English 301 - Advanced Composition

MWSC Division of Liberal Arts & Sciences

Department of English, Foreign Languages, & Journalism

TTH 9:30-10:50 JGM 106

Instructor: Dr. Cynthia Jenéy

Office: SSC 222K

Phone: 271-4447

Email: jeney@missouriwestern.edu

Office Hours: Tues: 12:30-3:30; Thurs: 12:30-2:30

Required Textbooks:

1. Williams, Joseph. Style: Ten Lessons in Clarity and Grace.

2. Cialdini, David. Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion.

3. Spence, Gerry. How to Argue and Win Every Time.

4. Norman, Donald. The Design of Everyday Things.

Required Materials

- A working, steady email account to which you know the exact address.

- 3.5” PC-formatted floppy diskettes, or zip disks (2 or 3 at least, labeled with your name & Eng. 301)

- Pocket folder for handouts, etc.

- Notebook for notes, exercises, quizzes, etc.

Recommended:

- A good college dictionary

- A good style handbook (MLA, APA, AP)

Course Objectives:

· To study and practice the tools writers can use to adapt their texts to various purposes and audiences.

· To learn to analytically and critically respond to the written discourse of others.

· To practice revision with your writing and the writing of others.

· To improve your ability to write clear, graceful prose.

· To “take risks” and establish your voice as a writer.

About the course: This course will be conducted as a writing and critical reading workshop. We will do some writing for nearly every class period, often using electronic forum. You should print and save to disk all of your posts to the electronic forum. Always come with writing materials (including PC-formatted zip or floppy disks). We will be reading and commenting on each other’s writing both as a class, and in small groups. Note: if you forget to bring a disk, there is a public access drive available for student use, as well as the option of simply using email to send yourself a copy of your written work.

Class meetings: Class meetings of upper division courses are conducted under the assumption that students are well-versed in the conventions of college classrooms and academic environments. Come to class prepared, and plan to participate and remain engaged with the materials for the entire class period. In the unlikely and unfortunate event that you find yourself unprepared, come anyway, but I expect you to arrive doubly-prepared the next time. Should the situation become chronic, you may wish to re-examine your priorities for the semester, as this is a writing- and participation-intensive course. In short, this is not the class to cut: you will be missed and counted absent.

This Syllabus: Read this syllabus very carefully, and refer to it often. All information presented here is regarded as part of your own knowledge. All answers to your questions about the class will be based on an assumption that you understand the syllabus and seek further clarification. The teacher reserves the right to alter this syllabus and to make announced changes as need arises during the course of the semester.

Due Dates: Dates for handing in all required assignments are listed in the course schedule attached. There is no room in the semester calendar for late papers. I do not plan to be accepting late papers, due to my current teaching load and conference schedule. Make a note of all due dates now, and plan accordingly.

Attendance: A student with more than 4 (T-Th) unexcused absences will automatically be given a failing grade for the course. It is your responsibility to keep track of your own attendance in the class. Please see the student handbook for the definition of "excused absence" (i.e., I do not wish to see doctor's excuses or obituaries). If you miss class it is your responsibility to contact a classmate (and of course refer to this syllabus) regarding announcements, assignments, changes, class notes, and additional readings or writing.

Students who consult with me in advance of known conflicts will be given consideration on a case-by-case basis. DO contact me in the event of unforeseen hardships and illnesses. In such cases, serious efforts to complete the work for this class will be given fair consideration, especially in cases of earnest dedication and hard work.

Please understand that there is no possible way for the college to take student work schedules into consideration when creating the academic calendar – your job is your responsibility, and any scheduling conflicts must be solved by you and your employer.

Note: Weddings and trips to Baja do not constitute “hardships” or “emergencies” and the burden of assignment completion and attendance is on the student where social engagements are concerned.

Electronic Forum: Each student will be required to post to the class WebBoard when class writing assignments are given. Posts to the forum will vary: full-length critiques, summaries, analytical questions, exercises, explorations, and commentaries based upon the reading and writing assignments in the class are possible types of assignments. All members of the class will have posting and reading access to the forum on the web.

You must use your MWSC email account for this forum. Expect the usual glitches and snafu’s when first getting subscribed to the electronic discussion group. I tend to use different technologies as time goes by, and as internet services evolve. I will try to make it as painless and easy as possible for you, but there is a certain amount of meticulous attention required at the outset, in order to get the forum up and running efficiently for us all.

