Unlike other English 102 courses – UWM's course weaves together traditional rhetoric and writing concepts together with info lit concepts.

The course emphasizes selecting sources based on the issue and audience, not satisfying requirements for number of scholarly sources. Our focus is to help students select a search tool (Google, Search@UW, subject database) and craft a successful search strategy, not on “good” or “scholarly” sources.

Per our triage model, whenever you feel that you can’t fully address the student’s question after a reference interview and some brief searching.

Some examples might be:

• If you get the sense they need in-depth one-on-one help you do not have the capacity for during your RHD shift 
• When you want constructive feedback on how you handled a question – it's an opportunity to see what you are doing well and how to answer questions differently in the future 
• When the student is asking for a very particular type of source by a specific type of author that you can’t locate—send me a note in LibAnswers or give them my email address
• When the student’s assignment includes requirements like 1 book, 3 scholarly sources, etc.—ask who their instructor is and send me an email with the details so I can follow up with the instructor or course coordinators directly

Below are LibAnswers that are related to English 102

English 102 students engage in successive rounds of research for specific aspects of the issue/problem/concern they’re interested in. Here are samples of some of their assignments: 

Report Project: Feature Story, Research Report, or Infographic 

Write a report that summarizes the extant research on an issue or sets forth a problem, but does not propose a solution. Identify a specific audience that is in a position to affect the problem and/or its solution, and select research sources that will appeal to them and/or address their concerns.

• Can be written in style of a long magazine feature story, a research report, or as an infographic - must follow genre conventions of selected genre (i.e. include stats, icons, graphics for infographic) 
• You can find an example of a research report called “Proposals on the Expansion of Public Transportation” 

Genre Remix 

Remix the research and knowledge from your report project into a different genre for a different audience. Genre choices fall into one of these broad categories:

• Podcast (scripted, delivered, recorded, and posted)
• In-depth magazine article (long-form journalism; e.g., The Atlantic, National Geographic)
• Scholarly article for a disciplinary academic journal
• TED Talk (scripted, delivered, filmed, and posted)
• Creative work (e.g., creative nonfiction, literary fiction, multi-genre text)
  • Example of a website created as a genre remix
  • Examples of other works in Digital Commons

Major Concept found throughout projects: 

Stakeholders 

For their report project and other class assignments - students are asked to consider who the stakeholders are in relation to the issue they are exploring. Sometimes they struggle with identifying who they are and what kind of sources those stakeholders create. Student who are unfamiliar with Milwaukee or unfamiliar with their issues can struggle with this part of the project so ask probing questions and rely on your own experience. Google searches are your friends! 

Some students are asked to complete an online, interactive module (an AIM) which is part of the course textbook from Achieve/Macmillan that addresses the concept of "stakeholders." In the module, they are asked to 

• Brainstorm stakeholders for the issue you’re focusing on
• Think of types of sources each stakeholder group creates
• Plan for how you might access those sources

Projects that are being phased out: 

These assignments may still be assigned as of Spring 2024.

Information Cycle Project 

Create an information cycle for the issue you’re researching. Select an event (exigence) and find a source for each node of the information cycle (hours, days, weeks, months, years, decades) that shows the development and circulation of information related to your research interest over time. This project will be used as a tool for you to move forward with your research for the research brief and genre remix. For each source you select, describe rhetorical aspects of the source.

Graphic Organizer

Students need to break down one source and write about these various aspects within the Rhetorical Situation: rhetors, audiences, purpose, exigence, timing, medium, genre, rhetorical appeal. They also need to "citation chase," and identify additional sources connected to their one source. They also need to analyze these various modes: lingusitic, visual, aural, spatial, gestural in relation to the rhetorical situation. 

Genre Analysis 

Find 3 examples of the genre you’re planning to compose in and describe the conventions of that genre.

Audience Analysis 

Define stakeholders for your project, select a stakeholder group to address, and research that audience’s motivations, interests, values, perspectives and existing knowledge about the problem or issue you’re exploring. “You need to understand their assumptions—their logos—so that you can provide them with valuable information and insight” (course document).

• This brochure called “Soporte Para Todo” demonstrates excellent understanding of an audience of specific stakeholders.

English 102 curriculum varies by campus – below is a chart that outlines main differences.  

	Milwaukee	Milwaukee - CGS Bridge	WSH & WAK Campuses
LibGuides	https://guides.library.uwm.edu/e102	https://guides.library.uwm.edu/cgseng102	WSH: https://guides.library.uwm.edu/ENG102-narrowandfind  WAK: https://guides.library.uwm.edu/wak102
Topics	Chosen by instructor – previous examples: Milwaukee, water, news/media literacy, or climate change	Chosen by students	Chosen by students
Assignments	Research Report, Genre Remix (see more details in the "Assignment" box)	Research proposal, annotated bibliography, portfolios, rhetorical analysis	Research paper, problem-solution paper
Source Requirements	None – students justify source based on project/stakeholder	"Credible" sources - no specific requirements	Very specific – varies by instructor
Other clues that an E102 Question is from a branch campus?	Ask the student! Search for student’s email address in UWM People Search
Contact for Assistance	Claire Dinkelman (email) Schedule Research Appt link	Claire Dinkelman (email) Schedule Research Appt link	WAK: Kelley Hinton WSH: Julia Lee

Please note - some Milwaukee campus instructors do not follow the curriculum outline above perfectly or have chosen a different theme not related to Milwaukee. For students with non-Milwaukee questions - please strongly encourage them to contact me as some of the resources on the E102 guide will not be as helpful for them. Thank you!