Exciting Things Happening in the English Department

By: Dr. Roger West

While South Carolina’s state bird, the mosquito, thrives in stagnant, smelly water, we in the the halls of the English department have been working hard to offer free-flowing, continuously changing waters. We strive to provide students with new and exciting courses that keep pace with the ever changing academic tide.  The 2016-2017 academic year will bring several courses never offered before, which are structured to elevate you, our students, to meet the writing demands of the digital-age professional world.

In Summer 2016, you can sign up for ENG 299.001, a Special Topics in English course, “Film and the American Novel,” taught by Ed Macy.  This course will examine some significant 20^th century American novels and the films that these novels inspired. Among the novels and films that will be assigned are Cormac McCarthy’s No Country for Old Men and Stephen King’s The Shining. Don’t miss out on a great learning experience and an entertaining way to earn college credits.

In Fall 2016, ENG 214, the Fiction genre class, will be titled “Sex, Drugs, and Rock ‘n Roll.”  The readings will focus on novels from the 1960’s, with some lyrics from the music of that era, especially those written by Bob Dylan and Jim Morrison, added to enhance the experience.  Novels assigned for the class will include Ken Kesey’s One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest and Richard Farina’s Been Down So Long It Looks like Up to Me.  And no course on the literature of that decade can ignore Hunter S. Thompson and Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas. While there will not be a dress code for the class, bell bottoms and tie-dyed shirts are encouraged.

Some other changes that are coming in Fall 2016 involve the Professional Writing Certificate, which students may earn by taking additional courses focusing on creative and workplace writing instruction.  The certificate program still has ENG 238 (Creative Writing), ENG 260 (Advanced Technical Communication), and JOU 101 (Introduction to Journalism), there have been additional courses added to the curriculum.  ENG 242 (Advanced Creative Writing) will allow interested students to take an additional course related to some aspect of writing fiction or poetry.  The emphasis of the course will change from semester to semester and will provide a more focused study of various aspects of writing, such as narration or character development, or types of writing, such as memoir or creative non-fiction.

Another new course will be ENG 265, Advanced Professional Communication. This course will focus on various types of workplace writing outside of that covered in ENG 260.  The course will focus on writing proposals and the various types of business-related reports students will need the skills to do as they enter the job market.  Students will also learn how to make effective workplace presentations as a part of the course curriculum.

Probably the most exciting course addition to the Professional Writing Certificate curriculum is ENG 263, Writing for Social Media. Social media, whether it is Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat, or any of the other platforms, provide the most pervasive method to communicate with a large audience.  The course will provide instruction in how to write for social media to achieve your desired outcomes.  Just look closely at how Facebook exposes its many users to ads for a plethora of products and services, just as many organizations and individuals get people to “like” or support them, through their posts.  It is all about written communication, and the skills to be able to do this will continue to be important in the job market.

Because we cannot regularly offer courses in all the types of writing students may be interested in learning the skills for, we will periodically offer ENG 299, Special Topics in English, courses that will provide the opportunities for students to learn how to write for other areas. In Spring 2017, ENG 299 will be Collecting and Writing About Folklore.  This course will focus on the skills for recognizing and gathering folkloric artifacts and then how to present those findings for a reading audience.  Part of the course will have students exploring the rich folkloric tradition of the Lowcountry and then reporting on it.

Because the college has four campuses, it is difficult to provide these courses on each campus.  We will be offering these courses in a Mixed-Mode format at both the Main and Palmer Campuses, but most of these courses will also be available in an online format.  Even if students don’t want to complete the Professional Writing Certificate, they can take any of these courses to enhance their educational experience and marketability in the job search.

The two most important skills any person can have, not only in searching for a career, but in living a full life, are the abilities to read and write.  The Department of English and Journalism at Trident Technical College strives to help all of our students develop those skills.