Mrs. Caid
email: hcaid@rivervalleyschools.org
Phone: 756-9541, extension 1111
Lake Michigan College
English 101
I. COURSE IDENTIFICATION
Discipline: English and Communications
Course Title: ENGL 101
Credit Hours: 3
Instructor: Mrs. Caid
Telephone: 269-756-9541 ext. 1111
Planning Period: 3rd hour (9:44-10:45AM)
Prerequisite: ACT Reading score of 17 and English score of 18 OR a C or passing score on the Assessment.
Semester: Fall, 2009
II. TEXTBOOKS AND/OR EQUIPMENT/SUPPLIES
Required:
1. Kirszner, Laurie G. and Steven R. Mandell. Patterns for College Writing. 11th ed. New York: St. Martin’s Press, 2000.
2. Maimon, Elaine P., Janice H. Peritz and Kathleen Blake Yancey. A Writer’s Resource. 3rd ed. Boston: McGraw Hill, 2009.
3. Flash Drive for storing and transporting your work
- Three-ring binder for collecting all course materials, essay drafts, and notebook entries in paper format and for presenting your final portfolio.
- Tabbed dividers (optional)
COURSE DESCRIPTION FROM CATALOG
First course in a two-semester English sequence focuses on expository writing and closely related activities of critical thinking and reading. Primary attention given to formal elements of short essays based upon or incorporating documented source material.
IV. GENERAL EDUCATION AREA(S) MET
Successful completion of this course contributes to the fulfillment of the following General Education Requirements:
General Education Goal #2: Communication: Express ideas both orally and in writing; demonstrate the ability to understand written, visual, and spoken communications; convey purpose, meaning, and main ideas effectively to individuals and groups.
General Education Goal #3: Critical Thinking: Identify central issues and assumptions in an argument, recognize important relationships, locate additional information sources, make reasonable inferences from data, deduce conclusions from data or information, interpret whether conclusions are warranted on the basis of the data analyzed, and evaluate evidence and authority.
General Education Goal #7: Technology: Describe how changes in modern technology affect the individual, society, and the environment. Demonstrate the ability to use computers and related technology to manage and access information.
GOALS AND OBJECTIVES
Goal 1 (Communication): An understanding of the composition process as applied to writing critical expository essays. This goal will be met by a student attaining the following objectives:
Objective A: Applying the composition process by writing several formal essays including one 7–10 page research paper incorporating critical thinking and at least 5 sources. Graded writing should total 18 to 25 (250 word) pages.
Objective B: Participating in class activities related to these essays that focus on the techniques and strategies involved in the Composition Process.
Goal 2 (Communication): The ability to write unified, coherently developed essays. This goal will be met by a student attaining the following objectives:
Objective A: Demonstrating a practical understanding of the main formal elements of the essay.
Objective B: Demonstrating a practical knowledge of basic patterns of development.
Goal 3 (Communication): The ability to draft, revise, and edit formal essays to meet the needs of diverse readers. This goal will be met by a student attaining the following Objectives:
Objective A: Demonstrating a practical understanding of American-English language conventions related to mechanics, grammar, punctuation, sentence structure, and paragraphing.
Objective B: Demonstrating a basic mastery of APA documentation techniques, forms, and conventions.
Goal 4 (Critical Thinking): The ability to critically understand and evaluate print and electronic documents. This Goal will be met by a student attaining the following objectives:
Objective A: Demonstrating the ability to interpret, analyze, and evaluate evidence and authority in both print and electronic source materials.
Objective B. Demonstrating an understanding of central issues and assumptions in an argument, recognizing important relationships, making reasonable inferences, deducing conclusions, interpreting whether conclusions are warranted from sources, and deriving a personal opinion based on the information analyzed.
Goal 5 (Technology): The ability to use a computer to access and communicate information. This goal will be met by a student attaining the following objectives:
Objective A. Demonstrating an understanding of how to find, access, and use electronic documents and resources.
Objective B. Demonstrating an understanding of how to use a computer as a composition tool.
