WR 95 TR Syllabus, Course Outline, & Course Outcomes

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.

4 Two-pocket folders: 2 folders for submitting work; 1 additional folder(s) for saving graded work and 1 additional folder organizing current work.

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.

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:

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, 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.

Notes: Assigned readings are from your 75 Readings Across the Curriculum (abbreviated as 75 Readings)) and Academic Writer’s Handbook (abbreviated as Rosen). Vocabulary quizzes are from 100 Words Every High School Graduate Should Know, abbreviated as 100 Words. This course outline is subject to change, with notice in class, at any point in the course!

Week 1 Sept. 22-26 Getting Started: basic writing goals. Reading as a source for writing. The writing process. Essay 1 assigned. Pre-write summary and analysis for essay 1 assigned.

Required Reading: 75 Readings, King, “Why We Crave Horror Movies” (handout on Monday if you don’t have your 75 Readings text yet).

Week 2 Sept. 29-Oct. 3 Thesis statements and topic sentences. Paragraphing principles. More on writing summaries and analyses. Bring 75 Readings and the Rosen handbook to class Monday.

For Monday 75 Readings, Chap. 11 pp. 393-395 “Who Makes the Clothes We Wear” (discussed in class) or another article of your choice from Chap. 11.

v Pre-writing summary and analysis 1 of the essay you read from Chap. 11 due Monday Sept. 29 (note: keep a copy: you need it to work on essay 1);

v Prepare Essay 1 second draft, evaluate it from the essay 1 grading sheet, and revise (turn in the first draft as part of the Essay 1 rough work package)

v Essay 1 second draft and all work, including typed/word processed first draft, due Wednesday Oct. 1 for in-class analysis and peer review and to turn in.

Week 3 Oct. 6-10 Essay basics: unity & focus, coherence and development. Essay 2 assigned; BRING YOUR ROSEN HANDBOOK and 100 Words text TO CLASS MONDAY & WEDNESDAY!

For Monday: 75 Readings, Chap. 12 pp. 446-453 Rheingold, “The Virtual Community” or another article of your choice from Chapter 12

For Wednesday 75 Readings Chap. 13 pp. 478-485 Carson, “The Obligation to Endure” or another article of your choice from Chapter 13.

Week 4 Oct. 13-17 (Monday: Faculty Work day: no classes or office hours)

Word choice and sentence patterns. Basic documentation & Avoiding plagiarism. Editing for correct punctuation. BRING YOUR HANDBOOK TO CLASS WEDNESDAY!

v Pre-writing summary and analysis 2 (on one of the articles you will use for essay 2) due Wednesday Oct. 15

Week 5 Oct. 20-24 Focus, unity, coherence, and specific development. Informal and formal outlines.

v Pre-writing summary and analysis 3 (on the other article you will use for essay 2) due Monday Oct. 20 (keep a copy to work on for the second draft of essay 2)

v Essay 2 rough work including typed/word processed first & second drafts for in-class analysis and peer review and to turn in due Wednesday Oct. 22

Week 6 Oct. 27-31 Introductions and conclusions. Avoiding wordiness, vague terms, and overgeneralization

Week 7 Nov. 3-7 Transitions and structural coherence. Sentence combining. Essay 3 assigned. Portfolio Assigned.

NOTE: Friday, Nov. 7 is the last day to drop a course without it appearing on your transcript, the last day to add a course, and the last day to change to or from audit status.

Week 8 Nov. 10-14 Tuesday Veterans’ Day Holiday no classes or office hours

Review thesis statements, topic sentences, and organization. Revision vs. editing.

v Essay 3 First Draft due Wednesday Nov. 12 for in-class work (not submitted)

v Assignment: Essay 3 final draft (including all rough work and the first draft with peer review) due Monday Nov. 17

v Portfolio (revised drafts of and all work for essays 1, 2 & 3) due Wednesday Dec. 3.

NOTE: Wednesday Dec. 3 last day to drop; W appears on transcript; instructor’s signature required.

FINAL EXAMINATION: FRIDAY Dec. 12 1:00-2:00 in LIB 117 50 words randomly selected from words 1-100 (abjure—ziggurat)

(Portfolios returned)

Outcome 1: Demonstrate control and understanding of the writing process: generating ideas, organizing ideas, drafting, revising and editing, including awareness of a variety of strategies for stages in the writing process.

Outcome 2: Demonstrate control over the basic structure of an essay, including demonstrating control over a variety of options for introductory, body, and concluding paragraphs.

Outcome 3: Be able to maintain focus and coherence for essays of at least 1000 words, including using a thesis statement, topic sentences for body paragraphs and effective transitions within and between paragraphs.

Outcome 4: Demonstrate awareness of different audiences, including those of college level, and purposes and show control of writing strategies--including control of voice, tone and appropriate word choice--to address those audiences and purposes.

Outcome 5: Produce essays containing a variety of sentence lengths and structures, including some complex sentences.

Outcome 6: Edit one’s own writing for mechanical and grammatical errors, producing work that is substantially free from both minor surface errors and major sentence errors.

Outcome 7: Complete appropriate written peer reviews of student essay drafts, including suggestions for revision and editing.

Outcome 8: Be able to use critical reading to distinguish among general ideas, specific evidence and analysis of evidence and to apply the distinctions to one’s own writing, including the incorporation of at least one source as part of the writing process.

Outcome 9: Understand and avoid plagiarism, including demonstrating control of basic documentation principles in a summary or other written assignment.