English 101-27

English Composition

Spring 2003

 

Class: TTh 3:00–4:45, McIver 329                                                      Hours: By appointment; W 11–1

Instructor: Julie Funderburk                                                                     Office: McIver 136-F McIver

E-mail: jlfunder@uncg.edu                                                         Phone: (sorry no voice mail) 334-5837

                                                                                                                                                           

Overview:

In this course you will read and write critically about texts, ideas, and experience from an individual point of view. Most of you are at the beginning of your college career, and this class provides you an opportunity to affirm yourself as a student, as one who actively seeks knowledge and understanding and one who endeavors to communicate effectively.

 

Student Learning Goals:

You will develop skills that include the ability to write for a variety of purposes, to consider the demands of audience, to understand how style and voice contribute to communication, to challenge your own ideas by investigating the ideas of others, and to revise your work. By the end of the course, given your efforts in class and outside of class, you should:

l         Be aware that it takes multiple drafts to create and complete a successful text

l         Develop strategies for revising, editing, and proofreading

l         Understand the collaborative and social aspects of writing processes

l         Learn to critique your own and others’ works

l         Develop knowledge about structure, paragraphing, tone, and mechanics

l         Control such features as syntax, grammar, punctuation, and spelling

l         Integrate your own ideas with those of others

l         Understand the relationships among language, knowledge, and power

 

Texts:

The Short Prose Reader, 10th edition, Huller and Wiener, McGraw Hill.

A Writer’s Reference, 5th edition. Diana Hacker, Bedford/St. Martins.

Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary.

Wolf Whistle, Lewis Nordan.

Handouts available to you online through Blackboard at http://blackboard.uncg.edu. Print copies and bring them to class with you.

Your own writings and your classmates’ writings. (Keep the marked drafts I return to you.)

 

Attendance:

Attendance is required. You are forgiven two absences. After that, each absence affects your grade, even if your reasons for missing the class are legitimate. After a third absence, any additional absence lowers your final grade one letter. Missing more than five classes will make it almost impossible to pass the course; logic will necessitate that you be dropped. If you are absent, you are responsible for obtaining any materials and completing any assignments prior to the next class meeting. You are responsible for information covered in your absence and for any deadlines, regardless of an absence. Tardiness will lower your grade.

 

Requirements:

You are required to come to class having read the material, ready to actively participate in class discussion. You should always bring the appropriate text with you. Sometimes there will be in-class writing assignments and group activities. There will be three 4-Page Essays, four 2-Page Essays, one Research Assignment, and a final portfolio. Prior to the final portfolio, you will also hand in two revised assignments. You will workshop two of your essays, which means you will exchange written work with your peers and then offer and receive critiques. There will also be required conferences.

 

You are required to have an e-mail account for this class. Though it does not have to be through UNCG, you need to keep the University updated as to your current e-mail address.

 

Grading:

50% participation [includes Assignment Grades (more details to be given in class), class participation, small-group participation, attendance, and any quizzes or other assignments].

50% final portfolio [at least 20+ pages of polished writing (more details to be given in class)].

 

Late work policy:

There are numerous writing assignments for this class, so in order for things to run smoothly, they must be kept simple. That means no late work. If you are absent, you must make arrangements for the assignment to be turned in prior to class. Refer to the handout “Guidelines for Written Assignments” for additional information.

 

Conferences:

We will probably schedule three one-on-one conferences. If you forget or miss your conference, it counts as an absence in class. You may schedule additional conferences as needed. If you are experiencing difficulties in the class for any reason, feel free to talk to me.

 

Writing Center:

The Writing Center is located in 101 McIver and is open Monday–Thursday, 9:00 a.m.–8:00 p.m., and Friday, 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. You may make an appointment for individualized instruction by calling 334-3125, or you can simply drop in, bringing your work-in-progress with you. Consultants in the writing center are a valuable resource. By bringing drafts and questions to the Writing Center, you gain access to consultants who can offer a perspective, an audience, a “listening eye” that supplements what the class provides.