WR 95: Basic Writing II

 Fall 2008

CRN 40202 T&R 10:15-11:30 LIB 117  

Dr. Eleanor Latham                                 Phone: 383-7547                Office:  Modoc 213                                             

E-mail: elatham@cocc.edu                   Office Hours:  W 2:30-3:30; TR 1:30-3:30; & by appt.

 Course Outline      Course Outcomes

Required Textbooks:   

bullet Anson, Chris.  75 Readings Across the Curriculum (Boston: McGraw-Hill, 2008).
bullet Rosen, Leonard J. The Academic Writer’s Handbook (New York: Pearson Longman, 2008).
bullet 100 Words Every High School Graduate should Know. (Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 2003).
bullet Recommended: A college level dictionary

 Required Materials:

 4 Two-pocket folders: 2 for submitting work; 1 for saving graded work and 1 for organizing current work.

The Course:

WR 95, Basic Writing II: Introduction to Essays provides instruction and practice in basic essay structures and development, incorporating reading as a primary writing tool.  Students will learn effective options for introductions, transitions, body paragraphs and conclusions.  The course includes review of sentence mechanics and paragraphing principles within the context of the student’s own writing. The course also provides practice and instruction in the writing process, including peer review and analysis.  See the WR 95 Outcomes for specific course goals. WR 95 is intended as the second course in the developmental writing sequence (WR 75 WR 95); it is also appropriate for students who have completed WR 65 and, with an instructor’s strong recommendation, WR 60 and for students who placed into WR 121 who want practice and review before attempting that course.

Grading:

Major assignments receive traditional letter grades (for example, “A” “B” “C+”); exercises will get number grades (for example, 20/20).  The following weightings will apply:

bullet

v  3 major assignments @ 35%

bullet

·         essay 1 @ 10%; essay 2 @ 20%; essay 3 @5%

bullet

v  In-class work  @ 10%

bullet

v  3 Pre-Writing Reading Summaries and Analyses @10%

bullet

v  Portfolio (new revisions of essays 1, 2, & 3) @ 40%

bullet

v  Final Examination @ 5%

Course Policies:

 1.     ONE Late Final Draft essay 1 OR 2 assignment accepted up to one week late. Other assignments, OTHER THAN IN-CLASS WORK, are accepted late ONLY with official documentation showing serious illness (i.e., a doctor’s note showing physician recommended absence from school) or significant personal emergency (a family member dying is a significant personal emergency; your car dying is not).  I grade late drafts  whenever they fit into my grading schedule, which may be after the next assignment is due. In-class assignments, including peer reviews, must be completed by the end of the class period in which they are assigned.

2.     All essay drafts and all pre-writing summaries and analyses must be submitted to Turnitin or in hard copy.  Assignments are due by the start of class, either in hard copy or in Turnitin.  All rough work to accompany assignments in Turnitin is due in hard copy at the start of class.   For hard copy submissions and rough work for assignments submitted to Turnitin, submit in assignments in a 2 pocket folder.   If you are looking at a graded assignment in Turnitin and you don’t see comments, just a grade, you aren’t looking at the graded assignment!

 3.     All essay final drafts must use MLA format throughout (page layout, pagination, documentation, etc.)  and must be typed/word processed.  Essay rough drafts must be typed/word processed.

 4.     I give assignment details/instructions in class: it is your responsibility to get instructions if you miss the class in which they are given; assignment handouts and general class notes will be in our Blackboard course no later than the day before I give out the handout in class.  I encourage you to print out the general class notes so that you can take specific notes on them.  If you do not get a handout in class, you must get it online in the Blackboard course.  I recycle extra handouts after the class I give them out.

5.     Plagiarized assignments fail (see the Student Rights and Responsibilities handbook).

If you are eligible for accommodations for a disability (or think you might be eligible) but have not applied for formal disability status, please contact Ann Walker (383-7583) at your earliest convenience. If you have documented (i.e., a letter from COCC’s Disability Services) disabilities requiring accommodations, if you have any emergency medical information I should be aware of, or if you need special arrangements in the event of evacuation, make an appointment with me during the first week of the term.

COCC is an affirmative action, equal opportunity institution.

  Course Outline      Course Outcomes