Syllabus

English 105

Instructor:  Phaye Poliakoff-Chen

Office Hours:   12:30 MW and by appointment (T 101 D)

E-mail:  chen@speakeasy.net

Phone:  410-377-6367

This syllabus is subject to change by the instructor.

Welcome to English 105.   This is a composition class that will focus on media literacy.  In particular, we will be examining the news.  The objective of this course is simple:  you will become a better writer.  To this end, you will analyze many different styles of non-fiction writing, as well as critique your own and other students’ writing.  You will develop an awareness of craft and an increased ability to criticize any text, including your own writing.  Thoughtful class participation is essential. 

Learning Outcomes: 

Students will be able to:

-plan a specific research project

-retrieve articles from library databases

-analyze and evaluate academic writing from a variety of disciplines

-summarize texts and synthesize the information accordingly

-sustain an argument

-write clearly using standard academic English

-reinterpret results into a real-world application

Research Paper and Alternative Genre Project

The final project in this class is a research paper on a topic of your own choosing.  Throughout the semester you will complete exercises and papers which will help you develop the skills necessary to research and write your paper.  Additionally, you will produce a project in an "alternative genre" that will accompany your paper. 

Texts and Materials: 

                                     When the Press Fails, W. Lance Bennett, Regina G. Lawrence,                                                          and Steven Livingston              

 UnSpun: Finding Facts in a World of Disinformation, Brooks                                 Jackson and Kathleen Hall Jamison  

Articles from the Goucher Library databases

            (You must print these.) 

 A Writer’s Reference, Diana Hacker (or similar handbook)    

 various handouts

                                     A good dictionary

                                     A binder for class notes, handouts, and exercises

Course Requirements:

You are required to complete all of the assignments.  These will include formal essays, shorter essays and reader response entries, occasional quizzes, and formal critiques of your own and other students’ work.  In addition, you will be expected to participate in class.  A class is a community, dependent on mutual respect and the fulfillment of obligations by all of its members.  You will be expected to be generous with your time and attention, to offer each other’s work the full value of your intelligence and experience.

Unless otherwise specified, all out-of-class assignments must be typed, double-spaced, on standard 8 ½ x 11 inch white paper. 

Xerox and save your papers before turning them in.  Xeroxing precludes lost papers and gives you a clean copy for revisions.  On the days that 1^st drafts are due, you must bring in two copies of your paper. 

You must be prepared to send a copy of your final paper to me via e-mail in addition to the hard copy you turn in. 

All papers must be accompanied by at least one rough draft or they will not be accepted for grading.  Remember, writing is a process, not just a product.  I can help you improve your writing much more effectively if I can see evidence of your writing process.

Please submit your formal essays in a folder which contains all of your drafts, your critiques, and, of course, the final version of your essay.

Late work will be docked 10 points for each day late.  Work more than five days late will not be accepted.  (Please contact me immediately if you find yourself unable to meet your deadlines.)

You are required to attend class regularly and participate in class discussions.  In addition, I will meet with you all individually.  Please contact me whenever you have questions or concerns. 

Attendance:

You are required to attend class regularly and participate in class discussions.  You are allowed up to three absences.  If you miss five classes, you will receive a failing grade for class participation.  Because of the importance of attendance in a writing course, students will fail the course after seven absences.  (Again, please contact me if you are having serious problems attending class regularly.)  Tardiness is unwelcome.  You are responsible for all material covered in class, and you must turn in your work on time, whether or not you are in class.  I will accept work via e-mail in dire circumstances.   

Assistance:

I will meet with everyone individually during the semester.  Please feel free to contact me via e-mail or phone, or during my office hours.  Please contact me whenever you have questions or concerns.  I also encourage you to take advantage of our Learning Resource Center/Writing Center for writing consultations and tutoring. 

Evaluation:

You will be graded first on the quality of your essays, second on your performance in class.  This includes your contributions to class discussion, your critiques and the other briefer written assignments. 

English 105 Grades

Goucher Grading System (from the website)
“All courses except AAD 650-Internship and AAD 651- Major Paper, which are graded P, pass, or NP, no pass, will use the following grading system: A, B, C, F, EX (extension), W (withdraw). The letter grades B and C may be modified by plus (+) and grades A through C by minus (-).”

Correspondence/Notices

Please check your e-mail regularly.  I post updates to the syllabus and other announcements via e-mail. 

Please refer to the Goucher College handbook for information on communications standards. 

My Honesty Policy

I expect that all the work you submit will be your own.   If you are ever in doubt as to what constitutes plagiarism or how to credit a source, please contact me and/or consult your guidebook or the Writing Center.   

In addition, Goucher College has specific rules about dishonesty.  Please familiarize yourself with the Goucher College dishonesty policy.  Goucher’s academic honor code can be found at: www.goucher.edu/documents/General/AcademicHonorCode.pdf 

Do not jeopardize your academic career.
 

English 105 MWF 11:30

Goucher College Fall 2008

Poliakoff-Chen

All students are bound by the standards of the Academic Honor Code, found at www.goucher.edu/documents/General/AcademicHonorCode.pdf

Please note:  This schedule is subject to change. 

Articles marked (retrieve) must be retrieved via online sources and printed in time for class discussions. 

Reader Responses

You must type a reader response to any assigned essay.  (This includes the individual essays you read in The Structure of Argument.)   A reader response is simply your response to the work that you are reading.  Your response must be at least one paragraph long, though you may certainly write more.  Occasionally, I will ask you to answer a specific question about the reading.  

Please keep these responses together in one notebook or binder.  I will refer to this notebook as your journal or reader response log.  You may keep additional notes in this binder, if that is convenient for you. 

I will collect these notebooks periodically throughout the semester.  However, don't wait until you think I'm collecting journals to write your responses.  You will get the most out of this exercise if you respond to the texts as you read them.