PUBPOL 300

PUBPOL 300.001: Persuasive Policy Writing

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Level
Undergraduate
Term
Winter 2018
Course Section
001
U-M Course Number
29025
Credit Hours
3

This course, structured as a seminar and writing workshop, intensively develops students’ persuasive writing and critical reading skills through abundant practice and feedback. Weekly writing assignments and exercises will focus on every stage of the writing process, from brainstorming and research through drafting and revision, in three vital areas of political writing: the short opinion piece, the policy memorandum, and the polemical essay. We will read and analyze a wide variety of examples from traditional print and online media, from journalistic, government, and academic sources. We will also explore ethical considerations of policy writing, considering the ways in which our rhetorical choices—tone, word choice, even syntax—construct our subjects and frame contentious issues for target audiences.