VI. EXPECTED STUDENT OUTCOME(S)
As part of the college’s commitment to student success, activities designed to measure the effectiveness of teaching and learning in the classroom may be conducted. These activities may take the form of surveys, quizzes, or brief informal writing assignments. These activities will be identified as Outcomes Assessment instruments and will not be evaluated for a grade. Outcomes to be measured will relate to course goals above.
VII. INSTRUCTIONAL METHODOLOGY
In this course, students will experience a wide variety of learning activities, including reading, whole class discussions, direct instruction in class, instructor response to written work, partnered and group response to each other’s work, whole-class workshops, and a variety of writing activities including free writing, reflective journaling, and the preparation and revision of formal essays, cover memos, and a final portfolio.
VIII. WRITING ACROSS THE CURRICULUM STRATEGY
In this course, students will be practicing and developing a foundational understanding of written communication. This foundation prepares them for more sophisticated and specialized written communication work in other disciplines.
IX. GRADING CRITERIA AND REQUIREMENTS
Grading in a writing class is a very difficult and subjective process. While most of your final grade depends upon the quality of the written communication you accomplish by the end of the term, those accomplishments depend greatly upon all the other aspects of your coursework and class participation. Essentially, you earn your final grade based upon the quality of your work in the following areas:
- Final Writing Portfolio (most important, and will include most of your written work and your ability to consciously demonstrate how it represents your learning)
- Revision Work (very important, as the quality of your Final Portfolio depends upon it)
- Your Writing Notebook (very important, as the quality of your writing work and your understanding of written communication depends upon it)
- Your writing notebook serves as a depository for all of your minor writing activities, including in-class writings, class discussion notes, responses to readings, and any reflection you may wish to do upon the classroom on your own. You can do notebook entries by hand in a notebook that you keep with your binder or on paper in your binder, or you may do your entries electronically and print them out for inclusion in your binder.
- Attendance/Participation (very important, as the quality and completeness of all of your work depends upon it)
- Because written communication is an inherently social activity, the development of your understanding and your skills depends greatly upon sharing your work with others. This may include sharing drafts of your written work with reading partners, small groups, or the entire class; conducting whole-class workshops with your writing drafts; and sharing my written and oral responses to your writing work. If you have any concerns about sharing your work and my responses with other members of the class, please make an appointment to talk with me before we engage in those activities.
Note: You must complete all assignments to receive a passing grade in this course.
- EVALUATION AND GRADING SCALE
River Valley High School’s grading scale will be followed:
The grading scale is: A = 90-100; B = 80-89; C = 70-79; D = 60-69; F (E) = 0-59
The semester grade will be based upon the following:
1. The final portfolio (four or five best essays; the four or five highest grades) 50%
2. Research essay 20%
3. All other assignments/essays/quizzes including participation and attendance 30%
XI. MAKE-UP POLICY
Assignments must be submitted the day they are due. Any late papers will be marked down accordingly. Any paper that is turned in one class period late will automatically drop one full letter grade. Papers that are later than three periods will not be accepted, unless there are special circumstances
XII. ATTENDANCE POLICY/WITHDRAWAL POLICY
River Valley High School’s attendance policy will be strictly adhered to. Please see student handbook.
XIII. ASSIGNMENT SCHEDULE
The Assignment Schedule will be followed as closely as possible; however, changes may be made at my discretion. This schedule lists material to be covered in the approximate order in which it will be covered. Because the writing process is fluid, no specific time-lines are given. What is ultimately important is that we all achieve the same goal: improved writing.
Introduction to the writing process
Writing a narrative essay
Introduction to the research process
Introduction to the research format
Writing description
Writing comparison/contrast
Writing cause/effect
Writing argumentation
Writing documented papers
We will read articles, essays, blogs, etc. and often use those readings for a topic for our papers. We will also learn about documentation and research. Most of our essays will be arguments. In 101, we do not write short stories, poems or other kinds of creative writing, but instead concentrate on the essay.
