effect, we will follow certain controls that will allow us both to attract talented students and to regulate the intake, as necessary. This new major will have a GPA cut-off separate from other BA programs, so that we may admit pools of students on their own merit. We will also have to determine a steady state number of majors, which we could adjust as numbers and resources warrant. This steady state number would be maintained from year to year by allowing qualified transfers into the major based on capacities. We will consider other mechanisms, should we find the popularity outpaces program capacity. Ensuring equitable access to our programs is a priority for the COA and we will leverage the university’s Student Profile Forms in which students may identify aspects that might have disadvantaged them or additional pertinent factors that would support their application further.
Course Change Recommendations The College appreciates the commendation of the program as a whole and we support the creative writing major in adjusting CRWR*1000 in particular, but also in any additional changes we might find necessary as the program proceeds. Experiential learning is a priority for the college and creative writing offers its students many opportunities to capitalize on these offerings, both within the major and other college offerings. Moreover, creative writing has already included aspects of professionalization as part of its program structure, as such, we support the program’s decision to refrain from including a fourth-year professionalization course at this time but to consider how students develop and to collect their and instructors’ feedback to make possible adjustments.
Creative Writing-specific Budget At this time, the College expects present funding sources and options to be adequate but additional needs will be considered as they arise. Schools already have discretionary budgets, which are adjusted, should needs increase. These budgets are intended to allow programs to support guest speakers and student-centred activities. There are also other funding options available with the college (e.g., the Experiential Learning Fellowship) and the university. As for direct program support, we are currently considering various options to adjust administrative support for the home school and expect to find a viable solution.
Handbook Handbooks for students have remained a challenge and we believe our continuously improving and growing web resources, the university calendar, faculty advisors, and academic counseling should ensure students understand the program and how to complete it. We expect faculty and instructors would also access these resources to inform themselves in addition to participating in regular meetings where any challenges can be addressed. Should this not prove sufficient, we will support the program in
GUELPH ! ONTARIO ! CANADA ! N1G 2W1 ! 519-824-4120 ! FAX 519-837-1315 3
mitigating shortcomings in any way we can.
The new major in Creative Writing helps to realize the College’s goal of offering new, innovative programming, and we are excited to see it move forward. The new program helps articulate our vision: The College of Arts is at work unleashing compassion, creativity, and critical engagement with the world through transformative education.
Sincerely,
Samantha Brennan Dean, COA
GUELPH ! ONTARIO ! CANADA ! N1G 2W1 ! 519-824-4120 ! FAX 519-837-1315
COLLEGE OF ARTS School of English and Theatre Studies
May 5, 2021
Dr. Cate Dewey Associate Vice-President (Academic) University of Guelph
Dear Dr. Dewey,
The external review of our proposed BA Major in Creative Writing occurred via videoconference in April 2021. All who were involved wish to extend our sincere thanks to the reviewers, Emily Pohl-Weary and Daniel Scott Tysdal, whose reflective engagement with the proposal resulted in meaningful feedback on which the committee seeks to act. The committee has discussed the recommendations, and the response to the reviewers’ comments follows (reviewers’ language in italics).
Prioritize hiring full-time faculty members.
The existing faculty members, combined with the current hiring plans, will allow the program to meet student demand. However, given its strength, this program—particularly with its lack of admission by portfolio—has the potential to grow and grow fast. We recommend the department begin laying the groundwork now to make the necessary full-time faculty hires. We also recommend the program prioritizes hiring full-time faculty members rather than relying on sessional labour. Like many arts-based university programs, Creative Writing programs exist in the classroom and in the community that flourishes beyond the classroom in events, opportunities, and field trips. Full-time faculty are best positioned—and properly recompensed— for this crucial work.
In anticipation of the new major, we are currently in the process of hiring a tenure-track assistant professor in Creative Writing, who will spend the first year teaching in our undergraduate program. This colleague will then replace our current MFA coordinator, Catherine Bush, who will be joining the undergraduate faculty in the summer of 2022. We are also planning to hire a contractually limited appointment (CLA), who will have a 3:3 teaching load. With these additions, we will have sufficient faculty to deliver our curriculum by the time we implement most of our new courses for the Creative Writing major in the 2023-2024 academic year. Should we need to offer additional sections, we will rely on sessional hires, professional writers who welcome the opportunity to teach but are not interested in full-time academic positions. Should the program grow beyond expectations, additional hires are possible, since the College of Arts continues to hire in programs of proven strength and need.
Explicitly Develop Connections with the MFA in Creative Writing
Important professionalization skills are the abilities to teach, mentor/support, and learn from the experiences of other emerging writers. Because the University of Guelph has such an exceptional graduate program that has trained writers who publish and integrate into the community in inspiring ways, it would greatly benefit both the BA students and MFA students if there were points of connection. MFA students could be teaching assistants in the introductory lecture classes. There could be jointly organized events and even conferences or festivals, which would bring authors and literary inspiration to students and the Guelph-area literary community.
Fostering connections between our undergraduate major and our MFA program is one of our priorities. Beginning in the 2022-2023 academic year, the position of the MFA coordinator will rotate among our Creative Writing faculty. Every three to four years, a member of our undergraduate creative writing faculty will be in charge of the MFA program and then return to teach full time in our undergraduate program. This exchange of faculty will strengthen the connection between the two programs.
We also plan to offer our MFA students the opportunity to serve as teaching assistants in our undergraduate lecture courses. We currently have three teaching-assistant positions for our MFA students in our Creative Writing minor to support our undergraduate teaching mission. These teaching-assistant positions provide valuable teaching experience to our MFA students, giving them the opportunity to create a teaching dossier that includes samples of graded work, as well as allowing them to develop a teaching philosophy. We would like to make the undergraduate creative writing program an integral component of our MFA students’ educational and professional experience.
This interaction will also help to foster a relationship between our majors and our MFA students by having upper-level majors and minors become part of the editorial and production team at HELD, a new interdisciplinary online journal created by the Creative Writing and School of Fine Arts and Music MFA students. Ultimately, this might entice undergraduates to think about pursuing an MFA.
Admission Guidelines
We commend the decision to run a Creative Writing Major without an admission portfolio. Direct admission is a student-centred approach and one that expresses the program’s ideals. However, this ideal can only be properly realized if no students are turned away and if every student who wishes to enroll in the program is accepted. If acceptance of every student, both direct and late entry, is not possible, the program will need to carefully consider and clearly establish admission guidelines for both direct entry and late entry students.
One of the reasons for offering the Creative Writing major is to increase enrollment in the College of Arts, so the College is committed to help us grow to meet the demand of qualified students.
While we are keen to have many students in the program (major and minor), we will have to limit student numbers based on their abilities but also resources. We might establish a defined steady-state number at each level, which will be augmented by qualified program transfer students. Initially, we will also limit the workshops only to Creative majors and minors, making available extra spots to non-program students only if caps allow and if they have fulfilled the prerequisites. Non-program students will be able to take the creative-writing lecture courses: CRWR*1000 “Fundamentals of Creative Writing,” a lecture-workshop hybrid course, and CRWR*2000 “Reading as a Writer,” where their assignments include creative writing exercises. Another way we intend to manage enrollments in our workshops is to limit the number of workshops Creative Writing minors can take. While the majors explore three genres in their second year, we plan on limiting Creative Writing minors to two genres. Creative Writing minors will not be able to take a fourth-year capstone, either.
We will review this approach annually after the program has begun to accept majors. Should we find the above measures fail to help manage enrollment and resources, then establishing
equitable secondary admission standards might become necessary. Since we are a BA program, we remain committed to a direct-entry major that does not require a portfolio for entry. However, we agree with the external reviewers that in the absence of a portfolio, creating a secondary admission standard that relies too heavily on a high GPA cut-off point might exclude potentially talented writers. Moreover, considering the program’s focus on social justice, we seek to ensure that secondary admission standards do not become obstacles to enrolling students from disadvantaged and/or racialized communities. We therefore plan to use Student Profile Forms as one of the mechanisms to help ensure equitable entry into the program.
Broaden and open the approach in CRWR*1000
This course is one of the rare examples where a decision does not meet the proposal’s goal of inclusiveness and diversity, and where the approach utilized by Creative Writing programs across the country would better realize the program’s ideals. More specifically, CRWR1000 introduces students to Creative Writing through a limited, fiction-focused lens, whereas most Introduction to Creative Writing courses across the country seek to introduce students to the wide range of creative writing possibilities.
The external reviewers suggested that students be exposed to a broad range of genres in the first- year course instead of focusing on fiction. We think this is a good suggestion and plan to implement it. As they pointed out, a focus on fiction will put late transfers who focus on other creative writing disciplines at a disadvantage. It should be noted that, in practice, our instructors regularly cover a variety of genres in our current introductory course. Moreover, every year we hire at least three MFA students to serve as teaching assistants for our introductory course. MFA students’ creative practice often engages a wide range of writing disciplines, which is very helpful in helping the instructor cover and teach a variety of genres in the introductory course.
In the next calendar change cycle, we will change the description of the course to make it clear that students will be learning the fundamentals of storytelling by exploring a variety of writing disciplines.
Develop a professionalization course in Year Four
This course would prepare students for life after graduation, both in terms of their writing and their careers. Students learn how their creative industries work and how to get their work published and produced. They also learn essential skills like querying agents, pitching projects, and writing grant applications. Class guests can include industry professionals and writers who make careers by putting their skills to work in unexpected ways. We make this recommendation based on our knowledge of other Canadian Creative Writing programs and our visit with the Creative Writing students. This recommendation will also allow the program to further enhance its already robust experiential learning component, while also more effectively realizing the following CASP, educate students to “articulate their transferrable skills with confidence as they navigate their future lives.”
While this is an intriguing idea that we will consider as we see the program develop and we receive student feedback, we currently feel the present curriculum and experiential learning components within our courses should meet our students’ needs. Beginning in our second-year workshops, we have included an experiential learning component in almost every workshop, so students gain an understanding of how creative professionals work. Students do table reads, public readings, pitch projects, and prepare submissions. Moreover, in our capstone courses, the professor spends two or more weeks explaining how to query agents, pitch projects, work with an editor, apply for grants, etc. In addition, we have a number of distinguished writers on faculty, who can give professionalization talks that can take place during the class time of the capstone course but would be open to all Creative Writing minors and majors. The MFA program also invites established writers to give professionalization talks in their plenary courses. Undergraduates would be invited to attend these talks virtually or in person.
As for their suggestion to offer full-year capstone courses, since we are a semestered institution such courses are a rarity, and our full-credit, one-semester model has been successful. Students in our full-credit, one-semester capstone courses are expected to do twice the work of a regular half-credit semester course. Moreover, we have found that the one-semester, full-credit approach helps to move our current Creative Writing students through the minor more efficiently; we expect this will prove the same for the Creative Writing major.
Investigate a possible Creative Writing-specific budget within the department’s budget.
This budget would be dedicated to Creative Writing specific initiatives and opportunities like the
Writer-in-Residence program, class guests, campus events, and field trips. The security of the budget provides year-to-year clarity and allows program faculty and students to plan and create with confidence and consistency.
Every department and school within the College of Arts has a Chair’s Discretionary fund, which supports speakers and similar endeavours of its programs. Field trips are traditionally paid for by students and funds for such activities can be gained thorough other sources, depending on the activity.
Develop a comprehensive handbook for instructors and students.
The handbook for students would be resource that can be utilized throughout the four years and a tool that might alleviate some of the pressure on academic advisors, faculty, and staff. It could contain essential information and opportunities available to them during their degree. The handbook for faculty would be particularly useful for new instructors, who may not know the exact requirements of the program, the learning expectations at different levels, how to access spaces other than their classrooms, library support available (such as purchasing new acquisitions and technology training), and potential experiential learning opportunities that would complement their in-class teaching.
At this time, we feel advising resources, including but not limited to faculty advisors, academic counselors, administrative staff, university and college resources (such as websites and online calendars) should suffice to provide students the same support that every BA student currently receives. Moreover, the BA is planning to refresh and expand its advising resources, which should make the need of a handbook unnecessary. Should these resources still prove insufficient, creating a handbook may become necessary.
We sincerely appreciate the time, care, and effort the reviewers, internal supports, and committee members have expended to create and improve this new major. We are excited and look forward to commencing intake and seeing our students improve life by learning and becoming successful writers and members of society. We remain committed to a continual review of the program, based on instructor and student feedback, which will allow us to strengthen it and meet the need of students now and in the future.
Sincerely,
Pablo Ramirez Jade Ferguson
NEW PROGRAM PROPOSAL
Bachelor of Arts – Creative Writing Major
School of English and Theatre Studies College of Arts
March 24, 2021
Table of Contents 1 Program Introduction ...... 3 1.1 Program Description ...... 3 1.2 Program Rationale ...... 5 1.3 Letters of Support ...... 9
2 Program Requirements ...... 9 2.1 Proposed Program and Course Details ...... 9 2.2 Admission Requirements ...... 16 2.3 Research and Experiential Learning ...... 16 2.4 Capstone Requirements ...... 18
3 Program Learning Outcomes and University of Guelph Learning Outcomes ...... 19 3.1 Proposed Specialization Learning Outcomes ...... 19
4 Inclusion, Diversity and Accessibility ...... 37
5 Duplication, Student Demand and Societal Need...... 38 5.1 Duplication ...... 38 5.2 Student Demand ...... 40 5.3 Societal Needs ...... 41
6 Anticipated Enrolment and Impact on Existing Programs ...... 43 6.1 Projected Enrolment Levels ...... 43 6.2 Impact on Existing programs ...... 43
7 Resource Requirements and Funding...... 44 7.1 Human and Physical Resource Requirements ...... 44 7.2 Evidence of adequate resources ...... 49 7.3 External Financial Support ...... 49
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Program Introduction
1.1 Program Description Provide a brief description of the proposed program, including the main learning outcomes and the goals of the program.
Humans are story-telling creatures. Narrative and lyric modes are how we make meaning, and how we discover ourselves and the world. At this fraught moment of ecological peril, amid the ongoing need to address systemic forms of racism and social and political injustice, creative writing offers students essential skills for making meaning and gaining knowledge of the world as they imagine and describe their place and the place of others in it. The study of creative writing offers a range of widely transferable skills: heightened literacy, facility in narrative arts, the ability to listen to and collaborate with others.
We propose a direct-entry, undergraduate honours major in Creative Writing in the Bachelor of Arts program that provides aspiring writers with a four-year creative educational experience.
In the proposed Creative Writing major, with a focus on environmental awareness and social justice, students will learn to frame discussions and perspectives about the changing world in which they live through an exploration of a range of imaginaries. The program’s focus on social justice and environmental awareness will provide students with an enriched global understanding of issues affecting society and the environment, while encouraging students to engage with their communities for dialogue and change. In the lectures and readings of their literature and creative writing courses, students will learn to identify and understand the elements of storytelling and poetics, thereby gaining enhanced literacy skills and a broadened, culturally diverse sense of literary and cinematic possibility. Through workshop discussions, written assignments and peer critiques, students will gain critical and creative thinking skills as they analyze the techniques of creative craft and form in their writing classes and analyze how a text creates meaning in their literature classes. Through the workshop method of self- and peer-editing and evaluation, students will learn how to evaluate the application of the techniques of craft and form in creative work. In terms of communication, students will apply their understanding of these elements in the four-year formation of an extensive body of creative work, including writing exercises, short creative pieces, revisions, and a portfolio. By the end of the major, students will be able to create original, compelling creative work by achieving a breadth and understanding of the elements of storytelling and linguistic precision across genres.
The major offers students the opportunity to explore three writing genres, gain expertise in two, and create a polished creative portfolio in one. A portfolio and a broader, more expansive artistic repertoire prepare students for further study at the MFA level, which often requires applicants to submit a portfolio that shows literary skill in one genre and competency in another. The sustained writing practice gained in the major, accompanied by an ongoing, culturally diverse reading practice, prepares students for a variety of careers in which narrative and story-telling skill, linguistic facility, and empathetic awareness of an inclusive range of points of view are valued.
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In their first semester, students enroll in CRWR*1000, a first-year lecture-workshop hybrid course. Students attend two lectures a week and end the week with a 20- to 25-student workshop. This first- year course will introduce students to the elements of storytelling (point of view, character development, dialogue, sense of place, scene, and narrative arc), focusing mostly on fiction, though other genres may be addressed. In their second semester, students take CRWR*2000, “Reading as a Writer.” In this course, students perform close readings of passages in which they analyze how various writers employ the elements of storytelling. Students will also use the assigned texts and passages as models for their own short creative writing exercises in order to reinforce and enhance their understanding and application of the elements of storytelling. In their first year, students will also take ENGL*1080, which will teach students to: define, understand, and apply a rudimentary disciplinary vocabulary; recognize and identify specific literary devices and explain how those devices contribute to the meaning of a literary text; and perform close readings that address literary and social questions. If students do well in CRWR*1000, they have the option of taking a second-year writing workshop in their second semester.
Entry into the 20-student second-year writing workshops will be limited to Creative Writing majors and minors. However, unlike other Creative Writing majors in Ontario, students will not need to submit a portfolio for entry into these workshops. In their second year, majors will take three second- year writing workshops in different genres and ENGL*2380 “Reading Poetry.”
The second-year fiction and creative nonfiction workshops will reinforce the elements of craft learned during the first-year courses and expand on these in thematic courses that encourage students to use creative writing and the exercise of the imaginary to gain knowledge of their world. CRWR*2100 “Fiction Workshop: Writing the Anthropocene” will bring students into a greater awareness of this current moment of human-caused climate crisis through their creative exercises. In CRWR*2150 “Speculative Fiction Workshop” students will explore how fiction is a means of world creation, including the futuristic, fantastic and dystopic, and a mode for entering the perspectives of others, sometimes those radically not like us. CRWR*2200 “Creative Nonfiction Workshop: Writing Nature” will consider nature writing in an era of ecological loss and high-tech science when it is no longer possible to separate nature from the realm of the human, making our need for biophilia (love of the biosphere) increasingly and urgently necessary. In their second-year workshops in poetry (CRWR*2300), screenwriting (CRWR*2400), and writing for performance (THST*2120), students will be introduced to very different forms, formats, and fundamentals of creative expression. These workshops will reinforce elements of storytelling while introducing students to other genre-specific methodologies and practices. ENGL*2380 “Reading Poetry” will introduce students to the fundamentals of poetic form in order to prepare them for their poetry workshops and introduce elements of the lyric and poetic attention in their other genre writing.
After exploring three writing genres in their first and second years, students will choose to gain further expertise in two genres in their third-year workshops. In their third-year poetry workshop, CRWR*3300 “Poetry Workshop: Eco-Poetics,” students will increase their skill in the elements of poetics while creating poetry that engages with our complex relationship to the biosphere. The third- year screenwriting course, CRWR*3400 “Screenwriting Workshop: Writing for Inclusive Screens” and the third-year scriptwriting course, CRWR*3500 “Advanced Writing for Performance: Writing for the
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Inclusive Stage,” will address issues of social justice, heightening students’ awareness of diverse points of view and their ability to enter and embody different perspectives in creative form while offering students further facility in the art of writing for the screen or the stage, respectively.
In their fourth year, students will take one fourth-year, full-credit capstone workshop. In this workshop, they will produce a polished portfolio of creative work that shows their advanced skill of a writing genre.
Throughout their four years of study, students will also take four English courses, thereby gaining an understanding of literary traditions, genres, and/or forms. By gaining a depth and breadth of understanding of literature, students will be able to analyze and evaluate how their creative practice engages, revises, or contests literary traditions, genres, and forms. Majors also have the choice of augmenting their literary knowledge by taking two literature courses, giving them an understanding of other national, foreign-language literary traditions; student can also opt to take film courses, which will expose our aspiring screenwriters to a larger cinematic history and tradition, or to gain professional experience by taking experiential-learning courses.
1.2 Program Rationale Explain the rationale for developing the proposed program and identify its relationship to the plans of the Department/School and College, the University’s Strategic Framework.
We are introducing this new Creative Writing Major at a time of ecological loss, cultural and societal upheaval and an ever-increasing awareness of systemic social injustices. Students themselves are growing increasingly aware of these challenges as they manifest themselves in their own lives. Ecological loss and the climate crisis intersect with other social justice issues, including racism, indigenous rights and the rights of the 2SLGBTQ+, and those living with disabilities. Creative writing is a crucial epistemological tool for broadening their feelings of kinship with others, including our multi-species kin, and for conceptualizing the future. As speculative writer and noted contemporary eco-theorist Donna Haraway argues, storytelling is both a “knowledge-making and world-making field” requiring “the factual, fictional, and fabulated.” Their education as creative writers equips students to pursue further creative practice, build inclusive communities, and bring a recognition of the complexities of the living world to a diversity of professions.
Since the introduction of the Creative Writing minor in the fall of 2016, it has become the second largest minor in the College of Arts with 108 students. Our existing gateway course, ENGL*2920 “Elements of Creative Writing” is so popular that we often have to offer two sections in the fall and one section in the winter; all sections are fully enrolled by the first week of the registration period. The creation of the Creative Writing minor has also reversed declining enrollments in English lecture courses, which are now almost always fully enrolled by the end of the registration period. While the minor has certainly attracted more University of Guelph students to English, the creation of a four- year, direct-entry Creative Writing major will be a real draw for students in our catchment area, specifically the Greater Toronto Area. Our major’s focus on environmental awareness and social justice builds on existing strengths and ongoing inter-disciplinary work at the University of Guelph in the fields of Environmental Humanities and Environmental Studies. The introduction of the Creative 5
Writing Major alongside initiatives within the Guelph Institute for Environmental Research (GIER) to bring together creative writing and environmental research will further make the University of Guelph a vital, interdisciplinary locus for environmental research, one unique in Canada. Currently, GTA students only have three university choices for a Creative Writing major: York University, OCAD University and University of Toronto (Scarborough). Excluding OCAD University, these programs delay entry into their major until the second year. All local competing universities require a portfolio for entry into any of their workshops. Our major would be more open and accessible. Our smaller class sizes would provide students with a more learner-centred approach to creative writing while providing a curriculum that has the depth and breadth of a larger university. Lastly, the creation of a Creative Writing major would strengthen and expand the ties between our undergraduate program and our prestigious Creative Writing MFA program, one of the most esteemed graduate writing programs in the country, with a notable focus on innovative pedagogy, community engagement and decolonial practice, and the only full-time, multi-genre Creative Writing MFA east of the Prairies.
The creation of the Creative Writing Major would both profit from and augment one of the University of Guelph’s program areas of strength: Arts, Culture, and Creative Practice. The Creative Writing major, which would combine an engagement with social justice and environmental awareness with creative practice, would foster the education of engaged citizens who can contribute to building inclusive and engaged communities through a broad spectrum of activities.
Alignment with Strategic Framework
The creation of the Creative Writing Major would “foster our students’ capacity for self-definition and cultivate their passions and unique strengths” (College of Arts Strategic Plan or CASP).The Creative Writing major would inspire learning and inquiry, as well as creativity and joy (CASP), by giving students more opportunities to express their creativity through a comprehensive and innovative program of creative writing courses that would cover all four levels of course offerings. By taking three first-year courses as part of their core requirements, our creative students will form a close, cohesive cohort, thereby developing a supportive and connected creative community. The creation of the major would also increase the spaces devoted to creative work by offering a seven- workshop, four-year experience, compared to our current three-workshop, three-year offering.
The major would focus on catalyzing discovery and change by implementing a delivery model that would encourage both creativity and a learner-centred approach for all four years of a student’s university experience. The creative writing courses encourage students to think imaginatively by providing them with a high-impact learning environment that centers on the writing-intensive creative workshop experience. The workshop would foster compassion and empathy (CASP) in our students by having them: read a culturally diverse range of texts; learn how reading and writing are entwined practices and ways of understanding a complex world; and gain an understanding of how listening to others and integrating their points of view are essential pedagogical skills. The creative writing workshops would teach our students “to tell powerful stories that allow us to bring together different perspectives, make sense of ambiguity, and create new ways of knowing and being in the world” (CASP).The major also achieves a balance between English literature courses and creative courses in order to teach students how to think critically (CASP) about literature and their own writing, as well as instill in them a discipline of scholarly rigour (CASP). By merging literary study 6
with creative writing, students will be able to situate their own creative writing in relation to key texts or movements within a genre (self-reflection); comprehend a literary tradition; and understand how their work contributes to the literary scene.
The Creative Writing major overlaps with priority areas, particularly community engagement and innovation. The Major would encourage an engagement with the world (CASP) through its focus on social justice and environmental awareness, which would address issues of equity, diversity, and inclusion, thereby overlapping with the College’s plan “to realize a thriving, creative community” (CASP) that is inclusive and respectful. The Creative Writing major will cultivate a creative literary culture at the undergraduate level and encourage students from diverse cultural backgrounds to articulate their experiences as they hone their craft. The major’s focus on environmental awareness and social justice encourages our students to contribute and enrich their communities as well. As Canadian culture industries, including the national literary community, endeavour to diversify their workforce and highlight voices from traditionally marginalized communities, our graduates will be well-positioned to take part in a variety of cultural roles and offer a unique and creative public voice in ongoing social debates.
Our commitment to diversity and a culture of inclusivity is also evident in our teaching faculty. Two of our most prominent tenured writers, Dionne Brand and Lawrence Hill, are Black Canadian professors, who focus on issues of race, class, gender, and/or sexuality in their creative work. Moreover, Elaine Chang is a tenured, Asian Canadian professor who teaches screenwriting; her work focuses on the Asian Canadian experience, as well as on issues of disability. Tenured faculty member Catherine Bush has addressed issues of disability, climate crisis and ecological loss in her creative work. She is also an affiliate member of the Guelph Institute of Environmental Research.
The Creative Writing Major shows its commitment to access and equity by embracing a direct-entry, non-portfolio model in order to create “pathways that improve access, choice, and success.” While other Creative Writing majors in Ontario require a portfolio for entry into their second-, third-, and fourth-year writing workshops, we understand that students’ talents develop at different rates and that competition for limited spaces stunts rather than nurtures student talent and prevents the creation of an inclusive environment.
As for stewarding valued resources, the Creative Writing major would be a significant contribution to two of the university’s research strengths: (1) environmental studies and (2) cultural inquiry and creative practice. The major would encourage students to use art-based inquiry and techniques to address societal issues by engaging the research on biodiversity, ecology and the environment—core areas of distinction at the University of Guelph—in their creative work.
The major would also prepare students “to articulate their transferrable skills with confidence as they navigate their future lives” (CASP) by laying the groundwork for their future career in any profession in which a high-level of linguistic ability, the capacity to write collaboratively with others, and an adeptness at creating compelling narratives about pressing social issues are important skills. In other words, the sustained writing practice gained in the major, accompanied by an ongoing reading practice, prepares students for a variety of careers in which narrative and story-telling skill, linguistic facility, and empathetic awareness of a diversity of points of view are valued, including in 7 the nonprofit sector, medicine, business, politics and teaching. Our students will build knowledge- sharing partnerships with Experiential Learning courses, such as, ENGL*3000 “Editorial Experience,” in which students publish an e-journal that showcases the creative work of the University’s student body, thereby gaining valuable work experience and an awareness of the broader literary and cultural landscape. Students also have the option of using their creative talents to shape and foster their relationship with various community partners by taking courses like ENGL*2370 “Literature and Community-Engaged Learning”; HUMN*3180 “Community Engagement Project”; and/or HUMN*3190 “Experiential Learning.”
The major would also give our students a distinct advantage when attempting to achieve the professional credentials of a writer, such as an MFA degree. Entry into MFA programs is incredibly competitive, and admission generally requires a portfolio of polished work. In their fourth-year capstone course, students produce a polished portfolio of creative writing that they can use when applying for creative jobs, for publication, or entry into a nationally recognized MFA program. Our majors would gain expertise in two genres of writing and create a polished portfolio in one genre, thereby preparing them for professional careers or future professional study. Potential career models are provided by University of Guelph Creative Writing MFA graduates, who have gone on to found the Brampton-based Festival of Literary Diversity and Inkwell, a Toronto program of creative writing workshops for those living with mental health or addiction issues; to work as editors; and to teach at the secondary and post-secondary level in the field of creative writing.
The creation of the Creative Writing major is strongly driven by student interest in the field of creative writing. The creation of the Creative Writing Major promises to help the university attract top students and meet learners’ changing needs (nurturing a distinctive university culture). The Creative Writing Major will attract a whole new segment of the prospective student population: self-identified creative writers. Prospective students who are serious about pursuing creative writing and wish to stay in the Golden Horseshoe currently only have three university options: York University, OCAD University and University of Toronto-Scarborough. None of these universities offers our unique focus on social justice and environmental awareness as a praxis for engaging with the realities of our current moment and the world into which our students will graduate. The creation of the Creative Writing Major would provide a comprehensive slate of socially engaged creative-writing courses and enable us to compete more effectively for Ontario students from a diversity of backgrounds eager to use creative writing as a means for addressing pressing social and environmental issues. The major promises to function not only as a recruiting tool, but as a course of study that has the potential to improve our retention and student satisfaction rates.
As stated above, the Creative Writing major will help the university to steward valued resources. Since the Creative Writing minor’s introduction, enrollments in English’s lecture courses have greatly increased and are almost always completely enrolled, reversing a former trend of decreasing enrollments. The creation of the Creative Writing major would continue to bolster enrollments in the College’s literature courses. We expect that the creation of the major will greatly benefit the School of English and Theatre Studies (SETS) and the School of Languages and Literatures (SOLAL), as well as the new Culture and Technology Studies major/minor. The major would also strengthen the bond between the undergraduate programs of the School of English and Theatre Studies and its
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prestigious, nationally recognized MFA program in Toronto. It would enhance the University of Guelph’s reputation as a Creative Writing hub and a locus for Creative Writing as a crucial element of Environmental Humanities and Environmental Studies, more broadly. In summary, the Creative Writing major would help contribute to the College’s plan of becoming “a hub for research, creativity, and transformative education that fosters people’s ability to be human, to act with compassion and empathy” (CASP).
1.3 Letters of Support List the letters of support indicating clear commitment of support from units/programs proposing the new program (Dean and Chair(s)/Director(s) of the sponsoring units). Include (if appropriate) letters of support from student groups or external partners.
• Letter of support from the Dean of the College of Arts • Letter of support from the Chair of the School of English and Theatre Studies • Student letters of support
For letters of support, see Appendix A.
Program Requirements
2.1 Proposed Program and Course Details Outline the proposed program Calendar Copy with a preamble and schedule of studies, including core courses, elective courses and additional academic requirements.
School of English and Theatre Studies, College of Arts
Creative Writing (CRWR) Major
The goal of the Creative Writing Major is to prepare students to become socially aware professional writers and creative professionals. Towards that end, the creative writing program provides students with the opportunity to engage with issues of environmental awareness and social justice through creative practice. Students also gain a depth and breadth of understanding of literature, enabling them to analyze and evaluate how their creative practice engages, revises, or contests literary traditions, genres, and forms. The purpose of combining literary studies and creative practice is to produce a unique form of aesthetic maturity.
In their course of study, majors explore three writing genres, gain expertise in two, and create a polished creative portfolio in one while minors gain skill in two writing genres. By the end of the program, students will be able to create original, compelling creative work by achieving a breadth and understanding of the techniques of creative craft and form across two genres.
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MAJOR (Honours Program)
A minimum of 8.50 credits is required, including:
Creative Writing core (4.00 credits) as follows:
CRWR*1000 [0.50] Elements of Storytelling CRWR*2000 [0.50] Reading as a Writer ENGL*1080 [0.50] Literatures in English I: Reading the Past ENGL*2380 [0.50] Reading Poetry 2.00 credits additional credits from English courses (excluding ENGL*1030 Effective Writing”)
Creative Writing restricted electives (4.50 credits) to include:
1.50 credits from the following: CRWR*2100 [0.50] Fiction Workshop: Writing the Anthropocene CRWR*2150 [0.50] Speculative Fiction Workshop CRWR*2200 [0.50] Creative Nonfiction Workshop: Writing Nature CRWR*2300 [0.50] Poetry Workshop CRWR*2400 [0.50] Screenwriting Workshop THST*2120 [0.50] Writing for Performance
1.00 credits from the following: CRWR*3100 [0.50] Fiction Writing Workshop CRWR*3200 [0.50] Creative Nonfiction Writing Workshop CRWR*3300 [0.50] Poetry Workshop: Ecopoetics CRWR*3400 [0.50] Screenwriting Workshop: Writing for Inclusive Screens CRWR*3500 [0.50] Advanced Writing for Performance: Writing for the Inclusive Stage
1.00 credits from the following: CRWR*4100 [1.00] Capstone Prose/Narrative Workshop CRWR*4300 [1.00] Capstone Poetics Workshop CRWR*4400 [1.00] Capstone Scriptwriting Workshop
1.00 credits from the following courses: Note: Courses may have prerequisites; students are encouraged to review the prerequisites and restrictions for individual courses. CLAS*2000 [0.50] Classical Mythology CLAS*3030 [0.50] Epic Heroes and Poems EURO*1100 [0.50] European Cinema EURO*2200 [0.50] European Modernism EURO*3000 [0.50] Revolution and the Fantastic EURO*3300 [0.50] Violence and Culture FREN*2020 [0.50] France: Literature and Society FREN*2060 [0.50] Quebec: Literature and Society 10
FREN*3030 [0.50] Good and Evil FREN*3090 [0.50] Classics of French Literature FREN*3110 [0.50] Storytelling in the Francophone World FREN*3130 [0.50] Representing the Self FREN*3140 [0.50] Women in Literature, Art and Film FREN*3160 [0.50] Songs, Lyrics and Poetry in French FREN*3170 [0.50] Fictions of Childhood HUMN*3020 [0.50] Myth and Fairy Tales in Germany HUMN*3180 [0.50] Community Engagement Project HUMN*3190 [0.50] Experiential Learning HUMN*3400 [0.50] Renaissance Lovers and Fools HUMN*3470 [0.50] Holocaust & WWII in German Lit. & Film HUMN*4190 [0.50] Experiential Learning SPAN*2990 [0.50] Hispanic Literary Studies SPAN*3220 [0.50] Literature and Arts I: Spain THST*1040 [0.50] Introduction to Performance THST*1200 [0.50] The Languages of Media THST*2450 [0.50] Approaches to Media Studies THST*2500 [0.50] Contemporary Cinema THST*3140 [0.50] Performance and the Past THST*3530 [0.50] Canadian Cinema
See Appendix G for sample Student Progression through the program. Students’ selection of courses must also follow the BA Program Regulations, including the Distribution Requirements, in order to graduate.
Creative Writing Courses
A total of 16 new or revised courses will be delivered as a part of the curriculum.
Credit Semester Course Code Course Name Weight Offered CRWR*1000 Elements of Storytelling (replaces ENGL*2920) 0.5 F,W CRWR*2000 Reading as a Writer 0.5 W ENGL*2380 Reading Poetry 0.5 F CRWR*2100 Fiction Workshop: Writing the Anthropocene 0.5 F CRWR*2150 Speculative Fiction Workshop 0.5 W CRWR*2200 Creative Nonfiction Workshop: Writing Nature 0.5 W CRWR*2300 Poetry Workshop 0.5 W CRWR*2400 Screenwriting Workshop 0.5 F CRWR*3100 Fiction Writing Workshop (formerly ENGL*3050) 0.5 F, W CRWR*3200 Creative Nonfiction Writing Workshop (formerly ENGL*3030) 0.5 F CRWR*3300 Poetry Workshop: Ecopoetics (replaces ENGL*3060) 0.5 F
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CRWR*3400 Screenwriting Workshop: Writing for Inclusive Screens (replaces ENGL*3070) 0.5 W CRWR*3500 Advanced Writing for Performance: Writing for the Inclusive Stage 0.5 W CRWR*4100 Capstone Prose/Narrative Workshop (formerly ENGL*4720) 1.0 F,W CRWR*4300 Capstone Poetics Workshop 1.0 W CRWR*4400 Capstone Scriptwriting Workshop 1.0 F
Implementation of the new/revised courses will be as follows:
Year 1 Year 2 Year 3 Year 4 Course Code Course Title 2022/23 2023/24 2024/25 2025/26 F W F W F W F W CRWR*1000 F,W Elements of Storytelling (replaces ENGL*2920) CRWR*2000 W Reading as a Writer ENGL*2380 F Reading Poetry CRWR*2100 F Fiction Workshop: Writing the Anthropocene CRWR*2150 W Speculative Fiction Workshop CRWR*2200 W Creative Nonfiction Workshop: Writing Nature CRWR*2300 W Poetry Workshop CRWR*2400 F Screenwriting Workshop CRWR*3100 F,W Fiction Writing Workshop (formerly ENGL*3050) CRWR*3200 F Creative Nonfiction Writing Workshop
(formerly ENGL*3030) Program Launch CRWR*3300 F Poetry Workshop: Ecopoetics (replaces ENGL*3060) CRWR*3400 W Screenwriting Workshop: Writing for Inclusive Screens (replaces ENGL*3070) CRWR*3500 W Advanced Writing for Performance: Writing for the Inclusive Stage CRWR*4100 F,W Capstone Prose/Narrative Workshop (formerly ENGL*4720) CRWR*4300 W Capstone Poetics Workshop CRWR*4400 F Capstone Scriptwriting Workshop
Course Outlines for core courses and new Creative Writing courses are available in Appendix B.
Course Descriptions
Core Courses CRWR*1000 Elements of Storytelling [0.50] (replaces ENGL*2920) Students will learn the basics of writing a fictional narrative in this lecture-workshop course. Student skills are developed through a combination of lectures, workshops, peer editing, creative writing exercises, and exams.
CRWR*2000 Reading as a Writer [0.50]
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This course is designed to teach students how to read literature as writers. Students will analyze the construction of literary texts in order to improve their knowledge and application of each element of storytelling (character, point of view, dialogue, setting, scene, and narrative arc). The goal of this course is to hone aspiring writers’ critical thinking and creative skills through lectures on the reading, close readings of literary texts, and creative writing exercises based on literary models.
ENGL*1080 Literatures in English I: Reading the Past [0.50] This course is focused on the disciplinary skill of close reading and is intended for students planning to specialize in the study of English Literature. Through a series of case studies, the course introduces students to a range of historical and national writings in prose, poetry, and drama, and to some of the key terms and concepts in contemporary literary studies. Lectures and discussions address selected works from the Middle Ages onwards, the periods in which these works were produced, and some of the ways in which these texts have been or could be interpreted. ENGL*1080 and its companion course, ENGL*2080, are required for a major or minor in English. Students are encouraged to enrol in ENGL*2080 in the semester after they have completed ENGL*1080. Reading - and writing-intensive course.
ENGL*2380 Reading Poetry [0.50] This course offers an introduction to the challenges posed by poetic discourse and provides students with the practical tools they need to analyze and appreciate verse. Students will read and analyze a broad range of verse practice in English, thereby gaining a base repertoire through which they can approach future encounters with poetry in other classes. Significant portions of the course will be devoted to thinking about poetry in historical terms.
New/Revised Courses CRWR*2100 Fiction Workshop: Writing the Anthropocene [0.50] The term 'Anthropocene' is the name of a new epoch in which the human species has become a geological force, largely driven by industrialization, extractivism, and reliance on technology, that has caused climate change, species extinction and loss of biodiversity. Students will explore the cultural implications of this epochal shift by crafting fiction that helps them rethink the relationships among nature, culture and technology and consider how writing the Anthropocene invites new approaches to received fictional forms. This course will encourage students to engage from diverse perspectives with issues involving planetary change brought about by human activity while honing their creative writing skills.
CRWR*2150 Speculative Fiction Workshop [0.50] There are many modes of fiction that can address issues of social justice beyond the realistic. In this course students will engage with fiction as a mode for creating expanded imaginaries that address pressing social problems and inequalities in our society. They will consider how fiction is a means of world creation, including the futuristic, fantastic and dystopic, and explore how fiction is a mode for entering the perspectives of others, sometimes those radically not like us.
CRWR*2200 Creative Nonfiction Workshop: Writing Nature [0.50]
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In this course, students will learn a range of techniques and approaches, including memoir and the creative essay, for writing nonfiction about the natural world and the human relationship to it. Traditional nature writing placed humans on one side and nature on the other, often as an untouched, wild environment to be explored and described. In this course we will consider nature writing in an era of ecological loss and high-tech science, when access to land, clean water and air are prominent social justice issues and when it is no longer possible to separate nature from the realm of the human.
CRWR*2300 Poetry Workshop [0.50] This course offers an introduction to writing poetic forms. Students will gain an understanding of the basic elements of poetry writing: line, metre, imagery, rhyme, rhythm, syntax, and metaphor, sound and sense. Through practical experiments in individual and collaborative poem writing, students will learn about global poetic forms such as the ballad, the sonnet, the blues, the villanelle, the sestina, the ghazal, the haiku, the renga and the pantoum.
CRWR*2400 Screenwriting Workshop [0.50] This workshop introduces students to the fundamentals of screenwriting through various writing, reading, and viewing assignments and exercises, as well as the workshopping of students’ written work. Topics will include: screenplay formatting, story theme, character development, story lines, scene construction, and the basic three-act storytelling structure. The course content may focus on: documentary and/or short-form (children's programming, advertising) screenwriting, animation, and/or introductions to specific genres and subgenres.
CRWR*3100 Fiction Writing Workshop [0.50] (formerly ENGL*3050) Students will gain a deeper understanding of the basic elements of creative writing (character development, effective dialogue, narrative arc, and setting) through practical experiments, discussions, and group writing exercises. Through the writing workshops, students will hone their skills as creative writers, critical thinkers, and editors.
CRWR*3200 Creative Nonfiction Writing Workshop [0.50] (formerly ENGL*3030) Students will be introduced to one or more major forms of creative nonfiction—memoirs, personal essays, feature articles, reviews, profiles, nature writing, and literary travelogues. Students will craft works of creative nonfiction, share them with their peers, and offer constructive and respectful evaluations of their peers’ work in a workshop format. Students will also read excerpts of professionally published creative nonfiction and encouraged to borrow from, experiment with, and playfully alter some the creative writing techniques displayed by the professional writers.
CRWR*3300 Poetry Workshop: Ecopoetics [0.50] (replaces ENGL*3060) In this workshop, students will gain a deeper understanding of the basic elements of poetry (form, line, metre, imagery, rhyme, rhythm, syntax and metaphor) by focusing on eco-poetry. In their creative practice, students will achieve a nuanced understanding of how poetic form and language can reflect and generate an environmental attentiveness.
CRWR*3400 Screenwriting Workshop: Writing for Inclusive Screens [0.50] (replaces ENGL*3070)
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Students will develop original story concepts through concept kits, character work, outlines, scenes and a short screenplay. Students will be challenged to sharpen their awareness of difference (race, disability, gender, sexuality and/or class) and apply this awareness in their creative work. While being critically aware of issues of cultural appropriation and reductive representations, students will learn how to practice inclusivity in their creative work.
CRWR*3500 Advanced Writing for Performance: Writing for the Inclusive Stage [0.50] This is an advanced course in writing for various modes of performance. The students will build on the story-telling skills they learned in THST*2120, the introductory Writing for Performance class. Students will focus on writing stories that focus on social issues, marginalized groups (race, disability, gender, sexuality) or the environment, as well as explore issues of appropriation. Students will closely and critically read screenplays (or watch the films) and stage plays which have had a serious social impact and look at the way they are different from films and plays which simply reaffirm mainstream belief systems.
CRWR*4100 Capstone Prose/Narrative Workshop [1.0] (formerly ENGL*4720) A development and extension of the creative writing/reading skills and techniques introduced in the creative writing workshops. This course will involve the generation and revision of challenging new work, sophisticated critique of the work of other students, and focused discussion of the cultural, social, and political issues in which the practice of creative writing is enmeshed.
CRWR*4300 Capstone Poetics Workshop [1.0] This advanced poetry workshop will involve the generation and revision of new work, sophisticated critique of student work, and focused discussion of cultural, social, and political issues in which the practice of poetry writing is enmeshed. This course may also focus on the application of poetic elements in hybrid forms and mixed-mode narratives. This capstone course will give students the opportunity to create a polished, bound chapbook of 500-800 lines.
CRWR*4400 Capstone Scriptwriting Workshop [1.0] This capstone course focuses on scriptwriting and may involve writing for the screen, writing for the stage, or both. Students will begin the course by creating an outline of a full length feature film or play and will then be expected to make significant progress on their creative projects. This workshop course will also involve the sophisticated analysis and critique of scripts and focused discussions of the cultural, social, political and professional issues in which the practice of scriptwriting is enmeshed.
Additional courses, including restricted electives, will be delivered by the College of Arts and School of Languages and Literatures. Evidence of consultation is available in Appendix F. Course descriptions for existing courses can be found in the Undergraduate Calendar:
• English (ENGL) • Theatre Studies (THST) • European Studies (EURO) • Classical Studies (CLAS)
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• French Studies (FREN) • Humanities (HUMN) • Spanish (SPAN)
2.2 Admission Requirements a) List the admission requirements of the proposed program. • ENG4U (Grade 12 University English) • five additional 4U or 4M courses (Grade 12 U = University level; M=Mixed)
The above admission requirements are common to the Bachelor of Arts, including majors. The average of the six courses forms the student’s GPA during the application cycle. Admission Services, in consultation with the Registrar and Associate Deans, establishes the annual cut-off ranges for each of the University’s degree programs.
b) Indicate the appropriateness of the admission requirements for ensuring adequate achievement and preparation for entry into the proposed program. The Creative Writing major will be a direct-entry program, providing aspiring writers with a four-year creative educational experience. Allowing direct entry into the program supports student success and retention by removing impediments to student progression and developing a cohort of students. The program recognizes direct-entry is a point of differentiation among most Canadian Creative Writing programs and is confident the program design will allow students with varying writing abilities to progress and thrive.
c) List any proposed alternative admission requirements and rationale. The program will allow late entry into Creative Writing. It is common for students within the Bachelor of Arts to change majors, and the program does not want to limit a student’s opportunity. At this time the College of Arts is actively aiming to increase its overall student enrollment and will increase its course offerings to meet student demand as necessary.
d) For new majors within an already approved undergraduate degree program, indicate whether the admission requirements differ from existing requirements within the degree program. If different, provide the rationale. The current requirements for admission to the BA program are sufficient for entry into the Creative Writing Program. The Creative Writing program will be a direct-entry major and minor; no portfolios or writing samples will be needed. The admission requirements for new majors within an already approved undergraduate degree program will remain the same.
2.3 Research and Experiential Learning Detail research and/or experiential learning activities indicating whether required or elective. Curricular experiential learning categories include applied research, certificate programs, co-
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operative education, community engaged learning (CEL), field courses, professional practice, and course-integrated activities.
Consult the Experiential Learning Faculty & Staff webpage to determine which categories of Experiential Learning (EL) opportunities are present. Indicate and rank the categories by course. Indicate which of the six Experiential Learning criteria are met in each activity.
Creative Writing students who wish to take experiential learning (EL) courses may take ENGL*3000 Editorial Experience as an elective. This course provides a combination of theoretical background and practical, hands-on experience in the field of literary magazine editing and publishing. Students will produce a digital undergraduate literary journal devoted to showcasing the writing of the University of Guelph community, gaining digital literacy and practical editing skills. Duties involved in the production of a digital journal will include mastering a digital publishing platform (Open Journal System), soliciting, and evaluating submissions, editing, proofreading, creating publicity, and more. Students will study the art and technique of editing by exploring the diverse landscape of contemporary literary culture available in both web-based and physical formats, including the range of current Canadian literary journals, editor-author correspondence, and original and edited texts, thereby gaining a greater understanding of current literary and literary journal culture in Canada and beyond.
Creative Writing students may also take ENGL*2370 “Literature and Community-Engaged Learning”; HUMN*3180 “Community Engagement Project”; and/or HUMN*3190 “Experiential Learning.” These community-engaged learning (CEL) courses aim to foster relationships between students and various community partners (local historical societies, art galleries, hospitals, schools, media outlets, and service organizations). They offer students the opportunity to use their creative skills and/or their study of literature to connect with Guelph community. Through internships, field trips, archival research, interviews, and/or service, students will produce research for public dissemination (talks, conferences, exhibits, publications, podcasts, performances, etc.).
Most of the creative writing workshops contain an experiential learning component. In their workshops, students critiquing student work act as editors, providing an in-depth review, which includes suggestions for revision. Students whose work is being workshopped participate in a standard professional activity as a writer since most writers must work with editors and learn how to revise their work in light of criticism. In the third and fourth years, additional EL components are added to the workshop courses. This may involve public readings of student work, table reads, research about competitions and grants, publishing and self-publishing options, going through the editorial process, the creation of bound chapbooks, and/or discussions regarding aspects of the creative profession. Courses directly addressing environmental or social justice issues may engage with local climate-justice or environmental organizations. In these third- and fourth-year workshops, students will reflect upon these experiential learning components in a short essay.
Experiential Learning Course Summary
Course EL Categories (ranked) MCU EL Criteria Met
ENGL*3000 Editorial Experience 1. Professional/Career Practice All 6 criteria 17
2. Course-Integrated 3. Community Engaged Learning ENGL*2370 Literature and Community- 1. Community Engaged Learning All 6 criteria Engaged Learning HUMN*3180 Community Engagement 1. Professional/Career Practice All 6 criteria Project HUMN*3190 Experiential Learning 1. Professional/Career Practice All 6 criteria CRWR*2100 Writing the Anthropocene 1. Course-Integrated 3-5 criteria 2. Professional/Career Practice CRWR*2150 Speculative Fiction Workshop 1. Course-Integrated 3-5 criteria 2. Professional/Career Practice CRWR*2200 Creative Nonfiction 1. Course-Integrated 3-5 criteria Workshop: Writing Nature 2. Professional/Career Practice CRWR*2300 Poetry Workshop 1. Course-Integrated All 6 criteria 2. Professional/Career Practice 3. Community Engaged Learning CRWR*2400 Screenwriting Workshop 1. Course-Integrated All 6 criteria 2. Professional/Career Practice CRWR*3300 Poetry Workshop: Ecopoetics 1. Course-Integrated All 6 criteria 2. Professional/Career Practice 3. Community Engaged Learning CRWR*3400 Screenwriting Workshop: 1. Course-Integrated All 6 criteria Writing for Inclusive Screens 2. Professional/Career Practice CRWR*3500 Advanced Writing for 1. Course-Integrated All 6 criteria Performance: Writing for the Inclusive 2. Professional/Career Practice Stage 3. Work Experience CRWR*4300 Capstone Poetics Workshop 1. Course-Integrated All 6 criteria 2. Professional Practice CRWR*4400 Capstone Scriptwriting 1. Course-Integrated All 6 criteria Workshop 2. Professional/Career Practice
2.4 Capstone Requirements Identify thesis, major paper or other capstone requirement, indicating whether required or elective.
Creative Writing majors are required to take one 4000-level capstone writing workshop, which will be a full credit. By the end of the course, students will produce a portfolio in one genre for possible admission into an MFA program or a draft of a manuscript or screenplay for future development, publication or production. Students will be assessed on their ability to produce: a sustained literary work of skilled quality that demonstrates technical confidence; a distinct individual voice; and an aesthetically sophisticated engagement with a creative form.
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Program Learning Outcomes and University of Guelph Learning Outcomes
See Appendix C (Curriculum Overview Map and Learning Outcomes Alignment Table)
3.1 Proposed Specialization Learning Outcomes a) List the Degree program learning outcomes and specialization learning outcomes.
The Bachelor of Arts Learning Outcomes include (available in Appendix C) • Community Engagement and Global Understanding • Critical and Creative Thinking • Literacy and Communication • Evaluate and Conduct Research • Depth and Breadth of Understanding • Professional Development and Ethical Behavior
Creative Writing Learning Outcomes:
By completion of this program, a student should be able to:
Critical and Creative Thinking 1. creatively and critically apply the knowledge and critical understanding of the elements of storytelling, literary devices, and genre-specific methodologies to devise the best approaches for achieving their creative goals, literary effects and/or aesthetic ends. 2. critically evaluate creative work, utilizing their firm grasp of the elements of storytelling, as well as literary forms and techniques, to propose creative, informed solutions to problems, flaws, and issues with the writing. 3. achieve an aesthetic maturity through the analysis and critical evaluation of literature.
Communication 4. gain expertise in the elements of storytelling, poetics, and/or scriptwriting in their writing. 5. produce a sustained literary work of skilled quality that demonstrates technical confidence, a distinct individual voice, an awareness of audience, and an aesthetically sophisticated engagement with a literary form. 6. articulate their creative decisions and offer nuanced, in-depth critique of others’ work (both written and oral) in group collaborations and workshops.
Literacy 7. apply a disciplinary vocabulary that enables the student to discuss, analyze, and evaluate the elements of storytelling, poetics and/or scriptwriting. 8. achieve a depth and breadth of understanding of literature by reading across a range of genres, historical periods, traditions, movements, and points of view. 9. approach their aesthetic practice in an analytical and informed manner; to situate their writing within a literary context; and to assess how their creative work participates or departs from a larger literary tradition. 19
Global Understanding 10. demonstrate a global understanding of issues regarding environmental awareness and/or social justice in their creative practice, using their creative work to engage in a dialogue for change. 11. demonstrate a global understanding by situating texts within different historical, cultural and discursive contexts. 12. recognize the ethical implications of their own and others’ writing, as well as understand arguments about issues of appropriation and representation.
Professionalism 13. work productively in a group setting by debating issues and presenting ideas in class with a high degree of professionalism and responding respectfully and comprehensively to questions posed. 14. achieve organizational and time management skills in order to be prepared for class and submit work by assigned deadlines. 15. undertake the professional practices of a writer, poet, and/or scriptwriter either through creative practice or community engagement.
b) Outline and describe how the learning outcomes enhance, overall, the undergraduate curriculum.
Critical and Creative Thinking
The introduction of the Creative Writing major will enhance the undergraduate curriculum by providing more opportunities for students to combine critical thinking skills with their creative practice. By developing a knowledge and critical understanding of the elements of storytelling and genre-specific methodologies, students will be able to analyze and evaluate the role of technique, form, and genre in aesthetic production.
The major encourages students to engage in a continual process of problem solving in the initial production of their creative work; in their critiques of their fellow students’ writing; and in the revision of their writing. In producing their creative works, students creatively apply the knowledge and critical understanding of the elements of storytelling, literary devices, and genre- specific methodologies to devise the best approaches for achieving their aesthetic ends. In their critiques and revisions, students utilize their firm grasp of the elements of storytelling, poetics, and/or scriptwriting, as well as literary forms and techniques, to propose creative, informed solutions to problems, flaws, and issues with their creative writing and their fellow student writers’ work.
Creative Writing majors will help diversify approaches to literary study by engaging in textual and cultural analyses that address the aesthetic, theoretical and social questions that will shape their creative work. By approaching literary study as a writer, students think critically about how their creative practice engages, revises, or contests literary traditions, genres, and forms. This combination of critical thinking and creative practice produces a unique form of aesthetic maturity. 20
Ultimately, creative writing is its own epistemology: it offers students a praxis for making meaning about themselves, the world in which they live and the world to come. It provides opportunities for building alternative worlds in order to understand our own through this imaginative practice; through world-building, it offers students opportunities to give voice to and explore experiences of complexity. It provides students opportunities to enter other bodies through imaginative practice, to give expression to difficult emotions, including climate grief and experiences of racism. Students gain skills in ethical and esthetic issues of representation, and learn to understand how the dual action of where they place their attention and what they leave out has both esthetic and ethical consequences, particularly in a social-justice context.
Communication
One of the major ways the Creative Writing major will enhance the undergraduate curriculum is by providing students with a comprehensive writing-intensive education that emphasizes creativity. The major encourages them to hone their communication skills, both oral and written, by undertaking the study of three writing genres, gaining expertise in two, and creating a polished portfolio. Every creative writing workshop uses a writing-intensive approach to teach students how to achieve an advanced competency in the elements and techniques of creative writing. The goal of every creative writing course is to help students perfect their writing by combining aesthetic, technical and cultural knowledge into a work that compellingly combines imagination and shapeliness. At the end of their four years, students will have produced a substantial body of written work, culminating in a portfolio in their fourth year. The portfolio enables students to produce sustained creative work of skilled quality that demonstrates technical confidence, a distinct individual voice and an aesthetically sophisticated engagement with a creative form.
Creative Writing majors learn one of the most important goals of writing: communicating to an audience. The major’s workshop format helps to enhance University of Guelph’s curriculum by giving students an audience for their writing. Instead of a student simply writing to the professor and an imagined audience, the student writers are given an audience for their writing in every creative writing workshop. By repeatedly having their written work read by an audience and receiving critiques from a wide variety of readers, student writers learn what aspects of their writing resonated with readers and what did not. They gain a more nuanced understanding of their own subjectivity and the differing subjectivities of others. They learn to interrogate not only whether their work is comprehensible but compelling, as well.
The workshop methods offers another unique opportunity: feedback from several readers. If students only receive feedback from a professor, it may be difficult for them to discern or accept certain patterns, both negative and positive, in their writings. Feedback from several readers helps students address consistent issues in their writing. The workshop also gives student writers the opportunity to have their work read from multiple perspectives, thereby receiving insights from readers of different backgrounds and interests. This feedback prepares students to engage in a practice that is essential to good writing and communication: revision. Students learn that good writing often requires multiple drafts. Through their workshop experiences, students learn to identify helpful feedback and revise their creative writing accordingly.
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The Creative Writing major also provides a space for students to hone their oral communication skills. In workshops, students must articulate their creative decisions orally to their fellow writers. More importantly, they must offer nuanced, in-depth oral and written responses to others’ work in group collaborations and workshops. Many creative writing workshops, especially poetry workshops and scriptwriting courses, involve performance, requiring students to either read their work aloud to an audience or have their work performed.
Literacy
In their workshops, students will learn and apply a disciplinary vocabulary that enables them to discuss, analyze, and evaluate the elements of storytelling, poetics and/or scriptwriting in two different genres. In their literature courses, students will achieve a depth and breadth of understanding of literature by reading across a range of genres, historical periods, traditions, movements, and points of view. The Creative Writing major, however, will provide a unique approach to literacy as students complete a comprehensive program of reading that will enable them to make informed aesthetic judgments in their creative work as they compare and evaluate the merits and drawbacks of various narrative strategies. The literature courses, in other words, will help students achieve an understanding of literary traditions, genres, and forms that will enable them to approach their aesthetic practice in an analytical and informed manner; to situate their writing within a literary context; and to assess how their creative work participates or departs from a larger literary tradition. At the end of their program, students will be able to articulate a response on the craft of writing in regard to form and genre, literary and cultural contexts, literary antecedents and historical traditions.
Global Understanding
The Creative Writing major enhances the undergraduate curriculum by making global understanding an integral component in the achievement of aesthetic maturity. The goal of the Creative Writing Major is to prepare students to become socially aware writers, professionals, and global citizens, by having students use their creative practice as a way to model environmental and social justice issues pressing in the world today. In doing so, students achieve a global understanding of issues affecting society and the environment by using creative work to engage in a dialogue for change and achieve a heightened understanding of the complexity of such issues. In doing so, they approach their creative work as a potential site of civic knowledge and engagement, understanding the role narrative can play in conveying different points of view; shaping cultural knowledge; and recognizing how esthetic choices in all genres have ethical implications. By addressing issues of the environment and social justice, students will demonstrate an understanding of how creative writing in the form or genre under study reflects and/or contributes to different cultural, historical, and discursive contexts.
Professional and Ethical Behaviour
Because the Creative Writing major focuses on the small-class, discursive format of the workshop, Creative Writing majors achieve a high degree of professionalism because each workshop requires them to work productively in a group setting. As they openly discuss and
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critique a creative piece, they learn to debate issues productively with their peers, recognizing that respectful disagreement implies intellectual vibrancy. They learn to engage respectfully and professionally with the creative writing of other workshop participants and provide peer responses within the stated timeframe. They must present ideas in class with a high degree of professionalism and respond respectfully and comprehensively to questions posed. They learn to organize their work and manage their time in order to complete a large, long-term, individually directed creative writing project. Starting in their second or third year, many workshops have an experiential learning (EL) component that encourages students to begin engaging in the professional aspects of being a writer (submissions, editorial process, public readings, table reads, creating bound chapbooks, engaging with micro-presses and online self-publishing, etc.).
c) Indicate how the identified outcomes will be assessed and in which specific courses.
Program Learning Outcomes (PLOs) Course Codes Assessments
PLO 1 Creatively and critically apply the CRWR*1000 (a, b, c) a. short creative writing knowledge and critical understanding of CRWR*2000 (a) exercises CRWR*2100 (a, b, c) the elements of storytelling, literary CRWR*2150 (a, b, c) b. creative work (short devises, and genre-specific methodologies CRWR*2200 (a, b, c) stories, poems, to devise the best approaches for achieving CRWR*2300 (a, b, c) screenplays, scripts, and/or their creative goals, literary effects and/or CRWR*2400 (a, b, c) creative nonfiction essays aesthetic ends. THST*2120 (a, b, c) c. revision of creative work CRWR*3100 (a, b, c) CRWR*3200 (a, b, c) d. a chapbook or portfolio CRWR*3300 (a, b, c) of polished work CRWR*3400 (a, b, c) CRWR*3500 (a, b, c) CRWR*4100 (a, b, c, d) CRWR*4300 (a, b, c, d) CRWR*4400 (a, b, c, d) PLO 2 Critically evaluate creative work, utilizing CRWR*1000 (a, b, c, d) a. workshop participation their firm grasp of the elements of CRWR*2000 (b, d) (both oral and written CRWR*2100 (a, b, c, d) storytelling, as well as literary forms and CRWR*2150 (a, b, c, d) critiques) techniques, to propose creative, informed CRWR*2200 (a, b, c, d) b. short creative writing solutions to problems, flaws, and issues CRWR*2300 (a, b, c, d) exercises with the writing. CRWR*2400 (a, b, c, d) c. revision of creative work THST*2120 (a, b, c) d. close readings (writing CRWR*3100 (a, b, c, d) CRWR*3200 (a, b, c, d) assignments and CRWR*3300 (a, b, c, d) discussions of readings) CRWR*3400 (a, b, c, d) CRWR*3500 (a, b, c, d) CRWR*4100 (a, b, c) CRWR*4300 (a, b, c) CRWR*4400 (a, b, c) PLO 3 Achieve an aesthetic maturity through the ENGL*1080 (a, b, c) a. Close readings (writing analysis and critical evaluation of literature ENGL*2380 (a, b, c) assignments and CRWR*2000 (a, b, d) CRWR*3100 (c, d) discussions of readings) CRWR*3200 (c, d) b. Written exams CRWR*3300 (c, d) c. Essays CRWR*4100 (d) 23
CRWR*4300 (d) d. Reflection essays CRWR*4400 (d) 2.0 credits in English (a, b, c) 1.0 credits from Literature, and Media courses (a, b, c) PLO 4 Master the elements of storytelling, CRWR*1000 (a, b, c, d, e) a. short creative writing poetics, and/or scriptwriting in their CRWR*2000 (a, d, e) exercises CRWR*2100 (a, b, c, d) writing. CRWR*2150 (a, b, c, d) b. creative work CRWR*2200 (a, b, c, d) c. revision of creative work CRWR*2300 (a, b, c, d) d. close readings CRWR*2400 (a, b, c, d) e. written exams THST*2120 (a, b, c) CRWR*3100 (a, b, c, d) CRWR*3200 (a, b, c, d) CRWR*3300 (a, b, c, d) CRWR*3400 (a, b, c, d) CRWR*3500 (a, b, c, d) CRWR*4100 (a, b, c) CRWR*4300 (a, b, c) CRWR*4400 (a, b, c) PLO 5 Produce sustained literary work of skilled CRWR*1000 (a, b, c) a. short creative writing quality that demonstrates technical CRWR*2000 (b, d) exercises CRWR*2100 (a, b, c) confidence, a distinct individual voice, an CRWR*2150 (a, b, c) b. creative work awareness of audience, and an CRWR*2200 (a, b, c) c. revisions aesthetically sophisticated engagement CRWR*2300 (a, b, c) d. a portfolio with a literary form. CRWR*2400 (a, b, c) THST*2120 (a, b, c) CRWR*3100 (a, b, c) CRWR*3200 (a, b, c) CRWR*3300 (a, b, c) CRWR*3400 (a, b, c) CRWR*3500 (a, b, c) CRWR*4100 (a, b, c, d) CRWR*4300 (a, b, c, d) CRWR*4400 (a, b, c, d) PLO 6 Articulate their creative decisions and offer CRWR*1000 (a) a. workshop participation nuanced, in-depth critique of others’ work CRWR*2100 (a) (both oral and written CRWR*2150 (a) (both written and oral) in group CRWR*2200 (a) critiques) collaborations and workshops CRWR*2300 (a) CRWR*2400 (a) THST*2120 (a) CRWR*3100 (a) CRWR*3200 (a) CRWR*3300 (a) CRWR*3400 (a) CRWR*3500 (a) CRWR*4100 (a) CRWR*4300 (a) CRWR*4400 (a) PLO 7 Apply a disciplinary vocabulary that enables CRWR*1000 (a, b, c) a. workshop participation the student to discuss, analyze, and CRWR*2000 (a, b, c) (both oral and written CRWR*2100 (a, b) CRWR*2150 (a, b) critiques) 24
evaluate the elements of storytelling, CRWR*2200 (a, b) b. close readings (writing poetics and/or scriptwriting. CRWR*2300 (a, b) assignments and CRWR*2400 (a, b) THST*2120 (a) discussions of readings) CRWR*3100 (a, b) c. written exams CRWR*3200 (a, b) CRWR*3300 (a, b) CRWR*3400 (a, b) CRWR*3500 (a, b) CRWR*4100 (a, b) CRWR*4300 (a, b) CRWR*4400 (a, b) PLO 8 Achieve a depth and breadth of ENGL*1080 (a, b, c) a. close readings understanding of literature by reading ENG*2380 (a, b, c) b. written exams CRWR*2000 (a, b) across a range of genres, historical periods, 2.00 credits from English c. essays traditions, movements, and points of view. (a, b, c) 1.00 credits from Lit, THST and Media (a, b, c) PLO 9 Approach their aesthetic practice in an CRWR*3100 (a) a) reflection essays analytical and informed manner; to situate CRWR*3200 (a) CRWR*3300 (a) their writing within a literary context; and CRWR*4100 (a) to assess how their creative work CRWR*4300 (a) participates or departs from a larger CRWR*4400 (a) literary tradition. PLO 10 Demonstrate a global understanding of CRWR*2100 (a, b) a) creative work issues regarding environmentalism and/or CRWR*2150 (a, b) CRWR*2200 (a, b) b) revisions social justice in their creative practice, CRWR*3300 (a, b) using their creative work to engage in a CRWR*3400 (a, b) dialogue for change. CRWR*3500 (a, b) PLO 11 Demonstrate a global understanding by ENGL*1080 (a, b) a) written exams situating texts within different historical, ENGL*2380 (a, b) b) essays 2.00 credits from English cultural and discursive contexts. (a, b) 1.00 credits from Lit, THST and Media (a, b) PLO 12 Recognize the ethical implications of their CRWR*2100 (a, b, c) a) creative work own and others’ writing, as well as CRWR*2150 (a, b, c) b) workshop participation CRWR*2200 (a, b, c) understand arguments about issues of CRWR*3300 (a, b, c) (both oral and written appropriation and representation. CRWR*3400 (a, b, c) critiques) CRWR*3500 (a, b, c) c) revisions PLO 13 Work productively in a group setting by CRWR*1000 (a) a) workshop participation debating issues and presenting ideas in CRWR*2100 (a) CRWR*2150 (a) class with a high degree of professionalism CRWR*2200 (a) and responding respectfully and CRWR*2300 (a) comprehensively to questions posed. CRWR*2400 (a) THST*2120 (a) CTWR*3100 (a) CRWR*3200 (a) CRWR*3300 (a) CRWR*3400 (a) CRWR*3500 (a) CRWR*4100 (a) 25
CRWR*4300 (a) CRWR*4400 (a) PLO 14 Achieve organizational and time CRWR*1000 (a, b, c) a. (prepared for) workshop management skills in order to be prepared CRWR*2100 (a, b, c, d) participation CRWR*2150 (a, b, c, d) for class and submit work by assigned CRWR*2200 (a, b, c, d) b. (submission of) creative deadlines. CRWR*2300 (a, b, c, d) writing exercises CRWR*2400 (a, b, c, d) c. (submission of) creative THST*2120 (a, b, c, d) work CRWR*3100 (a, b, c, d) d. (submission of) revisions CRWR*3200 (a, b, c, d) CRWR*3300 (a, b, c, d) e. (completion of) portfolio CRWR*3400 (a, b, c, d) CRWR*3500 (a, b, c, d) CTWR*4100 (a, b, c, d, e) CRWR*4300 (a, b, c, d, e) CRWR*4400 (a, b, c, d, e) PLO 15 Undertake the professional practices of a CRWR*2100 (a) a. reflection essay or writer, poet, and/or scriptwriter either CRWR*2150 discussion of EL CRWR*2200 (a) through creative practice or community CRWR*2300 (a) b. completion of a portfolio engagement CRWR*2400 (a) and/or CRWR*3100 (a) c. their academic CRWR*3200 (a) performance in an EL CRWR*3300 (a) course CRWR*3400 (a) CRWR*3500 (a) CRWR*4100 (a, b) CRWR*4300 (a, b,) CRWR*4400 (a, b) ENGL*3000 (c) ENGL*2370 (c) HUMN*3180 (c) HUMN*3190 (c)
d) Identify the appropriateness of the proposed method(s) of assessment in evaluating student progress and achievement of the learning outcomes.
Creative Writing Exercises
The short 450- to 500-word creative writing exercise is an essential learning and assessment tool for the first two years of our program. In CRWR*1000, creative writing exercises are used to assess students’ knowledge and critical understanding of the elements of storytelling (point of view, character development, setting, dialogue, scene, and narrative arc) and students’ ability to apply this knowledge in their creative work. Through lectures that explore a culturally diverse range of written work, including from racialized and indigenous writers, professors will give a sense of the possibilities of form and how students can employ specific elements of storytelling. To assess whether or not students understand how to employ an element of storytelling, students are then asked to write a creative writing exercise in which they apply what they have learned. In this exercise they practice both critical and creative thinking. They must use the reading and examples from lecture as models, expanding their sense of formal possibility, and apply this knowledge in a creative and original manner. The creative writing exercise, in other
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words, enables professors to assess both the students’ knowledge and proper application of the elements of storytelling, as well as their creativity.
CRWR*2000 reinforces what students learned about the elements of storytelling in CRWR*1000 by having students write more in-depth and rigorous creative writing exercises. For example, if in CRWR*1000 they were asked to complete a writing exercise in which they write from a first- person point of view, in CRWR*2000 they may be asked to do multiple creative writing exercises that require them to apply first-person, second-person, third-person, and omniscient points of view. The second-year workshops also employ the use of writing exercises, but these writing exercises may also function as building blocks for a larger story, essay, or creative project. Moreover, the writing exercises become an invaluable learning and assessment tool in the second-year poetry, screenwriting, and playwriting workshops, where students are introduced to genre-specific fundamentals and forms. By the third and fourth years, the creative writing exercises are used for students to attempt and professors to assess a particularly difficult or complicated application of an element of creative technique and craft.
Close Readings
In ENGL*1080, students learn how to pay close attention to language and begin to analyze how a passage creates meaning by performing several 500- to 750-word close readings. The students will read an entire book and then be given a passage from that book to analyze. They must pay close attention to the language of the passage and explain how it creates meaning by answering a specific question. Their close reading will need to address the larger themes and concerns of the text. In ENGL*1080, for example, students may be given a passage from Pride and Prejudice and asked to identify the language of consent and the language of status, focusing on specific words, phrases, and metaphors in order to explain how they clash in the passage. For their paper, they may be asked to use this close reading to address how the text as a whole resolves the tension between the language of status and the language of consent. Students learn that close reading is the foundation of any literary interpretation. Close readings enable the student to engage in textual and cultural analyses that address the aesthetic, theoretical and social questions that will shape their creative work.
In CRWR*2000, students learn to read as a writer by performing a number of close readings of assigned readings in order to consider how and why a published writer has made specific esthetic choices. CRWR*2000 is where we begin to teach students that they cannot become good writers without first becoming serious readers. In other words, they learn to be readers who compare and contrast narrative and esthetic strategies of a wide range of culturally diverse writers, including Black, racialized, indigenous, 2SLGBTQ+ writers and writers living with disabilities. Readings will be from both Canadian literature and the wider global literary community. In CRWR*2000, the close readings become a way to assess a student’s knowledge of a disciplinary vocabulary and how the student applies that vocabulary to discuss, analyze, and evaluate elements of craft. The close readings, in other words, become an opportunity for a student to perform a rigorous, sustained analysis of how an element of storytelling is employed and a way for the professor to assess such analysis. These close reading assignments prepare students to
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write in-depth and incisive workshop responses to fellow students’ creative work, as well as giving them the tools to participate in class discussions of the readings.
In their writing workshops, students are always assigned shorts stories, chapters and/or excerpts that represent a successful application of an element of storytelling. Instead of producing a written close reading of the text, students are asked to engage in class discussions that focus on the language of the text in order to explain how the author has applied an element of storytelling. The quality of their close reading is assessed as part of their participation grade.
Workshops
Workshops form the foundation of most creative writing programs’ method of instruction. In a workshop, students distribute their creative writing to the class as a whole according to a workshop schedule. Students are required to offer a nuanced, in-depth response to each other’s work. Student writers have their creative writing exercises discussed for 15-20 minutes and their longer creative work discussed for 30-40 minutes. Relying on the close-reading skills they learned (or are learning) in their first-year courses, and their developing knowledge of a discipline-specific vocabulary, students prepare a written response to the work being workshopped, which they present orally to the class. In their responses, students are assessed on their analysis of how the student writer employs the elements of form and craft and on how the student evaluates the writer’s application of such elements. In their analysis and evaluation of a student’s creative work, responding students learn to articulate where their attention is fully engaged as a reader and how the student writer is successfully employing elements of craft. They also focus on problematic areas where more work is needed and where the reader is confused and falls out of the imagined world. Workshops also help hone students’ oral communications skills since they must share their critique in a public discussion of creative work. To summarize, in workshops, both through students’ oral and written critiques, professors assess students’ ability to critically evaluate creative work and to propose creative, informed solutions to problems with the writing by utilizing their firm grasp of the elements of literary craft, including storytelling and other forms and techniques. At the end of the workshop, the instructor summarizes the analyses and evaluations regarding the students’ application of the elements of craft. Workshops will also focus on discussing literary techniques in a culturally diverse range of published work.
