COURSE OBJECTIVES

For the specific course objectives, please visit the English Department web site,

http://www.missouriwestern.edu/eflj/eng104.asp.

MATERIALS

Anderson, Chris and Lex Runciman. Open Questions. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin’s. 2005.

Lunsford, Andrea A. Easy Writer. Boston: Bedford/St. Martins, 2006.

Bookmark the following web sites:

The OWL at Purdue: http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/.

Re: Writing at Bedford/St. Martins: http://bcs.bedfordstmartins.com/rewriting/.

Toplinks at Bedford/St. Martins: http://bcs.bedfordstmartins.com/hrel/toplinks/.

COURSE DESCRIPTION

English 104 is about becoming critical readers and thoughtful writers. During this semester you will write a series of at least four major papers as well as several exploratory drafts. In addition, you will complete a number of reading responses and post weekly assignments to the class WebBoard. A collection of your strongest writing will be published in an end-of-semester portfolio.

In addition to these writing assignments, the methods of instruction include assigned readings, lectures, class discussions, group work, and peer group workshops. You will be expected to participate in all activities.

COURSE REQUIREMENTS

Units:

We will examine four issues through reading and writing. The first unit will be “Where Are You Coming From.” The class will decide on future units.

Mini-Portfolios:

Since I believe strongly that writing is a recursive process of drafting, revision and editing, I wish to read and to evaluate your process. Therefore, you will submit a mini-portfolio documenting your writing of each unit.

Save each draft of the unit essay and the exploratory essays in a folder. Save instructor comments and peer comments. Write a reflective letter examining your process, problems and decisions in completing the writing.

No essay will be accepted without a mini-portfolio documenting the writing process.

I will evaluate the mini-portfolio, but I will not evaluate the major essay. No essay, in fact, will receive a grade until it is published in the portfolio.

Usually, the mini-portfolio includes:

· Polished draft of the unit essay;

· Working drafts of the unit essay, including exploratory drafts;

· Peer group responses and conference notes;

· Reflection and questions.

Portfolio:

The course essays will be revised and collected in an end-of-course portfolio. The portfolio will account for approximately 60 percent of your course grade. In a portfolio system your course grade is based on your best writing, writing that has been revised and edited over the course of the semester. The portfolio places you in control of the quality of your writing.

I encourage you to revise your essays throughout the semester. I will respond to your essays with written comments; I will hold a series of revision workshops throughout the semester; I will be available to confer with you about your writing throughout the semester. But I will not assign a grade to an essay until it is published in the portfolio.

Reading:

We will read a number of selections from Open Questions. During the semester, you are required to respond to 15 readings. You may select any assigned reading for your response. The response is due at the beginning of the class on the assigned date. No late responses are accepted. Only the response for the work assigned that day will be evaluated.

WebBoard:

We have a closed WebBoard site for this class. Throughout the semester each of you will be asked to post at least one assigned reading response and one unit essay for an on-line discussion. Each of you will post weekly responses to this discussion board.

Quizzes and In-class Participation:

You will be expected to participate fully in all class activities.

Grading:

Your grade will be based on:

· End-of-Semester Portfolio…60%

· Mini-portfolios, Reading Responses, Web Postings, Web Responses, Quizzes, Class Participation, and Final Exam…40%

Policies:

Attendance Policy:

In order to improve student learning and to achieve compliance with federal financial aid policies, Western has a mandatory attendance policy for all 100-level courses. A student will be given an excused absence when acting as an official representative of the university, provided the student gives prior written verification from the faculty/staff supervisor of the event; however, there are no other excused absences, exceptions or “makeups” for this attendance requirement. Furthermore, the maximum number of absences allowed before the midterm report, October 18, for this class is five (5). Thus, when you have six (6) you will be reported to the Registrar’s Office, who will automatically withdraw you from this class. The Financial Aid Office will reduce financial aid as appropriate. This course has an attendance policy. If you miss seven class periods, you will receive an F in the class. If you know of any circumstances likely to make this policy difficult for you this semester, you may wish to consult with your advisor to review your options.

Late Work:

If you miss a class session, you are responsible for all material covered and assignments given during your absence. All out-of-class assignments are due at the beginning of the class period. Late in-class writing assignments will not be accepted.

Late exploratory or unit essays will not be accepted unless you receive permission at least one day before the due date. If you are facing difficulties in completing an essay, schedule a conference (leaving a message on my answering machine or sending me an e-mail are insufficient) to discuss the problems with me. During our conference, we will set a new deadline.

Student Disability:

Any student in this course who has a disability that prevents the fullest expressions of abilities should contact Missouri Western's special needs coordinator, Michael Ritter, for possible certification of special needs and expert recommendations for assistance. You should also contact me personally as soon as possible so that we can discuss class requirements.

Academic Honesty Policy:

Academic honesty is required in all academic endeavors. Violations of academic honesty include any instance of plagiarism, cheating, seeking credit for another’s work, falsifying documents or academic records or any other fraudulent classroom activity. You will receive a grade of F (0 points) for any paper/ assignment/exam that shows evidence of cheating and/or plagiarism and forfeit the opportunity to revise. You have the burden of proving that a paper showing evidence of cheating or plagiarism has in fact been written by you. You should keep thorough evidence of your writing processes for all papers so that you can meet this burden of proof. Violations of academic honesty will be reported to the Provost or the designated representative on the Academic Honesty Violation Report Forms. Please note carefully the statement on plagiarism on the departmental website and refer to the 2006-07 Student Handbook and calendar on page 21 for specific activities identified as violations of this policy and the student due process procedure. This handbook is also available online at http://www.missouriwestern.edu/handbook/index.pdf.

Miscellaneous:

Civility and Cooperation -- Missouri Western requires all students to help us maintain good conditions for teaching and learning. All students will treat their classmates, teachers, and student assistants with civility and respect, both inside and outside the classroom. Students who violate this policy may, among other penalties, be counted absent and asked to leave. You should review your Missouri Western student handbook for further information.

Essay Format -- Papers must be word-processed, double-spaced and use 12-point Times New Roman. Be sure to save each assignment on the university’s “P” drive, or a computer disk or jump drive, and keep a hard copy of each assignment for yourself.

Place your name, professor’s name, course, date, and draft number in the upper left hand corner. Center the title.

Center for Academic Support -- In addition to conferences, you may find help with your writing at the Center for Academic Support. There is no cost to students for using these services. I encourage you to make use of these services throughout this course.

Personal note -- I want to emphasize that I am here to help you be successful. Please feel free to come see me if you have any problems or questions. You can make an appointment to conference about any paper or homework assignment, to discuss your progress in class, to clarify or question something that was discussed or done in class, etc. Communication is very important between an instructor and his students and, as a result, I will make myself available to you for any reason.