This textbook is meant for first year English Composition Courses. The text covers the essentials of composition and rhetoric in a recursive manner and introduces research skills.

When you are eager to get started on the coursework in your major that will prepare you for your career, getting excited about an introductory college writing course can be difficult. However, regardless of your field of study, honing your writing skills—and your reading and critical-thinking skills—gives you a more solid academic foundation.

In college, academic expectations change from what you may have experienced in high school. The quantity of work you are expected to do is increased. When instructors expect you to read pages upon pages or study hours and hours for one particular course, managing your work load can be challenging.

The quality of the work you do also changes. It is not enough to understand course material and summarize it on an exam. You will also be expected to seriously engage with new ideas by reflecting on them, analyzing them, critiquing them, making connections, drawing conclusions, or finding new ways of thinking about a given subject. Educationally, you are moving into deeper waters. A good introductory writing course will help you swim.

The purpose of this text is to provide students with an introduction to the field of Instructional Design and building upon skills that will help the novice designer become more effective in their professional career. This text will go beyond theory to discuss such topics as recommended skillsets and traits for designers, the importance of cultivating strong communication and leadership skills and how to incorporate emotional intelligence into your wheelhouse of professional skills. In addition, tips on the management of projects as well as the instructional design process will be discussed. In an effort to broaden the concept of the instructional design profession, you will find sections devoted to instructional design in various professional venues, (i.e., consulting, educational {higher education and K-12}).

In the educational realm of instructional design, one current topic among designers is how to incorporate openly licensed material into instructional texts. We will provide a section on open educational resources and licensing to assist you in becoming knowledgeable on best practices and dealing with cutting edge initiatives in the educational world.

Effective instructional designers should be able to speak comfortably in public in various venues whether it is a business meeting, training a small group of individuals, or, presenting at a large conference. For an instructional designer, it is important to hone these leadership skills and prepare yourself for the inevitable public speaking situation. This text will provide information on how to improve upon your public speaking skills.