English 101, section 9
English Composition 1
Petty
306
Office: 137-F
McIver
Office hours:
11-12 MWF or by appointment
The course:
According to the
Undergraduate Bulletin, “Students read and write in varied forms, styles, and
lengths. Goals include developing ideas and revising writing, experimenting
with aims and approaches in producing writing, and understanding appeals to
various audiences.”
Essentially,
English 101 should teach you to think and write on the college level. Writing,
after all, is not just a means to record thoughts, but a way of thinking in
itself. We will read and write and write and revise and write. And write some
more. At the end of the semester you should feel confident in your ability to
write in a variety of modes for a variety of purposes and audiences. You should
discover how writing can matter—must matter—in your life in and outside
the university.
Officially, the
learning goals for English 101 include:
Writing and evaluating arguments
Communicating clearly and
effectively
Evaluating and using relevant
information
Understanding aims and methods
of intellectual discourse
Evaluating different viewpoints
The necessities:
Writing
Matters
The
College Writer’s Reference
Materials,
available from Wal-Mart or any other superstore:
Three ring binder
Looseleaf paper
Writing utensils
The Policies:
Attendance:
The bulk of your
work this semester will come in the form of short writing assignments and group
discussions. You can’t make up this kind of work. Therefore, consistent
attendance and participation is absolutely crucial to your success. More than
three absences (a week of class) will adversely affect your grade. Please talk
with me in advance if you’re concerned about missing a class or a
deadline.
Assignments:
Four longer
essays (3-5 pages each)
Journal of
observations, reflections, responses
In-class writing
Group discussions
and presentations (both formal and informal)
At least three
conferences with me
Mid-term and
final portfolios
Grading:
I won’t give you
grades on individual assignments. Instead, I’ll respond with comments and
suggestions for revision. When you turn in your mid-term portfolios before fall
break, I’ll give you a tentative estimate of your grade at that point. If this
format concerns you, I encourage you to talk with me about your grade at any
time. Success in English 101 depends on
1.
meeting all the requirements
2. the quality of your written
and oral work
3.
your willingness to try new perspectives, to revise and rethink, to take
chances.
Your final grade
will be based on the quality of work in your journal, your participation and
involvement in class activities, and your final portfolio.
Ways to stay
on my good side:
TURN CELL PHONES
OFF OR LEAVE THEM AT HOME!!!
Show up on
time—more than ten minutes late will count as an absence. Similarly, if I am
ever more than ten minutes late, you may leave.
Respect other
students, the texts, class discussions, and your own work.
The Writing Center:
The Writing
Center is an excellent resource to assist in all stages of your writing
process—in this class or any you may take later at UNCG. The Writing Center is
located in 101 McIver and is open Monday-Thursday 9 am-8 pm and Friday 9 am-3
pm. For more information, see Writing Matters pp. 28-31 or visit their
website: www.uncg.edu/eng/writingcenter.
Academic Integrity Policy:
As in any other class,
the University’s Academic Integrity Policy is in effect on all assignments. If
you are ever uncertain about what constitutes cheating/plagiarism, ask me or
consult the student handbook or Undergraduate Bulletin.
WM=Writing
Matters; SR=Seagull Reader; LBD=A Lesson Before
Dying
8/19: Introductions
8/21: WM 11-22; Joan
Didion, “On Keeping a Notebook,” SR 45-53
8/23: “What Are Essays?” SR xiii-xxxii;
“Rhetoric in the Writing Class,” WM 23-25, Sign up for Monday
conferences.
8/26: No class—conferences. Read “The Writing
Conference,” WM 26-27.
8/28: E.B. White, “Once More to the Lake,” SR
268-275;“Descriptive Writing,” WM 44-48.
8/30: Annie Dillard, “Seeing” (e-reserve); Ernest
Hemingway, “A Clean, Well-Lighted Place” (e-reserve)
9/2: No Class—Labor Day
9/4: Fieldwork, in-class
writing
9/6: Fieldwork, in-class
writing
9/9: Workshop Paper 1
9/11: The Revision Process
9/13: Paper 1 due at the
beginning of class
9/16: LBD
9/18: LBD
9/20: LBD
9/23: DMW
9/25: DMW
9/27: DMW
9/30: Malcolm X, “A Homemade Education,” SR
133-143; Jonathan Kozol, “The Human Cost of an Illiterate Society,” SR
113-123.
10/2:
Workshop Paper 2
10/4:
Portfolio workshop
10/7:
Mini-Portfolio due at the beginning of class
10/9:
No class—conferences
10/11:
No class—conferences