Students are introduced to the workshop format in CRWR*1000. Every week, after two lectures, students take one workshop, where they attempt to put the close reading skills and a disciplinary vocabulary they are learning to use in their responses to student creative work. Since CRWR*1000 is a gateway course, it is important that students be exposed to the mode of delivery that will characterize most of their creative writing courses. CRWR*2000 “Reading as a Writer” focuses on the close reading skills they will need in their literature courses and in their workshop critiques. By their second year, all their creative writing courses will have a workshop format with a maximum enrollment of 20 students.
The workshops also give students an awareness that they are writing for an audience by providing a rare opportunity in which their classmates respond to their work as both readers and writers. A diverse audience composed of people of different genders, races, classes, and viewpoints helps 28
student writers recognize the ethical implications of their own and others’ writing, as well as understand arguments about issues of appropriation and representation in creative texts. An audience helps the writer understand the role of creative texts in conveying and shaping cultural knowledge and individual points of view. This awareness of the social and ethical implications are assessed through their revisions.
Professors also use workshop participation to evaluate students’ professionalism. Besides teaching students how to analyze, evaluate, and problem solve, these workshops also teach students to work productively in a group setting and to provide feedback in a constructive manner with a high degree of professionalism. They are also taught to respond respectfully and comprehensively to questions posed. Workshops teach students to behave in a professional manner because participation requires organizational and time management skills in order to be prepared for class and submit work by assigned deadlines. By adhering to a workshop schedule; they realize that late submissions give their fellow students less time to read and prepare their responses and that not submitting work on time may even disrupt the workshop schedule for the entire class.
Creative Work
Creative work may be a short story (fiction), essay or short memoir (creative nonfiction), poem or suite of poems (poetry), a scene or screenplay, or act or play. In their second year, students write, workshop and revise one longer creative piece. The creative work is used to assess students’ creative and critical thinking as they work to integrate the elements of genre and craft into an original, shapely whole. Professors also use these longer creative pieces to assess how students combine aesthetic, technical and cultural knowledge into a compelling work of imagination. Creative work is also used to assess how well students creatively apply genre- specific literary techniques and methodologies to devise the best approaches for achieving their aesthetic ends.
In workshops where the focus explicitly addresses the environment or social justice (CRWR*2100, CRWR*2150, CRWR*2200, CRWR*3300, CRWR*3400, and CRWR*3500), creative work is used to assess the student’s global understanding of issues affecting human society and the biosphere and how students use their creative work to gain a greater understanding of experiential complexity and engage in a dialogue with their communities for change. The longer creative work is also used to assess students’ understanding of creative texts as potential sites of civic knowledge and engagement.
Revision
Revision is essential to good writing and is a required assessment tool beginning in the second- year workshops. The main goal of the revision is to create a greater understanding of one’s creative vision and how to communicate that vision more effectively to an audience. While the workshops raise students’ awareness of audience, as well as an awareness of the social and ethical issues in the act of writing and their own specific writing, their understanding of audience and social/ethical issues are assessed in their revisions. The revision, in other words, allows the
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professor to assess students’ ability to revise their creative writing in response to detailed feedback from the professor and from peer-group workshops.
Reflection Essays
There are two types of reflection essays students will write in their creative writing courses: a reflection essay on their experiential learning (EL) experience and a reflection essay on how they are situating their creative work within a larger literary context.
As mentioned above, in order to become a good writer, one must become a serious reader. In other words, one can only achieve an aesthetic maturity through the rigorous analysis and critical evaluation of literature and creative work. Creative writing majors are required to take several literature courses, thereby completing a comprehensive program of reading that will enable them to make informed aesthetic judgments. Reading is also an essential part of their creative writing workshops and will focus on a culturally diverse range of material, including the work of emerging Canadian writers, particularly from traditionally marginalized communities. While students’ ability to analyze and evaluate literature and creative work are assessed in their essays, exams, close readings and workshop critiques, the reflection piece is an opportunity for students to situate their writing within a literary context and to think critically about how their creative practice engages, revises, or contests literary traditions, genres, and forms. Beginning in the third year, after they have already taken numerous literature courses, students will be asked to write a 3- to 5-page reflection piece on how their writing has been influenced by the reading assigned in the workshop or by their literary studies. In their capstone course, following the model of MFA programs, students create a reading list of at least 15 books of fiction, nonfiction, scripts and/or poetry and then write an 8- to 10-page reflection piece on how these texts have shaped their creative practice. In the reflection piece, students will be assessed on how they approach their aesthetic practice in an analytical and informed manner; compare and evaluate the merits and drawbacks of various narrative strategies when approaching their creative practice; and articulate a response on the craft of writing in regard to form and genre, literary and cultural contexts, literary antecedents and historical traditions. They will also be assessed on their depth and breadth of understanding of literature as they create and discuss a reading list that covers a range of genres, historical periods, traditions, movements, and points of view.
The experiential learning (EL) reflection essay helps students articulate and assess what they learned about their EL experience as they prepare themselves for the professional world. The EL component encourages them to tackle the more intimidating aspects of being a writer: submitting their work and facing rejection; submitting their work and going through the editorial process; reading their work to the public; having their work performed in a table reading; transforming their creative work into a digital medium; and engaging in community-based learning to give their creative work more depth and relevance and to understand the various contexts in which narrative and linguistic facility are invaluable professional skills, particularly for communicating urgent contemporary stories. The reflection essay encourages students to reflect on their experiences, their weaknesses and strengths, and the insights they gained about the creative practice.
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Portfolio
In their capstone courses, students prepare a polished portfolio of work in one genre. Students will be assessed on their ability to produce: a sustained literary work of skilled quality that demonstrates technical confidence; a distinct individual voice; and an aesthetically sophisticated engagement with a creative form. The portfolio can be used to apply to MFA programs or for jobs in the creative industry.
Exams
In their lecture courses in literature, students will be asked to write exam essays. Unlike other disciplines, English and literature departments rarely use multiple-choice exams or rely solely on short-answer exams. Instead English and literature exams offer an opportunity for the student to improve their extemporaneous writing skills as they write one or two exam essays. In these exam essays, students will be assessed on how well they: situate texts within their historical, national, cultural and discursive contexts; understand the role of narrative in conveying different points of view, for example across historical time periods, nationalities and ethnicities, gender and sexuality, class, and/or ability; and demonstrate an understanding of how texts in the form or genre under study reflect and/or contribute to different cultural, historical, and discursive contexts.
Essays
Creative writing students are eligible to take English seminars, which they are encouraged to do. These seminars focus on writing and research, as well as literary analysis, and offer students an opportunity to round out their writing education. In their essays, students will be assessed on their ability to incorporate textual evidence in their writing and use that evidence critically and creatively to build persuasive interpretive arguments; they will also be assessed on their ability to analyze texts in relation to a theoretical and historical framework, as well as interrogate questions of literary value and evaluate how a text works within, or expands the definitions of, genre.
e) Identify which of the five University of Guelph Learning Outcomes are particularly addressed and how the proposed program supports student achievement of the Learning Outcomes. (refer to tables in Appendix C)
The University of Guelph Learning Outcomes and their alignment to the Bachelor of Arts and the Creative Writing program learning outcomes can be found in Appendix C.
f) Identify any distinctive curriculum aspects, program innovations or creative components.
What makes our proposed Creative Writing major truly distinctive is its focus on creative writing praxis as a way to address the environmental and social justice issues necessary for creating thriving societies, vital and responsive cultures, and a livable future. By having environmental awareness and social justice shape students’ creative practice, the major will produce writers whose creative engagement with these issues will benefit the community, the environment, and 31 traditionally marginalized groups. In their second year, students will learn how to engage with these issues in imaginative and narrative form in their fiction and creative nonfiction workshops (CRWR*2100 “Fiction Workshop: Writing the Anthropocene”; CRWR*2150 “Speculative Fiction Workshop”; CRWR*2200 “Creative Nonfiction Workshop: Writing Nature”). In their third-year poetry workshop (CRWR*3300 “Eco-Poetics”), third-year screenwriting course (CRWR*3400 “Screenwriting Workshop: Writing for Inclusive Screens”), and/or third-year scriptwriting course (CRWR*3500 “Advanced Writing for Performance: Writing for the Inclusive Stage”), students will begin to master their chosen genres while engaging issues of environmental awareness or social justice. Through the program’s unique focus and the existing expertise at the University of Guelph in the field of Environmental Studies, and the initiative at the new Guelph Institute of Environmental Research to bring together environmental science and creative writing, students will have opportunities for cross-disciplinary collaboration. This will expand their engagement with environmental issues, including those related to the climate crisis. Their training in storytelling, imaginative world-building and futures-imagining will allow students to engage with their communities, including the Canadian literary community, for dialogue and change. Additionally, what sets our Creative Writing major apart is that we are a direct-entry program. While Creative Writing majors at most other Ontario universities have to wait until their second or third year to enroll in the major, we will provide aspiring writers with a four-year creative educational experience. Moreover, unlike other Creative Writing majors in Ontario, our students will not need to submit a portfolio for entry into any of our creative writing workshops. g) Identify how the curriculum addresses the current state of the discipline.
Both literary culture and creative writing pedagogy have been grappling with issues of inclusivity and systemic and institutional racism. The new Creative Writing major aims to address such issues through its innovative course content, which focuses directly on environmental and social justice and the connections between the two. The program positions creative writing as an epistemology, an imaginative and experiential praxis that allows students to embody others, consider a diversity of points of view and learn how narrative and lyric forms can voice complexity in the context of a larger culture that often seems intent on reducing this. It responds to existing student interest in the field, their hunger to tell their own stories and to use a creative practice as a way of responding to the world. The major offers students a variety of modes for responding to the societal, cultural and existential dilemmas of our time and developing a more nuanced understanding. It centres culturally diverse content at a time when Canadian literary culture is endeavouring to do the same. Structurally, our creative writing curriculum is similar to that of other Creative Writing majors in Ontario. Students begin with an introductory lecture course (CRWR*1000), where they are introduced to the elements of storytelling. Like other Creative Writing programs, these elements of storytelling will be reinforced and mastered in all the genre workshops. This is followed by an additional lecture course that focuses on how to read as a writer (CRWR*2000). Students also take two English lecture courses on how to read poetry (ENGL*2380) and how to do a close reading of a text (ENGL*1080). By the second year, all our creative writing courses are workshops with a low enrollment cap (20 students); this is in line with most Creative Writing majors. Along with other Creative Writing majors, we introduce students to new genres (poetry, screenwriting, nonfiction, scriptwriting) at the second year. They 32 can continue to hone their skills in these genres at the third- and fourth-year level. In their fourth year, students take a capstone course in which they complete a portfolio. The one major difference is that we do not require a portfolio to enroll in any of the writing workshops. Students simply have to fulfill the writing prerequisites.
In designing the Creative Writing major, we have worked with the University of Guelph MFA faculty to ensure our graduates have the skills necessary to undertake an MFA. Towards that end, the major offers students the opportunity to study three genres, gain expertise in two, and create a polished creative portfolio in one. A portfolio and a broader, more expansive artistic repertoire prepare students for further study at the MFA level, which often requires applicants to submit a portfolio that shows mastery in one genre and competency in another. h) Identify the program mode of delivery (in-class, lecture, problem- or case-based learning, online/distance, hybrid) and explain why the methods are appropriate for meeting the program’s learning outcomes.
The program has two main modes of delivery: lectures and workshops. Half of the first-year courses in the Creative Writing major are lecture-workshop/seminar hybrid courses; both CRWR*1000 and ENGL*1080 offer two weekly lectures and a weekly writing workshop and seminar, respectively. The other two first-year courses are lecture courses that teach students how to read poetry (ENGL*2380) and how to read as a writer (CRWR*2000). The delivery of these courses are appropriate for introducing students to the elements of creative writing, as well as teaching them how to perform a close reading of a text.
In their first-year lecture courses, students mostly learn by having professors lecture on the reading. In these lectures, professors analyze and perform a series of close readings on how writers successfully employ the elements of storytelling or how the texts create meaning. Students’ critical and creative thinking skills, their communication skills, and their literacy skills are assessed through exam essays, writing exercises in which students use the readings as a model while producing original work, and short, focused close readings of a passage. Students do not need to be Creative Writing majors to take these courses. These courses are meant to give students the opportunity to discover and develop any writing talent they may possess.
By the second year of the program, the delivery of the creative writing courses is solely focused on the workshop. Workshops, which will be restricted to Creative Writing majors and minors, form the foundation of most creative writing programs’ method of instruction. In workshops, both through students’ oral and written responses, professors assess students’ ability to critically evaluate others’ creative exercises, identify areas that need further work, and offer possible modes for addressing this. The workshops also give students an awareness of a diverse audience composed of people of different genders, races, classes, and viewpoints, helping student writers recognize the ethical implications of their own and others’ writing. An audience also helps the writer understand the role of creative texts in conveying and shaping cultural knowledge and individual points of view. Students’ awareness of the social and ethical implications is assessed through their creative work and their revisions. These workshops also teach students to work
33 productively in a group setting and to provide feedback in a constructive manner with a high degree of professionalism.
In their workshops, students write and revise at least one longer piece of creative work. These longer creative pieces and revisions are used to assess students’ knowledge and critical understanding of the elements of literary craft and their ability to combine aesthetic, technical and cultural knowledge into a compelling work of shapeliness and imagination. The revision of one longer piece of creative work is used to assess students’ ability to revise their creative writing in response to detailed feedback from the professor and from peer-group workshops. In workshops where the focus is on environmentalism and social justice (CRWR*2100, CRWR*2150, CRWR*2200, CRWR*3300, CRWR*3400, and CRWR*3500), the longer creative work helps the professor assess students’ global understanding of issues affecting society and the environment and how they use their creative work to engage in a dialogue with their communities for change.
Most of the literature courses are offered in a lecture format, though Creative Writing students are eligible to take English seminars, as well. English and literature exams offer an opportunity for the student to improve their extemporaneous writing skills as they write exam essays. In these exam essays, students are assessed on how well they: situate texts within their historical, national, cultural and discursive contexts; understand the role of narrative in conveying different points of view, for example across historical time periods, nationalities and ethnicities, gender and sexuality, class, and/or ability; and demonstrate an understanding of how texts in the form or genre under study reflects and/or contributes to different cultural, historical, and discursive contexts. i) Identify the appropriateness of the program’s structure and curriculum in meeting expressed learning outcomes.
The Creative Writing major offers students the opportunity to combine critical thinking skills with their creative practice. In producing their creative works, students creatively apply the knowledge and critical understanding of the elements of storytelling, literary devices, and genre-specific methodologies to devise the best approaches for achieving their aesthetic ends. By approaching literary study as a writer, students think critically about how their creative practice engages, revises, or contests literary traditions, genres, and forms. This combination of critical thinking and creative practice produces a unique form of aesthetic maturity.
Through its emphasis on writing and oral critique, the major hones students’ communication skills, both oral and written. At the end of their four years, students will have produced a substantial body of written work, culminating in a portfolio in their fourth year. The portfolio enables students to produce sustained literary work of skilled quality that demonstrates technical confidence, a distinct individual voice and an aesthetically sophisticated engagement with a literary form. The portfolio can be used to apply to MFA programs or for jobs in creative industries, including gaming, or any job in which literary or narrative skill needs to be demonstrable.
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The structure of the major helps develop students’ literacy skills. In their workshops, majors will learn and apply a disciplinary vocabulary that enables them to discuss, analyze, and evaluate the elements of literary craft across at least three different genres. The literature courses provide students with an understanding of literary traditions, genres, and forms that will enable them: to approach their aesthetic practice in an analytical and informed manner, to situate their writing within a literary context; and to assess how their creative work participates or departs from a larger literary tradition.
By making global understanding an integral component in the achievement of aesthetic maturity, the Creative Writing major prepares students to become socially aware professional writers or professionals in a variety of fields in which linguistic facility, empathy, and storytelling skills are prized. With the program’s focus on the environment and social justice, students learn to interrogate the ethical implications of their own and others’ writing.
Lastly, due to its workshop format, the Creative Writing majors achieve a high degree of professionalism because each workshop requires them to work productively in a group setting; engage respectfully and professionally with the creative writing of other workshop participants; and organize their work and manage their time in order to adhere to a workshop schedule. j) Describe in detail plans for documenting and demonstrating the level of performance of students in the program and how this information will be used toward the continuous improvement of the program.
The University of Guelph's governance structure and policies align with the concepts of documenting and demonstrating student performance and program evaluation from inception through to delivery and program review.
The University is comprised of seven Colleges responsible for the management of academic programs. Each College is headed by a Dean with support from Associate Deans responsible for specific components of the academic offerings (e.g., undergraduate, graduate, research, etc.). Associate Deans Academic (ADAs) are faculty members whose responsibilities include the administration of the undergraduate curriculum within their affiliate College. The BA Honours in Creative Writing will be administered through the College of Arts and the School of English and Theatre Studies by its Dean, ADA, Dept. Director, the BA Program Committee, and the Creative Writing Curriculum Committee.
Bylaws for the Board of Undergraduate Studies (BUGS), the University’s Senate committee responsible for undergraduate programs and policies, mandate the existence of program committees (e.g. BA, B.Sc., B.Comm., etc.) and curriculum committees to oversee the creation and maintenance of programs within their purview. Degree program committees are chaired by ADAs to ensure there is a relationship between the program committee and the College via the Dean’s Office. The ADAs also support the Cyclical Program Review process for the programs offered by their College. When a new program or major within a program is being developed, a working group is formed to administer its creation. Typically, once the program is approved, the
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members of this working group would then comprise the membership of the BUGS sub- committee called the curriculum committee.
Curriculum committees, comprised of faculty and students, meet regularly to review the curriculum for the program(s) they are responsible for and make recommendations to their program committee (in this case, the BA Program Committee), which, in turn, makes recommendations to BUGS and Senate. For further clarity, a visual depiction of the relationship between these committees is available here.
Much of the data required to demonstrate the level of performance of students will be readily available to the Director of the School of English and Theatre Studies through course grades and course evaluations. University policies dictate that department chairs or directors are responsible for reviewing courses and ensuring that academic standards and expectations are met, including the review of course outlines, final course grades, and course evaluations. Other information, such as enrolment data, admission averages (domestic, international, and transfer), retention, graduation, etc. will be readily available via data request to our Office of Institutional Analysis and Research.
The level of performance of graduates from the BA program will be distinguished and quantified by reviewing how many students were enrolled in the program versus the number who graduated with the BA Honours Creative Writing degree. Students in the BA Honours program are required to meet a minimum standard for graduation. Namely, they fulfill the course and credit requirements of at least one major with a cumulative average of at least 70% in all course attempts at the University of Guelph in that major.
Further, the majors are required to complete a capstone course, and the curriculum committee will consult and align assessments to ensure these cumulative experiences meet the programs learning outcomes. The curriculum committee will determine the minimum threshold they feel is necessary for those outcomes. Should the threshold not be met, they will take steps to resolve the discrepancy.
The College also plans to conduct exit surveys, beginning with the first graduating class, and working with our Office of Alumni Affairs and Development to survey alumni, one-year post- graduation.
The Creative Writing Curriculum Committee plans to meet, at minimum, on a semesterly basis to review the program’s progress. Data collected will be used to inform small changes to the curriculum as needed and to document the progression of the program and its students working toward the first cyclical program review. The director will work closely with the curriculum committee to assist with the implementation of changes resulting from continuous improvement efforts.
k) For professional program areas, identify congruence with current accreditation and regulatory requirements of the profession and include any formal correspondence with accrediting bodies.
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N/A
l) If the program includes a Co-op option, the proposal must address 1) the proposed Learning Outcomes for work terms; and 2) work term report guidelines for students. Contact the Director, Experiential Learning Hub – Co-operative Education for more information.
N/A
Inclusion, Diversity and Accessibility
“The University of Guelph Senate affirms its commitment to an inclusive campus and fostering a culture of inclusion at the University of Guelph as an institutional imperative, acknowledging the University’s diverse population and that every member of an inclusive campus is a valued contributor.” (Fostering a Culture of Inclusion at the University of Guelph: an Institutional Imperative, April, 2017).
This includes assurances that issues of equity, diversity, and accessibility are considered in the development and delivery of curriculum.
Discuss the ways in which inclusion is considered in this new program proposal.
The Creative Writing major addresses issues of equity, diversity, and inclusion through its focus on social justice and environmental awareness. The goal of the Creative Writing Major is to prepare students to become socially aware writers, professionals, and global citizens, by having students use their creative practice as a way to address and engage environmental and social justice issues. In doing so, students achieve a global understanding of issues affecting society and the environment by using creative work to engage in a dialogue for change and a heightened understanding of the complexity of such issues.
Many of our creative writing workshops focus directly on issues of inclusion and social justice. In CRWR*2150 “Speculative Fiction Workshop” students will explore how fiction is a means of world creation, including the futuristic, fantastic and dystopic, and a mode for entering the perspectives of others, sometimes those radically not like us. The third-year screenwriting course, CRWR*3400 “Screenwriting Workshop: Writing for Inclusive Screens” and the third-year playwriting course, CRWR*3500 “Advanced Writing for Performance: Writing for the Inclusive Stage,” will address issues of social justice, heightening students’ awareness of diverse points of view and their ability to enter and embody different perspectives in creative form while offering students further facility in the art of writing for the screen or the stage, respectively.
Besides their core English courses, majors are required to take four English literature courses, a third of which focus on race, gender, and/or class, training students in inclusivity and exposing them to marginalized viewpoints and voices of marginalized communities. Reading is also an essential part of students’ creative writing workshops and our creative writing instructors are committed to assigning a culturally diverse range of material, including the work of emerging Canadian writers, particularly from traditionally marginalized communities. By discussing literary techniques in a culturally diverse 37
range of published work, students learn to be readers who compare and contrast narrative and esthetic strategies of a wide range of culturally diverse writers, including Black, racialized, indigenous, 2SLGBTQ+ writers and writers living with disabilities.
The workshops also give students an awareness of a diverse audience composed of people of different genders, races, classes, and viewpoints, helping student writers recognize the ethical implications of their own and others’ writing. Through workshop feedback, students gain a more nuanced understanding of their own subjectivity and the differing subjectivities of others. Lastly, the Creative Writing Major also shows its commitment to access and equity by embracing a direct-entry, non-portfolio model in order to eliminate competition for limited workshop spaces and focus instead on nurturing student talent by creating an inclusive environment.
Our commitment to diversity and a culture of inclusivity is also evident in our teaching faculty. Two of our most prominent tenured writers, Dionne Brand and Lawrence Hill, are Black Canadian professors, who focus on issues of race, class, gender, and/or sexuality in their creative work. Moreover, Elaine Chang is a tenured, Asian Canadian professor who teaches screenwriting; her work focuses on the Asian Canadian experience, as well as on issues of disability. Tenured faculty member Catherine Bush has addressed issues of disability in her creative work, as well as issues of climate crisis and ecological loss. The current director of the Guelph Institute for Environmental Research, Madhur Anand, a tenured professor of South Asian background, is, in addition to being an environmental scientist, a noted poet and writer of creative nonfiction, eager to collaborate at the intersections of creative writing and Environmental Studies.
By having environmental awareness and social justice shape students’ creative practice, the major will produce writers whose creative engagement with these issues will benefit the community, the environment, and traditionally marginalized groups.
Duplication, Student Demand and Societal Need
5.1 Duplication Identify similar programs offered by other institutions in the Ontario university system and provide evidence of justifiable duplication based on demand and/or societal need.
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Institution Program Entry/Admission
Majors/Degree Programs Delayed entry - students apply with a Brock University BA - English and Creative Writing portfolio in the Winter term of 1st year OCAD University BFA - Creative Writing (New program) Direct entry - portfolio required Bachelor of Creative Writing and Sheridan College Direct entry - portfolio required Publishing Delayed entry - requires a portfolio for University of BA - Creative Writing each Creative Writing course (usually Windsor submission of work from the prereq.) Delayed entry- requires the completion York University BA - Creative Writing of 1 course and 15- to 20-page portfolio of poetry and prose fiction
Minors/Other Delayed entry - coursework and Carleton University Concentration - Creative Writing portfolio Humber College Graduate Certificate - Creative Writing Degree, portfolio, cover letter Dual program (Degree + Diploma) - Trent University Direct entry Journalism and Creative Writing University of Ottawa Minor - Creative Writing (new program) Unknown University of Toronto Delayed entry - coursework and (Scarborough, and Minor - Creative Writing portfolio Mississauga) University of Major - Rhetoric, Media, and Direct entry Waterloo Professional Communication Honours Specialization in Creative Delayed entry - coursework and Western University Writing and English Language and portfolio Literature & a Minor in Creative Writing Wilfrid Laurier Minor and Concentration - Creative Unknown University Writing • Only a small number of Universities offer standalone majors in Creative Writing. We would be offering an alternative option based on several factors (students who want a smaller comprehensive university, or a non-urban environment). Our major would be more open and accessible. Our smaller size will provide students a more learner-centred approach to creative writing while providing the depth and breadth of a larger university. • We will be the only direct-entry Creative Writing major in Ontario. All existing Creative Writing programs either delay entry, generally into second year or require the submission of a portfolio for admission into their workshops.
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• We will be the only Creative Writing program in Ontario, and perhaps the nation, where the curriculum combines creative practice with a focus on the environment and social justice. While the minor has certainly attracted more students to English, we believe the creation of a four-year, direct-entry Creative Writing major with a focus on social justice and environmentalism will be a real draw since it aligns with societal need and the interests of Generation Z. • Other Ontario universities offer creative writing courses or specializations within the English major/minor (e.g. Brock University, University of Windsor, Western University). The University of Guelph’s major in Creative Writing would offer a distinct and separate qualification in Creative Writing that may or may not be combined with an English major/minor, thus providing flexibility for students in other programs and colleges. • With the introduction of the Creative Writing Major, the University of Guelph will be the only university in Ontario currently offering both a Creative Writing undergraduate major and an MFA, which can attract a range of students beyond those with English degrees. Since its inception in 2006 the University of Guelph CW MFA has become, arguably, the country’s premier graduate Creative Writing program, known for its focus on innovative pedagogy, community engagement, and the diversity of its cohorts. • The Creative Writing Major with a focus on environmental awareness and social justice provides exciting opportunities for collaboration with the new Guelph Institute of Environmental Research, which is developing its own opportunities to bring together creative writing and the environmental sciences. The Creative Writing Major, along with the GIER initiatives, will make the University of Guelph a unique national site for interdisciplinary environmental research with an emphasis on creative writing.
5.2 Student Demand Provide convincing evidence of student demand for the proposed program. Per the MTCU checklist, consider the following in making these determinations:
a) evidence of student demand through application statistics, for example: number of enquiries, applications received, number of qualified applicants;
In the span of just four years, the Creative Writing minor has become the largest minor in the College of Arts with 108 students, with further anticipated growth. Demand for Creative Writing courses has been so great that the English department regularly has to offer two sections of ENGL*2920, Introduction to Creative Writing, in the fall and one section in the winter. Each section of fifty students is always fully enrolled by the first week of registration, as are all of our writing workshops.
Sheridan College, which launched an Honours Bachelor of Creative Writing and Publishing in 2017 has experienced successful enrolment, 2017-18 – 69 students, 2018-19 – 112 students. Although this does not account for Sheridan’s strategic enrollment management plans, it showcases there is local demand for related programs. (MCU – College Enrolment, 2019)
b) origin of student demand (% domestic and visa students); 40
The Creative Writing Minor as of Winter 2020 had an enrollment of 98 students – 5 international students (5.1%) and 93 domestic students (94.9%). We find this consistent with the College of Arts undergraduate enrolment patterns which as of November 1, 2019 had 2.8% international students and 97.2% domestic.
As we have an internationally recognized faculty and an open admission policy (no portfolio), we anticipate this program will be attractive to international students; with increased student recruitment efforts, the program will be above its current enrolment of 5.1% international students.
c) duration of the projected demand (e.g. short, medium or long-term demand from specified sources);
Projected student demand is long-term. EWC4U Writer’s Craft, is a popular secondary school offering within Ontario schools. In the 2017-18 academic year, Writer’s Craft had nearly 10,000 course enrolments across the province – ranking as the 24th most popular course amongst grade 12 university and university/college preparation courses (4U/4M courses). This popularity outpaces several well-known subjects including Accounting, Computer Science, Drama, and Economics (MCU – Secondary School Course Enrolment, 2019). The popular Writer’s Craft course at the high-school level generates demand for and expectation of the opportunity to continue creative writing at the university level. As the program does not have any specific courses required for admission (excluding grade 12 University level English or equivalent), we benefit from but are not dependent on secondary school course offerings.
d) evidence of review and comment by appropriate student organization(s), if applicable.
For student letters of support, see Appendix A.
5.3 Societal Needs Identify the societal need for the proposed program including:
a) dimensions of the societal need for graduates (e.g. socio-cultural, economic, scientific, technological);
Nationally, there is a significant societal need for creative professionals. In fact, the creative sector is one of Canada’s leading industries. The Conference Board of Canada “has estimated that the annual contribution of our arts and culture industry is 7.4 per cent of real GDP…accounting for 1.1 million jobs,” which as a gross total is “more than our mining, forestry, and fisheries sectors, plus the Canadian Forces, combined” (Ed Cowan, “Canada’s Creative Industries Can Lead the Economic Charge,” The Globe and Mail, July 3, 2015). Additionally, those trained in the field of creative writing are well-positioned for a wide variety of professions in which linguistic facility, empathy, and storytelling skills are prized, including teaching, medicine, the nonprofit sector, community-based learning and many others.
b) geographic scope of the societal need for graduates (e.g. local, regional, provincial, national); 41
Since Ontario is the centre of the book publishing industry in Canada, our graduates are well- placed to find successful routes to publication. According to Statistics Canada, Ontario’s book publishing industry is the largest in Canada, generating 1.23 billion dollars or two-thirds of the nation’s book publishing revenues (Statistics Canada Table 361-0032). Graduates are also well- placed to be active on a national scale in creating new and more culturally diverse literary communities responsive to environmental and social justice issues, through the formation of new literary journals, publishing ventures, festivals, workshops, residencies, and cultural programming responsive to specific communities.
Our graduates will have the necessary skills to enter a number of other occupations, including high school teaching in English, Film, and Writer’s Craft; teaching English as a second language; journalism (non-fiction prose); the gaming industry (narrative and character development); and the film industry (screenwriting). The Creative Writing major will also provide skills in writing, analysis, and the production of compelling narratives applicable to a wide variety of careers in Canada and abroad. Linguistic and narrative facility are foundational and transferable professional skills that are useful globally. c) trends in societal need for graduates;
There is a strong need for culturally sensitive and culturally diverse creative writers in Canada as our broader social and cultural landscape shifts. The Canadian publishing industry is eager for stories, delivered at a high level of competency, from traditionally marginalized communities including Black, racialized, indigenous, 2SLGBTQ+ writers and writers living with mental health issues and other disabilities. The publishing industry is eager for professionals from culturally diverse backgrounds or who have a sophisticated awareness of social justice issues to work as editors and agents and in other related positions in the literary field (literary programmer, etc.) Our graduates will be well-placed to step into such roles.
Canada continues to be a nation of readers which sees reading as fundamental to promoting and maintaining core cultural values. Ontario’s Ministry of Heritage, Sport, Tourism, and Culture Industries cites a study by Ekos Research Associates, “Public Opinion on the Value of Books in English Language Book Sector, Summary Report,” on its webpage, noting how “Canadians believe in the value of reading and associate it with strong social benefits, including literacy, creativity, quality of life, social cohesion, and strength of economy.” The report goes on to say that “most Canadians (8 in 10) read books and spend an average of five hours per week reading.” Creative writing graduates therefore fulfill societal needs spanning from leisure activities to reflections on one’s own society and other societies.
Ontario’s labour market reports stable or growing professions related to Creative Writing:
Growth Median Occupation Outlook rating Rate* Income Advertising, marketing and public relations managers Above average 1.1%-2% $82,214 Authors and writers Average 3.1%-4% $54,124
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Business development officers and marketing researchers and consultants Undetermined 7.1%-8% $66,657 Editors Average 3.1%-4% $54,622 Education policy researchers, consultants and program officers Undetermined 7.1%-8% $69,850 Journalists Average 5.1%-6% $60,789 Managers - publishing, motion pictures, broadcasting and performing arts Undetermined 3.1%-4% $71,641 Producers, directors, choreographers and related occupations Undetermined 2.1%-3% $60,788 Professional occupations in advertising, marketing and public relations Above average 7.1%-8% $59,663 Secondary school teachers Below average <=0% $90,220 Support occupations in motion pictures, broadcasting, photography, and the performing arts Undetermined 2.1%-3% $48,351 Job profiles and labour market reports available at https://www.ontario.ca/page/labour-market.
d) duration of the societal need (e.g. short, medium, or long-term).
Most forecasts about the creative industry in Canada have been positive and see it as an area of future growth (Cowan, Ontario Ministry of Heritage, Sport, Tourism, and Culture Industries, Statistics Canada). This indicates a long-term societal need for creative writers.
Anticipated Enrolment and Impact on Existing Programs
6.1 Projected Enrolment Levels In the table below, identify projected enrolment levels for the first five years of operation of the proposed program, to steady state enrolment and the years to achieve steady state.
Domestic International Total Program State Intake Intake Enrolment (all cohorts) Initial 15 1 16 Estimated annual intake increases1 to 5 1 N/A reach steady state Steady state 20 2 80-85 Years anticipated to achieve steady state: 4 1Number of students above initial levels
6.2 Impact on Existing programs a) Identify whether the proposed program will impact existing programs and whether students move to this program from others or whether the proposed program is expected to attract new students.
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We anticipate that the proposed program will attract new students to the University. Shifting from a minor to a major will bring more awareness and provide additional opportunities for students.
As many of our current Creative Writing minors are English majors, we do anticipate future students may select Creative Writing instead of English or with careful planning, a student may be able to double major in English and Creative Writing within the BA program. Our curriculum committee has considered this in the program design, incorporating English course offerings in the major requirements. We expect a net gain of students for the School of English and Theatre Studies and the shifts in enrollment between majors to be manageable.
b) Identify any programs proposed for closure as a result of this proposed new program. N/A
NB: Program closures require approval of the Board of Undergraduate Studies and Senate. Closures are reported for information to the Quality Council and to MTCU.
Resource Requirements and Funding
7.1 Human and Physical Resource Requirements Provide evidence of and planning for adequate numbers and quality of:
a) faculty and staff to achieve the goals of the program;
We have a number of distinguished writers and playwrights on faculty. Dionne Brand’s work has won the Governor General’s Literary Award, the Griffin Poetry Prize, and the Trillium Book Award. She has served as Toronto’s Poet Laureate and was named to the Order of Canada in 2017. Lawrence Hill, author of The Book of Negroes, has won the Commonwealth Writers’ Prize and the Rogers’ Trust Fiction Prize. Judith Thompson is considered one of Canada’s most preeminent playwrights. She has won the Governor General’s Award for Drama and several Floyd Chalmers Play Awards and Dora Mavor Moore Awards. She was named to the Order of Canada in 2007. Sky Gilbert co-founded Buddies in Bad Times, the largest queer theatre company in Canada. Catherine Bush will be joining the undergraduate teaching faculty in 2022. Her novels have been named a New York Times Notable Book and Globe and Mail’s Best Book, as well as shortlisted several times for the Trillium Award. Elaine Chang regularly teaches screenwriting. Pablo Ramirez has an MFA in Creative Writing (Fiction) and teaches fiction workshops when Creative-Writing faculty are on leave.
We are also in process of hiring a tenure-track assistant professor in Creative Writing. We should have a new hire by July 1, 2021. Moreover, Catherine Bush will be joining the undergraduate faculty on July 1, 2022.
A summary of faculty teaching the core courses in the program is as follows:
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Faculty Name Research Department/School Category Course Code and Title and Rank Areas Dionne Brand School of English Tenured Poetry and ENGL*2380 Reading Poetry; Professor and Theatre Studies Fiction CRWR*2300 Poetry Workshop; CRWR*3300 Poetry Workshop: Ecopoetics; CRWR*4100 Capstone Prose/Narrative Workshop; CRWR*4300 Capstone Poetics Workshop Catherine Bush School of English Tenured Fiction, CRWR*2000 Reading as a Associate and Theatre Studies Creative Non- Writer; CRWR*2100 Fiction Professor Fiction Workshop: Writing the Anthropocene; CRWR*2150 Speculative Fiction Workshop; CRWR*2200 Creative Nonfiction Workshop: Writing Nature; CRWR*3100 Fiction Writing Workshop; CRWR*4100 Capstone Prose/Narrative Workshop Elaine Chang School of English Tenured Screenwriting, CRWR*1000 Elements of Associate and Theatre Studies Postcolonial Storytelling; CRWR*2400 Professor Studies Screenwriting Workshop; CRWR*3400 Screenwriting Workshop: Writing for Inclusive Screens; CRWR*4400 Capstone Scriptwriting Workshop Michelle School of English Tenured Nineteenth- ENGL*1080 Literatures in English Elleray and Theatre Studies Century I: Reading the Past Associate Pacific Studies Professor Larry Hill School of English Tenured Fiction and CRWR*3100 Fiction Writing Professor and Theatre Studies Creative Non- Workshop; CRWR*3200 Creative Fiction Nonfiction Writing Workshop; CRWR*4100 Capstone Prose/Narrative Workshop Daniel O’Quinn School of English Tenured Eighteenth- ENGL*2380 Reading Poetry Professor and Theatre Studies Century British Literature
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Pablo Ramirez School of English Tenured Nineteenth- CRWR*2000 Reading as a Associate and Theatre Studies Century Writer; ENGL*1080 Literatures in Professor American English I: Reading the Past; Literature, Latinx Studies Paul Salmon School of English Tenured Film Studies ENGL*1080 Literatures in English Assistant and Theatre Studies I: Reading the Past Professor Shyam School of English Sessional Fiction and CRWR*1000 Elements of Selvadurai and Theatre Studies Screenwriting Storytelling; CRWR*3100 Fiction Sessional Writing Workshop; CRWR*4100 Capstone Prose/Narrative Workshop Judith School of English Tenured Writing for THST*2120 Writing for Thompson and Theatre Studies Performance, Performance; CRWR*3500 Professor Theatre Advanced Writing for Studies, and Performance: Writing for the Screenwriting Inclusive Stage; CRWR*4400 Capstone Scriptwriting Workshop *Please note that the courses listed are those the professor is capable of teaching; with some exceptions, they are not “assigned” to these courses and may not teach them every single academic year. *We also have the benefit of being able to hire sessionals, which attracts active writers who wish to focus on writing full time and teach part time.
Other faculty members from the School of English and Theatre Studies who will contribute to teaching (e.g., restricted electives, English courses) include:
Faculty Name and Rank Department/School Category
Paul Barrett School of English and Theatre Tenure-Track Assistant Professor Studies Christine Bold School of English and Theatre Tenured Professor Studies Susan Brown School of English and Theatre Tenured Professor Studies Julie Cairnie School of English and Theatre Tenured Professor Studies Gregor Campbell School of English and Theatre Tenured Assistant Professor Studies
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Jade Ferguson School of English and Theatre Tenured Associate Professor Studies Daniel Fischlin School of English and Theatre Tenured Professor Studies Mark Fortier School of English and Theatre Tenured Professor Studies Sky Gilbert School of English and Theatre Tenured Professor Studies Ajay Heble School of English and Theatre Tenured Professor Studies Troy Hourie School of English and Theatre Tenure-Track Assistant Professor Studies Peter Kuling School of English and Theatre Contractually-Limited Assistant Professor Studies Mark Lipton School of English and Theatre Tenured Professor Studies Kimberly McLeod School of English and Theatre Tenure-Track Assistant Professor Studies Martha Nandorfy School of English and Theatre Tenured Professor Studies Jennifer Schacker School of English and Theatre Tenured Professor Studies Sandra Singer School of English and Theatre Tenured Associate Professor Studies Tim Struthers School of English and Theatre Tenured Associate Professor Studies Ann Wilson School of English and Theatre Tenured Associate Professor Studies
Faculty CVs can be found in Appendix E. b) plans and the commitment to provide the necessary resources in step with the implementation of the program;
The College of Arts is committed to supporting and resourcing the program. As we welcome new cohorts, we will review our faculty complement, and implement hiring plans to reflect our enrollment and course offerings. We anticipate this will include the hiring of additional full-time, tenure-track faculty members who will be dedicated to Creative Writing courses and who will also support our nationally-recognized Creative Writing MFA. In addition to the Major and Minor, additional faculty will be able to teach in the Creative Writing MFA; serve as MFA thesis supervisors or second readers on MFA thesis committees. We hope the new hires will also be a means to enhance the diversity and inclusivity of our Creative Writing faculty. We would also like 47
to reinstate the Writer-in-Residence position. This position offers opportunities to further diversify our faculty on an ongoing basis. The writer-in-residence would teach one creative writing course each semester and be available for class visits and one-on-one consultations with students and the community.
c) planned/anticipated class sizes;
The Creative Writing and English lectures will have an enrollment of 50-60 students. CRWR*1000 will have an enrollment of 60 with three workshops of 20 students. Third- and fourth-year workshops will have an enrollment of 20 students, and the fourth-year capstone workshops will have an enrollment of 15 students.
Code Title Planned Class Size
CRWR*1000 Elements of Storytelling LEC 50-60 3 Seminars of 20 ea. ENGL*1080 Reading the Past 50-60 CRWR*2000 Reading as a Writer 50-60 ENGL*2380 Reading Poetry 50-60 CRWR*2100 Fiction Workshop: Writing the Anthropocene 20 CRWR*2150 Speculative Fiction Workshop 20 CRWR*2200 Creative Nonfiction Workshop: Writing Nature 20 CRWR*2300 Poetry Workshop 20 CRWR*2400 Screenwriting Workshop 20 CRWR*3100 Fiction Writing Workshop 20 CRWR*3200 Creative Nonfiction Writing Workshop 20 CRWR*3300 Poetry Workshop: Eco-Poetics 20 CRWR*3400 Screenwriting Workshop: Writing for Inclusive Screens 20 CRWR*3500 Advanced Writing for Performance Workshop: Writing for the 20 Inclusive Stage CRWR*4100 Capstone Prose/Narrative Workshop 15 CRWR*4300 Capstone Poetics Workshop 15 CRWR*4400 Capstone Scriptwriting Workshop 15
d) office(s) responsible for academic counselling (Program Counselling and Faculty Advising);
The Bachelor of Arts Counselling Office is responsible for degree advising for all Bachelor of Arts students. Faculty advisors are available to students through the School of English and Theatre Studies. Currently three faculty members serve as advisors to Creative Writing students via the School of English and Theatre Studies. This model is common across the College of Arts and the University of Guelph and will serve the students in Creative Writing as well. e) Provision of supervision of experiential learning opportunities
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As for the supervision of experiential learning opportunities (if required), students’ experiential learning opportunities are offered through course integrated formats; therefore a faculty member will be designated for the courses. The University of Guelph has an Experiential Learning Hub that is devoted to facilitating the development and coordination of EL opportunities. Additionally, the College of Arts has support from the Experiential Learning Coordinator to manager external relationships and develop experiential learning opportunities for students.
f) the role of adjunct and part-time faculty.
While we will strive not to depend too much on adjunct and part-time faculty for the delivery of the Creative Writing curriculum, we have had many talented sessional instructors, who prefer to teach part-time in order to focus on their writing. For example, acclaimed Canadian-Sri Lankan gay novelist and screenwriter Shyam Selvadurai has been a long-time undergraduate sessional instructor in Creative Writing in the School of English and Theatre Studies. He regularly teaches ENGL*2920 in the fall and spends the winter in Sri Lanka, writing. We have also had Souvankham Thammavongsa, winner of the Scotiabank-Giller Prize, as a sessional.
7.2 Evidence of adequate resources a) Provide evidence that there are adequate resources to sustain the quality of scholarship produced by undergraduate students, including library support, information technology support, and laboratory access.
For Library Assessment, see Appendix D
b) Indicate whether there are any notable resources available to the proposed program demonstrating institutional appropriateness e.g. Chairs, institutes, centres; unique library collections or resources; facilities such as computer, laboratory, other acquisitions, etc.
Gryphons Read is a major literary event involving the entire university. Each year a different book by a Canadian author is selected to be read by the campus community as a way to share a common reading experience to explore diverse identities and lived experiences, and the themes about the human condition that they address.
Interested students register for the program, and are provided a copy of the book to read and resources to guide them in their reflection. Students are invited to join small book clubs, guided by student facilitators, to discuss the book, create connections, and share of love of reading. Gryphon Reads has so far brought Shyam Selvadurai (Funny Boy), Zoe Whittal (The Best Kind of People), Eden Robinson (Son of a Trickster), and David Chariandy (Brother) to campus.
7.3 External Financial Support Indicate any external financial support demonstrating strength such as facility/equipment donations, other external donations, grants, etc.
N/A 49
Appendices
Appendix A: Letters of Support Appendix B: Course Outlines Appendix C: Learning Outcomes (Alignment of learning outcomes, Curriculum Overview Map, Assessment of Learning Outcomes) Appendix D: Library Assessment Appendix E: List of Teaching Faculty and CVs Appendix F: Consultation Appendix G: Student Progression Template Appendix H: Course Implementation Plan
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Creative Writing Program Learning Outcomes
By completion of this program, a student should be able to:
1. creatively and critically apply the knowledge and critical understanding of the elements of storytelling, literary devises, and genre-specific methodologies to devise the best approaches for achieving their creative goals, literary effects and/or aesthetic ends. 2. critically evaluate creative work, utilizing their firm grasp of the elements of storytelling, as well as literary forms and techniques, to propose creative, informed solutions to problems, flaws, and issues with the writing. 3. achieve an aesthetic maturity through the analysis and critical evaluation of literature. 4. master the elements of storytelling, poetics, and/or scriptwriting in their writing. 5. produce sustained literary work of skilled quality that demonstrates technical confidence, a distinct individual voice, an awareness of audience, and an aesthetically sophisticated engagement with a literary form. 6. articulate their creative decisions and offer nuanced, in-depth critique of others’ work (both written and oral) in group collaborations and workshops. 7. apply a disciplinary vocabulary that enables the student to discuss, analyze, and evaluate the elements of storytelling, poetics and/or scriptwriting. 8. achieve a depth and breadth of understanding of literature by reading across a range of genres, historical periods, traditions, movements, and points of view. 9. approach their aesthetic practice in an analytical and informed manner; to situate their writing within a literary context; and to assess how their creative work participates or departs from a larger literary tradition. 10. demonstrate a global understanding of issues regarding environmentalism and/or social justice in their creative practice, using their creative work to engage in a dialogue for change. 11. demonstrate a global understanding by situating texts within different historical, cultural and discursive contexts. 12. recognize the ethical implications of their own and others’ writing, as well as understand arguments about issues of appropriation and representation. 13. work productively in a group setting by debating issues and presenting ideas in class with a high degree of professionalism and responding respectfully and comprehensively to questions posed. 14. achieve organizational and time management skills in order to be prepared for class and submit work by assigned deadlines. 15. undertake the professional practices of a writer, poet, and/or scriptwriter either through creative practice or community engagement.
University of Guelph, Undergraduate Degree Learning Outcomes Alignment Template Revised March 2020 Undergraduate Degree Learning Outcomes Alignment Template 2012 University of Guelph Undergraduate Degree Learning Outcomes and Associated Skills reviewed for alignment with 2015 Bachelor of Arts Degree Program
Critical and creative thinking is a concept in which one applies logical principles, after much inquiry and analysis, to solve Critical and problems with a high degree of innovation, divergent thinking and risk taking. Those mastering this outcome shows evidence of Creative integrating knowledge and applying this knowledge across disciplinary boundaries. Depth and breadth of understanding of Thinking disciplines is essential to this outcome.
Learning Outcomes and Associated Skills (2013) Degree Program Outcomes Specialization (Major/Minor) Outcomes 1. Inquiry and Analysis B1, C1, D2 1, 2, 3, 6, 7, 9 2. Problem Solving B4, D3, D4 1, 2, 6, 10, 13 3. Creativity B3 1, 3, 4, 5, 9, 10, 12, 15 4. Depth and Breadth of Understanding B2, E1, E2, E3 3, 4, 5, 8, 9, 10, 11
Literacy is the ability to extract material from a variety of resources, assess the quality and validity of the material, and use it to Literacy discover new knowledge. The comfort in using quantitative literacy also exists in this definition, as does using technology effectively and developing visual literacy. Learning Outcomes and Associated Skills (2013) Degree Program Outcomes Specialization (Major/Minor) Outcomes 1. Information Literacy C1, D1 1, 2, 4, 7, 8, 9 2. Quantitative Literacy C1 3. Technological Literacy C1 4. Visual Literacy C1
University of Guelph, Undergraduate Degree Learning Outcomes Alignment Template November 2012 Global understanding encompasses the knowledge of cultural similarities and differences, the context (historical, geographical, Global political and environmental) from which these arise, and how they are manifest in modern society. Global understanding is Understanding exercised as civic engagement, intercultural competence and the ability to understand an academic discipline outside of the domestic context. Learning Outcomes and Associated Skills (2013) Degree Program Outcomes Specialization (Major/Minor) Outcomes 1. Global Understanding A2, A3, E2 8, 9, 10, 11, 12 2. Sense of Historical Development D1, E1 8, 9, 11 3. Civic Knowledge and Engagement A4, F3 10, 12, 15 4. Intercultural Knowledge and Competence A1, A2 3, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 15
Communicating is the ability to interact effectively with a variety of individuals and groups, and convey information successfully in a variety of formats including oral and written communication. Communicating also comprises attentiveness and listening, as Communicating well as reading comprehension. It is the ability to communicate and synthesize information, arguments, and analyses accurately and reliably. Learning Outcomes and Associated Skills (2013) Degree Program Outcomes Specialization (Major/Minor) Outcomes 1. Oral Communication C2 2, 6, 13, 15 2. Written Communication C2 1, 4, 5, 6, 10 3. Reading Comprehension C1 2, 3, 8, 9 4. Integrative Communication B1, C3 1, 3, 4,5, 9, 10
Professional and ethical behaviour requires the ability to accomplish the tasks at hand with proficient skills in teamwork and Professional leadership, while remembering ethical reasoning behind all decisions. The ability for organizational and time management skills and Ethical is essential in bringing together all aspects of managing self and others. Academic integrity is central to mastery in this Behaviour outcome.
Learning Outcomes and Associated Skills (2013) Degree Program Outcomes Specialization (Major/Minor) Outcomes 1. Teamwork C3, F2, F3 2, 6, 13, 14 2. Ethical Reasoning A1, B2, F1 10, 12, 13 3. Leadership F3 6, 10, 13, 14, 15 4. Personal Organization / Time Management D4, F1, F4 14, 15
University of Guelph, Undergraduate Degree Learning Outcomes Alignment Template Revised March 2020 2015 Bachelor of Arts Degree Learning Outcomes
A. Community Engagement and Global Program Understanding Understand how cultural, historical, geographical, political, linguistic, and environmental forces shape the world and recognize the role of the individual within communities to effect change.
This includes the ability to:
A1. Reflect on one's cultural identities and values
A2. Demonstrate intercultural awareness and competence
A3. Recognize and appreciate the real-world context of knowledge
A4. Promote active citizenship and community engagement
B. Critical and Creative Thinking Analyse and critically reflect on complex problems incorporating multiple perspectives and innovative thinking.
This includes the ability to:
B1. Analyse, synthesize and integrate knowledge
B2. Critically evaluate the validity of arguments and conclusions
B3. Practice creative thinking and expression
B4. Demonstrate the capacity to argue in innovative directions
C. Literacy and Communication Demonstrate the ability to extract and convey information accurately in a variety of formats.
This includes the ability to:
C1. Identify, locate, comprehend, and critically evaluate quantitative and qualitative information using visual, numerical, oral, aural, and textual sources
C2. Communicate concepts and information clearly and in various formats (oral, visual, written, etc.)
C3. Engage effectively with audiences from different backgrounds University of Guelph, Undergraduate Degree Learning Outcomes Alignment Template Revised March 2020 D. Evaluate and Conduct Research Engage in scholarly inquiry to identify and investigate questions of a theoretical and/or applied nature.
This includes the ability to:
D1. Identify gaps and limitations in the existing literature
D2. Understand the principles of the research process
D3. Apply appropriate research methodologies to specific problems
D4. Develop intellectual independence and practice self-directed inquiry
E. Depth and Breadth of Understanding Demonstrate detailed knowledge in one or more disciplines and integrate knowledge and perspectives across disciplinary boundaries.
This includes the ability to:
E1. Develop a detailed understanding of the current state of knowledge in one or more disciplines
E2. Recognize the value, use and limits of multi-disciplinary learning
E3. Cultivate an openness to consider and engage alternative research perspectives
F. Professional Development and Ethical Behavior Demonstrate personal integrity and professional behaviour in scholarly endeavours and in collaborating with others within and beyond the academic community.
This includes the ability to:
F1. Demonstrate intellectual integrity and academic accountability
F2. Collaborate respectfully with others, individually and in teams
F3. Show leadership in professional environments while recognizing diversity
F4. Manage time effectively and ensure personal organization
University of Guelph, Undergraduate Degree Learning Outcomes Alignment Template Revised March 2020 Program Learning Outcomes (PLOs) Course Codes Assessments PLO 1 Creatively and critically apply the CRWR*1000 (a, b, c) a. short creative writing knowledge and critical understanding of CRWR*2000 (a) exercises CRWR*2100 (a, b, c) the elements of storytelling, literary CRWR*2150 (a, b, c) b. creative work (short devises, and genre-specific methodologies CRWR*2200 (a, b, c) stories, poems, to devise the best approaches for achieving CRWR*2300 (a, b, c) screenplays, scripts, and/or their creative goals, literary effects and/or CRWR*2400 (a, b, c) creative nonfiction essays aesthetic ends. THST*2120 (a, b, c) c. revision of creative work CRWR*3100 (a, b, c) CRWR*3200 (a, b, c) d. a chapbook or portfolio CRWR*3300 (a, b, c) of polished work CRWR*3400 (a, b, c) CRWR*3500 (a, b, c) CRWR*4100 (a, b, c, d) CRWR*4300 (a, b, c, d) CRWR*4400 (a, b, c, d) PLO 2 Critically evaluate creative work, utilizing CRWR*1000 (a, b, c, d) a. workshop participation their firm grasp of the elements of CRWR*2000 (b, d) (both oral and written CRWR*2100 (a, b, c, d) storytelling, as well as literary forms and CRWR*2150 (a, b, c, d) critiques) techniques, to propose creative, informed CRWR*2200 (a, b, c, d) b. short creative writing solutions to problems, flaws, and issues CRWR*2300 (a, b, c, d) exercises with the writing. CRWR*2400 (a, b, c, d) c. revision of creative work THST*2120 (a, b, c) d. close readings (writing CRWR*3100 (a, b, c, d) CRWR*3200 (a, b, c, d) assignments and CRWR*3300 (a, b, c, d) discussions of readings) CRWR*3400 (a, b, c, d) CRWR*3500 (a, b, c, d) CRWR*4100 (a, b, c) CRWR*4300 (a, b, c) CRWR*4400 (a, b, c) PLO 3 Achieve an aesthetic maturity through the ENGL*1080 (a, b, c) a. Close readings (writing analysis and critical evaluation of literature ENGL*2380 (a, b, c) assignments and CRWR*2000 (a, b, d) CRWR*3100 (c, d) discussions of readings) CRWR*3200 (c, d) b. Written exams CRWR*3300 (c, d) c. Essays CRWR*4100 (d) d. Reflection essays CRWR*4300 (d) CRWR*4400 (d) 2.0 credits in English (a, b, c) 1.0 credits from Literature, and Media courses (a, b, c) PLO 4 Master the elements of storytelling, CRWR*1000 (a, b, c, d, e) a. short creative writing poetics, and/or scriptwriting in their CRWR*2000 (a, d, e) exercises CRWR*2100 (a, b, c, d) writing. CRWR*2150 (a, b, c, d) b. creative work CRWR*2200 (a, b, c, d) c. revision of creative work CRWR*2300 (a, b, c, d) d. close readings CRWR*2400 (a, b, c, d) e. written exams THST*2120 (a, b, c) CRWR*3100 (a, b, c, d) CRWR*3200 (a, b, c, d) CRWR*3300 (a, b, c, d) CRWR*3400 (a, b, c, d) CRWR*3500 (a, b, c, d) CRWR*4100 (a, b, c) CRWR*4300 (a, b, c) CRWR*400 (a, b, c) PLO 5 Produce sustained literary work of skilled CRWR*1000 (a, b, c) a. short creative writing quality that demonstrates technical CRWR*2000 (b, d) exercises CRWR*2100 (a, b, c) confidence, a distinct individual voice, an CRWR*2150 (a, b, c) b. creative work awareness of audience, and an CRWR*2200 (a, b, c) c. revisions aesthetically sophisticated engagement CRWR*2300 (a, b, c) d. a portfolio with a literary form. CRWR*2400 (a, b, c) THST*2120 (a, b, c) CRWR*3100 (a, b, c) CRWR*3200 (a, b, c) CRWR*3300 (a, b, c) CRWR*3400 (a, b, c) CRWR*3500 (a, b, c) CRWR*4100 (a, b, c, d) CRWR*4300 (a, b, c, d) CRWR*4400 (a, b, c, d) PLO 6 Articulate their creative decisions and offer CRWR*1000 (a) a. workshop participation nuanced, in-depth critique of others’ work CRWR*2100 (a) (both oral and written CRWR*2150 (a) (both written and oral) in group CRWR*2200 (a) critiques) collaborations and workshops CRWR*2300 (a) CRWR*2400 (a) THST*2120 (a) CRWR*3100 (a) CRWR*3200 (a) CRWR*3300 (a) CRWR*3400 (a) CRWR*3500 (a) CRWR*4100 (a) CRWR*4300 (a) CRWR*4400 (a) PLO 7 Apply a disciplinary vocabulary that enables CRWR*1000 (a, b, c) a. workshop participation the student to discuss, analyze, and CRWR*2000 (a, b, c) (both oral and written CRWR*2100 (a, b) evaluate the elements of storytelling, CRWR*2150 (a, b) critiques) poetics and/or scriptwriting. CRWR*2200 (a, b) b. close readings (writing CRWR*2300 (a, b) assignments and CRWR*2400 (a, b) discussions of readings) THST*2120 (a) c. written exams CRWR*3100 (a, b) CRWR*3200 (a, b) CRWR*3300 (a, b) CRWR*3400 (a, b) CRWR*3500 (a, b) CRWR*4100 (a, b) CRWR*4300 (a, b) CRWR*4400 (a, b) PLO 8 Achieve a depth and breadth of ENGL*1080 (a, b, c) a. close readings understanding of literature by reading ENG*2380 (a, b, c) b. written exams CRWR*2000 (a, b) across a range of genres, historical periods, 2.00 credits from English c. essays traditions, movements, and points of view. (a, b, c) 1.00 credits from Lit, THST and Media (a, b, c) PLO 9 Approach their aesthetic practice in an CRWR*3100 (a) a) reflection essays analytical and informed manner; to situate CRWR*3200 (a) CRWR*3300 (a) their writing within a literary context; and CRWR*4100 (a) to assess how their creative work CRWR*4300 (a) participates or departs from a larger CRWR*4400 (a) literary tradition. PLO 10 Demonstrate a global understanding of CRWR*2100 (a, b) a) creative work issues regarding environmentalism and/or CRWR*2150 (a, b) CRWR*2200 (a, b) b) revisions social justice in their creative practice, CRWR*3300 (a, b) using their creative work to engage in a CRWR*3400 (a, b) dialogue for change. CRWR*3500 (a, b) PLO 11 Demonstrate a global understanding by ENGL*1080 (a, b) a) written exams situating texts within different historical, ENGL*2380 (a, b) b) essays 2.00 credits from English cultural and discursive contexts. (a, b) 1.00 credits from Lit, THST and Media (a, b) PLO 12 Recognize the ethical implications of their CRWR*2100 (a, b, c) a) creative work own and others’ writing, as well as CRWR*2150 (a, b, c) b) workshop participation CRWR*2200 (a, b, c) understand arguments about issues of CRWR*3300 (a, b, c) (both oral and written appropriation and representation. CRWR*3400 (a, b, c) critiques) CRWR*3500 (a, b, c) c) revisions PLO 13 Work productively in a group setting by CRWR*1000 (a) a) workshop participation debating issues and presenting ideas in CRWR*2100 (a) CRWR*2150 (a) class with a high degree of professionalism CRWR*2200 (a) and responding respectfully and CRWR*2300 (a) comprehensively to questions posed. CRWR*2400 (a) THST*2120 (a) CTWR*3100 (a) CRWR*3200 (a) CRWR*3300 (a) CRWR*3400 (a) CRWR*3500 (a) CRWR*4100 (a) CRWR*4300 (a) CRWR*4400 (a) PLO 14 Achieve organizational and time CRWR*1000 (a, b, c) a. (prepared for) workshop management skills in order to be prepared CRWR*2100 (a, b, c, d) participation for class and submit work by assigned CRWR*2150 (a, b, c, d) b. (submission of) creative deadlines. CRWR*2200 (a, b, c, d) writing exercises CRWR*2300 (a, b, c, d) CRWR*2400 (a, b, c, d) c. (submission of) creative THST*2120 (a, b, c, d) work CRWR*3100 (a, b, c, d) d. (submission of) revisions CRWR*3200 (a, b, c, d) e. (completion of) portfolio CRWR*3300 (a, b, c, d) CRWR*3400 (a, b, c, d) CRWR*3500 (a, b, c, d) CTWR*4100 (a, b, c, d, e) CRWR*4300 (a, b, c, d, e) CRWR*4400 (a, b, c, d, e) PLO 15 Undertake the professional practices of a CRWR*2100 (a) a. reflection essay or writer, poet, and/or scriptwriter either CRWR*2150 discussion of EL CRWR*2200 (a) through creative practice or community CRWR*2300 (a) b. completion of a portfolio engagement CRWR*2400 (a) and/or CRWR*3100 (a) c. their academic CRWR*3200 (a) performance in an EL CRWR*3300 (a) course CRWR*3400 (a) CRWR*3500 (a) CRWR*4100 (a, b) CRWR*4300 (a, b,) CRWR*4400 (a, b) ENGL*3000 (c) ENGL*2370 (c) HUMN*3180 (c) HUMN*3190 (c)
Board of Undergraduate Studies Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) - Creative Writing
LEGEND CA Course Addition-CC Course Change-CD Course Deletion-CW Credit Weight Change-PC Prog/Spec Change- PD Prog/SpecDeletion-PI Prog/Spec Information-PA Prog/Spec Addition-SC Subject Area Change-MM Major Modification Degree Department/ Code Title CA CC CD CW PC PD PI PA SC MM Description Program School School of English and Theatre Studies BA SETS Creative Writing Major X new program BA SETS CRWR*1000 Elements of Storytelling X new course BA SETS CRWR*2000 Reading as a Writer X new course BA SETS X new course CRWR*2100 Fiction Workshop: Writing the Anthropocene BA SETS CRWR*2150 Speculative Fiction Workshop X new course BA SETS X new course CRWR*2200 Creative Nonfiction Workshop: Writing Nature
BA SETS X new course; EL indicated CRWR*2300 Poetry Workshop
BA SETS X new course; EL indicated CRWR*2400 Screenwriting Workshop BA SETS CRWR*3300 Poetry Workshop: Ecopoetics X new course; EL indicated Screenwriting Workshop: Writing for Inclusive BA SETS X new course; EL indicated CRWR*3400 Screens Advanced Writing for Performance: Writing BA SETS X new course; EL indicated CRWR*3500 for the Inclusive Stage BA SETS CRWR*4300 Capstone Poetics Workshop X new course; EL indicated BA SETS CRWR*4400 Capstone Scriptwriting Workshop X new course; EL indicated BA SETS ENGL*2380 Reading Poetry X new course BA SETS ENGL*3050/ Fiction Writing Workshop course change; changing ENGL*3050 X CRWR*3100 to CRWR*3100 BA SETS ENGL*3030/ Creative Nonfiction Writing Workshop course change; changing ENGL*3030 X CRWR*3200 to CRWR*3200 BA SETS ENGL*4720/ Capstone Prose/Narrative Workshop course change; changing ENGL*4720 X CRWR*4100 to CRWR*4100 BA SETS ENGL*2920 Elements of Creative Writing X course deletion BA SETS ENGL*3060 Intermediate Poetry Writing Workshop X course deletion BA SETS ENGL*3070 Intermediate Screenwriting Workshop X course deletion BA SETS ENGL*3090 Special Topics in Creative Writing Workshop X course deletion
External Reviewers’ Assessment Report on the proposed major: Bachelor of Arts in Creative Writing
Department(s): School of English and Theatre Studies College(s): College of Arts
Date of Site Visit: April 12-16, 2021 Date of Report Submission: April 30, 2021
Dr. Emily Pohl-Weary Daniel Scott Tysdal University of British Columbia University of Toronto Scarborough 2329 West Mall 1265 Military Trail Vancouver, BC, V6T 1Z4 Toronto, ON, M1C 1A4 [email protected] [email protected]
SIGNATURE SIGNATURE
NB: This report addresses the proposed program under review, based on the new program proposal brief and site visit, self-study and other associated documentation. External Reviewers submit the report (word and pdf) within 14 days of the completion of the site visit via email to the Office of Quality Assurance, [email protected] in the Office of the Provost and Vice-President (Academic).
Outline of the Review
Contents of the Review:
1. Introductory Note 2. Objectives for Development of the New Program and Learning Outcomes 3. Admission Standards and Requirements 4. Program Structure 5. Program Content 6. Mode of Delivery 7. Assessment of Teaching and Learning 8. Resources 9. Additional Comment on Resources (for Undergraduate Programs) 10. Quality and other indicators 11. Any Other Issues 12. Summary and Recommendations 13. Additional Notes for External Reviewers
Upon submission for approval, the Office of Quality Assurance appends the site-visit itinerary and indicate whether any additional facilities, interviews or other activities occurred relevant to the appraisal.
1. Introductory Note from the Reviewers
We want to begin by stating that the proposed Creative Writing Major is an exceptional program, and the proposal is clearly written, effectively organized, thorough and complete in its descriptions, and the materials it provides. Ready to meet its planned launch date of Fall 2022, this program not only achieves or exceeds expectations in all the areas we were asked to assess, but it also breaks important new ground for Creative Writing programs in Canada. We have followed the template supplied and added some recommendations within the sections as appropriate.
Emily Pohl-Weary, PhD Daniel Scott Tysdal, MAMA
External Reviewers’ Assessment Report for New BA in Creative Writing pg. 3
2. Objectives for Development of the New Program and Learning Outcomes a) Is the program consistent with the University’s mission and academic plans? Is it consistent with the plans of the College/School/Department?
The University of Guelph has a strong reputation across Canada for its connection to agricultural studies and holistic view of the environment. Its mission statement commits to: • the pursuit of truth, • a global perspective • serving society and enhancing the quality of life through scholarship, • putting the learner at the centre of all it does, • the highest standards of pedagogy, • the education and well-being of the whole person, and • meeting the needs of all learners in a purposefully diverse community. As evinced in this proposal, the reviewers’ site visit, and interviews, this exciting, distinctive Bachelor of Arts in Creative Writing is consistent with these goals. The “pursuit of truth” is evinced in the social justice and environmentalist ethics that underpin the program and in the suite of courses designed to nurture and train a new generation of literary and artistic truthtellers. The “global perspective” is evident in its design and delivery and the aim “to serve society and to enhance the quality of life through scholarship” through creative works and students who consider the positionality of the self and the writer within a community and natural environment. The authors of the proposal have provided ample evidence to support their claim that their program will “foster the education of engaged citizens who can contribute to building inclusive and engaged communities through a broad spectrum of activities” (6) and has been developed with a true commitment to a learner-focused curriculum and high pedagogical standards. Regarding academic plans, there is also evidence to support the claim that the new Creative Writing Major will “both profit from and augment one of the University of Guelph’s program areas of strength: Arts, Culture, and Creative Practice” (6). The authors of this report heard that the new program will provide an infusion of excitement and students to the English Department, which houses Creative Writing. At the same time, the deliberate “focus on environmental awareness and social justice” (3), as the proposal observes, “builds on existing strengths and ongoing interdisciplinary work at the University of Guelph in the fields of Environmental Humanities and Environmental Studies” (5). The University of Guelph’s existing Creative Writing MFA has a very strong reputation in this country, in part for its highly accomplished faculty members, innovative classes, and its deliberate focus on inclusive student cohorts. We were pleased to note that the proposal for this new BA in Creative Writing reflects the same commitments. This proposal also deeply roots the program in the College of Arts Strategic Plan (CASP). The program’s plan for admissions, program pathways, course offerings, course design, course delivery, and learning outcomes meet and promote a host of CASP’s fundamental goals, which include nurturing “creativity and joy,” “foster[ing] compassion and empathy,” teaching students “to tell powerful stories that allow us to bring together different perspectives, make sense of ambiguity, and create new ways of
External Reviewers’ Assessment Report for New BA in Creative Writing pg. 4
knowing and being in the world,” and building “a hub for research, creativity, and transformative education that fosters people’s ability to be human, to act with compassion and empathy.” The program not only encourages students to engage with the world, think critically, and devote themselves to scholarly and creative rigour, but it also encourages them to “realize a thriving, creative community” as they study and once they graduate. In many of the proposed classes, there is a focus on considering and articulating their “transferrable skills with confidence,” so they can plan for, flourish in, the future. b) Are the program requirements and learning outcomes clearly defined, appropriate and in alignment with the University’s learning outcomes?
Yes, the program requirements and learning outcomes are clearly defined, appropriate, and in alignment with the university’s learning outcomes. The reviewers were impressed by the thoughtfulness of the outlined program requirements. We had access to course outlines and interviewed many of the faculty members who will be teaching them. The program requirements are organized into two categories: 1. Creative Writing core (4.00 credits), and 2. Creative Writing restricted electives (4.50 credits). The restricted electives are further subdivided into four categories or years of study. As the students progress through the program, their classes become more specialized and demanding. The program design is effective for three essential reasons. First, in terms of the larger institution, these requirements demonstrate the program’s intimate connection with the university’s and the college’s mission and academic plans. Second, in terms of the program’s guiding ethics, this design foregrounds a “focus on environmental awareness and social justice” (3), which is unique and forward-thinking. Finally, in terms of core learning goals, the program requirements ensure that students gain both breadth and depth of skills and experience, as “majors explore three writing genres, gain expertise in two, and create a polished creative portfolio in one” (9). The degree culminates in a capstone workshop, during which students will work with skilled instructor-mentors to refine and develop longer works of prose, poetry, or screenwriting. In thoroughly and clearly outlining the program’s learning outcomes, the proposal highlights five of the Bachelor of Arts Learning Outcomes: Community Engagement and Global Understanding, Critical and Creative Thinking, Literacy and Communication, Depth and Breadth of Understanding, and Professional Development and Ethical Behavior. The proposal authors outline the specific skills and expertise students will gain through each learning outcome and they comprehensively demonstrate how their program realizes these outcomes and, in turn, how these outcomes enhance the undergraduate curriculum. c) Did the brief include curriculum mapping, indicating how the courses in the program or major meet the overall degree-level learning outcomes? If yes, did the mapping include analysis of the assessment strategies used? Comment on their appropriateness in supporting student achievement of the University’s Undergraduate Learning Outcomes.
Yes, the proposal includes curriculum mapping, indicating how the courses in the major meet the overall degree-level learning outcomes. This mapping, in turn, includes an analysis of the assessment strategies
External Reviewers’ Assessment Report for New BA in Creative Writing pg. 5
that will be used. As noted above, the proposal authors outline the specific skills and expertise students will gain through each learning outcome and comprehensively demonstrate how their program realizes these outcomes and, in turn, how these outcomes enhance the undergraduate curriculum. More specifically, the proposal identifies fifteen Program Learning Outcomes (PLOs), names the courses that realize each specific PLO, and provides a list of the assessment strategies for each individual PLO. These assessment strategies include everything from writing exercises to close reading assignments to the composition and revision of creative work to the delivery of oral and written feedback. These assessment strategies are appropriate in supporting student achievement of the university’s Undergraduate Learning Outcomes and they follow the best practices shared by university- level creative writing programs across the country. d) Is the degree nomenclature appropriate? Degree name, name of major or other specializations in the proposed new program?
Yes, the degree nomenclature is appropriate. “Creative Writing Major” and “Bachelor of Arts in Creating Writing” are the names utilized by similar programs at universities across the country. e) Is the delivery of the program consistent with the strategic directions identified in the University of Guelph’s Strategic Framework and the Strategic Mandate Agreement?
Yes, the delivery of the program is consistent with the strategic directions identified in the University of Guelph’s Strategic Framework, which was approved in 2016. As demonstrated throughout our report, the BA in Creative Writing, at all levels, is guided by and realizes the framework’s five intersecting themes: “inspiring learning and inquiry,” “connecting communities,” “catalyzing discovery and change,” “nurturing a distinctive university culture,” and “stewarding valued resources.” The delivery of the program is also consistent with the strategic directions identified in the Strategic Mandate Agreement. More particularly, the Creative Writing Major demonstrates an intimate connection to the Shared Objectives and Priorities for Differentiation, especially those concerning student experience, innovation in teaching and learning excellence, access and equity, applied research and excellence impact, and community engagement.
External Reviewers’ Assessment Report for New BA in Creative Writing pg. 6
3. Admission Standards and Requirements a) Are the admission requirements appropriate and aligned with the learning outcomes established for successful completion of the program?
Yes, the admission requirements are appropriate. Students will be accepted on a direct-entry basis, based on their GPA, with particular focus on the grades in prior English and Creative Writing classes. These requirements align with the learning outcomes established for successful completion of the program and they align with the program’s ethos of justice, openness, and honesty. The proposal to make the BA in Creative Writing a direct entry program is an important point of distinctiveness for the program, and one that greatly benefits students. At other Canadian universities, students normally complete one to two years of study before applying for acceptance into a Creative Writing Major. This can create a sense of competitiveness that is not conducive to developing a safe environment in the classroom, learning, or building a community. In that first (and, even, second) year, students deal with the stress of uncertainty, and those who are not admitted into the program are left to complete a degree they are not invested in, or even moved to abandon their studies. By contrast, this direct-entry program welcomes students to the campus as Creative Writing Majors from day one. They undertake their degree with confidence and security, knowing they will be able to pursue the studies they came to university to complete. As a result, they will immediately feel a sense of belonging, and begin to invest in and connect with their cohort. Importantly, the program also allows for late entry into the Bachelor of Arts in Creative Writing. This option accounts for the many students who arrive at university not realizing Creative Writing is a crucial and rewarding field of study or who may not discover their writing passion and talents until after arriving at university. It also allows students whose grades are not high enough—or whose families and schools did not prioritize Creative Writing as professional skills—to discover the joys of creativity, storytelling, and lyric forms. b) Is there sufficient explanation of alternative requirements, if any? For example, minimum grade point average, additional languages or portfolios, along with how the program recognizes prior work or learning experience.
