Course Requirements and Grading

Although the course is titled “Academic Writing,” your work here will consist of writing, reading, and discussion, and you’ll earn grades for all three components:

Essay 1 –15%

Essay 2 –20%

Essay 3, Annotated Bibliography, & Presentation –25%

Response Papers—20% (collectively)

Class Participation—20% (this includes leading class discussions, in-class assignments, workshops, preparation at conference, all other minor assignments—announced and unannounced).

Note: *You must submit all major assignments to pass the course.

         *All major essays will be graded according to the College Writing Program’s grading criteria.

GRADING SCALE

            A=Superior (100-97 A+; 96-93 A; 92-90 A-)

            B=Above Average (89-87 B+; 86-83 B; 82-80 B-)

            C=Average (79-77 C+; 76-73 C; 72-70 C-)

            D=Below Average, not satisfying many of the Assignment’s Standards (69-60 D)

            F=Fails to meet most or all of the Assignment’s Standards (below 60 F)

Revision is optional, but recommended, for the first 2 major essays.  If the rewrite shows substantial improvement, such as an expanded vision or thesis, or a whole scale improvement in sentence construction and word choices, I’ll raise the grade (you’ll receive an average of the new grade and the old one). If the rewrite is a simple cosmetic make-over (e.g fixing mechanical errors noted on the paper), your grade will stay the same.  The first graded draft with my comments on it must be returned to me when you submit your revised essay.

All assignments must be typed, double-spaced and have approximately 1 inch margins on all 4 sides.  They should be documented according to MLA style and have a list of works cited.  Follow guidelines for page 1 & works cited.  The requested number of pages required assumes you will use Times New Roman size 12 double-spaced.  Late papers may be penalized, and very late papers may be refused. Lateness, especially if it’s a pattern, is likely to affect CWP. Do not include a cover page, but do include a meaningful title for each essay. You will staple essays and submit them with your drafts and workshop materials.

COLLEGE WRITING PROFICIENCY (CWP)

The objective of this course is to prove yourself capable of conducting thorough research and of organizing, writing, revising, and editing a collegiate research paper.  To earn CWP (which you must do to graduate), you must earn a B- or better on the final draft of Essay 3. Bottom line: you need to demonstrate that you’ve internalized research writing skills well enough to ensure to me that another writing course wouldn’t be of significant use to you at this point.  Your papers will be graded on content, organization, mechanics, and style. You must show your ability to conduct scholarly research, to grasp and analyze complex material, to organize supporting evidence around an academic thesis, to provide transitions and coherence, to employ proper documentation and English grammar in a variety of sentence types, and to edit and proofread your own writing and that of your peers.  In other words, you are to demonstrate your ability to take increasingly independent responsibility for all 3 phases of your writing.  That means that my job is to point out your strengths and weaknesses as a writer, and your job is to improve your weaknesses through increasingly independent work.  Thus, in conferences, I’ll look at part of your drafts, not all, so that you’ll apply what we’ve discussed regarding organization, content, and mechanics.

Writing Center

            The Writing Center is there to help you! The Center provides FREE one-on-one consulting in writing; it’s a great resource for all students, whether you’re confident in your writing or not. The writing consultants can help you write a workable thesis statement, they can help you structure your ideas into a cohesive paper, they can give you feedback on a draft, and they can help with chronic grammatical issues. You must call for an appointment and when you go, take with you any assignments you are working on. I will not be notified of your work in The Writing Center unless you and I arrange your appointment together. *Note from Writing Center website :We are located in the lobby of Froelicher Hall, just below the Thormann Center.  Tutors also can meet with writers outside the Center.  Call to make an appointment at (410) 337-6551, or you can drop by during normal operating hours.  However, writers with appointments will be seen before those who just drop in, so it's a good idea to plan ahead.  Make us a part of your writing process from the very start -- don't wait until the last minute to talk over your paper with a sympathetic reader!

Here is what I’ll expect:

1. Come to class. More than 3 un-excused absences may result in failure for the course.
2. Come to class on-time. If you arrive more than 10 minutes late, you’ll be counted as absent.
3. Contact me if you know you will be late/absent.
4. Turn in assignments on time.  All work is due at the beginning of class on the scheduled due date. For each class-meeting in which an assignment is late, you lose one full letter grade. If you need an extension, ask before the deadline.
5. Turn in your assignment to me—not to my mailbox, not to my email address (unless otherwise noted).
6. Turn off cell phones, music players, and other distracting devices while you’re in class.
7. Don’t plagiarize.  Goucher College takes plagiarism very seriously.  Violators risk failure of an assignment or entire course, and possible expulsion. 
8. Be prepared! Being prepared (meaning reading the assigned texts, film, etc.) is crucial to your success in this course.
9. Take responsibility for your performance in class. This means: meet deadlines, follow instructions, ask questions, and be proactive.
10. Know the difference between “meets requirements” and “outstanding.” There is no such thing as an easy A in college.

