Texas Tech University

Welcome to English 1301 and 1302

Welcome to English 1301 and 1302 at Texas Tech University. In 2018, the Department of English radically revised the First-Year Writing Program, developing and implementing new curricula, new preparation for our instructors, and new delivery models so that students' and teachers' experiences in the two courses would be more meaningful, useful, and enjoyable.

Students at TTU take English 1301 and 1302 as part of their Core Curriculum (meeting the Written Communication component). English 1301: Introduction to College Rhetoric grounds first-year students in the reading, writing, and rhetorical demands and practices necessary for engaging in civic discourse and for success in college and beyond. This class teaches students to be both critical readers of complex texts and critical writers and creators of effective texts by introducing students to critical reading practices, writing processes, rhetorical analysis, inquiry, and multimodal composing. English 1302: Advanced College Rhetoric builds on these skills by focusing particularly on inquiry, conducting research, evaluating sources, incorporating source material in your own writing, mapping out a conversation around an issue, and entering that conversation through your own writing.

Course Delivery Models

Students at Texas Tech are offered five different delivery models for English 1301 and 1302 (Note that during the 2020-2021 academic year, face-to-face classes and lecture/breakout sections are taught as hybrid courses with alternating attendance to ensure social distancing during the coronavirus pandemic):

  • Traditional face-to-face classes. These courses meet twice a week (Monday-Wednesday or Tuesday-Thursday) for 80 minutes.
  • Lecture/breakout with an experienced instructor and a graduate instructor. These courses meet once a week (for 50 minutes) in a large lecture with your instructor of record and twice a week (for 50 minutes each) with your graduate instructor. Students in these courses work intimately with their graduate instructors who provide instruction on writing, guide discussion and peer feedback sessions, and provide feedback and grade their students' projects.
  • Fully online, synchronous. These courses meet twice a week (Monday-Wednesday or Tuesday-Thursday) for 80 minutes via videoconferencing software like Zoom.
  • Fully online, asynchronous. These courses are designed for online students and facilitated through Blackboard. In these sections, students interact frequently with their instructor and other students through discussion forums, peer feedback, and conferences. While there are no set meeting times for these courses, regular and frequent engagement in these courses is vital to student success (with typical due dates for discussion forum posts, peer feedback, readings, and projects on a Monday/Wednesday/Friday schedule).
  • Hybrid sections (summer sessions only). These course typically meet twice a week and have an online component for class discussion and peer feedback, allowing students more flexibility during the summer session.

Administration and Contacts