Yes, there is ample explanation regarding both the direct-entry and late-entry admissions options. However, both the proposal and discussions during our campus visit did raise two points to consider. First, regarding the direct entry, the authors write, “Admission Services, in consultation with the Registrar and Associate Deans, establishes the annual cut-off ranges for each of the University’s degree programs” (16). Given the potential popularity of the Creative Writing Minor, Guelph’s proximity to Toronto, the excellent reputation of the existing MFA program and renowned faculty, and the high quality of this proposal, we anticipate this to be a very popular program. Could this popularity lead to a particularly high GPA requirement for this program, which will reward good students but leave out disenfranchised young people and talented writers who did not excel in other subjects? In other words, might students who would be accepted if entry was based on a strong creative writing portfolio and statement of intent be left out because they did not excel academically in all their classes? Second, regarding late entry, we are pleased to read that “the College of Arts is actively aiming to
External Reviewers’ Assessment Report for New BA in Creative Writing pg. 7
increase its overall student enrollment and will increase its course offerings to meet student demand as necessary” (16). Is this increase in course offerings limitless? If it is not limitless, what criteria will be applied to accept and reject late entry Creative Writing Majors? Which courses can expand to include more students and how will this be accomplished? Which courses will need additional sections added and how will that be decided? Though this is not noted in the document, during our campus visit, we were told that late entry students would be accepted or rejected based on their English and Creative Writing course GPAs. A potential issue with this approach is that the core Creative Writing courses are narrative-, and, really, fiction-centred, putting those who do not specialize in prose fiction at a disadvantage and running counter to the program’s underlying ethos. Regarding increasing course offerings, we will comment more on this later, but we do want to note here that this increase needs to be supported by full-time tenure track positions in order to maintain the quality of the courses and the program’s sustainable growth. This is especially important in Creative Writing programs, where instructors invest in the development of students over a number of years, and are often expected to contribute to the scholarly community in ways that exceed the normal requirements for sessional instructors, such as helping students improve over a number of classes and years, advising students on career and publishing options, discussing writing decisions, hosting guests, participating in events and other extracurriculars, etc. By adding full-time tenure track positions, the university can avoid placing an unfair burden on adjunct and sessional instructors.
External Reviewers’ Assessment Report for New BA in Creative Writing pg. 8
4. Program Structure a) Are the program structure and regulations appropriate and do they allow students to meet specified program (major-level) learning outcomes and degree level expectations.
Yes, the program structure and regulations are appropriate, and they allow students to meet specified program learning outcomes and degree level expectations. In concert with the program requirements, the program structure is rooted in the university’s and the college’s mission and academic plans, the program’s guiding ethics, and the program’s core goal of nurturing breadth and depth, as “majors explore three writing genres, gain expertise in two, and create a polished creative portfolio in one” (9). One of the highlights of the program structure is that most of the Program Learning Outcomes (PLOs) are developed throughout the student’s time in the program. As the authors of the proposal aptly observe, “creative writing is its own epistemology” and learning and living this epistemology is a lifelong process. This Creative Writing Major prepares students for this process by cultivating the majority of PLOs at the 1000, 2000, 3000, and 4000 level. Fittingly, a select number of PLOs are targeted at the entry level—to establish a key foundation—while others are saved for the 3000/4000 levels when students have the necessary skills, knowledge, and experience to achieve them. In terms of program structure and regulations, the tiers of course offerings, the range of the course offerings, and the proposed timing of these offerings demonstrates that students, in their course selection, will be able and encouraged to follow the BA Program Regulations, including the Distribution Requirement. The Sample Student Progression table (Appendix G) provides a concrete example of this. Regarding structure, one decision does stand out as worth reconsidering. According to the Sample Student Progression table, the 1.0 credit Capstone Workshops (CWR4100, CWR4300, and CWR4400) will be offered as one semester courses. This condensed timeframe is not ideal for such a significant course. The students will draw upon all the skills and knowledge they have gained throughout their degree in order to produce a significant literary work and assist their peers by providing feedback. In other words, they will be asked to produce a high quantity of high-quality writing and feedback. Condensing this work into one term will inevitably lead to rushed writing and feedback, and less time and opportunity to learn and grow.
External Reviewers’ Assessment Report for New BA in Creative Writing pg. 9
5. Program Content a) Does the curriculum reflect the current state of the discipline or areas of study?
Yes, the curriculum reflects the current state of the discipline, though, in truth, this response undersells the important work performed by this Creative Writing Major proposal. We will go into greater detail about distinctiveness and innovation in response to the next question, but we do want to observe here that the curriculum presented in this proposal breaks new ground for Creative Writing programs in Canada and provides a model for other programs—both future and existing—to learn from. In terms of reflecting the current state of the discipline, then, the curriculum follows a variety of best practices and fundamental approaches associated with the development of a Creative Writing Major. First, through both CRWR and ENGL courses, the program provides students with a crucial foundation in the fundamentals of creative writing and the creative writing workshop, in literary histories and traditions, and in the essential role reading plays in one’s writing practice. With these foundations, students are prepared for the creative writing workshop phase of their degree. Second, as is the standard, the workshop courses compose the bulk of the curriculum. These courses, as the PLOs suggest, teach a vast range of essential skills, giving the students the opportunity to write original work, to receive feedback, and to provide feedback to their peers. Finally, the curriculum nurtures both breadth and depth, as “majors explore three writing genres, gain expertise in two, and create a polished creative portfolio in one” (9). In terms of breadth, the program offers the standard core genres—fiction, creative non-fiction, and poetry—along with screenwriting, which, really, is a part of the new standard. In terms of specialization, one of the program highlights is the Capstone workshops in Prose, Poetics, and Screenwriting. These courses provide students with the opportunity to put all of their new skills to work, while also preparing them for the future as they begin a project that could grow into a book or feature film. One course that veers from the standard is CRWR100: Elements of Storytelling, the foundational creative writing course. One of the unique strengths of this course is its size. Capped at 50-60, this course is a more manageable and student-friendly size relative to similar offerings at other Canadian Creative Writing programs, which cap this course at anywhere between 150-300 students. One potential aspect of this course to reconsider is its intense focus on narrative and, in turn, fiction. A course with a more diverse exploration of approaches would better prepare students for the program’s breadth, would be open to a greater range of student writers, and would invigorate and inspire the students with the full slate of creative possibilities. Turning to the final year of study, the Creative Writing Major would also greatly benefit from a professionalization course. Ideally, this would take the form of a mandatory “Creative Writing as a Profession” of “The Business of Writing” class. Working with a combination of class guests and practical assignments, this course would introduce students to the publishing industry, different ways of being a successful writer, and all the different jobs for which their Creative Writing skills prepare them. It could also provide an opportunity to gain hands-on experience writing in an engaging and professional way about their own manuscripts, as well as formulating submissions, agent query letters, grant applications, article pitches, and so on. This class would allow the program to more substantially realize the CASP goal of teaching students to “articulate their transferrable skills with confidence as they navigate their future lives” and the Strategic Mandate Agreement goal of “preparing students for the workforce.”
External Reviewers’ Assessment Report for New BA in Creative Writing pg. 10
b) What evidence is there of any significant innovation, unique curriculum components or creativity in the content and/or delivery of the program?
Yes, there is evidence of significant innovation. The program’s “focus on environmental awareness and social justice” (3) is an important and unique direction. We believe it will inspire other arts programs to follow suit and prioritize the positionality of students as global citizens with responsibilities and heightened awareness. The approach is certain to become a model for future Creative Writing programs, as they are developed, and for existing Creative Writing programs, which continuously evolve and adapt. A number of institutions offer individual courses connected to these themes and experiences, for example “Writing Queer and Trans Voices” and “Poetry, Experimentation, and Activism” at the University of Toronto Scarborough and "Creative Writing with an Indigenous Focus” and “Social Horror: Writing as Resistance” at the University of British Columbia. However, no other program foregrounds these issues so overtly, or weaves them thorough through their entire curriculum. This innovation is most clearly realized in the themed workshops, which include classes like CRWR*2100: “Fiction Workshop: Writing the Anthropocene” and CRWR*3400: “Screenwriting Workshop: Writing for the Inclusive Screen.” These classes realize a variety of important pedagogical goals. They teach creative writing students that they do not live and write in a bubble. By uniting the teaching of the writer’s tools with explorations of activist knowledges and practices, these courses show students, through hands-on practice, that the creative writer’s tools are not abstract elements detached from the world; instead, these tools are derived from the world and they can be utilized to create a better one. This method promotes a powerful and empowering message: we can learn as we write, and we can provoke change as we write. This innovative curriculum also speaks to the larger community beyond the classroom. First, this “focus on environmental awareness and social justice” (3) signals to socially and environmentally engaged students and writers that they belong on this campus, that the members of the Creative Writing Major program want to work and learn with them. Second, this focus also connects with and further promotes the university’s investment in understanding and promoting social and environmental justice. Finally, this focus prepares students to be leaders in their field as the publishing industry and other writing-related areas struggle, and often fail, to achieve greater equality and sustainability. Beyond this innovative curriculum, we also wish to highlight a practice we noted above in our comments on reflecting the current state of the discipline. Every Creative Writing program knows and praises the adage: to write, you must read, read, and read. However, not every program is willing or able to fully realize this goal within their curriculum. By contrast, this BA in Creative Writing makes reading like a writer an integral part of the degree by mandating that the students take four half-courses in English. As such, they will become aware of the communities and conversations they enter with their new stories, poems, and scripts. This goal can only be accomplished through robust reading-focused early offerings and by connecting students to an essential asset—accomplished, creative, and engaged English Department colleagues.
External Reviewers’ Assessment Report for New BA in Creative Writing pg. 11
6. Mode of Delivery a) Appropriateness of the proposed mode(s) of delivery to meet the intended program (major’s) learning outcomes and degree-level learning outcomes.
Yes, the proposed mode of delivery successfully equips students to achieve both the program’s intended learning outcomes (3) and degree-level learning outcomes. The proposal’s stated learning outcomes are common to other creative writing programs across the country but given the iterative nature of developing programs such as this one, this BA in Creative Writing benefits from studying how other universities have organized theirs. The proposal identifies two main modes of delivery, in the form of lectures and workshops. There are also lecture-workshop hybrids in the first and second year that combine both modes on separate days. As expected, students progress through the years of study, and classes shift from primarily lectures to primarily more intimate workshops/seminars. Students who graduate from the BA in Creative Writing will have undertaken a rigorous and comprehensive four-year program that focuses on: • Critical and creative thinking, by analyzing published texts and applying aesthetic, theoretical, social, and genre-specific questions to their own work; • Communication skills, which are inherently part of the process of developing a writer’s toolkit, articulating the nuanced choices made in one’s own writing, and constructively workshopping peers; • Literacy skills, developed through immersion in creative writing, ongoing specialized analysis and discussion of published literature and a growing awareness about their own writing choices; • Global awareness of environmental and social issues that impact writers’ creative decisions, as well as the ethical implications of those decisions; and • Professionalism, including time-management, how to work productively in group settings, engaging in respectful debates, and awareness of the practices of successful writers (through the mentorship of faculty and guests). These program-specific learning outcomes are clearly articulated in the proposal and were echoed in the interviews during our site visit. In our discussions with faculty, we were encouraged to learn more about the course content and the ways that the proposed curriculum scaffolding will centre the experiences and interests of students. As mentioned above, students begin the program with introductory courses in “Elements of Storytelling” and “Reading as a Writer.” There, they begin to develop the specialized knowledge and critical skills necessary to continue into genre-specific workshops on speculative fiction, nature writing, creative non- fiction, poetry, and playwriting and screenwriting. Simultaneously, they are required to take four classes in the broader English Department. They are also encouraged to branch out to other departments, such as French, Spanish, and German, when choosing their electives. Students will have the opportunity to follow their creative inspirations to study, for example, “Classical Mythology,” "Women in Literature, Art and Film,” or even “Fictions of Childhood.” By the third year of the program, students will have undergone a deep immersion in literature and creative writing and be ready to take advanced genre-specific workshops with themes like ecopoetics and writing for the “inclusive” screen or stage. This will prepare them for their final capstone project, in
External Reviewers’ Assessment Report for New BA in Creative Writing pg. 12
Year 4: a longer manuscript that will set them on the path to writing a whole novel, feature film, three- act play, or poetry collection. There is another learning stream for students that the reviewers learned about from the proposal and our site visit, which is the University of Guelph’s Experiential Learning Program. We were highly encouraged by their desire to integrate into the new program, work with and learn from faculty and students. They already had numerous ideas for community engagement and experiential learning opportunities. Students in the new program will be strongly encouraged to participate in electives such as HUMN*3190 “Experiential Learning”; ENGL*3000 “Editorial Experience”; ENGL*2370 “Literature and Community-Engaged Learning”; and HUMN*3180 “Community Engagement Project”. We anticipate these opportunities to be extremely popular, as students covet industry-related professional experience. They can integrate into Guelph-area literary and community organizations, publishing companies, and other businesses that integrate the literary arts in order to get hands-on experience, make connections, learn editing, event coordination, production skills, and get insight into the many ways creative writers earn a living.
External Reviewers’ Assessment Report for New BA in Creative Writing pg. 13
7. Assessment of Teaching and Learning a) Are the methods used to assess student achievement of the defined learning outcomes and degree level expectations appropriate and effective?
Yes, they are appropriate and effective. This proposal outlines and explains the specific assessment techniques that will be used throughout the degree. The methods utilized to assess learning outcomes and degree-level expectations are employed in creative writing programs across the country. These include: 1. short writing exercises used to encourage students to try new genres, techniques and forms, 2. original creative output in the form of stories, poems, essays and scripts, 3. revision and resubmission of a polished portfolio, 4. essay reflections on readings and essential learning, 5. structured peer-critique in the form of writing workshops, and 6. oral participation in discussions. In the program’s first- and second-year classes, assessment methods will lean toward items 1, 2, 3, and 4 above. This makes a great deal of sense, as students are still developing a base level of knowledge, and the confidence to use their “writer’s toolkit” in the world beyond the university. Once students have developed a level of skill, knowledge, and vocabulary that they can use to analyze different kinds of creative writing, they will be ready to participate in more advanced third- and fourth-year classes. At that time, different evaluation techniques will be more fruitful. Items 5 and 6 allow students to put their expertise into use and innovate. Peer-critiques (workshopping each other’s writing) and oral participation (discussions about peer’s writing as well as published material) are successfully used in many advanced creative writing classes. As we have mentioned previously, one of the innovative aspects of this particular creative writing program is the emphasis that will be placed on critical analysis of published writing alongside the creation of new work. Students will analyze aesthetics, thematic content, where a piece and its author sit in the literary “conversation” and global power structures, specific stylistic choices made by the author, and the impact all these things have on readers. Early-career writers do not always understand that the first flush of inspiration is only one stage of writing. Throughout the degree, importance is placed on the iterative nature of writing and the way revision (item 3 above) improves a work, and is critical to success in the publishing industry. If a writer doesn’t learn to edit themselves, they will not improve, and one of the best ways to learn about one’s own writing is to examine and edit other people’s work. Editing is also a professional skill that allows writers to enter the industry and develop a career at a publishing house or other organization. We find that the program’s levelled learning, from point of entry into ENGL*1080: “Literatures in English I: Reading the Past” and CRWR*1000: “Elements of Storytelling” is thoughtful and clear. The planned assignments and their assessment techniques demonstrate the readiness of faculty and administrators associated with this proposal. The course outlines available in Appendix E detail exactly how the assessment techniques have been and will be integrated into the learning outcomes. These comprehensive outlines lead us to believe that the program will be ready for the first cohort students as soon as September 2022.
External Reviewers’ Assessment Report for New BA in Creative Writing pg. 14
The program’s mandate to incorporate awareness about the environment and social justice also became clarified through discussions and reading the outlines. It will be woven into the fabric of all the courses and influence the hiring of new faculty. As a result, we were satisfied that the program truly does commit to positioning "creative writing as an epistemology, an imaginative and experiential praxis that allows students to embody others, consider a diversity of points of view and learn how narrative and lyric forms can voice complexity in the context of a larger culture” (32). The proposal also explains that the evaluation of student performance is aligned with the University of Guelph’s governance structure, the College of Arts, Bylaws for the Board of Undergraduate Studies, and will follow recommendations from the curriculum committees. The students in the BA in Creative Writing will be required to demonstrate and maintain the high level of performance that the university expects in other fields. b) Are the means of assessment (particularly in the students’ final year of the program) appropriate and effective to demonstrate achievement of the major’s/specialization’s learning outcomes and the institution’s or degree level outcomes and expectations? (Undergraduate Learning Outcomes)
Yes, they appropriately and effectively evaluate whether students have achieved the major’s learning outcomes and degree-level expectations. We have already mentioned how effective the assessment methods for individual classes will be and the fact that many of these assessment methods are common to creative writing programs across the country. Assignments like polished portfolios and workshops are frequently used to demonstrate the level of learning and accumulative knowledge of more advanced students. We will note that the culminating Capstone Project all students undertake in Year 4 is another excellent way to enrich learning and showcase student abilities at the end of the degree. These full-credit classes, taken after students have undergone an entire program of half-credit classes, focus on lengthening, revising, and polishing a project that was initiated in other classes. Capstone projects might be a significant portion of a novel, an act of a feature-length screenplay, a one- act play, or a curated collection of poetry or non-fiction essays. The fact that three workshops will be offered simultaneously, each focusing on different genres, means that class sizes can remain small and can be taught by specialized instructors. In our experience, classes like these are intensive for both students (who do a lot of work to support their longer manuscripts, such as outlining an entire book/script, workshopping other students, and major rewrites of their work) and instructors (who must read 50 pages of writing by each student multiple times, as well as the extraneous documents such as proposals and outlines, and the feedback students provide each other). This is one of the reasons we strongly recommend hiring more full-time faculty by the time the first cohort reaches Year 4. Of further note, the polished writing created in these Capstone Workshops would be ideal material for transdisciplinary collaborations. For example, a CRWR student’s one-act play might be produced and performed by students in the Theatre Studies BA and presented to the public in the new George Luscombe Theatre. Students in Theatre Studies might be excited to work with a script written by someone from their own community and students in Creative Writing would learn a great deal from seeing their words workshopped by actors and performed live onstage. These workshops could even be scheduled in tandem with Theatre Studies, so that the writing occurs in the fall term, and the production occurs in the winter term.
External Reviewers’ Assessment Report for New BA in Creative Writing pg. 15
8. Resources a) Assess the adequacy of the planned utilization of existing human (faculty and staff), physical and financial resources to achieve the goals of the program; or of plans and the commitment to provide the necessary resources in step with the implementation of the program.
The University of Guelph is an ideal location for such a program, and it seems to the reviewers that the entire College of Arts and its related institutions are committed to supporting this new program in every possible way. As we learned during our virtual campus tour, while on-campus activities have been suspended during the pandemic, the MacKinnon Building is where the English Department and the new program will be housed. It has the physical space for creative writing classes (classrooms, labs, performance venues). The MacKinnon Building is near the library, which contains valuable special collections of Canadian literature and Canadian film/theatre scripts and recordings. Two new performance spaces are being built: the George Luscombe Theatre and a smaller workshop/presentation room called the ImprovLab. The English Department already has a wealth of accomplished, diverse, and experienced creative writing professors. The reviewers were also pleased to note that the existing faculty seems quite excited to teach the new classes and have been involved, to varying degrees, in the proposal’s development. The university has committed to hiring an additional full-time tenure-track faculty member and will continue to do so as the program develops and expands. Since the department has seen a great demand for its creative writing minor courses, interest in this degree may well exceed the expectations in the brief, and expansions may come sooner than anticipated. Students will have many opportunities to learn in other departments and disciplines and develop professional skills. Experiential learning opportunities are integrated into the curriculum, and we heard from staff at the Experiential Learning Hub that they are eager to connect students with local publishers and literary organizations. The new program will increase the workload of administrative staff in a diffuse but substantial manner. The reviewers heard from these staff members that they already have a large workload. As well, we learned that academic advisors, who support students with degree progression and course- related issues, already cover a very large number of students (close to 1500 each). For student well- being, there may need to be another administrative hire in the future. As is the current case in the existing MFA in Creative Writing, we recommend the hiring of an administrative assistant to support faculty and staff in the new program. In addition, we want to note that during creative writing classes, especially when students are early career writers, their written work and discussions can be triggering and explore psychologically difficult material. Faculty and admin staff should have training and a protocol in place for helping students in distress. We were happy to note that University of Guelph students have accessibility, physical health, and mental health support. Counselling services, peer-counselling, mental and physical supports, and external referrals are all crucial. b) Is there participation of a sufficient number and quality of faculty who are competent to teach and/or supervise in the program?
External Reviewers’ Assessment Report for New BA in Creative Writing pg. 16
Yes, there are a sufficient number and quality of faculty to teach in the program as it stands. We also learned that the university is currently hire two new full-time creative writing faculty members. However, as mentioned above, when the first cohort reaches Year 4 and enters the time-intensive Capstone Workshops (if not before), we anticipate a need for the program to hire more full-time faculty. c) Is there evidence that there are adequate resources to sustain the quality of scholarship produced by undergraduate students scholarship and research activities, including library support, information technology support, and laboratory access.
Yes, there are adequate resources to sustain the quality of scholarship produced by undergraduate students. During our site visit, we learned about new developments on campus, such as the ImprovLab and the George Luscombe Theatre, where the BA in Creative Writing will be able to practice performance skills, and host public events such as readings and presentations. Given the nature of this program, the University of Guelph Library will be a wealth of resources and especially indispensable. We learned that their staff are already planning how best to be of support and ensure that the library is a space that celebrates the intellectual life of students and faculty. A detailed library report is available in Appendix D of the proposal. As noted above, the library has special collections of Canadian literature and film/theatre scripts and recordings. They also invest in streamable content, which focuses on Canadian work (such as recordings of national theatre productions), but also includes international drama. They encourage new students and faculty to organize one-on-one meetings with librarians to help structure their research and learn about relevant resources. They are able to prioritize the purchase of new materials by specific authors and display them prominently. They also provide Writing Specialists, Learning Services (i.e. supporting students with skills like time-management, and faculty with the development of assignments and suitable assessment methods). Their THINC Lab offers instruction in technology like WeVideo (which would be very useful for students working on plays and films), digital humanities support, and can provide software subscriptions. Further, the library partners with the Creative Writing Program to organize programming, such as the Gryphon Reads series, other literary events, small reading and writing groups, and by curating digital and in-person exhibits.
d) Comment on the evidence of consultation with academic units outside of the home department/school.
In this proposal and during our site visit, the reviewers noted a great deal of consultation with units outside the Creative Writing Program that have not been mentioned already. In particular, faculty in the broader School of English and Theatre Studies (SETS), which houses Creative Writing, anticipate a number of supportive interdisciplinary connections. We noted letters of support in Appendix A from the former Director of SETS (English) and the Dean of the College of Arts (Philosophy).
External Reviewers’ Assessment Report for New BA in Creative Writing pg. 17
During the virtual site visit, the reviewers met with the current Director of SETS (English) and faculty from SETS who do not teach creative writing to discuss the proposed program’s impact on the English Department at large. We learned of their excitement and interest in the proposal and were told that the new BA in Creative Writing could bring an infusion of interest to other English courses and might result in joint degrees. The Internal Facilitator of our site visit was from the Department of Psychology. During our site visit, we met with library staff, the Experiential Learning Hub, the Associate Dean Academic of the College of Arts (School of Languages and Literatures), the Associate Vice-President, Academic (Ontario Veterinary College) and the Director of Academic Programs and Policy (Office of the Provost). Our impression was that they had all been consulted prior to the site visit and were highly supportive of the proposal. Note that Appendix F demonstrates consultation with other departments about electives that will be offered to BA in Creative Writing students. e) If the program includes a co-operative education option, comment on the adequacy of the planned implementation and support.
While there is no co-operative education option for this program, the Experiential Learning Program will be highly integrated into the BA in Creative Writing. See section 8b below for more information about experiential learning opportunities.
External Reviewers’ Assessment Report for New BA in Creative Writing pg. 18
9. Additional Comment on Resources (for Undergraduate Programs)
Comment on the evidence of and planning for adequate numbers and quality of: (a) planned/anticipated class sizes;
The program’s planned/anticipated class sizes are outlined in a table in the proposal, section 7, pg 48:
As evidenced in this table, the early degree courses (CRWR*1000, ENGL*1080, CRWR*2000, and ENGL*2380) are larger, lecture-style classes, with 50-60 students in them. This is smaller than what is usual in entry-level creative writing classes across the country, which can be as large as 250. CRWR*1000 is the first introduction students will have to creative writing, and makes use a hybrid form that includes two lectures a week and a smaller workshop (possibly led by an MFA in Creative Writing Teaching Assistant). The workshop component gives Year 1 students a sense of what their later workshop classes might be like. We find the planned/anticipated class sizes quite conservative and manageable. Though as noted earlier in the report, we believe there may well be a high level of interest in this unique program. This problem is a good one to have, as it indicates the program fills a need in the community, and can be managed in the short term by being more selective about students and adding more sections of the early lecture classes taught by adjuncts and part-time faculty. In the long term, if the interest remains high, the program may need to hire more full-time faculty.
External Reviewers’ Assessment Report for New BA in Creative Writing pg. 19
Comment on the evidence of and planning for adequate numbers and quality of: (b) provision of supervision of experiential learning opportunities (if required);
There are many professional development-related experiential learning opportunities available to the program’s students (see Section 2.3 of the brief).
We learned from meeting with the Experiential Learning Hub that staff are already connecting with literary organizations, publishers, and businesses in the area so that students in the BA in Creative Writing will have access to a range of options.
ENGL*3000 “Editorial Experience” is a prime example. Students in that class will publish an e- journal that showcases the creative work of the University’s student body, thereby “gaining valuable work experience and an awareness of the broader literary and cultural landscape” (8). This is the core community-engaged learning course that will be offered in 2022, but within the list of available electives, students can also choose to pursue ENGL*2370 “Literature and Community-Engaged Learning”; HUMN*3180 “Community Engagement Project”; and/or HUMN*3190 “Experiential Learning.”
Through these classes, students learn to apply the skills they gain in class, then develop industry connections and potentially even work opportunities in professions like editing, communications, and social media. The Hub has a database of over 10,000 local employers who post summer jobs, requests for co-op students, and student jobs.
In the future, the Hub wants to develop a flexible internship program whereby College of Arts students undertake 40 hours of volunteer work and another program in which local businesses and organizations can hire students with short-term financial incentives from the university.
Comment on the evidence of and planning for adequate numbers and quality of: (c) the role of adjunct and part-time faculty.
There is a strong desire to avoid depending on adjunct and part-time faculty, which the reviewers believe is in the best interests of the program and its students. However, temporary adjuncts and part-time faculty do provide a program with the necessary diversity of experience and exposure to new teaching methods and assignments. They can cover additional sections of classes or to teach unique or specialized courses in the short-term. An example was given in the proposal of a writer who prefers to teach as an adjunct, so he can spend summers in another country. Also, sometimes guest authors and writers-in-residence may be invited to teach a class, so as to expose the students to new ideas and learning opportunities.
External Reviewers’ Assessment Report for New BA in Creative Writing pg. 20
10. Quality and Other Indicators a) Definition and use of indicators that provide evidence of quality of the faculty (e.g., qualifications, research, innovation and scholarly record; appropriateness of collective faculty expertise to contribute substantively to the proposed program).
The faculty members designated to teach the Creative Writing Major are exceptional. The proposal provides ample evidence to support the quality of the faculty in all the areas suggested above: qualifications, research, innovation, and scholarly record. The proposal summarizes the quality and range of the accomplishments of the “distinguished writers and playwrights on faculty” (44), presenting an internationally recognized group of award-winning creators who continue to actively publish and stage productions in top venues. Full evidence for this quality is provided in the impressive faculty CVs (Appendix E). The course outlines (Appendix B), in turn, demonstrate the faculty’s ability to translate their experience, talents, and accomplishments into pedagogically sound and creatively inspiring courses. More specifically, the collective faculty possess the expertise to contribute substantively to the two intertwined focusses of the Creative Writing Major: one, creative writing, and two, social justice and environmentalist contexts. First, the faculty’s publication and teaching records exhibit a group perfectly prepared to teach courses in the program’s four main areas: poetry, fiction, creative non-fiction, and screenwriting. Second, the faculty’s publication and teaching records, along with their public engagement efforts, centre around issues of diversity, inclusivity, and justice. Faculty work on the page, stage, and screen, in the classroom and beyond, addresses crucial issues such as race, class, gender, sexuality, disability, climate crisis, and ecological loss (38). Beyond the Creative Writing faculty, the SETS faculty, taken as a whole, also demonstrates excellence in qualifications, research, innovation, and scholarly record. Their courses offer Creative Writing students further opportunities to hone their creative writing skills and their understanding of social justice and environmentalist ideas through readings, discussion, traditional assignments, and creative assignments. These faculty members could also act as potential collaborators in co-taught classes or as creators of cross-listed courses.
b) Evidence of a program structure and faculty research that will ensure the intellectual quality of the student experience.
The proposal provides ample evidence that the program structure and faculty research will ensure the intellectual quality of the student experience. Our remarks on the program’s many strengths in “3. Structure” and “4. Program Content,” combined with our comments above on the high quality of the faculty, demonstrate that the Creative Writing Major is an innovative, pedagogically sound, and culturally significant program taught by world class faculty members. Once again, perhaps the strongest evidence for the intellectual quality of the student experience is found in the course outlines (Appendix B), which demonstrate the faculty’s ability to translate their experience, talents, and accomplishments—their passions and their activism—into pedagogically sound and creatively inspiring courses.
External Reviewers’ Assessment Report for New BA in Creative Writing pg. 21
11. Any Other Issues
Use this section to comment on any other components of the self-study, site visit meetings or facilities that have not been addressed elsewhere in the assessment template.
The template provided the categories we needed to share our assessments and feedback.
External Reviewers’ Assessment Report for New BA in Creative Writing pg. 22
12. Summary and Recommendations
Use this section to appraise the quality of the proposed program as set out in the evaluation criteria above. a) program strengths
As we observed in our introduction, and as the rest of our report makes clear, the proposed Creative Writing Major is an exceptional program. Ready to meet its planned launch date of Fall 2022, this program not only achieves or exceeds expectations in all the areas we were asked to assess, but it also breaks important new ground for Creative Writing programs in Canada. To begin with this groundbreaking feature, as we have highlighted throughout our report, the program’s “focus on environmental awareness and social justice” (3) is a significant innovation. This innovation is a strength for several reasons. Students study their craft not as solitary individuals, but as members of a community who are invested in others and our world. They study their craft in concert with learning how to take part in the most pressing conversations of our time. They will gain the experience, knowledge, and tools needed to continue to listen and learn, to take part in and lead important conversations, and to take action and advocate for change. In terms of the larger campus, this focus fertilely connects to the University of Guelph’s investment in environmental and social justice research, innovation, and advocacy. Beyond the University of Guelph, this innovation serves as an inspiration to Creative Writing programs across Canada, acting as a model for how to effectively connect creative writing instruction to environmental and social justice education and activism. This innovation, of course, would be meaningless without the program’s many other foundational strengths. These strengths include: 1) a program grounded in the university’s and department’s mission and academic plans, 2) a pedagogically sound and inspiring curriculum, 3) a faculty of talented, dedicated teachers who are also accomplished, award-winning creators, 4) a significant commitment to experiential learning, 5) essential support from, and exciting opportunities for collaboration with, the department, other departments, and the campus-wide community, and 6) a track record of significant student interest and engagement. Through these many strengths, students will graduate from this program fully equipped as writers. They will possess an intimate, working knowledge of a wide range of tools, genres, and traditions. They will have gained crucial professional knowledge and experience, and they will have honed an impressive set of skills that will prepare them for a variety of careers. They will also be members of what promises to be a talented, committed community of fellow students and alumnus, writers who are prepared to entertain, inspire, and educate, to spur change on the page, stage, and screen and in the world.
External Reviewers’ Assessment Report for New BA in Creative Writing pg. 23
b) areas the proposal could be strengthened or any missing components
The proposal does not need strengthening and there are no missing components. The high quality of the program is reflected in the high quality of the Creative Writing Major proposal. The proposal is clearly written, effectively organized, and thorough and complete in its descriptions and the materials it provides. All in all, an exciting and inspiring piece of work.
c) specific, actionable recommendations
Our specific, actionable recommendations are provided to consider as the program prepares for its launch in Fall 2022 and as the program develops after that.
Prioritize hiring full-time faculty members. One of the strengths of the proposed program is the accomplished and committed faculty. The existing faculty members, combined with the current hiring plans, will allow the program to meet student demand. However, given its strength, this program— particularly with its lack of admission by portfolio—has the potential to grow and grow fast. We recommend the department begin laying the groundwork now to make the necessary full-time faculty hires. We also recommend the program prioritizes hiring full-time faculty members rather than relying on sessional labour. Like many arts-based university programs, Creative Writing programs exist in the classroom and in the community that flourishes beyond the classroom in events, opportunities, and field trips. Full-time faculty are best positioned—and properly recompensed—for this crucial work.
Explicitly develop connections with the MFA in Creative Writing. Important professionalization skills are the abilities to teach, mentor/support, and learn from the experiences of other emerging writers. Because the University of Guelph has such an exceptional graduate program that has trained writers who publish and integrate into the community in inspiring ways, it would greatly benefit both the BA students and MFA students if there were points of connection. MFA students could be teaching assistants in the introductory lecture classes. There could be jointly organized events and even conferences or festivals, which would bring authors and literary inspiration to students and the Guelph- area literary community.
Carefully consider and clearly establish admission guidelines for all different points of access to the program. We commend the decision to run a Creative Writing Major without an admission portfolio. Direct admission is a student-centred approach and one that expresses the program’s ideals. However, this ideal can only be properly realized if no students are turned away and if every student who wishes to enroll in the program is accepted. If acceptance of every student, both direct and late entry, is not possible, the program will need to carefully consider and clearly establish admission guidelines for both direct entry and late entry students. Here are some of the potential issues:
External Reviewers’ Assessment Report for New BA in Creative Writing pg. 24
• Direct Entry: Through the proposal and during our meeting with the Dean and Associate Dean, we learned GPA would be used to determine which applicants are accepted into the Creative Writing Major program. If the program is as popular as we anticipate, this GPA cut-off number could end up being quite high. Does this GPA cut-off suit the ideals and goals of the program? Will this end up excluding potentially talented writers who would benefit from the program and who the program wishes to reach? Isn’t a GPA cut-off potentially more exclusionary and less effective than admission by portfolio? • Late Entry: During our meeting with the program lead, we were told that late entry Creative Writing Major students would be accepted based on their GPA in CRWR1000. Once again, it is hard to see how GPA is fairer or more open than a portfolio submission. A specific issue in this case, too, is that CRWR1000 privileges fiction, in particular, and prose, in general. This could put poets, screenwriters, and playwrights at a disadvantage in late entry access to the program. • Non-Creative Writing Major and Minors: Will non-Creative Writing Major and Minor students have access to the full suite of Creative Writing classes? Will they be able to access some courses? We only invite consideration on this question because a few faculty members mentioned they value the opportunity to teach these students and appreciate the perspectives they bring to the class.
Broaden and open the approach in CRWR1000. This course is one of the rare examples where a decision does not meet the proposal’s goal of inclusiveness and diversity, and where the approach utilized by Creative Writing programs across the country would better realize the program’s ideals. More specifically, CRWR1000 introduces students to Creative Writing through a limited, fiction-focused lens, whereas most Introduction to Creative Writing courses across the country seek to introduce students to the wide range of creative writing possibilities. Here are a few of the issues and missed opportunities: • As noted above in our discussion of admission, this narrow approach potentially gives an advantage to late entry fiction writers, while putting those with other areas of interest at a disadvantage. • This approach sells the program short by not introducing students to the full range of creative strengths that define the program and creative opportunities that await the students. • One argument the program lead provided in favour of the narrow approach is that it gives students what they want. However, based on our experience, new writers do not yet know what they want. The goal of an introductory class like this should be show students the full range of what is possible and not just give them what they already think is possible.
Develop a professionalization course in Year 4 that is a requirement for all Creative Writing Majors and Minors. This course would prepare students for life after graduation, both in terms of their writing and their careers. Students learn how their creative industries work and how to get their work published and produced. They also learn essential skills like querying agents, pitching projects, and writing grant applications. Class guests can include industry professionals and writers who make careers by putting their skills to work in unexpected ways. We make this recommendation based on our knowledge of other Canadian Creative Writing programs and our visit with the Creative Writing students. This
External Reviewers’ Assessment Report for New BA in Creative Writing pg. 25
recommendation will also allow the program to further enhance its already robust experiential learning component, while also more effectively realizing the following CASP, educate students to “articulate their transferrable skills with confidence as they navigate their future lives.”
Investigate the possibility of a yearly Creative Writing-specific budget within the department’s budget. This budget would be dedicated to Creative Writing specific initiatives and opportunities like the Writer-in-Residence program, class guests, campus events, and field trips. The security of the budget provides year-to-year clarity and allows program faculty and students to plan and create with confidence and consistency.
Develop comprehensive handbooks for 1) students and 2) instructors that could include teaching and/or degree guidelines, important contacts, how to find crisis support and training, faculty bios, course descriptions, resources that can be accessed, external electives that may support the core courses, and experiential learning opportunities. The handbook for students would be resource that can be utilized throughout the four years and a tool that might alleviate some of the pressure on academic advisors, faculty, and staff. It could contain essential information and opportunities available to them during their degree. The handbook for faculty would be particularly useful for new instructors, who may not know the exact requirements of the program, the learning expectations at different levels, how to access spaces other than their classrooms, library support available (such as purchasing new acquisitions and technology training), and potential experiential learning opportunities that would complement their in-class teaching.
13. Additional Notes for External Reviewers
Should there be a need for a confidential section, please contact the Office of Quality Assurance for further direction.
There is no such need.
Please note: The responsibility for arriving at a recommendation on the final classification of the program (approval to commence) belongs internally to the Senate of the University of Guelph and externally to the Council of Ontario Universities’ Appraisal Committee. Individual reviewers should refrain from making recommendations in this respect.
External Reviewers’ Assessment Report for New BA in Creative Writing pg. 26
New Undergraduate Major – Remote Site Visit Itinerary
Name of Proposed Major: Bachelor of Arts – Creative Writing Academic Unit(s): School of English and Theatre Studies Review Dates: April 12-16 External Reviewers: Dr. Emily Pohl-Weary, University of British Columbia Dr. Daniel Tysdal, University of Toronto Internal Facilitator: Dr. Ian Newby-Clark, Professor and Chair, Department of Psychology
Office of Quality Assurance: Alyssa Voigt, Manager, Curriculum and Academic Quality Assurance 519-400-3483 Clarke Mathany, Manager, Curriculum and Academic Quality Assurance 519-400-3250
NB: University of Guelph is following government and public health directives resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic. As result, all meetings for cyclical program reviews take place via videoconferencing using MS Teams, with support from OQA, program staff and internal facilitators. Should the need for additional meetings arise, the Office of Quality Assurance will facilitate scheduling.
Pre-meeting - remote site visit prep – External Reviewers, Internal Facilitator and OQA Friday, March 26, 2pm-3pm ET (11am – 12pm PT)
DAY 1: Monday, April 12th Time Meeting 3:00 – 3:45 ET Kick Off Meeting with Patricia Tersigni, Director, Academic Programs and Policy and Martin (12:00 – 12:45 PT) Williams, Director, Office of Teaching and Learning 3:45 – 4:00 ET Break (12:45 – 1:00 PT) 4:00 – 4:30 ET Meeting with Samantha Brennan, Dean, College of Arts and Ruediger Mueller, Associate Dean (1:00 – 1:30 PT) Academic, College of Arts 4:30 – 5:00 ET Debrief meeting; reviewers and internal facilitator (1:30 – 2:00 PT)
DAY 2: Tuesday, April 13th Time Meeting 12:00 – 1:00 ET Meeting with Program Lead – Pablo Ramirez, Associate Professor, School of English and Theatre (9:00 – 10:00 PT) Studies 1:00 – 1:50 ET Meeting with Jade Ferguson, Director, School of English and Theatre Studies and Martha Nandorfy, (10:00 – 10:50 PT) former Director, School of English and Theatre Studies 1:50 – 2:15 ET Break (10:50 – 11:15 PT) 2:15 – 3:00 ET Meeting with Students (11:15 – 12:00 PT) 3:00 – 3:15 ET Break (12:00 – 12:15 PT)
3:15 – 4:30 ET Meeting with Core Creative Writing Faculty: (12:15 – 1:30 PT) Catherine Bush, Associate Professor, School of English and Theatre Studies Dionne Brand, Professor, School of English and Theatre Studies Judith Thompson, Professor, School of English and Theatre Studies 4:30 – 5:00 ET Debrief meeting; Reviewers with Internal Facilitator (1:30 – 2:00 PT)
DAY 3: Thursday, April 15th Time Meeting 12:00 – 12:30 ET Meeting with Colleen Myronyk, Associate Director, Co-operative Education and Work-Integrated (9:00 – 9:30 PT) Learning, Experiential Learning Hub and Kate Hoad-Reddick, Experiential Learning Partnerships Developer, College of Arts 12:30 – 1:15 ET Virtual Tour led by Jade Ferguson, Director, School of English & Theatre Studies (9:30 – 10:15 PT) 1:15 – 1:45 ET Break (10:15 – 10:45 PT) 1:45 – 2:15 ET Meeting with Library: (10:45 – 11:15 PT) Ian Gibson, Head, Collections & Content Helen Salmon, Collections & Content Librarian Dave Hudson, Learning & Curriculum Support Librarian 2:15 – 2:45 ET Meeting with Staff: (11:15 – 11:45 PT) Pam Keegan, Academic Programs Assistant, School of English and Theatre Studies Olga Petrik, Administrative Assistant to the Director, School of English and Theatre Studies Matt Edwards, BA Program Counsellor Patricia Swidinsky, BA Program Counsellor Megan Hood, Manager, Academic Programs and Recruitment, College of Arts 2:45 – 3:45 ET Meeting with Core Creative Writing Faculty: (11:45 – 12:45 PT) Lawrence Hill, Professor, School of English and Theatre Studies Julie Cairnie, Professor, School of English and Theatre Studies Elaine Chang, Associate Professor, School of English and Theatre Studies 3:45 – 4:15 ET Break (12:45 – 1:15 PT) 4:15 – 5:00 ET Meeting with SETS Faculty (1:15 – 2:00 PT) 5:00 – 5:30 ET Debrief meeting; Reviewers with Internal Facilitator (2:00 – 2:30 PT)
DAY 4: Friday, April 16th Time Meeting 1:00 – 2:00 ET Wrap up meeting with Jade Ferguson, Director, School of English and Theatre Studies and Pablo (10:00 – 11:00 PT) Ramirez, Program Lead and Associate Professor, School of English and Theatre Studies 2:00 – 3:15 ET Additional time for meetings, if needed. If not needed, time for reviewers to begin drafting report (11:00 – 12:15 PT) or recap with internal facilitator 3:15 – 3:45 ET Break (12:15 – 12:45 PT) 3:45 – 4:30 ET Exit interview with Cate Dewey, Associate Vice-President, Academic and Patricia Tersigni, Director, (12:45 – 1:30 PT) Academic Programs and Policy
Board of Undergraduate Studies Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) - Creative Writing
LEGEND CA Course Addition-CC Course Change-CD Course Deletion-CW Credit Weight Change-PC Prog/Spec Change- PD Prog/SpecDeletion-PI Prog/Spec Information-PA Prog/Spec Addition-SC Subject Area Change-MM Major Modification Degree Department/ Code Title CA CC CD CW PC PD PI PA SC MM Description Program School School of English and Theatre Studies BA SETS Creative Writing Major X new program BA SETS CRWR*1000 Elements of Storytelling X new course BA SETS CRWR*2000 Reading as a Writer X new course BA SETS X new course CRWR*2100 Fiction Workshop: Writing the Anthropocene BA SETS CRWR*2150 Speculative Fiction Workshop X new course BA SETS X new course CRWR*2200 Creative Nonfiction Workshop: Writing Nature
BA SETS X new course; EL indicated CRWR*2300 Poetry Workshop
BA SETS X new course; EL indicated CRWR*2400 Screenwriting Workshop BA SETS CRWR*3300 Poetry Workshop: Ecopoetics X new course; EL indicated Screenwriting Workshop: Writing for Inclusive BA SETS X new course; EL indicated CRWR*3400 Screens Advanced Writing for Performance: Writing BA SETS X new course; EL indicated CRWR*3500 for the Inclusive Stage BA SETS CRWR*4300 Capstone Poetics Workshop X new course; EL indicated BA SETS CRWR*4400 Capstone Scriptwriting Workshop X new course; EL indicated BA SETS ENGL*2380 Reading Poetry X new course BA SETS ENGL*3050/ Fiction Writing Workshop course change; changing ENGL*3050 X CRWR*3100 to CRWR*3100 BA SETS ENGL*3030/ Creative Nonfiction Writing Workshop course change; changing ENGL*3030 X CRWR*3200 to CRWR*3200 BA SETS ENGL*4720/ Capstone Prose/Narrative Workshop course change; changing ENGL*4720 X CRWR*4100 to CRWR*4100 BA SETS ENGL*2920 Elements of Creative Writing X course deletion BA SETS ENGL*3060 Intermediate Poetry Writing Workshop X course deletion BA SETS ENGL*3070 Intermediate Screenwriting Workshop X course deletion BA SETS ENGL*3090 Special Topics in Creative Writing Workshop X course deletion Senate-Board of Undergraduate Studies Form E: COURSE ADDITION (Part I) 2022/2023 Undergraduate Calendar
Submission Timelines/Deadlines
The Course Addition Information and Template is comprised of two parts. Part I is the information requested below and Part II is the calendar and colleague template. Both must be completed in full in order for the course proposal to be reviewed by the Calendar Review Committee before recommendation for approval to the Board of Undergraduate Studies and Senate. For definition of the terms used on page 2, see the Glossary in the Undergraduate Calendar.
Course Code and Title: CRWR*1000 Elements of Storytelling
Calendar Description: Students will learn the basics of writing a fictional narrative in this lecture-workshop course. Student skills are developed through a combination of lectures, workshops, peer editing, creative writing exercises, and exams.
1. Provide the detailed learning outcomes of the course. Indicate how these align with major/specialization outcomes and/or program level learning outcomes and whether any of the University's Undergraduate Learning Outcomes are met by the course. If the proposed course will be core to more than one major/specialization or degree program, make reference to each of these. If the proposed course is an elective for multiple specializations/programs, the course learning outcomes should align with one or more of the University of Guelph’s Undergraduate Learning Outcomes. Refer to the Undergraduate Calendar and the Learning Outcomes website for more information on learning outcomes. Course Learning Outcomes Major/Specialization Degree Program Learning U of G Undergraduate Learning Outcomes Outcomes Learning Outcomes Learning Outcomes: The course will fulfill the The course will fulfill the The course will fulfill the By the end of the course following learning outcomes following degree learning following undergraduate students should be able to: for the Creative Writing outcomes: learning outcomes: 1. learn and apply a major: • The course promotes • Critical and Creative disciplinary vocabulary that • The course encourages community engagement Thinking: The course enables students to critical and creative and global understanding. encourages students to discuss, analyze, and thinking. Through lectures As part of the writing explore their creativity and evaluate the elements of and discussions students process, students will to analyze their creative storytelling. develop knowledge and a understand the role of work critically. See Learning 2. define, identify, and critical understanding of the narrative in conveying Outcomes 1-7 and 9. understand Point of View elements of storytelling. In different points of view of • Literacy: The course teaches through lectures, readings, their creative work, students different nationalities and students how to acquire an workshop discussions, and will creatively apply the ethnicities, genders and aesthetic literacy that helps exams. Student will apply knowledge and critical sexualities, classes, and/or them create a deeper their understanding of understanding of the abilities. Students will also engagement with their own Point of View in their elements of storytelling, and engage in workshop creative work and the creative work through 450- literary devices to devise the critiques of work and learn creative writing of others. to 500-word writing best approaches for to address and engage See Learning Outcomes 1-7, exercises. In their achieving their creative different viewpoints. See 9, and 10. workshop critiques, goals, literary effects and/or Learning Outcomes 2-7, 8, • Global Understanding: As creative work, and written aesthetic ends. In the and 9. part of the writing process, exams, they will be able to workshops, students will • As they master character students will understand the differentiate among First critically evaluate creative development, effective role of narrative in Person Point of View, Third work, utilizing their firm dialogue, narrative arc, and conveying different points of Person Point of View, and grasp of the elements of setting, they will practice view of different Omniscient Point of View, storytelling, as well as creative and critical nationalities and ethnicities, and understand the limits literary forms and thinking and expression. As gender and sexuality, class, and advantages of each techniques, to propose they develop characters, for and/or ability. Students will type of point of view. They creative, informed solutions example, they will learn to also engage in workshop will be able to analyze to problems, flaws, and incorporate multiple critiques of work and learn Point of View in issues with the writing. See perspectives in their stories. to address and engage discussions of reading Learning Outcomes 1-7, and They will learn to think both different viewpoints. See assignments in lecture and 9. creatively and critically as Learning Outcomes 2-6, 8, in their exams. They will • The course will teach they pay close attention to and 9. evaluate the use of Point students about effective the subtleties and nuances • Communicating: The course, of View in their work, as communication. They will of conveying meaning through the workshops and well as their classmates’ write at least 6,700 words of through their work. They assignments, focuses on oral creative work by formal prose. In their will learn to think both communication, written participating in writing creative writing, students creatively and critically as communication and reading workshops and in revising will be able demonstrate they learn to interpret the comprehension. In their work. competency in the elements world through the elements workshops, students must 3. to create credible and techniques of creative of storytelling. See Learning learn to be attentive characters by applying writing and an ability to Outcomes 1-7, and 9. listeners and communicate their understanding of combine aesthetic, technical • The course will focus a great effectively. The assignments Character Development in and cultural knowledge into deal on literacy and teach students to read, their 450- to 500-word the building blocks of a communication. They will analyze, and edit other’s writing exercises, using compelling narrative. In communicate concepts, creative work, as well as both the direct and indirect their workshops, students’ feelings, and images through their own. See Learning method of character written communication skills the short story, keeping in Outcomes 2-9. presentation, author will improve as they gain an mind how to communicate • Professional and Ethical summary, clothing and awareness of audience; their their stories to a wide Behaviour: The workshop appearance, movement, oral communication skills audience. They will learn a format encourages gesture, thoughts and will also be honed as they disciplinary vocabulary that teamwork and leadership as speech to build up a offer oral critiques of they can apply to their own students help guide character. Through reading student writing. In their work and to evaluate the discussion of the creative assignments, lectures, and revisions, students will learn application of the elements work presented. See exams, students will how to revise their creative of storytelling. See Learning Learning Outcomes 9 and analyze how authors writing in response to Outcomes 1-10 10. develop characters. They feedback from the writing • The students, through will evaluate their workshops. See Learning extensive reading and classmates’ character Outcomes 2-9. analysis of short stories, will development and learn to • The course teaches the learn how to evaluate the critique character students literacy. Students short story genre they are constructions (both their learn and apply a trying to master. See own and their classmates’) disciplinary vocabulary that Learning Outcomes 1, and 7- by participating in enables students to discuss, 10. workshop discussions and analyze, and evaluate the • Students will achieve a in revising their work. elements of storytelling. depth and breadth of 4. to create convincing Students will apply understanding of the craft landscape descriptions by rhetorical and aesthetic of writing the short story. applying their strategies to their own See Learning Outcomes 1- understanding of Sense of creative work and use them 10. Place in their 450- to 500- to assess their classmates’ • Professional and Ethical word writing exercises. creative work, as well. See Behaviour: The workshop Through reading Learning Outcomes 1, 2-7, 9, format encourages assignments, lectures, and and 10. teamwork and leadership as exams, students will • The course encourages students help guide analyze how authors global understanding. As discussion of the creative create a Sense of Place. part of the writing process, work presented. See They will evaluate Sense of students will understand the Learning Outcomes 8 and 9. Place and learn to critique role of narrative in setting (both their own and conveying different points of their classmates’) by view of different participating in workshop nationalities and ethnicities, discussions and in revising genders and sexualities, their work. classes, and/or abilities. 5. define, identify, Students will also engage in understand, and analyze a workshop critiques of work Scene as the central unit of and learn to address and story through lectures, engage different viewpoints. readings, class discussion, See Learning Outcomes 2-6, and exams. Students will 8, and 9. apply their understanding • The course will promote of Scene by building a story professional and ethical through the development behaviour. In workshops, of scenes and scene students will be required to sequences in their 450- to work productively in a group 500-word writing exercises. setting; engage respectfully They will evaluate the and professionally with the construction and creative writing of other sequencing of scenes by workshop participants and participating in workshop providing an oral critique of discussions and in revising students' creative work; and their work. achieve organizational and 6. to create effective time management skills in Dialogue by employing the order to be prepared for techniques and tools of class and submit work by dialogue creation in their assigned deadlines. See 450- to 500-word writing Learning Outcomes 8 and 9. exercises. Through reading assignments, lectures, and exams, students will analyze how authors create good dialogue. They will evaluate their classmates’ ability to create good dialogue, as well as critique their own dialogue and in revising their work.. 7. creatively apply the knowledge and critical understanding of the elements of storytelling to devise the best approaches for achieving their creative goals, literary effects and/or aesthetic ends. 8. to participate in a writing workshop, discussing and evaluating the creative work by their classmates in a Professional, constructive manner. 9. critically evaluate creative work, utilizing their firm grasp of the elements of storytelling, as well as literary forms and techniques, to propose creative, informed solutions to problems, flaws, and issues with the writing 10. to define, identity and understand 3-act and 5-act plot structures in film and television in their lectures, discussions, and exams.
2. Method(s) of evaluation/assessment (including breakdown) and how the outcomes listed in question 1 will be assessed. Form of Weight of Course Content /Activity (e.g. Lectures week 1 -6, Assigned Course Learning Assessment (e.g. Assessment (% of readings, Chpt 1) Outcome Quiz) final grade) (e.g. 5%) Addressed (#1,2)
5 Writing Exercises 30% total Schedule 2-7 Week One Workshop 30% total Friday Workshop, Sep 11 1-9 Participation Topic(s): Introduction 20% Week Two 1-7, 9 Revision Monday, Sep 14 20% Topic(s): Point of View overview. First person Point of View 1-7, 9, 10 Final Exam lecture. Discussion of Chapter 1 and 2 of The Writing Life. Wednesday, Sep 16 Topic(s): Discussion of “The Management of Grief” by Bharathi Mukherjee and “My Mother’s Memoirs, My Father’s Lies” by Russell Banks. Friday Workshop, Sep 18 Topic(s): First Person in-class exercise. Week Three Monday, Sep 21 Topic(s): Third Person Point of View lecture. Assignment: First Person Exercise due Wednesday, Sep 23 Topic(s): Discussion of Third Person POV in Deborah Eisenberg’s “The Girl who Left Her Sock on the Floor,” Third Person Point of View in-class exercise. Friday Workshop, Sep 25 Topic(s): Workshopping of First-Person Exercise in small groups. Week Four Monday, Sep 28 Topic(s): Omniscient Point of View lecture. Assignment: Third Person Exercise due. Wednesday, Sep 30 Topic(s): Discussion of Omniscient Point of View in Patrick Chamoiseau’s “The Old Man Slave and the Mastiff.” Omniscient Point of View in-class exercise Friday Workshop, Oct 2 Topic(s): Workshopping of Third Person Exercise in small groups. Week Five Monday, Oct 5 Topic(s): Discussion of Chapters 3 and 4 of The Writing Life. Assignment: Omniscient Point of View Exercise due. Wednesday, Oct 7 Topic(s): Lecture on Sense of Place and in-class exercises on Sense of Place. Discussion of Chapter 5 of The Writing Life. Friday Workshop, Oct 9 Topic(s): Workshopping of Omniscient point of view exercises in small groups Week Six Monday, Oct 12 Topic(s): NO CLASSES Wednesday, Oct 14 Topic(s): Lecture on Scene. In-class exercise on Scene Assignment: Sense of Place Exercise due. Friday Workshop, Oct 16 Topic(s): Workshopping of Sense of Place Exercise in small groups. Week Seven Monday, Oct 19 Topic(s): Lecture on Character and Aristotle. Assignment: Scene Exercise due. Wednesday, Oct 21 Topic(s): Discussion of “Wilderness Tips” by Margaret Atwood. Character #1 in-class exercise. Friday Workshop, Oct 23 Topic(s): Workshopping of Scene Exercise in small groups. Week Eight Monday, Oct 26 Topic(s): Lecture on Direct and Indirect Presentation of Character. Assignment: Character #1 exercise due. Wednesday, Oct 28 Topic(s): Lecture and discussion on James Wood’s Chapter. Character #2 in-class exercise. Friday Workshop, Oct 30 Topic(s): Workshopping of Character #1 exercise in small groups. Week Nine Monday, Nov 2 Topic(s): Lecture on Dialogue Assignment: Character #2 exercise due. Wednesday, Nov 4 Topic(s): Discussion of Dialogue in Ernest Hemingway’s “Hills Like White Elephants.” (Web link to be sent via email to class). Dialogue in-class exercise. Friday Workshop, Nov 6 Topic(s): Workshopping of Character #2 exercise in small groups. Week Ten Monday, Nov 9 Topic(s): Lecture on Scene. Assignment: Dialogue exercise due. Wednesday, Nov 11 Topic(s): Discussion of Chapter 6 of The Writing Life. In class exercise on Scene. Friday Workshop, Nov 13 Topic(s): Workshopping of Dialogue exercise in small groups. Week Eleven Monday, Nov 16 Topic(s): Discussion of Chapter 7 of The Writing Life. Assignment: Scene Exercise due. Wednesday, Nov 18 Topic(s): The Hero’s Journey. Plot in myth and fantasy. Discussion of Star Wars. Please watch the film before this class. This is the 1977 film, the first Star Wars film later retitled, Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope. Friday Workshop, Nov. 20 Topic(s): Workshopping of exercise on Scene. Week Twelve Monday, Nov 23 Topic(s): In class watching of a TV episode and discussion of TV 5 act structure Wednesday, Nov 25 Topic(s): Discussion of Three Act screenplay structure. PLEASE WATCH PAN'S LABYRINTH IN ADVANCE. It is available online through the university library. Friday Workshop, Nov. 27 Topic(s): Discussion of 5-act and 3-act structures Week Thirteen Monday, Nov 30 Topic(s): Short Film. Q&A with Shyam on writing and publishing Assignment: Revision due. Wednesday, Dec 2 Topic(s): Discussion of all elements of storytelling in “You Can’t Get Lost in Cape Town” by Zoe Wicombe. Friday, Dec. 4 (LECTURE): Review for Final Exam 3. Method(s) of presentation (lecture, seminar, hybrid, case study, lab, etc.). Lecture and workshop 4. Does this course include experiential learning (EL) opportunities? If YES, consult the Experiential Learning Faculty & Staff webpage to determine which categories of EL opportunities are present and indicate in the space provided on the Course Addition Part II form. No. 5. “The University of Guelph Senate affirms its commitment to an inclusive campus and fostering a culture of inclusion at the University of Guelph as an institutional imperative, acknowledging the University’s diverse population and that every member of an inclusive campus is a valued contributor.” (Fostering a Culture of Inclusion at the University of Guelph: an Institutional Imperative, April, 2017). This includes assurances that issues of equity, diversity, and accessibility are considered in the development and delivery of curriculum. Discuss the ways in which inclusion is considered in this new course proposal. For assistance, contact the Associate Director, Office of Teaching and Learning or the Office of Quality Assurance. This is a direct-entry, non-portfolio course, which shows a commitment to access, equity and diversity by eliminating competition for limited spaces and focusing instead on nurturing student talent by creating an inclusive environment. The Creative Writing major places a strong emphasis on issues of social justice, marginalization and the environment. Our goal is to teach students how to reflect a diversity of races, bodies, classes, and genders in their creative practice. Reading is an essential aspect of our workshops, and our creative writing instructors are committed to assigning a culturally diverse range of material, including the work of emerging Canadian writers, particularly from traditionally marginalized communities. By discussing literary techniques in a culturally diverse range of published work, students learn to be readers who compare and contrast narrative and esthetic strategies of a wide range of culturally diverse writers, including Black, racialized, indigenous, 2SLGBTQ+ writers and writers living with disabilities. Take for example, the submitted outline, which includes writings by People of Color. We also have a racially diverse creative writing faculty. Shyam Selvadurai, a gay South Asian writer, often teaches our introductory course. 6. Reason for course offering and intended audience including: i) degree program(s) to be served by the course and role in the curriculum; Creative Writing major and minor
ii) expected enrollment; 75-100 iii) status of course (e.g. core, restricted elective, elective). Core
7. List of resource needs (e.g. teaching support, lab and/or computer facilities, field trips, etc.) and identify funding sources for mounting and maintaining the course) A standard classroom and CRWR teaching faculty or sessional.
8. Is this a replacement course? If YES, specify the course to be deleted and include Form C: Course Deletion Template with submission. Yes, it replaces ENGL*2920, which will be deleted. 9. Does this course involve research projects of a significant nature? If YES, consult with the Curriculum Manager, Office of Quality Assurance re: additional information that may be required for submission to BUGS. Refer to the Research Ethics Board (REB) guidelines and to the Undergraduate Calendar. No. 10. A course outline is required for all new courses; forward with the completed templates. 11. Evidence of consultation with other departments, program committees or units may be required. This is particularly important when the proposed course is a replacement for a deleted course included in the schedule of studies or restricted elective list of other degree programs, or when considering prerequisites, restrictions, DE offerings, etc. Forward all correspondence electronically to the Program Committee Secretary who will then forward to the Calendar Review Committee, [email protected]. Parts I and II of the proposal with consultation if the course is approved by the Program Committee. 12. If the intended first offering is earlier than Summer 2021, a request for an early offering is required. The request should be submitted via email to the Curriculum Manager, Office of Quality Assurance by the Chair/Director/Associate Dean of the Department/School/College offering the course. Note, requests are not normally approved (or scheduled) until the new course has received BUGS approval. 13. Proposing to offer a course in distance education format? Provide evidence of approval from the Executive Director, Open Learning and Educational Support to mount the proposed course in DE format. No. 14. A completed library assessment is normally required for new courses proposed for approval. Courses will not proceed to Senate without a completed assessment. Exceptions may be granted. To request an assessment contact the Library. Requests should be submitted well in advance of deadlines as assessments normally take a minimum of three weeks.
Questions? Contact the Curriculum Manager, Administrative Secretary or your Program Committee Chair or Secretary. Senate-Board of Undergraduate Studies Form E: COURSE ADDITION (Part II) 2022/2023 Undergraduate Calendar
Submission Timelines/Deadlines The Course Addition Information and Template is comprised of two parts. Part I is the information portion and Part II is the calendar and colleague template. Both must be completed in full in order for the course proposal to be reviewed by the Calendar Review Committee before recommendation for approval to the Board of Undergraduate Studies and Senate.
A completed library assessment is normally required for all new courses proposed for approval. Contact the Library.
If first offering is prior to Summer 2021, academic unit must submit a request for an early offering to the Curriculum Manager, Office of Quality Assurance.
Course Code*: CRWR*1000 Course Title**: Elements of Storytelling Transcript Title (max. 30 char): Elements of Storytelling Academic Unit(s) and College(s) responsible School of English and Theatre Studies for the course (and percent responsible): Credit Weight: (e.g. 0.50) 0.50 Lecture/Lab Hours: (e.g. 3-0) 3-0 Semester Offering: (e.g. S,F,W) F, W First Offering: (e.g. Fall 2021) Fall 2022 Calendar Description: (Three to four Students will learn the basics of writing a fictional narrative in this lecture- sentences MAX; description must be written workshop course. Student skills are developed through a combination of lectures, in full sentence form) workshops, peer editing, creative writing exercises, and exams.
Prerequisite(s): Restriction(s): This is a priority access course. Enrolment in the fall semester may be restricted to students registered in the Creative Writing minor, major or in semesters one or two of the BA or BAS program. Co-requisite(s): Equate(s): ENGL*2920 Instructor Consent Required? ☐ Yes ☒ No Scheduling Instructions: specify which ☒ Annually option is applicable. ☐ Even-Numbered Years ☐ Odd-Numbered Years Distance Education: specify which option is ☐ Also offered through Distance Education. applicable. ☐ Offered through Distance Education only. ☒ Not offered through Distance Education. Experiential Learning (EL): check box if EL is ☐ ☐ Meets 6 Criteria Meets 3-5 Criteria practiced in the course and meets EL criteria Rank type(s) 1 – 5, no more than 3 types per course: __Applied Research __ Community Engaged Learning __ Field Course __Professional Practice __Course-Integrated
Template-Specific Notes
*Prefixes and numerical codes are assigned by ORS. For assistance, contact the Colleague Specialist, Enrolment Services. **Note course titles greater than 30 characters (including spaces and punctuation) will be shortened in Colleague and therefore on the student transcript. If necessary, provide a transcript title. Symbols (i.e. &) are permitted in shortening the transcript title. Approved by Program Committee(s): BA Date: May 10, 2021 Approved by Dean(s)/Designate(s): Ruediger Mueller Date: May 10, 2021
Senate-Board of Undergraduate Studies Form E: COURSE ADDITION (Part I) 2022/2023 Undergraduate Calendar
Submission Timelines/Deadlines
The Course Addition Information and Template is comprised of two parts. Part I is the information requested below and Part II is the calendar and colleague template. Both must be completed in full in order for the course proposal to be reviewed by the Calendar Review Committee before recommendation for approval to the Board of Undergraduate Studies and Senate. For definition of the terms used on page 2, see the Glossary in the Undergraduate Calendar.
Course Code and Title: CRWR*2000 Reading as a Writer
Calendar Description: This course is designed to teach students how to read literature as writers. Students will analyze the construction of literary texts in order to improve their knowledge and application of each element of storytelling (character, point of view, dialogue, setting, scene, and narrative arc). The goal of this course is to hone aspiring writers’ critical thinking and creative skills through lectures on the reading, close readings of literary texts, and creative writing exercises based on literary models.
1. Provide the detailed learning outcomes of the course. Indicate how these align with major/specialization outcomes and/or program level learning outcomes and whether any of the University's Undergraduate Learning Outcomes are met by the course. If the proposed course will be core to more than one major/specialization or degree program, make reference to each of these. If the proposed course is an elective for multiple specializations/programs, the course learning outcomes should align with one or more of the University of Guelph’s Undergraduate Learning Outcomes. Refer to the Undergraduate Calendar and the Learning Outcomes website for more information on learning outcomes. Course Learning Outcomes Major/Specialization Degree Program Learning U of G Undergraduate Learning Outcomes Outcomes Learning Outcomes Learning Outcomes The course will fulfill the The course will fulfill the The course will fulfill the following learning outcomes following degree learning following undergraduate By the end of the course for the Creative Writing outcomes: learning outcomes: students should be able to: major: 1. learn and apply a • The course promotes • Critical and Creative disciplinary vocabulary that • The course community Thinking: The course enables students to discuss, encourages critical engagement and encourages students analyze, and evaluate the and creative global to explore their elements of storytelling in thinking. Through understanding. creativity and to literary works. lectures, close Through their analyze literary readings and exams, readings, students works critically. See 2. define and analyze Point of students develop will understand the Learning Outcomes View in literary works. In knowledge and a role of narrative in 1-12. their close readings of literary critical conveying different • Literacy: The course works, students will examine understanding of the points of view of teaches students and explain the mechanics, as elements of different nationalities how to acquire an well as understand the limits storytelling. In their and ethnicities, aesthetic literacy and advantages, of First- close readings and genders and that helps them Person Point of View, Third exams, students will sexualities, classes, create a deeper Person Point of View, and engage in textual and and/or abilities. See engagement with Omniscient Point of View. cultural analyses that Learning Outcomes literature. See They will be able to analyze address the 10-12. Learning Outcomes Point of View in discussions of aesthetic, theoretical • As they work to 1-7, 9-12. reading assignments in and social questions achieve a critical • Global lecture, close readings and on that will shape their understanding of the Understanding: As their exams. Using the literary creative work, as well elements of creative part of the writing stories as models, as well as as achieve an writing, students will process, students will the critical understanding aesthetic maturity practice creative and understand the role gained from performing close through the rigorous critical thinking and of narrative in readings of texts, students will analysis and critical expression. They will conveying different employ POV in their creative evaluation of learn to think both points of view of writing exercises. literature. In their creatively and different nationalities creative writing critically as they pay and ethnicities, 3. analyze how literary writers exercises, students close attention to the genders and create credible characters. will creatively apply subtleties and sexualities, classes, Through reading assignments, the knowledge and nuances of how and/or abilities. See lectures, and close readings, critical literary authors Learning Outcomes students will explore the understanding of the convey meaning in 10-12. techniques used in character elements of their work. Students • Communicating: The development in literary storytelling, and will also learn to course, through works. Using the literary literary devices to think both creatively several writing stories as models, as well as devise the best and critically as they assignments, focuses the critical understanding approaches for learn to interpret on written gained from performing close achieving their literary works communication and readings of texts, students will creative goals, through the reading employ character literary effects elements of comprehension. See development in their creative and/or aesthetic storytelling. See Learning Outcomes writing exercises. ends. See Learning Learning Outcomes 2-12. 4. analyze how literary writers Outcomes 2-11 1-12. • Professional and create effective dialogue. • The course will teach • The course will focus Ethical Behaviour: Through reading assignments, students about a great deal on Due to numerous lectures, and close readings, effective literacy and writing assignments, students will explore the communication. communication. students will be techniques used to create They will write at Students will learn required to achieve effective dialogue. Using the least 4,000 words of how authors organizational and literary stories as models, as formal prose. In communicate time management well as the critical their creative writing concepts, feelings, skills in order to be understanding gained from exercises, students and images through prepared for class performing close readings of will be able the short story or and submit work by texts, students will employ demonstrate novel. They will learn assigned deadlines dialogue in their creative competency in the a disciplinary See Learning writing exercises. elements and vocabulary that they Outcome 13. techniques of can apply to their 5. analyze how literary writers creative writing. By own work and to create a Sense of Place using the assigned evaluate the (Setting). Through reading and discussed literary application of the assignments, lectures, and works, students in elements of close readings, students will their creative writing storytelling. In their explore the techniques used exercises will begin close readings, to establish setting and to formulate their students’ written explain the relevance of aesthetic principles communication skills setting to other elements of by situating their will improve as they storytelling in literary works. writing in relation to demonstrate facility Using the literary stories as other relevant texts in incorporating models, as well as the critical and theoretical, textual evidence in understanding gained from analytical or social their writing and performing close readings of issues. In their close using that evidence texts, students will employ readings, students’ to analyze how the setting in their creative written writer employs an writing exercises. communication skills element of 6. analyze how literary writers will improve as they storytelling. See use a Scene as a central unit demonstrate facility Learning Outcomes of a story, incorporating in incorporating 1-12. character, setting, POV, and textual evidence in • The students, dialogue. Through reading their writing and through extensive assignments, lectures, and using that evidence reading and analysis close readings, students will to analyze how the of short stories, will analyze the construction and writer employs an learn how to sequencing of scenes in element of evaluate literary literary works. Students will storytelling. See works by examining achieve a critical Learning Outcomes how writers employ understanding of scene 1-12. the elements of construction through their • The course teaches creative writing. See close readings of the texts. the students literacy. Learning Outcomes Students learn and 1-7, 9-12 7. analyze narrative arc in apply a disciplinary • literary works by applying Students will achieve vocabulary that their understanding of the 3- a depth and breadth enables students to of act structure. of understanding discuss, analyze, and the elements of 8. creatively apply the evaluate the storytelling. See knowledge and critical elements of Learning Outcomes understanding of the storytelling. By using 1-12. elements of storytelling to literary works as • Professional and devise the best approaches models, students will Ethical Behaviour: for achieving their creative compare and Due to numerous goals, literary effects and/or evaluate the merits writing assignments, aesthetic ends. and drawbacks of students will be various narrative 9. engage in textual and required to achieve strategies when cultural analyses that address organizational and approaching their the aesthetic, theoretical and time management creative practice. social questions that will skills in order to be Students will also shape their creative work. prepared for class begin a and submit work by 10. begin developing an comprehensive assigned deadlines aesthetic maturity through program of reading See Learning the rigorous analysis and that will enable them Outcome 13. critical evaluation of to make informed literature. aesthetic judgments. See Learning 11. compare and evaluate the Outcomes 1, 10-12 merits and drawbacks of • various narrative strategies The course when approaching their encourages global creative practice. understanding. As part of the writing 12. begin a comprehensive process, students will program of reading that will understand the role enable students to make of narrative in informed aesthetic conveying different judgments. points of view of 13. achieve organizational and different nationalities time management skills in and ethnicities, order to be prepared for class genders and and submit work by assigned sexualities, classes, deadlines. and/or abilities. See Learning Outcomes 10-12. • The course will promote professional and ethical behaviour. Students will be required to achieve organizational and time management skills in order to be prepared for class and submit work by assigned deadlines. See Learning Outcomes 13.
