Teaching Composition
Graduate Certificate
About this program
The Certificate in Teaching Composition prepares you to teach writing and reading at the college level. You’ll study key ideas in writing instruction and develop your own teaching approach. This program helps you learn how to design lessons, create course materials, and give helpful feedback. It’s a good fit if you want to work in education and support students as they grow as writers and thinkers.
Program Curriculum and Requirements
Program Scope
The program is designed for people who want to teach composition at the senior high school, community college, college and adult levels. It is aimed at both experienced and aspirant teachers who wish to learn about the field of composition and who wish to improve their classroom practice.
Courses
The certificate consists of four courses: English 700, 707, 709, and 710.
- English 700 - Introduction to Composition Theory: Issues of composition theory, research, and classroom practice.
- English 707 - Language Analysis: Pedagogical Grammar for Composition: Theory and practice of responding to linguistic, stylistic, and rhetorical issues in student writing.
- English 709 - Seminar in Teaching Integrated Reading and Writing: Exploration of the integration of reading and writing from both a theoretical and pedagogical perspective.
- English 710 - Course Design in Composition and Post-Secondary Reading: Theory and practice of designing post-secondary reading and composition courses. This course is offered only in spring semesters. This is the Capstone course for the Certificate. It should be taken toward the end of your certificate coursework.
Program Learning Outcomes
- Develop a critical understanding of scholarship in the field of Composition in order to contribute to disciplinary discussions about theory, policy and practice.
- Develop and articulate a teaching philosophy/approach that is informed by scholarship in the fields of Composition and Rhetoric, principles of ethics and social justice, and critical self-reflection.
- Design integrated reading/writing courses, units, prompts, activities, and materials that are grounded in research, theory, praxis, and critical reflection.
- Develop a thoughtful and well-grounded approach for analyzing, assessing, and responding to students’ texts to foster students’ growth as readers, writers, and thinkers.
Admission to the Program
Non-matriculated students need to apply to the certificate program through Cal State Apply. Please upload the following documents to the Cal State Apply website:
- A statement explaining your interest in the certificate
- Unofficial copies of transcripts from each college or university attended
If selected for admission, you will be required to submit official transcripts to the Division of Graduate Studies in order to secure your offer of admission. Please note: if you previously attended SF State, you do not need to submit a SF State transcript.
If selected for admission, please mail official transcripts to:
Graduate Admissions Office, ADM 250
San Francisco State University
1600 Holloway Ave.
San Francisco, CA 94132
If you currently ARE a matriculated M.A. student at SF State, and you wish to apply for admission to the program, you must fill out the Grad Studies certificate application form. Please enter send a copy to: English Department @ english@sfsu.edu on the application form.
The deadline to apply for fall semester has been extended to July 31; the deadline to apply for spring semester is December 1.
Please note: For matriculated students, you cannot take more than one course for the certificate program through Open University or the College of Professional & Global Education. Also, certificate students who are not enrolled in a master’s program are not eligible for financial aid.
Requirement Upon Completion
For the final award of the certificate degree, students must fill out a Certificate Approved Program (CAP) form available on the Graduate Studies website and pay the $7.00 processing fee. Please list send a copy to: English Department @ english@sfsu.edu on the CAP form.
No course applied to the Certificate may be taken CR/NC, and a grade of A or B must be earned in each course. Students may enroll in any of the courses listed above even if they do not wish to complete the certificate. Students wishing to earn the Certificate must follow all University requirements and procedures for graduate certificate programs as outlined in the San Francisco State University Bulletin. For further information, contact the English Department, HUM 484, (415) 338-2660 or (415) 338-2264.
Certificate Advisor
Virginia Schwarz
Email: vschwarz@sfsu.edu
Office: Humanities 421