Composition of English texts

Please mind this course is a continuation of English Text Editing and Typography (spring term) and prior skills covered in that course are required to successfully participate in it.

Contact hours with the teacher:

- participation in classes - 30 hrs

Altogether: 30 hrs (1 ECTS)

The student

W1: has profound knowledge of the English language used in desktop publishing (DTP) (K_W04)

W2: has profound knowledge of the connection of language studies and DTP (K_W08)

The student

U1: is able to prepare an English text (with graphic elements) and use his or her typographical and editorial solutions in order to typeset it in the DTP software (K_U11, K_U14) (K_U11)

U2: is capable of creating a cover for a literary work by means of the DTP software and in compliance with the rules of typography and layout design (K_U14)

U3: can typeset a literary book-form text ready for publication, with the proper care of source use, editing and typography, and by means of the InDesign DTP software (K_U11, K_U14)

The student

K1: is aware of the necessity to relate the cover design to the aesthetic and literary qualities of the given work and to the audience (K_K04)

Expository teaching methods:

- discussion

Exploratory teaching methods:

- project work

- computer laboratory

Online teaching methods:

- methods referring to authentic or fictitious situations

The aim of the course is to provide students with advanced knowledge and skills concerning composition of English texts (combined with graphics) in the DTP software.

The course comprises exercises which aim at gaining knowledge and skills concerning the use of editing and desktop-publishing solutions in English text composition. Laboratory tasks include textual and graphic designs (for Anglophone literary works and artefacts of culture). The course will also comprise cover and poster design by means of DTP software. The students will learn how to combine graphics and typographical elements on the basis of layout design exercises.

Content distribution:

 Introduction and requirements

 Correction and peer correction of editing projects

 Individual correction task (project 1)

 Introduction to cover designs (literary works)

 Cover design – practice and guided project (literary works)

 Cover design ¬– academic journals and edited volumes

 Individual cover design (project 2)

 Feedback and conclusion

Required reading:

Samara Timothy. 2006. Typography Workbook: A Real-world Guide to Using Type in Graphic Design. Rockport Publishers. [selected sections only]

Additional reading:

Komza, Małgorzata (red.). 2012. Poszukiwanie odpowiedniej formy. Rola wydawcy, typografa, artysty i technologii w pracy nad książką. Wrocław: Wydawnictwo Uniwersytetu Wrocławskiego [selected essays depending on students’ interests].

A graded credit on the basis of the assignments assessing the level of achieving particular learning outcomes:

Individual project 1 (book layout – error correction) – W1, U1, U3 (45%)

Individual project 2 (cover design – literary work / academic journal) – W2, K1, U2 (45%)

In-class activity – W1, W2, U1, U2, U3, K1 (10%)

Assessment criteria:

fail – 0-59 %

satisfactory – 60-69 %

satisfactory plus – 70-75 %

good – 76-85 %

good plus – 86-90 %

very good – 91-100 %

Not applicable