2. Method(s) of evaluation/assessment (including breakdown) and how the outcomes listed in question 1 will be assessed. Form of Assessment (e.g. Weight of Course Content /Activity (e.g. Lectures Course Learning Outcome Quiz) Assessment (% week 1 -6, Assigned readings, Chpt 1) Addressed (#1,2) of final grade) (e.g. 5%)
4 Close Readings 35% (total) Week One: Sentences and Paragraphs 1-7, 9-13
Lecture 1: Introduction Lecture 2: Words and Sentences 4 Creative Writing Exercises 35% (total) Reading: Reading Like a Writer, “Words” 2-8, 11, 13 (Chapter 2) and “Sentences” (Chapter 3)
Week Two: Point of View and Narration Final Exam 30% 1-7, 9-12 Lecture 1: Point of View and Narration Reading: Reading Like a Writer, “Narration” (chapter 5)
Lecture 2: Point of View and Narration: Close Reading of Tobias Wolf’s “Bullet in the Brain” Reading: Tobias Wolf’s “Bullet in the Brain”
Week Three: Character
Lecture 1: Character Reading: Reading Like a Writer, “Character” (chapter 6)
Lecture 2: Character: Close Reading of Haruki Murakami’s “The Wind-Up Bird and Tuesday’s Women” Reading: Haruki Murakami’s “The Wind-Up Bird and Tuesday’s Women” Assignment due: Close Reading (500 words) #1: Point of View
Week Four: Character: Body and Gestures
Lecture 1: Body and Gestures Reading: Reading Like a Writer, “Gestures” (chapter 9)
Lecture 2: Body and Gestures: Close Reading of Kevin Brockmeier’s “These Hands” Reading: Kevin Brockmeier’s “These Hands” Assignment due: Creative Writing Exercise (500 words) #1: Point of View
Week Five: Characters (Protagonists and Antagonists)
Lecture 1: Characters (Protagonists and Antagonists) Reading: Begin Reading Tyler’s The Accidental Tourist (suggested: chapters 1-4)
Lecture 2: Characters (Protagonists and Antagonists): Close Reading of Flannery O’Connor’s “Revelation” Reading: Flannery O’Connor’s “Revelation” (Continue Reading The Accidental Tourist; suggested: chapters 5-6)
Week Six: Dialogue
Lecture 1: Dialogue: Close reading of Chapter 1 of Accidental Tourist Reading: Reading Like a Writer, “Dialogue” (chapter 7) (Continue Reading The Accidental Tourist; suggested: chapters 7-8)
Lecture 2: Dialogue: Close Reading of Kazuo Ishiguro’s “A Family Supper” Reading: Kazuo Ishiguro’s “A Family Supper” Assignment due: Close Reading (500 words) #2: Character
Week Seven WINTER BREAK
Week Eight: Setting
Lecture 1: Setting Reading: Continue Reading The Accidental Tourist (suggested: chapters 9-15)
Lecture 2: Setting: Close Reading of Wallace Stegner’s “The Traveler” Reading: Wallace Stegner’s “The Traveler Assignment due: Creative Writing Exercise (500 words) #2: Character
Week Nine: Scene
Lecture 1: Scene: Close Readings of Chapters 1, 3, and 6 of The Accidental Tourist Reading: Continue Reading Accidental Tourist (suggested: chapters 16-17)
Lecture 2: Scene: Close Readings of Chapters 7, 11, and 16 of The Accidental Tourist Assignment due: Close Reading (500 words) #3: Dialogue Week Ten: Narrative Arc (Plot)
Lecture 1: Narrative Arc Reading: Reading Like a Writer, “Plot” (chapter 9); Continue Reading The Accidental Tourist (suggested: chapter 18)
Lecture 2: Narrative Arc: Close Reading of Louise Erdrich’s “Red Convertible” Reading: Louise Erdrich’s “Red Convertible” Assignment due: Creative Writing Exercise (500 words) #3: Dialogue
Week Eleven: Narrative Arc: 3-Act Structure
Lecture 1: Narrative Arc: Three-Act Structure Reading: Finish reading The Accidental Tourist
Lecture 2: Narrative Arc: Discussing Plot Structure in The Accidental Tourist Assignment due: Close Reading (500 words) #4: Setting
Week Twelve: Endings
Lecture 1: Endings
Lecture 2: Narrative Arc: Discussing Plot Structure in The Accidental Tourist Reading: Tillie Olsen’s “I Stand Here Ironing” Assignment due: Creative Writing Exercise (500 words) #4: Setting
Week Thirteen: Review for Final Exam
Lecture 1: Review Point of View, Character, Dialogue, Setting through a discussion of The Accidental Tourist
Lecture 2: Review Scene and Plot through a discussion of The Accidental Tourist
Final Exam
3. Method(s) of presentation (lecture, seminar, hybrid, case study, lab, etc.). Lecture. 4. Does this course include experiential learning (EL) opportunities? If YES, consult the Experiential Learning Faculty & Staff webpage to determine which categories of EL opportunities are present and indicate in the space provided on the Course Addition Part II form. No. 5. “The University of Guelph Senate affirms its commitment to an inclusive campus and fostering a culture of inclusion at the University of Guelph as an institutional imperative, acknowledging the University’s diverse population and that every member of an inclusive campus is a valued contributor.” (Fostering a Culture of Inclusion at the University of Guelph: an Institutional Imperative, April, 2017). This includes assurances that issues of equity, diversity, and accessibility are considered in the development and delivery of curriculum. Discuss the ways in which inclusion is considered in this new course proposal. For assistance, contact the Associate Director, Office of Teaching and Learning or the Office of Quality Assurance. This is a direct-entry, non-portfolio course, which shows a commitment to access, equity and diversity by eliminating competition for limited spaces and focusing instead on nurturing student talent by creating an inclusive environment. The Creative Writing major places a strong emphasis on issues of social justice, marginalization and the environment. Our goal is to teach students how to reflect a diversity of races, bodies, classes, and genders in their creative practice. Reading is an essential aspect of our workshops, and our creative writing instructors are committed to assigning a culturally diverse range of material, including the work of emerging Canadian writers, particularly from traditionally marginalized communities. By discussing literary techniques in a culturally diverse range of published work, students learn to be readers who compare and contrast narrative and esthetic strategies of a wide range of culturally diverse writers, including Black, racialized, indigenous, 2SLGBTQ+ writers and writers living with disabilities. Take for example, the submitted outline, which includes the work of writers of color. We also have a racially diverse creative writing faculty. Two possible instructors for this course would be Dionne Brand and Larry Hill, both Black Canadian writers.
6. Reason for course offering and intended audience including: i) degree program(s) to be served by the course and role in the curriculum; Creative Writing, English.
ii) expected enrollment; 50 iii) status of course (e.g. core, restricted elective, elective). Core for the Creative Writing major/minor/area of concentration
7. List of resource needs (e.g. teaching support, lab and/or computer facilities, field trips, etc.) and identify funding sources for mounting and maintaining the course) A standard classroom and CRWR teaching faculty or sessional.
8. Is this a replacement course? If YES, specify the course to be deleted and include Form C: Course Deletion Template with submission. No. 9. Does this course involve research projects of a significant nature? If YES, consult with the Curriculum Manager, Office of Quality Assurance re: additional information that may be required for submission to BUGS. Refer to the Research Ethics Board (REB) guidelines and to the Undergraduate Calendar. No. 10. A course outline is required for all new courses; forward with the completed templates. 11. Evidence of consultation with other departments, program committees or units may be required. This is particularly important when the proposed course is a replacement for a deleted course included in the schedule of studies or restricted elective list of other degree programs, or when considering prerequisites, restrictions, DE offerings, etc. Forward all correspondence electronically to the Program Committee Secretary who will then forward to the Calendar Review Committee, [email protected]. Parts I and II of the proposal with consultation if the course is approved by the Program Committee. 12. If the intended first offering is earlier than Summer 2021, a request for an early offering is required. The request should be submitted via email to the Curriculum Manager, Office of Quality Assurance by the Chair/Director/Associate Dean of the Department/School/College offering the course. Note, requests are not normally approved (or scheduled) until the new course has received BUGS approval. 13. Proposing to offer a course in distance education format? Provide evidence of approval from the Executive Director, Open Learning and Educational Support to mount the proposed course in DE format. 14. A completed library assessment is normally required for new courses proposed for approval. Courses will not proceed to Senate without a completed assessment. Exceptions may be granted. To request an assessment contact the Library. Requests should be submitted well in advance of deadlines as assessments normally take a minimum of three weeks.
Questions? Contact the Curriculum Manager, Administrative Secretary or your Program Committee Chair or Secretary. Senate-Board of Undergraduate Studies Form E: COURSE ADDITION (Part II) 2022/2023 Undergraduate Calendar
Submission Timelines/Deadlines The Course Addition Information and Template is comprised of two parts. Part I is the information portion and Part II is the calendar and colleague template. Both must be completed in full in order for the course proposal to be reviewed by the Calendar Review Committee before recommendation for approval to the Board of Undergraduate Studies and Senate.
A completed library assessment is normally required for all new courses proposed for approval. Contact the Library.
If first offering is prior to Summer 2021, academic unit must submit a request for an early offering to the Curriculum Manager, Office of Quality Assurance.
Course Code*: CRWR*2000 Course Title**: Reading as a Writer Transcript Title (max. 30 char): Reading as a Writer Academic Unit(s) and College(s) responsible School of English and Theatre Studies for the course (and percent responsible): Credit Weight: (e.g. 0.50) 0.50 Lecture/Lab Hours: (e.g. 3-0) 3-0 Semester Offering: (e.g. S,F,W) W First Offering: (e.g. Fall 2021) Winter 2023 Calendar Description: (Three to four This course is designed to teach students how to read literature as writers. sentences MAX; description must be written Students will analyze the construction of literary texts in order to improve their in full sentence form) knowledge and application of each element of storytelling (character, point of view, dialogue, setting, scene, and narrative arc). The goal of this course is to hone aspiring writers’ critical thinking and creative skills through lectures on the reading, close readings of literary texts, and creative writing exercises based on literary models. Prerequisite(s): CRWR*1000 Restriction(s): This is a priority access course. Enrolment may be restricted to students registered in the Creative Writing major, minor. Co-requisite(s): CRWR*1000 Equate(s): Instructor Consent Required? ☐ Yes ☒ No Scheduling Instructions: specify which ☒ Annually option is applicable. ☐ Even-Numbered Years ☐ Odd-Numbered Years Distance Education: specify which option is ☐ Also offered through Distance Education. applicable. ☐ Offered through Distance Education only. ☒ Not offered through Distance Education. Experiential Learning (EL): check box if EL is ☐ ☐ Meets 6 Criteria Meets 3-5 Criteria practiced in the course and meets EL criteria Rank type(s) 1 – 5, no more than 3 types per course: __Applied Research __ Community Engaged Learning __ Field Course __Professional Practice __Course-Integrated
Template-Specific Notes
*Prefixes and numerical codes are assigned by ORS. For assistance, contact the Colleague Specialist, Enrolment Services. **Note course titles greater than 30 characters (including spaces and punctuation) will be shortened in Colleague and therefore on the student transcript. If necessary, provide a transcript title. Symbols (i.e. &) are permitted in shortening the transcript title. Approved by Program Committee(s): BA Date: May 10, 2021 Approved by Dean(s)/Designate(s): Ruediger Mueller Date: May 10, 2021
Senate-Board of Undergraduate Studies Form E: COURSE ADDITION (Part I) 2022/2023 Undergraduate Calendar
Submission Timelines/Deadlines
The Course Addition Information and Template is comprised of two parts. Part I is the information requested below and Part II is the calendar and colleague template. Both must be completed in full in order for the course proposal to be reviewed by the Calendar Review Committee before recommendation for approval to the Board of Undergraduate Studies and Senate. For definition of the terms used on page 2, see the Glossary in the Undergraduate Calendar.
Course Code and Title: CRWR*2100 Fiction Workshop: Writing the Anthropocene
Calendar Description: The term 'Anthropocene' is the name of a new epoch in which the human species has become a geological force, largely driven by industrialization, extractivism, and reliance on technology, that has caused climate change, species extinction and loss of biodiversity. Students will explore the cultural implications of this epochal shift by crafting fiction that helps them rethink the relationships among nature, culture and technology and consider how writing the Anthropocene invites new approaches to received fictional forms. This course will encourage students to engage from diverse perspectives with issues involving planetary change brought about by human activity while honing their creative writing skills.
1. Provide the detailed learning outcomes of the course. Indicate how these align with major/specialization outcomes and/or program level learning outcomes and whether any of the University's Undergraduate Learning Outcomes are met by the course. If the proposed course will be core to more than one major/specialization or degree program, make reference to each of these. If the proposed course is an elective for multiple specializations/programs, the course learning outcomes should align with one or more of the University of Guelph’s Undergraduate Learning Outcomes. Refer to the Undergraduate Calendar and the Learning Outcomes website for more information on learning outcomes. Course Learning Outcomes Major/Specialization Degree Program Learning U of G Undergraduate Learning Outcomes Outcomes Learning Outcomes By the end of the course The course will fulfill the The course will fulfill the The course will fulfill the students should be able to: following learning outcomes following degree learning following undergraduate for the Creative Writing outcomes: learning outcomes: 1. to apply the techniques major: of Point of View in their The course promotes Critical and Creative Thinking: creative work students, The course promotes the community engagement and The course encourages understanding the major’s outcomes in critical global understanding. As part students to explore their implications of point-of- and creative thinking. of the writing process, creativity and to analyze their view choice, including Through lectures and students will achieve a global creative work critically. See first-person and varieties discussions, students develop understanding of issues Learning Outcomes 1-13 of third-person (intimate- knowledge and a critical affecting society and the third and omniscient or understanding of the environment, using their Literacy: The course teaches multi-vocal). They will be elements of storytelling. In creative work to engage in a students how to acquire an able to analyze Point of their creative work, students dialogue with their aesthetic literacy that helps View in class discussions will creatively apply the communities for change. They them create a deeper of reading assignments knowledge and critical will understand the role of engagement with their own and evaluate the use of understanding of the creative texts in conveying creative work and the creative Point of View in their elements of storytelling, and and shaping cultural writing of others. The course work, as well as their literary devices to devise the knowledge and individual also provides students with a classmates’ creative work best approaches for achieving points of view and approach basic eco-critical vocabulary by revising their work and their creative goals, literary their creative works as through their critical readings. participating in writing effects and/or aesthetic ends. potential sites of civic See Learning Outcomes 1-12. workshops. (R) In the workshops, students knowledge and engagement will critically evaluate creative See Learning Outcomes 8-12 2. to create well-developed work, utilizing their firm grasp Global Understanding: As part characters in their of the elements of As they master character of the writing process, creative work by basing storytelling, as well as literary development, effective students will understand the their Character forms and techniques, to dialogue, narrative arc, and role of narrative in conveying Development on the propose creative, informed setting, they will practice different points of view of activation of characters’ solutions to problems, flaws, creative and critical thinking different nationalities and desires, fears and their and issues with the writing. In and expression. As they ethnicities, gender and encounters with nature. their writing and discussions, develop characters, for sexuality, class, and/or ability. Students will analyze how students will engage in textual example, they will learn to Students will also engage in authors develop and cultural analyses that incorporate multiple workshop critiques of work characters through their address the aesthetic, perspectives in their stories. and learn to address and discussions of reading theoretical and social They will learn to think both engage different viewpoints. assignments with the questions that will shape their creatively and critically as See Learning Outcomes 2, 4, professor and their peers. creative work. (See Learning they pay close attention to and 5. They will evaluate their Outcomes 1-13.) the subtleties and nuances of classmates’ character conveying meaning through Communicating: The course, development and learn to The course promotes the their work. They will also through the workshops and critique character major’s communication learn to think both creatively assignments, focuses on oral constructions (both their outcomes The course will and critically as they learn to communication, written own and their teach students about effective interpret the world through communication and reading classmates’) by revising communication. They will the elements of storytelling. comprehension. In their work and write at least 20,000 words of In their writing and workshops, students must participating in workshop formal prose. In their creative discussions, students will learn to be attentive listeners discussions. (R) writing, students will be able engage in textual and cultural and communicate effectively. 3. to create a relevant Sense demonstrate competency in analyses that address the The assignments teach of Place in their creative the elements and techniques aesthetic, theoretical and students to read, analyze, and work, understanding how of creative writing and an social questions that will edit other’s creative work, as world creation is ability to combine aesthetic, shape their creative work. See well as their own. See determined by point-of- technical and cultural Learning Outcomes 1-13. Learning Outcomes 1-8, 13. view choice and character knowledge into the building and how nature or the blocks of a compelling The course will focus a great Professional and Ethical environment can shape or narrative. In their workshops, deal on literacy and Behaviour: The workshop challenge point of view. students’ written communication. They will format encourages teamwork Through their discussions communication skills will communicate concepts, and leadership as students of reading assignments improve as they gain an feelings, and images through help guide discussion of the with the professor and awareness of audience; their the short story, keeping in creative work presented. See their peers, students will oral communication skills will mind how to communicate Learning Outcome 5. analyze how authors also be honed as they offer their stories to a wide create a Sense of Place. In oral critiques of student audience. They will learn a the revision of their work writing. In their revisions, disciplinary vocabulary that and their participation in students will learn how to they can apply to their own workshops, they will revise their creative writing in work and to evaluate the evaluate their classmates’ response to feedback from application of the elements of Sense of Place and learn the writing workshops. In storytelling. They will also to critique the use setting their writing and discussions, engage an eco-critical (both their own and their students will articulate their vocabulary as they study classmates’). (R) aesthetic principles by works that address the 4. to create good, effective situating their writing in Anthropocene. See Learning Dialogue in their creative relation to other relevant Outcomes 1-12 work by experimenting texts and theoretical, with summary, partial or analytical or social issues. The students, through full dialogue. Through (See Learning Outcomes 1-8, extensive reading and analysis their discussions of 13.) of short stories, will learn how reading assignments with to evaluate the short story the professor and their The course promotes the genre they are trying to peers, students will major’s literacy outcomes. master. They will also conduct analyze how authors Students learn and apply a research on issues related to create good dialogue. In disciplinary vocabulary that the Anthropocene. See the revision of their work enables students to discuss, Learning Outcomes 5, 8-13. and their participation in analyze, and evaluate the workshops, they will elements of storytelling. Students will achieve a depth evaluate and critique the Students will read both and breadth of use dialogue in both their literary texts and critical work understanding of the craft of own and their classmates’ that focuses on crafting writing the short story, as well creative work. (R) creative fiction that engages as an understanding of the 5. to participate effectively the Anthropocene in order to Anthropocene. See Learning in a writing workshop, assess and examine different Outcomes 1-12. discussing and evaluating rhetorical and aesthetic the creative work by their strategies. Students will apply Professional and Ethical classmates in a these rhetorical and aesthetic Behaviour: The workshop Professional, constructive strategies to their own format encourages teamwork manner. (R) creative work and use them to and leadership as students 6. to create effective Scenes assess their classmates’ help guide discussion of the in their creative work by creative work, as well. creative work presented. See approaching the scene as Students will complete a Learning Outcome 5. the central unit of a story; program of reading about the learning how to build Anthropocene that will enable story through them to make informed development of scene and aesthetic judgments. (See scene sequences; and Learning Outcomes 1-12.) experimenting with partial, summary, or full The course promotes the scenes. Through their major’s global-understanding discussions of reading outcomes. As part of the assignments with the writing process, students will professor and their peers, achieve a global students will analyze how understanding of issues authors create good affecting society and the scenes. In the revision of environment, using their their work and their creative work to engage in a participation in dialogue with their workshops, they will communities for change. evaluate and critique their They will understand the role classmates’ and their own of creative texts in conveying construction of scene. (R) and shaping cultural 7. to understand, analyze knowledge and individual and evaluate Narrative points of view and approach Arc with the their creative works as understanding that potential sites of civic change or transformation knowledge and engagement is a central narrative (See Learning Outcomes 8- element that the creation 12.) of tension and conflict; scene sequencing; and The course promotes the effective beginnings and major’s outcomes in endings. Students will professional and ethical apply their understanding behaviour. In workshops, of Narrative Arc in their students will be required to creative work. Through work productively in a group their discussions of setting; engage respectfully reading assignments with and professionally with the the professor and their creative writing of other peers, students will workshop participants and understand and analyze providing an oral critique of how authors create a students' creative work; and narrative arc. In the achieve organizational and revision of their work and time management skills in their participation in order to be prepared for class workshops, they will and submit work by assigned evaluate and critique their deadlines. (See Learning classmates’ and their own Outcome 5.) creation of narrative arc. (I) 8. create Socially Engaged writing by focusing on environmental issues through their readings, discussion, and writing assignments. (I) 9. achieve both a literary and ethical understanding of our relationship with the environment by employing the above techniques of fiction. (I) 10. reflect and reimagine their own world and their place within it by reading and creating fiction that focuses on the Anthropocene. (I) 11. engage the major issues and debates in the environmental humanities or in response to the idea of the Anthropocene in their academic and creative work. (I) 12. approach problems presented by the Anthropocene and in the Arts with creativity and/or critical insight 13. to revise their creative work by learning how to use criticism effectively to expand and improve their stories. They will apply their understanding of the Revision process in their final 3000- to 4000-word revision of one of the short stories they workshopped in class. (R)
2. Method(s) of evaluation/assessment (including breakdown) and how the outcomes listed in question 1 will be assessed. Form of Assessment (e.g. Weight of Course Content /Activity (e.g. Lectures week 1 -6, Course Learning Quiz) Assessment (% of Assigned readings, Chpt 1) Outcome Addressed final grade) (e.g. (#1,2) 5%)
Writing exercises 20% (total) Week One: Introduction and Review 1-4, 6-12 Introduction Lecture: What is the Anthropocene? Workshop Participation 20% Review Lecture: elements of fiction; a glossary of terms; 1-13 and basic story structure. Begin reading Michael Christie’s Greenwood Reflection/Research 20% Week Two: Fiction and the Anthropocene 8-12 Paper and Presentation Discussion #1: Greenwood (first half) 20% Assignment: Our goal is to determine how a work of 1-4, 6-12 Short Story fiction engages questions regarding the Anthropocene.
In light of this focus, choose a passage from the first Revision 20% half of the text, ask a question or make a comment; and 1-13 then provide a 2- to 3-sentence explanation of why you are asking this question, choosing this passage, or making this observation. Discussion #2: Greenwood (second half) Assignment: Our goal is to determine how a work of fiction engages questions regarding the Anthropocene. In light of this focus, choose a passage from the first half of the text, ask a question or make a comment; and then provide a 2- to 3-sentence explanation of why you are asking this question, choosing this passage, or making this observation. Week Three: Points of View Lecture: Points of View Discussion: Waubgeshig Rice’s Moon on Crusted Snow (excerpt) Writing Exercises #2 and #3: Write two drafts of an opening “proto” scene of a short story you’re working on, using two of the three point of views studied (first person, second person and third person). The point of view should help the reader understand the character’s relationship to nature. For example, your first scene can be written in the first person; then write the same scene over using the second person point of view. Each exercise should be 450-500 words. Writing Workshop Week Four: Character Lecture: Character Discussion: Lydia Millet’s How the Dead Dream (excerpt) Assignment: Our goal is to determine how a work of fiction engages questions regarding the Anthropocene. In light of this focus, choose a passage from the reading, ask a question or make a comment; and then provide a 2- to 3-sentence explanation of why you are asking this question, choosing this passage, or making this observation. Writing Exercises #4: describe (one paragraph) and show the connection between your protagonist’s desires and the environment. Each exercise should be 450-500 words. Writing Workshop Part one of reflection paper due. Week Five: Setting Lecture: Setting Discussion: Barbara Kingsolver’s Flight Behaviour (excerpt) Assignment: Our goal is to determine how a work of fiction engages questions regarding the Anthropocene. In light of this focus, choose a passage from the reading, ask a question or make a comment; and then provide a 2- to 3-sentence explanation of why you are asking this question, choosing this passage, or making this observation. Writing Exercises #5: For exercise #5, make nature or the environment a character and a setting. Each exercise should be 450-500 words. Writing Workshop Week Six: Dialogue Lecture: Dialogue Discussion: Catherine Bush’s Blaze Island (excerpt) Assignment: Our goal is to determine how a work of fiction engages questions regarding the Anthropocene. In light of this focus, choose a passage from the reading, ask a question or make a comment; and then provide a 2- to 3-sentence explanation of why you are asking this question, choosing this passage, or making this observation. Writing Exercises #6 and #7: For exercise #6, write a proto scene in which your character interacts with another character or nature without any dialogue. For exercise #7, rewrite exercise #8 by adding dialogue. Each exercise should be 450-500 words. Writing Workshop Week Seven: Scene/Conflict Discussion: Jenny Offil’s Weather (excerpt) Assignment: Our goal is to determine how a work of fiction engages questions regarding the Anthropocene. In light of this focus, choose a passage from the reading, ask a question or make a comment; and then provide a 2- to 3-sentence explanation of why you are asking this question, choosing this passage, or making this observation. Writing Exercises #8 and #9: For exercise #8, rewrite a proto scene you’ve already written and add conflict in which another character or the environment prevents your protagonist from getting or achieving something s/he wants. For exercise #9, rewrite a proto scene you’ve already written and add conflict in which your protagonist prevents another character from getting something they want or manipulates nature. Each exercise should be 450-500 words. Writing Workshop Part two of reflection paper due. Week Eight: Scene: Narrative Arc/Plot Lecture: Plot/Narrative Arc Writing Exercises #10 and #11: For exercise #11, describe the surface journey of your short story. For exercise #12, describe the inner journey of your short story. Each exercise should be 450-500 words. Writing Workshop Presentations of Reflection Piece Week Nine: Individual Meetings to Discuss Progress of Short Story Week Ten: Endings and Revisions Lecture: Endings and Revision Writing Exercises #12: Write a proto ending for your story. Each exercise should be 450-500 words. Writing Workshop Presentations of Reflection Piece Short Story Due at the end of the week. Week Eleven: Short Story Workshops and Presentations of Reflection Piece Presentations of Reflection Piece Week Twelve: Short Story Workshops and Presentations of Reflection Piece Week Thirteen: Individual Meetings to Discuss Revision of Short Story Revision of short story due during exam period. 3. Method(s) of presentation (lecture, seminar, hybrid, case study, lab, etc.). Workshop 4. Does this course include experiential learning (EL) opportunities? If YES, consult the Experiential Learning Faculty & Staff webpage to determine which categories of EL opportunities are present and indicate in the space provided on the Course Addition Part II form. No. 5. “The University of Guelph Senate affirms its commitment to an inclusive campus and fostering a culture of inclusion at the University of Guelph as an institutional imperative, acknowledging the University’s diverse population and that every member of an inclusive campus is a valued contributor.” (Fostering a Culture of Inclusion at the University of Guelph: an Institutional Imperative, April, 2017). This includes assurances that issues of equity, diversity, and accessibility are considered in the development and delivery of curriculum. Discuss the ways in which inclusion is considered in this new course proposal. For assistance, contact the Associate Director, Office of Teaching and Learning or the Office of Quality Assurance. This is a direct-entry, non-portfolio course, which shows a commitment to access, equity and diversity by eliminating competition for limited spaces and focusing instead on nurturing student talent by creating an inclusive environment. The Creative Writing major places a strong emphasis on issues of social justice, marginalization and the environment. Our goal is to teach students how to reflect a diversity of races, bodies, classes, and genders in their creative practice. Reading is an essential aspect of our workshops, and our creative writing instructors are committed to assigning a culturally diverse range of material, including the work of emerging Canadian writers, particularly from traditionally marginalized communities. By discussing literary techniques in a culturally diverse range of published work, students learn to be readers who compare and contrast narrative and esthetic strategies of a wide range of culturally diverse writers, including Black, racialized, indigenous, 2SLGBTQ+ writers and writers living with disabilities. Take for example, the submitted outline, which includes the work of writers of color.
6. Reason for course offering and intended audience including: i) degree program(s) to be served by the course and role in the curriculum; Creative Writing major and minor.
ii) expected enrollment; 20 iii) status of course (e.g. core, restricted elective, elective). Restricted elective. 7. List of resource needs (e.g. teaching support, lab and/or computer facilities, field trips, etc.) and identify funding sources for mounting and maintaining the course) A standard classroom and CRWR teaching faculty or sessional.
8. Is this a replacement course? If YES, specify the course to be deleted and include Form C: Course Deletion Template with submission. No. 9. Does this course involve research projects of a significant nature? If YES, consult with the Curriculum Manager, Office of Quality Assurance re: additional information that may be required for submission to BUGS. Refer to the Research Ethics Board (REB) guidelines and to the Undergraduate Calendar. No. 10. A course outline is required for all new courses; forward with the completed templates. 11. Evidence of consultation with other departments, program committees or units may be required. This is particularly important when the proposed course is a replacement for a deleted course included in the schedule of studies or restricted elective list of other degree programs, or when considering prerequisites, restrictions, DE offerings, etc. Forward all correspondence electronically to the Program Committee Secretary who will then forward to the Calendar Review Committee, [email protected]. Parts I and II of the proposal with consultation if the course is approved by the Program Committee. 12. If the intended first offering is earlier than Summer 2021, a request for an early offering is required. The request should be submitted via email to the Curriculum Manager, Office of Quality Assurance by the Chair/Director/Associate Dean of the Department/School/College offering the course. Note, requests are not normally approved (or scheduled) until the new course has received BUGS approval. 13. Proposing to offer a course in distance education format? Provide evidence of approval from the Executive Director, Open Learning and Educational Support to mount the proposed course in DE format. No. 14. A completed library assessment is normally required for new courses proposed for approval. Courses will not proceed to Senate without a completed assessment. Exceptions may be granted. To request an assessment contact the Library. Requests should be submitted well in advance of deadlines as assessments normally take a minimum of three weeks.
Questions? Contact the Curriculum Manager, Administrative Secretary or your Program Committee Chair or Secretary. Senate-Board of Undergraduate Studies Form E: COURSE ADDITION (Part II) 2022/2023 Undergraduate Calendar
Submission Timelines/Deadlines The Course Addition Information and Template is comprised of two parts. Part I is the information portion and Part II is the calendar and colleague template. Both must be completed in full in order for the course proposal to be reviewed by the Calendar Review Committee before recommendation for approval to the Board of Undergraduate Studies and Senate.
A completed library assessment is normally required for all new courses proposed for approval. Contact the Library.
If first offering is prior to Summer 2021, academic unit must submit a request for an early offering to the Curriculum Manager, Office of Quality Assurance.
Course Code*: CRWR*2100 Course Title**: Fiction Workshop: Writing the Anthropocene Transcript Title (max. 30 char): Fiction Workshop: Anthropocene Academic Unit(s) and College(s) responsible School of English and Theatre Studies for the course (and percent responsible): Credit Weight: (e.g. 0.50) 0.50 Lecture/Lab Hours: (e.g. 3-0) 3-0 Semester Offering: (e.g. S,F,W) F First Offering: (e.g. Fall 2021) Fall 2023 Calendar Description: (Three to four The term 'Anthropocene' is the name of a new epoch in which the human species sentences MAX; description must be written has become a geological force, largely driven by industrialization, extractivism, and in full sentence form) reliance on technology, that has caused climate change, species extinction and loss of biodiversity. Students will explore the cultural implications of this epochal shift by crafting fiction that helps them rethink the relationships among nature, culture and technology and consider how writing the Anthropocene invites new approaches to received fictional forms. This course will encourage students to engage from diverse perspectives with issues involving planetary change brought about by human activity while honing their creative writing skills. Prerequisite(s): CRWR*2000 Restriction(s): CRWR*2150. Registration in the Creative Writing major, minor. Co-requisite(s): CRWR*2000 Equate(s): Instructor Consent Required? ☐ Yes ☒ No Scheduling Instructions: specify which ☒ Annually option is applicable. ☐ Even-Numbered Years ☐ Odd-Numbered Years Distance Education: specify which option is ☐ Also offered through Distance Education. applicable. ☐ Offered through Distance Education only. ☒ Not offered through Distance Education. Experiential Learning (EL): check box if EL is ☐ ☒ Meets 6 Criteria Meets 3-5 Criteria practiced in the course and meets EL criteria Rank type(s) 1 – 5, no more than 3 types per course: __Applied Research __ Community Engaged Learning __ Field Course _2_Professional Practice _1_Course-Integrated
Template-Specific Notes *Prefixes and numerical codes are assigned by ORS. For assistance, contact the Colleague Specialist, Enrolment Services. **Note course titles greater than 30 characters (including spaces and punctuation) will be shortened in Colleague and therefore on the student transcript. If necessary, provide a transcript title. Symbols (i.e. &) are permitted in shortening the transcript title. Approved by Program Committee(s): BA Date: May 10, 2021 Approved by Dean(s)/Designate(s): Ruediger Mueller Date: May 10, 2021
Senate-Board of Undergraduate Studies Form E: COURSE ADDITION (Part I) 2022/2023 Undergraduate Calendar
Submission Timelines/Deadlines
The Course Addition Information and Template is comprised of two parts. Part I is the information requested below and Part II is the calendar and colleague template. Both must be completed in full in order for the course proposal to be reviewed by the Calendar Review Committee before recommendation for approval to the Board of Undergraduate Studies (BUGS) and Senate. For definition of the terms used on page 2, see the Glossary in the Undergraduate Calendar.
Course Code and Title: CRWR*2150 Speculative Fiction Workshop
Calendar Description: There are many modes of fiction that can address issues of social justice beyond the realistic. In this course students will engage with fiction as a mode for creating expanded imaginaries that address pressing social problems and inequalities in our society. They will consider how fiction is a means of world creation, including the futuristic, fantastic and dystopic, and explore how fiction is a mode for entering the perspectives of others, sometimes those radically not like us.
1. Provide the detailed learning outcomes of the course. Indicate how these align with major/specialization outcomes and/or program level learning outcomes and whether any of the University's Undergraduate Learning Outcomes are met by the course. If the proposed course will be core to more than one major/specialization or degree program, make reference to each of these. If the proposed course is an elective for multiple specializations/programs, the course learning outcomes should align with one or more of the University of Guelph’s Undergraduate Learning Outcomes. Refer to the Undergraduate Calendar and the Learning Outcomes website for more information on learning outcomes. Course Learning Outcomes Major/Specialization Degree Program Learning U of G Undergraduate Learning Outcomes Outcomes Learning Outcomes 1. apply the techniques of Critical and Creative Thinking Community Engagement and Critical and Creative Thinking Point of View in their creative 1, 2, 3 Global Understanding 1. Inquiry and Analysis work students, understanding A2, A3 2. Problem Solving Communication 3. Creativity the implications of point-of- 4, 5, 6 Critical and Creative Thinking 4. Depth and Breadth of view choice, including first- B1, B3, B4 Understanding person and varieties of third- Literacy person (intimate-third and 7, 9 Literacy and Communication Literacy omniscient or multi-vocal). C2, C3 1. Information Literacy
They will be able to analyze Global Understanding Global Understanding Point of View in discussions of 10, 12 Evaluate and Conduct 1. Global Understanding reading assignments in class Research 4. Intercultural Knowledge D1, D4 discussions, and evaluate the Professionalism and Competence
use of Point of View in their 13, 14, 15 Depth and Breadth of work, as well as their Communicating Understanding 2. Written Comprehension classmates’ creative work by E3 participating in writing 3. Reading Comprehension workshops. (R) Professional Development Professional and Ethical 2.create well-developed and Ethical Behaviour Behaviour characters in their creative F1, F2, F3, F4 1. Teamwork work by basing their 3. Leadership 4. Personal Organization/Time Character Development on the activation of characters’ desires, fears and their Management encounters with obstacles. Through their discussions of reading assignments with the professor and their peers, students will analyze how authors develop characters. In workshops, they will evaluate their classmates’ character development and learn to critique character constructions (both their own and their classmates’) by participating in workshop discussions. (R)
3.create a relevant Sense of Place in their creative work, understanding how world creation is determined by point-of-view choice and character, and how the world is perceived by an individual character in a particular state of mind. Through their discussions of reading assignments with the professor and their peers, students will analyze how authors create a Sense of Place. In their participation in workshops, they will evaluate their classmates’ Sense of Place and learn to critique the use setting (both their own and their classmates’). (R)
4.create good, effective Dialogue in their creative work by experimenting with summary, partial or full dialogue. Through their discussions of reading assignments with the professor and their peers, students will analyze how authors create good dialogue. In their participation in workshops, they will evaluate and critique their classmates’ use of dialogue and learn to critique the use setting (both their own and their classmates’). (R)
5.participate effectively in a writing workshop, discussing and evaluating the creative work by their classmates in a Professional, constructive manner. (R)
6.create effective Scenes in their creative work by approaching the scene as the central unit of story and learn how to build story through development of scene and scene sequences and experimenting with partial, summary, or full scenes. Through their discussions of reading assignments with the professor and their peers, students will analyze how authors create good scenes. In their participation in workshops, they will evaluate and critique their classmates’ construction of scene. (R)
7.understand, analyze and evaluate Narrative Arc with the understanding that change or transformation is a central narrative element that involves by the relation between time and narrative, nonlinear storytelling, the creation of tension and conflict, scene sequencing and effective beginnings and endings. Students will apply their understanding of Narrative Arc in their creative work. Through their discussions of reading assignments with the professor and their peers, students will understand and analyze how authors create a narrative arc. In their participation in workshops, they will evaluate and critique their classmates’ and their creation of narrative arc. (I)
8.understand, analyze and evaluate Style, by reading and discussing the difference between voice and style, identifying their style, and changing style. Students will apply their understanding of Style in their creative work. Through their discussions of reading assignments with the professor and their peers, students will understand and analyze different authors’ styles. In their participation in workshops, they will evaluate and critique their classmates’ and their own writing style. (I)
9.create Socially Engaged writing by focusing on a social justice issue through their readings, discussion, and writing assignments.
10. achieve a literary and ethical understanding of the perspectives of others, sometimes those radically not like us, including of the more- than-human world.
11.understand how creating speculative stories offers a powerful way to reflect and reimagine our own world and our place within it.
12.understand, through reading a diverse syllabus of speculative fiction (including works by racialized and indigenous writer), how contemporary writers of diverse backgrounds use speculative fiction to speak to environmental and social justice issues in our contemporary world and how such writers use speculative fiction to reimagine alternate pathways of agency. 13.to revise their creative work by learning how to take criticism and which advice to follow and how to expand their stories. They will apply their understanding of the Revision process in their final 3000- to 3500 revision of one of the short stories they workshopped in class. (I) 2. Method(s) of evaluation/assessment (including breakdown) and how the outcomes listed in question 1 will be assessed. Form of Assessment (e.g. Weight of Course Content /Activity (e.g. Lectures Course Learning Outcome Quiz) Assessment (% week 1 -6, Assigned readings, Chpt 1) Addressed (#1,2) of final grade) (e.g. 5%)
Writing exercises 25 Week 1 Writing exercises – 1, 2, 3, 4, Topic: Defamiliarizing the Real/Making the 6, 7, 9, 10, 11 Workshop participation 25 Speculative Believable Workshop participation –1, 2, Reading: Franz Kafka, Metamorphosis Short story 25 3, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 12, 13 (excerpt)
Revision 25 Short story – 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 7,9, Week 2: 10, 11 Topic: Point of View and the World--the World as a Form of Perception not Revision – 5, 8, 9, 10, 11, 13 Information Reading: Jeff Vandermeer, Borne (excerpt); Lydia Kwa, The Walking Boy (excerpt) Workshop
Week 3 Topic: Scene--What Does it Need? Reading: Amal el-Mohtar, “Seasons of Glass and Iron” (story), Workshop
Week 4 Topic: Desire/Fear--Creating Characters who feel alive Reading: Octavia Butler, Parable of the Sower (excerpt), Hiromi Goto, Half World (excerpt) CDN Workshop
Week 5 Topic: Narrative--Basic Tropes of Story Reading: N.K. Jemisin, The Fifth Season (excerpt) Workshop
Week 6 Topic: Narrative--Elements of Transformation Reading: Emily Saint John Mandel, Station Eleven (excerpt) CDN Workshop
Week 7 Topic: Using First-Person POV to write an Unfamiliar World Reading: Margaret Atwood, The Handmaid’s Tale (excerpt) CDN Workshop
Week 8 Topic: Using Third-Person POV to write an Unfamiliar World Reading: Silvia Moreno-Garcia, Gods of Jade and Shadow (excerpt) CDN, Larissa Lai, Tiger Flu (excerpt) CDN Workshop
Week 9 Topic: Writing Other Humans Reading: Ursula K Le Guin, “Sur” (story); Leslie Arimah, “What It Means When A Man Falls From the Sky” (story) Workshop
Week 10 Topic: Writing More-than-Human Others Reading: Barbara Gowdy, White Bone (excerpt) CDN, Ted Chiang, “The Great Silence” (story) Workshop
Week 11 Topic: Futures Imagining: Re-imagining our own world Reading: Cherie Dimaline, Marrow Thieves (excerpt) CDN, Saleema Nawaz Webster, Songs for the End of the World (excerpt) CDN Workshop Week 12 Topic: Revising Workshop
3. Method(s) of presentation (lecture, seminar, hybrid, case study, lab, etc.). Workshop 4. Does this course include experiential learning (EL) opportunities? If YES, consult the Experiential Learning Faculty & Staff webpage to determine which categories of EL opportunities are present and indicate in the space provided on the Course Addition Part II form. No. 5. “The University of Guelph Senate affirms its commitment to an inclusive campus and fostering a culture of inclusion at the University of Guelph as an institutional imperative, acknowledging the University’s diverse population and that every member of an inclusive campus is a valued contributor.” (Fostering a Culture of Inclusion at the University of Guelph: an Institutional Imperative, April, 2017). This includes assurances that issues of equity, diversity, and accessibility are considered in the development and delivery of curriculum. Discuss the ways in which inclusion is considered in this new course proposal. For assistance, contact the Associate Director, Office of Teaching and Learning or the Office of Quality Assurance. This is a direct-entry, non-portfolio course, which shows a commitment to access, equity and diversity by eliminating competition for limited spaces and focusing instead on nurturing student talent by creating an inclusive environment. The Creative Writing major places a strong emphasis on issues of social justice, marginalization and the environment. Our goal is to teach students how to reflect a diversity of races, bodies, classes, and genders in their creative practice. Within this course, students will be able to explore fiction writing, which can address pressing social problems and inequalities in our society. We will explore fiction as a mode for entering the perspectives of others, sometimes those radically not like us.
6. Reason for course offering and intended audience including: i) degree program(s) to be served by the course and role in the curriculum; Creative Writing major and minor.
ii) expected enrollment; 20 iii) status of course (e.g. core, restricted elective, elective). Restricted elective.
7. List of resource needs (e.g. teaching support, lab and/or computer facilities, field trips, etc.) and identify funding sources for mounting and maintaining the course) A standard classroom and CRWR teaching faculty or sessional.
8. Is this a replacement course? If YES, specify the course to be deleted and include Form C: Course Deletion Template with submission. No. 9. Does this course involve research projects of a significant nature? If YES, consult with the Curriculum Manager, Office of Quality Assurance re: additional information that may be required for submission to BUGS. Refer to the Research Ethics Board (REB) guidelines and to the Undergraduate Calendar. 10. A course outline is required for all new courses; forward with the completed templates. 11. Evidence of consultation with other departments, program committees or units may be required. This is particularly important when the proposed course is a replacement for a deleted course included in the schedule of studies or restricted elective list of other degree programs, or when considering prerequisites, restrictions, DE offerings, etc. Forward all correspondence electronically to the Program Committee Secretary who will then forward to the Calendar Review Committee, [email protected]. Parts I and II of the proposal with consultation if the course is approved by the Program Committee. 12. If the intended first offering is earlier than Summer 2022, a request for an early offering is required. An early offering may be requested on this form or by emailing the Colleague Specialist, Enrolment Services post BUGS approval. Early offering requests require the approval of the related Associate Dean Academic.
13. Proposing to offer a course in distance education format? Provide evidence of approval from the Executive Director, Open Learning and Educational Support to mount the proposed course in DE format. 14. A completed library assessment is normally required for new courses proposed for approval. Courses will not proceed to Senate without a completed assessment. Exceptions may be granted. To request an assessment contact the Library. Requests should be submitted well in advance of deadlines as assessments normally take a minimum of three weeks.
Questions? Contact the Curriculum Manager, Administrative Secretary or your Program Committee Chair or Secretary. Senate-Board of Undergraduate Studies Form E: COURSE ADDITION (Part II) 2022/2023 Undergraduate Calendar
Submission Timelines/Deadlines The Course Addition Information and Template is comprised of two parts. Part I is the information portion and Part II is the calendar and colleague template. Both must be completed in full in order for the course proposal to be reviewed by the Calendar Review Committee before recommendation for approval to the Board of Undergraduate Studies (BUGS) and Senate.
A completed library assessment is normally required for all new courses proposed for approval. Contact the Library.
If first offering is prior to Summer 2022, a request for an early offering should be indicated on Part I or sent to the Colleague Specialist, Enrolment Services post BUGS approval. Requests for early offerings require the approval of the related Associate Dean Academic.
Course Code*: CRWR*2150 Course Title**: Speculative Fiction Workshop Transcript Title (max. 30 char): Speculative Fiction Workshop Academic Unit(s) and College(s) responsible School of English and Theatre Studies for the course (and percent responsible): Credit Weight: (e.g. 0.50) 0.50 Lecture/Lab Hours: (e.g. 3-0) (3-0) Semester Offering: (e.g. S,F,W) W First Offering: (e.g. Fall 2022) Winter 2023 Calendar Description: (Three to four There are many modes of fiction that can address issues of social justice beyond sentences MAX; description must be written the realistic. In this course students will engage with fiction as a mode for creating in full sentence form) expanded imaginaries that address pressing social problems and inequalities in our society. They will consider how fiction is a means of world creation, including the futuristic, fantastic and dystopic, and explore how fiction is a mode for entering the perspectives of others, sometimes those radically not like us.
Prerequisite(s): CRWR*2000 Restriction(s): CRWR*2100. Registration in the Creative Writing major or minor. Co-requisite(s): CRWR*2000 Equate(s): Instructor Consent Required? ☐ Yes ☒ No Scheduling Instructions: specify which ☒ Annually option is applicable. ☐ Even-Numbered Years ☐ Odd-Numbered Years Distance Education: specify which option is ☐ Also offered through Distance Education. applicable. ☐ Offered through Distance Education only. ☒ Not offered through Distance Education. Experiential Learning (EL): check box if EL is ☐ ☒ Meets 6 Criteria Meets 3-5 Criteria practiced in the course and meets EL criteria Rank type(s) 1 – 5, no more than 3 types per course: __Research or Scholarly Creation __ Field Course __ Community Engaged Learning (CEL) _2_Professional or Career Practice _1_Course-Integrated __Work Experience Template-Specific Notes *Prefixes and numerical codes are assigned by ORS. For assistance, contact the Colleague Specialist, Enrolment Services. **Note course titles greater than 30 characters (including spaces and punctuation) will be shortened in Colleague and therefore on the student transcript. If necessary, provide a transcript title. Symbols (i.e. &) are permitted in shortening the transcript title. Approved by Program Committee(s): BA Date: May 10, 2021 Approved by Dean(s)/Designate(s): Ruediger Mueller Date: May 10, 2021
Senate-Board of Undergraduate Studies Form E: COURSE ADDITION (Part I) 2022/2023 Undergraduate Calendar
Submission Timelines/Deadlines
The Course Addition Information and Template is comprised of two parts. Part I is the information requested below and Part II is the calendar and colleague template. Both must be completed in full in order for the course proposal to be reviewed by the Calendar Review Committee before recommendation for approval to the Board of Undergraduate Studies (BUGS) and Senate. For definition of the terms used on page 2, see the Glossary in the Undergraduate Calendar.
Course Code and Title: CRWR*2200 Creative Nonfiction Workshop: Writing Nature
Calendar Description: In this course, students will learn a range of techniques and approaches, including memoir and the creative essay, for writing nonfiction about the natural world and the human relationship to it. Traditional nature writing placed humans on one side and nature on the other, often as an untouched, wild environment to be explored and described. In this course we will consider nature writing in an era of ecological loss and high-tech science, when access to land, clean water and air are prominent social justice issues and when it is no longer possible to separate nature from the realm of the human.
1. Provide the detailed learning outcomes of the course. Indicate how these align with major/specialization outcomes and/or program level learning outcomes and whether any of the University's Undergraduate Learning Outcomes are met by the course. If the proposed course will be core to more than one major/specialization or degree program, make reference to each of these. If the proposed course is an elective for multiple specializations/programs, the course learning outcomes should align with one or more of the University of Guelph’s Undergraduate Learning Outcomes. Refer to the Undergraduate Calendar and the Learning Outcomes website for more information on learning outcomes. Course Learning Outcomes Major/Specialization Degree Program Learning U of G Undergraduate Learning Outcomes Outcomes Learning Outcomes 1. Students will learn how The course develops the Community Engagement and Critical and Creative Thinking techniques for writing following major learning Global Understanding – A2, 1. Inquiry and Analysis nonfiction in the first-person outcomes: A4 2. Problem Solving 3. Creativity including an understanding of Critical and Creative Thinking Critical and Creative Thinking 4. Depth and Breadth of their own subject position and Outcomes - 1, 2, 3 – B1, B3, B4 Understanding how the selection of details, Communication word choice, creates a world Outcomes – 4, 5, 6 Literacy and Communication Literacy on the page. – C2, C3 1. Information literacy Literacy
Outcomes – 7, 8 Evaluate and Conduct 2. Students will build on their Global Understanding Global Understanding Research – D1, D4 1. Global Understanding skills in the first-person and Outcomes – 10, Depth and Breadth of 2. Sense of Historical their understanding of Development Understanding – E1 subjectivity, learning how Professionalism 3. Civic Knowledge and where they place attention Outcomes: 13 Professional Development Engagement 4. Intercultural Knowledge (and what they leave out) and Ethical Behaviour – F2, F4 creates a world on the page and Competence
that has ethical implications. Communicating 2. Written Communication 3. Students will learn specific 3. Reading Comprehension vocabularies for describing the natural world, Professional and Ethical Behaviour understanding the power of detail and specificity to create 1. Teamwork compelling language and 2. Ethical Reasoning descriptions. 4. Personal Organization/Time 4. Students will consider the Management ethical implications of language for the natural world, and how language use can offer animacy and a sense of empathetic, reciprocal relationship between writer and the world, and also de- nature, making the world inert.
5. Students will learn effective use of metaphor, both as technique at the sentence level and as a structuring principle of effective writing in which one element is recognized newly by being placed in relationship to another.
6. Students will learn necessary research skills for writing effective nonfiction. This will include both online research and field work that takes them into a natural environment such as the University of Guelph Arboretum.
7. Students will gain experience writing in different forms of creative nonfiction including memoir, creative essay and journalistic article.
8. Students will learn how to create story and narrative arc in a short work of creative nonfiction.
9. Through a diverse selection of readings, students will learn how skilled writers of creative nonfiction employ a variety of literary techniques and how they use the form of nonfiction to write about personal experience and to address larger societal issues, including colonialism and racism in relation to the natural world.
10. to participate effectively in a writing workshop, discussing and evaluating the creative work by their classmates in a Professional, constructive manner.
11. to revise their creative work by learning how to use criticism effectively to expand and improve their stories. They will apply their understanding of the Revision process in their final 2000- to 2500-word revision of one of the short stories they workshopped in class.
2. Method(s) of evaluation/assessment (including breakdown) and how the outcomes listed in question 1 will be assessed. Form of Assessment (e.g. Weight of Course Content /Activity (e.g. Lectures Course Learning Outcome Quiz) Assessment (% week 1 -6, Assigned readings, Chpt 1) Addressed (#1,2) of final grade) (e.g. 5%)
Short Memoir 20% Week 1 Short Memoir: 1-9 Topic: What is Nature Now? (Keeping a Short Lyric Essay or 20% Writer’s Notebook) Lyric Essay: 1-9 Journalistic Article Reading: Helen McDonald, Vesper Flights, CF Essay:1-9, 11 Creative-Form Essay 35% (creative essays on human relationship to Participation: 3, 10 the natural world) In-Class Participation 25%
Week 2 Topic: Nature Languages: Naming Nature, Vocabularies for the Natural World (Keeping a Writer’s Notebook 2)
Reading: Robin Wall Kimmerer, “Speaking Nature” from Orion Magazine (indigenous writer and botanist on the grammar of animacy, shifting pronouns to give personhood to the natural world); Robert Macfarlane, Introduction to Landmarks (on the specific vocabularies of the natural world) Workshop
Week 3 Topic: Noticing Nature: A Mind Perceives the World (Keeping a Notebook 3)
Reading: Annie Dillard, Pilgrim at Tinker Creek (classic naturalist’s text)
Workshop
Week 4 Topic: Memoir: The First Person Encounters the Natural World Reading: Kyo Maclear, Birds, Art, Life (memoir on an urban relationship to birding) CDN; Jessica J Lee, Turning: A Swimming Memoir (CNF meditation on loss, identity and nature), CDN/Chinese-Welsh
Workshop
Week 5 Topic: First Person as Witness: Shifting Perspectives
Reading: Sharon English, “Going Under,” first-person pandemic and nature memoir, Dark Mountain Project website CDN; Anne Carson, “Water Margins: An Essay on Swimming by My Brother,” from “The Anthropology of Water,” collected in Plainsong
Workshop
Week 6 Topic: Biophilia: Reciprocal Relationships, Trees, Fungi, and Where is the Wild?
Reading: Merlin Sheldrake, Entangled Life, excerpt (fungal networks, a world of connection)
Workshop
Week 7 Topic: Researching Nature: Techniques for Research Online and in the Field
Reading: Leona Theis, “Sturnella Neglecta, Overlooked Little Starling,” (creative essay on deafness and loss of bird populations CDN
Workshop
Week 8 Topic: Writing Animals: the Creative Essay Reading: Elena Passarello, Animals Strike Curious Poses (essays on animals)
Workshop
Week 9 Topic: Writing Science: Approaches to the Journalistic Article
Reading: David Farrier, “Hand in Glove” the false promise of plastics (pandemic, PPE, plastics science essay) Orion Magazine
Workshop
Week 10 Topic: Writing Land, Writing Air: Writing Nature as a Social Justice Issue
Reading: Jordan K. Thomas, “The Murder of Crows,” (creative essay on Blackness, American Jim Crow laws, and crows); Billy Ray Belcourt, from A History of My Brief Body
Workshop
Week 11 Topic: Hybrid Lessons: How an Essay can be a Memoir can require Research Workshop
Week 12 Topic: Writing the Climate Crisis and How to be a Good Ancestor (Writing Time)
Reading: Essays from The Dark Mountain Project including “Enter: Thunder, Fire, Smoke and Relearning new Languages,” by Sara Jolena Wolcott
Workshop
3. Method(s) of presentation (lecture, seminar, hybrid, case study, lab, etc.). Workshop 4. Does this course include experiential learning (EL) opportunities? If YES, consult the Experiential Learning Faculty & Staff webpage to determine which categories of EL opportunities are present and indicate in the space provided on the Course Addition Part II form. No. 5. “The University of Guelph Senate affirms its commitment to an inclusive campus and fostering a culture of inclusion at the University of Guelph as an institutional imperative, acknowledging the University’s diverse population and that every member of an inclusive campus is a valued contributor.” (Fostering a Culture of Inclusion at the University of Guelph: an Institutional Imperative, April, 2017). This includes assurances that issues of equity, diversity, and accessibility are considered in the development and delivery of curriculum. Discuss the ways in which inclusion is considered in this new course proposal. For assistance, contact the Associate Director, Office of Teaching and Learning or the Office of Quality Assurance. This is a direct-entry, non-portfolio course, which shows a commitment to access, equity and diversity by eliminating competition for limited spaces and focusing instead on nurturing student talent by creating an inclusive environment. The Creative Writing major places a strong emphasis on issues of social justice, marginalization and the environment. Our goal is to teach students how to reflect a diversity of races, bodies, classes, and genders in their creative practice. Nature writing in an era of ecological loss is able to address social justice issues such as indigenous land rights, access to clean water and air. Students will explore these question and more through course readings and their writing assignments.
6. Reason for course offering and intended audience including: i) degree program(s) to be served by the course and role in the curriculum; Creative Writing major and minor.
ii) expected enrollment; 20 students
iii) status of course (e.g. core, restricted elective, elective). Restricted elective
7. List of resource needs (e.g. teaching support, lab and/or computer facilities, field trips, etc.) and identify funding sources for mounting and maintaining the course) A standard classroom and CRWR teaching faculty or sessional.
8. Is this a replacement course? If YES, specify the course to be deleted and include Form C: Course Deletion Template with submission. No. 9. Does this course involve research projects of a significant nature? If YES, consult with the Curriculum Manager, Office of Quality Assurance re: additional information that may be required for submission to BUGS. Refer to the Research Ethics Board (REB) guidelines and to the Undergraduate Calendar. 10. A course outline is required for all new courses; forward with the completed templates. 11. Evidence of consultation with other departments, program committees or units may be required. This is particularly important when the proposed course is a replacement for a deleted course included in the schedule of studies or restricted elective list of other degree programs, or when considering prerequisites, restrictions, DE offerings, etc. Forward all correspondence electronically to the Program Committee Secretary who will then forward to the Calendar Review Committee, [email protected]. Parts I and II of the proposal with consultation if the course is approved by the Program Committee. 12. If the intended first offering is earlier than Summer 2022, a request for an early offering is required. An early offering may be requested on this form or by emailing the Colleague Specialist, Enrolment Services post BUGS approval. Early offering requests require the approval of the related Associate Dean Academic.
13. Proposing to offer a course in distance education format? Provide evidence of approval from the Executive Director, Open Learning and Educational Support to mount the proposed course in DE format. 14. A completed library assessment is normally required for new courses proposed for approval. Courses will not proceed to Senate without a completed assessment. Exceptions may be granted. To request an assessment contact the Library. Requests should be submitted well in advance of deadlines as assessments normally take a minimum of three weeks.
Questions? Contact the Curriculum Manager, Administrative Secretary or your Program Committee Chair or Secretary. Senate-Board of Undergraduate Studies Form E: COURSE ADDITION (Part II) 2022/2023 Undergraduate Calendar
Submission Timelines/Deadlines The Course Addition Information and Template is comprised of two parts. Part I is the information portion and Part II is the calendar and colleague template. Both must be completed in full in order for the course proposal to be reviewed by the Calendar Review Committee before recommendation for approval to the Board of Undergraduate Studies (BUGS) and Senate.
A completed library assessment is normally required for all new courses proposed for approval. Contact the Library.
If first offering is prior to Summer 2022, a request for an early offering should be indicated on Part I or sent to the Colleague Specialist, Enrolment Services post BUGS approval. Requests for early offerings require the approval of the related Associate Dean Academic.
Course Code*: CRWR*2200 Course Title**: Creative Nonfiction Workshop: Writing Nature Transcript Title (max. 30 char): Creative Nonfiction: Nature Academic Unit(s) and College(s) responsible School of English and Theatre Studies for the course (and percent responsible): Credit Weight: (e.g. 0.50) 0.50 Lecture/Lab Hours: (e.g. 3-0) 3-0 Semester Offering: (e.g. S,F,W) W First Offering: (e.g. Fall 2022) Winter 2023 Calendar Description: (Three to four In this course, students will learn a range of techniques and approaches, including sentences MAX; description must be written memoir and the creative essay, for writing nonfiction about the natural world and in full sentence form) the human relationship to it. Traditional nature writing placed humans on one side and nature on the other, often as an untouched, wild environment to be explored and described. In this course we will consider nature writing in an era of ecological loss and high-tech science, when access to land, clean water and air are prominent social justice issues and when it is no longer possible to separate nature from the realm of the human. Prerequisite(s): CRWR*2000 Restriction(s): Registration in the Creative Writing major or minor. Co-requisite(s): CRWR*2000 Equate(s): Instructor Consent Required? ☒ Yes ☒ No Scheduling Instructions: specify which ☒ Annually option is applicable. ☐ Even-Numbered Years ☐ Odd-Numbered Years Distance Education: specify which option is ☐ Also offered through Distance Education. applicable. ☐ Offered through Distance Education only. ☒ Not offered through Distance Education. Experiential Learning (EL): check box if EL is ☐ ☒ Meets 6 Criteria Meets 3-5 Criteria practiced in the course and meets EL criteria Rank type(s) 1 – 5, no more than 3 types per course: __Research or Scholarly Creation __ Field Course __ Community Engaged Learning (CEL) __2Professional or Career Practice _1_Course-Integrated __Work Experience Template-Specific Notes *Prefixes and numerical codes are assigned by ORS. For assistance, contact the Colleague Specialist, Enrolment Services. **Note course titles greater than 30 characters (including spaces and punctuation) will be shortened in Colleague and therefore on the student transcript. If necessary, provide a transcript title. Symbols (i.e. &) are permitted in shortening the transcript title. Approved by Program Committee(s): BA Date: May 10, 2021 Approved by Dean(s)/Designate(s): Ruediger Mueller Date: May 10, 2021
Senate-Board of Undergraduate Studies Form E: COURSE ADDITION (Part I) 2022/2023 Undergraduate Calendar
Submission Timelines/Deadlines
The Course Addition Information and Template is comprised of two parts. Part I is the information requested below and Part II is the calendar and colleague template. Both must be completed in full in order for the course proposal to be reviewed by the Calendar Review Committee before recommendation for approval to the Board of Undergraduate Studies and Senate. For definition of the terms used on page 2, see the Glossary in the Undergraduate Calendar.
Course Code and Title: CRWR*2300 Poetry Workshop
Calendar Description: This course offers an introduction to writing poetic forms. Students will gain an understanding of the basic elements of poetry writing: line, metre, imagery, rhyme, rhythm, syntax, and metaphor, sound and sense. Through practical experiments in individual and collaborative poem writing, students will learn about global poetic forms such as the ballad, the sonnet, the blues, the villanelle, the sestina, the ghazal, the haiku, the renga and the pantoum.
1. Provide the detailed learning outcomes of the course. Indicate how these align with major/specialization outcomes and/or program level learning outcomes and whether any of the University's Undergraduate Learning Outcomes are met by the course. If the proposed course will be core to more than one major/specialization or degree program, make reference to each of these. If the proposed course is an elective for multiple specializations/programs, the course learning outcomes should align with one or more of the University of Guelph’s Undergraduate Learning Outcomes. Refer to the Undergraduate Calendar and the Learning Outcomes website for more information on learning outcomes. Course Learning Outcomes Major/Specialization Degree Program Learning U of G Undergraduate Learning Outcomes Outcomes Learning Outcomes By the end of the course, The course will fulfill the The course will fulfill the The course will fulfill the students should be able to: following learning outcomes following degree learning following undergraduate for the Creative Writing outcomes: learning outcomes: 1. understand and major:
apply the basic The course promotes global Creative Thinking: The course elements of poetry The course promotes the understanding. Through their writing: line, metre, major’s critical and creative readings, students will encourages students to imagery, rhyme, thinking outcomes by understand the role of poetics explore their creativity and to rhythm, syntax, and teaching students how to in conveying different points analyze their creative work metaphor, sound and begin creatively applying their of view of different critically. (See outcomes 1-3, knowledge and critical sense. nationalities and ethnicities, 6, 8, 10, 11.) 2. Apply a basic understanding of the genders and sexualities, disciplinary elements of poetics in order classes, and/or abilities. In Literacy: The course teaches vocabulary to analyze to achieving their creative their study and practice of and evaluate poetry. goals. In workshops and in poetic forms from around the students how to acquire an 3. define and their revisions, students will world, students will be aesthetic literacy that helps understand poetic critically evaluate creative exposed to a global poetics. them create a deeper work, utilizing their forms Students will also engage in engagement with their own 4. write form poems understanding of the workshop critiques of work creative work and the creative 5. apply collaborative elements of poetics to and learn to address and writing of others. (See writing skills in their propose creative, informed engage different viewpoints. outcomes 1-5, 10) creative practice solutions to problems, flaws, (See outcomes 1, 3, 8, 10, 11.) 6. understand and and issues with the writing. In their readings and produce the nuances The course will encourage The course promotes workshops, they will apply a of meaning making. critical and creative thinking community engagement and basic disciplinary vocabulary global understanding. The 7. write a polished to analyze and evaluate as students continue to gain course promotes global chapbook of 8 poems poetry. (See outcomes 1-3, 6, expertise in applying the understanding. Through their 8. know how to 8, 10, 11.) elements of poetics in their readings, students will participate understand the role of poetics work. Student will also apply a effectively in a The course promotes the in conveying different points writing workshop, major’s communication disciplinary vocabulary—both of view of different discussing and outcomes by teaching in regard to poetics in general nationalities and ethnicities, evaluating the students how to apply the and eco-poetics in particular, genders and sexualities, creative work by elements poetry to their own to analyze and evaluate classes, and/or abilities. In work. In workshop, they will their classmates in a poetry. They will learn to their study and practice of offer critiques, both oral and professional, think both creatively and poetic forms from around the constructive manner. written, of students’ poetry. world, students will be critically as they pay close 9. present their work to Through their public readings, exposed to a global poetics. an audience as students will begin to learn attention to the subtleties and Students will also engage in professional poets how to communicate their nuances of conveying workshop critiques of work do. This is considered poetry through performance. meaning through their work and learn to address and an experiential (See outcomes 1-11.) and the work of others. (See engage different viewpoints. learning (EL) outcomes 1, 2, 4-7, 11, 12.) In their public reading, component of the The course promotes the students will communicate course since it major’s literacy outcomes by The course will focus a great their creative vision to the teaching disciplinary involves a major deal on literacy and university and local vocabulary that will enable aspect of a poet’s communication. By learning community. (See outcomes 1, professional life. them to discuss, analyze, and 3, 8, 9-11.) evaluate the poetic elements and applying the elements 10. revise and edit poetic and techniques of poetics, forms, elements, and and techniques employed in Communicating: The course, mechanics in order published poetry or student students will communicate through the workshops and work. In their study and to write a polished concepts, feelings, and images assignments, focuses on oral poem or song lyric. practice of poetic forms from through their poetry, around the world, students and written communication. 11. use workshop attempting to communicate will be exposed to a global In workshops, students must criticism effectively poetics. (See outcomes 1-5, their creative vision of learn to be attentive listeners to expand and 10) environmental awareness to a improve their poetry. and viewers, as well as public audience. Through They will apply their communicate effectively. The The course promotes the written and oral critiques, in understanding of the major’s assignments teach students to global understanding. which they will apply a basic revision process in Through their readings, read, view, analyze, and edit disciplinary vocabulary, their final chapbook. students will understand the other’s creative work, as well
role of poetics in conveying students will learn to as their own. Students will different points of view of communicate their analyses communicate their creative different nationalities and of student creative work. (See response to the environment ethnicities, genders and outcomes 1-12) in their public readings. (See sexualities, classes, and/or abilities. In their study and The student will learn how to outcomes 1-11.) practice of poetic forms from evaluate how eco-poets apply around the world, students the elements of poetics in The course will promote will be exposed to a global their work by utilizing a an professional and ethical poetics. Students will also behavior. Through the public increasingly sophisticated engage in workshop critiques reading of their work, of work and learn to address disciplinary vocabulary. They students will learn how to and engage different will communicate their present their work in a viewpoints. (See outcomes 1, evaluations workshop. They professional setting. In the EL 3, 8, 10, 11.) will also learn to evaluate how reflection essay on their creative works create an public reading, students will reflect upon how their work environmental awareness. The course will promote the might be shaped towards major’s outcomes regarding (See outcomes 1, 4-9, 11, 12) particular audiences. Students professional and ethical will learn to engage behavior. Through the public By learning a disciplinary respectfully and professionally reading of their work, vocabulary to evaluate and with the creative writing of students will learn how to analyze creative work; other workshop participants present their work in a and providing oral and written learning about eco-poetry and professional setting. In the EL critiques of students’ creative reflection essay on their situating their own work in work. Students will public reading, students will relation to ecopoetry; interrogate issues regarding reflect upon how their work applying the elements of the ethical nature of humans’ might be shaped towards poetic elements in their work; relationship with the particular audiences. Students and giving critical feedback environment. (See outcomes will learn to engage and incorporating feedback in 8, 9) respectfully and professionally their own revisions, students with the creative writing of other workshop participants will achieve a depth and and providing oral and written breadth of understanding of critiques of students’ creative poetry. (See outcomes 1-12.) work. Students will The course will promote interrogate issues regarding the ethical nature of humans’ professional and ethical relationship with the behavior. Through the public reading of their work, environment. (See outcomes students will learn how to 8, 9) present their work in a professional setting. In the EL reflection essay on their public reading, students will reflect upon how their work might be shaped towards particular audiences. Students will learn to engage respectfully and professionally with the creative writing of other workshop participants and providing oral and written critiques of students’ creative work. Students will interrogate issues regarding the ethical nature of humans’ relationship with the environment. (See outcomes 8, 9)
2. Method(s) of evaluation/assessment (including breakdown) and how the outcomes listed in question 1 will be assessed. Form of Assessment (e.g. Weight of Course Content /Activity (e.g. Lectures Course Learning Outcome Quiz) Assessment (% week 1 -6, Assigned readings, Chpt 1) Addressed (#1,2) of final grade) (e.g. 5%)
Form Writing Exercises/First 20% (total) Week One Exercises/First Draft: 1, 3, 4, 6, Draft of 8 poems Introduction 7 Lecture: Elements of Poetry: form and Collaborative poem/Renga, 10% content. Renga: 1, 3-7 Introduction to Syllabic poetry – Haiku and Renga
Reading of Poetry (EL 10% Week Two Reading: 9 component) Haiku Writing Workshop
Reflection paper on Poetry 10% Week Three: Line and Sentence EL Reflection: 9 Reading (EL component) SMALL ARGUMENTS 20% Writing Workshop Workshop: 2, 3, 8 Workshop Participation 10% Week Four: Imagery and Metaphor Group Presentation: 2, 3, 8, 9 Group Presentation Sestina Writing Workshop 20% Chapbook: 1, 3, 4, 6, 7, 10, 11 8 revised poems in a printed Week Five: Rhythm, Metre, Rhyme and bound chapbook of Ghazal Writing Workshop poems Week Six: Pantoum Writing Workshop
Week Seven Mid-term break.
Week Eight Ode Writing workshop
Week Nine: Poetry of Nature FORAGE Writing Workshop
Week Ten: Blues Writing Workshop
Week Eleven: Poetry of Witness SETTLER EDUCATION Writing Workshop Poetry Performance
Week Twelve: Poetry of Witness UNDARK Writing Workshop -Revision
3. Method(s) of presentation (lecture, seminar, hybrid, case study, lab, etc.). Workshop 4. Does this course include experiential learning (EL) opportunities? If YES, consult the Experiential Learning Faculty & Staff webpage to determine which categories of EL opportunities are present and indicate in the space provided on the Course Addition Part II form. No. 5. “The University of Guelph Senate affirms its commitment to an inclusive campus and fostering a culture of inclusion at the University of Guelph as an institutional imperative, acknowledging the University’s diverse population and that every member of an inclusive campus is a valued contributor.” (Fostering a Culture of Inclusion at the University of Guelph: an Institutional Imperative, April, 2017). This includes assurances that issues of equity, diversity, and accessibility are considered in the development and delivery of curriculum. Discuss the ways in which inclusion is considered in this new course proposal. For assistance, contact the Associate Director, Office of Teaching and Learning or the Office of Quality Assurance. This is a direct-entry, non-portfolio course, which shows a commitment to access, equity and diversity by eliminating competition for limited spaces and focusing instead on nurturing student talent by creating an inclusive environment. The Creative Writing major places a strong emphasis on issues of social justice, marginalization and the environment. Our goal is to teach students how to reflect a diversity of races, bodies, classes, and genders in their creative practice. Reading is an essential aspect of our workshops, and our creative writing instructors are committed to assigning a culturally diverse range of material, including the work of emerging Canadian writers, particularly from traditionally marginalized communities. By discussing literary techniques in a culturally diverse range of published work, students learn to be readers who compare and contrast narrative and esthetic strategies of a wide range of culturally diverse writers, including Black, racialized, indigenous, 2SLGBTQ+ writers and writers living with disabilities. Take for example, the submitted outline, which contains works by People of Color. We also have a racially diverse creative writing faculty. Dionne Brand, a Black Canadian poet and fiction writer, often teaches poetry workshops which focus on the writings of Canadian People of Color and 2SLGBTQ+ writers.
6. Reason for course offering and intended audience including: i) degree program(s) to be served by the course and role in the curriculum; Creative Writing major and minor.
ii) expected enrollment; 20 iii) status of course (e.g. core, restricted elective, elective). Restricted elective.
7. List of resource needs (e.g. teaching support, lab and/or computer facilities, field trips, etc.) and identify funding sources for mounting and maintaining the course) A standard classroom and CRWR teaching faculty or sessional.
8. Is this a replacement course? If YES, specify the course to be deleted and include Form C: Course Deletion Template with submission. No. 9. Does this course involve research projects of a significant nature? If YES, consult with the Curriculum Manager, Office of Quality Assurance re: additional information that may be required for submission to BUGS. Refer to the Research Ethics Board (REB) guidelines and to the Undergraduate Calendar. No. 10. A course outline is required for all new courses; forward with the completed templates. 11. Evidence of consultation with other departments, program committees or units may be required. This is particularly important when the proposed course is a replacement for a deleted course included in the schedule of studies or restricted elective list of other degree programs, or when considering prerequisites, restrictions, DE offerings, etc. Forward all correspondence electronically to the Program Committee Secretary who will then forward to the Calendar Review Committee, [email protected]. Parts I and II of the proposal with consultation if the course is approved by the Program Committee. 12. If the intended first offering is earlier than Summer 2021, a request for an early offering is required. The request should be submitted via email to the Curriculum Manager, Office of Quality Assurance by the Chair/Director/Associate Dean of the Department/School/College offering the course. Note, requests are not normally approved (or scheduled) until the new course has received BUGS approval. 13. Proposing to offer a course in distance education format? Provide evidence of approval from the Executive Director, Open Learning and Educational Support to mount the proposed course in DE format. No. 14. A completed library assessment is normally required for new courses proposed for approval. Courses will not proceed to Senate without a completed assessment. Exceptions may be granted. To request an assessment contact the Library. Requests should be submitted well in advance of deadlines as assessments normally take a minimum of three weeks.
Questions? Contact the Curriculum Manager, Administrative Secretary or your Program Committee Chair or Secretary. Senate-Board of Undergraduate Studies Form E: COURSE ADDITION (Part II) 2022/2023 Undergraduate Calendar
Submission Timelines/Deadlines The Course Addition Information and Template is comprised of two parts. Part I is the information portion and Part II is the calendar and colleague template. Both must be completed in full in order for the course proposal to be reviewed by the Calendar Review Committee before recommendation for approval to the Board of Undergraduate Studies and Senate.
A completed library assessment is normally required for all new courses proposed for approval. Contact the Library.
If first offering is prior to Summer 2021, academic unit must submit a request for an early offering to the Curriculum Manager, Office of Quality Assurance.
Course Code*: CRWR*2300 Course Title**: Poetry Workshop Transcript Title (max. 30 char): Poetry Workshop Academic Unit(s) and College(s) responsible School of English and Theatre Studies for the course (and percent responsible): Credit Weight: (e.g. 0.50) 0.50 Lecture/Lab Hours: (e.g. 3-0) 3-0 Semester Offering: (e.g. S,F,W) W First Offering: (e.g. Fall 2021) Winter 2024 Calendar Description: (Three to four This course offers an introduction to writing poetic forms. Students will gain an sentences MAX; description must be written understanding of the basic elements of poetry writing: line, metre, imagery, rhyme, in full sentence form) rhythm, syntax, and metaphor, sound and sense. Through practical experiments in individual and collaborative poem writing, students will learn about global poetic forms such as the ballad, the sonnet, the blues, the villanelle, the sestina, the ghazal, the haiku, the renga and the pantoum.
