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ERIC Number: ED210687
Record Type: Non-Journal
Publication Date: 1981-Nov
Pages: 13
Abstractor: N/A
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: N/A
EISSN: N/A
An "Aims of Discourse" Program for Freshman English.
McCleary, William J.
Genesee Community College in Batavia, New York, adopted James Kinneavy's aims of discourse theory as the basis of its composition program. The program is a two-semester course for students who intend to transfer to four-year colleges. In a comparable nontransfer sequence, the first semester doubles as a remedial course for ill-prepared transfer students. Prior to the change, the composition program was based on general semantics and lacked a coherent series of composition assignments. A new department chairperson recommended the Kinneavy-based curriculum. The department thus drew up some common objectives, outlined a curriculum to meet those objectives, and decided to concentrate on the aims of discourse (persuasion, self-expression, science and so on) to the virtual exclusion of the modes or forms of discourse (e.g., narration, description). Teaching materials and a syllabus were developed, as were a textbook and teacher's manual, while Kinneavy himself conducted intensive workshops at the college. The program's advantages include its flexibility in method and content, and its adaptability to various intellectual levels. Evaluation of the curriculum has shown that students are meeting the objectives of the program, although some refinement of the program is needed. (Appendixes contain a list of textbooks and course outlines.) (HTH)
Publication Type: Guides - Classroom - Teacher; Reports - Descriptive
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A