Freshman Composition I Syllabus for 2011-2012
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Instructor Information

Office Location

Ordway Hall 103F

Office Hours

Tuesday and Wednesday from 5:00pm to 6:00pm or by appointment.  

Course Information

Recording Policy

Disability Statement

Any student who, because of a disabling condition, may require some special arrangements in order to meet course requirements should contact disAbility Services (Student Service Center room 119, phone 371-5436) as soon as possible.

Statement for Mental Health and Advocacy & Resource Center:

As a student you may experience a range of issues that can cause barriers to learning, such as strained relationships, increased anxiety, alcohol/drug problems, feeling down, difficulty concentrating and/or lack of motivation. These mental health concerns or stressful events may lead to diminished academic performance or reduce a student's ability to participate in daily activities. Amarillo College offers services to assist you with addressing these and other concerns you may be experiencing. If you or someone you know are suffering from any of the aforementioned conditions, you can learn more about the broad range of confidential mental health services available on campus by calling the AC Counseling Center at 806-371-5900. The AC Counseling Center website is https://www.actx.edu/counseling/ . Also, if you are in need of social services (affordable housing, utilities, transportation, food, clothing, childcare, medical/dental/vision, legal), please call the AC Advocacy & Resource Center at 806-371-5439. The AC Advocacy & Resource Center website is https://www.actx.edu/arc

Amarillo College Tutoring for Success Policy:

Administrative Drop Policy

N/A

Student Withdrawal Procedures

N/A

Privacy Statement

The Amarillo College Privacy Policy is found at https://www.actx.edu/-amarillo-college-privacy-notice , and applies to all Amarillo College students.  If you have questions about this privacy statement or you believe that your personal information has been released without your consent, send email to humanresources@actx.edu .

Course

ENGL-1301-031 Freshman Composition I

Prerequisites

RDNG 0331 and ENGL 0302-minimum grade of C or scores on a state-approved test indicating college-level reading and writing skills

Course Description

Principles of effective writing, emphasizing organization of materials to produce a unified essay which supports convincingly a thesis statement. Review of conventional elements of writing and introduction to rhetorical analysis.

Student Resources Student Resources Website

Department Expectations

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Occupational License Disclaimer

Hours

(3 sem hrs; 3 lec, 1 lab)

Class Type

On Campus Course

Syllabus Information

Textbooks

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\ You will need each of the textbooks listed below:

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  • \ The Concise Wadsworth Handbook, 3rd edition, with packaged Insite card
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  • \ A Rhetoric Handbook for English 1301 and 1302, latest edition
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\ Each textbook is available through the Washington St. Campus Bookstore. You will need them immediately.

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Supplies

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\ USB drive. We will work on some writing assignments in class; therefore, you will need a USB/flash/jump/thumb drive. It need not be expensive, new, or have a large amount of storage. A 2 gig or 4 gig is be suffi

Student Performance

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\ After studying the material presented in this course of study, the student will be able to do the following as evaluated by the faculty in the department/program:

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  1. \ Understand basic rhetorical concepts: subject, audience, purpose, and appeals.
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  3. \ Apply rhetorical concepts in analyzing and evaluating text.
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  5. \ Use standard American English to write essays that are rhetorically effective: clear, organized, detailed, grammatically correct, and audience specific.
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  7. \ Use the library's online databases and other computer resources for research and word processing.
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  9. \ Write a third person, argumentative research paper following the MLA format for citing sources.
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Students Rights and Responsibilities

Student Rights and Responsibilities

Log in using the AC Connect Portal

In order to receive your AC Connect Email, you must log in through AC Connect at https://acconnect.actx.edu .

If you are an active staff or faculty member according to Human Resources, use "Exchange". All other students, use "AC Connect (Google) Email".

Expected Student Behavior

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\ Plagiarism: The following description is taken from the English Department website:

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\ “According to the Amarillo College Student Code of Conduct, plagiarism is the ‘appropriating, buying, receiving as a gift, or obtaining by any means another’s work and the unacknowledged submission or incorporation of it in one’s own written work.’

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\ Misdocumented Plagiarism:

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\ 1.      Using someone else’s exact words that are quoted but not cited or cited but not quoted.

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\ 2.      Using a citation at the end of a block of prose without clarifying which material is borrowed.

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\ 3.      Missing or incomplete works-cited entries.

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\ Misdocumented plagiarism will receive a maximum 50 percent deduction for the first offense, and the student will be required to meet with the instructor.

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\ Undocumented Plagiarism:

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\ 1.      Using someone else’s exact words that are neither quoted nor cited.

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\ 2.      Paraphrasing someone else’s words without citing them.

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\ 3.      Using someone else’s research without citing it.

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\ Undocumented plagiarism will receive a minimum penalty of 50 percent for the first time and 100 percent off for all subsequent infractions. The student will be required to meet with the instructor and the English Department Chair.”

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\ Student professionalism: Part of your overall grade is based on your professionalism in the classroom. You are expected to attend class, come to class prepared to participate (have all reading and homework assignments complete before class), actively participate in class discussions without monopolizing all of the class time, respect the instructor and classmates, and actively participate in online and in class activities. 