Prerequisite(s): ENGL*2380 and CRWR*2000 Restriction(s): Registration in the Creative Writing major or minor. Co-requisite(s): ENGL*2380 and CRWR*2000 Equate(s): ENGL*3060 Instructor Consent Required? ☐ Yes ☒ No Scheduling Instructions: specify which ☒ Annually option is applicable. ☐ Even-Numbered Years ☐ Odd-Numbered Years Distance Education: specify which option is ☐ Also offered through Distance Education. applicable. ☐ Offered through Distance Education only. ☒ Not offered through Distance Education. Experiential Learning (EL): check box if EL is ☒ ☐ Meets 6 Criteria Meets 3-5 Criteria practiced in the course and meets EL criteria Rank type(s) 1 – 5, no more than 3 types per course: __Applied Research _3_ Community Engaged Learning __ Field Course _2_Professional Practice _1_Course-Integrated
Template-Specific Notes
*Prefixes and numerical codes are assigned by ORS. For assistance, contact the Colleague Specialist, Enrolment Services. **Note course titles greater than 30 characters (including spaces and punctuation) will be shortened in Colleague and therefore on the student transcript. If necessary, provide a transcript title. Symbols (i.e. &) are permitted in shortening the transcript title. Approved by Program Committee(s): BA Date: May 10, 2021 Approved by Dean(s)/Designate(s): Ruediger Mueller Date: May 10, 2021
Senate-Board of Undergraduate Studies Form E: COURSE ADDITION (Part I) 2022/2023 Undergraduate Calendar
Submission Timelines/Deadlines
The Course Addition Information and Template is comprised of two parts. Part I is the information requested below and Part II is the calendar and colleague template. Both must be completed in full in order for the course proposal to be reviewed by the Calendar Review Committee before recommendation for approval to the Board of Undergraduate Studies and Senate. For definition of the terms used on page 2, see the Glossary in the Undergraduate Calendar.
Course Code and Title: CRWR*2400 Screenwriting Workshop
Calendar Description: This workshop introduces students to the fundamentals of screenwriting through various writing, reading, and viewing assignments and exercises, as well as the workshopping of students’ written work. Topics will include: screenplay formatting, story theme, character development, story lines, scene construction, and the basic three-act storytelling structure. The course content may focus on: documentary and/or short-form (children's programming, advertising) screenwriting, animation, and/or introductions to specific genres and subgenres.
1. Provide the detailed learning outcomes of the course. Indicate how these align with major/specialization outcomes and/or program level learning outcomes and whether any of the University's Undergraduate Learning Outcomes are met by the course. If the proposed course will be core to more than one major/specialization or degree program, make reference to each of these. If the proposed course is an elective for multiple specializations/programs, the course learning outcomes should align with one or more of the University of Guelph’s Undergraduate Learning Outcomes. Refer to the Undergraduate Calendar and the Learning Outcomes website for more information on learning outcomes. Course Learning Outcomes Major/Specialization Degree Program Learning U of G Undergraduate Learning Outcomes Outcomes Learning Outcomes By the end of the course The course will fulfill the The course will fulfill the The course will fulfill the students should be able to: following learning outcomes following degree learning following undergraduate for the Creative Writing outcomes: learning outcomes: 1. Grasp the limitations of the major: screenplay as a literary The course promotes Creative Thinking: The course form and distinguish the The course promotes the community engagement and encourages students to essential differences major’s critical and creative global understanding. explore their creativity and to between the labour of a thinking outcomes by Students’ screenplays will analyze their creative work screenwriter and the teaching students how to respond to popular culture critically. (See outcomes 1, 2, labour of literary writing, begin creatively and critically and mass media and reflect 4, 5, 6.) specifically when it comes applying their understanding on cultural identities and to point of view, tense, of the basic elements of values. Through screening, Literacy: The course teaches handling time, style, and storytelling, devices, and reading and writing students how to acquire an the imperative to write methodologies specific to the assignments, students will aesthetic literacy that helps only what can be observed. craft of screenwriting in order understand the role of the them create a deeper 2. Write and format their to achieve their creative goals. screenwriter in conveying and engagement with their own screenplays using Students will critically shaping cultural knowledge creative work and the creative professional-standard evaluate creative work, and individual points of view, writing of others. (See screenwriting software utilizing their basic as well as recognizing the outcomes 1-6) programs. understanding of the ethical implications of their 3. Create credible complex elements of screenwriting, as writing as they receive Global Understanding: The characters by applying their well as forms and techniques, feedback in workshop and course promotes global understanding of Character to propose creative solutions from the instructor on how understanding. Through Development in their to problems, flaws, and issues they shape their characters screening assignments, writing assignments and and story worlds. (See students will understand the short screenplay, using outcomes 1. 3-5, 7, 9.) role of the screenwriter in both the direct and indirect with the writing. (See conveying and shaping method of character outcomes 1, 3-8.) cultural knowledge and The course will encourage development; including individual points of view, as critical and creative thinking. exploring backstory, The course promotes the well as recognizing the ethical As students begin to master motivation and desire; and major’s communication implications of their writing as elements of screenwriting and employing economic visual outcomes by teaching they receive feedback in storytelling, they will practice writing, vivid telling detail, students how to master the workshop and from the creative thinking and movement, gesture, elements and techniques of instructor on how they shape expression. They will learn to behavior, speech, and screenwriting and combine their characters and story think both creatively and action to build up a aesthetic, technical and worlds. (See outcomes 1, 3-5, critically as they pay close character. Through reading cultural knowledge into a 7, 9.) attention to the subtleties and assignments and lectures, successful short screen story nuances of conveying students will analyze how narrative. In workshop, they meaning through their work. screenwriters reveal will offer in-depth critiques, Communicating: The course, (See outcomes 1, 3-8.) character. In workshops, both oral and written, of through the workshops and they will evaluate their students’ screenplays. (See assignments, focuses on oral classmates’ character outcomes 1-8.) and written communication. The course will focus a great development and learn to In workshops, students must deal on media literacy and critique character The course promotes the learn to be attentive listeners communication. By learning constructions (both their major’s literacy outcomes by and viewers, as well as and applying the elements own and their classmates’) teaching students how to communicate effectively. The and techniques of by participating in apply a basic disciplinary assignments teach students to screenwriting, students will workshop discussions. vocabulary that enables read, view, analyze, and edit communicate concepts, 4. Engage in the creation of students to discuss, analyze, other’s creative work, as well feelings, and images through story worlds by applying and evaluate the storytelling as their own. (See outcomes their screenplays, attempting their understanding of elements and techniques 1-8) to communicate their stories Sense of Place in their employed in a given film, to a wide audience. Through writing assignments and screenplay or student work. Professional and Ethical written and oral critiques, in short screenplay. Through Students will also compare Behaviour: Students learn the which they will apply a basic reading assignments and and evaluate the merits and professional standards of disciplinary vocabulary, lectures, students will drawbacks of various screenwriting by using students will learn to analyze how story worlds narrative strategies when professional-grade software communicate their analyses are core to a story concept approaching their creative to format their scripts. of student creative work. (See and in what ways practice. (See outcomes 1-7.) Through table readings of outcomes 1-8) screenwriters create a their work, they learn how The course promotes the story world. In workshops, The student will learn how to their screenplays function in a major’s global understanding they will evaluate their evaluate how screenwriters professional setting and write outcomes. Through screening Sense of Place and learn to apply the elements of an EL reflection essay on how assignments, students will enhance the creation of storytelling in their the reading affected the way understand the role of the place and context (both screenplays by utilizing a basic they approach both the script screenwriter in conveying and their own and their disciplinary vocabulary. They and their role as a shaping cultural knowledge classmates’) by will communicate their screenwriter. Moreover, the and individual points of view, participating in workshop evaluations workshop. (See workshop setting of the as well as recognizing the discussions. outcomes 1-8) course will require students to ethical implications of their 5. Define, identify, generate and moderate writing as they receive By learning a disciplinary understand, and analyze a discussions and engage feedback in workshop and vocabulary, formatting their Scene as the central respectfully with their fellow from the instructor on how screenplays to professional dramatic unit of a students. Students will learn they shape their characters standards, analyzing films and screenplay. Through to present ideas in class with a and story worlds. (See screenplays, and applying the lectures, readings, and high degree of outcomes 1. 3-5, 7, 9.) elements of screenwriting and class discussion, students professionalism and respond storytelling, students will will gain an understanding respectfully and The course will promote achieve a depth and breadth of the principles of scene comprehensively to questions professional and ethical of understanding of the craft construction. Students will posed. (See outcomes 2, 7, 9.) behaviour. Students learn the of writing the screenplay. (See practice applying their professional standards of outcomes 1-9) understanding of the scene screenwriting by using by writing and re-writing The course teaches students scenes. They will develop professional-grade software how to engage in professional the tools to assess and to format their scripts. and ethical behaviour. analyze a scene on its own Through table readings of Students learn the and its impact within the their work, they learn how professional standards of larger story. their screenplays function in a screenwriting by using 6. Create effective Dialogue professional setting and write professional-grade software by employing the an EL reflection essay on how to format their scripts. techniques and tools of the reading affected the way Through table readings of dialogue creation in their they approach both the script their work, they learn how writing assignments and and their role as a their screenplays function in a short screenplay. Through screenwriter. Moreover, the professional setting and write reading assignments, workshop setting of the an EL reflection essay on how screenings and lectures, course will require students to the reading affected the way students will analyze how generate and moderate they approach both the script authors create good discussions and engage and their role as a dialogue and as well, the respectfully with their fellow screenwriter. Moreover, the pitfalls that are the students. Students will learn workshop setting of the hallmarks of weak dialogue to present ideas in class with a course will require students to 7. participate effectively in a high degree of generate and moderate writing workshop, professionalism and respond discussions and engage discussing and evaluating respectfully and respectfully with their fellow the creative work by their comprehensively to questions students. Students will learn classmates in a posed. (See outcomes 2, 7, 9.) to present ideas in class with a professional, constructive high degree of manner. professionalism and respond 8. revise their creative work respectfully and by learning how to use comprehensively to questions criticism effectively to posed. (See outcomes 2, 7, 9.) expand and improve their screenplays. They will apply their understanding of the revision process in their final revised screenplay, which is based on the scene and first draft they workshopped in class. 9. reflect upon and understand the professional aspect of their craft by engaging in an experiential learning (EL) experiences in which students use professional- standard software and have actors read their scripts and bring them to life. 2. Method(s) of evaluation/assessment (including breakdown) and how the outcomes listed in question 1 will be assessed. Form of Assessment (e.g. Weight of Course Content /Activity (e.g. Lectures Course Learning Outcome Quiz) Assessment (% week 1 -6, Assigned readings, Chpt 1) Addressed (#1,2) of final grade) (e.g. 5%) Still Image Story Outline (250 10% (total) 12-week Schedule (subject to change): Still Image: 1, 4, 5, words) Class 1 What is Story? Concept Kit (75 words 10% Concept Kit: 1, 2, 4, 5 maximum for each concept) Class 2 What is Structure?
Class 3 What is a Story Concept? Character Story: 1, 3. Character Story Outline (2-3 10% Class 4 What is Character? pages, double spaced)
Class 5 What is Conflict?
Scene work (2-3 pages) 10% Class 6 What is a Story Image? Scene work: 1-6
Class 7 What is Plot?
First draft of screenplay (5-7 20% Class 8 What is Theme? pages maximum) First draft: 1-6
Class 9 What is Dialogue? Final revised short script (8-10 pages maximum) 25% Class 10 What is a Screenplay: Putting it all Revision: 1-6, 8 together.
Reflection essay on EL Class 11 Performances of Scenes 5% experience
Class 12 Performances of Scenes EL Reflection: 9
Workshop Participation 10% Participation: 1, 3-7
3. Method(s) of presentation (lecture, seminar, hybrid, case study, lab, etc.). Workshop 4. Does this course include experiential learning (EL) opportunities? If YES, consult the Experiential Learning Faculty & Staff webpage to determine which categories of EL opportunities are present and indicate in the space provided on the Course Addition Part II form. Yes, it offers an in-class EL component. 5. “The University of Guelph Senate affirms its commitment to an inclusive campus and fostering a culture of inclusion at the University of Guelph as an institutional imperative, acknowledging the University’s diverse population and that every member of an inclusive campus is a valued contributor.” (Fostering a Culture of Inclusion at the University of Guelph: an Institutional Imperative, April, 2017). This includes assurances that issues of equity, diversity, and accessibility are considered in the development and delivery of curriculum. Discuss the ways in which inclusion is considered in this new course proposal. For assistance, contact the Associate Director, Office of Teaching and Learning or the Office of Quality Assurance. This is a direct-entry, non-portfolio course, which shows a commitment to access, equity and diversity by eliminating competition for limited spaces and focusing instead on nurturing student talent by creating an inclusive environment. The Creative Writing major places a strong emphasis on issues of social justice, marginalization and the environment. Our goal is to teach students how to reflect a diversity of races, bodies, classes, and genders in their creative practice. Many of the films instructors tend to screen films and assign readings that show character development through challenges and obstacles; these characters are often outsiders or marginalized characters. Take, for instance, the screening list of the submitted course outline: The King’s Speech focuses on a character overcoming a speech impediment. (Please keep in mind that the submitted course outline represents just one possible iteration of the course.) We also have a diverse creative writing faculty. For example, Professor Chang, who regularly teaches our screenwriting workshops, often focuses on Asian Canadian or issues of disability in her workshops. 6. Reason for course offering and intended audience including: i) degree program(s) to be served by the course and role in the curriculum; Creative Writing major and minor.
ii) expected enrollment; 20 iii) status of course (e.g. core, restricted elective, elective). Restricted elective.
7. List of resource needs (e.g. teaching support, lab and/or computer facilities, field trips, etc.) and identify funding sources for mounting and maintaining the course) A standard classroom and CRWR teaching faculty or sessional.
8. Is this a replacement course? If YES, specify the course to be deleted and include Form C: Course Deletion Template with submission. No. 9. Does this course involve research projects of a significant nature? If YES, consult with the Curriculum Manager, Office of Quality Assurance re: additional information that may be required for submission to BUGS. Refer to the Research Ethics Board (REB) guidelines and to the Undergraduate Calendar. No. 10. A course outline is required for all new courses; forward with the completed templates. 11. Evidence of consultation with other departments, program committees or units may be required. This is particularly important when the proposed course is a replacement for a deleted course included in the schedule of studies or restricted elective list of other degree programs, or when considering prerequisites, restrictions, DE offerings, etc. Forward all correspondence electronically to the Program Committee Secretary who will then forward to the Calendar Review Committee, [email protected]. Parts I and II of the proposal with consultation if the course is approved by the Program Committee. 12. If the intended first offering is earlier than Summer 2021, a request for an early offering is required. The request should be submitted via email to the Curriculum Manager, Office of Quality Assurance by the Chair/Director/Associate Dean of the Department/School/College offering the course. Note, requests are not normally approved (or scheduled) until the new course has received BUGS approval. 13. Proposing to offer a course in distance education format? Provide evidence of approval from the Executive Director, Open Learning and Educational Support to mount the proposed course in DE format. No. 14. A completed library assessment is normally required for new courses proposed for approval. Courses will not proceed to Senate without a completed assessment. Exceptions may be granted. To request an assessment contact the Library. Requests should be submitted well in advance of deadlines as assessments normally take a minimum of three weeks.
Questions? Contact the Curriculum Manager, Administrative Secretary or your Program Committee Chair or Secretary. Senate-Board of Undergraduate Studies Form E: COURSE ADDITION (Part II) 2022/2023 Undergraduate Calendar
Submission Timelines/Deadlines The Course Addition Information and Template is comprised of two parts. Part I is the information portion and Part II is the calendar and colleague template. Both must be completed in full in order for the course proposal to be reviewed by the Calendar Review Committee before recommendation for approval to the Board of Undergraduate Studies and Senate.
A completed library assessment is normally required for all new courses proposed for approval. Contact the Library.
If first offering is prior to Summer 2021, academic unit must submit a request for an early offering to the Curriculum Manager, Office of Quality Assurance.
Course Code*: CRWR*2400 Course Title**: Screenwriting Workshop Transcript Title (max. 30 char): Screenwriting Workshop Academic Unit(s) and College(s) responsible School of English and Theatre Studies for the course (and percent responsible): Credit Weight: (e.g. 0.50) 0.50 Lecture/Lab Hours: (e.g. 3-0) 3-0 Semester Offering: (e.g. S,F,W) F First Offering: (e.g. Fall 2021) Fall 2023 Calendar Description: (Three to four This workshop introduces students to the fundamentals of screenwriting through sentences MAX; description must be written various writing, reading, and viewing assignments and exercises, as well as the in full sentence form) workshopping of students’ written work. Topics will include: screenplay formatting, story theme, character development, story lines, scene construction, and basic three-act storytelling structure. The course content may focus on: documentary and/or short-form (children's programming, advertising) screenwriting, animation, and/or introductions to specific genres and subgenres.
Prerequisite(s): CRWR*2000 Restriction(s): Registration in the Creative Writing major or minor. Co-requisite(s): CRWR*2000 Equate(s): Instructor Consent Required? ☐ Yes ☒ No Scheduling Instructions: specify which ☒ Annually option is applicable. ☐ Even-Numbered Years ☐ Odd-Numbered Years Distance Education: specify which option is ☐ Also offered through Distance Education. applicable. ☐ Offered through Distance Education only. ☒ Not offered through Distance Education. Experiential Learning (EL): check box if EL is ☒ ☐ Meets 6 Criteria Meets 3-5 Criteria practiced in the course and meets EL criteria Rank type(s) 1 – 5, no more than 3 types per course: __Applied Research __ Community Engaged Learning __ Field Course _2 Professional Practice _ 1 Course-Integrated
Template-Specific Notes *Prefixes and numerical codes are assigned by ORS. For assistance, contact the Colleague Specialist, Enrolment Services. **Note course titles greater than 30 characters (including spaces and punctuation) will be shortened in Colleague and therefore on the student transcript. If necessary, provide a transcript title. Symbols (i.e. &) are permitted in shortening the transcript title. Approved by Program Committee(s): BA Date: May 10, 2021 Approved by Dean(s)/Designate(s): Ruediger Mueller Date: May 10, 2021
Senate-Board of Undergraduate Studies Form E: COURSE ADDITION (Part I) 2022/2023 Undergraduate Calendar
Submission Timelines/Deadlines
The Course Addition Information and Template is comprised of two parts. Part I is the information requested below and Part II is the calendar and colleague template. Both must be completed in full in order for the course proposal to be reviewed by the Calendar Review Committee before recommendation for approval to the Board of Undergraduate Studies and Senate. For definition of the terms used on page 2, see the Glossary in the Undergraduate Calendar.
Course Code and Title: CRWR*3300 Poetry Workshop: Ecopoetics
Calendar Description: In this workshop, students will gain a deeper understanding of the basic elements of poetry (form, line, metre, imagery, rhyme, rhythm, syntax and metaphor) by focusing on eco-poetry. In their creative practice, students will achieve a nuanced understanding of how poetic form and language can reflect and generate an environmental attentiveness.
1. Provide the detailed learning outcomes of the course. Indicate how these align with major/specialization outcomes and/or program level learning outcomes and whether any of the University's Undergraduate Learning Outcomes are met by the course. If the proposed course will be core to more than one major/specialization or degree program, make reference to each of these. If the proposed course is an elective for multiple specializations/programs, the course learning outcomes should align with one or more of the University of Guelph’s Undergraduate Learning Outcomes. Refer to the Undergraduate Calendar and the Learning Outcomes website for more information on learning outcomes. Course Learning Outcomes Major/Specialization Degree Program Learning U of G Undergraduate Learning Outcomes Outcomes Learning Outcomes By the end of this course, the The course will fulfill the The course will fulfill the The course will fulfill the student should be able to: following learning outcomes following degree learning following undergraduate for the Creative Writing outcomes: learning outcomes: 1. apply with greater major:
sophistication the The course promotes Creative Thinking: The course basic elements of The course promotes the community engagement and encourages students to poetry: form, line, major’s critical and creative global understanding. In their metre, imagery, thinking outcomes by creative practice, students explore their creativity and to rhyme, rhythm, teaching students how to learn how to reflect and analyze their creative work syntax and creatively apply their engage issues regarding the critically. (See outcomes 1, 2, metaphor. increasing knowledge and environment. In their public 4-7, 11, 12.) 2. experiment with critical understanding of the reading, students will use form and language in elements of poetics in order their creative work to create Literacy: The course teaches their own ecopoetry to achieving their creative an environmental awareness 3. write a polished 15- goals. Students will critically to their audience. (See students how to acquire an poem chapbook of evaluate creative work, outcomes 5-8.) aesthetic literacy that helps ecopoetry utilizing their growing them create a deeper 4. revise their creative understanding of the The course will encourage engagement with their own work by learning how elements of poetics and their critical and creative thinking creative work and the creative to use criticism introduction to eco-poetics to as students continue to gain effectively to expand propose creative, informed writing of others. (See and improve their solutions to problems, flaws, expertise in applying the outcomes 1, 4-9, 11, 12.) poetry. They will and issues with the writing. elements of poetics in their apply their They will begin the process of work. Student will also apply a The course promotes understanding of the aesthetic maturation through disciplinary vocabulary—both community engagement and the rigorous analysis and in regard to poetics in general global understanding. In their revision process in critical evaluation of eco- and eco-poetics in particular, creative practice, students their final chapbook. poetry. (See outcomes 1, 2, 4- to analyze and evaluate learn how to reflect and 5. create socially 7, 11, 12.) poetry. They will learn to engage issues regarding the engaged writing by environment. In their public think both creatively and focusing on The course promotes the reading, students will use environmental issues major’s communication critically as they pay close their creative work to create through their outcomes by teaching attention to the subtleties and an environmental awareness readings, discussion, students how to continue to nuances of conveying to their audience. (See and writing master the elements and meaning through their work outcomes 5-8.) assignments. techniques of poetry and and the work of others. (See combine aesthetic, technical Communicating: The course, 6. achieve both a outcomes 1, 2, 4-7, 11, 12.) literary and ethical and cultural knowledge into through the workshops and understanding of our compelling creative work that The course will focus a great assignments, focuses on oral engages issues of relationship with the deal on literacy and and written communication. environment environmentalism. In communication. By learning In workshops, students must 7. achieve nuanced workshop, they will offer in- and applying the elements learn to be attentive listeners understanding of depth critiques, both oral and and techniques of poetics, how poetic form and written, of students’ poetry and viewers, as well as language can reflect and the students’ students will communicate communicate effectively. The and generate an engagement with concepts, feelings, and images assignments teach students to environmental environmental issues. through their poetry, read, view, analyze, and edit Through their public readings, attentiveness attempting to communicate other’s creative work, as well 8. achieve an students will begin to learn their creative vision of as their own. Students will understanding of key how to communicate their environmental awareness to a issues and poetry through performance. communicate their creative scholarship in the (See outcomes 1-5, 9, 11, 12.) public audience. Through response to the environment environmental written and oral critiques, in in their public readings. (See The course promotes the humanities, as which they will apply a basic outcomes 1-5, 9, 11, 12.) major’s literacy outcomes by applied to ecopoetry. disciplinary vocabulary, 9. participate teaching students to build upon an increasingly students will learn to The course will promote the effectively in a communicate their analyses major’s outcomes regarding writing workshop, sophisticated disciplinary vocabulary regarding poetics of student creative work. (See professional and ethical discussing and behavior. Through the public evaluating the in general and eco-poetics in outcomes 1-12) particular. This disciplinary reading of their work, creative work by The student will learn how to students will learn how to their classmates in a vocabulary will enable them evaluate how eco-poets apply present their work in a professional, to discuss, analyze, and evaluate the poetic elements the elements of poetics in professional setting. In the EL constructive manner. reflection essay on their 10. read and present and techniques employed in their work by utilizing a an published poetry or student public reading, students will their work to an increasingly sophisticated work. Students will also reflect upon how their work audience. This is disciplinary vocabulary. They compare and evaluate the might be shaped towards considered an will communicate their particular audiences. experiential learning merits and drawbacks of evaluations workshop. They Moreover, the workshop (EL) component of various poetic strategies when approaching their creative will also learn to evaluate how setting will teach students the course since it how to work productively in a practice and apply this creative works create an involves a major group setting and debate aspect of a poet’s knowledge and critical environmental awareness. thinking in a constructive way issues productively with their professional life. (See outcomes 1, 4-9, 11, 12) when responding to the work peers, recognizing that 11. start situating their respectful disagreement poetry in relation to of their classmates. (See By learning a disciplinary implies intellectual vibrancy. poetic traditions. outcomes 1, 4-9, 11, 12.) vocabulary to evaluate and Students will learn to engage 12. apply a disciplinary analyze creative work; respectfully and professionally vocabulary to analyze The course promotes the learning about eco-poetry and with the creative writing of and evaluate major’s global understanding. situating their own work in other workshop participants published poetry, In their creative practice, and providing oral and written their classmates’ students learn how to create relation to ecopoetry; an engagement or applying the elements of critiques of students’ creative poetry and their intervention in issues poetic elements in their work; work. Students will own. regarding the environment in and giving critical feedback interrogate issues regarding their creative practice. and incorporating feedback in the ethical nature of humans’ Student will achieve an relationship with the their own revisions, students understanding of how eco- environment. (See outcomes poetry addresses the will achieve a depth and 3, 9, 10.) environment creatively and breadth of understanding of poetically. Students will use poetry. (See outcomes 1-12.) this understanding in their The course will promote the creative work in order to major’s outcomes regarding engage in social dialogues professional and ethical regarding the environment. behavior. Through the public (See outcomes 5-8, 11.) reading of their work, The course will promote the students will learn how to major’s outcomes regarding present their work in a professional and ethical professional setting. In the EL behavior. Through the public reflection essay on their reading of their work, public reading, students will students will learn how to reflect upon how their work present their work in a might be shaped towards professional setting. In the EL particular audiences. reflection essay on their Moreover, the workshop public reading, students will setting will teach students reflect upon how their work how to work productively in a might be shaped towards group setting and debate particular audiences. issues productively with their Moreover, the workshop peers, recognizing that setting will teach students respectful disagreement how to work productively in a implies intellectual vibrancy. group setting and debate Students will learn to engage issues productively with their respectfully and professionally peers, recognizing that with the creative writing of respectful disagreement other workshop participants implies intellectual vibrancy. and providing oral and written Students will learn to engage critiques of students’ creative respectfully and professionally work. Students will with the creative writing of interrogate issues regarding other workshop participants the ethical nature of humans’ and providing oral and written relationship with the critiques of students’ creative environment. (See outcomes work. Students will 3, 9, 10.) interrogate issues regarding
the ethical nature of humans’ relationship with the environment. (See outcomes 3, 9, 10.)
2. Method(s) of evaluation/assessment (including breakdown) and how the outcomes listed in question 1 will be assessed. Form of Assessment (e.g. Weight of Course Content /Activity (e.g. Lectures Course Learning Outcome Quiz) Assessment (% week 1 -6, Assigned readings, Chpt 1) Addressed (#1,2) of final grade) (e.g. 5%) First seven revised poems 15% The first class in each week will be a 7 poems: 1-8, 12 discussion of the assigned scholarship and Revised, polished 15-poem 25% poetry. Chapbook: 1-8, 12 chapbook The second class will be a workshop of a Writing Exercises/form 25% poem you have written that does at least Exercises: 1, 2, 5-8 Assignments one of the following:
Editing/Workshop 20% • Responds to the poem(s) from the Workshop: 6-9, 12 Participation beginning of the week • Explores a distinctive aspect of Reflection Paper 10% form or language use in the Reflection Paper: 5-8, 11, 12 poem(s) from the beginning of the EL Reflection Paper 5% week EL Reflection Paper: 5, 10 • Engages with the ecocritical issue addressed in the reading(s) from the beginning of the week Week 1 Romantic Nature
Tuesday Discussion of Readings:
• Jonathan Bate, “Major Weather,” The Song of the Earth • Lord Byron “Darkness” • John Keats “To Autumn” • Samuel Taylor Coleridge “Frost at Midnight” In-class Writing Exercise
Thursday Workshop
Week 2 Proto-ecopoetics
Tuesday Discussion of Readings:
• Knickerbocker, Scott. “Introduction” Ecopoetics: The Language of Nature, the Nature of Language • Gerard Manley Hopkins “The Windhover” • Emily Dickinson “A Bird, came down the Walk—” In-class Writing Exercise
Thursday Workshop
Week 3 Beyond Nature Poetry
Tuesday Discussion of Readings:
• Lynn Keller “Introduction: Beyond Nature Poetry” Recomposing Ecopoetics In-class Writing Exercise
Thursday Workshop Week 4 Scalar
Tuesday Discussion of Readings:
• Lynn Keller “‘In Deep Time into Deepsong’: Writing the Scalar Challenges of the Anthropocene” Recomposing Ecopoetics • Juliana Spahr • Forrest Gander • Ed Roberson In-class Writing Exercise
Thursday Workshop
Week 5 Plastic(ized) environments
Tuesday Discussion of Readings:
• Lynn Keller “Toxicity, Nets, and Polymeric Chains: The Ecopoetics of Plastic” Recomposing Ecopoetics • Adam Dickinson • Evelyn Reilly In-class Writing Exercise
Thursday Workshop
Week 6 Eco-apocalypse
Tuesday Discussion of Readings:
• Lynn Keller “‘Under These Apo- calypso Rays’: Crisis, Pleasure, and Eco-Apocalyptic Poetry” Recomposing Ecopoetics • Jorie Graham • Evelyn Reilly In-class Writing Exercise
Thursday Workshop
Week 7 Species
Tuesday Discussion of Readings:
• Lynn Keller “Understanding Nonhumans: Interspecies Communication in Poetry” Recomposing Ecopoetics • a.rawlings • Jody Gladding • Jonathan Skinner In-class Writing Exercise
Thursday Workshop Revisions of first seven poems due.
Week 8 Place
Tuesday Discussion of Readings:
• Lynn Keller “Global Rearrangements: Sense of Place in Twenty-First-Century Ecopoetics” Recomposing Ecopoetics • Ed Roberson • Juliana Spahr • Forrest Gander • Jena Osman In-class Writing Exercise
Thursday Workshop
Week 9 Environmental (in)justice
Tuesday Discussion of Readings:
• Lynn Keller “Environmental Justice Poetry of the Self-Conscious Anthropocene” Recomposing Ecopoetics • Ed Roberson • Mark Nowak • Myung Mi Kim In-class Writing Exercise
Thursday Workshop
Week 10 Whose nature?
Tuesday Discussion of Readings:
• evie shockley, semiautomatic • evie shockley, “Black and Green: On the Nature of Ed Roberson’s Poetics.” In-class Writing Exercise
Thursday Workshop
Week 11 Aqua-poetics
Tuesday Discussion of Readings:
• Craig Santos Perez, Habitat Threshold. • Rob Wilson, “Oceania as Peril and Promise: Towards Theorizing a Worlded Vision of Transpacific Ecopoetics.” In-class Writing Exercise
Thursday Workshop Week 12 Hyper-local
Tuesday Discussion of Readings:
• Madhur Anand, A New Index for Predicting Catastrophes • Karen Houle, The Grand River Watershed: A Folk Ecology • Joe Sheridan and Roronhiakewen “He Clears the Sky” • Dan Longboat. “The Haudenosaunee Imagination and the Ecology of the Sacred.” In-class Writing Exercise
Thursday Public Reading
Revised, polished chapbook of 15 poems due during exam period.
3. Method(s) of presentation (lecture, seminar, hybrid, case study, lab, etc.). Workshop 4. Does this course include experiential learning (EL) opportunities? If YES, consult the Experiential Learning Faculty & Staff webpage to determine which categories of EL opportunities are present and indicate in the space provided on the Course Addition Part II form. No. 5. “The University of Guelph Senate affirms its commitment to an inclusive campus and fostering a culture of inclusion at the University of Guelph as an institutional imperative, acknowledging the University’s diverse population and that every member of an inclusive campus is a valued contributor.” (Fostering a Culture of Inclusion at the University of Guelph: an Institutional Imperative, April, 2017). This includes assurances that issues of equity, diversity, and accessibility are considered in the development and delivery of curriculum. Discuss the ways in which inclusion is considered in this new course proposal. For assistance, contact the Associate Director, Office of Teaching and Learning or the Office of Quality Assurance. This is a direct-entry, non-portfolio course, which shows a commitment to access, equity and diversity by eliminating competition for limited spaces and focusing instead on nurturing student talent by creating an inclusive environment. The Creative Writing major places a strong emphasis on issues of social justice, marginalization and the environment. Our goal is to teach students how to reflect a diversity of races, bodies, classes, and genders in their creative practice. Reading is an essential aspect of our workshops, and our creative writing instructors are committed to assigning a culturally diverse range of material, including the work of emerging Canadian writers, particularly from traditionally marginalized communities. By discussing literary techniques in a culturally diverse range of published work, students learn to be readers who compare and contrast narrative and esthetic strategies of a wide range of culturally diverse writers, including Black, racialized, indigenous, 2SLGBTQ+ writers and writers living with disabilities. Take for example, the submitted outline, which focuses part of the course on African Americans’ relation with the environment and Pacific Islanders’ relocation of environmental attention to the ocean. We also have a racially diverse creative writing faculty. Dionne Brand, a Black Canadian poet and fiction writer, often teaches poetry workshops which focus on the writings of Canadian People of Color and 2SLGBTQ+ writers.
6. Reason for course offering and intended audience including: i) degree program(s) to be served by the course and role in the curriculum; Creative Writing major and minor.
ii) expected enrollment; 20 iii) status of course (e.g. core, restricted elective, elective). Restricted elective.
7. List of resource needs (e.g. teaching support, lab and/or computer facilities, field trips, etc.) and identify funding sources for mounting and maintaining the course) A standard classroom and CRWR teaching faculty or sessional.
8. Is this a replacement course? If YES, specify the course to be deleted and include Form C: Course Deletion Template with submission. Yes, it replaces ENGL*3060. 9. Does this course involve research projects of a significant nature? If YES, consult with the Curriculum Manager, Office of Quality Assurance re: additional information that may be required for submission to BUGS. Refer to the Research Ethics Board (REB) guidelines and to the Undergraduate Calendar. No. 10. A course outline is required for all new courses; forward with the completed templates. 11. Evidence of consultation with other departments, program committees or units may be required. This is particularly important when the proposed course is a replacement for a deleted course included in the schedule of studies or restricted elective list of other degree programs, or when considering prerequisites, restrictions, DE offerings, etc. Forward all correspondence electronically to the Program Committee Secretary who will then forward to the Calendar Review Committee, [email protected]. Parts I and II of the proposal with consultation if the course is approved by the Program Committee. 12. If the intended first offering is earlier than Summer 2021, a request for an early offering is required. The request should be submitted via email to the Curriculum Manager, Office of Quality Assurance by the Chair/Director/Associate Dean of the Department/School/College offering the course. Note, requests are not normally approved (or scheduled) until the new course has received BUGS approval. 13. Proposing to offer a course in distance education format? Provide evidence of approval from the Executive Director, Open Learning and Educational Support to mount the proposed course in DE format. No. 14. A completed library assessment is normally required for new courses proposed for approval. Courses will not proceed to Senate without a completed assessment. Exceptions may be granted. To request an assessment contact the Library. Requests should be submitted well in advance of deadlines as assessments normally take a minimum of three weeks.
Questions? Contact the Curriculum Manager, Administrative Secretary or your Program Committee Chair or Secretary. Senate-Board of Undergraduate Studies Form E: COURSE ADDITION (Part II) 2022/2023 Undergraduate Calendar
Submission Timelines/Deadlines The Course Addition Information and Template is comprised of two parts. Part I is the information portion and Part II is the calendar and colleague template. Both must be completed in full in order for the course proposal to be reviewed by the Calendar Review Committee before recommendation for approval to the Board of Undergraduate Studies and Senate.
A completed library assessment is normally required for all new courses proposed for approval. Contact the Library.
If first offering is prior to Summer 2021, academic unit must submit a request for an early offering to the Curriculum Manager, Office of Quality Assurance.
Course Code*: CRWR*3300 Course Title**: Poetry Workshop: Ecopoetics Transcript Title (max. 30 char): Poetry Workshop: Ecopoetics Academic Unit(s) and College(s) responsible School of English and Theatre Studies for the course (and percent responsible): Credit Weight: (e.g. 0.50) 0.50 Lecture/Lab Hours: (e.g. 3-0) 3-0 Semester Offering: (e.g. S,F,W) F First Offering: (e.g. Fall 2021) Fall 2024 Calendar Description: (Three to four In this workshop, students will gain a deeper understanding of the basic elements sentences MAX; description must be written of poetry (form, line, metre, imagery, rhyme, rhythm, syntax and metaphor) by in full sentence form) focusing on eco-poetry. In their creative practice, students will achieve a nuanced understanding of how poetic form and language can reflect and generate an environmental attentiveness.
Prerequisite(s): CRWR*2300 Restriction(s): ENGL*2940. Registration in the Creative Writing major or minor. Majors and minors can register in a maximum of 1.00 credits in Creative Writing at the 3000-level. Co-requisite(s): Equate(s): ENGL*3060 Instructor Consent Required? ☐ Yes ☒ No Scheduling Instructions: specify which ☒ Annually option is applicable. ☐ Even-Numbered Years ☐ Odd-Numbered Years Distance Education: specify which option is ☐ Also offered through Distance Education. applicable. ☐ Offered through Distance Education only. ☒ Not offered through Distance Education. Experiential Learning (EL): check box if EL is ☒ ☐ Meets 6 Criteria Meets 3-5 Criteria practiced in the course and meets EL criteria Rank type(s) 1 – 5, no more than 3 types per course: __Applied Research _3_ Community Engaged Learning __ Field Course __2Professional Practice _1_Course-Integrated
Template-Specific Notes *Prefixes and numerical codes are assigned by ORS. For assistance, contact the Colleague Specialist, Enrolment Services. **Note course titles greater than 30 characters (including spaces and punctuation) will be shortened in Colleague and therefore on the student transcript. If necessary, provide a transcript title. Symbols (i.e. &) are permitted in shortening the transcript title. Approved by Program Committee(s): BA Date: May 10, 2021 Approved by Dean(s)/Designate(s): Ruediger Mueller Date: May 10, 2021 Senate-Board of Undergraduate Studies Form E: COURSE ADDITION (Part I) 2022/2023 Undergraduate Calendar
Submission Timelines/Deadlines
The Course Addition Information and Template is comprised of two parts. Part I is the information requested below and Part II is the calendar and colleague template. Both must be completed in full in order for the course proposal to be reviewed by the Calendar Review Committee before recommendation for approval to the Board of Undergraduate Studies and Senate. For definition of the terms used on page 2, see the Glossary in the Undergraduate Calendar.
Course Code and Title: CRWR*3400 Screenwriting Workshop: Writing for Inclusive Screens
Calendar Description: Students will develop original story concepts through concept kits, character work, outlines, scenes and a short screenplay. Students will be challenged to sharpen their awareness of difference (race, disability, gender, sexuality and/or class) and apply this awareness in their creative work. While being critically aware of issues of cultural appropriation and reductive representations, students will learn how to practice inclusivity in their creative work.
1. Provide the detailed learning outcomes of the course. Indicate how these align with major/specialization outcomes and/or program level learning outcomes and whether any of the University's Undergraduate Learning Outcomes are met by the course. If the proposed course will be core to more than one major/specialization or degree program, make reference to each of these. If the proposed course is an elective for multiple specializations/programs, the course learning outcomes should align with one or more of the University of Guelph’s Undergraduate Learning Outcomes. Refer to the Undergraduate Calendar and the Learning Outcomes website for more information on learning outcomes. Course Learning Outcomes Major/Specialization Degree Program Learning U of G Undergraduate Learning Outcomes Outcomes Learning Outcomes By the end of the course The course will fulfill the The course will fulfill the The course will fulfill the students should be able to: following learning outcomes following degree learning following undergraduate 1.accept and demonstrate for the Creative Writing outcomes: learning outcomes: appreciation of the limitations major: of the screenplay as a literary The course promotes the The course promotes Creative Thinking: The course form and the essential major’s critical and creative community engagement and encourages students to differences between the thinking outcomes by global understanding. In their explore their creativity and to labour of a screenwriter and teaching students how to creative practice, students analyze their creative work the labour of literary writing, creatively apply their learn how to reflect and critically. (See outcomes 1. 3- specifically when it comes to increasing knowledge and engage the diversity found in 9, 14, 16.) point of view, tense, handling critical understanding of the society, while being critically time, style, and the elements of storytelling, aware of issues of cultural Literacy: The course teaches imperative to write only what literary devices, and appropriation and reductive students how to acquire an can be observed. methodologies specific to the representations. Student will aesthetic literacy that helps 2.master writing and craft of screenwriting in order achieve an understanding them create a deeper formatting their screenplays to achieving their creative issues of diversity and social engagement with their own using professional-standard goals. Students will critically justice, especially in regard to creative work and the creative screenwriting software evaluate creative work, marginalized people. Students writing of others. (See programs. utilizing their growing will use this understanding in outcomes 1-10.) 3. create unique, well- understanding of the their creative work in order to developed, complex elements of screenwriting, as engage in social dialogues Global Understanding: The characters who are revealed well as techniques and craft, regarding issues of diversity course promotes global through telling detail and to propose creative, informed and social justice. (See understanding. In their action by examining solutions to problems, flaws, outcomes 10-14.) creative practice, students character’s motivations, and issues with the writing. The course will encourage learn how to reflect and desires and subconscious They will begin the process of critical and creative thinking. engage the diversity found in needs, and motivations and aesthetic maturation through As students continue to society, while being critically by creating believable the rigorous analysis and master elements of aware of issues of cultural obstacles which provoke critical evaluation of screenwriting and appropriation and reductive these characters to take screenplays. (See outcomes 1. storytelling, they will representations. Student will plausible action. Through 3-9, 14, 16.) practice creative thinking and achieve an understanding their discussions of reading The course promotes the expression. They will learn to issues of diversity and social assignments and screenings major’s communication think both creatively and justice, especially in regard to with the professor and their outcomes by teaching critically as they pay close marginalized people. Students peers, students will analyze students how to continue to attention to the subtleties and will use this understanding in how screenwriters develop master the elements and nuances of conveying their creative work in order to characters. They will come to techniques of screenwriting meaning through their work. engage in social dialogues view action and character and combine aesthetic, (See outcomes 3-9, 14, 16.) regarding issues of diversity through the same lens. They technical and cultural and social justice.. (See will explore the concept of knowledge into a compelling The course will focus a great outcomes 10-14.) need and psychic wound. In short screen story narrative. deal on media literacy and workshops, they will evaluate In workshop, they will offer communication. By learning Communicating: The course, their classmates’ character in-depth critiques, both oral and applying the elements through the workshops and development and learn to and written, of students’ and techniques of assignments, focuses on oral critique character screenplays. They will write screenwriting, students will and written communication. constructions (both their own their creative work with an communicate concepts, In workshops, students must and their classmates’) by increasing awareness of feelings, and images through learn to be attentive listeners participating in workshop audience. (See outcomes 1-9, their screenplays, attempting and viewers, as well as discussions. 11, 14, 16.) to communicate their stories communicate effectively. The 4.create effective Dialogue, The course promotes the to a wide audience. Through assignments teach students to building upon what they major’s literacy outcomes by written and oral critiques, in read, view, analyze, and edit learned in CRWR*2400, teaching students to build which they will apply a basic other’s creative work, as well students will employ the upon an increasingly disciplinary vocabulary, as their own. (See outcomes techniques and tools of sophisticated disciplinary students will learn to 1-9, 11, 14, 16.) dialogue creation in their vocabulary that enables them communicate their analyses creative work through scenes, to discuss, analyze, and of student creative work. (See Professional and Ethical sequences, and their final evaluate the storytelling outcomes 1-10) Behaviour: Students learn the draft short screenplay. They elements and techniques The student will learn how to professional standards of will learn to view dialogue as employed in a given film, evaluate how screenwriters screenwriting by using action and to assess it through screenplay or student work. apply the elements of professional-grade software the lens of objective, whether Students will also compare storytelling in their to format their scripts. mini objective or super and evaluate the merits and screenplays by utilizing a an Through table readings of objective. They will become drawbacks of various increasingly sophisticated their work, they learn how adept at creating subtext. narrative strategies when disciplinary vocabulary. They their screenplays function in a Through their discussions of approaching their creative will communicate their professional setting and write reading assignments with the practice and apply this evaluations in workshop. They an EL reflection essay on how professor and their peers, knowledge and critical will also learn to evaluate how the reading affected the way students will analyze how thinking in a constructive way creative works represent they approach both the script screenwriters create good when responding to the work marginalized people and how and their role as a dialogue and as well, they will of their classmates. (See such representations impact screenwriter. Moreover, the sharpen their critical eye outcomes 1-10.) the other elements of workshop setting of the towards the hallmarks of The course promotes the storytelling. (See outcomes 3- course will require students to weak dialogue. In workshops, major’s global understanding 10, 12-14, 16.) generate and moderate they will evaluate their outcomes. In their creative By learning a disciplinary discussions and engage classmates’ ability to create practice, students learn how vocabulary, formatting their respectfully with their fellow good dialogue, as well as to reflect and engage the screenplays to professional students. Students will learn critique their own dialogue. diversity found in society, standards, analyzing films and to present ideas in class with a 5.Build upon their while being critically aware of screenplays, and applying the high degree of understanding of the scene issues of cultural elements of screenwriting and professionalism and respond that was learned in appropriation and reductive storytelling, students will respectfully and CRWR*2400 through scene representations. Student will achieve a depth and breadth comprehensively to questions work, writing the sequence, achieve an understanding of understanding of the craft posed. Students will and writing a short, finished issues of diversity and social of writing the screenplay with interrogate issues regarding screenplay. Students will justice, especially in regard to a particular focus on issues the ethics of the become adept at viewing and marginalized people. Students regarding diversity and social representation of handling the scene as the will use this understanding in justice. (See outcomes 1-17.) marginalized people and the essential dramatic unit of their creative work in order to The course teaches students dangers of cultural story. Students will deepen engage in social dialogues how to engage in professional appropriation. (1, 2, 10-15, their understanding and regarding issues of diversity and ethical behaviour. 17) mastery of Scene by writing and social justice. (See Students learn the and re-writing scenes. They outcomes 10-14.) professional standards of will practice building a story The course will promote screenwriting by using through the development of professional and ethical professional-grade software scenes and scene sequences behaviour. Students learn the to format their scripts. in their scene work, sequence professional standards of Through table readings of work, and final screenplay screenwriting by using their work, they learn how assignment. In workshops, professional-grade software their screenplays function in a they will evaluate the to format their scripts. professional setting and write construction and sequencing Through table readings of an EL reflection essay on how of scenes. Applying the tools their work, they learn how the reading affected the way learned in class, they will their screenplays function in a they approach both the script successfully assess their professional setting and write and their role as a effectiveness and function an EL reflection essay on how screenwriter. Moreover, the within the larger story. the reading affected the way workshop setting will teach 6.analyze how screenwriters they approach both the script students how to work create good scenes through and their role as a productively in a group setting their discussions of reading screenwriter. Moreover, the and debate issues assignments with the workshop setting will teach productively with their peers, professor and their peers. In students how to work recognizing that respectful their participation in productively in a group setting disagreement implies workshops, they will evaluate and debate issues intellectual vibrancy. Students and critique their classmates’ productively with their peers, will learn to engage construction of scene and recognizing that respectful respectfully and professionally receive constructive criticism disagreement implies with the creative writing of towards refining their own intellectual vibrancy. Students other workshop participants scene work. will learn to engage and providing oral and written 7.understand, analyze and respectfully and professionally critiques of students’ creative evaluate Narrative Arc by with the creative writing of work. Students will reading and discussing the other workshop participants interrogate issues regarding relation between character, and providing oral and written the ethics of the goal, dramatic question, and critiques of students’ creative representation of obstacles. Students will work. Students will marginalized people and the explore the principles of story interrogate issues regarding dangers of cultural design including cause and the ethics of representation of appropriation. (1, 2, 10-15, effect, plausibility and marginalized people and 17) surprise, setup and payoffs, cultural appropriation. (1, 2, creating within the gap, scene 10-15, 17) sequencing, composition, act design, and effective beginnings and endings. Students will apply their understanding of Narrative Arc in their creative work concept, scenes, outlines and a final revision of their finished short screenplay. Through their discussions of reading assignments with the professor and their peers, students will understand and analyze how authors create a narrative arc. In their participation in workshops, they will evaluate and critique their classmates’ and their creation of narrative arc. 8.understand, analyze and evaluate Turning points by reading, discussing, and screenings of scenes, sequences, and complete films. Students will gain a firm grasp on the elements of a turning point and how turning points are used in scenes, sequences, and tentpole construction to turn a story. They will apply this knowledge in their own outlines, scenes, screenplays and revisions. They will also apply this knowledge when formulating and offering constructive feedback to their peers in the progression of their creative work. 9.understand, analyze and evaluate Style by reading and discussing the difference between character, subject, point of view, plot and style. Students will apply their understanding of Style in their creative work through scene work, outlines, sequences, and a final draft of a short screenplay. Through their discussions of reading assignments with the professor and their peers, students will understand and analyze the areas of interest of different screenwriters as well as themes, characters, and styles explored by various screenwriters. In their participation in workshops, they will evaluate and critique their classmates’ and their own writing style.
10.formulate an awareness of the established traditions of the craft and begin an education on the influences that may or may not guide their work.
11.foster an awareness of their audience, as well as an awareness of the social and ethical issues within their writing. 12.foster an awareness of issues of disability and develop the ability to recognize, analyse, articulate and evaluate how difference or marginalization is reflected in or impacts creative work – whether their own work, the work of peers, or the works studied in class. 13.create Socially Engaged screen stories by focusing on issues of affecting people with disabilities through their readings, discussion, and writing assignments. 14.participate effectively in a writing workshop, discussing and evaluating the creative work by their classmates in a professional, constructive manner, and receiving openly the constructive response to their work from peers and instructor. 15.approach issues of cultural appropriation with great sensitivity and to be aware of reductive representations of disability. 16.revise their creative work by using feedback from workshops to improve and expand their concepts, outlines, scenes, sequences and short screenplays. They will apply their understanding of the revision process in their revision of their outlines, opening sequences, and final revision of their finished short screenplay. 17.reflect upon and understand the professional aspect of their craft by engaging in an experiential learning (EL) experiences in which student use professional-standard software and have actors read their scripts and bring them to life (table reads). 2. Method(s) of evaluation/assessment (including breakdown) and how the outcomes listed in question 1 will be assessed. Form of Assessment (e.g. Weight of Course Content /Activity (e.g. Lectures Course Learning Outcome Quiz) Assessment (% week 1 -6, Assigned readings, Chpt 1) Addressed (#1,2) of final grade) (e.g. 5%)
Concept Kit and presentations 10% 12-week Schedule (1200 words) Concept Kit: 1, 3, 5, 7, 8, 12, Week 1 Story Structure: examining the 13. Screenplay analysis (1500 10% spectrum of structure. words) Screenplay analysis:1, 3-8, 12. A comparison of structural models as seen in First draft of script outlines 10% sample films. First draft: 1-9, 12, 13.
Opening sequence: 1-9, 12, Writing the opening sequence Week 2 Structure and Character 10% 13.
Creating Dramatic Characters
First draft of script (15 pages Final revised script: 1-13, 15, 20% maximum) Engaging Empathy 16.
Final revised script (25 pages Working with an anti-hero EL Essay: 17 25% maximum) In-Class writing sprints – exploring a Participation: 3-8, 10-14 Reflection Essay on the Table character who has been ‘othered’. Read (EL Component) 5% 5%
Workshop Participation 10% Week 3 Structure and Genre
Genre rules.
Genre as a tool for development of character.
In-class writing sprints applying genre tools in the development of character who has been “othered”.
Week 4 Structure and Meaning
The marriage of the rational and the emotional when it comes Premise and Controlling idea in a selection of films portraying disability on screen in both positive and negative ways.
Meaning and society.
In-class writing sprint exploring ‘meaning’ through opposing characters.
Week 5 The Inciting Incident in Story Design
An exploration of Inciting Incidents in a variety of films that explore characters who have been ‘othered’ due to differences relating to disabilities.
Week 6 The principles of Story Design:
Plausibility, probability, surprise, cliché, cause and effect, substance.
Exploring cliché in stories about disability.
Week 7 Principles of Antagonism
Law of Diminishing Returns
The Nature of Good as it relates to character.
Four-point opposition in cast design.
Week 8 Scene Design and Analysis
In-Class writing sprints – scenes.
Week 9 Act Design and Story Composition
Week 10 Crisis, Climax and Resolution
An exploration of the progression of Crisis- Climax-Resolution in a selection of study films.
Week 11 Handling Dialogue and Exposition
Week 12 EL Component: Table reads with Actors (of Opening Sequences).
3. Method(s) of presentation (lecture, seminar, hybrid, case study, lab, etc.). Workshop 4. Does this course include experiential learning (EL) opportunities? If YES, consult the Experiential Learning Faculty & Staff webpage to determine which categories of EL opportunities are present and indicate in the space provided on the Course Addition Part II form. No. 5. “The University of Guelph Senate affirms its commitment to an inclusive campus and fostering a culture of inclusion at the University of Guelph as an institutional imperative, acknowledging the University’s diverse population and that every member of an inclusive campus is a valued contributor.” (Fostering a Culture of Inclusion at the University of Guelph: an Institutional Imperative, April, 2017). This includes assurances that issues of equity, diversity, and accessibility are considered in the development and delivery of curriculum. Discuss the ways in which inclusion is considered in this new course proposal. For assistance, contact the Associate Director, Office of Teaching and Learning or the Office of Quality Assurance. In this course, students learn how to reflect and engage the diversity found in society in their creative practice, while being critically aware of issues of cultural appropriation and reductive representations. Student will achieve an understanding issues of diversity and social justice, especially in regard to marginalized people. Students will use this understanding in their creative work in order to engage in social dialogues regarding issues of diversity and social justice. This is a direct-entry, non-portfolio course, which shows a commitment to access, equity and diversity by eliminating competition for limited spaces and focusing instead on nurturing student talent by creating an inclusive environment. This course focuses emphasis on issues of diversity, social justice, and marginalization. The goal of the course is to teach students how to reflect a diversity of races, bodies, classes, and genders in their creative practice while avoiding the pitfalls of cultural appropriation and reductive or stereotypical representations.
6. Reason for course offering and intended audience including: i) degree program(s) to be served by the course and role in the curriculum; Creative Writing major and minor.
ii) expected enrollment; 20 iii) status of course (e.g. core, restricted elective, elective). Restricted elective.
7. List of resource needs (e.g. teaching support, lab and/or computer facilities, field trips, etc.) and identify funding sources for mounting and maintaining the course) A standard classroom and CRWR teaching faculty or sessional.
8. Is this a replacement course? If YES, specify the course to be deleted and include Form C: Course Deletion Template with submission. No. 9. Does this course involve research projects of a significant nature? If YES, consult with the Curriculum Manager, Office of Quality Assurance re: additional information that may be required for submission to BUGS. Refer to the Research Ethics Board (REB) guidelines and to the Undergraduate Calendar. No. 10. A course outline is required for all new courses; forward with the completed templates. 11. Evidence of consultation with other departments, program committees or units may be required. This is particularly important when the proposed course is a replacement for a deleted course included in the schedule of studies or restricted elective list of other degree programs, or when considering prerequisites, restrictions, DE offerings, etc. Forward all correspondence electronically to the Program Committee Secretary who will then forward to the Calendar Review Committee, [email protected]. Parts I and II of the proposal with consultation if the course is approved by the Program Committee. 12. If the intended first offering is earlier than Summer 2021, a request for an early offering is required. The request should be submitted via email to the Curriculum Manager, Office of Quality Assurance by the Chair/Director/Associate Dean of the Department/School/College offering the course. Note, requests are not normally approved (or scheduled) until the new course has received BUGS approval. 13. Proposing to offer a course in distance education format? Provide evidence of approval from the Executive Director, Open Learning and Educational Support to mount the proposed course in DE format. No. 14. A completed library assessment is normally required for new courses proposed for approval. Courses will not proceed to Senate without a completed assessment. Exceptions may be granted. To request an assessment contact the Library. Requests should be submitted well in advance of deadlines as assessments normally take a minimum of three weeks.
Questions? Contact the Curriculum Manager, Administrative Secretary or your Program Committee Chair or Secretary. Senate-Board of Undergraduate Studies Form E: COURSE ADDITION (Part II) 2022/2023 Undergraduate Calendar
Submission Timelines/Deadlines The Course Addition Information and Template is comprised of two parts. Part I is the information portion and Part II is the calendar and colleague template. Both must be completed in full in order for the course proposal to be reviewed by the Calendar Review Committee before recommendation for approval to the Board of Undergraduate Studies and Senate.
A completed library assessment is normally required for all new courses proposed for approval. Contact the Library.
If first offering is prior to Summer 2021, academic unit must submit a request for an early offering to the Curriculum Manager, Office of Quality Assurance.
Course Code*: CRWR*3400 Course Title**: Screenwriting Workshop: Writing for Inclusive Screens Transcript Title (max. 30 char): Screenwriting Inclusive Screen Academic Unit(s) and College(s) responsible School of English and Theatre Studies for the course (and percent responsible): Credit Weight: (e.g. 0.50) 0.50 Lecture/Lab Hours: (e.g. 3-0) 3-0 Semester Offering: (e.g. S,F,W) W First Offering: (e.g. Fall 2021) Winter 2024 Calendar Description: (Three to four Students will develop original story concepts through concept kits, character work, sentences MAX; description must be written outlines, scenes and a short screenplay. Students will be challenged to sharpen in full sentence form) their awareness of difference (race, disability, gender, sexuality and/or class) and apply this awareness in their creative work. While being critically aware of issues of cultural appropriation and reductive representations, students will learn how to practice inclusivity in their creative work. Prerequisite(s): CRWR*2400 Restriction(s): Registration in the Creative Writing major or minor. Registration in the Creative Writing major or minor. Majors and minors can register in a maximum of 1.00 credits in Creative Writing at the 3000-level. Co-requisite(s): Equate(s): Instructor Consent Required? ☐ Yes ☒ No Scheduling Instructions: specify which ☒ Annually option is applicable. ☐ Even-Numbered Years ☐ Odd-Numbered Years Distance Education: specify which option is ☐ Also offered through Distance Education. applicable. ☐ Offered through Distance Education only. ☒ Not offered through Distance Education. Experiential Learning (EL): check box if EL is ☒ ☐ Meets 6 Criteria Meets 3-5 Criteria practiced in the course and meets EL criteria Rank type(s) 1 – 5, no more than 3 types per course: __Applied Research __ Community Engaged Learning __ Field Course _2 Professional Practice _ 1 Course-Integrated
Template-Specific Notes
*Prefixes and numerical codes are assigned by ORS. For assistance, contact the Colleague Specialist, Enrolment Services. **Note course titles greater than 30 characters (including spaces and punctuation) will be shortened in Colleague and therefore on the student transcript. If necessary, provide a transcript title. Symbols (i.e. &) are permitted in shortening the transcript title. Approved by Program Committee(s): BA Date: May 10, 2021 Approved by Dean(s)/Designate(s): Ruediger Mueller Date: May 10, 2021
Senate-Board of Undergraduate Studies Form E: COURSE ADDITION (Part I) 2022/2023 Undergraduate Calendar
Submission Timelines/Deadlines
The Course Addition Information and Template is comprised of two parts. Part I is the information requested below and Part II is the calendar and colleague template. Both must be completed in full in order for the course proposal to be reviewed by the Calendar Review Committee before recommendation for approval to the Board of Undergraduate Studies (BUGS) and Senate. For definition of the terms used on page 2, see the Glossary in the Undergraduate Calendar.
Course Code and Title: CRWR*3500 Advanced Writing for Performance: Writing for the Inclusive Stage
Calendar Description: This is an advanced course in writing for various modes of performance. The students will build on the story-telling skills they learned in THST*2120, the introductory Writing for Performance class. Students will focus on writing stories that focus on social issues, marginalized groups (race, disability, gender, sexuality) or the environment, as well as explore issues of appropriation. Students will closely and critically read screenplays (or watch the films) and stage plays which have had a serious social impact and look at the way they are different from films and plays which simply reaffirm mainstream belief systems.
1. Provide the detailed learning outcomes of the course. Indicate how these align with major/specialization outcomes and/or program level learning outcomes and whether any of the University's Undergraduate Learning Outcomes are met by the course. If the proposed course will be core to more than one major/specialization or degree program, make reference to each of these. If the proposed course is an elective for multiple specializations/programs, the course learning outcomes should align with one or more of the University of Guelph’s Undergraduate Learning Outcomes. Refer to the Undergraduate Calendar and the Learning Outcomes website for more information on learning outcomes. Course Learning Outcomes Major/Specialization Degree Program Learning U of G Undergraduate Learning Outcomes Outcomes Learning Outcomes 1. understand the distinction This course develops the Community Engagement and Critical and Creative Thinking between writing for following major level Global Understanding 1. Inquiry and Analysis performance and writing outcomes: A1, A2, A3, A4 2. Problem Solving 3. Creativity prose or poetry. Critical and Creative Thinking Critical and Creative Thinking 4. Depth and Breadth of 1, 2, 3 2. develop habits of deep B1, B3, B4 Understanding
Literacy listening. It is only through Communication Literacy and Communication 1. Information Literacy deep listening that we learn 4, 5, 6 C2, C3 4. Visual Literacy how to differentiate Evaluate and Conduct Literacy characters through the way Research Global Understanding 7, 8 we write their speech in all its D3, D4 1. Global Understanding
rhythms, free associations, 4. Intercultural Knowledge Global Understanding Depth and Breadth of and Competence fragmentation, repetitions 10, 12 Understanding
and verbal crutches. E1 Communicating 3. develop an awareness that Professionalism Professional Development 1. Oral Communication every character has their own 13, 15 and Ethical Behaviour 2. Written Communication rules of grammar, and in F1, F2, F3, F4 3. Reading Comprehension breaking the rules dictated by 4. Integrative Communication
those in power, they are Professional and Ethical staging a conscious or Behaviour unconscious revolution. If 1. Teamwork they abide by those rules, 2. Ethical Reasoning they are assenting to 3. Leadership participate in power 4. Personal Organization/Time structures. Speech is a class Management marker and can be a political statement, and the student will have learned to create characters with this in mind.
4. turn a story into a powerful theatrical monologue that must be spoken, just as a song must be sung.
5. create a theatrical structure arising from a character’s driving needs and the obstacles they face in fulfilling those needs.
6. write an opening scene that demands the attention of the audience, and sets the tone for the play.
7. develop a sense of genre in playwrighting, and have chosen the genre they are most comfortable writing in.
8. reflect on the notion of a theatrical climax, and whether or not that is a Western and patriarchal construct, or an organic element of all stories across time and culture. They will have made their own decision about the necessity of a climax in the stories they wish to tell on that stage or screen.
9. learn to write dialogue for a range of disparate characters. How does a writer write for other genders, for the non- gendered, for those for whom English is a second language, for different races?
10. approach issues of cultural appropriation with great sensitivity, while daring to venture outside the zone of what and who they know intimately.
11. gain professional experience by having a table read of their writing by student actors. This is an experiential learning (EL) component.
12. offer a nuanced, in-depth critique of others’ work in group collaborations and workshops
13. engage respectfully and professionally with the creative writing of other workshop participants and providing an oral critique of students’ creative work 2. Method(s) of evaluation/assessment (including breakdown) and how the outcomes listed in question 1 will be assessed. Form of Assessment (e.g. Weight of Course Content /Activity (e.g. Lectures Course Learning Outcome Quiz) Assessment (% week 1 -6, Assigned readings, Chpt 1) Addressed (#1,2) of final grade) (e.g. 5%)
Outline 10 Week One: Outline: 1-3, 5, 8, Introductions, explanation of syllabus, Monologue 5 questions answered and a discussion on the Monologue: 1-5, 9-10
difference between writing fiction or poetry Opening scene 5 Opening Scene: 1-3, 5-7, 9-10 and writing for performance, and then Act One 15 further, the difference between writing for Act One: 1-3, 5, 7, 9-10 stage and writing for film. Final Play or Screenplay 25 Final Play: 1-3, 5-10
Written response to a film or 10 Week Two: Response: 10, 12-13 play Story-telling. Students will be invited to tell personal stories of transformation; this is Participation: 10, 12-13 Participation 20 not mandatory, and nobody will be Table Read: 11 pressured to tell a story. This is an exercise Table Read or Performance 10 and EL reflection essay to demonstrate to the students that we all have an innate story telling ability. The structure and content of each student’s story will be unique, which will show the class that each student needs to find their own, authentic style. A short discussion of outlines will end the class, along with a link to an outline of a well- known film or play.
Week three: A few successful outlines will be read in class and analyzed. We will discuss outlines of several films and plays. The students will go into break out rooms to read their outlines to one another and give feedback to their peers. At the end of class, we will gather to read another outline and analyze it, and then a short discussion of what is expected in a monologue.
Week four: Monologues: The students will read their monologues, and other students will have a chance to respond with positive and constructive feedback. We will then go into break out rooms to everyone has a chance to read their monologues and hear peer feedback.
Week five Opening Scenes. Discussion of the purpose of an opening scene, and successful opening scenes. A few opening scenes will be read by students who are assigned readers, and then the class will go into breakout rooms to continue the reading of scenes, and then gather again in the last fifteen minutes to discuss and summarize.
Week six: Students will bring in work they have done on Act One and read and discuss. Writing exercises. Discussion of film or play that they have been asked to read.
Week seven: We continue reading and discussing student work, as well as doing some in class writing exercises.
Week Eight: Some of the students will have recorded a reading of their entire Act One and posted the recording on CL. The class will then be able to discuss and analyze. We will also discuss Act One of a play, PassOver, as well as Act One of a film, Silkwood.
Week Nine: Continue workshopping student writing in full class as well as breakout rooms, as well as discussions of structure and character arcs.
Week Ten: Students will have been chosen to present their climactic scenes to the class, followed by discussion and analysis. We will analyze climactic scenes in previously chosen films or plays.
Week Eleven: Discussions of difficulties encountered in writing. Writer’s block. structure, character, letting your characters lead the writing, allowing the unexpected and unanticipated into a piece, creating plot twists, and most important of all, finding your voice as a writer. Some reading aloud.
Week Twelve: Table reads of one scene. Final wrap up and summary of the semester.
3. Method(s) of presentation (lecture, seminar, hybrid, case study, lab, etc.). Workshop 4. Does this course include experiential learning (EL) opportunities? If YES, consult the Experiential Learning Faculty & Staff webpage to determine which categories of EL opportunities are present and indicate in the space provided on the Course Addition Part II form. Yes. 5. “The University of Guelph Senate affirms its commitment to an inclusive campus and fostering a culture of inclusion at the University of Guelph as an institutional imperative, acknowledging the University’s diverse population and that every member of an inclusive campus is a valued contributor.” (Fostering a Culture of Inclusion at the University of Guelph: an Institutional Imperative, April, 2017). This includes assurances that issues of equity, diversity, and accessibility are considered in the development and delivery of curriculum. Discuss the ways in which inclusion is considered in this new course proposal. For assistance, contact the Associate Director, Office of Teaching and Learning or the Office of Quality Assurance. This is a direct-entry, non-portfolio course, which shows a commitment to access, equity and diversity by eliminating competition for limited spaces and focusing instead on nurturing student talent by creating an inclusive environment. The Creative Writing major places a strong emphasis on issues of social justice, marginalization and the environment. Our goal is to teach students how to reflect a diversity of races, bodies, classes, and genders in their creative practice. This course builds on previous experience in CRWR*2400 or THST*2120. Students will be encouraged to reflect on, and even break with traditional, Western ideas of structure; they will explore structure best serve the story they are telling with a special emphasis on breaking with colonized ideas of story structure. We will focus on writing stories that focus on social issues, marginalized groups (race, (dis)ability, gender, sexuality or the environment). 6. Reason for course offering and intended audience including: i) degree program(s) to be served by the course and role in the curriculum; Creative Writing major and minor; Theatre Studies
ii) expected enrollment; 20 iii) status of course (e.g. core, restricted elective, elective). Restricted elective for both Creative Writing major and minor and Theatre Studies
7. List of resource needs (e.g. teaching support, lab and/or computer facilities, field trips, etc.) and identify funding sources for mounting and maintaining the course) A standard classroom and CRWR teaching faculty or sessional.
8. Is this a replacement course? If YES, specify the course to be deleted and include Form C: Course Deletion Template with submission. No. 9. Does this course involve research projects of a significant nature? If YES, consult with the Curriculum Manager, Office of Quality Assurance re: additional information that may be required for submission to BUGS. Refer to the Research Ethics Board (REB) guidelines and to the Undergraduate Calendar. 10. A course outline is required for all new courses; forward with the completed templates. 11. Evidence of consultation with other departments, program committees or units may be required. This is particularly important when the proposed course is a replacement for a deleted course included in the schedule of studies or restricted elective list of other degree programs, or when considering prerequisites, restrictions, DE offerings, etc. Forward all correspondence electronically to the Program Committee Secretary who will then forward to the Calendar Review Committee, [email protected]. Parts I and II of the proposal with consultation if the course is approved by the Program Committee. 12. If the intended first offering is earlier than Summer 2022, a request for an early offering is required. An early offering may be requested on this form or by emailing the Colleague Specialist, Enrolment Services post BUGS approval. Early offering requests require the approval of the related Associate Dean Academic.
13. Proposing to offer a course in distance education format? Provide evidence of approval from the Executive Director, Open Learning and Educational Support to mount the proposed course in DE format. 14. A completed library assessment is normally required for new courses proposed for approval. Courses will not proceed to Senate without a completed assessment. Exceptions may be granted. To request an assessment contact the Library. Requests should be submitted well in advance of deadlines as assessments normally take a minimum of three weeks.
Questions? Contact the Curriculum Manager, Administrative Secretary or your Program Committee Chair or Secretary. Senate-Board of Undergraduate Studies Form E: COURSE ADDITION (Part II) 2022/2023 Undergraduate Calendar
Submission Timelines/Deadlines The Course Addition Information and Template is comprised of two parts. Part I is the information portion and Part II is the calendar and colleague template. Both must be completed in full in order for the course proposal to be reviewed by the Calendar Review Committee before recommendation for approval to the Board of Undergraduate Studies (BUGS) and Senate.
A completed library assessment is normally required for all new courses proposed for approval. Contact the Library.
If first offering is prior to Summer 2022, a request for an early offering should be indicated on Part I or sent to the Colleague Specialist, Enrolment Services post BUGS approval. Requests for early offerings require the approval of the related Associate Dean Academic.
Course Code*: CRWR*3500 Course Title**: Advanced Writing for Performance: Writing for the Inclusive Stage Transcript Title (max. 30 char): Writing for Inclusive Stage Academic Unit(s) and College(s) responsible School of English and Theatre Studies for the course (and percent responsible): Credit Weight: (e.g. 0.50) 0.50 Lecture/Lab Hours: (e.g. 3-0) (3-0) Semester Offering: (e.g. S,F,W) W First Offering: (e.g. Fall 2022) Winter 2024 Calendar Description: (Three to four This is an advanced course in writing for various modes of performance. The sentences MAX; description must be written students will build on the story-telling skills they learned in THST 2120, the in full sentence form) introductory Writing for Performance class. Students will focus on writing stories that focus on social issues, marginalized groups (race, disability, gender, sexuality) or the environment, as well as explore issues of appropriation. Students will closely and critically read screenplays (or watch the films) and stage plays which have had a serious social impact and look at the way they are different from films and plays which simply reaffirm mainstream belief systems. Prerequisite(s): CRWR*2400 or THST*2120 Restriction(s): Registration in the Creative Writing major or minor or the Theatre Studies major or minor. Creative Writing majors and minors can register in a maximum of 1.00 credits in Creative Writing at the 3000-level Co-requisite(s): Equate(s): Instructor Consent Required? ☐ Yes ☒ No Scheduling Instructions: specify which ☐ Annually option is applicable. ☒ Even-Numbered Years ☐ Odd-Numbered Years Distance Education: specify which option is ☐ Also offered through Distance Education. applicable. ☐ Offered through Distance Education only. ☒ Not offered through Distance Education. Experiential Learning (EL): check box if EL is ☒ ☐ Meets 6 Criteria Meets 3-5 Criteria practiced in the course and meets EL criteria Rank type(s) 1 – 5, no more than 3 types per course: __Research or Scholarly Creation __ Field Course __ Community Engaged Learning (CEL) _1_Professional or Career Practice _2_Course- Integrated _3_Work Experience Template-Specific Notes *Prefixes and numerical codes are assigned by ORS. For assistance, contact the Colleague Specialist, Enrolment Services. **Note course titles greater than 30 characters (including spaces and punctuation) will be shortened in Colleague and therefore on the student transcript. If necessary, provide a transcript title. Symbols (i.e. &) are permitted in shortening the transcript title. Approved by Program Committee(s): BA Date: May 10, 2021 Approved by Dean(s)/Designate(s): Ruediger Mueller Date: May 10, 2021 Senate-Board of Undergraduate Studies Form E: COURSE ADDITION (Part I) 2022/2023 Undergraduate Calendar
Submission Timelines/Deadlines
The Course Addition Information and Template is comprised of two parts. Part I is the information requested below and Part II is the calendar and colleague template. Both must be completed in full in order for the course proposal to be reviewed by the Calendar Review Committee before recommendation for approval to the Board of Undergraduate Studies and Senate. For definition of the terms used on page 2, see the Glossary in the Undergraduate Calendar.
Course Code and Title: CRWR*4300 Capstone Poetics Workshop
Calendar Description: This advanced poetry workshop will involve the generation and revision of new work, sophisticated critique of student work, and focused discussion of cultural, social, and political issues in which the practice of poetry writing is enmeshed. This course may also focus on the application of poetic elements in hybrid forms and mixed-mode narratives. This capstone course will give students the opportunity to create a polished, bound chapbook of 500-800 lines.
