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Section
40 - Internet |
Instructor:
Dr. Donaher
Office: SS/C 222 L
Office Hours: TTh 9:30-11:00 and 1:30-2:00, and by appointment
Phone: 816-271-5964
E-mail: donaher@missouriwestern.edu
URL:
http://staff.missouriwestern.edu/~donaher
Course Philosophy and Objectives
You will have to write and put away or burn a lot of material before you are comfortable in this medium. You might as well start now and get the necessary work done. For I believe that eventually quantity will make for quality. -- Ray Bradbury
A professional writer is an amateur who didn't quit. -- Richard Bach
There are a lot of ways to go about learning about writing; one approach is to do a lot of writing and to do a lot of "writing about writing," your own and other people's. This class utilizes this approach.
At the end of English 104, you will understand that:
Required Materials
Textbook:
Pre-Writings and Other Assignments
Students will do a number
of invention writings for each paper including brainstorming, freewriting,
and topic evaluation. These invention strategies allow the student to explore
a variety of topics and topic approaches before drafting and revising the
paper. Students will also respond to the readings and do other kinds of
assignments and sharing on WebBoard, an online bulletin board.
Paper One - Language and Literacy
Narrative
In this narrative essay,
you will examine and reflect upon a significant experience you have had
with language, whether spoken or written. As you explore your own
history as a reader, writer, and speaker, you will also read about and
respond to the significant experiences of others. This paper is based upon
your personal research and will use minimal citation.
Paper Two - Speech Community Profile
In this explanatory essay,
you will profile and analyze a particular speech community, its uses, and
users. As you study your chosen community, you will read about and respond
to essays about other kinds of language communities. This paper will require
some outside research and formal citation of sources.
Paper Three - Language Issue Paper
In this persuasive essay,
you will be researching and writing about a language issue, like gendered
communication, language in the mass media and advertising, language censorship,
or the English Only movement. As you study your issue, you will read about
and respond to essays about a variety of language issues that will provide
you with ideas and references for your own paper. This paper will require
some outside research and formal citation of sources.
Course Policies and Requirements
Saving Work
Students should save all their work, both graded and ungraded, for this class--from notes to drafts to final papers. There may be occasions when work needs to be re-submitted or grades verified. Back up disk copies should be made religiously at the end of each day's work, and if possible, make a current print copy as well.
Formats for Submitting Work
All work for this course must be word processed and submitted in the format specified by the assignment. Be sure to follow submission guidelines provided with each assignment carefully in order to receive full credit for your submissions.
Late Work
Learning is a cumulative process and each assignment in this course is designed to build on the last assignment; therefore late work disrupts this important aspect of the learning process. Except for the papers, no late work will be accepted under any circumstances. Late papers will not be discounted if turned in within 24 hours of the due date. After 24 hours, papers will be discounted one letter grade for each additional 24 hours late (including weekends and holidays). No work will be accepted after noon CST on December 2, 2003.
Plagiarism
. . . it is better to fail in originality than to succeed in imitation. -- Herman MelvilleClassroom CourtesyPlagiarism is literally the stealing of others' words and ideas and using them as your own. Make every effort to give credit where credit is due, and if you are not sure of "how"--ASK. Students are responsible for proving that all work turned in for grading is their own original work. Plagiarism is a serious offense and, therefore, will receive harsh punishment. Work and papers with evidence of plagiarism will receive a zero and may result in failure of the course. Don't think that you won't be caught; writing style is distinctive and verifiable.
Students are expected to be courteous and respectful in all of their exchanges with the instructor and other students. Because this course is conducted without face-to-face encounters, one should be particularly careful to note how tone, rhetoric, and language all contribute to the overall impression of one's communications.Student Disability
Any student in this course who has a disability that prevents the fullest expression of abilities should contact me by the end of the first week so that we can discuss class requirements.Computer Usage
You must have daily access to a computer with internet capability in order to do well in this course. For this course, you must use your MWSC email account for all correspondence and assignment submission.Time ExpectationsMost students can set up their email accounts via the MWSC homepage. Go to: http://www.missouriwestern.edu and click on the New Web Mail link for more information.
As with all college courses, a steady devotion to duty is expected. The readings and assignments are exactly the same as those given in my on campus version of this course, and you are expected to devote the same amount of time to completing the course requirements that you would be required to devote were the class held on campus. This means that you will have three hours of course activities in lieu of three hours of traditional classroom time and that you will have up to nine hours of homework per week. On the average, however, you can expect to spend about an hour per day (7 hours per week) completing course activities and requirements.GradingUnlike a traditional on campus course, however, you do have greater flexibility in determining how you will distribute your weekly workload. While assignments are due each week by Tuesday, at noon, Central Standard Time, you can choose to complete your work over several short work sessions or over fewer, longer work sessions. Keep in mind, though, that you cannot hope to do well if you wait until the last minute to complete the week's work--you may miscalculate how long it will actually take you to do the work or you may have computer problems that interfere with the completion of your duties. Remember: no late work is accepted under any circumstances , so anticipate that there will be occasional glitches, whether personal or technical, and strive to turn in your work a little ahead of the Tuesday deadlines.
Students will do a variety
of writing assignments over the course of the semester, including pre-writings,
responses and other kinds of sharing, and formal papers. In order to pass
the course, students must complete the papers; in addition, the quality
of their work and the percentage of the other assignments completed will
determine the final grade.
A word of caution: don't
underestimate the value of small assignments since no late work (other
than papers) is accepted. Occasional lapses are understood, but chronic
lapses can only pull the final grade downward.
Your Final Grade Distribution is as follows:
Getting Started
Day One (August 23)
Paper One
Weeks One - Four (August 27 -
September 23)
Paper Two
Weeks Five - (September 24 - )
Paper Three
Weeks (NOvember - December 2)