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\ ANY CELL PHONE USAGE OR THE USE OF IPODS, ETC. DURING CLASS WILL NOT BE TOLERATED AND WILL EFFECT YOUR STUDENT PROFESSIONALISM GRADE.  WHEN YOU COME TO CLASS, TURN YOUR CELL PHONE OFF OR PUT IT ON SILENCE.  If you have a true emergency reason for needing to have your cell phone on, please talk to me before class.

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\ Discussion Protocol: In your communication with other students and me, you must maintain a civil, nonthreatening tone of voice; refrain from insults, slurs, insensitive comments, and slang; and always conduct yourself in a manner appropriate to the academic environment and consistent with the general guidelines outlined in the AC Student Code of Conduct. We will have occasion to discuss contemporary moral, ethical, and/or political issues that may be divisive. Please be fair and restrained in how you engage others in the class. If a problem does occur, allow me to handle it first. 

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\ Also, all of your communication should be edited and correctly formatted to the best of your ability. Do not use the sort of abbreviated vernacular that is useful for text messaging. Use a spellchecker. Address your audience, and sign off. In other words, I want you to adhere to the normal rules of polite but serious-minded conversation.  

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Grading Criteria

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  • \ 10% In-class assignments, quizzes, homework
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  • \ 10% Student professionalism
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  • \ 65% Essays - rough and final drafts
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  • \ 15% Final Exam - in-class essay
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\ A = 90 - 100 B = 80-89 C = 70-79 D = 60 - 69 F = 59 and below 

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\ As previously stated, I do not accept late homework or allow missed in-class assignment to be made up.  However, on the final drafts of writing assignments, I will accept late work up to five days past the due date; however, the final draft will lose 10 points for each day it is late.  Therefore, a paper turned in five days late is worth a maximum of 50 points. 

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\ Each major writing assignment requires you turn in a rough draft.  The overall grade for a major assignment is comprised of points for the outline (if the assignment requires one), the rough draft, and the final draft.

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Attendance

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\  Regular attendance is necessary for satisfactory achievement. Therefore, it is the responsibility of the student to attend class and to complete all assignments. More than two absences are considered excessive. Students with excessive absences will find it difficult to pass the class.

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\ If you miss a class, it is your responsibility to check the the online course page for assignments, lecture items, etc. You should also check with one of your classmates for information on what you missed.

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\ Late Work:

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\ Submissions to InSite will not be accepted late. If a situation arises that prevents students from complying with this policy, they must contact the instructor via email before the deadline of the assignment lapses.

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\ In-class work, quizzes, and homework cannot be made up if you miss the class when the work is assigned/due. However, I do drop the lowest two grades in the homework/in-class work/quiz grade category.

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\ Major writing assignments will be accepted up to five days late; however, the assignment will lose 10 points for each day it is late. Therefore, a paper that is five days late will only be worth a maximum of 50 points.

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\ THE LAST DAY TO WITHDRAW FROM THIS COURSE IS APRIL 19TH.  If during the semester you consider dropping, please check with me first for an alternate plan that protects your investment in the course and gives you an opportunity to complete it.  

Calendar

 

The following is the schedule of reading and major writing assignments for the semeste; therefore, it does not list all homework and minor assignments.. All reading assignments must be complete before the next class after they are assigned. (Example: reading assigned on Tuesday is due before class on Thursday.) Since I cannot predicate all that may happen during the semester, please note I reserve the right to change the schedule as necessary. You will be notified in class of any changes made.

 I will assign weekly exercises to be completed on Aplia.

 

Week 1

 

Introduction, Syllabus.

Personal Writing - Classmate Introduction assigned.

Week 2

 

RH - Part 1 - Reading and Discovering Arguments, pp. 1-51.

Classmate Introduction due on Tuesday.

 

Week 3

 

CWH - Writing Concise Sentences and Revising Awkward, Confusing Sentences

Rhetorical Appeals.

Week 4

 

RH - Part 2 - Analyzing Arguments, pp. 67-103.

CWH Grammar: Comma Splices, Fused Sentences, Fragments; Introductions and Academic Titles RH 69

Analytical Writing - Rhetorical Analysis of a Visual Argument assigned.

Week 5

 

Rough draft of Rhetorical Analysis of a Visual Argument is due by TUESDAY of this week.

Week 6

 

Peer Review.

Week 7

 

Final Draft of Rhetorical Analysis of a Visual Argument due by TUESDAY of this week.

RH - Part 5- Researching Arguments, pp. 245-303.

 

Research Writing - Researched Argument assigned.

Week 8

 

CWH Grammar: Agreement and Parallelism; RH 25-33 quoting, citing, paraphrasing

Week 9

 

SPRING BREAK

Week 10

 

Rough draft of Researched Argument due by TUESDAY of this week. 

Peer Review, Conferences

Week 11

 

CWH Grammar: Apostrophes and Other Punctuation

Final draft of Researched Argument due.

Week 12

 

Analytical Writing Assignment #2

Week 13

 

Rough draft due by THURSDAY of this week.

Peer Review.

Week 14

 

Final draft due by TUESDAY of this week.

 

Week 15

 

Discuss Final Exam

Week 16  Final Exam - Tuesday, May 8th - 1:30pm - 3:30pm

 

 

Additional Information

\  You must use the our course email on AC Online (not MyAccount email) to contact me. I will also use the course email to send you information about class changes and assignments. Therefore, you must check your course email on a regular basis. 

Syllabus Created on:

11/30/-1 12:00 AM

Last Edited on:

11/30/-1 12:00 AM