1. Provide the detailed learning outcomes of the course. Indicate how these align with major/specialization outcomes and/or program level learning outcomes and whether any of the University's Undergraduate Learning Outcomes are met by the course. If the proposed course will be core to more than one major/specialization or degree program, make reference to each of these. If the proposed course is an elective for multiple specializations/programs, the course learning outcomes should align with one or more of the University of Guelph’s Undergraduate Learning Outcomes. Refer to the Undergraduate Calendar and the Learning Outcomes website for more information on learning outcomes. Course Learning Outcomes Major/Specialization Degree Program Learning U of G Undergraduate Learning Outcomes Outcomes Learning Outcomes By the end of the course, The course will fulfill the The course will fulfill the The course will fulfill the students should be able to: following learning outcomes following degree learning following undergraduate for the Creative Writing outcomes: learning outcomes: 1. masterly apply the major:
elements of poetry The course promotes global- Creative Thinking: The course (form, line, metre, The course promotes the understanding. Through imagery, rhyme, major’s critical and creative reading assignments and encourages students to rhythm, syntax and thinking outcomes. Students public readings, students will explore their creativity and to metaphor) in their will creatively and critically understand the role of the analyze their creative work creative work. apply the knowledge and poet in conveying and shaping critically. (See outcomes 1-4, 2. apply a sophisticated critical understanding of the cultural knowledge and 6, 9.) disciplinary elements of poetics in a individual points of view, as vocabulary to analyze masterful manner in order to well as recognizing the ethical Literacy: The course teaches and evaluate devise the best approaches implications of their writing as published poetry, for achieving their creative they receive feedback in students how to acquire an their classmates’ goals, literary effects and/or workshop, their public aesthetic literacy that helps poetry and their aesthetic ends. In workshops, reading, and from the them create a deeper own. students will help their instructor. Student will be engagement with their own 3. to participate in a classmates complete and encouraged to use their creative work and the creative writing workshop by polish a substantial final creative work to engage in writing of others. (See giving and receiving creative project by utilizing debates pertinent to their outcomes 1, 4-9, 11, 12.) the constructive their masterful grasp of the communities and to engage response and elements of poetics to the community through their evaluations of their propose creative, informed public readings. Students will The course promotes creative work (from solutions to problems, flaws, also demonstrate a global community engagement and classmates and the and issues with the writing. By understanding by situating global understanding. instructor) in a using the readings as models their writing within different Through reading assignments professional, and situating their work in historical and cultural poetic and public readings, students constructive manner, relation to poetic traditions, contexts. (See outcomes 3, 5 will understand the role of the as well as rigorously students will achieve an 7-9.) poet in conveying and shaping analyzing the aesthetic maturity through cultural knowledge and application of the the analysis and critical The course will encourage individual points of view, as elements of evaluation of poetry. (See critical and creative thinking well as recognizing the ethical storytelling in the outcomes 1-4, 6, 9.) as students continue to gain implications of their writing as student’s work. expertise in applying the they receive feedback in 4. revise their creative The course promotes the workshop, their public elements of poetics in their work by learning how major’s communication reading, and from the work. Student will also apply a to use criticism outcomes by teaching instructor. Student will be effectively to expand students how to master the disciplinary vocabulary—both encouraged to use their and improve their elements of poetics in their in regard to poetics in general creative work to engage in poetry. They will writing. By undertaking a and eco-poetics in particular, debates pertinent to their apply their substantial creative project, to analyze and evaluate communities and to engage students will produce a understanding of the poetry. They will learn to the community through their revision process in sustained literary work of public readings. Students will think both creatively and their final 500- to skilled quality that also demonstrate a global 800-line (25- to 30- demonstrates technical critically as they pay close understanding by situating page) chapbook. confidence, a distinct attention to the subtleties and their writing within different 5. create socially individual voice, an awareness nuances of conveying historical and cultural poetic engaged writing by of audience, and an meaning through their work contexts. (See outcomes 3, 5 focusing on aesthetically sophisticated and the work of others. (See 7-9.) engagement with a literary sociopolitical issues outcomes 1-4, 6, 9.) through their form. In workshop, students Communicating: The course, readings, discussion, will articulate their creative The course will focus a great through the workshops and and writing decisions and offer nuanced, deal on literacy and assignments, focuses on oral sophisticated, and in-depth assignments. communication. By learning and written communication. 6. write a polished critique of others’ work (both and applying the elements In workshops, students must chapbook of 25 written and oral) in learn to be attentive listeners poems workshops. Students will and techniques of poetics, 7. read and present communicate their poetry to students will communicate and viewers, as well as their work to an wider audience through their concepts, feelings, and images communicate effectively. The audience. This is public readings. (See through their poetry, assignments teach students to considered an outcomes 1-9.) attempting to communicate read, view, analyze, and edit experiential learning their creative vision of other’s creative work, as well (EL) component of The course promotes the environmental awareness to a as their own. Students will the course since it major’s literacy outcomes by involves a major having students apply an public audience. Through communicate their poetry to aspect of a poet’s advanced disciplinary written and oral critiques, in wider audience through their professional life. vocabulary in order to discuss, which they will apply a basic public readings. (See analyze, and evaluate the 8. reflect upon and disciplinary vocabulary, outcomes 1-9.) elements of poetics in a understand the students will learn to professional aspects sophisticated manner. The communicate their analyses The course will promote the of a career poet. course asks students to apply their depth and breadth of of student creative work. (See major’s outcomes regarding 9. situate their poetry professional and ethical in relation to poetic understanding of poetry from outcomes 1-9.) their literature courses and behavior. Through the public traditions. The student will learn how to reading of their work, the course reading list to bear on their creative writing. In evaluate how poets apply the students will learn how to this capstone course, students elements of poetics in their present their work in a professional setting. In the EL will approach their aesthetic work by utilizing a an practice in an analytical and reflection essay on their increasingly sophisticated informed manner; to situate public reading, students will disciplinary vocabulary. (See their writing within a literary analyze how their work might context; and to assess how outcomes 1-5, 9) be shaped towards particular their creative work audiences. Moreover, the participates or departs from a workshop setting will teach larger literary tradition. (See By learning a disciplinary students how to work outcomes 1-6, 9.) vocabulary to evaluate and productively in a group setting analyze creative work; and debate issues The course promotes the productively with their peers, situating their own work in major’s global-understanding recognizing that respectful outcomes. Through reading relation to poetic traditions; disagreement implies assignments and public applying the elements of intellectual vibrancy. Students readings, students will poetic elements in their work; will learn to engage understand the role of the giving critical feedback; and respectfully and professionally poet in conveying and shaping incorporating feedback in with the creative writing of cultural knowledge and their own revisions, students other workshop participants, individual points of view, as providing oral and written will achieve a depth and well as recognizing the ethical critiques of students’ creative implications of their writing as breadth of understanding of work. Students will present they receive feedback in poetry. (See outcomes 1-9.) ideas in class with a high workshop, their public degree of professionalism and The course will promote the reading, and from the respond respectfully and major’s outcomes regarding instructor. Student will be comprehensively to questions professional and ethical encouraged to use their posed. Student will learn to behavior. Through the public creative work to engage in organize their work and reading of their work, debates pertinent to their manage their time in order to students will learn how to communities and to engage complete a large, long-term, present their work in a the community through their individually directed creative professional setting. In the EL public readings. Students will writing project. (See reflection essay on their also demonstrate a global outcomes 3, 4, 6-8.) understanding by situating public reading, students will their writing within different analyze how their work might historical and cultural poetic be shaped towards particular contexts. (See outcomes 3, 5 audiences. Moreover, the 7-9.) workshop setting will teach students how to work The course will promote the productively in a group setting major’s outcomes regarding and debate issues professional and ethical productively with their peers, behavior. Through the public recognizing that respectful reading of their work, disagreement implies students will learn how to intellectual vibrancy. Students present their work in a will learn to engage professional setting. In the EL respectfully and professionally reflection essay on their with the creative writing of public reading, students will other workshop participants, analyze how their work might providing oral and written be shaped towards particular critiques of students’ creative audiences. Moreover, the work. Students will present workshop setting will teach ideas in class with a high students how to work degree of professionalism and productively in a group setting respond respectfully and and debate issues comprehensively to questions productively with their peers, posed. Student will learn to recognizing that respectful organize their work and disagreement implies manage their time in order to intellectual vibrancy. Students complete a large, long-term, will learn to engage individually directed creative respectfully and professionally writing project. (See with the creative writing of outcomes 3, 4, 6-8.) other workshop participants, providing oral and written critiques of students’ creative work. Students will present ideas in class with a high degree of professionalism and respond respectfully and comprehensively to questions posed. Student will learn to organize their work and manage their time in order to complete a large, long-term, individually directed creative writing project.(See outcomes 3, 4, 6-8.)
2. Method(s) of evaluation/assessment (including breakdown) and how the outcomes listed in question 1 will be assessed. Form of Assessment (e.g. Weight of Course Content /Activity (e.g. Lectures Course Learning Outcome Quiz) Assessment (% week 1 -6, Assigned readings, Chpt 1) Addressed (#1,2) of final grade) (e.g. 5%)
Class Participation (Weekly 20% WEEK 1, Sept 11 Participation: 1-3 Writing & Peer-Review Topic(s): Introductions/The Power of (Self-) Exercises) Editing: What should we avoid in poetry?
25-poem chapbook (25-30 Readings: pages) 1. On CourseLink, “How to Read a
Poem?” • 10 poems (10-15 15% 10 poems: 1-3, 5 2. Wislawa Szymborska, “The Poet pages, due Week and the World” Nobel Prize Lecture Five) 15 poems: 1-3, 5 (from the book) • 15 poems (15-20 15 % Assignments for next week: pages, different from the first set, due 1. Choose an older poem you are Chapbook: 1-6 Week Ten) proud of and post it on CourseLink Revision of Chapbook (due 20 % for peer-review. during exam period) 2. Following only the suggestions that
you agree with, revise your poem. Public Reading: 7 Online Public Reading & 10 % 3. Submit on CourseLink both the Rehearsal initial draft and the revised draft for EL Essay: 7, 8
grading. Reflection Essay on EL 5% WEEK 2, Sept 18 Reflection Essay: 2, 9 component Topic(s): Metaphor and Other Figures of Reflection Essay on Literary 15% Speech Influences Readings:
1. Selected poems on CourseLink Assignments for next week:
WEEK 3, Sept 25
Topic(s): Free Verse & Prose Poem Readings:
1. Selected poems on CourseLink
Assignments for next week: on CourseLink
WEEK 4, Oct 2
Topic(s): Imagery as literary device & the poet as a sociopolitical activist
Readings:
1. Vivek Shraya, even this page is white (bookstore)
Assignments for next week: on CourseLink
WEEK 5, Oct 9
Topic(s): Self-Pity to Irony and Self-Irony: Comic catharsis and the Alienation-Effect
Readings: Wislawa Szymborska, Poems New and Collected (bookstore)
WEEK 6, Oct 16
Topic(s): Clarity: grammar; diction; ambivalence vs. ambiguity
DUE BEFORE CLASS: 10 poems (10-15 pages, 20 %)
Readings:
Guest Speaker on ZOOM (to be confirmed)
WEEK 7, Oct 23
Topic(s): Group meetings with the instructor.
WEEK 8, Oct 30
Topic(s): Group meetings with the instructor.
.ASSIGNMENT FOR NEXT WEEK: Propose a reading order for Float, post it on CourseLink and discuss it in your group.
WEEK 9, November 6
Topic(s): The Structure of a Book: Does the Poems’ Order Matter?
Readings: Anne Carson, Float (bookstore) Assignments for next week:
• Arrange your 15 poems due next week in order and post them on CourseLink for peer-review. • Reorder the 15 poems, following only the suggestions that you agree with. WEEK 10: November 13
BEFORE CLASS: 15 poems due on CourseLink (15-20 pages, different from the first set, 25%)
Topic(s): REHEARSAL for next week’s Zoom reading: Reading vs. Performing Poetry
WEEK 11: November 20
Topic(s): Open-class public reading on ZOOM with selections from your chapbooks
Assignments for next week .
1. Analysis of the Zoom reading
2. The Poet and the Local/Global Community
Readings: We Are One: Poems from the Pandemic (Bayeux Arts, 2020, bookstore, if available)
WEEK 12: November 27
Topic(s): The professional life of a poet: attending public readings; the benefits of “open mic;” preparing submissions to magazines, publishing houses, and contests/CONCLUSIONS: What Is Success for a Poet?
Readings:
• Margaret Atwood, selections from Negotiating with the Dead: A Writer on Writing • Rupi Kaur, Instagram Poems (selections)
3. Method(s) of presentation (lecture, seminar, hybrid, case study, lab, etc.). Workshop 4. Does this course include experiential learning (EL) opportunities? If YES, consult the Experiential Learning Faculty & Staff webpage to determine which categories of EL opportunities are present and indicate in the space provided on the Course Addition Part II form. No. 5. “The University of Guelph Senate affirms its commitment to an inclusive campus and fostering a culture of inclusion at the University of Guelph as an institutional imperative, acknowledging the University’s diverse population and that every member of an inclusive campus is a valued contributor.” (Fostering a Culture of Inclusion at the University of Guelph: an Institutional Imperative, April, 2017). This includes assurances that issues of equity, diversity, and accessibility are considered in the development and delivery of curriculum. Discuss the ways in which inclusion is considered in this new course proposal. For assistance, contact the Associate Director, Office of Teaching and Learning or the Office of Quality Assurance. This is a direct-entry, non-portfolio course, which shows a commitment to access, equity and diversity by eliminating competition for limited spaces and focusing instead on nurturing student talent by creating an inclusive environment. The Creative Writing major places a strong emphasis on issues of social justice, marginalization and the environment. Our goal is to teach students how to reflect a diversity of races, bodies, classes, and genders in their creative practice. Reading is an essential aspect of our workshops, and our creative writing instructors are committed to assigning a culturally diverse range of material, including the work of emerging Canadian writers, particularly from traditionally marginalized communities. By discussing literary techniques in a culturally diverse range of published work, students learn to be readers who compare and contrast narrative and esthetic strategies of a wide range of culturally diverse writers, including Black, racialized, indigenous, 2SLGBTQ+ writers and writers living with disabilities. Take for example, the submitted outline, which contains works by People of Color. We also have a racially diverse creative writing faculty. Dionne Brand, a Black Canadian poet and fiction writer, often teaches poetry workshops which focus on the writings of Canadian People of Color and 2SLGBTQ+ writers.
6. Reason for course offering and intended audience including: i) degree program(s) to be served by the course and role in the curriculum; Creative Writing major and minor.
ii) expected enrollment; 20 iii) status of course (e.g. core, restricted elective, elective). Restricted elective.
7. List of resource needs (e.g. teaching support, lab and/or computer facilities, field trips, etc.) and identify funding sources for mounting and maintaining the course) A standard classroom and CRWR teaching faculty or sessional.
8. Is this a replacement course? If YES, specify the course to be deleted and include Form C: Course Deletion Template with submission. No. 9. Does this course involve research projects of a significant nature? If YES, consult with the Curriculum Manager, Office of Quality Assurance re: additional information that may be required for submission to BUGS. Refer to the Research Ethics Board (REB) guidelines and to the Undergraduate Calendar. No. 10. A course outline is required for all new courses; forward with the completed templates. 11. Evidence of consultation with other departments, program committees or units may be required. This is particularly important when the proposed course is a replacement for a deleted course included in the schedule of studies or restricted elective list of other degree programs, or when considering prerequisites, restrictions, DE offerings, etc. Forward all correspondence electronically to the Program Committee Secretary who will then forward to the Calendar Review Committee, [email protected]. Parts I and II of the proposal with consultation if the course is approved by the Program Committee. 12. If the intended first offering is earlier than Summer 2021, a request for an early offering is required. The request should be submitted via email to the Curriculum Manager, Office of Quality Assurance by the Chair/Director/Associate Dean of the Department/School/College offering the course. Note, requests are not normally approved (or scheduled) until the new course has received BUGS approval. 13. Proposing to offer a course in distance education format? Provide evidence of approval from the Executive Director, Open Learning and Educational Support to mount the proposed course in DE format. No. 14. A completed library assessment is normally required for new courses proposed for approval. Courses will not proceed to Senate without a completed assessment. Exceptions may be granted. To request an assessment contact the Library. Requests should be submitted well in advance of deadlines as assessments normally take a minimum of three weeks.
Questions? Contact the Curriculum Manager, Administrative Secretary or your Program Committee Chair or Secretary. Senate-Board of Undergraduate Studies Form E: COURSE ADDITION (Part II) 2022/2023 Undergraduate Calendar
Submission Timelines/Deadlines The Course Addition Information and Template is comprised of two parts. Part I is the information portion and Part II is the calendar and colleague template. Both must be completed in full in order for the course proposal to be reviewed by the Calendar Review Committee before recommendation for approval to the Board of Undergraduate Studies and Senate.
A completed library assessment is normally required for all new courses proposed for approval. Contact the Library.
If first offering is prior to Summer 2021, academic unit must submit a request for an early offering to the Curriculum Manager, Office of Quality Assurance.
Course Code*: CRWR*4300 Course Title**: Capstone Poetics Workshop Transcript Title (max. 30 char): Capstone Poetics Workshop Academic Unit(s) and College(s) responsible School of English and Theatre Studies for the course (and percent responsible): Credit Weight: (e.g. 0.50) 1.00 Lecture/Lab Hours: (e.g. 3-0) 3-0 Semester Offering: (e.g. S,F,W) W First Offering: (e.g. Fall 2021) Winter 2025 Calendar Description: (Three to four This advanced poetry workshop will involve the generation and revision of new sentences MAX; description must be written work, sophisticated critique of the work of other students, and focused discussion in full sentence form) of cultural, social, and political issues in which the practice of poetry writing is enmeshed. This course may also focus on the application of poetic elements in hybrid forms and mixed-mode narratives. This capstone course will give students the opportunity to create a polished bound chapbook of 500-800 lines.
Prerequisite(s): CRWR*3300 Restriction(s): Restricted to students in the Creative Writing Major who have completed 14 credits with an average of 70% in all course attempts in Creative Writing. Students can register a maximum of 1.0 credits in Creative Writing at the 4000-level. Co-requisite(s): Equate(s): Instructor Consent Required? ☐ Yes ☒ No Scheduling Instructions: specify which ☒ Annually option is applicable. ☐ Even-Numbered Years ☐ Odd-Numbered Years Distance Education: specify which option is ☐ Also offered through Distance Education. applicable. ☐ Offered through Distance Education only. ☒ Not offered through Distance Education. Experiential Learning (EL): check box if EL is ☒ ☐ Meets 6 Criteria Meets 3-5 Criteria practiced in the course and meets EL criteria Rank type(s) 1 – 5, no more than 3 types per course: __Applied Research __ Community Engaged Learning __ Field Course _2_Professional Practice _1_Course-Integrated
Template-Specific Notes
*Prefixes and numerical codes are assigned by ORS. For assistance, contact the Colleague Specialist, Enrolment Services. **Note course titles greater than 30 characters (including spaces and punctuation) will be shortened in Colleague and therefore on the student transcript. If necessary, provide a transcript title. Symbols (i.e. &) are permitted in shortening the transcript title. Approved by Program Committee(s): BA Date: May 10, 2021 Approved by Dean(s)/Designate(s): Ruediger Mueller Date: May 10, 2021
Senate-Board of Undergraduate Studies Form E: COURSE ADDITION (Part I) 2022/2023 Undergraduate Calendar
Submission Timelines/Deadlines
The Course Addition Information and Template is comprised of two parts. Part I is the information requested below and Part II is the calendar and colleague template. Both must be completed in full in order for the course proposal to be reviewed by the Calendar Review Committee before recommendation for approval to the Board of Undergraduate Studies and Senate. For definition of the terms used on page 2, see the Glossary in the Undergraduate Calendar.
Course Code and Title: CRWR*4400 Capstone Scriptwriting Workshop
Calendar Description: This capstone course focuses on scriptwriting and may involve writing for the screen, writing for the stage, or both. Students will begin the course by creating an outline of a full length feature film or play and will then be expected to make significant progress on their creative projects. This workshop course will also involve the sophisticated analysis and critique of scripts and focused discussions of the cultural, social, political and professional issues in which the practice of scriptwriting is enmeshed.
1. Provide the detailed learning outcomes of the course. Indicate how these align with major/specialization outcomes and/or program level learning outcomes and whether any of the University's Undergraduate Learning Outcomes are met by the course. If the proposed course will be core to more than one major/specialization or degree program, make reference to each of these. If the proposed course is an elective for multiple specializations/programs, the course learning outcomes should align with one or more of the University of Guelph’s Undergraduate Learning Outcomes. Refer to the Undergraduate Calendar and the Learning Outcomes website for more information on learning outcomes. Course Learning Outcomes Major/Specialization Degree Program Learning U of G Undergraduate Learning Outcomes Outcomes Learning Outcomes By the end of the course The course will fulfill the The course will fulfill the The course will fulfill the students should be able to: following learning outcomes following degree learning following undergraduate for the Creative Writing outcomes: learning outcomes: 1. develop their own feature major: length screenplay from Creative Thinking: The course The course promotes concept to revised outline The course promotes the encourages students to community engagement and and first act. major’s critical and creative explore their creativity and to global understanding. 2. analyze screenplays to thinking outcomes by analyze their creative work Students’ screenplays will understand how successful, teaching students how to critically. (See outcomes 1-9, respond to popular culture professional screenwriters creatively apply the 14.) and mass media and reflect apply the elements of knowledge and critical on cultural identities and storytelling and understanding of the tools, Literacy: The course teaches values. Through screening, screenwriting. Students will devices and methodologies students how to acquire an reading and writing analyze screenplays specific to the craft of aesthetic literacy that helps assignments, students will through close readings and screenwriting to devise the them create a deeper understand the role of the class discussions, as well as best approaches for achieving engagement with their own screenwriter in conveying and in their reflection essay on their creative goals. Students creative work and the creative shaping cultural knowledge their artistic influences. will critically evaluate creative writing of others. (See and individual points of view, 3. create memorable, work, utilizing their mature outcomes 2-10, 12, 14.) as well as recognizing the compelling, fascinating lead and sophisticated ethical implications of their Characters in their understanding of the Global Understanding: The writing as they receive concepts, outlines, scenes elements of screenwriting, as course promotes global feedback in workshop and and screenplays. Through well as techniques and craft, understanding. Through from the instructor on how their discussions of reading to propose creative, informed screening assignments, they shape their characters assignments with the solutions to problems, flaws, students will understand the and story worlds. (See professor and their peers, and issues with the writing. role of the screenwriter in students will analyze how Students will achieve an outcomes 2, 3, 7, 10, 11, 13, conveying and shaping screenwriters develop aesthetic maturity through 14.) cultural knowledge and characters. They will learn the rigorous analysis and individual points of view, as The course will encourage and understand the critical evaluation of creative well as recognizing the ethical critical and creative thinking. qualities of a hero or anti- conception, outlining and implications of their writing as As students begin to master hero and formulate the screenwriting work. Students they receive feedback in elements of screenwriting and ability to consider the will think critically about how workshop and from the storytelling, they will practice requisite approach to their creative practice instructor on how they shape creative thinking and character within their engages, revises, or contests their characters and story expression. They will learn to stories. In workshops, they screenwriting traditions, worlds. (See outcomes 2, 3, 7, think both creatively and will evaluate their genres, and forms. (See 10, 11, 13, 14.) critically as they pay close classmates’ character outcomes 1-9, 14.) attention to the subtleties and development and learn to nuances of conveying critique character The course promotes the Communicating: The course, meaning through their work. constructions (both their major’s communication through the workshops and (See outcomes 1-9, 14.) own and their classmates’) outcomes by teaching assignments, focuses on oral by participating in students how to master the The course will focus a great and written communication. workshop discussions. elements and techniques of deal on media literacy and In workshops, students must 4. create a compelling cast of screenwriting and combine communication. By learning learn to be attentive listeners supporting characters in aesthetic, technical and and applying the elements and viewers, as well as their concepts, outlines, cultural knowledge into a and techniques of communicate effectively. The scenes and screenplays. compelling screen story screenwriting, students will assignments teach students to Through their discussion of narrative. Students will communicate concepts, read, view, analyze, and edit reading assignments with produce a screenplay of feelings, and images through other’s creative work, as well the professor and peers skilled quality that their screenplays, attempting as their own. (See outcomes and through class lectures, demonstrates technical to communicate their stories 1-14.) students will learn tools for confidence, a distinct to a wide audience. Through honing cast design. They individual voice and an written and oral critiques, in Professional and Ethical will be fluid in concepts of aesthetically sophisticated which they will apply a basic Behaviour: Students learn the four-point opposition, the engagement with disciplinary vocabulary, professional standards of work of Joseph Campbell screenwriting as a creative students will learn to screenwriting by using regarding and the form. In workshop, students communicate their analyses professional-grade software archetypes of the hero’s will articulate their creative of student creative work. (See to format their scripts. journey, Lajos Egri’s decisions and offer a nuanced, outcomes 1-14.) Through table readings of approach to character, Uta in-depth critique of others’ their work, they learn how The student will learn how to Hagen’s Object Exercise, work in group collaborations their screenplays function in a evaluate and research how and more. and workshops. (See professional setting and write screenwriters apply the 5. create effective Scenes in outcomes 1-14.) an EL reflection essay on how elements of storytelling in their concepts, outlines, the reading affected the way their screenplays by utilizing a scenes and screenplays. The course promotes the they approach both the script basic disciplinary vocabulary. Through their discussions major’s literacy outcomes by and their role as a They will communicate their of reading assignments having students apply an screenwriter. Moreover, the evaluations workshop. (See with the professor and impressive disciplinary workshop setting of the outcomes 2-11, 13, 14.) their peers, students will vocabulary that enables them course will require students to analyze how screenwriters to discuss, analyze, and By learning a disciplinary generate and moderate create good scenes. In their evaluate the elements of vocabulary, formatting their discussions and engage participation in workshops, screenwriting. Students will screenplays to professional respectfully with their fellow they will evaluate and achieve a depth and breadth standards, analyzing films and students. Students will learn critique their classmates’ of understanding of screenplays, and applying the to present ideas in class with a construction of scene. screenwriting by reading and elements of screenwriting and high degree of 6. create compelling, relevant analysing screenplays that are storytelling, students will professionalism and respond Dialogue in their concepts, pertinent to their lengthy achieve a depth and breadth respectfully and outlines, scenes and creative project. Through a of understanding of the craft comprehensively to questions screenplays. Through their rigorous program of writing of writing the screenplay. (See posed. (See outcomes 10-13.) discussions of reading and study, students will learn outcomes 1-14) assignments with the to approach their work in an The course teaches students professor and their peers, analytical and informed students will analyze how manner, to situate their how to engage in professional authors create good screenwriting within a larger and ethical behaviour. dialogue. In their cultural and artistic context; Students learn the participation in workshops, and to assess how their professional standards of they will evaluate and creative work participates or screenwriting by using critique their classmates’ departs from a larger professional-grade software use of dialogue and learn screenwriting tradition. (See to format their scripts. to critique the use of outcomes 2-10, 12, 14.) Through table readings of setting (both their own and their work, they learn how their classmates’). The course promotes the their screenplays function in a 7. create a relevant story major’s global understanding professional setting and write world by applying their outcomes. Through screening an EL reflection essay on how understanding of Sense of assignments, students will the reading affected the way Place, and as well, through understand the role of the they approach both the script the infinitely valuable screenwriter in conveying and and their role as a practice of research, shaping cultural knowledge screenwriter. Moreover, the building upon what they and individual points of view, workshop setting of the learned in CRWR*3400 or as well as recognizing the course will require students to ENGL*3500, in their ethical implications of their generate and moderate concepts, outlines, scenes, writing as they receive discussions and engage sequences, and a short feedback in workshop and respectfully with their fellow finished screenplay. from the instructor on how students. Students will learn Through their discussions they shape their characters to present ideas in class with a of reading assignments and story worlds. (See high degree of with the professor and outcomes 2, 3, 7, 10, 11, 13, professionalism and respond their peers, students will 14.) respectfully and analyze how screenwriters comprehensively to questions create a story world. In The course will promote posed. (See outcomes 10-13.) their participation in professional and ethical workshops, they will behaviour. Students master evaluate their classmates’ the professional standards of sense of place within their screenwriting by using story worlds and learn to professional-grade software critique the creation of to format their screenplays. story world as a tool useful Through table readings of for enhancing and their work, they learn how deepening story impact. their screenplays function in a 8. demonstrate fluency in professional setting and write working with the concept an EL reflection essay on how of Narrative Arc within the the reading affected the way craft of Screenwriting. By they approach both the reading and discussing the screenwriting and their role as relation among character, a screenwriter. Moreover, the goal, motive, and action, workshop setting will teach cause and effect, and story students how to work line, scene sequencing and productively in a group setting effective beginnings and and debate issues endings, students will productively with their peers, develop the understanding recognizing that respectful and analytic skills to disagreement implies measure and evaluate the intellectual vibrancy. Students integrity of the narrative will learn to engage arc with their own work respectfully and professionally and that of their with the creative writing of classmates. Students will other workshop participants, apply their understanding providing oral and written of Narrative in their critiques of students’ creative creative work their work. Students will present concepts, outlines, scenes ideas in class with a high and screenplays. Through degree of professionalism and their discussions of reading respond respectfully and assignments with the comprehensively to questions professor and their peers, posed. Student will learn to students will understand organize their work and and analyze how authors manage their time in order to create a narrative arc. In complete a large, long-term, their participation in individually directed creative workshops, they will writing project. (See evaluate and critique their outcomes 1, 10-13.) classmates’ and their creation of narrative arc. 9. analyze, evaluate and refine their personal writing Style by reading and discussing the difference between voice and style, identifying their style, and changing style. Students will apply their understanding of Style in their creative work through their concepts, outlines, scenes and screenplays. Through their discussions of reading assignments with the professor and their peers, students will understand and analyze different authors’ styles. In their participation in workshops, they will evaluate and critique their classmates’ and their own writing style. 10. to participate in a writing workshop by giving and receiving the constructive response and evaluations of their creative work (from classmates and the instructor) in a Professional, constructive manner, as well as rigorously analyzing the application of the elements of storytelling in the student’s work. 11. revise their creative work by learning to incorporate feedback into the writing process and developing the practice of editing, re- writing, and re-working their ideas in order to refine the quality and impact their written work. They will apply their understanding of the Revision process in their scene work, revised outline and screenplay. 12. work fluently within the limitations of the screenplay, within a firm grasp of the limitations demanded by the form, writing fluidly in correct screenplay format, to tell a successful short screen story. 13. reflect upon and understand the professional aspect of their craft by engaging in an experiential learning (EL) experiences in which student use professional- standard software; have actors read their scripts and bring them to life (table reads); learn how to pitch their stories; research and present on furthering their education as screenwriters and finding competitions and grants to complete and/or produce their screenplays. 14. situate their creative work within a larger cultural and artistic context by reflecting on which films and/or screenplays, either in class or from their other coursework, have had an impact on their creative vision. 2. Method(s) of evaluation/assessment (including breakdown) and how the outcomes listed in question 1 will be assessed. Form of Assessment (e.g. Weight of Course Content /Activity (e.g. Lectures Course Learning Outcome Quiz) Assessment (% week 1 -6, Assigned readings, Chpt 1) Addressed (#1,2) of final grade) (e.g. 5%)
Thesis Concept Kit: character, 10% Week 1 Concept Kit: 1, 3-7, 12 world, goal, obstacle The Goal of the Screenwriter The four stages of any screenplay The source of ideas, brainstorming, editing First draft: 1, 3-9, 12 First draft of script outlines 15% and writers block How to read a film Assignment #1 assigned. Participation: 2-10 15% Workshop Participation/Story Week 2 Editing Report What is a Screenplay? First draft of Act I: 1, 3-10, 12 Classical design/Minimalism/Anti-Structure 15% Formal differences of types of stories. Writing the first draft of Act 1 Identifying features of Revisions: 1, 3-12 Archplot/Miniplot/Antiplot Assignment #1 peer feedback Pitch: 13 20% Week 3 Revised Outline and Revised The Subject EL Essay: 13 First Act of script Story Concept
Hammering out the checklist of a story Reflection Essay: 2, 14 10 concept: Presentation on character/empathy/desire/conflict/risk Professionalism/Pitch Assignment #1 due.
Assignment #2 assigned. 5%
EL Reflection Essay Week 4 The Creation of Character 10% Facets of character/empathy/complexity/ Reflection Essay on Cinematic Charting the hero’s Influences motivation/conflict/change Assignment #2 presentations. Week 5 Building a Character Character and Action Dilemma Developing supporting cast design Assignment #2 presentations continued. Assignment #3 assigned. Week 6 Story, Theme and Character Arc Recognizing Theme Developing Theme Assignment #2 presentations completed. Week 7 Structure Using the Three Acts The Setup and Inciting Incident Principles of Antagonism Assignment #3 due. Assignment #4 assigned Week 8 Structure Beginnings and Endings Plot Points/ Turning points Rising Complications, Crisis and Climax and Resolution The Structure checklist Assignment #4 peer feedback Week 9 Scene Writing The fractal story cell. Description, Action, Dialogue, Subtext, Exposition A scene-by-scene checklist Assignment #4 due. Assignment #5 assigned. Week 10 Sequence and Act Design Story Composition Assignment #5 peer feedback Week 11 Building the story Line Breaking the rules. Living the Writer’s Life Week 12 Table reads with Actors (of Opening Sequences). Assignment #5 due. 3. Method(s) of presentation (lecture, seminar, hybrid, case study, lab, etc.). Workshop 4. Does this course include experiential learning (EL) opportunities? If YES, consult the Experiential Learning Faculty & Staff webpage to determine which categories of EL opportunities are present and indicate in the space provided on the Course Addition Part II form. Yes, it offers an in-class EL component. 5. “The University of Guelph Senate affirms its commitment to an inclusive campus and fostering a culture of inclusion at the University of Guelph as an institutional imperative, acknowledging the University’s diverse population and that every member of an inclusive campus is a valued contributor.” (Fostering a Culture of Inclusion at the University of Guelph: an Institutional Imperative, April, 2017). This includes assurances that issues of equity, diversity, and accessibility are considered in the development and delivery of curriculum. Discuss the ways in which inclusion is considered in this new course proposal. For assistance, contact the Associate Director, Office of Teaching and Learning or the Office of Quality Assurance. This is a direct-entry, non-portfolio course, which shows a commitment to access, equity and diversity by eliminating competition for limited spaces and focusing instead on nurturing student talent by creating an inclusive environment. The Creative Writing major places a strong emphasis on issues of social justice, marginalization and the environment. Our goal is to teach students how to reflect a diversity of races, bodies, classes, and genders in their creative practice. Many of the films instructors tend to screen films and assign readings that show character development through challenges and obstacles; these characters are often outsiders or marginalized characters. The creative writing faculty has a strong commitment to diversity and social justice. For example, Professor Chang, who regularly teaches our screenwriting workshops, often focuses on Asian Canadian or issues of disability in her workshops. 6. Reason for course offering and intended audience including: i) degree program(s) to be served by the course and role in the curriculum; Creative Writing major and minor.
ii) expected enrollment; 20 iii) status of course (e.g. core, restricted elective, elective). Restricted elective.
7. List of resource needs (e.g. teaching support, lab and/or computer facilities, field trips, etc.) and identify funding sources for mounting and maintaining the course) A standard classroom and CRWR teaching faculty or sessional.
8. Is this a replacement course? If YES, specify the course to be deleted and include Form C: Course Deletion Template with submission. No. 9. Does this course involve research projects of a significant nature? If YES, consult with the Curriculum Manager, Office of Quality Assurance re: additional information that may be required for submission to BUGS. Refer to the Research Ethics Board (REB) guidelines and to the Undergraduate Calendar. No. 10. A course outline is required for all new courses; forward with the completed templates. 11. Evidence of consultation with other departments, program committees or units may be required. This is particularly important when the proposed course is a replacement for a deleted course included in the schedule of studies or restricted elective list of other degree programs, or when considering prerequisites, restrictions, DE offerings, etc. Forward all correspondence electronically to the Program Committee Secretary who will then forward to the Calendar Review Committee, [email protected]. Parts I and II of the proposal with consultation if the course is approved by the Program Committee. 12. If the intended first offering is earlier than Summer 2021, a request for an early offering is required. The request should be submitted via email to the Curriculum Manager, Office of Quality Assurance by the Chair/Director/Associate Dean of the Department/School/College offering the course. Note, requests are not normally approved (or scheduled) until the new course has received BUGS approval. 13. Proposing to offer a course in distance education format? Provide evidence of approval from the Executive Director, Open Learning and Educational Support to mount the proposed course in DE format. No. 14. A completed library assessment is normally required for new courses proposed for approval. Courses will not proceed to Senate without a completed assessment. Exceptions may be granted. To request an assessment contact the Library. Requests should be submitted well in advance of deadlines as assessments normally take a minimum of three weeks.
Questions? Contact the Curriculum Manager, Administrative Secretary or your Program Committee Chair or Secretary. Senate-Board of Undergraduate Studies Form E: COURSE ADDITION (Part II) 2022/2023 Undergraduate Calendar
Submission Timelines/Deadlines The Course Addition Information and Template is comprised of two parts. Part I is the information portion and Part II is the calendar and colleague template. Both must be completed in full in order for the course proposal to be reviewed by the Calendar Review Committee before recommendation for approval to the Board of Undergraduate Studies and Senate.
A completed library assessment is normally required for all new courses proposed for approval. Contact the Library.
If first offering is prior to Summer 2021, academic unit must submit a request for an early offering to the Curriculum Manager, Office of Quality Assurance.
Course Code*: CRWR*4400 Course Title**: Capstone Scriptwriting Workshop Transcript Title (max. 30 char): Capstone Scriptwriting Academic Unit(s) and College(s) responsible School of English and Theatre Studies for the course (and percent responsible): Credit Weight: (e.g. 0.50) 1.00 Lecture/Lab Hours: (e.g. 3-0) 3-0 Semester Offering: (e.g. S,F,W) F First Offering: (e.g. Fall 2021) Fall 2026 Calendar Description: (Three to four This capstone course focuses on scriptwriting and may involve writing for the sentences MAX; description must be written screen, writing for the stage, or both. Students will begin the course by creating an in full sentence form) outline of a full length feature film or play and will then be expected to make significant progress on their creative projects. This workshop course will also involve the sophisticated analysis and critique of scripts and focused discussions of the cultural, social, political and professional issues in which the practice of scriptwriting is enmeshed. Prerequisite(s): CRWR*3400 Screenwriting Workshop or CRWR*3500 Advanced Writing for Performance Restriction(s): Restricted to students in the Creative Writing Major who have completed 14 credits with an average of 70% in all course attempts in Creative Writing and English. Students can register a maximum of 1.0 credits in Creative Writing at the 4000-level. Co-requisite(s): Equate(s): Instructor Consent Required? ☐ Yes ☒ No Scheduling Instructions: specify which ☐ Annually option is applicable. ☒ Even-Numbered Years ☐ Odd-Numbered Years Distance Education: specify which option is ☐ Also offered through Distance Education. applicable. ☐ Offered through Distance Education only. ☒ Not offered through Distance Education. Experiential Learning (EL): check box if EL is ☒ ☐ Meets 6 Criteria Meets 3-5 Criteria practiced in the course and meets EL criteria Rank type(s) 1 – 5, no more than 3 types per course: __Applied Research __ Community Engaged Learning __ Field Course _2 Professional Practice 1_ Course-Integrated Template-Specific Notes *Prefixes and numerical codes are assigned by ORS. For assistance, contact the Colleague Specialist, Enrolment Services. **Note course titles greater than 30 characters (including spaces and punctuation) will be shortened in Colleague and therefore on the student transcript. If necessary, provide a transcript title. Symbols (i.e. &) are permitted in shortening the transcript title. Approved by Program Committee(s): BA Date: May 10, 2021 Approved by Dean(s)/Designate(s): Ruediger Mueller Date: May 10, 2021 Senate-Board of Undergraduate Studies Form E: COURSE ADDITION (Part I) 2022/2023 Undergraduate Calendar
Submission Timelines/Deadlines
The Course Addition Information and Template is comprised of two parts. Part I is the information requested below and Part II is the calendar and colleague template. Both must be completed in full in order for the course proposal to be reviewed by the Calendar Review Committee before recommendation for approval to the Board of Undergraduate Studies (BUGS) and Senate. For definition of the terms used on page 2, see the Glossary in the Undergraduate Calendar.
Course Code and Title: ENGL*2380 Reading Poetry
Calendar Description: This course offers an introduction to the challenges posed by poetic discourse and provides students with the practical tools they need to analyze and appreciate verse. Students will read and analyze a broad range of verse practice in English, thereby gaining a base repertoire through which they can approach future encounters with poetry in other classes. Significant portions of the course will be devoted to thinking about poetry in historical terms.
1. Provide the detailed learning outcomes of the course. Indicate how these align with major/specialization outcomes and/or program level learning outcomes and whether any of the University's Undergraduate Learning Outcomes are met by the course. If the proposed course will be core to more than one major/specialization or degree program, make reference to each of these. If the proposed course is an elective for multiple specializations/programs, the course learning outcomes should align with one or more of the University of Guelph’s Undergraduate Learning Outcomes. Refer to the Undergraduate Calendar and the Learning Outcomes website for more information on learning outcomes. Course Learning Outcomes Major/Specialization Degree Program Learning U of G Undergraduate Learning Outcomes Outcomes Learning Outcomes By the end of this course, The course will fulfill the The course will fulfill the The course will fulfill the students will have: following third-year learning following third-year learning following undergraduate outcomes for the English outcomes for the degree: learning outcomes: 1) developed practical reading major: skills required for reading a (1) CRITICAL AND CREATIVE (1) The course will promote Critical and Creative Thinking. variety of verse forms THINKING. Students will be community engagement and The course will encourage 2) internalized the formal and able to analyze poetry in global understanding by critical and creative thinking generic expectations required relation to a theoretical and focusing on a very different by requiring students to for understanding and historical framework, as well periods, cultures, and national critically synthesize scholarly as interrogate questions of contextualizing poetic contexts while paying critical knowledge about various utterance literary value and evaluate how a poem works within, or attention to how a variety of poetic forms and genres. See 3) acquired a wide range of expands the definitions of verse forms. See Course Course Learning Outcomes 1, terms and concepts that will form and genre. See Course Learning Outcome 4. 2, 3, 4, and 5. allow them to speak precisely Learning Outcomes 1, 2, 3, 4, about poetics and 5. (2) The course will encourage critical and creative thinking 4) developed key strategies (2) Students will be Global Understanding. The LITERACY. by requiring students to for understanding poetry in its able to read critical and course will promote historical context and for analyze poetry and critically literary texts and assess their community engagement and addressing poetry’s complex synthesize scholarly rhetorical, ideological, and global understanding by relationship to politics knowledge about poetic aesthetic strategies. By having students read poetry in examining a variety of verse forms and genres. See Course 5) acquired experience writing relation to the text’s historical about verse through a range forms, students will be able to Learning Outcomes 1, 2, 3, 4, and cultural context, as well explain and illustrate theories and 5. of form, genre, and literary as examining how poetry of exercises that add up to value and analyze poetry in (3) The course will promote addresses political issues and approximately 5000 words. relation to their historicity, literacy and communication debates. See Course Learning periodization, and/or 6) achieved organizational by its reading-intensive Outcome 4. canonicity. See Course and time management skills in curriculum and its focus on Learning Outcomes 1, 2, 3, 4, order to be prepared for class and 5. having students analyze a and submit work by assigned variety of verse forms in their Communication. The course deadlines. (3) GLOBAL writing assignments. See will promote communication UNDERSTANDING. Students Course Learning Outcomes 1, by its reading-intensive will examine the cultural, curriculum and its focus on historical and/or discursive 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6. analyzing a variety of verse contexts of poetry in order to (4) The course will help explain how a text is produced forms in the written exercises. students to evaluate and by, and in turn produces, that See Course Learning conduct research by context. Students will also be Outcomes 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5. able to explain the role of introducing them to different poetry to address both critical approaches to reading cultural and political issues. and understanding poetry. Professional and Ethical See Course Learning Outcome See Course Learning Behaviour. The course will 4. Outcomes 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5. encourage professional and (4) COMMUNICATION. In ethical behaviour through the (5) The course will help their writing assignments, effective time management, students will learn and students to achieve a depth personal organization, demonstrate the ability to and breadth of intellectual integrity and read and write critically about understanding by requiring academic accountability built poetry. See Course Learning student to engage with a into its assignment structure. Outcomes 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5. broad range of issues and See Course Learning Outcome 6. (5) PROFESSIONAL AND expressive forms of poetry in ETHICAL BEHAVIOUR. order to explain how poetry Students will achieve engages culture and politics. organizational and time See Course Learning management skills in order to Outcomes 1, 2, 3, 4,and 5. be prepared for class and submit work by assigned (6) The course will encourage deadlines. See Course professional and ethical Learning Outcome 6. behaviour through the effective time management, personal organization, intellectual integrity and academic accountability built into its assignment structure. See Course Learning Outcome 6.
2. Method(s) of evaluation/assessment (including breakdown) and how the outcomes listed in question 1 will be assessed. Form of Assessment (e.g. Weight of Course Content /Activity (e.g. Lectures Course Learning Outcome Quiz) Assessment (% week 1 -6, Assigned readings, Chpt 1) Addressed (#1,2) of final grade) (e.g. 5%)
Term quizzes 10% 1.The Articulation of Sound Forms in Time Term quizzes – 1, 2, 3, 4 a) repetition: rhyme 3 close reading exercises 15x3 = 45% Jane Kenyon, “Let It Come”; Thomas Wyatt, 3 close reading exercises – 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 “The Lover’s Lute Cannot be Blamed” Reading log 25% Brooks, “We Real Cool”, Derek Walcott Reading log –1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 Final essay 20% b) variation: cadence Son House, “Death Letter; Langston Hughes, Final essay –1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6
selected blues poems
Dylan Thomas, “And Death Shall Have No Dominion” Seamus Heaney, from North
2. Sonic Structures a) what does form do? Sonnets incl. sonnets by Cullen, Brooks, Berrigan and Mayer b) freedom? Bishop, “One Art”; Marilyn Hacker, “Villanelle”; Duncan, “Opening the Field”
3. Syntax/Lineation/Figuration a) -modes of containment: the heroic couplet Pope, “Windsor Forest” -opening the sentence by breaking it Dickinson, (372) “After death a certain formal feeling comes”; Williams, “Spring and All” b) metaphor and metonymy: exceeding denotative meaning Michael Ondaatje, Dionne Brand, Don McKay
4. The Scene of Speech a) utterance as act Wordsworth, “Lines….Tintern Abbey” b) the poetic subject Bishop, “In the Waiting Room” Broader Problematics
Reading historically: poetry’s context
5. Social authorship and the consolations of pastoral discourse Andrew Marvell, selected poems Reading Log: Anne Finch
6. Form and history -John Milton, selected sonnets, political writings, and Paradise Lost, book one -Anne Bradstreet
Between prose and verse: poetry and the public sphere
7. Intimate scenarios John Keats, Lamia, Isabella, The Eve of St. Agnes, and Other Poems Reading Log: Keats’s Letters
8. Publication—Is the Auction Emily Dickinson, fascicle x, xiv Reading log: Dickinson letters
Between desire and need: poetry and affect
9. The erotic boundaries of the lyric -selections from Susan Howe, Claudia Rankine, Leslie Scalapino, and Lynn Hejinian -Lucille Clifton, Two-Headed Woman
10. Poems for everyday living selections from Frank O’Hara, Bernadette Mayer, and Alice Notley -Harryette Mullen, Sleeping with the Alphabet
In times of emergency: poetry and politics
11. Wartime Now -Robert Duncan, “Uprising” Denise Levertov, “What Were They Like”, “Life at War” Adrienne Rich, “On Burning Paper Instead of Children” -Gwendolyn Brooks, In the Mecca
12. Wartime Continuing -Yusef Komunyakaa, Dien Cai Dau (1988) -Ocean Vuong, Night Sky with Exit Wounds (2016)
3. Method(s) of presentation (lecture, seminar, hybrid, case study, lab, etc.). Lecture 4. Does this course include experiential learning (EL) opportunities? If YES, consult the Experiential Learning Faculty & Staff webpage to determine which categories of EL opportunities are present and indicate in the space provided on the Course Addition Part II form. 5. “The University of Guelph Senate affirms its commitment to an inclusive campus and fostering a culture of inclusion at the University of Guelph as an institutional imperative, acknowledging the University’s diverse population and that every member of an inclusive campus is a valued contributor.” (Fostering a Culture of Inclusion at the University of Guelph: an Institutional Imperative, April, 2017). This includes assurances that issues of equity, diversity, and accessibility are considered in the development and delivery of curriculum. Discuss the ways in which inclusion is considered in this new course proposal. For assistance, contact the Associate Director, Office of Teaching and Learning or the Office of Quality Assurance. This course provides practical tools for analyzing and appreciating verse, but its ultimate objective is to heighten students’ awareness of the signifying potential of language. Poetry has the power to provide marginalized populations a voice and a platform of which to raise awareness of inequities in society. As part of the broader Creative Writing and English curricula, students will use this course to understand the structure and form of poetry before having the option to take advanced courses. This may lead students to reflect on their own personal experiences in their writing or better understand the stories and experiences of others unlike themselves. 6. Reason for course offering and intended audience including: i) degree program(s) to be served by the course and role in the curriculum; English and Creative Writing majors and minors
ii) expected enrollment; 50-60 iii) status of course (e.g. core, restricted elective, elective). Creative Writing – core, English – elective
7. List of resource needs (e.g. teaching support, lab and/or computer facilities, field trips, etc.) and identify funding sources for mounting and maintaining the course) Standard classroom with English faculty or sessional instructor.
8. Is this a replacement course? If YES, specify the course to be deleted and include Form C: Course Deletion Template with submission. No.
9. Does this course involve research projects of a significant nature? If YES, consult with the Curriculum Manager, Office of Quality Assurance re: additional information that may be required for submission to BUGS. Refer to the Research Ethics Board (REB) guidelines and to the Undergraduate Calendar. 10. A course outline is required for all new courses; forward with the completed templates. 11. Evidence of consultation with other departments, program committees or units may be required. This is particularly important when the proposed course is a replacement for a deleted course included in the schedule of studies or restricted elective list of other degree programs, or when considering prerequisites, restrictions, DE offerings, etc. Forward all correspondence electronically to the Program Committee Secretary who will then forward to the Calendar Review Committee, [email protected]. Parts I and II of the proposal with consultation if the course is approved by the Program Committee. 12. If the intended first offering is earlier than Summer 2022, a request for an early offering is required. An early offering may be requested on this form or by emailing the Colleague Specialist, Enrolment Services post BUGS approval. Early offering requests require the approval of the related Associate Dean Academic.
13. Proposing to offer a course in distance education format? Provide evidence of approval from the Executive Director, Open Learning and Educational Support to mount the proposed course in DE format. 14. A completed library assessment is normally required for new courses proposed for approval. Courses will not proceed to Senate without a completed assessment. Exceptions may be granted. To request an assessment contact the Library. Requests should be submitted well in advance of deadlines as assessments normally take a minimum of three weeks.
Senate-Board of Undergraduate Studies Form E: COURSE ADDITION (Part II) 2022/2023 Undergraduate Calendar
Submission Timelines/Deadlines The Course Addition Information and Template is comprised of two parts. Part I is the information portion and Part II is the calendar and colleague template. Both must be completed in full in order for the course proposal to be reviewed by the Calendar Review Committee before recommendation for approval to the Board of Undergraduate Studies (BUGS) and Senate.
A completed library assessment is normally required for all new courses proposed for approval. Contact the Library.
If first offering is prior to Summer 2022, a request for an early offering should be indicated on Part I or sent to the Colleague Specialist, Enrolment Services post BUGS approval. Requests for early offerings require the approval of the related Associate Dean Academic.
Course Code*: ENGL*2380 Course Title**: Reading Poetry Transcript Title (max. 30 char): Reading Poetry Academic Unit(s) and College(s) responsible School of English and Theatre Studies for the course (and percent responsible): Credit Weight: (e.g. 0.50) 0.50 Lecture/Lab Hours: (e.g. 3-0) (3-0) Semester Offering: (e.g. S,F,W) F First Offering: (e.g. Fall 2022) Fall 2023 Calendar Description: (Three to four This course offers an introduction to the challenges posed by poetic discourse and sentences MAX; description must be written provides students with the practical tools they need to analyze and appreciate in full sentence form) verse. Students will read and analyze a broad range of verse practice in English, thereby gaining a base repertoire through which they can approach future encounters with poetry in other classes. Significant portions of the course will be devoted to thinking about poetry in historical terms.
Prerequisite(s): Restriction(s): Registration in the English major, minor, area of concentration, or Creative Writing major or minor. Co-requisite(s): Equate(s): Instructor Consent Required? ☐ Yes ☒ No Scheduling Instructions: specify which ☒ Annually option is applicable. ☐ Even-Numbered Years ☐ Odd-Numbered Years Distance Education: specify which option is ☐ Also offered through Distance Education. applicable. ☐ Offered through Distance Education only. ☒ Not offered through Distance Education. Experiential Learning (EL): check box if EL is ☐ ☐ Meets 6 Criteria Meets 3-5 Criteria practiced in the course and meets EL criteria Rank type(s) 1 – 5, no more than 3 types per course: __Research or Scholarly Creation __ Field Course __ Community Engaged Learning (CEL) __Professional or Career Practice __Course-Integrated __Work Experience Template-Specific Notes *Prefixes and numerical codes are assigned by ORS. For assistance, contact the Colleague Specialist, Enrolment Services. **Note course titles greater than 30 characters (including spaces and punctuation) will be shortened in Colleague and therefore on the student transcript. If necessary, provide a transcript title. Symbols (i.e. &) are permitted in shortening the transcript title. Approved by Program Committee(s): BA Date: May 10, 2021 Approved by Dean(s)/Designate(s): Ruediger Mueller Date: May 10, 2021
Senate-Board of Undergraduate Studies Form B: COURSE CHANGE 2022/2023 Undergraduate Calendar
Course Code and Title: CRWR*3100 Fiction Workshop (formerly ENGL*3050 Intermediate Fiction Workshop) Semester Implemented: Fall 2023 Course Use in Undergraduate Programs: All majors, minors, areas of emphasis, diplomas and certificates using this course in their curriculum must be listed in the table below. If the course is not a requirement in any program check Elective Only. Core/Required Restricted Elective Restricted elective for the Creative Writing major and minor; Elective Only ☐ restricted elective for CTS ☐ Experiential Learning (EL). ☐ Meets 6 criteria ☐ Meets 3-5 criteria EL Criteria If checked, rank type(s) (1 -5, no more than 3 per course): __Applied Research __ Community Engaged Learning __ Field Course __Professional Practice __Course-Integrated PROPOSED CHANGE (2022-2023 Calendar Description with Revisions): for revisions, use bold to add text and strikethrough to delete text ENGL*3050 CRWR*3100 Intermediate Fiction Writing Workshop F,W (3-0) [0.50] Students will gain a deeper understanding of the basic elements of creative writing (character development, effective dialogue, narrative arc, and setting) through practical experiments, discussions, and group writing exercises. Through the writing workshops, students will hone their skills as creative writers, critical thinkers, and editors. Equates: ENGL*3050 Prerequisite(s): ENGL*1080, ENGL*2920 CRWR*2100 or CRWR*2150 Department(s): School of English and Theatre Studies Restriction(s): Registration in the Creative Writing major, minor or area of concentration. Majors and minors can register in a maximum of 1.0 credits in Creative Writing at the 3000-level.
REVISED – CLEAN COPY (2022-2023 Calendar Description): provide clean copy, with no mark-ups.
CRWR*3100 Fiction Writing Workshop F,W (3-0) [0.50] Students will gain a deeper understanding of the basic elements of creative writing (character development, effective dialogue, narrative arc, and setting) through practical experiments, discussions, and group writing exercises. Through the writing workshops, students will hone their skills as creative writers, critical thinkers, and editors. Equates: ENGL*3050 Prerequisite(s): CRWR*2100 or CRWR*2150 Department(s): School of English and Theatre Studies Restriction(s): Registration in the Creative Writing major, minor or area of concentration. Majors and minors can register in a maximum of 1.0 credits in Creative Writing at the 3000-level.
REASON FOR REVISION (point form): • We are creating a Creative Writing Major with new course codes and new prerequisites, so we would like to change ENGL*3050 to CRWR*3100 and apply new prerequisites.
*Transcript Title: (max Fiction Workshop 30 char) if applicable Approved by Program BA Date: May 10, 2021 Approved by Ruediger Mueller Date: May 10, 2021 Dean(s)/Designates(s): *Proposed new course titles greater than 30 characters (including spaces and punctuation) will be shortened in Colleague and therefore on the student transcript. If necessary, provide a transcript title. Symbols (i.e. &) are permitted in shortening the transcript title.
Senate-Board of Undergraduate Studies Form B: COURSE CHANGE 2022/2023 Undergraduate Calendar ***INSTRUCTIONS***
Course Code and Title: CRWR*3200 Creative Nonfiction Writing Workshop Semester Implemented: Fall 2023 Course Use in Undergraduate Programs: All majors, minors, areas of emphasis, diplomas and certificates using this course in their curriculum must be listed in the table below. If the course is not a requirement in any program check Elective Only. Core/Required Restricted Elective Restricted Elective for the Creative Writing Major and Minor Elective Only ☐ ☐ Experiential Learning (EL). ☐ Meets 6 criteria ☐ Meets 3-5 criteria EL Criteria If checked, rank type(s) (1 -5, no more than 3 per course): __Applied Research __ Community Engaged Learning __ Field Course __Professional Practice __Course-Integrated PROPOSED CHANGE (2022-2023 Calendar Description with Revisions): for revisions, use bold to add text and strikethrough to delete text ENGL*3030 CRWR*3200 Intermediate Creative Nonfiction Writing Workshop F (3-0) [0.50] Students will be introduced to one or more major forms of creative nonfiction—memoirs, personal essays, feature articles, reviews, profiles, nature writing, and literary travelogues. Students will craft works of creative nonfiction, share them with their peers, and offer constructive and respectful evaluations of their peers’ work in a workshop format. Students will also read excerpts of professionally published creative nonfiction and encouraged to borrow from, experiment with, and playfully alter some the creative writing techniques displayed by the professional writers. Prerequisite(s): ENGL*1080, ENGL*2920 CRWR*2200 Department(s): School of English and Theatre Studies Restriction(s): Registration in the Creative Writing major, minor or area of concentration. Majors and minors can register in a maximum of 1.0 credits in Creative Writing at the 3000-level.
REVISED – CLEAN COPY (2022-2023 Calendar Description): provide clean copy, with no mark-ups.
CRWR*3200 Creative Nonfiction Writing Workshop F (3-0) [0.50] Students will be introduced to one or more major forms of creative nonfiction—memoirs, personal essays, feature articles, reviews, profiles, nature writing, and literary travelogues. Students will craft works of creative nonfiction, share them with their peers, and offer constructive and respectful evaluations of their peers’ work in a workshop format. Students will also read excerpts of professionally published creative nonfiction and encouraged to borrow from, experiment with, and playfully alter some the creative writing techniques displayed by the professional writers. Prerequisite(s): CRWR*2200 Department(s): School of English and Theatre Studies Restriction(s): Registration in the Creative Writing major, minor or area of concentration. Majors and minors can register in a maximum of 1.0 credits in Creative Writing at the 3000-level.
REASON FOR REVISION (point form): • We are creating a Creative Writing Major with new course codes and new prerequisites, so we would like to change ENGL*3030 to CRWR*3200 and apply new prerequisites.
*Transcript Title: (max Creative Nonfiction Workshop 30 char) if applicable Approved by Program BA Date: May 10, 2021 Approved by Ruediger Mueller Date: May 10, 2021 Dean(s)/Designates(s): *Proposed new course titles greater than 30 characters (including spaces and punctuation) will be shortened in Colleague and therefore on the student transcript. If necessary, provide a transcript title. Symbols (i.e. &) are permitted in shortening the transcript title. Senate-Board of Undergraduate Studies Form B: COURSE CHANGE 2022/2023 Undergraduate Calendar
Course Code and Title: CRWR*4100 Capstone Prose/Narrative Workshop Semester Implemented: Fall 2024 Course Use in Undergraduate Programs: All majors, minors, areas of emphasis, diplomas and certificates using this course in their curriculum must be listed in the table below. If the course is not a requirement in any program check Elective Only. Core/Required Creative Writing Minor Restricted Elective Restricted Elective for the Creative Writing Major; restricted elective Elective Only ☐ for CTS ☐ Experiential Learning (EL). ☐ Meets 6 criteria ☐ Meets 3-5 criteria EL Criteria If checked, rank type(s) (1 -5, no more than 3 per course): __Applied Research __ Community Engaged Learning __ Field Course __Professional Practice __Course-Integrated PROPOSED CHANGE (2020-2021 Calendar Description with Revisions): for revisions, use bold to add text and strikethrough to delete text ENGL*4720 CRWR*4100 Capstone Creative Writing: Prose/Narrative Workshop /Poetry F,W (3-0) [1.00] A development and extension of the creative writing/reading skills and techniques introduced in the creative writing workshops. This course will involve the generation and revision of challenging new work, sophisticated critique of the work of other students, and focused discussion of the cultural, social, and political issues in which the practice of creative writing is enmeshed. Prerequisite(s): 1 of ENGL*2920, ENGL*2940, ENGL*3050, ENGL*3060, ENGL*3070, ENGL*3090 CRWR*3100 Equates: ENGL*4720 Restriction(s): This is a Priority Access Course. Enrolment may be restricted to particular programs or specializations or semester levels during certain periods. Please see departmental website for more information. Restricted to students in the Creative Writing Major who have completed 14 credits with an average of 70% in all course attempts in Creative Writing. Students can register a maximum of 1.0 credits in Creative Writing at the 4000-level. Department(s): School of English and Theatre Studies.
REVISED – CLEAN COPY (2021-2022 Calendar Description): provide clean copy, with no mark-ups. CRWR*4100 Capstone Prose/Narrative Workshop F,W (3-0) [1.00] A development and extension of the creative writing/reading skills and techniques introduced in the creative writing workshops. This course will involve the generation and revision of challenging new work, sophisticated critique of the work of other students, and focused discussion of the cultural, social, and political issues in which the practice of creative writing is enmeshed. Prerequisite(s): CRWR*3100 Equates: ENGL*4720 Restriction(s): Restricted to students in the Creative Writing Major who have completed 14 credits with an average of 70% in all course attempts in Creative Writing. Students can register a maximum of 1.0 credits in Creative Writing at the 4000-level. Department(s): School of English and Theatre Studies.
REASON FOR REVISION (point form): • We are creating a Creative Writing Major with new course codes and new prerequisites, so we would like to change ENGL*4720 to CRWR*4100 and apply new prerequisites.
*Transcript Title: (max Capstone Prose/Narrative 30 char) if applicable Approved by Program BA Date: May 10, 2021 Approved by Ruediger Mueller Date: May 10, 2021 Dean(s)/Designates(s): *Proposed new course titles greater than 30 characters (including spaces and punctuation) will be shortened in Colleague and therefore on the student transcript. If necessary, provide a transcript title. Symbols (i.e. &) are permitted in shortening the transcript title. Senate-Board of Undergraduate Studies Form C: COURSE DELETION 2021/2022 Undergraduate Calendar
Submission Timelines/Deadlines
If the course proposed for deletion serves degree programs, majors, minors, or areas of emphasis administered by other academic units and program committees, evidence of consultation in the form of email correspondence or memo from the appropriate chair(s)/director(s) and program committee(s) is required. Forward correspondence electronically with this form to the Program Committee Secretary. Note: this correspondence will be included with the final submission to the Calendar Review Committee (CRC).
Course Code and Title: ENGL*2920 Elements of Creative Writing
Academic Unit(s) and College(s) School of English and Theatre Studies responsible for the course: Normal Semester Offering: ( e.g. S,F,W) F, W
Last Offering of this course will be* Winter 2022 (e.g.-Fall 2021): Course Enrolment History (previous F19:103, W20:48, F20:100, four semesters):
Course Use in Undergraduate Programs: All majors, minors, areas of emphasis, diplomas and certificates using this course in their curriculum must be listed in the table below. If the course is not a requirement in any program check Elective Only. Core/Required CRWR Minor Restricted Elective CTS ☐ Elective Only Replacement Course***: CRWR*1000
Template-Specific Notes *Last Offering: The course will be end-dated in Colleague based on the "last offering" information. A note will be added to the course description in the Undergraduate Calendar indicating the semester the course will last be offered. **Course Use in Undergraduate Programs: BUGS requires identification of programs and specializations this course currently serves and how it is used (e.g. core-BSc, restricted elective-BComm, etc.). This information is available through the PIMS screen of Colleague. Cross-reference this with the degree and specialization information in the Undergraduate Calendar. For assistance with PIMS, contact the Colleague Specialist, Enrolment Services. ***Replacement Course: If a new course is being proposed as a replacement for this course, specify the course code, title and department responsible in the text box. Ensure you have also included the replacement course on “Form E: Course Addition Template”. RATIONALE FOR THE DELETION (point form): • We are creating a Creative Writing major and restructuring our courses. Our gateway course to the major will now feature a workshop component and will be offered at the 1000-level, ensuring students receive a four-year Creative Writing experience.
Approved by Program Committee(s): BA Date: May 10, 2021 Approved by Dean(s)/Designate(s): Ruediger Mueller Date: May 10, 2021
Senate-Board of Undergraduate Studies Form C: COURSE DELETION 2021/2022 Undergraduate Calendar
Submission Timelines/Deadlines
If the course proposed for deletion serves degree programs, majors, minors, or areas of emphasis administered by other academic units and program committees, evidence of consultation in the form of email correspondence or memo from the appropriate chair(s)/director(s) and program committee(s) is required. Forward correspondence electronically with this form to the Program Committee Secretary. Note: this correspondence will be included with the final submission to the Calendar Review Committee (CRC).
Course Code and Title: ENGL*3060 Intermediate Poetry Writing Workshop
Academic Unit(s) and College(s) School of English and Theatre Studies responsible for the course: Normal Semester Offering: ( e.g. S,F,W) F
Last Offering of this course will be* Fall 2023 (e.g.-Fall 2021): Course Enrolment History (previous F17: 17; F19: 20; F20: 20 four semesters):
Course Use in Undergraduate Programs: All majors, minors, areas of emphasis, diplomas and certificates using this course in their curriculum must be listed in the table below. If the course is not a requirement in any program check Elective Only. Core/Required CRWR Minor Restricted Elective CTS ☐ Elective Only Replacement Course***: CRWR*3300
Template-Specific Notes *Last Offering: The course will be end-dated in Colleague based on the "last offering" information. A note will be added to the course description in the Undergraduate Calendar indicating the semester the course will last be offered. **Course Use in Undergraduate Programs: BUGS requires identification of programs and specializations this course currently serves and how it is used (e.g. core-BSc, restricted elective-BComm, etc.). This information is available through the PIMS screen of Colleague. Cross-reference this with the degree and specialization information in the Undergraduate Calendar. For assistance with PIMS, contact the Colleague Specialist, Enrolment Services. ***Replacement Course: If a new course is being proposed as a replacement for this course, specify the course code, title and department responsible in the text box. Ensure you have also included the replacement course on “Form E: Course Addition Template”. RATIONALE FOR THE DELETION (point form): • We are creating a Creative Writing major and restructuring our courses. This course will be replaced with a third-year poetry writing workshop that focuses on eco-poetics.
Approved by Program Committee(s): BA Date: May 10, 2021 Approved by Dean(s)/Designate(s): Ruediger Mueller Date: May 10, 2021
Senate-Board of Undergraduate Studies Form C: COURSE DELETION 2021/2022 Undergraduate Calendar
Submission Timelines/Deadlines
If the course proposed for deletion serves degree programs, majors, minors, or areas of emphasis administered by other academic units and program committees, evidence of consultation in the form of email correspondence or memo from the appropriate chair(s)/director(s) and program committee(s) is required. Forward correspondence electronically with this form to the Program Committee Secretary. Note: this correspondence will be included with the final submission to the Calendar Review Committee (CRC).
Course Code and Title: ENGL*3070 Intermediate Screenwriting Workshop
Academic Unit(s) and College(s) School of English and Theatre Studies responsible for the course: Normal Semester Offering: ( e.g. S,F,W) W
Last Offering of this course will be* Winter 2023 (e.g.-Fall 2021): Course Enrolment History (previous W18: 20, W19: 18, W20:23 four semesters):
Course Use in Undergraduate Programs: All majors, minors, areas of emphasis, diplomas and certificates using this course in their curriculum must be listed in the table below. If the course is not a requirement in any program check Elective Only. Core/Required Restricted Elective CRWR Minor; CTS ☐ Elective Only Replacement Course***:
Template-Specific Notes *Last Offering: The course will be end-dated in Colleague based on the "last offering" information. A note will be added to the course description in the Undergraduate Calendar indicating the semester the course will last be offered. **Course Use in Undergraduate Programs: BUGS requires identification of programs and specializations this course currently serves and how it is used (e.g. core-BSc, restricted elective-BComm, etc.). This information is available through the PIMS screen of Colleague. Cross-reference this with the degree and specialization information in the Undergraduate Calendar. For assistance with PIMS, contact the Colleague Specialist, Enrolment Services. ***Replacement Course: If a new course is being proposed as a replacement for this course, specify the course code, title and department responsible in the text box. Ensure you have also included the replacement course on “Form E: Course Addition Template”. RATIONALE FOR THE DELETION (point form): • We are creating a Creative Writing major and restructuring our courses. As part of the major’s focus on the environment and social justice, we are replacing our current screenwriting course with one that focuses on writing inclusive screenplays.
Approved by Program Committee(s): BA Date: May 10, 2021 Approved by Dean(s)/Designate(s): Ruediger Mueller Date: May 10, 2021
Senate-Board of Undergraduate Studies Form C: COURSE DELETION 2021/2022 Undergraduate Calendar
Submission Timelines/Deadlines
If the course proposed for deletion serves degree programs, majors, minors, or areas of emphasis administered by other academic units and program committees, evidence of consultation in the form of email correspondence or memo from the appropriate chair(s)/director(s) and program committee(s) is required. Forward correspondence electronically with this form to the Program Committee Secretary. Note: this correspondence will be included with the final submission to the Calendar Review Committee (CRC).
Course Code and Title: ENGL*3090 Special Topics in Creative Writing Workshop
Academic Unit(s) and College(s) School of English and Theatre Studies responsible for the course: Normal Semester Offering: ( e.g. S,F,W) F, W
Last Offering of this course will be* Winter 2021 (e.g.-Fall 2021): Course Enrolment History (previous F17:15; F18:14; F19:11 four semesters):
Course Use in Undergraduate Programs: All majors, minors, areas of emphasis, diplomas and certificates using this course in their curriculum must be listed in the table below. If the course is not a requirement in any program check Elective Only. Core/Required Restricted Elective CRWR Minor; CTS ☐ Elective Only Replacement Course***:
Template-Specific Notes *Last Offering: The course will be end-dated in Colleague based on the "last offering" information. A note will be added to the course description in the Undergraduate Calendar indicating the semester the course will last be offered. **Course Use in Undergraduate Programs: BUGS requires identification of programs and specializations this course currently serves and how it is used (e.g. core-BSc, restricted elective-BComm, etc.). This information is available through the PIMS screen of Colleague. Cross-reference this with the degree and specialization information in the Undergraduate Calendar. For assistance with PIMS, contact the Colleague Specialist, Enrolment Services. ***Replacement Course: If a new course is being proposed as a replacement for this course, specify the course code, title and department responsible in the text box. Ensure you have also included the replacement course on “Form E: Course Addition Template”. RATIONALE FOR THE DELETION (point form): • We are creating a Creative Writing major and restructuring our courses. This course was often used to teach nonfiction or to cover gaps in our genre coverage. Our major will now offer full coverage, so there is no longer any need for this course.
Approved by Program Committee(s): BA Date: May 10, 2021 Approved by Dean(s)/Designate(s): Ruediger Mueller Date: May 10, 2021
CRWR*1000 Elements of Storytelling (sample course outline showing possible iteration of the course)
Calendar Description: Students will learn the basics of writing a fictional narrative in this lecture-workshop course. Student skills are developed through a combination of lectures, workshops, peer editing, creative writing exercises, and exams.
Reading List: The Writing Life, Annie Dillard. The Art of The Story, Daniel Halpern Reading Packet
Methods of Evaluation: 5 Writing Exercises (30% total) Workshop Participation (30% total) Revision (20%) Final Exam (20%)
Learning Outcomes: By the end of the course students should be able to: 1. learn and apply a disciplinary vocabulary that enables students to discuss, analyze, and evaluate the elements of storytelling. 2. define, identify, and understand Point of View through lectures, readings, workshop discussions, and exams. Student will apply their understanding of Point of View in their creative work through 450- to 500-word writing exercises. In their workshop critiques, creative work, and written exams, they will be able to differentiate among First Person Point of View, Third Person Point of View, and Omniscient Point of View, and understand the limits and advantages of each type of point of view. They will be able to analyze Point of View in discussions of reading assignments in lecture and in their
1 exams. They will evaluate the use of Point of View in their work, as well as their classmates’ creative work by participating in writing workshops and in revising their work. 3. to create credible characters by applying their understanding of Character Development in their 450- to 500-word writing exercises, using both the direct and indirect method of character presentation, author summary, clothing and appearance, movement, gesture, thoughts and speech to build up a character. Through reading assignments, lectures, and exams, students will analyze how authors develop characters. They will evaluate their classmates’ character development and learn to critique character constructions (both their own and their classmates’) by participating in workshop discussions and in revising their work. 4. to create convincing landscape descriptions by applying their understanding of Sense of Place in their 450- to 500-word writing exercises. Through reading assignments, lectures, and exams, students will analyze how authors create a Sense of Place. They will evaluate Sense of Place and learn to critique setting (both their own and their classmates’) by participating in workshop discussions and in revising their work. 5. define, identify, understand, and analyze a Scene as the central unit of story through lectures, readings, class discussion, and exams. Students will apply their understanding of Scene by building a story through the development of scenes and scene sequences in their 450- to 500-word writing exercises. They will evaluate the construction and sequencing of scenes by participating in workshop discussions and in revising their work. 6. to create effective Dialogue by employing the techniques and tools of dialogue creation in their 450- to 500-word writing exercises. Through reading assignments, lectures, and exams, students will analyze how authors create good dialogue. They will evaluate their classmates’ ability to create good dialogue, as well as critique their own dialogue and in revising their work.. 7. creatively apply the knowledge and critical understanding of the elements of storytelling to devise the best approaches for achieving their creative goals, literary effects and/or aesthetic ends.
2 8. to participate in a writing workshop, discussing and evaluating the creative work by their classmates in a Professional, constructive manner. 9. critically evaluate creative work, utilizing their firm grasp of the elements of storytelling, as well as literary forms and techniques, to propose creative, informed solutions to problems, flaws, and issues with the writing 10. to define, identity and understand 3-act and 5-act plot structures in film and television in their lectures, discussions, and exams.
Methods of Assessment: Five Creative Writing Exercises (30% total) Each student will produce 8 450- to 500-word writing exercises that address an aspect of the craft. These exercises will be workshopped. All these exercises have to be handed to the workshop instructor at the beginning of class on Monday. The student must submit 11 copies of the exercise to the instructor. For the Point of View and Character exercises, only the exercise with the highest grade in each category will be counted.
The short 450- to 500-word creative writing exercise is an essential learning and assessment tool for the first two years of our program. In CRWR*1000, creative writing exercises are used to assess students’ knowledge and critical understanding of the elements of storytelling (point of view, character development, setting, dialogue, scene, and narrative arc) and students’ ability to apply this knowledge in their creative work.
