Instructor: Élan Young Office Hrs: MW 10-10:50 Eng. 101.02
Email: ejyoung@uncg.edu TTH
11-12:15 MWF
9-9:50
Office Phone: 256-0482 Office: McIver 334 G Curry
331
Shifting Environments:
Where We Come From & Where We’re Going
What This Course
Is About
Does the world
shape us or do we shape the world? This
is a question that will return again and again as we explore the environments
surrounding us and within us. This
topic will lend focus to the study of college-level reading, writing and
critical thinking. The aim of this
course is to facilitate awareness of how we read, why we write and what we
think. You will examine and question
viewpoints, particularly your own, on a multitude of topics that are raised
organically from discussions and readings. Furthermore, you will express your
viewpoints in class discussions and in essays while armed with the rhetorical
tools to explore and defend them adequately.
You will learn rhetorical strategies in texts ranging from novels to
advertisements and will use these strategies in your own writing. Using the vocabulary and tools you gain from
the readings, you will be able to improve your own writing in any subject. You will practice composition skills, research,
organization, editing and revision with emphasis on forms appropriate to
collegiate writing. Your work in this
course will help prepare you to think and to write effectively in your other
college courses, on the job, and in the world beyond college.
Texts
A Lesson Before Dying by Ernest Gaines
E-Reserve Readings
Requirements
3 Essays/ 2 Revised
Double-Entry Journals
In-Class Freewriting
Lead 1 Class Discussion w/ Group
Attend 1 Community Reading
Peer Critique Exercises
3 Conferences
Attendance
Your participation in the class is mandatory. Without your presence, you and your
classmates will not gain as much from the course. In addition, I will sometimes assign homework separate from the
readings on the syllabus or might rework the schedule to fit the needs of the
class. As a result, missing a class
will require you to contact a fellow student or your instructor in order to
determine your missed work. The
official policy of this course is that after two absences your overall grade
will begin to drop. On your fourth absence you will be dropped from the
course. Please do not show up late for
class, I consider it extremely rude, and will affect your participation grade
if it becomes a problem. In addition,
lateness over 15 min. will be counted as an absence.
Journals
You are to keep a notebook that will contain all
freewriting, reading responses, double-entry journals, and various other
journal entries throughout the semester.
Because you will be asked to hand these in occasionally, I ask that you
keep this in a loose-leaf notebook.
Generally speaking, you will be asked to write several freewrites and
one reading response per week. They
count as part of your participation grade, and cannot be turned in late or made
up for missed classes. The freewriting
is often geared to help you get your essays started, whereas the reading
response format is designed to demonstrate your level of engagement with the
texts we read. Both are equally
important and should not be taken lightly.
Class Discussions
·
This course will require that in cooperation with your
group members, you will lead the class
in at least one discussion during the semester on a group of readings. This is not merely a presentation, but an
active facilitation of learning.
Further details will be discussed in class.
·
Outside of class you are to participate in an online
discussion board, bringing up relevant points to the readings, the craft of
writing, or simply to continue in class discussions. I require a minimum of 10 postings (1 paragraph or longer) during
the semester.
Community
Readings
You will be required to attend one community reading
given by an author of fiction or poetry and write a 1 pg. response, taking
notice of both content and the rhetorical situation.
Conferences
Conferences serve as a valuable part of a first year
writing course by allowing the instructor and student time to discuss writing
issues one-on-one. As a result, missing
a conference will count as a class absence.
Please be courteous and call when you know you cannot make an
appointment. My office phone number is
256-0482. We will meet at least three times during the semester to discuss your
work in the course, but you are always welcome to set up additional appointments
with me as you see necessary.
Mutual Respect
Because we are going to be in the process of community
building, the most important policy of this course is mutual respect. I will respect you as a writer and fellow
learner with valuable ideas to contribute to this course, make myself available
for questions, return your work in a timely manner, and come to class
prepared. In return, I expect you to do
your work to the best of your ability, come to class on time, and treat your
instructor and peers with respect. In
addition, I expect absolute academic honesty.
See note on plagiarism.