Assignments: This course is an LAS Area of Focus class for writing. The course meets the objectives for an LAS writing course through formal writing assignments (the required essays) and informal assignments (various kinds of writing exercises, usually posted to the electronic forum). The course includes 5 required writing projects. You will be permitted to revise and resubmit one assignment of your choice (except for the research paper). If you wish to revise and resubmit a paper, you must meet with the instructor to set up guidelines and a deadline for the revision.

Through practice, students will improve their writing. Through the study of, and experimentation with, arguments, narratives, case studies, and published ideas, students will become familiar with the diversity of texts available to them as writers and as students of English.

There will be five essays assigned during the semester. Early in the semester, I will give fairly specific assignments, but later in the semester, you will have more freedom to choose your own topics. Grades will be weighted as follows:

10% Paper #1 (required) Literacy Narrative

10% Paper #2 (required) E-Zine

10% Paper #3 (required) Case Study

20% Paper #4 (required) Folk Tale as Modern Lesson

20% Paper #5 (required) Research Paper: Usability Analysis

20% Electronic Forum (required)

10% Class presentations and participation (required)

100% Total

A note about the writing in this course: although we will all encourage each other to be open and to explore ideas, experiences, thoughts, emotions, and beliefs, essay assignments and the electronic forum posts shall be considered public texts. Be considerate. Be mature. Be excellent.

The Legal Stuff: I have a strict policy against writing about any un-prosecuted crime or suspected illegal activity which you have witnessed, or in which you have been involved. When in doubt, I will always err on the side of safety and delete such writing from any public forum. Please be aware that there are no confidentiality laws or rules about professors or classmates – if you confess to something, we will be obliged to call the authorities and send you up the river.

Format:

Papers will be in submitted in standard MLA or APA style. Papers will be word-processed, in Times New Roman, 12-point font, double-spaced, with 1-inch margins all around. Your name and the date will be in the upper-right hand corner. “English 301” (without the quotation marks) and the instructor’s name in the upper-left. Skip one space and center your paper title. Remember that new paragraphs are set off by indenting the first line, not by skipping 2 more spaces. Page numbers appear in the upper right-hand corner (but not on the first page). Pages should be stapled (not paper-clipped) together in the upper right-hand corner.

Grading: I expect papers to have a clear thesis, reasonable organization and development, focused paragraphs, and sentence-level competency. During the course of the semester you should integrate the stylistic features we have been practicing. I also reward experimentation. If you want to try an unconventional approach to an assignment, please do so. It is a good idea to see me with a draft and to explain what you are attempting, so I will know what you are attempting to accomplish when I grade your paper.

Contacting Dr. Jenéy: Office hours are established for the specific purpose of helping students who have questions concerning the content and assignments of the course or who may wish to discuss the materials further. Hours are posted at the beginning of this syllabus (and on my office door). Polite phone or written messages requesting help with class assignments are answered within 48 hours.

Email: All email messages must include your full name, the course in which you are enrolled, your campus email address and/or other contact information, and a specific subject line. All nastygrams are saved and forwarded to the dean of students. Emails may or may not receive a response, since the campus webmail systems are prone to shut-downs, broken routers, DOS attacks, computer viruses and other technological failures. Unsigned emails that do not identify the student, and the course will be deleted, or returned unanswered. Do not send email concerning personal illnesses, absences or missed assignments.

Academic honesty: “Since honesty in the classroom is required, cheating, plagiarism, or knowingly furnishing false information to the college constitutes a violation.” Policy Guide II, B, C. In short, the work you turn in should be your own.

