Syllabus
Pamela Hanford, Instructor
Office: Room TBA
Office
Hours: Wednesdays,
Message
phone (email messages advised)
e-mail: phanford@shastacollege.edu
Website: http://www3.shastacollege.edu/phanford
Syllabus Online: http://www3.shastacollege.edu/phanford/oncampus/syllabus.htm
ENGL 1A
Prerequisite: A grade of C or higher in
ENGL 190, or English Placement Level 6 or higher
English 1A satisfies the General Education requirement in
"Area A"
(Communication and Critical Thinking), #2 (Written
Communication)
Required Texts: The
Prentice Hall Guide for College Writers, Seventh
Edition, by Stephen Reid (available at the Shasta College Bookstore, also new
or used through Amazon.com). The Perfect Storm : A
True Story of Men Against the Sea, by Sebastian Junger
(available at the Shasta College Bookstore, also new or used through Amazon.com). Recommended:
A Writer's Reference (Fifth Edition with 2003 MLA Update) by Diana
Hacker (available at the Shasta College Bookstore, also new or used through Amazon.com)
See
also supplies.
Computers and the Internet: If you
have a computer at home with an Internet connection, you will find it very
useful for this class and future college adventures. If you do not have a
computer available off-campus, there are many computers and printers available
on campus for your use. Plan to schedule weekly computer time at the
Computer lab and WebCT: The class will be conducted in the English
computer lab located in room 811. Some of
our coursework will be conducted in a private internet environment created for
our class in WebCT.
Time Required: Please note the focus here
is reading and composition. This will require dedicating time outside of
class to do the required reading, research, and writing. Because this is
a four unit class late starting class, six class hours per week are scheduled; this
also means you should expect more work in a four unit class than in a three
unit class, and more intense
homework than in a full-semester class. If your
own schedule is such that you have no time outside of your class schedule for
study and research, this may not be a good semester to be registered in
1A. Most college classes require several hours of study outside the class
for every one hour spent IN class.
I will not
be able to make exceptions for students who have not scheduled adequate time to
complete assignments.
Work Required:
Homework, Informal Essays, and In Class Activities: As assigned.
Two Formal Essays: Four to six pages in length, 250 words per page (or
a minimum of 1000 words), not including works cited page. No title pages for essays, please.
One "Persuasive" Research
Paper: Seven pages minimum, 250 words per page (or a
minimum of 1750 words total). These
seven pages include only your written text, not the title page or works cited
page.
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Successful completion of the research
paper with a grade of "C" or better is required to pass any English
1A course at |
(All assignments must be handed in when due, regardless of
your presence. Late work will not be accepted. If you must miss class, your
assignments must be in my mailbox 30 minutes before scheduled class time on due
date.)
The Prentice Hall Guide for College
Writers:
(This
book is required – we will have reading assignments the first week of class). We will read chapters as assigned
and complete various writing exercises.
·The Perfect Storm:
(This
book is required). We will read approximately one
chapter per week. With each chapter you read, look for examples of
writing techniques we study in the current chapter of your text, The Prentice Hall Guide for College
Writers. Make notes about these examples and be prepared to discuss
them in class. You may also discuss the writing techniques in current
chapters on the discussion board in WebCT.
·A
Writer's Reference: Fifth Edition. By Diana Hacker (This book is recommended).
·Semi Weekly Bibliographies: Because
learning correct MLA style and creating correct bibliographies of your research
is an essential college skill, this class will require semi-weekly
bibliographies, due every other Wednesday. With each bibliography, you
will include a brief "library research report," indicating which
topic you researched, which search terms you used, and which search terms
ultimately returned the information you included. By reviewing your research
techniques in these reports, I can mediate mediate
small errors in procedure which may make your research efforts less successful.
You may use your first library assignment as a basis for future library
searches. Sample Library Reports: 1, 2, 3. Points
possible: Library Report, 10; Bibliography, 20.
·Semi Weekly Summaries: On alternate
weeks, you will write a summary of an article from a professional journal which
relates to your (future) field of interest. For instance, a student who
plans to study architecture may summarize a current article from Architectural
Digest. A nursing student might choose an article from an RN
journal. Those students who have not yet selected a field of interest
should choose a professional journal from a field which they do find
interesting. We may discuss these summaries in class. Write
the name of the journal you choose on an index card. Write a sentence or
two about why you wish to monitor this publication. Turn it in to me by
the fourth class meeting. Your first summary is due the third Wednesday of
class. Points possible: Summary, 30.
·In Class Writing: We will write short
pieces in class on a wide variety of topics. I may ask you to write a
letter telling me about your progress in the class, or we may do a creative
assignment. I try to exercise both the right and the left sides of the
brain to maximize your potential as a writer. In-class writes cannot be
made up if you miss class. Points possible, in class
writes, 20-30 points.
