The function of the new pilot curriculum of English 110c is first and foremost to introduce students to the tools of composition and rhetorical analysis necessary to engage critically and communicate with the world around them . The course operates under the assumption that students are best served in attaining this ends not by attempting to analyze texts as finished products disassociated from themselves, but rather from working collaboratively in a mode of production and reflection, to create and analyze texts in which they have a personal stake. By working with a variety of digital media, students will be invited to not only create digital media texts, but to actively reflect on and discuss the multiple literacies and rhetorical decisions that were involved in the realization of both their own texts and the texts of their colleagues.
		This course is designed so that no previous experience or knowledge of digital media is required of the student prior to the course. It is expected, however, that the student will be willing to experiment with their own ideas, and attempt to see beyond the misconception that academic communication must occur textually. Students will be asked to complete 3 short assignments that will serve to introduce them to particular types of digital media software such as Photoshop, Flash MX, iMovie, Dreamweaver, and Audacity. These assignments will culminate in a fourth and final project in which the students will be allowed to work in whichever media (or combination of media) best accomplishes their rhetorical goals. Throughout each step of these projects, students will be asked to reflect on the rhetorical effectiveness of their own decisions, as well as the decisions of their colleagues.