Disabilities: Any student in this course who has a disability that prevents the fullest expression of abilities should contact the MWSC Special Needs Office as soon as possible so that we can discuss alternative ways to satisfy class requirements: Coordinator:

Lois E. Fox

Location: SS/C Building, Room 202

Office Hours: 9 a.m.-5:30 p.m., Monday through Friday

Phone: (816) 271-4330

TENTATIVE COURSE SCHEDULE

T	08/26	Introduction; syllabus; Discuss Paper #1, Literacy Narrative.
Th	08/28	Reading: Williams, Style: Lesson One. Intro. to WebBoard. Assign WebBoard post. Discuss Paper #1 (Literacy Narrative). Sign-up sheet for group presentations.
T	09/02	Reading: Williams, Lesson Two 14-37. WebBoard post due (bring hard copy printout of your post). Workshop time for groups & Discuss Literacy Narrative. Groups post assignment for Williams 3 & 4 on WebBoard.
Th	09/04	Williams, Three & Four Group presentations. WebBoard posts due for Lessons 3 & 4 (bring hard copy printout of your posts). Groups post WebBoard assignment for Williams 5 & 6.
T	09/09	Williams, Five & Six Group presentations. WebBoard posts due (bring hard copy printout of your post). Groups post WebBoard assignment for Williams 7 & 8. Paper #1 Due.
Th	09/11	Williams, Seven & Eight Group presentations. WebBoard posts due (bring hard copy printout of your post). Groups post WebBoard assignment for Williams 9 & 10. Assign Essay #2: E-Zine.
T	09/16	Williams, Nine & Ten Group presentations. Intro. Influence. Discuss Essay #2 E-Zine. WebBoard post in class: WebBoard draft of E-Zine audience analysis and mission statement.
Th	09/18	Cialdini. Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion. Introduction (ix-xiv); Chapter 1 (1-16) [Read ahead—the next sections are long]. WebBoard Post: “I’m a Sucker” J
T	09/23	Cialdini. Chapters 2 & 3 (17-113).
Th	09/25	Cialdini. Chapters 4 & 5 (114-207). WebBoard post due: E-Zine article. In-class peer review.
T	09/30	Cialdini. Chapters 6 & 7 (208-272). Paper #2 Due (E-Zine). Discuss Paper #3: Case Study.
Th	10/02	Cialdini. Epilogue (273-280). Working draft due of Paper #3, Case Study, as WebBoard post.
T	10/07	Spence. How to Argue and Win Every Time Chapters 1, 2, 8 (1-31; 113-134). Sign-up sheets for group presentations on Spence chapters (7, 9, 12, & 13 MUST be done, other 4 are optional). Discuss cases and case studies.
Th	10/09	Spence Chapters 1, 2, 8 (cont.); Bettelheim’s Struggle for Meaning (handout); Connecting contemporary social problems with ancient stories/traditional tales. Discuss Paper #4 story analysis.
T	10/14	LIBRARY DAY (meet in Library)
Th	10/16	RESEARCH DAY Paper #3 Due (Case Study). WebBoard in-class writing—what’s In the News.
T	10/21	STORYTELLING DAY (telling stories & identifying their arguments). Discuss ancient vs. contemporary stories.
Th	10/23	Folk Tales. Looking for the Argument in the stories. WebBoard post due. Bring hard copy printout. Spence, Chapter 6 (74-99) prejudice. Group workshop, as time allows.
T	10/28	Spence. Group workshops a) read & respond to drafts, b) plan presentations. Working draft (posted on WebBoard) due. Groups 7 & 9 give WebBoard assignment for Spence 7 & 9.
Th	10/30	Spence. Chapters 7 & 9 Group presentations. Groups give WebBoard assignment for Spence 12 & 13.
T	11/04	Spence. Chapters 12 & 13 Group presentations. Groups assign WebBoard posts.
Th	11/06	Reading: Norman, The Design of Everyday Things. Preface. Chapter 1. Spence—Finish Group presentations. Discuss research paper.
T	11/11	Norman. Chapter 2. E-forum post due. Discuss research paper. Paper #4 Due (story analysis).
Th	11/13	Norman. Chapter 3. Post Term Paper Topic Proposal to WebBoard (bring printed copy to class). In-Class presentation and review of Term Paper Topic Proposals.
T	11/18	Norman. Chapters 3 & 4. Norman. Chapter 5. WebBoard: Concepts of Usability and Design. In-Class presentation and review of Term Paper Topic Proposals. Last day to request resubmission.
Th	11/20	Norman. Chapter 6. WebBoard: Concepts of Usability and Design.
T	11/25	THANKSGIVING VACATION
Th	11/27	THANKSGIVING (holiday)
T	12/02	Norman. Chapter 7. E-forum post due. Last day to turn in resubmission.
Th	12/04	Open.
Th	12/11	FINAL EXAM DAY – 8:30 AM PAPER #5 DUE (research paper)