·E-mail: Provide your current e-mail
address if you have one, or acquire an internet email address at the library.
There is a list of free email resources on my homepage. The
library also offers email information and help pages. Use
this account to write and ask questions about any concerns you have. I am
definitely patient about answering questions, but I am not patient
indefinitely! Take care to pay attention in class, as I do not appreciate being
questioned about material to which you have not paid attention. Also,
please do not send unsolicited email to me or to your classmates. This
includes chain letters, free trips to
·Attendance is mandatory, and counts. I
will take roll. Please note that in-class writes also count as roll, so
if you don't see me calling names, don't assume I forgot the roll.
Leaving early and/or arriving late count as partial absences. More than three
absences will reduce your final grade -- one whole grade for every two additional
sessions missed. If you must miss class, send an email letting me
know why you are absent. Do not call the department office. I
reserve the right to fail a student for excessive absences. If you miss
three or more classes without contacting me and making special arrangements, I
will assume you have dropped the class.
Dropping the Course: It is the
student's responsibility to officially drop or withdraw from the class. Students who fail to file the necessary forms, even though
they cease attendance, must be assigned a grade.
·Absent Instructor: If I am ill or
detained (this RARELY happens), I will let the department office know and they
will post a note to the class. Occasionally the note is missed, or the
staff does not have time to post it. If you are here and your instructor
is not, courtesy and campus policy requires that you wait for 15 minutes.
If no one has arrived, you may sign a roll sheet and leave. Someone must
be designated to take the roll sheet to the department office. If you
leave without signing the roll, you are considered absent. If any papers
are due this day, you must leave them in my mailbox in the department
hallway. You should always check the current agenda page to see if any
assignments are posted for the next class.
·Jeopardy: How to play it with
your grade. Any student who engages in behavior which, in the
instructor’s judgment, disrupts, demeans, or in any way trivializes either the
subject matter or the learning atmosphere of the class will receive an
"F" for the semester. For details on such conduct, visit the Jeopardy page.
·Plagiarism is the act of appropriating the
literary composition of another, or parts of passages of his or her writing, or
the ideas or language of the same, and passing them off as the products of
one's own mind (Black's Law Dictionary). Students often have to use the ideas
of others as expressed in written or published work in preparing essays,
papers, reports, theses and publications. It is imperative that both the data
and ideas obtained from any and all published or unpublished material be
properly acknowledged and their sources disclosed. Failure to follow this
practice constitutes plagiarism and is considered to be a serious offence.
Thus, anyone who knowingly or recklessly uses the work of another person and
creates an impression that it is his or her own is guilty of plagiarism. Plagiarism, as well, includes submitting one's own essay,
paper, or thesis on more than one occasion. Accordingly, it is expected that a
thesis, essay, paper or a report has not been and is not concurrently being
submitted for credit in any other course. My assignments are structured so that
students may not inadvertently commit plagiarism. Any suspect paper may be
submitted to the department plagiarism committee. All essays with a research
component will be submitted by the student to Turnitin.com. A student who plagiarizes will fail the
course, and may be expelled from the college.
·Grading Policy: Your writing and class
work average will determine your final grade, but your attendance,
participation, and attitude (if problematic) also AFFECT your
grade. If you present "B" or "C" work
throughout the semester, perfect attendance will not bump you up to an
"A;" your grade will stand on the merit of your writing. If,
however, you present work which averages " B" or "C" for
the semester, but have had poor attendance, class participation, and/or
attitude, you risk having your grade lowered by a full letter.
The research paper is a required element of this course, and is
therefore weighted heavily.
Online Grade Sheet and returned papers:
I keep an online grade sheet
so students may check my records against theirs. You may also check back along
the grade sheet to see what work you may have missed. However, due to
serious time constraints, I am not able to update this sheet more than once
every month or so. In the meantime, it is the student's responsibility to
remain current with all assignments, and to keep work returned in order to
check against the sheet once it is updated. If you have a graded paper
which is not recorded on the grade sheet, simply write "resubmitting"
on the assignment and turn it back in, and I will get the sheet corrected on
the next cycle.
Assignment Nu
Online Agenda: I maintain
an extensive website of resources, and an online agenda for each day of
class. The agenda allows students to keep careful track of their
assignments and discover details about assignments they may have missed.
The online agenda is not designed to allow students to skip class while still
turning in work. It is, however, designed to provide students with
excused absences with information about what work they need to make up.
The online agenda is usually updated the day of class.
Conferences: I
am available to meet with you during office hours and by appointment to discuss
your writing and your grades. If you have any questions, see me.
You may also contact me by e-mail or via MSN Messenger.
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If you
must miss or be late to class: you are responsible for obtaining any
information or assignments discussed in your absence. The Agenda pages
are provided to assist you, and you should also obtain the phone nu |
The contents
of this syllabus are subject to change at the instructor's discretion.
Names,
telephone nu
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