Plagiarism:

Plagiarism or the unacknowledged use of someone else’s ideas or words, is a serious academic offense that could lead to failure of the course. In A Writer’s Reference, Diane Hacker notes: “Three different acts are considered plagiarism: (1) failing to cite quotations and borrowed ideas, (2) failing to enclose borrowed language in quotation marks, and (3) failing to put summaries and paraphrases in your own words.” As you assume more confidence as a writer, you will gain clarity about avoiding plagiarism. Let me know if you have questions about identifying or avoiding plagiarism.

Suspected violations of the Honor Code will be referred to the Academic Honor Board.  For a full description of the code and what constitutes a violation of the code, refer to the Goucher Handbook or online at www.goucher.edu/x1292.xml.

Communication

Strong communication among all class members will help make this a more interesting, productive, and useful course. Class discussion and small group work will stimulate your thinking, improve your writing, and train you to engage in the type of discourse expected in your other university classes. I will expect you to show respect for me and your classmates at all times.

Email is an easy way to contact me and your classmates. You’ll need to check your Goucher email regularly and make sure you can access our course on Blackboard. Also, you will meet with me individually at least 3 times during the course of the semester; feel free to make an appointment to meet with me more or visit me during my office hours. I can offer you help and advice on any matters related to class throughout the semester.

Essays

Major Essays: You will write three major essays; specific assignments will be handed out as the semester progresses. Each major essay will also involve a series of drafts and process exercises that must be handed in with the final essay on the specified due date.

Response Papers: Four response papers, 1 page each (double-spaced, typewritten), are due during the semester. Each paper should relate to the most recent readings. As their name suggests, these papers provide you with the opportunity to respond to the material assigned for the day. The papers may discuss any issue in the assigned readings. Response papers will be evaluated on a scale of 0 to 5. Late papers will not be accepted. Each response paper: 5%. Total 20%.

Final Presentation: You will end the course by turning your third major essay into a brief presentation.

Conferences: You are required to participate in at least three conferences with me during the course of the semester.

Check your email at least once a day. I often communicate to the class via email, and I will assume that you will take the time to check. Do not let your box get too full as the semester progresses.

Workshop Participation.  You must attend class on the days when we exchange drafts and on the days when we conduct workshops.  These days are marked on the schedule.  Absences on these days lower your course participation grade a full letter.  If you miss one of these days it is your responsibility to make arrangements to get your work to class on time.  Failure to submit your work to your colleagues on time, in all but dire emergencies, will result in a participation grade of F for the semester.

Always, always, always back up your work as you're working and each time you stop working on a paper! Programs like Word allow you to create backup copies of work - this is a very good idea. To make sure Word is backing up your files, go to Tools, then Options, then click on the “Save” tab. I recommend setting the computer to save autorecover information very often (every 2 or 3 minutes means you’ll never lose much work in the event of a computer crash or power failure). Also, make sure you save your work frequently. Finally, always print out a copy of your paper before turning off your computer/leaving the lab. You are responsible for making sure that you never have to tell me that your computer crashed and you have no copy of your paper-in-progress.

Professionalism: English 105 requires a high level of professionalism for success, both individual success and the success of the class as a whole. Professionalism will be given a subjective final grade based on attendance, participation, preparedness, classroom citizenship, and effort.

Civility. Civility is essential.  We will be discussing heated subjects that require debate and disagreement.  Disrespect of any kind, however, is unacceptable.  In addition to a lack of respect for others, I will not tolerate the following discourtesies: side conversations, doing work for other classes, sleeping, “packing up” before class is dismissed, and the use of cell phones.

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Schedule of Assignments & Readings

The following is a schedule of readings and major writing assignments for the semester. Be sure to have the readings and/or assignments listed for a given class session completed by that date. Be advised that this schedule, while fairly solid, is always subject to change; whenever a change is necessary, I will notify you in advance. Also, this schedule only lists the major assignments; I will give you weekly homework sheets listing all smaller assignments and other details.

**SYLLABUS SUBJECT TO CHANGE DURING COURSE OF SEMESTER**