Plagiarism
Plagiarism is intentionally or knowingly representing the
words of another as one's own in any academic exercise. This is a SERIOUS offense punishable by
failure or even expulsion from school.
I will not tolerate any act of plagiarism in this course, and ask that
you sign the Academic Integrity Pledge each and every time you turn in a major
assignment. The pledge reads: I HAVE ABIDED BY THE ACADEMIC INTEGRITY POLICY ON
THIS ASSIGNMENT.
Signature___________________________________________________
Date__________________
If you feel you cannot complete your own work, please
discuss this with me before being tempted to cheat. Please see the Academic Integrity Policy III.2 for further information
on how plagiarism is handled at UNCG.
Writing Center
If you feel you need additional help with any aspect of
your writing or your writing process, you may visit The Writing Center at any
point in the semester. I highly
recommend you visit the writing center at least once during the semester, even
if you feel confident as a writer. The
Writing Center is located in 101 McIver. It is open Monday-Thursday 9am-8pm and
Friday 9am-3pm. You may make an appointment by calling 334-3125. The Writing
Center is a very valuable resource for your writing in this class and for your
other classes.
Students with Disabilities
If you have a disability that could affect your
performance in this course or for which you need accommodation, please contact
me and/or the office of Disability Services at 334-5440.
Grading Process
55% Participation
(including, but not limited to, in-class discussions, online discussion board
participation, in-class freewriting, group work and presentations, attendance,
attitude, peer critiques, commitment to revising, community reading and
conferences)
45% Portfolio (including but not limited to, 3 formal
essays, double entry journals, and other revised writing)
Student
Learning Goals
By the completion of this course, you should be able to:
·
Interpret and evaluate argumentative discourse, including
writing and speech
·
Construct cogent arguments
·
Communicate those arguments clearly, coherently and
effectively
·
Locate, synthesize, and evaluate relevant information
·
Demonstrate an understanding of aims and methods of
intellectual discourse
·
Weigh evidence and evaluate the arguments of differing
viewpoints
In addition, you'll learn rhetorical analysis, research
techniques, and how to use MLA citation style. And, you’ll learn the basics about
writing various types of college appropriate essays.
General
Expectations
This course will be broad and foundational in nature and
will be applicable to a significant range of discourse; it will not assume
extensive previous knowledge.
English 101.02
Fall 2002 Schedule for Weeks 1-8
*Subect to change. You are responsible for keeping up with the
changes.
~Home~
M 8/19 Introduction
W 8/21 “My
Backyard” from Patterns for a Purpose
by Mary E. Mebane
F
8/23 “Those Winter Sundays” by
Robert Hayden; “Once Home” by William Stafford
M 8/26 “Childhood
is the Kingdom Where Nobody Dies” by Edna St. Vincent Millay
W 8/28 “The
Burden of a Happy Childhood” by Mary Cantwell
F 8/30 Essay
1 Due
M 9/2 Labor
Day-No Class
W 9/4 Ch. 1-11 ALBD
F 9/6 Historical
Research Presentations
~Education~
M 9/9 Ch.
12-16 ALBD
W 9/11 Ch.
17-21 ALBD
F 9/13 Ch.
22-27 ALBD
M 9/16 Ch.
28-30 ALBD
W 9/18 “The
Teacher Who Changed My Life” by Nicholas Gage
“I Became Her Target” by Roger Wilkins
F 9/20
“Lessons from Two Ghosts” by Scott Fisher
M 9/23 “Where
College Fails Us” by Caroline Bird
W 9/25 “Where
College Fails Us” cont.
F 9/27 Peer
Critique
~Media
and Society~
M 9/30 Essay
2 Due (Movie)
W 10/2 “Decoding
the Commerical World” from We the Media
by Leslie Savan
F 10/4 “The
Use of Media as a Weapon” by Eric Margolis
M 10/7 Rhetorical
Strategies and Exercises
W 10/9 “Dirty Laundry:
Bennetton’s ‘We, on Death Row’ Campaign” by Barbara
Ehrenreich
F 10/11 Fall
Break