Workshop Participation (30%) On Mondays, students will provide 11 copies—one for the instructor and a copy for ten peer editors. On Friday, during workshop, each student is required to submit two 150- to 200-word written critiques of the student writing exercises being workshopped, providing a copy to the instructor to grade and to the student for revision. This written critique will form 50% of your participation grade for the workshop that Friday. While students are only expected to write two critiques, they are expected to read all the exercises being workshopped that day and are expected to offer suggestions for revision during the discussion of student work. Students will also be graded on their oral participation in workshop, and will constitute 50% of their
3 participation grade for that day. If they simply read their written critique, they will receive a grade between 65-74 for oral participation. If they actively participate in the discussion of the work, they can receive 75+ depending on the quality (how well that have evaluated students’ application of a particular element of storytelling) and the frequency of their participation. Students will write a total of 16 150- to 200-word written critiques written critiques. Students will receive a participation grade for each workshop. The oral and written grades will be averaged together.
Revision (20% total) Revision is essential to good writing, so students are required to revise two writing exercises. Each revised writing exercise must be accompanied by a 1-page revision narrative explaining how they addressed three main criticisms from the instructor and their peer editors. The revisions and the revision narrative allow the professor to assess students’ ability to revise their creative writing in response to feedback from the professor and from peer-group workshops.
Final Exam (20%) Students will be asked to write a final exam. On this exam, students will be asked to define the elements of storytelling. They will also be asked to analyze and evaluate the application of an element of storytelling using examples/passages from lectures, as well as define, identity and explain the 3-act and 5-act plot structures of film and television.
Schedule
Week One Friday Workshop, Sep 11 Topic(s): Introduction
Week Two Monday, Sep 14
4 Topic(s): Point of View overview. First person Point of View lecture. Discussion of Chapter 1 and 2 of The Writing Life.
Wednesday, Sep 16 Topic(s): Discussion of “The Management of Grief” by Bharathi Mukherjee and “My Mother’s Memoirs, My Father’s Lies” by Russell Banks.
Friday Workshop, Sep 18 Topic(s): First Person in-class exercise.
Week Three Monday, Sep 21 Topic(s): Third Person Point of View lecture. Assignment: First Person Exercise due
Wednesday, Sep 23 Topic(s): Discussion of Third Person POV in Deborah Eisenberg’s “The Girl who Left Her Sock on the Floor,” Third Person Point of View in-class exercise.
Friday Workshop, Sep 25 Topic(s): Workshopping of First-Person Exercise in small groups.
Week Four Monday, Sep 28 Topic(s): Omniscient Point of View lecture. Assignment: Third Person Exercise due.
Wednesday, Sep 30 Topic(s): Discussion of Omniscient Point of View in Patrick Chamoiseau’s “The Old Man Slave and the Mastiff.” Omniscient Point of View in-class exercise
5 Friday Workshop, Oct 2 Topic(s): Workshopping of Third Person Exercise in small groups.
Week Five Monday, Oct 5 Topic(s): Discussion of Chapters 3 and 4 of The Writing Life. Assignment: Omniscient Point of View Exercise due.
Wednesday, Oct 7 Topic(s): Lecture on Sense of Place and in-class exercises on Sense of Place. Discussion of Chapter 5 of The Writing Life.
Friday Workshop, Oct 9 Topic(s): Workshopping of Omniscient point of view exercises in small groups
Week Six Monday, Oct 12 Topic(s): NO CLASSES
Wednesday, Oct 14 Topic(s): Lecture on Scene. In-class exercise on Scene Assignment: Sense of Place Exercise due.
Friday Workshop, Oct 16 Topic(s): Workshopping of Sense of Place Exercise in small groups.
Week Seven Monday, Oct 19 Topic(s): Lecture on Character and Aristotle. Assignment: Scene Exercise due.
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Wednesday, Oct 21 Topic(s): Discussion of “Wilderness Tips” by Margaret Atwood. Character #1 in-class exercise.
Friday Workshop, Oct 23 Topic(s): Workshopping of Scene Exercise in small groups.
Week Eight Monday, Oct 26 Topic(s): Lecture on Direct and Indirect Presentation of Character. Assignment: Character #1 exercise due.
Wednesday, Oct 28 Topic(s): Lecture and discussion on James Wood’s Chapter. Character #2 in-class exercise.
Friday Workshop, Oct 30 Topic(s): Workshopping of Character #1 exercise in small groups.
Week Nine Monday, Nov 2 Topic(s): Lecture on Dialogue Assignment: Character #2 exercise due.
Wednesday, Nov 4 Topic(s): Discussion of Dialogue in Ernest Hemingway’s “Hills Like White Elephants.” (Web link to be sent via email to class). Dialogue in-class exercise.
Friday Workshop, Nov 6 Topic(s): Workshopping of Character #2 exercise in small groups.
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Week Ten Monday, Nov 9 Topic(s): Lecture on Scene. Assignment: Dialogue exercise due.
Wednesday, Nov 11 Topic(s): Discussion of Chapter 6 of The Writing Life. In class exercise on Scene.
Friday Workshop, Nov 13 Topic(s): Workshopping of Dialogue exercise in small groups.
Week Eleven Monday, Nov 16 Topic(s): Discussion of Chapter 7 of The Writing Life. Assignment: Scene Exercise due.
Wednesday, Nov 18 Topic(s): The Hero’s Journey. Plot in myth and fantasy. Discussion of Star Wars. Please watch the film before this class. This is the 1977 film, the first Star Wars film later retitled, Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope.
Friday Workshop, Nov. 20 Topic(s): Workshopping of exercise on Scene.
Week Twelve
8 Monday, Nov 23 Topic(s): In class watching of a TV episode and discussion of TV 5 act structure
Wednesday, Nov 25 Topic(s): Discussion of Three Act screenplay structure. PLEASE WATCH PAN'S LABYRINTH IN ADVANCE. It is available online through the university library.
Friday Workshop, Nov. 27 Topic(s): Discussion of 5-act and 3-act structures
Week Thirteen Monday, Nov 30 Topic(s): Short Film. Q&A with Shyam on writing and publishing Assignment: Revision due.
Wednesday, Dec 2 Topic(s): Discussion of all elements of storytelling in “You Can’t Get Lost in Cape Town” by Zoe Wicombe.
Friday, Dec. 4 (LECTURE): Review for Final Exam
9 CRWR*2000 Reading as a Writer Winter 2023 (Sample course outline for possible iteration of the course)
Calendar Description: This course is designed to teach students how to read literature as writers. Students will analyze the construction of literary texts in order to improve their knowledge and application of each element of storytelling (character, point of view, dialogue, setting, scene, and narrative arc). The goal of this course is to hone aspiring writers’ critical thinking and creative skills through lectures on the reading, close readings of literary texts, and creative writing exercises based on literary models.
Co-requisite or Prerequisite: CRWR*1000 “Elements of Storytelling” Restriction(s): This is a priority access course. Enrolment may be restricted to students registered in the Creative Writing major, minor, area of concentration.
Learning Outcomes By the end of the course students should be able to: 1. learn and apply a disciplinary vocabulary that enables students to discuss, analyze, and evaluate the elements of storytelling in literary works. 2. analyze Point of View in literary works. In their close readings of literary works, students will examine and explain the mechanics, as well as understand the limits and advantages, of First-Person Point of View, Third-Person Point of View, and Omniscient Point of View. They will be able to analyze Point of View in discussions of reading assignments in lecture, close readings and on their exams. Using the literary stories as models, as well as the critical understanding gained from performing close readings of texts, students will employ POV in their creative writing exercises. 3. analyze how literary writers create credible characters. Through reading assignments, lectures, and close readings, students will explore the techniques used in character development in literary works. Using the literary stories as models, as well as the critical understanding gained from performing close readings of texts, students will employ character development in their creative writing exercises. 4. analyze how literary writers create effective dialogue. Through reading assignments, lectures, and close readings, students will explore the techniques used to create effective dialogue. Using the literary stories as models, as well as the critical understanding gained from performing close readings of texts, students will employ dialogue in their creative writing exercises. 5. analyze how literary writers create a Sense of Place (Setting). Through reading assignments, lectures, and close readings, students will explore the techniques used to establish setting and explain the relevance of setting to other elements of storytelling in literary works. Using the literary stories as models, as well as the critical understanding gained from performing close readings of texts, students will employ setting in their creative writing exercises. 6. analyze how literary writers use a Scene as a central unit of a story, incorporating character, setting, POV, and dialogue. Through reading assignments, lectures, and close readings, students will analyze the construction and sequencing of scenes in literary works. Students will achieve a critical understanding of scene construction through their close readings of the texts. 7. analyze narrative arc in literary works by applying their understanding of the 3-act structure. 8. creatively apply the knowledge and critical understanding of the elements of storytelling to devise the best approaches for achieving their creative goals, literary effects and/or aesthetic ends. 9. engage in textual and cultural analyses that address the aesthetic, theoretical and social questions that will shape their creative work. 10. begin developing an aesthetic maturity through the rigorous analysis and critical evaluation of literature. 11. compare and evaluate the merits and drawbacks of various narrative strategies when approaching their creative practice. 12. begin a comprehensive program of reading that will enable students to make informed aesthetic judgments. 13. achieve organizational and time management skills in order to be prepared for class and submit work by assigned deadlines.
Reading List: Anne Tyler, The Accidental Tourist Francine Prose, Reading Like a Writer Reading Packet
Methods of Evaluation: Close Readings 35% (total) Writing exercises 35% (total) Final Exam 30%
Methods of Assessment 4 Close Reading Assignments (35%) Students will complete 4 500-word close readings of a passage, focusing on one element of storytelling. Students will be given a passage from their readings and asked to analyze how the writer employs a particular element of storytelling. All the grades from your close reading assignments will be averaged. That average grade will constitute 35% of your total grade.
4 Creative Writing Exercises (35% total) After completing a close reading of an element of storytelling, students will write a 500-word writing exercises that address that particular aspect of the craft. All the grades from your close reading assignments will be averaged. That average grade will constitute 35% of your total grade.
Final Exam (30%) Students will write a final exam. The final exam will be comprehensive but half the exam will focus on scene, narrative arc, and the three-act structure.
Schedule Week One: Sentences and Paragraphs Lecture 1: Introduction Lecture 2: Words and Sentences Reading: Reading Like a Writer, “Words” (Chapter 2) and “Sentences” (Chapter 3)
Week Two: Point of View and Narration Lecture 1: Point of View and Narration Reading: Reading Like a Writer, “Narration” (chapter 5)
Lecture 2: Point of View and Narration: Close Reading of Tobias Wolf’s “Bullet in the Brain” Reading: Tobias Wolf’s “Bullet in the Brain”
Week Three: Character Lecture 1: Character Reading: Reading Like a Writer, “Character” (chapter 6)
Lecture 2: Character: Close Reading of Haruki Murakami’s “The Wind-Up Bird and Tuesday’s Women” Reading: Haruki Murakami’s “The Wind-Up Bird and Tuesday’s Women” Assignment due: Close Reading (500 words) #1: Point of View
Week Four: Character: Body and Gestures Lecture 1: Body and Gestures Reading: Reading Like a Writer, “Gestures” (chapter 9)
Lecture 2: Body and Gestures: Close Reading of Kevin Brockmeier’s “These Hands” Reading: Kevin Brockmeier’s “These Hands” Assignment due: Creative Writing Exercise (500 words) #1: Point of View
Week Five: Characters (Protagonists and Antagonists) Lecture 1: Characters (Protagonists and Antagonists) Reading: Begin Reading Tyler’s The Accidental Tourist (suggested: chapters 1-4)
Lecture 2: Characters (Protagonists and Antagonists): Close Reading of Flannery O’Connor’s “Revelation” Reading: Flannery O’Connor’s “Revelation” (Continue Reading The Accidental Tourist; suggested: chapters 5-6)
Week Six: Dialogue Lecture 1: Dialogue: Close reading of Chapter 1 of Accidental Tourist Reading: Reading Like a Writer, “Dialogue” (chapter 7) (Continue Reading The Accidental Tourist; suggested: chapters 7-8)
Lecture 2: Dialogue: Close Reading of Kazuo Ishiguro’s “A Family Supper” Reading: Kazuo Ishiguro’s “A Family Supper” Assignment due: Close Reading (500 words) #2: Character
Week Seven WINTER BREAK
Week Eight: Setting Lecture 1: Setting Reading: Continue Reading The Accidental Tourist (suggested: chapters 9-15)
Lecture 2: Setting: Close Reading of Wallace Stegner’s “The Traveler” Reading: Wallace Stegner’s “The Traveler” Assignment due: Creative Writing Exercise (500 words) #2: Character
Week Nine: Scene Lecture 1: Scene: Close Readings of Chapters 1, 3, and 6 of The Accidental Tourist Reading: Continue Reading Accidental Tourist (suggested: chapters 16-17)
Lecture 2: Scene: Close Readings of Chapters 7, 11, and 16 of The Accidental Tourist Assignment due: Close Reading (500 words) #3: Dialogue
Week Ten: Narrative Arc (Plot) Lecture 1: Narrative Arc Reading: Reading Like a Writer, “Plot” (chapter 9); Continue Reading The Accidental Tourist (suggested: chapter 18)
Lecture 2: Narrative Arc: Close Reading of Louise Erdrich’s “Red Convertible” Reading: Louise Erdrich’s “Red Convertible” Assignment due: Creative Writing Exercise (500 words) #3: Dialogue
Week Eleven: Narrative Arc: 3-Act Structure Lecture 1: Narrative Arc: Three-Act Structure Reading: Finish reading The Accidental Tourist
Lecture 2: Narrative Arc: Discussing Plot Structure in The Accidental Tourist Assignment due: Close Reading (500 words) #4: Setting
Week Twelve: Endings Lecture 1: Endings
Lecture 2: Narrative Arc: Discussing Plot Structure in The Accidental Tourist Reading: Tillie Olsen’s “I Stand Here Ironing”
Assignment due: Creative Writing Exercise (500 words) #4: Setting
Week Thirteen: Review for Final Exam Lecture 1: Review Point of View, Character, Dialogue, Setting through a discussion of The Accidental Tourist Lecture 2: Review Scene and Plot through a discussion of The Accidental Tourist
Final Exam
CRWR*2100 Fiction Workshop: Writing the Anthropocene Fall 2022 (Sample course outline for possible iteration of the course)
Calendar Description: The term 'Anthropocene' is the name of a new epoch in which the human species has become a geological force, largely driven by industrialization, extractivism, and reliance on technology, that has caused climate change, species extinction and loss of biodiversity. Students will explore the cultural implications of this epochal shift by crafting fiction that helps them rethink the relationships among nature, culture and technology and consider how writing the Anthropocene invites new approaches to received fictional forms. This course will encourage students to engage from diverse perspectives with issues involving planetary change brought about by human activity while honing their creative writing skills.
Co-requisite or Prerequisite: CRWR*2000 “Reading as a Writer” Prerequisite(s): CRWR*1000 Restriction(s): Registration in the Creative Writing major or minor.
Learning Outcomes By the end of the course students should be able to: 1. to apply the techniques of Point of View in their creative work students, understanding the implications of point-of-view choice, including first-person and varieties of third-person (intimate-third and omniscient or multi-vocal). They will be able to analyze Point of View in class discussions of reading assignments and evaluate the use of Point of View in their work, as well as their classmates’ creative work by revising their work and participating in writing workshops. 2. to create well-developed characters in their creative work by basing their Character Development on the activation of characters’ desires, fears and their encounters with nature. Students will analyze how authors develop characters through their discussions of reading assignments with the professor and their peers. They will evaluate their classmates’ character development and learn to critique character constructions (both their own and their classmates’) by revising their work and participating in workshop discussions. 3. to create a relevant Sense of Place in their creative work, understanding how world creation is determined by point-of-view choice and character and how nature or the environment can shape or challenge point of view. Through their discussions of reading assignments with the professor and their peers, students will analyze how authors create a Sense of Place. In the revision of their work and their participation in workshops, they will evaluate their classmates’ Sense of Place and learn to critique the use setting (both their own and their classmates’). 4. to create good, effective Dialogue in their creative work by experimenting with summary, partial or full dialogue. Through their discussions of reading assignments with the professor and their peers, students will analyze how authors create good dialogue. In the revision of their work and their participation in workshops, they will evaluate and critique the use dialogue in both their own and their classmates’ creative work. 5. to participate effectively in a writing workshop, discussing and evaluating the creative work by their classmates in a Professional, constructive manner. 6. to create effective Scenes in their creative work by approaching the scene as the central unit of a story; learning how to build story through development of scene and scene sequences; and experimenting with partial, summary, or full scenes. Through their discussions of reading assignments with the professor and their peers, students will analyze how authors create good scenes. In the revision of their work and their participation in workshops, they will evaluate and critique their classmates’ and their own construction of scene. 7. to understand, analyze and evaluate Narrative Arc with the understanding that change or transformation is a central narrative element that the creation of tension and conflict; scene sequencing; and effective beginnings and endings. Students will apply their understanding of Narrative Arc in their creative work. Through their discussions of reading assignments with the professor and their peers, students will understand and analyze how authors create a narrative arc. In the revision of their work and their participation in workshops, they will evaluate and critique their classmates’ and their own creation of narrative arc. 8. create Socially Engaged writing by focusing on environmental issues through their readings, discussion, and writing assignments. 9. achieve both a literary and ethical understanding of our relationship with the environment by employing the above techniques of fiction. 10. reflect and reimagine their own world and their place within it by reading and creating fiction that focuses on the Anthropocene. 11. engage the major issues and debates in the environmental humanities or in response to the idea of the Anthropocene in their academic and creative work. 12. approach problems presented by the Anthropocene and in the Arts with creativity and/or critical insight 13. to revise their creative work by learning how to use criticism effectively to expand and improve their stories. They will apply their understanding of the Revision process in their final 3000- to 4000-word revision of one of the short stories they workshopped in class.
Reading List: Michael Christie, Greenwood Excerpts: Waubgeshig Rice, Moon on Crusted Snow Omar el Akkad, American War Lydia Millet, How the Dead Dream Jenny Offil, Weather Barbara Kingsolver, Flight Behaviour Catherine Bush, Blaze Island
Research Nonfiction (read and write on six chapters of the following; you must read chapters from at least three different texts): Elizabeth Kolbert, The Sixth Extinction Elizabeth Kolbert, Field Notes from a Catastrophe: Man, Nature, and Climate Change Amitav Ghosh, The Great Derangement Roy Scranton, Learning to Die in the Anthropocene Thich Nhat Hanh, Love Letter to the Earth
Methods of Evaluation:
Writing exercises 20% (total)
Workshop Participation 20%
Reflection/Research Paper 20 %
Short Story 20%
Revision 20%
Methods of Assessment 12 Creative Writing Exercises (20% total) The short 450- to 500-word creative writing exercise is an essential learning and assessment tool for the first two years of our program. CRWR*2100 reinforces what students learned about the elements of storytelling in CRWR*1000 by having students write more in-depth and rigorous creative writing exercises. These writing exercises may also function as building blocks for your short story. Each student will produce 12 450- to 500-word writing exercises that address an aspect of the craft. These exercises will be workshopped. Exercises will be emailed to the class before the workshop.
Workshop Participation (20%) For each workshop, each student is required to submit four 150- to 200-word written critiques of the student writing exercises being workshopped, providing a copy to the instructor to grade and to the student for revision. For discussion of a story or novel, each student is required to choose a passage from the reading; ask a question or make an observation; and provide a 2- to 3-sentence explanation of why they are asking this question or making this observation. This written critique will form 50% of your participation grade for each workshop. While students are only expected to write four critiques for each workshop, they are expected to read all the exercises being workshopped that day and are expected to offer suggestions for revision during the discussion of student work. Students will also be graded on their oral participation in workshop, and will constitute 50% of their participation grade for that day. If they simply read their written critique, they will receive a grade between 65-74 for oral participation. If they actively participate in the discussion of the work, they can receive 75+ depending on the quality (how well that have evaluated students’ application of a particular element of storytelling) and the frequency of their participation. Students will write a total of 40 150- to 200-word written critiques/discussion questions. Students will receive a participation grade for each workshop. The oral and written grades will be averaged together. You will receive a mid-term participation grade worth 10%, which means you need to complete at least 20 assigned written critiques/discussion questions by the end of week 6. You will also receive a participation grade for the latter half of the semester, also worth 10%. Students are also expected to write 4 350- to 500-word critiques of four short stories workshopped at the end of the semester.
Reflection/Research Paper and Presentation (20%) Part One: Write a 350-to 500-word summary for each of the three chapters you have read so far from the reading list. You can read a maximum of two chapters from a single source. 1050-1500 words total. (5%) Part Two: Write a 350- to 500-word summary of each of the last three chapters from the reading list. You can read a maximum of two chapters from a single source. 1050-1500 words total. (5%) Part Three: Write a 1000- to 1500-word reflection paper on what you have learned and how your reading has informed your short story or ideas for your short story. (5%) Part Four: Presentation of your reflection piece to the class. (5%)
Short Story (20%) You are required to write one short story (2500-3500 words), which will be workshopped. The short story will be judged on not only how well you have mastered the elements of storytelling, but how your short story engages issues affecting the environment and how it reflects on the implications of the Anthropocene.
Revision (20% total) Revision is essential to good writing, so students are required to revise their short story. The revision should be 3000-4000 words. Each revision must be accompanied by a 1-page revision narrative explaining how they addressed three main criticisms from the instructor and their peer editors.
Schedule Week One: Introduction and Review • Introduction. • Lecture: What is the Anthropocene? • Review Lecture: elements of fiction; a glossary of terms; and basic story structure. • Begin reading Michael Christie’s Greenwood
Week Two: Fiction and the Anthropocene Discussion #1: Greenwood (first half) Assignment: Our goal is to determine how a work of fiction engages questions regarding the Anthropocene. In light of this focus, choose a passage from the first half of the text, ask a question or make a comment; and then provide a 2- to 3-sentence explanation of why you are asking this question, choosing this passage, or making this observation. Discussion #2: Greenwood (second half) Assignment: Our goal is to determine how a work of fiction engages questions regarding the Anthropocene. In light of this focus, choose a passage from the first half of the text, ask a question or make a comment; and then provide a 2- to 3-sentence explanation of why you are asking this question, choosing this passage, or making this observation.
Week Three: Points of View Lecture: Points of View Discussion: Waubgeshig Rice’s Moon on Crusted Snow (excerpt) Writing Exercises #2 and #3: Write two drafts of an opening “proto” scene of a short story you’re working on, using two of the three point of views studied (first person, second person and third person). The point of view should help the reader understand the character’s relationship to nature. For example, your first scene can be written in the first person; then write the same scene over using the second person point of view. Each exercise should be 450-500 words. Writing Workshop
Week Four: Character Lecture: Character Discussion: Lydia Millet’s How the Dead Dream (excerpt) Assignment: Our goal is to determine how a work of fiction engages questions regarding the Anthropocene. In light of this focus, choose a passage from the reading, ask a question or make a comment; and then provide a 2- to 3-sentence explanation of why you are asking this question, choosing this passage, or making this observation. Writing Exercises #4: describe (one paragraph) and show the connection between your protagonist’s desires and the environment. Each exercise should be 450-500 words. Writing Workshop Part one of reflection paper due.
Week Five: Setting Lecture: Setting Discussion: Barbara Kingsolver’s Flight Behaviour (excerpt) Assignment: Our goal is to determine how a work of fiction engages questions regarding the Anthropocene. In light of this focus, choose a passage from the reading, ask a question or make a comment; and then provide a 2- to 3-sentence explanation of why you are asking this question, choosing this passage, or making this observation. Writing Exercises #5: For exercise #5, make nature or the environment a character and a setting. Each exercise should be 450-500 words. Writing Workshop
Week Six: Dialogue Lecture: Dialogue Discussion: Catherine Bush’s Blaze Island (excerpt) Assignment: Our goal is to determine how a work of fiction engages questions regarding the Anthropocene. In light of this focus, choose a passage from the reading, ask a question or make a comment; and then provide a 2- to 3-sentence explanation of why you are asking this question, choosing this passage, or making this observation. Writing Exercises #6 and #7: For exercise #6, write a proto scene in which your character interacts with another character or nature without any dialogue. For exercise #7, rewrite exercise #8 by adding dialogue. Each exercise should be 450-500 words. Writing Workshop
Week Seven: Scene/Conflict Discussion: Jenny Offil’s Weather (excerpt) Assignment: Our goal is to determine how a work of fiction engages questions regarding the Anthropocene. In light of this focus, choose a passage from the reading, ask a question or make a comment; and then provide a 2- to 3-sentence explanation of why you are asking this question, choosing this passage, or making this observation. Writing Exercises #8 and #9: For exercise #8, rewrite a proto scene you’ve already written and add conflict in which another character or the environment prevents your protagonist from getting or achieving something s/he wants. For exercise #9, rewrite a proto scene you’ve already written and add conflict in which your protagonist prevents another character from getting something they want or manipulates nature. Each exercise should be 450- 500 words. Writing Workshop Part two of reflection paper due.
Week Eight: Scene: Narrative Arc/Plot Lecture: Plot/Narrative Arc Writing Exercises #10 and #11: For exercise #11, describe the surface journey of your short story. For exercise #12, describe the inner journey of your short story. Each exercise should be 450-500 words. Writing Workshop Presentations of Reflection Piece
Week Nine: Individual Meetings to Discuss Progress of Short Story
Week Ten: Endings and Revisions Lecture: Endings and Revision Writing Exercises #12: Write a proto ending for your story. Each exercise should be 450-500 words. Writing Workshop Presentations of Reflection Piece Short Story Due at the end of the week.
Week Eleven: Short Story Workshops and Presentations of Reflection Piece Presentations of Reflection Piece
Week Twelve: Short Story Workshops and Presentations of Reflection Piece
Week Thirteen: Individual Meetings to Discuss Revision of Short Story
Revision of short story due during exam period.
CRWR*2150 Speculative Fiction Workshop Winter 2023 (offered ever winter) (One possible iteration of the course)
Calendar Description: There are many modes of fiction that can address issues of social justice beyond the realistic. In this course students will engage with fiction as a mode for creating expanded imaginaries that address pressing social problems and inequalities in our society. They will consider how fiction is a means of world creation, including the futuristic, fantastic and dystopic, and explore how fiction is a mode for entering the perspectives of others, sometimes those radically not like us.
Course Description: Fiction has many modes that can address issues of social justice beyond the realistic. In this course we will engage with fiction as a mode for creating expanded imaginaries that address pressing social problems and inequalities in our society. Students will gain skills in a variety of writing techniques that develop their ability to enter fiction’s different modes. We will consider how fiction is a means of world creation, including the futuristic, fantastic and dystopic. We will explore fiction as a mode for entering the perspectives of others, sometimes those radically not like us, including more-than-human beings, with implications for our storytelling, empathetic and ethical capacities. Our stories will ultimately offer us new ways of navigating our own world, our place within it and our interconnected relationships to others.
Co-requisite or Prerequisite: CRWR*2000 “Reading as a Writer” Prerequisite(s): CRWR*1000 Restriction(s): Registration in the Creative Writing major or minor.
Readings: Leslie Arimah, “What It Means When A Man Falls From the Sky” (story) Margaret Atwood, The Handmaid’s Tale (excerpt) CDN Octavia Butler, Parable of the Sower (excerpt)
1 Ted Chiang, “The Great Silence” (story) Cherie Dimaline, Marrow Thieves (excerpt) CDN Amal el-Mohtar, “Seasons of Glass and Iron” (story) CDN Barbara Gowdy, White Bone (excerpt) CDN Hiromi Goto, Half World (excerpt) CDN Nalo Hopkinson, short story TBD (Easthound, Message in a Bottle) CDN N.K. Jemisin, TBD (excerpt) Franz Kafka, Metamorphosis (excerpt) Lydia Kwa, The Walking Boy (excerpt) CDN Larissa Lai, Tiger Flu (excerpt) CDN Ursula K Le Guin, “Sur” (story) Emily Saint John Mandel, Station Eleven (excerpt) CDN Silvia Moreno-Garcia, Gods of Jade and Shadow (excerpt) CDN Saleema Nawaz Webster, Songs for the End of the World (excerpt) CDN Richards Powers, Overstory (excerpt) Jane Rawson, From the Wreck (excerpt) Jeff Vandermeer, Borne (excerpt)
Learning Outcomes By the end of the course students should be able to: 1. apply the techniques of Point of View in their creative work students, understanding the implications of point-of-view choice, including first-person and varieties of third- person (intimate-third and omniscient or multi-vocal). They will be able to analyze Point of View in discussions of reading assignments in class discussions, and evaluate the use of Point of View in their work, as well as their classmates’ creative work by participating in writing workshops. (R) 2. create well-developed characters in their creative work by basing their Character Development on the activation of characters’ desires, fears and their encounters with obstacles. Through their discussions of reading assignments with the professor and their peers, students will analyze how authors develop characters. In workshops, they will evaluate their classmates’ character development and learn to critique character
2 constructions (both their own and their classmates’) by participating in workshop discussions. (R) 3. create a relevant Sense of Place in their creative work, understanding how world creation is determined by point-of-view choice and character, and how the world is perceived by an individual character in a particular state of mind. Through their discussions of reading assignments with the professor and their peers, students will analyze how authors create a Sense of Place. In their participation in workshops, they will evaluate their classmates’ Sense of Place and learn to critique the use setting (both their own and their classmates’). (R) 4. create good, effective Dialogue in their creative work by experimenting with summary, partial or full dialogue. Through their discussions of reading assignments with the professor and their peers, students will analyze how authors create good dialogue. In their participation in workshops, they will evaluate and critique their classmates’ use of dialogue and learn to critique the use setting (both their own and their classmates’). (R) 5. participate effectively in a writing workshop, discussing and evaluating the creative work by their classmates in a Professional, constructive manner. (R) 6. create effective Scenes in their creative work by approaching the scene as the central unit of story and learn how to build story through development of scene and scene sequences and experimenting with partial, summary, or full scenes. Through their discussions of reading assignments with the professor and their peers, students will analyze how authors create good scenes. In their participation in workshops, they will evaluate and critique their classmates’ construction of scene. (R) 7. understand, analyze and evaluate Narrative Arc with the understanding that change or transformation is a central narrative element that involves by the relation between time and narrative, nonlinear storytelling, the creation of tension and conflict, scene sequencing and effective beginnings and endings. Students will apply their understanding of Narrative Arc in their creative work. Through their discussions of reading assignments with the professor and their peers, students will understand and analyze how authors create a narrative arc. In their participation in workshops, they will evaluate and critique their classmates’ and their creation of narrative arc. (I)
3 8. understand, analyze and evaluate Style, by reading and discussing the difference between voice and style, identifying their style, and changing style. Students will apply their understanding of Style in their creative work. Through their discussions of reading assignments with the professor and their peers, students will understand and analyze different authors’ styles. In their participation in workshops, they will evaluate and critique their classmates’ and their own writing style. (I) 9. create Socially Engaged writing by focusing on a social justice issue through their readings, discussion, and writing assignments. 10. achieve a literary and ethical understanding of the perspectives of others, sometimes those radically not like us, including of the more-than-human world. 11. understand how creating speculative stories offers a powerful way to reflect and reimagine our own world and our place within it. 12. understand, through reading a diverse syllabus of speculative fiction (including works by racialized and indigenous writer), how contemporary writers of diverse backgrounds use speculative fiction to speak to environmental and social justice issues in our contemporary world and how such writers use speculative fiction to reimagine alternate pathways of agency. 13. to revise their creative work by learning how to take criticism and which advice to follow and how to expand their stories. They will apply their understanding of the Revision process in their final 3000- to 3500 revision of one of the short stories they workshopped in class. (I)
Grade Breakdown: Writing exercises 25% (total) Workshop Participation 25% Short Story 25% Revision 25%
Methods of Assessment:
4 10 Creative Writing Exercises (25% total) The short 450- to 500-word creative writing exercise is an essential learning and assessment tool for the first two years of our program. CRWR*2100 reinforces what students learned about the elements of storytelling in CRWR*1000 by having students write more in-depth and rigorous creative writing exercises. These writing exercises may also function as building blocks for your short story. Each student will produce 10 450- to 500-word writing exercises that address an aspect of the craft. These exercises will be workshopped. Exercises will be emailed to the class before the workshop.
Workshop Participation (25%) For each workshop, each student is required to submit four 150- to 200-word written critiques of the student writing exercises being workshopped, providing a copy to the instructor to grade and to the student for revision. For discussion of a story or novel, each student is required to choose a passage from the reading; ask a question or make an observation; and provide a 2- to 3-sentence explanation of why they are asking this question or making this observation. This written critique will form 50% of your participation grade for each workshop. While students are only expected to write four critiques for each workshop, they are expected to read all the exercises being workshopped that day and are expected to offer suggestions for revision during the discussion of student work. Students will also be graded on their oral participation in workshop, and will constitute 50% of their participation grade for that day. If they simply read their written critique, they will receive a grade between 65-74 for oral participation. If they actively participate in the discussion of the work, they can receive 75+ depending on the quality (how well that have evaluated students’ application of a particular element of storytelling) and the frequency of their participation. Students will write a total of 40 150- to 200-word written critiques/discussion questions. Students will receive a participation grade for each workshop. The oral and written grades will be averaged together.
Short Story (25%) You are required to write one short story (2500-3500 words), which will be workshopped. The short story will be judged on not only how well you have mastered the elements of storytelling,
5 but how your short story engages issues affecting the environment and how it reflects on the implications of the Anthropocene.
Revision (25% total) Revision is essential to good writing, so students are required to revise their short story. The revision should be 3000-4000 words. Each revision must be accompanied by a 1-page revision narrative explaining how they addressed three main criticisms from the instructor and their peer editors.
Schedule
Week 1 Topic: Defamiliarizing the Real/Making the Speculative Believable Reading: Franz Kafka, Metamorphosis (excerpt)
Week 2: Topic: Point of View and the World--the World as a Form of Perception not Information Reading: Jeff Vandermeer, Borne (excerpt); Lydia Kwa, The Walking Boy (excerpt) Workshop
Week 3 Topic: Scene--What Does it Need? Reading: Amal el-Mohtar, “Seasons of Glass and Iron” (story), Workshop
Week 4 Topic: Desire/Fear--Creating Characters who feel alive Reading: Octavia Butler, Parable of the Sower (excerpt), Hiromi Goto, Half World (excerpt) CDN
6 Workshop
Week 5 Topic: Narrative--Basic Tropes of Story Reading: N.K. Jemisin, The Fifth Season (excerpt) Workshop
Week 6 Topic: Narrative--Elements of Transformation Reading: Emily Saint John Mandel, Station Eleven (excerpt) CDN Workshop
Week 7 Topic: Using First-Person POV to write an Unfamiliar World Reading: Margaret Atwood, The Handmaid’s Tale (excerpt) CDN Workshop
Week 8 Topic: Using Third-Person POV to write an Unfamiliar World Reading: Silvia Moreno-Garcia, Gods of Jade and Shadow (excerpt) CDN, Larissa Lai, Tiger Flu (excerpt) CDN Workshop
Week 9 Topic: Writing Other Humans Reading: Ursula K Le Guin, “Sur” (story); Leslie Arimah, “What It Means When A Man Falls From the Sky” (story) Workshop
Week 10 Topic: Writing More-than-Human Others
7 Reading: Barbara Gowdy, White Bone (excerpt) CDN, Ted Chiang, “The Great Silence” (story) Workshop
Week 11 Topic: Futures Imagining: Re-imagining our own world Reading: Cherie Dimaline, Marrow Thieves (excerpt) CDN, Saleema Nawaz Webster, Songs for the End of the World (excerpt) CDN Workshop
Week 12 Topic: Revising Workshop
University Statements Email Communication
As per university regulations, all students are required to check their e-mail account regularly: e- mail is the official route of communication between the University and its students.
When You Cannot Meet a Course Requirement
When you find yourself unable to meet an in-course requirement because of illness or compassionate reasons please advise the course instructor (or designated person, such as a teaching assistant) in writing, with your name, id#, and e-mail contact. The regulations and procedures for Academic Consideration are detailed in the Undergraduate Calendar.
8 Drop Date Students will have until the last day of classes to drop courses without academic penalty. The deadline to drop two-semester courses will be the last day of classes in the second semester. This applies to all students (undergraduate, graduate and diploma) except for Doctor of Veterinary Medicine and Associate Diploma in Veterinary Technology (conventional and alternative delivery) students. The regulations and procedures for course registration are available in their respective Academic Calendars.
Undergraduate Calendar - Dropping Courses https://www.uoguelph.ca/registrar/calendars/undergraduate/current/c08/c08-drop.shtml
Graduate Calendar - Registration Changes https://www.uoguelph.ca/registrar/calendars/graduate/current/genreg/genreg-reg-regchg.shtml
Associate Diploma Calendar - Dropping Courses https://www.uoguelph.ca/registrar/calendars/diploma/current/c08/c08-drop.shtml
Copies of Out-of-class Assignments
Keep paper and/or other reliable back-up copies of all out-of-class assignments: you may be asked to resubmit work at any time.
Accessibility
The University promotes the full participation of students who experience disabilities in their academic programs. To that end, the provision of academic accommodation is a shared responsibility between the University and the student.
When accommodations are needed, the student is required to first register with Student Accessibility Services (SAS). Documentation to substantiate the existence of a disability is required, however, interim accommodations may be possible while that process is underway.
Accommodations are available for both permanent and temporary disabilities. It should be noted that common illnesses such as a cold or the flu do not constitute a disability.
9 Use of the SAS Exam Centre requires students to book their exams at least 7 days in advance, and not later than the 40th Class Day.
More information: www.uoguelph.ca/sas
Academic Misconduct
The University of Guelph is committed to upholding the highest standards of academic integrity and it is the responsibility of all members of the University community – faculty, staff, and students – to be aware of what constitutes academic misconduct and to do as much as possible to prevent academic offences from occurring. University of Guelph students have the responsibility of abiding by the University's policy on academic misconduct regardless of their location of study; faculty, staff and students have the responsibility of supporting an environment that discourages misconduct. Students need to remain aware that instructors have access to and the right to use electronic and other means of detection.
Please note: Whether or not a student intended to commit academic misconduct is not relevant for a finding of guilt. Hurried or careless submission of assignments does not excuse students from responsibility for verifying the academic integrity of their work before submitting it. Students who are in any doubt as to whether an action on their part could be construed as an academic offence should consult with a faculty member or faculty advisor.
The Academic Misconduct Policy is detailed in the Undergraduate Calendar. Recording of Materials
Presentations which are made in relation to course work—including lectures—cannot be recorded or copied without the permission of the presenter, whether the instructor, a classmate or guest lecturer. Material recorded with permission is restricted to use for that course unless further permission is granted.
10 Resources
The Academic Calendars are the source of information about the University of Guelph’s procedures, policies and regulations which apply to undergraduate, graduate and diploma programs.
11 CRWR*2200 Creative Nonfiction Workshop: Writing Nature: Winter 2023 (offered every winter) (One Possible Iteration of the Course)
Calendar Description: In this course, students will learn a range of techniques and approaches, including memoir and the creative essay, for writing nonfiction about the natural world and the human relationship to it. Traditional nature writing placed humans on one side and nature on the other, often as an untouched, wild environment to be explored and described. In this course we will consider nature writing in an era of ecological loss and high-tech science, when access to land, clean water and air are prominent social justice issues and when it is no longer possible to separate nature from the realm of the human.
Course Description: Traditional nature writing placed humans on one side and nature on the other, often as an untouched, wild environment to be explored and described. In this course we will consider nature writing in an era of ecological loss and high-tech science, when access to land, clean water and air are prominent social justice issues and when it is no longer possible to separate nature from the realm of the human. Yet our need for biophilia (love of the biosphere) has never been more necessary. In this course, students will learn a range of techniques and approaches, including memoir and the creative essay, for writing nonfiction about the natural world and the human relationship to it.
Co-requisite or Prerequisite: CRWR*2000 “Reading as a Writer” Prerequisite(s): CRWR*1000 Restriction(s): Registration in the Creative Writing major or minor.
Reading List (may be drawn from some of the below):
1
Helen McDonald, Vesper Flights, (creative essays on human relationship to the natural world)
Annie Dillard, Pilgrim at Tinker Creek (classic naturalist’s text)
Robin Wall Kimmerer, “Speaking Nature,” Orion magazine (indigenous writer and botanist on the grammar of animacy, shifting pronouns to give personhood to the natural world)
Robert Macfarlane, Introduction to Landmarks (on the specific vocabularies of the natural world)
Merlin Sheldrake, Entangled Life (scientific and first-person nonfiction on fungi)
Kyo Maclear, Birds, Art, Life (memoir on an urban relationship to birding) CDN
Jordan K. Thomas, “The Murder of Crows,” (creative essay on Blackness, American Jim Crow laws, and crows)
Leona Theis, “Sturnella Neglecta, Overlooked Little Starling,” (creative essay on deafness and loss of bird populations CDN
Elena Passarello, Animals Strike Curious Poses (essays on animals)
Jessica J Lee, Turning: A Swimming Memoir (CNF meditation on loss, identity and nature), CDN/Chinese-Welsh
David Farrier, “Hand in Glove” the false promise of plastics (pandemic , PPE, plastics science essay) Orion Magazine
Sharon English, “Going Under,” first-person pandemic and nature memoir, Dark Mountain Project website CDN
Billy Ray Belcourt, A History of My Brief Body. Indigenous/CDN
Learning Outcomes:
1) Students will learn how techniques for writing nonfiction in the first-person including an understanding of their own subject position and how the selection of details, word choice, creates a world on the page.
2 2) Students will build on their skills in the first-person and their understanding of subjectivity, learning how where they place attention (and what they leave out) creates a world on the page that has ethical implications.
3) Students will learn specific vocabularies for describing the natural world, understanding the power of detail and specificity to create compelling language and descriptions.
4) Students will consider the ethical implications of language for the natural world, and how language use can offer animacy and a sense of empathetic, reciprocal relationship between writer and the world, and also de-nature, making the world inert.
5) Students will learn effective use of metaphor, both as technique at the sentence level and as a structuring principle of effective writing in which one element is recognized newly by being placed in relationship to another.
6) Students will learn necessary research skills for writing effective nonfiction. This will include both online research and field work that takes them into a natural environment such as the University of Guelph Arboretum.
7) Students will gain experience writing in different forms of creative nonfiction including memoir, creative essay and journalistic article.
8) Students will learn how to create story and narrative arc in a short work of creative nonfiction.
9) Through a diverse selection of readings, students will learn how skilled writers of creative nonfiction employ a variety of literary techniques and how they use the form of nonfiction to write about personal experience and to address larger societal issues, including colonialism and racism in relation to the natural world.
10) to participate effectively in a writing workshop, discussing and evaluating the creative work by their classmates in a Professional, constructive manner.
11) to revise their creative work by learning how to use criticism effectively to expand and improve their stories. They will apply their understanding of the Revision process in their final 2000- to 2500-word revision of one of the short stories they workshopped in class.
Grade Breakdown Short Memoir 20% Short Lyric Essay or Journalistic Article 20% Creative-Form Essay 35% In-Class Participation 25%
3 Methods of Evaluation:
Short Memoir 20% Students will write a short memoir that focuses on their relationship with nature. 500-750 words in length
Short Lyric Essay or Journalistic Article 20% Students will write a short lyric essay or journalistic article that focuses on their relationship with nature or examines an important aspect of nature and/or the relationship between nature and humans. 500-750 words in length
Creative-Form Essay (Revision) 35% In this longer, more in-depth writing assignments, students will revise and develop one of earlier assignments or in-class exercises. 2000-2500 words in length
In-class Participation 25% Students will be assessed based on completing 9-10 short in-class writing exercises, participation in small group and larger discussions and their preparedness in terms of assigned readings. At least one comment on readings per class.
Schedule
Week 1 Topic: What is Nature Now? (Keeping a Writer’s Notebook)
Reading: Helen McDonald, Vesper Flights, (creative essays on human relationship to the natural world)
Week 2 Topic: Nature Languages: Naming Nature, Vocabularies for the Natural World (Keeping a Writer’s Notebook 2)
Reading: Robin Wall Kimmerer, “Speaking Nature” from Orion Magazine (indigenous writer and botanist on the grammar of animacy, shifting pronouns to give personhood to the natural world); Robert Macfarlane, Introduction to Landmarks (on the specific vocabularies of the natural world)
Workshop
Week 3 Topic: Noticing Nature: A Mind Perceives the World (Keeping a Notebook 3)
Reading: Annie Dillard, Pilgrim at Tinker Creek (classic naturalist’s text)
4
Workshop
Week 4 Topic: Memoir: The First Person Encounters the Natural World
Reading: Kyo Maclear, Birds, Art, Life (memoir on an urban relationship to birding) CDN; Jessica J Lee, Turning: A Swimming Memoir (CNF meditation on loss, identity and nature), CDN/Chinese-Welsh
Workshop
Week 5 Topic: First Person as Witness: Shifting Perspectives
Reading: Sharon English, “Going Under,” first-person pandemic and nature memoir, Dark Mountain Project website CDN; Anne Carson, “Water Margins: An Essay on Swimming by My Brother,” from “The Anthropology of Water,” collected in Plainsong
Workshop
Week 6 Topic: Biophilia: Reciprocal Relationships, Trees, Fungi, and Where is the Wild?
Reading: Merlin Sheldrake, Entangled Life, excerpt (fungal networks, a world of connection)
Workshop
Week 7 Topic: Researching Nature: Techniques for Research Online and in the Field
Reading: Leona Theis, “Sturnella Neglecta, Overlooked Little Starling,” (creative essay on deafness and loss of bird populations CDN
Workshop
5 Week 8 Topic: Writing Animals: the Creative Essay
Reading: Elena Passarello, Animals Strike Curious Poses (essays on animals)
Workshop
Week 9 Topic: Writing Science: Approaches to the Journalistic Article
Reading: David Farrier, “Hand in Glove” the false promise of plastics (pandemic, PPE, plastics science essay) Orion Magazine
Workshop
Week 10 Topic: Writing Land, Writing Air: Writing Nature as a Social Justice Issue
Reading: Jordan K. Thomas, “The Murder of Crows,” (creative essay on Blackness, American Jim Crow laws, and crows); Billy Ray Belcourt, from A History of My Brief Body
Workshop
Week 11 Topic: Hybrid Lessons: How an Essay can be a Memoir can require Research Workshop
Week 12 Topic: Writing the Climate Crisis and How to be a Good Ancestor (Writing Time)
Reading: Essays from The Dark Mountain Project including “Enter: Thunder, Fire, Smoke and Relearning new Languages,” by Sara Jolena Wolcott
Workshop
6 University Statements Email Communication
As per university regulations, all students are required to check their e-mail account regularly: e-mail is the official route of communication between the University and its students.
When You Cannot Meet a Course Requirement
When you find yourself unable to meet an in-course requirement because of illness or compassionate reasons please advise the course instructor (or designated person, such as a teaching assistant) in writing, with your name, id#, and e-mail contact. The regulations and procedures for Academic Consideration are detailed in the Undergraduate Calendar.
Drop Date Students will have until the last day of classes to drop courses without academic penalty. The deadline to drop two-semester courses will be the last day of classes in the second semester. This applies to all students (undergraduate, graduate and diploma) except for Doctor of Veterinary Medicine and Associate Diploma in Veterinary Technology (conventional and alternative delivery) students. The regulations and procedures for course registration are available in their respective Academic Calendars.
Undergraduate Calendar - Dropping Courses https://www.uoguelph.ca/registrar/calendars/undergraduate/current/c08/c08-drop.shtml
Graduate Calendar - Registration Changes https://www.uoguelph.ca/registrar/calendars/graduate/current/genreg/genreg-reg-regchg.shtml
Associate Diploma Calendar - Dropping Courses https://www.uoguelph.ca/registrar/calendars/diploma/current/c08/c08-drop.shtml
Copies of Out-of-class Assignments
Keep paper and/or other reliable back-up copies of all out-of-class assignments: you may be asked to resubmit work at any time.
7 Accessibility
The University promotes the full participation of students who experience disabilities in their academic programs. To that end, the provision of academic accommodation is a shared responsibility between the University and the student.
When accommodations are needed, the student is required to first register with Student Accessibility Services (SAS). Documentation to substantiate the existence of a disability is required, however, interim accommodations may be possible while that process is underway.
Accommodations are available for both permanent and temporary disabilities. It should be noted that common illnesses such as a cold or the flu do not constitute a disability.
Use of the SAS Exam Centre requires students to book their exams at least 7 days in advance, and not later than the 40th Class Day.
More information: www.uoguelph.ca/sas
Academic Misconduct
The University of Guelph is committed to upholding the highest standards of academic integrity and it is the responsibility of all members of the University community – faculty, staff, and students – to be aware of what constitutes academic misconduct and to do as much as possible to prevent academic offences from occurring. University of Guelph students have the responsibility of abiding by the University's policy on academic misconduct regardless of their location of study; faculty, staff and students have the responsibility of supporting an environment that discourages misconduct. Students need to remain aware that instructors have access to and the right to use electronic and other means of detection.
Please note: Whether or not a student intended to commit academic misconduct is not relevant for a finding of guilt. Hurried or careless submission of assignments does not excuse students from responsibility for verifying the academic integrity of their work before submitting it. Students who are in any doubt as to whether an action on their part could be construed as an academic offence should consult with a faculty member or faculty advisor.
The Academic Misconduct Policy is detailed in the Undergraduate Calendar.
8 Recording of Materials
Presentations which are made in relation to course work—including lectures—cannot be recorded or copied without the permission of the presenter, whether the instructor, a classmate or guest lecturer. Material recorded with permission is restricted to use for that course unless further permission is granted.
Resources
The Academic Calendars are the source of information about the University of Guelph’s procedures, policies and regulations which apply to undergraduate, graduate and diploma programs.
9
English 2300 Poetry Workshop Winter 2024 (offered every winter) (One possible iteration of the course)
Calendar Description: This course offers an introduction to writing poetic forms. Students will gain an understanding of the basic elements of poetry writing: line, metre, imagery, rhyme, rhythm, syntax, and metaphor, sound and sense. Through practical experiments in individual and collaborative poem writing, students will learn about global poetic forms such as the ballad, the sonnet, the blues, the villanelle, the sestina, the ghazal, the haiku, the renga and the pantoum.
Course Description: This course offers an introduction to writing poetic forms. Students will gain an understanding of the basic elements of poetry writing: line, metre, imagery, rhyme, rhythm, syntax, and metaphor, sound and sense. Individual practice in form writing, collaborative poem making, and reading required poetry and reference texts will form the three major components of the course. Through practical experiments in individual and collaborative poem writing, students will learn about global poetic forms such as the ballad, the sonnet, the blues, the villanelle, the sestina, the ghazal, the haiku, the renga and the pantoum. Through reading assigned texts, the class will explore the histories of global poetries and poetry as a practice that exists everywhere. Students will come to know poetry as grounded in every day structures of thinking, and will learn the skills of poets.
Co-requisite or Prerequisite: ENGL*2380 “Reading Poetry” and CRWR*2000 “Reading as a Writer” Prerequisite(s): CRWR*1000
1 Restriction(s): Registration in the Creative Writing major or minor.
Course Learning Objectives: By the end of the course, students should be able to: 1. understand and apply the basic elements of poetry writing: line, metre, imagery, rhyme, rhythm, syntax, and metaphor, sound and sense. 2. Apply a basic disciplinary vocabulary to analyze and evaluate poetry. 3. define and understand poetic forms 4. write form poems 5. apply collaborative writing skills in their creative practice 6. understand and produce the nuances of meaning making. 7. write a polished chapbook of 8 poems 8. know how to participate effectively in a writing workshop, discussing and evaluating the creative work by their classmates in a professional, constructive manner. 9. present their work to an audience as professional poets do. This is considered an experiential learning (EL) component of the course since it involves a major aspect of a poet’s professional life. 10. revise and edit poetic forms, elements, and mechanics in order to write a polished poem or song lyric. 11. use workshop criticism effectively to expand and improve their poetry. They will apply their understanding of the revision process in their final chapbook.
Required Reading: The Making of a Poem, Mark Strand and Eavan Boland Rhyme’s Reasons, John Hollander Forage, Rita Wong Brutal Imagination, Cornelius Eady Electric Light, Seamus Heaney Small Arguments, Souvankham Thammavongsa
2 Forage, Rita Wong Settler Education, Laurie S. Graham Undark, Sandy Poole
Grade Breakdown: Form Writing Exercises/First Draft of 8 poems 20% (total) Collaborative poem/Renga, 10% Reading of Poetry (EL component) 10% Reflection paper on Poetry Reading (EL component) 10% Workshop Participation 20% Group Presentation 10% 8 revised poems in a printed and bound chapbook of poems, 20% (Due after week 12)
Methods of Assessment Workshop Participation 20% You are expected to actively participate in all aspects of this class: 1. Analyzing the poems and actively participating in discussions. 2. Giving feedback to other students on their work and receiving feedback on yours. 3. While attendance will be taken and failing to attend class will have an adverse impact on your grade for participation, no grade is given for attendance itself.
Group Presentation (20 minutes, 10%) For this assignment, the class will be divided into groups; the number of group members will depend on the number of students enrolled in the course. The members of each group will be decided on the first class. Each group will present on one of the required books, researching its author and his/her work in relationship to the specific sociopolitical context, culture, and literary traditions. Make sure to include a short biography, underlining only the elements relevant for the writer’s work, and a general outline of his or her career/style, etc. Then, analyse 2-3 representative poems, emphasizing the specific elements and their relationship to the other texts included in the book.
3 Poetry Reading--EL Component (10%) Treat this class as a professional poetry reading and take the opportunity to further improve your public speaking and performance skills. The poems you will read must be selected from your chapbook. You will have the liberty to select the poems, decide on their order, and/or include elements of performance. You are strongly encouraged to invite guests outside our class. We will attempt to book a bigger room, in consultation with students and SETS’s administration. This is considered an experiential learning (EL) component of the course since it involves a major aspect of a poet’s professional life.
Reflection Paper on Poetry Reading (EL component) 10% Reflection essay on the EL components of the course (public reading of your work) and professional aspects of being a poet, 500-750 words
Form Writing Exercises/Eight Drafts 20% With some exceptions, you will be expected to write a form writing exercise for each week. This exercise should be approached as a first draft of a form poem. You will be expected to revise these exercises/drafts after they have been workshopped.
Collaborative poem/Renga, 10% Students in groups of three or more - each group named after a famous poet - will create and edit a Renga of a determined number of lines.
Chapbook of Eight Revised Poems (20%) You will turn in a chapbook of eight revised poems. You are expected to make significant revisions.
Schedule Week One Introduction Lecture: Elements of Poetry: form and content. Introduction to Syllabic poetry – Haiku and Renga
4
Week Two Haiku Writing Workshop
Week Three: Line and Sentence SMALL ARGUMENTS Writing Workshop
Week Four: Imagery and Metaphor Sestina Writing Workshop
Week Five: Rhythm, Metre, Rhyme Ghazal Writing Workshop
Week Six: Pantoum Writing Workshop
Week Seven Mid-term break.
Week Eight Ode Writing workshop
Week Nine: Poetry of Nature FORAGE Writing Workshop
Week Ten: Blues Writing Workshop
Week Eleven: Poetry of Witness SETTLER EDUCATION
5 Writing Workshop Poetry Performance
Week Twelve: Poetry of Witness UNDARK Writing Workshop -Revision
DUE DATES FIRST DRAFT OF POEMS DUE IN WEEKLY WORKSHOPS
COLLABORATIVE RENGA WEEK FOUR
FINAL CHAPBOOK OF REVISED POEMS DUE APRIL 13
PERFORMANCE: WEEK ELEVEN
EL REFLECTION ESSAY: WEEK TWELVE
University Statements Email Communication
As per university regulations, all students are required to check their e-mail account regularly: e-mail is the official route of communication between the University and its students.
When You Cannot Meet a Course Requirement
When you find yourself unable to meet an in-course requirement because of illness or compassionate reasons please advise the course instructor (or designated person, such as a teaching assistant) in writing, with your name, id#, and e-mail contact. The regulations and procedures for Academic Consideration are detailed in the Undergraduate Calendar.
6 Drop Date Students will have until the last day of classes to drop courses without academic penalty. The deadline to drop two-semester courses will be the last day of classes in the second semester. This applies to all students (undergraduate, graduate and diploma) except for Doctor of Veterinary Medicine and Associate Diploma in Veterinary Technology (conventional and alternative delivery) students. The regulations and procedures for course registration are available in their respective Academic Calendars.
Undergraduate Calendar - Dropping Courses https://www.uoguelph.ca/registrar/calendars/undergraduate/current/c08/c08-drop.shtml
Graduate Calendar - Registration Changes https://www.uoguelph.ca/registrar/calendars/graduate/current/genreg/genreg-reg- regchg.shtml
Associate Diploma Calendar - Dropping Courses https://www.uoguelph.ca/registrar/calendars/diploma/current/c08/c08-drop.shtml
Copies of Out-of-class Assignments
Keep paper and/or other reliable back-up copies of all out-of-class assignments: you may be asked to resubmit work at any time.
Accessibility
The University promotes the full participation of students who experience disabilities in their academic programs. To that end, the provision of academic accommodation is a shared responsibility between the University and the student.
When accommodations are needed, the student is required to first register with Student Accessibility Services (SAS). Documentation to substantiate the existence of a disability is required, however, interim accommodations may be possible while that process is underway.
7 Accommodations are available for both permanent and temporary disabilities. It should be noted that common illnesses such as a cold or the flu do not constitute a disability.
Use of the SAS Exam Centre requires students to book their exams at least 7 days in advance, and not later than the 40th Class Day.
More information: www.uoguelph.ca/sas
Academic Misconduct
The University of Guelph is committed to upholding the highest standards of academic integrity and it is the responsibility of all members of the University community – faculty, staff, and students – to be aware of what constitutes academic misconduct and to do as much as possible to prevent academic offences from occurring. University of Guelph students have the responsibility of abiding by the University's policy on academic misconduct regardless of their location of study; faculty, staff and students have the responsibility of supporting an environment that discourages misconduct. Students need to remain aware that instructors have access to and the right to use electronic and other means of detection.
Please note: Whether or not a student intended to commit academic misconduct is not relevant for a finding of guilt. Hurried or careless submission of assignments does not excuse students from responsibility for verifying the academic integrity of their work before submitting it. Students who are in any doubt as to whether an action on their part could be construed as an academic offence should consult with a faculty member or faculty advisor.
The Academic Misconduct Policy is detailed in the Undergraduate Calendar. Recording of Materials
Presentations which are made in relation to course work—including lectures—cannot be recorded or copied without the permission of the presenter, whether the instructor, a
8 classmate or guest lecturer. Material recorded with permission is restricted to use for that course unless further permission is granted.
Resources
The Academic Calendars are the source of information about the University of Guelph’s procedures, policies and regulations which apply to undergraduate, graduate and diploma programs.
9 CRWR*2400 Screenwriting Workshop Fall 2023 (Sample course outline for one possible iteration of the course)
Instructor: Office: Office Hours: Course Meets:
Calendar Description: This workshop introduces students to the fundamentals of screenwriting through various writing, reading, and viewing assignments and exercises, as well as the workshopping of students’ written work. Topics will include: screenplay formatting, story theme, character development, story lines, scene construction, and basic three-act storytelling structure. The course content may focus on: documentary and/or short-form (children's programming, advertising) screenwriting, animation, and/or introductions to specific genres and subgenres.
Course Description: The craft of screenwriting is a body of techniques that has been developed to serve the purpose of shaping the writers’ work towards a meaningful motion picture. This course will introduce students to the basics of the craft of screenwriting, through defining the basic elements of story and introducing students to the concepts and techniques used by screenwriters as they engage with story in fiction films and television. Each week's lecture will delve into another aspect of the craft of screenwriting, using examples from short films, television, and feature films.
The assignments are designed to attune students to the most fundamental elements of moving image storytelling. They may appear deceptively simple, but they require precision, engagement with the class learning, imaginative perception and careful consideration of prescribed limitations. Each assignment puts into practice concepts
1 covered in class and advances the work of the earlier assignment. The final assignment will consist of a finished short screenplay (8-10 pages).
Learning Objectives: By the end of the course students should be able to: 1. Grasp the limitations of the screenplay as a literary form and distinguish the essential differences between the labour of a screenwriter and the labour of literary writing, specifically when it comes to point of view, tense, handling time, style, and the imperative to write only what can be observed. 2. Write and format their screenplays using professional-standard screenwriting software programs. 3. Create credible complex characters by applying their understanding of Character Development in their writing assignments and short screenplay, using both the direct and indirect method of character development; including exploring backstory, motivation and desire; and employing economic visual writing, vivid telling detail, movement, gesture, behavior, speech, and action to build up a character. Through reading assignments and lectures, students will analyze how screenwriters reveal character. In workshops, they will evaluate their classmates’ character development and learn to critique character constructions (both their own and their classmates’) by participating in workshop discussions. 4. Engage in the creation of story worlds by applying their understanding of Sense of Place in their writing assignments and short screenplay. Through reading assignments and lectures, students will analyze how story worlds are core to a story concept and in what ways screenwriters create a story world. In workshops, they will evaluate their Sense of Place and learn to enhance the creation of place and context (both their own and their classmates’) by participating in workshop discussions. 5. Define, identify, understand, and analyze a Scene as the central dramatic unit of a screenplay. Through lectures, readings, and class discussion, students will gain an understanding of the principles of scene construction. Students will practice applying their understanding of the scene by writing and re-writing scenes. They
2 will develop the tools to assess and analyze a scene on its own and its impact within the larger story. 6. Create effective Dialogue by employing the techniques and tools of dialogue creation in their writing assignments and short screenplay. Through reading assignments, screenings and lectures, students will analyze how authors create good dialogue and as well, the pitfalls that are the hallmarks of weak dialogue 7. participate effectively in a writing workshop, discussing and evaluating the creative work by their classmates in a professional, constructive manner. 8. revise their creative work by learning how to use criticism effectively to expand and improve their screenplays. They will apply their understanding of the revision process in their final revised screenplay, which is based on the scene and first draft they workshopped in class. 9. reflect upon and understand the professional aspect of their craft by engaging in an experiential learning (EL) experiences in which students use professional- standard software and have actors read their scripts and bring them to life.
Required Course Materials:
Course texts are films that will be screened in-class and course material is presented in lecture and discussion or shared via CourseLink. If you do not attend class, you will not be able to complete assignments correctly.
Final Draft or equivalent screenwriting software: for industry-standard script formatting. You will be submitting and sharing your screenplays in PDF format. NB: students will be introduced to at least one free-ware screenwriting platform.
Notebook(s) or the equivalent are required: for jotting down your ideas, taking notes by hand on movies and TV shows you watch, research, storyboarding, etc.
3 A laptop computer or other device: required weekly for work with scripts and other materials. Ideally, you should be able to read and write on this device in class.
If the course is delivered remotely, internet access sufficiently powerful for video conferencing and streaming will be required.
Required films and clips, scripts, and other materials and resources are to be distributed and/or screened in or out of class, and/or posted on CourseLink. (Optional materials and resources will also be made available on CourseLink.)
The following are a few of the reputable textbooks on screenwriting:
Robert McKee, Story; Syd Field, Screenplay, The Foundations of Screenwriting; Lajos Egri, The Art of Dramatic Writing Eric Edson, The Story Solution; Amnon Buchbinder, The Way of the Screenwriter; Linda Seger, Making a Good Script Great; Christopher Vogler, The Writer’s Journey; Michael Hauge, Writing Screenplays That Sell.
(None is required. Used copies are often available through online book sellers.)
Screening List Toy Story 3, dir. Lee Unkrich The King’s Speech, dir. Tom Hooper
Reading: Toy Story 3 screenplay, Michael Arndt The King’s Speech screenplay, David Seidler
4
Assignment Structure and Grade Breakdown: Still Image Story Outline (250 words) 10%
Concept Kit (75 words maximum for each concept) 10%
Character Story Outline (2-3 pages, double spaced) 10%
Scene work (2-3 pages) 10%
First draft of screenplay (5-7 pages maximum) 20%
Final revised short script (8-10 pages maximum) 25%
Reflection essay on EL experience 5%
Workshop Participation 10%
Modes of Assessment Still Image Story Outline (250 words) 5% This assignment asks you to tell a story through a series of imagined still images – like photographs or freeze frames. The purpose of the assignment’s narrow limitations is to require you to think visually. Be descriptively concrete and engage the readers’ imagination with a simple story. In each still image, you must describe only what can be seen – using present tense. The aim is to create a story that is greater than the sum of its parts. You will be evaluated based on clarity, coherence, expressiveness, story impact,
5 and use of space between the images to engage the reader’s imagination. Each image should be described with a maximum of 50 words.
Concept Kit (75 words maximum for each concept) 10% This assignment asks you to create a “kit” of 6 story concepts. Each must be one of the following: A PREMISE or a WORLD or an EVENT. Each concept provides a single, narratively loaded event/character in a situation/or world that will be the core of a story. Each concept should be detailed enough to suggest a distinct story. You will be evaluated based on expressiveness, originality, potency, and rigour.
Character Story Outline (2-3 pages, double spaced) 10% This assignment asks you to create a character outline. You are asked to describe telling details of the character, past and present; to explore contrasting facets of the character; to put the character in situations of conflict; to explore goals, objectives and motives of the character; and to explore possible key actions that would reveal character. You will be evaluated on expressiveness, character coherence, character dimension, dramatic potential, and originality. Length: 2-3 pages, double spaced.
Scene work (2-3 pages) 10% This assignment asks you to create a successful scene that clearly establishes a character in a dramatic situation. The scene work is expected to reflect learning points covered in class. You will be evaluated on your effectiveness of visual writing, originality, character expressiveness, dialogue, plausibility, handling of exposition, clarity of character motive, goal and objective, the element of surprise, and the successful creating of a turning point and new direction.
First Draft (20%) and Final Revised Short Script (25%) For the first draft of the screenplay, you will write a short film script (5-7 pages maximum) in which you introduce a character, create a problem, and create a situation in which your protagonist faces a difficult choice. The choice made will reveal character growth. You are required to use correct screenplay formatting. You will be evaluated on
6 your ability to create a dramatic arc, dialogue, handling of a cause and effect through- line, dramatic potential, the development of a central image, resonance and story impact. After your first draft has been workshopped, you will revise your screenplay; your revised script should be 8-10 pages long.
Reflection essay on EL experience 5% Students will write a short 500- to 750-word essay on the professional aspects of the course including working with professional-standard writing software and having their 2- to 3-page scene performed.
Workshop Participation 10%
Students are expected to actively participate in all aspects of class: giving feedback to other students on their work and receiving feedback themselves.
12-week Schedule:
Class 1 What is Story?
Class 2 What is Structure?
Class 3 What is a Story Concept?
Class 4 What is Character?
Class 5 What is Conflict?
Class 6 What is a Story Image?
Class 7 What is Plot?
7 Class 8 What is Theme?
Class 9 What is Dialogue?
Class 10 What is a Screenplay: Putting it all together.
Class 11 Performances of Scenes
Class 12 Performances of Scenes
Course Notes:
This is a writing class. Written work is to be presented free of errors in spelling, grammar, and format. Remember to proof-read your work before submitting.
Unless otherwise instructed, all assignments should be double-spaced, 12 pt. font, ragged right margin. Pages should always be numbered. A cover sheet indicating the student’s name and number and the assignment number and title is required. If the assignment is as a PDF file sent by email, the saving convention should be as follows: LASTNAME_Firstname_Ass#_AssignmentTitle.
Please see College of Arts Standard Statement, below.
Work is to be submitted before the start of class on the due date. When an extension is granted and late work is accepted, a grade penalty will be applied (except in medical situations or in the case of accommodations.)
College of Arts Standard Statement of Expectations
8 E-mail Communication As per university regulations, all students are required to check their
When You Cannot Meet a Course Requirement When you find yourself unable to meet an in-course requirement because of illness or compassionate reasons, please advise the course instructor (or designated person, such as a teaching assistant) in writing, with your name, id#, and e-mail contact. See the undergraduate calendar for information on regulations and procedures for Academic Consideration.
Drop Date Courses that are one semester long must be dropped by the end of the fortieth class day; two-semester courses must be dropped by the last day of the add period in the second semester. The regulations and procedures for dropping courses are available in the Undergraduate Calendar.
Copies of out-of-class assignments Keep paper and/or other reliable back-up copies of all out-of-class assignments: you may be asked to resubmit work at any time.
Accessibility The University promotes the full participation of students who experience disabilities in their academic programs. To that end, the provision of academic accommodation is a shared responsibility between the University and the student. When accommodations are needed, the student is required to first register with Student Accessibility Services (SAS). Documentation to substantiate the existence of a disability is required, however, interim accommodations may be possible while that process is underway. Accommodations are available for both permanent and temporary disabilities. It should be noted that common illnesses such as a cold or the flu do not constitute a disability.
9 Use of the SAS Exam Centre requires students to book their exams at least 7 days in advance, and not later than the 40th Class Day. For more information see the SAS web site.
Student Rights and Responsibilities Each student at the University of Guelph has rights which carry commensurate responsibilities that involve, broadly, being a civil and respectful member of the University community. The Rights and Responsibilities are detailed in the Undergraduate Calendar.
Academic Misconduct The University of Guelph is committed to upholding the highest standards of academic integrity and it is the responsibility of all members of the University community – faculty, staff, and students – to be aware of what constitutes academic misconduct and to do as much as possible to prevent academic offences from occurring. University of Guelph students have the responsibility of abiding by the University's policy on academic misconduct regardless of their location of study; faculty, staff and students have the responsibility of supporting an environment that discourages misconduct. Students need to remain aware that instructors have access to and the right to use electronic and other means of detection. Please note: Whether or not a student intended to commit academic misconduct is not relevant for a finding of guilt. Hurried or careless submission of assignments does not excuse students from responsibility for verifying the academic integrity of their work before submitting it. Students who are in any doubt as to whether an action on their part could be construed as an academic offence should consult with a faculty member or faculty advisor. The Academic Misconduct Policy is detailed in the Undergraduate Calendar.
Recording of Materials Presentations which are made in relation to course work—including lectures—cannot be recorded or copied without the permission of the presenter, whether the instructor, a
10 classmate or guest lecturer. Material recorded with permission is restricted to use for that course unless further permission is granted.
Resources The Academic Calendars are the source of information about the University of Guelph’s procedures, policies and regulations which apply to undergraduate, graduate and diploma programs.
11 ENGL*3300 Poetry Workshop: Ecopoetics (One possible iteration of the course)
Calendar Description: In this workshop, students will gain a deeper understanding of the basic elements of poetry (form, line, metre, imagery, rhyme, rhythm, syntax and metaphor) by focusing on eco-poetry. In their creative practice, students will achieve a nuanced understanding of how poetic form and language can reflect and generate an environmental attentiveness.
Course Description: How is contemporary poetry informed by environmental issues distinct from nature poetry of the past? What roles do aesthetic form and language play in a non- anthropocentric world? In “Writing the Anthropocene” Tobias Boes and Kate Marshall tell us that ”knowing and articulating species-being within a reflexively produced era of geologic time requires . . . novel modes of articulation that are appropriate to these complex forms of mediation.” This course focuses on poetry as the site of such “novel modes of articulation,” understanding articulation as both the process of giving voice to and an intersectional bringing together. The course draws on the three key understandings of ecopoetry described by Lynn Keller: environmentally engaged poetry of any period, formally and linguistically experimental poetry that uses an attentiveness to poetic language to engage an attentiveness to environmental concerns, and poetry that attends to the deep imbrication of nature and culture by focusing on non-traditional sites of nature (rubbish dumps, landscaped boulevards). Through the study of ecopoetry and critical writing on ecopoetics, the course will provide you with an aesthetic and intellectual framework within which to workshop your own poetry.
The course reading is primarily structured by Lynn Keller’s Recomposing Ecopoetics: North American Poetry of the Self-Conscious Anthropocene. We begin with nineteenth-century poets and environmental attentiveness to establish historicized understandings of nature, then jump to twenty-first century ecopoetics. Reading a chapter each week, Keller takes us through a summary of key discussions of environmental issues and their application to ecopoetry. We finish with three case studies: the centring of African American relations with the environment;
1 Pacific Islanders’ relocation of environmental attention to the ocean; and works attending to, or connected with, Guelph and its wider surroundings.
Learning Objectives By the end of this course, the student should be able to: 1. apply with greater sophistication the basic elements of poetry (form, line, metre, imagery, rhyme, rhythm, syntax and metaphor) in their creative work. 2. experiment with form and language in their own ecopoetry 3. write a polished 15-poem chapbook of ecopoetry 4. revise their creative work by learning how to use criticism effectively to expand and improve their poetry. They will apply their understanding of the revision process in their final chapbook. 5. create socially engaged writing by focusing on environmental issues through their readings, discussion, and writing assignments. 6. achieve both a literary and ethical understanding of our relationship with the environment 7. achieve nuanced understanding of how poetic form and language can reflect and generate an environmental awareness 8. achieve an understanding of key issues and scholarship in the environmental humanities, as applied to ecopoetry. 9. participate effectively in a writing workshop, discussing and evaluating the creative work by their classmates in a professional, constructive manner. 10. read and present their work to an audience. This is considered an experiential learning (EL) component of the course since it involves a major aspect of a poet’s professional life. 11. start situating their poetry in relation to poetic traditions. 12. apply a disciplinary vocabulary to analyze and evaluate published poetry, their classmates’ poetry and their own.
Grading Scheme: First seven revised poems 15% Revised, polished 15-poem chapbook 25%
2 Writing Exercises/form Assignments 15% Editing/Workshop Participation 20% Public Reading 10% Reflection Paper 10% EL Reflection Paper 5%
Method of Evaluation:
Writing Exercises/Form Assignments, 15% Students will be required to participate in in-class writing exercises and to hand in worked poems the week after the lecture and exercise. These writing exercises will concentrate on poetic forms.
Editing/Workshop Participation, 20% Students are expected to actively participate in all aspects of class: giving feedback to other students on their work and receiving feedback themselves.
First Draft (15%) and 15-Poem Chapbook (25%) Five drafts of your first seven poems will be workshopped in weeks one to six. You will revise the poems and submit them in week 7. This submission is worth 15%. Five drafts of your last eight poems will be workshopped in weeks seven to twelve. You will revise these poems, as well as the first seven if you wish, and submit a polished chapbook of 15 poems during the exam period. The chapbook will be graded as a whole; it is worth 25%
Reflection Paper, 10% Write a 3- to 5-page reflection paper on how your reading has informed your poetry. In other words, explain how you situate your own eco-poetry in relation to the eco-poetry you have read in this course or in other courses. This will provide the introduction to your chapbook.
Public Reading: EL Component 10% Treat this class as a professional poetry reading and take the opportunity to further improve your public speaking and performance skills. The poems you will read must be selected from your
3 chapbook. You will have the liberty to select the poems, decide on their order, and/or include elements of performance. You are strongly encouraged to invite guests outside our class. We will attempt to book a bigger room, in consultation with students and SETS’s administration. This is considered an experiential learning (EL) component of the course since it involves a major aspect of a poet’s professional life.
Reflection Essay on EL Component 5% Last day of class. Reflection essay on the EL components of the course (public reading of your work), 500-750 words
Schedule The first class in each week will be a discussion of the assigned scholarship and poetry. The second class will be a workshop of a poem you have written that does at least one of the following: • Responds to the poem(s) from the beginning of the week • Explores a distinctive aspect of form or language use in the poem(s) from the beginning of the week • Engages with the ecocritical issue addressed in the reading(s) from the beginning of the week Week 1 Romantic Nature Tuesday Discussion of Readings: • Jonathan Bate, “Major Weather,” The Song of the Earth • Lord Byron “Darkness” • John Keats “To Autumn” • Samuel Taylor Coleridge “Frost at Midnight” In-class Writing Exercise
Thursday Workshop
Week 2 Proto-ecopoetics
4 Tuesday Discussion of Readings: • Knickerbocker, Scott. “Introduction” Ecopoetics: The Language of Nature, the Nature of Language • Gerard Manley Hopkins “The Windhover” • Emily Dickinson “A Bird, came down the Walk—” In-class Writing Exercise
Thursday Workshop
Week 3 Beyond Nature Poetry Tuesday Discussion of Readings: • Lynn Keller “Introduction: Beyond Nature Poetry” Recomposing Ecopoetics In-class Writing Exercise
Thursday Workshop
Week 4 Scalar Tuesday Discussion of Readings: • Lynn Keller “‘In Deep Time into Deepsong’: Writing the Scalar Challenges of the Anthropocene” Recomposing Ecopoetics • Juliana Spahr • Forrest Gander • Ed Roberson In-class Writing Exercise
Thursday Workshop
Week 5 Plastic(ized) environments
5 Tuesday Discussion of Readings: • Lynn Keller “Toxicity, Nets, and Polymeric Chains: The Ecopoetics of Plastic” Recomposing Ecopoetics • Adam Dickinson • Evelyn Reilly In-class Writing Exercise
Thursday Workshop
Week 6 Eco-apocalypse Tuesday Discussion of Readings: • Lynn Keller “‘Under These Apo-calypso Rays’: Crisis, Pleasure, and Eco- Apocalyptic Poetry” Recomposing Ecopoetics • Jorie Graham • Evelyn Reilly In-class Writing Exercise
Thursday Workshop
Week 7 Species Tuesday Discussion of Readings: • Lynn Keller “Understanding Nonhumans: Interspecies Communication in Poetry” Recomposing Ecopoetics • a.rawlings • Jody Gladding • Jonathan Skinner In-class Writing Exercise
Thursday Workshop
6 Revisions of first seven poems due.
Week 8 Place Tuesday Discussion of Readings: • Lynn Keller “Global Rearrangements: Sense of Place in Twenty-First- Century Ecopoetics” Recomposing Ecopoetics • Ed Roberson • Juliana Spahr • Forrest Gander • Jena Osman In-class Writing Exercise
Thursday Workshop
Week 9 Environmental (in)justice Tuesday Discussion of Readings: • Lynn Keller “Environmental Justice Poetry of the Self-Conscious Anthropocene” Recomposing Ecopoetics • Ed Roberson • Mark Nowak • Myung Mi Kim In-class Writing Exercise
Thursday Workshop
Week 10 Whose nature? Tuesday Discussion of Readings: • evie shockley, semiautomatic
7 • evie shockley, “Black and Green: On the Nature of Ed Roberson’s Poetics.” In-class Writing Exercise
Thursday Workshop
Week 11 Aqua-poetics Tuesday Discussion of Readings: • Craig Santos Perez, Habitat Threshold. • Rob Wilson, “Oceania as Peril and Promise: Towards Theorizing a Worlded Vision of Transpacific Ecopoetics.” In-class Writing Exercise
Thursday Workshop
Week 12 Hyper-local Tuesday Discussion of Readings: • Madhur Anand, A New Index for Predicting Catastrophes • Karen Houle, The Grand River Watershed: A Folk Ecology • Joe Sheridan and Roronhiakewen “He Clears the Sky” Dan Longboat. “The Haudenosaunee Imagination and the Ecology of the Sacred.” In-class Writing Exercise
Thursday Public Reading
Revised, polished chapbook of 15 poems due during exam period.
Texts
8 Where we read only one or two poems from a book, the book will be on library reserve, and individual chapters and articles will be available through online course reserve.
Anand, Madhur. A New Index for Predicting Catastrophes. McClelland & Stewart, 2015. Bate, Jonathan. The Song of the Earth. Pan Macmillan, 2000. Boes, Tobias and Kate Marshall. “Writing the Anthropocene: An Introduction.” Minnesota Review vol. 83, no. 1, 2014, pp. 60-72. Byron, Lord (George Gordon). “Darkness.” Poetry Foundation, poetryfoundation.org. Coleridge, Samuel Taylor. “Frost at Midnight.” Poetry Foundation, poetryfoundation.org. Dickinson, Adam. The Polymers. House of Anansi Press, 2013. Dickinson, Emily. “A Bird, came down the Walk—.” Poetry Foundation, poetryfoundation.org Gander, Forrest. Core Samples from the World. New Directions, 2011. --- and John Kinsella. “The Carboniferous and Ecopoetics.” Redstart: An Ecological Poetics. University of Iowa Press, 2012. Gladding, Jody. Translations from Bark Beetle. Milkweed Editions, 2014. Graham, Jorie. Sea Change: Poems. Ecco, 2008. Hopkins, Gerard Manley. “The Windhover.” Poetry Foundation, poetryfoundation.org Gander, Forrest. Core Samples from the World. New Directions, 2011. Houle, Karen. The Grand River Watershed: A Folk Ecology. Gaspereau Press, 2019. Keats, John. “To Autumn.” Poetry Foundation, poetryfoundation.org. Keller, Lynn. Recomposing Ecopoetics: North American Poetry of the Self-Conscious Anthropocene. University of Virginia Press, 2018. Kim, Myung Mi. Penury. Omnidawn, 2009. Knickerbocker, Scott. Ecopoetics: The Language of Nature, the Nature of Language. University of Massachusetts Press, 2012. Nowak, Mark. Coal Mountain Elementary. Coffee House Press, 2009. Osman, Jena. The Network. Fence Books, 2010. Rawlings, Angela (a.rawlings). Wide Slumber for Lepidopterists. Coach House Books, 2006. Reilly, Evelyn. Apocalypso. Roof Books, 2012. ---. Styrofoam. Roof Books, 2009. Roberson, Ed. City Eclogue. Atelos, 2006.
9 ---. To See the Earth Before the End of the World. Wesleyan University Press, 2010. Sheridan, Joe and Roronhiakewen “He Clears the Sky” Dan Longboat. “The Haudenosaunee Imagination and the Ecology of the Sacred.” space and culture, vol. 9, no. 4, Nov. 2006, pp. 365-81. shockley, evie. “Black and Green: On the Nature of Ed Roberson’s Poetics.” Renegade Poetics: Black Aesthetics and Formal Innovation in African American Poetry. University of Iowa Press, 2011, pp. 145-68. ---. semiautomatic. Wesleyan University Press, 2017. Skinner, Jonathan. Birds of Tifft. BlazeVOX Books, 2001 ---. “Blackbird Stanzas.” In Big Energy Poets: Ecopoetry Thinks Climate Change, edited by Heidi Lynn Staples and Amy King, BlazeVOX Books, 2017. Spahr, Juliana. Well Then There Now. David R. Godine, 2011. Wilson, Rob. “Oceania as Peril and Promise: Towards Theorizing a Worlded Vision of Transpacific Ecopoetics.” Journal of Transnational American Studies, vol. 10, no. 2, Winter/Spring 2019-2020, pp. 261-82.
University Statements Email Communication
As per university regulations, all students are required to check their e-mail account regularly: e- mail is the official route of communication between the University and its students.
When You Cannot Meet a Course Requirement
When you find yourself unable to meet an in-course requirement because of illness or compassionate reasons please advise the course instructor (or designated person, such as a teaching assistant) in writing, with your name, id#, and e-mail contact. The regulations and procedures for Academic Consideration are detailed in the Undergraduate Calendar.
10 Drop Date Students will have until the last day of classes to drop courses without academic penalty. The deadline to drop two-semester courses will be the last day of classes in the second semester. This applies to all students (undergraduate, graduate and diploma) except for Doctor of Veterinary Medicine and Associate Diploma in Veterinary Technology (conventional and alternative delivery) students. The regulations and procedures for course registration are available in their respective Academic Calendars.
Undergraduate Calendar - Dropping Courses https://www.uoguelph.ca/registrar/calendars/undergraduate/current/c08/c08-drop.shtml
Graduate Calendar - Registration Changes https://www.uoguelph.ca/registrar/calendars/graduate/current/genreg/genreg-reg-regchg.shtml
Associate Diploma Calendar - Dropping Courses https://www.uoguelph.ca/registrar/calendars/diploma/current/c08/c08-drop.shtml
Copies of Out-of-class Assignments
Keep paper and/or other reliable back-up copies of all out-of-class assignments: you may be asked to resubmit work at any time.
Accessibility
The University promotes the full participation of students who experience disabilities in their academic programs. To that end, the provision of academic accommodation is a shared responsibility between the University and the student.
When accommodations are needed, the student is required to first register with Student Accessibility Services (SAS). Documentation to substantiate the existence of a disability is required, however, interim accommodations may be possible while that process is underway.
Accommodations are available for both permanent and temporary disabilities. It should be noted that common illnesses such as a cold or the flu do not constitute a disability.
11 Use of the SAS Exam Centre requires students to book their exams at least 7 days in advance, and not later than the 40th Class Day.
More information: www.uoguelph.ca/sas
Academic Misconduct
The University of Guelph is committed to upholding the highest standards of academic integrity and it is the responsibility of all members of the University community – faculty, staff, and students – to be aware of what constitutes academic misconduct and to do as much as possible to prevent academic offences from occurring. University of Guelph students have the responsibility of abiding by the University's policy on academic misconduct regardless of their location of study; faculty, staff and students have the responsibility of supporting an environment that discourages misconduct. Students need to remain aware that instructors have access to and the right to use electronic and other means of detection.
Please note: Whether or not a student intended to commit academic misconduct is not relevant for a finding of guilt. Hurried or careless submission of assignments does not excuse students from responsibility for verifying the academic integrity of their work before submitting it. Students who are in any doubt as to whether an action on their part could be construed as an academic offence should consult with a faculty member or faculty advisor.
The Academic Misconduct Policy is detailed in the Undergraduate Calendar. Recording of Materials
Presentations which are made in relation to course work—including lectures—cannot be recorded or copied without the permission of the presenter, whether the instructor, a classmate or guest lecturer. Material recorded with permission is restricted to use for that course unless further permission is granted.
12 Resources
The Academic Calendars are the source of information about the University of Guelph’s procedures, policies and regulations which apply to undergraduate, graduate and diploma programs.
13 CRWR*3400 Screenwriting Workshop: Writing for Inclusive Screens Winter 2024 (Sample course outline for one possible iteration of the course)
Instructor: Office: Office Hours: Course Meets:
Calendar Description: Students will develop original story concepts through concept kits, character work, outlines, scenes and a short screenplay. Students will be challenged to sharpen their awareness of difference (race, disability, gender, sexuality and/or class) and apply this awareness in their creative work. While being critically aware of issues of cultural appropriation and reductive representations, students will learn how to practice inclusivity in their creative work.
Course Description: In this iteration of the course, students will be challenged to sharpen awareness of the social value of their work as it relates to issues of disability and to apply this awareness in sensitive portrayals of people with disabilities.
This course builds on the foundational knowledge gained in CRWR*2400. Students will begin mastering the basics of the craft of screenwriting by analyzing the elements of story and reinforcing the concepts and techniques used by screenwriters. Students will develop original story concepts through concept kits, character work, outlines, scenes and a short screenplay. Each week's lecture will delve into another aspect of the craft of screenwriting, using examples from short films, television, and feature films with special attention paid to screenwriters and filmmakers who contribute to the conversation regarding disability. In workshop, students will be expected to offer insightful, analytic, and constructive criticism to the work of their classmates, and to incorporate notes towards revising their own work. The assignments are designed to attune students to
1 furthering their mastery of the elements and tools of screenwriting. Each assignment puts into practice concepts covered in class and advances the work of the earlier assignment. The final assignment will consist of a finished short screenplay. (Minimum 15, maximum 25 pages.)
Learning Objectives By the end of the course students should be able to:
1. accept and demonstrate appreciation of the limitations of the screenplay as a literary form and the essential differences between the labour of a screenwriter and the labour of literary writing, specifically when it comes to point of view, tense, handling time, style, and the imperative to write only what can be observed. 2. master writing and formatting their screenplays using professional-standard screenwriting software programs. 3. create unique, well-developed, complex characters who are revealed through telling detail and action by examining character’s motivations, desires and subconscious needs, and motivations and by creating believable obstacles which provoke these characters to take plausible action. Through their discussions of reading assignments and screenings with the professor and their peers, students will analyze how screenwriters develop characters. They will come to view action and character through the same lens. They will explore the concept of need and psychic wound. In workshops, they will evaluate their classmates’ character development and learn to critique character constructions (both their own and their classmates’) by participating in workshop discussions. 4. create effective Dialogue, building upon what they learned in CRWR*2400, students will employ the techniques and tools of dialogue creation in their creative work through scenes, sequences, and their final draft short screenplay. They will learn to view dialogue as action and to assess it through the lens of objective, whether mini objective or super objective. They will become adept at creating subtext. Through their discussions of reading assignments with the professor and their peers, students will analyze how screenwriters create good dialogue and as well, they will sharpen their critical eye towards the hallmarks of weak dialogue.
2 In workshops, they will evaluate their classmates’ ability to create good dialogue, as well as critique their own dialogue. 5. Build upon their understanding of the scene that was learned in CRWR*2400 through scene work, writing the sequence, and writing a short, finished screenplay. Students will become adept at viewing and handling the scene as the essential dramatic unit of story. Students will deepen their understanding and mastery of Scene by writing and re-writing scenes. They will practice building a story through the development of scenes and scene sequences in their scene work, sequence work, and final screenplay assignment. In workshops, they will evaluate the construction and sequencing of scenes. Applying the tools learned in class, they will successfully assess their effectiveness and function within the larger story. 6. analyze how screenwriters create good scenes through their discussions of reading assignments with the professor and their peers. In their participation in workshops, they will evaluate and critique their classmates’ construction of scene and receive constructive criticism towards refining their own scene work. 7. understand, analyze and evaluate Narrative Arc by reading and discussing the relation between character, goal, dramatic question, and obstacles. Students will explore the principles of story design including cause and effect, plausibility and surprise, setup and payoffs, creating within the gap, scene sequencing, composition, act design, and effective beginnings and endings. Students will apply their understanding of Narrative Arc in their creative work concept, scenes, outlines and a final revision of their finished short screenplay. Through their discussions of reading assignments with the professor and their peers, students will understand and analyze how authors create a narrative arc. In their participation in workshops, they will evaluate and critique their classmates’ and their creation of narrative arc. 8. understand, analyze and evaluate Turning points by reading, discussing, and screenings of scenes, sequences, and complete films. Students will gain a firm grasp on the elements of a turning point and how turning points are used in scenes, sequences, and tentpole construction to turn a story. They will apply this
3 knowledge in their own outlines, scenes, screenplays and revisions. They will also apply this knowledge when formulating and offering constructive feedback to their peers in the progression of their creative work. 9. understand, analyze and evaluate Style by reading and discussing the difference between character, subject, point of view, plot and style. Students will apply their understanding of Style in their creative work through scene work, outlines, sequences, and a final draft of a short screenplay. Through their discussions of reading assignments with the professor and their peers, students will understand and analyze the areas of interest of different screenwriters as well as themes, characters, and styles explored by various screenwriters. In their participation in workshops, they will evaluate and critique their classmates’ and their own writing style. 10. formulate an awareness of the established traditions of the craft and begin an education on the influences that may or may not guide their work. 11. foster an awareness of their audience, as well as an awareness of the social and ethical issues within their writing. 12. foster an awareness of issues of disability and develop the ability to recognize, analyse, articulate and evaluate how difference or marginalization is reflected in or impacts creative work – whether their own work, the work of peers, or the works studied in class. 13. create Socially Engaged screen stories by focusing on issues of affecting people with disabilities through their readings, discussion, and writing assignments. 14. participate effectively in a writing workshop, discussing and evaluating the creative work by their classmates in a professional, constructive manner, and receiving openly the constructive response to their work from peers and instructor. 15. approach issues of cultural appropriation with great sensitivity and to be aware of reductive representations of disability. 16. revise their creative work by using feedback from workshops to improve and expand their concepts, outlines, scenes, sequences and short screenplays. They
4 will apply their understanding of the revision process in their revision of their outlines, opening sequences, and final revision of their finished short screenplay. 17. reflect upon and understand the professional aspect of their craft by engaging in an experiential learning (EL) experiences in which student use professional- standard software and have actors read their scripts and bring them to life (table reads).
Required Course Materials: Course texts are films that will be screened in-class and course material is presented in lecture and discussion or shared via CourseLink. If you do not attend class, you will not be able to complete assignments correctly.
Final Draft or equivalent screenwriting software: for industry-standard script formatting. You will be submitting and sharing your screenplays in PDF format. NB: students will be introduced to at least one free-ware screenwriting platform.
Notebook(s) or the equivalent are required: for jotting down your ideas, taking notes by hand on movies and TV shows you watch, research, storyboarding, etc.
A laptop computer or other device: required weekly for work with scripts and other materials. Ideally, you should be able to read and write on this device in class.
If the course is delivered remotely, internet access sufficiently powerful for video conferencing and streaming will be required.
Required films and clips, scripts, and other materials and resources are to be distributed and/or screened in or out of class, and/or posted on CourseLink. (Optional materials and resources will also be made available on CourseLink.)
Reading List (Required)
5 Robert McKee, Story; Michael Tierno, Aristotle’s Poetics for Screenwriters; David Trottier, Screenwriter's Bible
The following texts are not required but referenced often in class and recommended. (Used copies are often available through online book sellers.)
Natalie Zemon Davis, Slaves on Screen, Film and Historical Vision Syd Field, Screenplay, The Foundations of Screenwriting; Linda Seger, Making a Good Script Great; Eric Edson, The Story Solution; Amnon Buchbinder, The Way of the Screenwriter; Christopher Vogler, The Writer’s Journey; Michael Hauge, Writing Screenplays That Sell; Steven Pressfield, The War of Art; Blake Snyder, Save the Cat Nathalie Goldberg, Writing Down the Bones.
Screening List Diving Bell and the Butterfly, 2007, dir. by Julian Shnabel, scr. by Ronald Harwood The Elephant Man, 1982, dir. by David Lynch, scr. by Christopher de Vore, Eric Bergren The Piano, 1993, dir. and scr. by Jane Campion My Left Foot, 1989, dir. by Jim Sheridan, scr. by Jim Sheridan and Shane Connaughton
Grade Breakdown Concept Kit and presentations (1200 words) 10% Screenplay analysis (1500 words) 10% First draft of script outlines 10% Writing the opening sequence 10% First draft of script (15 pages maximum) 20%
6 Final revised script (25 pages maximum) 25% Reflection Essay on the Table Read (EL Component) 5% Workshop Participation 10%
Modes of Assessment: Concept Kit and presentations (1200 words) 10% This assignment asks you to create a “kit” of 6 story concepts that explore themes of marginalization. Each concept must include a LOGLINE, a PREMISE, (a CHARACTER in a SITUATION). Each concept should be detailed enough to suggest a distinct story with a compelling DRAMATIC QUESTION that turns on conflict that is generated as a result of disability. The written assignment will be submitted for evaluation and feedback and each student will give a verbal in -class presentation on one of the six concepts in his/her ‘kit’. Work will be evaluated based on expressiveness, originality, potency, and rigour, and the level of engagement in questions regarding the representation of disability.
Screenplay analysis (1500 words) 10% This assignment asks the student to read and analyze a screenplay that bears comparative relevance thematically and structurally to the original story concept they have identified from Assignment #1 that they will advance to a short screenplay. The screenplay to be analyzed will be chosen in consultation with the instructor (and where possible, from the list above) and will portray a character with a disability. The assignment asks the student to identify and analyze the craft and tools used by the screenwriter to establish a complex dimensional character, to engage the audience’s empathy, and to generate a meaningful experience that dynamically explores ideas and questions relating to the representation of bodies that have been marginalized.
The work will be evaluated based on the student’s understanding and ability to analyze basic screenplay structure, film language, the tools employed by the screenwriter in the craft of screenwriting to create a fluidly functional story system, and the level of
7 understanding and complexity in the student’s engagement in questions regarding disability.
First draft of script outlines 10% This assignment asks you to write a logline, synopsis, and outline for a short film script that explores a character with a disability who is pursuing a goal while facing forces of antagonism rooted in difference. (A logline from Assignment #1 can be revised and further explored.) The logline is one to two sentences. The synopsis should be no more than 150 words. The outline should be no more than 3 pages. The final script (not due in this assignment) will be between 18 and 25 pages. You will be evaluated based on the following questions: Does the story engage powerfully in a conversation or themes relevant to questions regarding the representation of people with a disability? Is the setting or ‘world’ specific, evocative, interesting? Does the story have a compelling, dimensional protagonist? Does the protagonist have a strong motive, need and want driving his/her/their action? Is the goal of the protagonist achievable, relatable, concrete, imperative? Are the stakes clear? Is there an inner struggle? Why is it so important that the protagonist achieve the goal? What will be lost if he/she/they fail? Does the idea contain inherent dramatic action? Is there potential to generate sustained and increasing complicated obstacles and conflict? Is there a clear potential for inner struggle, character arc/transformation through action? Does the story contain powerful imagery? Is the concept unique and original? Does the student feel a genuine passion and connection to the material?
Writing the opening sequence 10% This assignment asks you to write the opening sequence of your screenplay until the first act turning point. You will be evaluated on your ability to successfully establish a dimensional character who is disabled, to engage the viewer in the dramatic hook, to compose a successful scene, sequence, and act design, to set up a rich, interesting, specific and evocative world, an opening event that provokes a motive, a clear goal and overriding dramatic question, to successfully balance principles of credibility and surprise, and your effective handling of action and dialogue. Does the opening sequence
8 engage in a conversation or themes relevant to questions regarding the representation of people with disabilities?
Script 45% First Draft of Script (15 pages maximum) 20% Final revised script (25 pages maximum) 25% This assignment asks you to write a completed script for a short film that tells the story of a character who is marginalized or ‘othered’ or engages in a conversation or themes relevant to questions regarding the representation of people that have been marginalized or 'othered' due to their disability. Use correct script format. The final script will be no more than 25 pages. You will be evaluated based on your fluency with and effective application of the concepts, tools and craft of screenwriting that have been covered in the course. As well, you will be evaluated based on rigour, story impact, and story resonance and your level of engagement in questions regarding the representation of people that have been marginalized or 'othered', due to disability.
Class participation 10% You are required to offer feedback during workshop for all student work. Class participation will be assessed on: level of demonstrated engagement in the learning; attendance; respectful, professional conduct; commitment to the give and take of dialogue in class discussions; ability to analyze, evaluate, and problem-solve in class workshops and discussions; and ability to work productively in a group setting.
Reflection Essay on the Table Read (EL Component) 5% A table read is an aspect of the screenwriter’s professional life. Write a reflection essay on this EL components of the course. Devote a couple of paragraphs explaining what changes you made to your screenplay after hearing actors read your script at the table read. (500-750 words)
12-week Schedule
9
Week 1 Story Structure: examining the spectrum of structure. A comparison of structural models as seen in sample films.
Week 2 Structure and Character Creating Dramatic Characters
Engaging Empathy Working with an anti-hero
In-Class writing sprints – exploring a character with a disability.
Week 3 Structure and Genre Genre rules. Genre as a tool for development of character.
In-class writing sprints applying genre tools in the development of character who have been “othered.
Week 4 Structure and Meaning The marriage of the rational and the emotional when it comes Premise and Controlling idea in a selection of films portraying disability on screen in both positive and negative ways. Meaning and society.
In-class writing sprint exploring ‘meaning’ through opposing characters.
Week 5 The Inciting Incident in Story Design
10 An exploration of Inciting Incidents in a variety of films that explore characters who have been ‘othered’ due to differences relating to disabilities.
Week 6 The principles of Story Design: Plausibility, probability, surprise, cliché, cause and effect, substance.
Exploring cliché in stories about disability.
Week 7 Principles of Antagonism Law of Diminishing Returns The Nature of Good as it relates to character. Four-point opposition in cast design.
Week 8 Scene Design and Analysis In-Class writing sprints – scenes.
Week 9 Act Design and Story Composition
Week 10 Crisis, Climax and Resolution An exploration of the progression of Crisis-Climax-Resolution in a selection of study films.
Week 11 Handling Dialogue and Exposition
Week 12 EL Component: Table reads with Actors (of Opening Sequences).
11 Course Notes:
Attendance is mandatory.
This is a writing class. Written work is to be presented free of errors in spelling, grammar, and format. Remember to proof-read your work before submitting.
Unless otherwise instructed, all assignments should be double-spaced, 12 pt. font, ragged right margin. Pages should always be numbered. A cover sheet indicating the student’s name and number and the assignment number and title is required. If the assignment is as a PDF file sent by email, the saving convention should be as follows: LASTNAME_Firstname_Ass#_AssignmentTitle.
Please see College of Arts Standard Statement, below.
College of Arts Standard Statement of Expectations
E-mail Communication As per university regulations, all students are required to check their
When You Cannot Meet a Course Requirement When you find yourself unable to meet an in-course requirement because of illness or compassionate reasons, please advise the course instructor (or designated person, such as a teaching assistant) in writing, with your name, id#, and e-mail contact. See the undergraduate calendar for information on regulations and procedures for Academic Consideration.
Drop Date Courses that are one semester long must be dropped by the end of the fortieth class day; two-semester courses must be dropped by the last day of the add period in the second
12 semester. The regulations and procedures for dropping courses are available in the Undergraduate Calendar.
Copies of out-of-class assignments Keep paper and/or other reliable back-up copies of all out-of-class assignments: you may be asked to resubmit work at any time.
Accessibility The University promotes the full participation of students who experience disabilities in their academic programs. To that end, the provision of academic accommodation is a shared responsibility between the University and the student. When accommodations are needed, the student is required to first register with Student Accessibility Services (SAS). Documentation to substantiate the existence of a disability is required, however, interim accommodations may be possible while that process is underway. Accommodations are available for both permanent and temporary disabilities. It should be noted that common illnesses such as a cold or the flu do not constitute a disability. Use of the SAS Exam Centre requires students to book their exams at least 7 days in advance, and not later than the 40th Class Day. For more information see the SAS web site.
Student Rights and Responsibilities Each student at the University of Guelph has rights which carry commensurate responsibilities that involve, broadly, being a civil and respectful member of the University community. The Rights and Responsibilities are detailed in the Undergraduate Calendar.
Academic Misconduct The University of Guelph is committed to upholding the highest standards of academic integrity and it is the responsibility of all members of the University community – faculty, staff, and students – to be aware of what constitutes academic misconduct and to do as much as possible to prevent academic offences from occurring. University of
13 Guelph students have the responsibility of abiding by the University's policy on academic misconduct regardless of their location of study; faculty, staff and students have the responsibility of supporting an environment that discourages misconduct. Students need to remain aware that instructors have access to and the right to use electronic and other means of detection. Please note: Whether or not a student intended to commit academic misconduct is not relevant for a finding of guilt. Hurried or careless submission of assignments does not excuse students from responsibility for verifying the academic integrity of their work before submitting it. Students who are in any doubt as to whether an action on their part could be construed as an academic offence should consult with a faculty member or faculty advisor. The Academic Misconduct Policy is detailed in the Undergraduate Calendar.
Recording of Materials Presentations which are made in relation to course work—including lectures—cannot be recorded or copied without the permission of the presenter, whether the instructor, a classmate or guest lecturer. Material recorded with permission is restricted to use for that course unless further permission is granted.
Resources The Academic Calendars are the source of information about the University of Guelph’s procedures, policies and regulations which apply to undergraduate, graduate and diploma programs.
14 University of Guelph
CRWR*3500 Advanced Writing for Performance: Writing for the Inclusive Stage Winter 2024 (offered even-numbered winters)
Calendar Description: This is an advanced course in writing for various modes of performance. The students will build on the story-telling skills they learned in THST 2120, the introductory Writing for Performance class. Students will focus on writing stories that focus on social issues, marginalized groups (race, disability, gender, sexuality) or the environment, as well as explore issues of appropriation. Students will closely and critically read screenplays (or watch the films) and stage plays which have had a serious social impact and look at the way they are different from films and plays which simply reaffirm mainstream belief systems.
Offering(s): Offered in even-numbered years Prerequisite(s): CRWR*2400 Screenwriting or THST*2120 Restriction(s): Registration in the Creative Writing major or minor or the Theatre Studies major or minor. Creative Writing majors and minors can register in a maximum of 1.0 credits in Creative Writing at the 3000-level.
Course Description: This is an advanced course in writing for various modes of performance, including stage, film, and television. The students will build on the story-telling skills they learned in THST 2120, the introductory Writing for Performance class. They will have understood that a character’s unwavering, and often unconscious need drives all strong stories, and they will now concentrate on exploring how the obstacles to those needs create tension and the high stakes which every strong story has. We will explore the process of creating complicated, nuanced characters as protagonists and antagonists and supporting characters as well. Student writers will be encouraged to seriously reflect on, and even break with traditional, Western ideas of structure; they will explore structures that best serve the story they are telling with a special emphasis on breaking with colonized ideas of story structure. We will focus on writing stories that focus on social issues, marginalized groups (race, disability, gender, sexuality) or the environment. We will closely and critically read screenplays (or watch the films) and stage plays which have had a serious social impact and look at the way they are different from films and plays which simply reaffirm mainstream belief systems. We will explore pressing, current issues for writers such as appropriation: what stories do we have the ethical right to write? Do we need to have personal experience to write about an event, or can a piece be purely research/interview based? Is the only ethically acceptable story to write one’s own story? When does autobiography become fiction? Does genre matter? We will discuss the difference between writing to persuade and writing to uncover, and we will look at how uncovering what seems to be an almost insignificant secret/buried truth can have a wider meaning and therefore a significant social impact.
Course Objectives: The main objective of this course is for the students to complete one full length piece of writing for Performance, whether it be a screenplay, a teleplay (pilot) or a stage play. They will have written their piece with the guidance of the instructor and the feedback of their fellow students, inspired by critical analysis of character and structure in works they admire in their chosen medium. Another objective is for the students to understand how to critically view a film or a play, through the lens of a writer, rather than an uncritical audience. Several viewings/readings are necessarily required to emotionally distance enough to perceive the internal workings of each story. Additionally, the course strives to give each student the space to access and ignite their creative power, to value their own history and their own stories, including the places and settings they are familiar with.
Learning Outcomes: By the end of the course, students will be able to:
1. understand the distinction between writing for performance and writing prose or poetry. 2. develop habits of deep listening. It is only through deep listening that we learn how to differentiate characters through the way we write their speech in all its rhythms, free associations, fragmentation, repetitions and verbal crutches.
3. develop an awareness that every character has their own rules of grammar, and in breaking the rules dictated by those in power, they are staging a conscious or unconscious revolution. If they abide by those rules, they are assenting to participate in power structures. Speech is a class marker and can be a political statement, and the student will have learned to create characters with this in mind.
4. turn a story into a powerful theatrical monologue that must be spoken, just as a song must be sung.
5. create a theatrical structure arising from a character’s driving needs and the obstacles they face in fulfilling those needs.
6. write an opening scene that demands the attention of the audience, and sets the tone for the play.
7. develop a sense of genre in playwrighting, and have chosen the genre they are most comfortable writing in.
8. reflect on the notion of a theatrical climax, and whether or not that is a Western and patriarchal construct, or an organic element of all stories across time and culture. They will have made their own decision about the necessity of a climax in the stories they wish to tell on that stage or screen.
9. learn to write dialogue for a range of disparate characters. How does a writer write for other genders, for the non-gendered, for those for whom English is a second language, for different races?
10. approach issues of cultural appropriation with great sensitivity, while daring to venture outside the zone of what and who they know intimately.
11. gain professional experience by having a table read of their writing by student actors. This is an experiential learning (EL) component. 12. offer a nuanced, in-depth critique of others’ work in group collaborations and workshops 13. engage respectfully and professionally with the creative writing of other workshop participants and providing an oral critique of students’ creative work
Modes of Assessment:
All assignments must be posted on Course-Link. All writing must directly or indirectly explore issues facing marginalized communities, i.e. race, gender, class, sexuality, or issues around the environment. Each writer must find a way to address one of these issues without proselytizing-the objective is to tell a story with characters so complex, identifiable, and emotionally provocative that the viewer will be politically awakened and leave the play or film with true agency.
Grade Breakdown Outline 10% Monologue 5% Opening scene 5% Act One 15% Final Play or Screenplay 25% Written response to a film or play 10% Participation 20% Table Read or Performance (EL Component) and EL Reflection Essay 10%
Methods of Assessment
1. Outline: 10% Due September 22nd.
Students will submit a two- page outline of the film/play they plan to write. The outline will include the concept, which should address an ethical question the writer and reader will have to wrestle with, the basic story, which only need be as long as an elevator pitch, a character “bible,” which means a paragraph describing each main character and their function in the story, and a paragraph on how this story explores issues of race, gender, sexuality, disability, or the environment.
Monologue: 5% Due Sept. 29
Students will submit a page long, stream of consciousness monologue for their main character. The monologue may or may not be used in the final piece, but rather it is a way of the writer understanding the interior life of their character, and what needs the character has that are driving or complicating the story.
Opening scene: 5% due October 6
Students will submit the first scene of their piece., which should run about 5-8 minutes. They will post the scene in CL and assign student readers, who will read the scene aloud in the next class. We will read a few scenes in front of the whole class, and then go into breakout rooms so that all students can hear their scenes.
Act One: 15% due October 30
Students will submit the first act of their play or screenplay. They will post their work on CL and assign student readers as well. The class will go into break out groups so that all students can hear their work read aloud. The instructor will move in and out of the break- out groups to listen, and guide when appropriate.
Final Play or Screenplay: 25%: Due November 25th
Students will submit their second act on CL, assigning student readers. In class we will go into breakout rooms so that all or most students can hear their work read aloud.
Written response to a film or play: 10% Due October 15th
Students will submit a written response to a film or play that has inspired their own work. This response should be written from the perspective of a writer, addressing social issues in the work, the structure, the characters, and the ethical questions posed. This work should be shared on CL.
Participation: 20%
Participation means reading the work of fellow students and writing or expressing a thoughtful and honest response. The feedback must be constructive while never been prescriptive. Positive comments or serious questions are the preferred mode. Each student will write an extended response to a play or screenplay of their choice and submit this response to the instructor as well as posting it in Discussions. The response itself is worth 10%. One student will be asked to submit their response to a work every week. (TBA)
Table Read or Performance (EL Component) and EL Reflection Essay 10%
Students will gain professional experience by having their scripts performed by student actors. They will then write a reflection essay on this experience.
Recommended Reading/Viewing List:
Plays: Other Side of the Game, Refugee Hotel, Leo, Huff, Fronteras Americanas, The Hours That Remain, Deer Woman, The Normal Heart, Angels in America, Hamilton, Trace, The Making of St. Jerome, Top Girls, Cloud Nine, East of Berlin, A Nanking Winter, China Doll, Ruined, Sweat, A Soldier’s Tale, Cloud Nine, PassOver, Problem Child, Harlem Duet, Riot, The Monument, A Line in the Sand, Smudge, Crash.
T.V. and Movies:
Orange is the New Black, Do the Right Thing, Boyz in the Hood, The Lives of Others, Parasite, Spotlight, The Fast Runner : Atanarjuat, Dances With Wolves, Huff, This is How We Got Here, Deer Woman, Book of Negroes, Roots, Brokeback Mountain, Boys Don’t Cry, An Inconvenient Truth, The Body Remembers When the World Broke Open, Pose, A Soldier’s Tale, Philadelphia, The Cove, March of the Penguins, Anthropocene, My Left Foot, The Theory of Everything, The Sessions, Inside I’m Dancing, Breathe.
Schedule
Week One:
Introductions, explanation of syllabus, questions answered and a discussion on the difference between writing fiction or poetry and writing for performance, and then further, the difference between writing for stage and writing for film.
Week Two:
Story-telling. Students will be invited to tell personal stories of transformation; this is not mandatory, and nobody will be pressured to tell a story. This is an exercise to demonstrate to the students that we all have an innate story telling ability. The structure and content of each student’s story will be unique, which will show the class that each student needs to find their own, authentic style. A short discussion of outlines will end the class, along with a link to an outline of a well- known film or play.
Week three: A few successful outlines will be read in class and analyzed. We will discuss outlines of several films and plays. The students will go into break out rooms to read their outlines to one another and give feedback to their peers. At the end of class, we will gather to read another outline and analyze it, and then a short discussion of what is expected in a monologue.
Week four:
Monologues: The students will read their monologues, and other students will have a chance to respond with positive and constructive feedback. We will then go into break out rooms to everyone has a chance to read their monologues and hear peer feedback.
Week five
Opening Scenes. Discussion of the purpose of an opening scene, and successful opening scenes. A few opening scenes will be read by students who are assigned readers, and then the class will go into breakout rooms to continue the reading of scenes, and then gather again in the last fifteen minutes to discuss and summarize.
Week six:
Students will bring in work they have done on Act One and read and discuss. Writing exercises. Discussion of film or play that they have been asked to read.
Week seven:
We continue reading and discussing student work, as well as doing some in class writing exercises.
Week Eight: Some of the students will have recorded a reading of their entire Act One and posted the recording on CL. The class will then be able to discuss and analyze. We will also discuss Act One of a play, PassOver, as well as Act One of a film, Silkwood.
Week Nine:
Continue workshopping student writing in full class as well as breakout rooms, as well as discussions of structure and character arcs.
Week Ten:
Students will have been chosen to present their climactic scenes to the class, followed by discussion and analysis. We will analyze climactic scenes in previously chosen films or plays.
Week Eleven:
Discussions of difficulties encountered in writing. Writer’s block. structure, character, letting your characters lead the writing, allowing the unexpected and unanticipated into a piece, creating plot twists, and most important of all, finding your voice as a writer. Some reading aloud.
Week Twelve: Table reads of one scene. Final wrap up and summary of the semester.
University Statements Email Communication
As per university regulations, all students are required to check their e-mail account regularly: e- mail is the official route of communication between the University and its students.
When You Cannot Meet a Course Requirement
When you find yourself unable to meet an in-course requirement because of illness or compassionate reasons please advise the course instructor (or designated person, such as a teaching assistant) in writing, with your name, id#, and e-mail contact. The regulations and procedures for Academic Consideration are detailed in the Undergraduate Calendar.
Drop Date Students will have until the last day of classes to drop courses without academic penalty. The deadline to drop two-semester courses will be the last day of classes in the second semester. This applies to all students (undergraduate, graduate and diploma) except for Doctor of Veterinary Medicine and Associate Diploma in Veterinary Technology (conventional and alternative delivery) students. The regulations and procedures for course registration are available in their respective Academic Calendars.
Undergraduate Calendar - Dropping Courses https://www.uoguelph.ca/registrar/calendars/undergraduate/current/c08/c08-drop.shtml
Graduate Calendar - Registration Changes https://www.uoguelph.ca/registrar/calendars/graduate/current/genreg/genreg-reg-regchg.shtml
Associate Diploma Calendar - Dropping Courses https://www.uoguelph.ca/registrar/calendars/diploma/current/c08/c08-drop.shtml
Copies of Out-of-class Assignments
Keep paper and/or other reliable back-up copies of all out-of-class assignments: you may be asked to resubmit work at any time. Accessibility
The University promotes the full participation of students who experience disabilities in their academic programs. To that end, the provision of academic accommodation is a shared responsibility between the University and the student.
When accommodations are needed, the student is required to first register with Student Accessibility Services (SAS). Documentation to substantiate the existence of a disability is required, however, interim accommodations may be possible while that process is underway.
Accommodations are available for both permanent and temporary disabilities. It should be noted that common illnesses such as a cold or the flu do not constitute a disability.
Use of the SAS Exam Centre requires students to book their exams at least 7 days in advance, and not later than the 40th Class Day.
More information: www.uoguelph.ca/sas
Academic Misconduct
The University of Guelph is committed to upholding the highest standards of academic integrity and it is the responsibility of all members of the University community – faculty, staff, and students – to be aware of what constitutes academic misconduct and to do as much as possible to prevent academic offences from occurring. University of Guelph students have the responsibility of abiding by the University's policy on academic misconduct regardless of their location of study; faculty, staff and students have the responsibility of supporting an environment that discourages misconduct. Students need to remain aware that instructors have access to and the right to use electronic and other means of detection.
Please note: Whether or not a student intended to commit academic misconduct is not relevant for a finding of guilt. Hurried or careless submission of assignments does not excuse students from responsibility for verifying the academic integrity of their work before submitting it. Students who are in any doubt as to whether an action on their part could be construed as an academic offence should consult with a faculty member or faculty advisor. The Academic Misconduct Policy is detailed in the Undergraduate Calendar. Recording of Materials
Presentations which are made in relation to course work—including lectures—cannot be recorded or copied without the permission of the presenter, whether the instructor, a classmate or guest lecturer. Material recorded with permission is restricted to use for that course unless further permission is granted.
Resources
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CRWR*4300 Capstone Poetics Workshop (Sample course outline for possible iteration of course)
Calendar Description: This advanced poetry workshop will involve the generation and revision of new work, sophisticated critique of student work, and focused discussion of cultural, social, and political issues in which the practice of poetry writing is enmeshed. This course may also focus on the application of poetic elements in hybrid forms and mixed-mode narratives. This capstone course will give students the opportunity to create a polished chapbook of 500-800 lines.
Course Description: This advanced poetry workshop will give students the opportunity to produce a chapbook of about 500-800 lines and perform their work at a public reading on Zoom. Assigned readings will form the basis of conversations about key elements of contemporary poetry and the writer’s role as a sociopolitical witness and activist.
Please keep in mind that this is a full-credit course and has the workload of a full-credit course.
Learning Outcomes By the end of the course, students should be able to: 1. masterly apply the elements of poetry (form, line, metre, imagery, rhyme, rhythm, syntax and metaphor) in their creative work. 2. apply a sophisticated disciplinary vocabulary to analyze and evaluate published poetry, their classmates’ poetry and their own. 3. to participate in a writing workshop by giving and receiving the constructive response and evaluations of their creative work (from classmates and the instructor) in a professional, constructive manner, as well as rigorously analyzing the application of the elements of storytelling in the student’s work. 4. revise their creative work by learning how to use criticism effectively to expand and improve their poetry. They will apply their understanding of the revision process in their final 500- to 800-line (25- to 30-page) chapbook. 5. create socially engaged writing by focusing on sociopolitical issues through their readings, discussion, and writing assignments. 6. write a polished chapbook of 25 poems 7. read and present their work to an audience. This is considered an experiential learning (EL) component of the course since it involves a major aspect of a poet’s professional life. 8. reflect upon and understand the professional aspects of a career poet. 9. situate their poetry in relation to poetic traditions.
Texts: 1. Wislawa Szymborska, Poems New and Collected (Polish Nobel prize winner); 2. Vivek Shraya, even this page is white (Canadian transgender poet of Indian origin); 3. Anne Carson, Float (a “box” of chapbooks by MacArthur Prize winner); 4. We Are One: Poems from the Pandemic. (Bayeux Arts 2020, if already in print)
Grading Scheme: • Class participation 20% • 25-poem chapbook (25-30 pages)
o 10 poems (10-15 pages, due Fri, Oct. 16) 15 % o 15 poems (15-20 pages, different from the first set, due Fri, Nov 13) 15 % o Revision of Chapbook (due during exam period) 20 % • Online Public Reading & Rehearsal 10 % • Reflection Essay on EL component 5% • Reflection Essay on Literary Influences 15%
Methods of Evaluation: CLASS PARTICIPATION 20% Weekly Writing & Peer-Review Exercises 1. Peer-Reviews • The class will be divided into groups, which will be decided after the first week of classes. • Students will be responsible for reading and providing on CourseLink short, but meaningful feedback notes (75-100 words) on the weekly poetry writing assignments of their group members. Yet, the main peer-review exercises will take place during the required weekly virtual group meetings, which will facilitate trust and dialogue. • All students will have access to all weekly poems written by their classmates and may give feedback to classmates outside their group, but this is not mandatory. • Showing respect and consideration is absolutely required. A writing workshop is NOT the place for “positive criticism,” which is incompatible with our learning objectives and special trust needed among participants. Please remember that poetry is an act of communication based on shared emotions. • Learning how to give and work with feedback will be as important as learning how to write better. You will make editing suggestions on your peer’s poems, aiming to learn how to edit your own work.
2. Weekly Writing Exercises • The weekly writing prompts will be based on the assigned readings, including books, considering specific study topics and the progress of our creative writing experience. • You will write about 2-3 poems/week to ensure you have a substantial body of work from which you can select the best poems for the final chapbook. • Each poem should have at least 15 lines, except for fixed-form poems, but less than 60 lines; please contact me if you consider writing much longer poems. • After the weekly group meetings on Friday, each student will submit for grading on CourseLink the first draft of each poem and the edited draft, with a short paragraph (100- 150 words) explaining the creative process, citing the suggestions that have helped them or the ones that did not fit their own vision. This rationale will be read privately by the course instructor; make sure to be thoughtful and civil when referring to your peers’ suggestions.
25-POEM CHAPBOOK (50%) • FIRST SUBMISSION: due Week Five, before class (15%) • 10 poems (10-15 pages) must be submitted on CourseLink for instructor’s feedback, suggestions, and grading. • You must keep an electronic copy of your submission in case of unforeseeable technical difficulties. • SECOND SUBMISSION: due Week 10 (15%) • 15 poems (15-20 pages), different from the first set, must be submitted on CourseLink for instructor’s feedback, suggestions, and grading. • You must keep an electronic copy of your submission in case of unforeseeable technical difficulties. • FINAL DRAFT: due during exam period (20%) • 25 poems, the final chapbook of 25-30 pages, must be submitted on CourseLink for grading. • Grading will assess the improvement of each text, the final structure (order) of poems, and the professional layout of the chapbook. • You must keep an electronic copy of your submission in case of unforeseeable technical difficulties.
CHAPBOOK REQUIREMENTS • At least 15 poems from the first two submissions must be included after being revised according to the instructor’s feedback. • Each poem should have at least 15 lines, except for fixed-form poems, but less than 60 lines; please contact me if you consider including much longer poems. No more than three fixed-form poems may be included. • Please include a book cover page, ideally with some visual illustration, and a Table of Contents. • The instructor will be available upon request for virtual one-on-one meetings to discuss the progress of your poetry writing and final project.
SYNCHRONOUS ONLINE PUBLIC READING & REHEARSAL (10%) Friday, Nov 13: VIRTUAL REHEARSAL for the public reading Friday, Nov 25: Open-class public reading with selections from your chapbooks on ZOOM • Treat this open class as a professional poetry reading and take the opportunity to further improve your public speaking and poetry performance skills. • The poem(s) you will read must be selected from your final chapbook. • You will have the liberty to select the poem(s), decide on their order, and/or include elements of performance. • Considering the 60-minute duration of the entire reading and the necessary transitions, each student will have about 3 minutes of reading time, including a brief presentation. • You are strongly encouraged to invite guests outside our class and take advantage of the online delivery: your guests can literally be from all over the world, time zones considered.
REFLECTION ESSAY ON LITERARY INFLUENCES 10% Due with your final portfolio Students will create a reading list of at least 15 books of poetry and then write an 8- to 10-page reflection piece on how these texts have shaped their creative practice. In the reflection piece, students will be assessed on how they approach their aesthetic practice in an analytical and informed manner; compare and evaluate the merits and drawbacks of various narrative strategies when approaching their creative practice; and articulate a response on the craft of writing in regard to form and genre, literary and cultural contexts, literary antecedents and historical traditions. This reflection piece will function as a foreword or introduction to your chapbook.
REFLECTION ESSAY ON EL COMPONENT 5% Last day of class. • Reflection essay on the EL components of the course (public reading and submission of work), 500-750 words.
WEEKLY SCHEDULE
WEEK 1, Sept 11 Topic(s): Introductions/The Power of (Self-)Editing: What should we avoid in poetry?
Readings: 1. On CourseLink, “How to Read a Poem?” 2. Wislawa Szymborska, “The Poet and the World” Nobel Prize Lecture (from the book)
Assignments for next week: 1. Choose an older poem you are proud of and post it on CourseLink for peer-review. 2. Following only the suggestions that you agree with, revise your poem. 3. Submit on CourseLink both the initial draft and the revised draft for grading.
WEEK 2, Sept 18 Topic(s): Metaphor and Other Figures of Speech Readings: 1. Selected poems on CourseLink
Assignments for next week:
WEEK 3, Sept 25 Topic(s): Free Verse & Prose Poem
Readings: 1. Selected poems on CourseLink
Assignments for next week: on CourseLink
WEEK 4, Oct 2 Topic(s): Imagery as literary device & the poet as a sociopolitical activist
Readings: 1. Vivek Shraya, even this page is white (bookstore)
Assignments for next week: on CourseLink
WEEK 5, Oct 9 Topic(s): Self-Pity to Irony and Self-Irony: Comic catharsis and the Alienation-Effect
Readings: Wislawa Szymborska, Poems New and Collected (bookstore)
WEEK 6, Oct 16 Topic(s): Clarity: grammar; diction; ambivalence vs. ambiguity DUE BEFORE CLASS: 10 poems (10-15 pages, 20 %) Readings: Guest Speaker on ZOOM (to be confirmed)
WEEK 7, Oct 23 Topic(s): Group meetings with the instructor.
WEEK 8, Oct 30 Topic(s): Group meetings with the instructor. . ASSIGNMENT FOR NEXT WEEK: Propose a reading order for Float, post it on CourseLink and discuss it in your group.
WEEK 9, November 6 Topic(s): The Structure of a Book: Does the Poems’ Order Matter? Readings: Anne Carson, Float (bookstore) Assignments for next week: • Arrange your 15 poems due next week in order and post them on CourseLink for peer- review. • Reorder the 15 poems, following only the suggestions that you agree with.
WEEK 10: November 13 BEFORE CLASS: 15 poems due on CourseLink (15-20 pages, different from the first set, 25%) Topic(s): REHEARSAL for next week’s Zoom reading: Reading vs. Performing Poetry
WEEK 11: November 20 Topic(s): Open-class public reading on ZOOM with selections from your chapbooks Assignments for next week . 1. Analysis of the Zoom reading 2. The Poet and the Local/Global Community
Readings: We Are One: Poems from the Pandemic (Bayeux Arts, 2020, bookstore, if available)
WEEK 12: November 27 Topic(s): The professional life of a poet: attending public readings; the benefits of “open mic;” preparing submissions to magazines, publishing houses, and contests/CONCLUSIONS: What Is Success for a Poet? Readings: • Margaret Atwood, selections from Negotiating with the Dead: A Writer on Writing • Rupi Kaur, Instagram Poems (selections)
UNIVERSITY OF GUELPH COLLEGE OF ARTS SCHOOL OF ENGLISH AND THEATRE STUDIES CRWR*4400 Capstone Scriptwriting (One possible iteration of the course.)
Instructor: Office: Office Hours: Course Meets:
Calendar Description This capstone course focuses on scriptwriting and may involve writing for the screen, writing for the stage, or both. Students will begin the course by creating an outline of a full length feature film or play and will then be expected to make significant progress on their creative projects. This workshop course will also involve the sophisticated analysis and critique of scripts and focused discussions of the cultural, social, political and professional issues in which the practice of scriptwriting is enmeshed.
Course Description In this iteration of the course, we will be focusing on screenwriting. Students will prepare a polished outline for a feature screenplay. Students will then draft and revise the first 35-45 pages of that feature screenplay with the hopes that this capstone project will serve as the foundation for a complete screenplay of a full length feature film.
In conjunction with their creative work, students will be assigned two to four screenplays relevant to their original work which they will be required to read closely, analyze, and present upon their insights to the class. Lectures will deepen existing understanding and invite rigorous analysis of basic screenplay structure, character development, theme, story
1 creation, plot, dramatic conflict and action, scene making, dialogue, narrative arc and film language.
Students will be assessed on their ability to engage in insightful analysis and discussion, provide valuable feedback to peers, apply rigour to their own practice as writers, and to produce a screenplay of high quality that demonstrates technical knowledge and confidence; a distinct vision and voice, and a sophisticated engagement with the craft. The portfolio can be used to apply to MFA programs or for jobs in the creative industry.
Learning Outcomes: By the end of the course students should be able to: 1. develop their own feature length screenplay from concept to revised outline and first act. 2. analyze screenplays to understand how successful, professional screenwriters apply the elements of storytelling and screenwriting. Students will analyze screenplays through close readings and class discussions, as well as in their reflection essay on their artistic influences. 3. create memorable, compelling, fascinating lead Characters in their concepts, outlines, scenes and screenplays. Through their discussions of reading assignments with the professor and their peers, students will analyze how screenwriters develop characters. They will learn and understand the qualities of a hero or anti-hero and formulate the ability to consider the requisite approach to character within their stories. In workshops, they will evaluate their classmates’ character development and learn to critique character constructions (both their own and their classmates’) by participating in workshop discussions. 4. create a compelling cast of supporting characters in their concepts, outlines, scenes and screenplays. Through their discussion of reading assignments with the professor and peers and through class lectures, students will learn tools for honing cast design. They will be fluid in concepts of four-point opposition, the work of Joseph Campbell regarding and the archetypes of the hero’s journey, Lajos Egri’s approach to character, Uta Hagen’s Object Exercise, and more.
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5. create effective Scenes in their concepts, outlines, scenes and screenplays. Through their discussions of reading assignments with the professor and their peers, students will analyze how screenwriters create good scenes. In their participation in workshops, they will evaluate and critique their classmates’ construction of scene. 6. create compelling, relevant Dialogue in their concepts, outlines, scenes and screenplays. Through their discussions of reading assignments with the professor and their peers, students will analyze how authors create good dialogue. In their participation in workshops, they will evaluate and critique their classmates’ use of dialogue and learn to critique the use of setting (both their own and their classmates’). 7. create a relevant story world by applying their understanding of Sense of Place, and as well, through the infinitely valuable practice of research, building upon what they learned in CRWR*3400 or ENGL*3500, in their concepts, outlines, scenes, sequences, and a short finished screenplay. Through their discussions of reading assignments with the professor and their peers, students will analyze how screenwriters create a story world. In their participation in workshops, they will evaluate their classmates’ sense of place within their story worlds and learn to critique the creation of story world as a tool useful for enhancing and deepening story impact. 8. demonstrate fluency in working with the concept of Narrative Arc within the craft of Screenwriting. By reading and discussing the relation among character, goal, motive, and action, cause and effect, and story line, scene sequencing and effective beginnings and endings, students will develop the understanding and analytic skills to measure and evaluate the integrity of the narrative arc with their own work and that of their classmates. Students will apply their understanding of Narrative in their creative work their concepts, outlines, scenes and screenplays. Through their discussions of reading assignments with the professor and their peers, students will understand and analyze how authors create a narrative arc. In their participation in workshops, they will evaluate and critique their classmates’ and their creation of narrative arc.
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9. analyze, evaluate and refine their personal writing Style by reading and discussing the difference between voice and style, identifying their style, and changing style. Students will apply their understanding of Style in their creative work through their concepts, outlines, scenes and screenplays. Through their discussions of reading assignments with the professor and their peers, students will understand and analyze different authors’ styles. In their participation in workshops, they will evaluate and critique their classmates’ and their own writing style. 10. to participate in a writing workshop by giving and receiving the constructive response and evaluations of their creative work (from classmates and the instructor) in a professional, constructive manner, as well as rigorously analyzing the application of the elements of storytelling in the student’s work. 11. revise their creative work by learning to incorporate feedback into the writing process and developing the practice of editing, re-writing, and re-working their ideas in order to refine the quality and impact their written work. They will apply their understanding of the Revision process in their scene work, revised outline and screenplay. 12. work fluently within the limitations of the screenplay, within a firm grasp of the limitations demanded by the form, writing fluidly in correct screenplay format, to tell a successful short screen story. 13. reflect upon and understand the professional aspect of their craft by engaging in an experiential learning (EL) experiences in which student use professional- standard software; have actors read their scripts and bring them to life (table reads); learn how to pitch their stories; research and present on furthering their education as screenwriters and finding competitions and grants to complete and/or produce their screenplays. 14. situate their creative work within a larger cultural and artistic context by reflecting on which films and/or screenplays, either in class or from their other coursework, have had an impact on their creative vision.
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Required Course Materials: Course texts are films that will be screened in-class and course material is presented in lecture and discussion or shared via CourseLink. If you do not attend class, you will not be able to complete assignments correctly.
Final Draft or equivalent screenwriting software: for industry-standard script formatting. You will be submitting and sharing your screenplays in PDF format. NB: students will be introduced to at least one free-ware screenwriting platform.
Notebook(s) or the equivalent are required: for jotting down your ideas, taking notes by hand on movies and TV shows you watch, research, storyboarding, etc.
A laptop computer or other device: required weekly for work with scripts and other materials. Ideally, you should be able to read and write on this device in class.
If the course is delivered remotely, internet access sufficiently powerful for video conferencing and streaming will be required.
Required films and clips, scripts, and other materials and resources are to be distributed and/or screened in or out of class, and/or posted on CourseLink. (Optional materials and resources will also be made available on CourseLink.)
The following texts are required: Robert McKee, Story; David Trottier, Screenwriter's Bible Linda Seger, Advanced Screenwriting; Drew Yanno, The Third Act
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The following texts are not required but referenced often in class and recommended. (Used copies are often available through online book sellers.)
Syd Field, Screenplay, The Foundations of Screenwriting; Michael Tierno, Aristotle’s Poetics for Screenwriters; Lajos Egri, The Art of Dramatic Writing John Yorke, Into the Woods Amnon Buchbinder, The Way of the Screenwriter; Blake Snyder, Save the Cat Eric Edson, The Story Solution; Linda Seger, Making a Good Script Great; Christopher Vogler, The Writer’s Journey; Michael Hauge, Writing Screenplays That Sell. Steven Pressfield, The War of Art Nathalie Goldberg, Writing Down the Bones
Screening List Students will choose 15 films and screenplays that are relevant to their work.
Assignment Structure and Grade Breakdown: Thesis Concept Kit: character, world, goal, obstacle 10% First draft of script outlines 15% Workshop Participation/Story Editing Report 15% Writing the first draft of Act 1 15% Revised Outline and Revised First Act of script 20% Presentation on Professionalism/Pitch 10% EL Reflection Essay 5% Reflection Essay on Cinematic Influences 10%
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Modes of Assessment: Thesis Concept Kit: character, world, goal, obstacle 10% In this assignment you are required to submit a logline and a 3-5 page beat outline of your concept for your screenplay. Your work will be evaluated based on the following questions: Is the setting or ‘world’ specific, evocative, interesting? Does the story have a compelling, dimensional protagonist? Does the protagonist have a strong need and want driving his/her/their action? Is the goal of the protagonist achievable, relatable, imperative? Are the stakes clear? Why is it so important that the protagonist achieve the goal? What will be lost if he/she/they fail? Does the idea contain inherent dramatic action? Is there potential to generate sustained and increasing complicated obstacles and conflict? Is there a clear potential for a rich character arc/transformation through action? Does the story contain sophisticated visual potential? Is the concept unique and original? Does the student feel a genuine passion and connection to the material? Does the story engage in a conversation or themes relevant to today’s world or human experience?
First draft of script outlines 15% In this assignment, you are required to submit a 10-page step outline of your proposed feature length screenplay. Your work will be evaluated based upon the advancement from Thesis Concept Kit of your handling of the creative and technical elements of your creative proposal. In addition to the questions itemized in evaluation of Thesis Concept Kit, these include the compelling creation, and execution of story, plot, character, and the integrity of the overall dramatic structure as well as originality, relevance, resonance, clarity of communication, and the promise and potential for thoughtful consideration and exploration of theme within the creative material. You will also be graded based on your creation and handling of a subplot, and the effective handling of forces of opposition within cast creation, and as well, act design. You will be graded on the effective creation of motive and objective as well as the effective revelation of character through action, the quality of narrative arc, and story impact. Effective handling of credibility and surprise will be evaluated. As well, you will be evaluated upon the level of engagement with and appropriate exploration of effective screen story techniques and conventions discussed in class. Effective use of accepted screenplay format and content is required.
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Workshop Participation 15%
1. Feedback: You are required to offer feedback during workshop for all student work. Class participation will be assessed on: level of demonstrated engagement in the learning; attendance; respectful, professional conduct; commitment to the give and take of dialogue in class discussions; ability to analyze, evaluate, and problem-solve in class workshops and discussions; ability to work productively in a group setting; and ability to provide feedback to peers in a constructive manner with a high degree of professionalism and to respond respectfully and comprehensively to questions posed and feedback offered to their work.
2. Close Readings and Seminar Presentations In this assignment you are required to do a close reading of 2 screenplays relevant to your original proposal (this should be material from the reflection essay on cinematic influences you are drafting) and prepare and give a 25-minute presentation in class on the content, craft and techniques employed by the screenwriter of the chosen screenplays.
The focus of your presentation will be an analysis of a specific scene or sequence in which the protagonist was revealed effectively through choice or dramatic action. You will be evaluated on the depth and breadth of your analysis, the degree to which your analysis engages with the concepts, tools and craft of screenwriting explored in class including plot, character, theme, dramatic action, dramatic structure, plausibility, surprise, stakes, the law of diminishing returns, and more, and the parallels and relevance drawn to your own original creative proposal.
Writing the first draft of Act 1 15% In this assignment, you will write the first draft of your Act 1. You will be evaluated based upon your handling of the creative and technical elements of your work. These include the compelling creation, and execution of story, plot, character, setup, inciting incident, and Act 1 turning point, and as well, the implied integrity of the overall
8 dramatic structure. Originality, relevance, resonance, clarity of communication, and the thoughtful consideration and exploration of theme within the creative material will also be evaluated as well as the effective creation of motive and objective, the effective revelation of character through action, the firm creation of a dramatic hook.
Revised Outline and Revised First Act of script 20% In this assignment you will submit a second draft of your feature film script outline, and as well, a second draft of the first act of your screenplay. You will be evaluated based upon the evolution of your outline in response to notes received from your classmate and instructor and upon the advancement from earlier submissions of your handling of the creative and technical elements of your work. These include the compelling creation, and execution of story, plot, character, narrative arc, and turning points. Originality, relevance, resonance, clarity of communication, and the thoughtful consideration and exploration of theme within the creative material will also be evaluated as well as the effective creation of motive and objective and the effective revelation of character through action. In the scripted Act 1, you will be evaluated on the masterful execution of your setup, inciting incident, and Act 1 turning point, the firm establishment of a dramatic hook and the implied integrity of the overall dramatic structure. Together the Revised Outline and Act 1 will represent a viable blueprint for a masterful, compelling, polished feature length screenplay.
Presentation on Professionalism/Pitch 10% In this 20- to 30-minute presentation you will present a teaser pitch (2 minutes) and a story pitch (10-20 minutes) of your screenplay. This will be followed by a 5- to 10- minute presentation on one or more of the following resources to advance your career as a screenwriter: workshop training institutions, screenplay competitions, funding sources, resources for emerging filmmakers, and/or etc. to share with the class.
Reflection Essay (EL Component) 5% Write a reflection essay on this EL components or professional aspects of this course: table reads; teaser and story pitches; and research on furthering their education as
9 screenwriters and finding competitions and grants to complete and/or produce their screenplays. Devote a couple of paragraphs explaining what changes you made to your screenplay after hearing actors read your script at the table read. (500-750 words)
Reflection Essay on Cinematic Influences 10% Due with your final portfolio Students will create a screening/reading list of at least 15 films/screenplays and then write an 8- to 10-page reflection piece on how these films and screenplays have shaped their creative practice. In the reflection piece, students will be assessed on how they approach their aesthetic practice in an analytical and informed manner; compare and evaluate the merits and drawbacks of various narrative/cinematic strategies when approaching their creative practice; and articulate a response on the craft of writing in regard to form and genre, literary and cultural contexts, and cinematic traditions. This reflection piece will function as a foreword or introduction to your screenplay portfolio.
12-week Schedule:
Week 1 The Goal of the Screenwriter The four stages of any screenplay The source of ideas, brainstorming, editing and writers block How to read a film, Assignment #1 assigned.
Week 2 What is a Screenplay? Classical design/Minimalism/Anti-Structure Formal differences of types of stories. Identifying features of Archplot/Miniplot/Antiplot Assignment #1 peer feedback
Week 3 The Subject
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Story Concept Hammering out the checklist of a story concept: character/empathy/desire/conflict/risk Assignment #1 due. Assignment #2 assigned.
Week 4 The Creation of Character Facets of character/empathy/complexity/ Charting the hero’s motivation/conflict/change Assignment #2 presentations.
Week 5 Building a Character Character and Action Dilemma Developing supporting cast design
Assignment #2 presentations continued. Assignment #3 assigned.
Week 6 Story, Theme and Character Arc Recognizing Theme Developing Theme
Assignment #2 presentations completed.
Week 7 Structure Using the Three Acts The Setup and Inciting Incident Principles of Antagonism Assignment #3 due. Assignment #4 assigned.
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Week 8 Structure Beginnings and Endings Plot Points/ Turning points
Rising Complications, Crisis and Climax and Resolution The Structure checklist Assignment #4 peer feedback
Week 9 Scene Writing The fractal story cell. Description, Action, Dialogue, Subtext, Exposition
A scene-by-scene checklist Assignment #4 due. Assignment #5 assigned.
Week 10 Sequence and Act Design Story Composition Assignment #5 peer feedback
Week 11 Building the story Line Breaking the rules. Living the Writer’s Life
Week 12 Table reads with Actors (of Opening Sequences). Assignment #5 due.
Course Notes:
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Attendance is mandatory.
This is a writing class. Written work is to be presented free of errors in spelling, grammar, and format. Remember to proof-read your work before submitting.
Unless otherwise instructed, all assignments should be double-spaced, 12 pt. font, ragged right margin. Pages should always be numbered. A cover sheet indicating the student’s name and number and the assignment number and title is required. If the assignment is as a PDF file sent by email, the saving convention should be as follows: LASTNAME_Firstname_Ass#_AssignmentTitle.
Please see College of Arts Standard Statement, below.
Work is to be submitted before the start of class on the due date. When an extension is granted and late work is accepted, a grade penalty will be applied (except in medical situations or in the case of accommodations.)
College of Arts Standard Statement of Expectations
E-mail Communication As per university regulations, all students are required to check their
When You Cannot Meet a Course Requirement When you find yourself unable to meet an in-course requirement because of illness or compassionate reasons, please advise the course instructor (or designated person, such as a teaching assistant) in writing, with your name, id#, and e-mail contact. See the undergraduate calendar for information on regulations and procedures for Academic Consideration.
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Drop Date Courses that are one semester long must be dropped by the end of the fortieth class day; two-semester courses must be dropped by the last day of the add period in the second semester. The regulations and procedures for dropping courses are available in the Undergraduate Calendar.
Copies of out-of-class assignments Keep paper and/or other reliable back-up copies of all out-of-class assignments: you may be asked to resubmit work at any time.
Accessibility The University promotes the full participation of students who experience disabilities in their academic programs. To that end, the provision of academic accommodation is a shared responsibility between the University and the student. When accommodations are needed, the student is required to first register with Student Accessibility Services (SAS). Documentation to substantiate the existence of a disability is required, however, interim accommodations may be possible while that process is underway. Accommodations are available for both permanent and temporary disabilities. It should be noted that common illnesses such as a cold or the flu do not constitute a disability. Use of the SAS Exam Centre requires students to book their exams at least 7 days in advance, and not later than the 40th Class Day. For more information see the SAS web site.
Student Rights and Responsibilities Each student at the University of Guelph has rights which carry commensurate responsibilities that involve, broadly, being a civil and respectful member of the University community. The Rights and Responsibilities are detailed in the Undergraduate Calendar.
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Academic Misconduct The University of Guelph is committed to upholding the highest standards of academic integrity and it is the responsibility of all members of the University community – faculty, staff, and students – to be aware of what constitutes academic misconduct and to do as much as possible to prevent academic offences from occurring. University of Guelph students have the responsibility of abiding by the University's policy on academic misconduct regardless of their location of study; faculty, staff and students have the responsibility of supporting an environment that discourages misconduct. Students need to remain aware that instructors have access to and the right to use electronic and other means of detection. Please note: Whether or not a student intended to commit academic misconduct is not relevant for a finding of guilt. Hurried or careless submission of assignments does not excuse students from responsibility for verifying the academic integrity of their work before submitting it. Students who are in any doubt as to whether an action on their part could be construed as an academic offence should consult with a faculty member or faculty advisor. The Academic Misconduct Policy is detailed in the Undergraduate Calendar.
Recording of Materials Presentations which are made in relation to course work—including lectures—cannot be recorded or copied without the permission of the presenter, whether the instructor, a classmate or guest lecturer. Material recorded with permission is restricted to use for that course unless further permission is granted.
Resources The Academic Calendars are the source of information about the University of Guelph’s procedures, policies and regulations which apply to undergraduate, graduate and diploma programs.
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School of English and Theatre Studies College of Arts University of Guelph
ENGL 2380 Reading Poetry (Sample course outline of possible iteration of the course) Fall 2023 (offered every fall)
Calendar Description: This course offers an introduction to the challenges posed by poetic discourse and provides students with the practical tools they need to analyze and appreciate verse. Students will read and analyze a broad range of verse practice in English, thereby gaining a base repertoire through which they can approach future encounters with poetry in other classes. Significant portions of the course will be devoted to thinking about poetry in historical terms.
Restriction(s): Registration in the English major, minor, area of concentration, or Creative Writing major or minor.
Course Description: This course offers an introduction into the multifarious challenges posed by poetic discourse. It provides practical tools for analyzing and appreciating verse, but its ultimate objective is to heighten students’ awareness of the signifying potential of language. In addition, the course offers a broad range of verse practice in English in order to provide a base repertoire through which students can approach future encounters with poetry in other classes. While much of the course will be addressing matters of form, it is not strictly speaking a formalist course. Significant portions of the course will be devoted to thinking about poetry in historical terms. We will be thinking not only about how to effectively contextualize poetic utterances, but also how a consideration of the material production and circulation of verse forms impinges on their reception. As we track the shift from “Poetry” to “Literature” to “Culture” as the organizing principles for the field of cultural production, students will begin to gain some sense of the changing relation of this specific discursive practice to other forms and genres.
Required Texts: Gwendolyn Brooks, In the Mecca in Blacks Lucille Clifton, Two-Headed Woman Tom Furniss and Michael Bath, Reading Poetry John Keats, The Poetry and Prose of John Keats (Norton) Yusef Komunyakaa, Dien Cai Dau (1988) Andrew Marvell, Poems Harryette Mullen, Sleeping with the Alphabet Mark Strand and Eavan Boland, The Making of a Poem (Norton) Ocean Vuong, Night Sky with Exit Wounds
Evaluation Structure: Terms quizzes 10% 3 Close reading exercises (500 words) 15% each Reading Log (1000 words) 25% Final Essay (2000 words) 20%
Learning Outcomes: By the end of the course students will have 1. developed practical reading skills required for reading a variety of verse forms 2. internalized the formal and generic expectations required for understanding and contextualizing poetic utterance 3. acquired a wide range of terms and concepts that will allow them to speak precisely about poetics 4. developed key strategies for understanding poetry in its historical context and for addressing poetry’s complex relationship to politics 5. acquired experience writing about verse through a range of exercises that add up to approximately 5000 words. 6. achieved organizational and time management skills in order to be prepared for class and submit work by assigned deadlines.
Assignment Schedule and Final Exam: TBA This course will be composed of lectures and in-class discussions. Attendance is crucial to your success in this course. It is also imperative that you keep up with the reading.
Schedule Technical Matters This section of the course will involve far more reading from the anthology than indicated here. The poems singled out are explicitly for discussion in lecture, but students will be expected to discuss other poems in their weekly reading log.
1. The Articulation of Sound Forms in Time a) repetition: rhyme Jane Kenyon, “Let It Come”; Thomas Wyatt, “The Lover’s Lute Cannot be Blamed” Brooks, “We Real Cool”, Derek Walcott b) variation: cadence Son House, “Death Letter; Langston Hughes, selected blues poems Dylan Thomas, “And Death Shall Have No Dominion” Seamus Heaney, from North
2. Sonic Structures a) what does form do? Sonnets incl. sonnets by Cullen, Brooks, Berrigan and Mayer b) freedom? Bishop, “One Art”; Marilyn Hacker, “Villanelle”; Duncan, “Opening the Field”
3. Syntax/Lineation/Figuration a) -modes of containment: the heroic couplet Pope, “Windsor Forest” -opening the sentence by breaking it Dickinson, (372) “After death a certain formal feeling comes”; Williams, “Spring and All” b) metaphor and metonymy: exceeding denotative meaning Michael Ondaatje, Dionne Brand, Don McKay
4. The Scene of Speech a) utterance as act Wordsworth, “Lines….Tintern Abbey” b) the poetic subject Bishop, “In the Waiting Room”
Broader Problematics This section of the course often features full volumes of poetry. The reading log will turn students attention to later poems that show the legacy of the following important figures.
Reading historically: poetry’s context
5. Social authorship and the consolations of pastoral discourse Andrew Marvell, selected poems Reading Log: Anne Finch
6. Form and history -John Milton, selected sonnets, political writings, and Paradise Lost, book one -Anne Bradstreet
Between prose and verse: poetry and the public sphere
7. Intimate scenarios John Keats, Lamia, Isabella, The Eve of St. Agnes, and Other Poems Reading Log: Keats’s Letters
8. Publication—Is the Auction Emily Dickinson, fascicle x, xiv Reading log: Dickinson letters
Between desire and need: poetry and affect
9. The erotic boundaries of the lyric -selections from Susan Howe, Claudia Rankine, Leslie Scalapino, and Lynn Hejinian -Lucille Clifton, Two-Headed Woman
10. Poems for everyday living selections from Frank O’Hara, Bernadette Mayer, and Alice Notley -Harryette Mullen, Sleeping with the Alphabet
In times of emergency: poetry and politics
11. Wartime Now -Robert Duncan, “Uprising” Denise Levertov, “What Were They Like”, “Life at War” Adrienne Rich, “On Burning Paper Instead of Children” -Gwendolyn Brooks, In the Mecca
12. Wartime Continuing -Yusef Komunyakaa, Dien Cai Dau (1988) -Ocean Vuong, Night Sky with Exit Wounds (2016)
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