XIV. ACADEMIC HONESTY & PLAGIARISM
As stated in the LMC catalogue, “cheating and plagiarism are the two most obvious violations of academic honesty. No student shall engage in behavior that, in the judgment of the instructor of the class, constitutes cheating, fabrication, lying, plagiarism or theft of academic property…any dishonest activity may result in failure of specific assignments or an entire course” (168). Dishonest activity includes allowing anyone else to do your work for you or purchasing, copying, or borrowing work from others.
Plagiarism in writing—using the words or ideas of another person without acknowledging that person as the source—is a serious offense in the academic community. I recommend that you read Chapter 23 (pages 241-247) of your handbook, A Writer’s Resource, for a comprehensive explanation of how to use sources honestly and effectively. If you are still not sure of what constitutes plagiarism, please let me know and I will provide whatever support you need to assure that your work truly represents your best possible effort.
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English 102
I. COURSE IDENTIFICATION
Discipline: English and Communications
Course Title: ENGL 102
Credit Hours: 3
Instructor: Mrs. Caid
Telephone: 269-756-9541 ext. 1111
Email address: hcaid@rivervalleyschools.org
Planning Period: 3rd hour (9:44-10:45AM)
Prerequisite: English Composition 101
Semester: Fall, 2009
II. TEXTBOOKS AND/OR EQUIPMENT/SUPPLIES
Required:
1. The Norton Reader: An Anthology of Nonfiction. Eds. Linda H. Peterson and John C. Brereton. 12th ed. New
York: W.W. Norton & Company, Inc., 2008.
2. Any suitable writing handbook such as A Writer’s Resource
3. Flash Drive for storing and transporting your work (optional
4. Three-ring binder for collecting all course materials, essay drafts, and notebook entries in paper format and for presenting your final portfolio.
5. Tabbed dividers (optional)
III. CATALOG DESCRIPTION:
Extension and intensification of elements of expository writing and critical reading and thinking covered in ENGL 101. Particular emphasis given to formal, stylistic and rhetorical consideration and techniques involved in developing longer critical essays that incorporate documented evidence from broad range of source materials.
IV. GENERAL EDUCATION AREAS MET:
Successful completion of this course contributes to the fulfillment of the following General Education Requirements:
Communication: –the ability to "Express ideas...in writing; ...to understand written communications; [to] convey purpose, meaning, and main ideas effectively to individuals and groups."
Critical Thinking: "–the ability to "Identify central issues and assumptions in an argument, recognize important relationships, locate additional information sources, make reasonable inferences from data, deduce conclusions from data or information, interpret whether conclusions are warranted on the basis of the data analyzed, and evaluate evidence and authority."
Technology: ...the ability to use computers and related technology to manage and access information.
V. COURSE GOALS AND OBJECTIVES:
Goal 1. An understanding of the composition process as applied to writing longer formal essays. This goal will be met by a student attaining the following Objectives:
A. Applying the Composition Process by writing several critical essays totaling 18 to 25 (250 word) pages of graded work.
B. Participating in class activities related to these essays that focus on the techniques and strategies involved in the Composition Process.
Goal 2. The ability to write unified, coherently developed, longer essays. This goal will be met by a student attaining the following Objectives:
A. Demonstrating a practical understanding of the main formal elements of the longer essay.
B. Demonstrating a practical knowledge of basic patterns of development used in longer essays.
C. Demonstrating the ability to write a research paper of 8 -12 pages incorporating sources and critical thinking.
Goal 3. The ability to draft, revise, and edit longer critical essays to meet the needs of diverse readers. This goal will be met by a student attaining the following Objectives:
A. Demonstrating a practical understanding of American-English language conventions related to mechanics, grammar, punctuation, sentence structure, and paragraphing.
B. Demonstrating a basic mastery of MLA documentation techniques, forms, and conventions.
Critical Thinking related Course Goal & Objectives:
Goal 4: The ability to critically understand and evaluate diverse types of print and electronic documents. This goal will be met by a student attaining the following Objectives:
A. Demonstrating the ability to interpret, analyze, and evaluate evidence and authority in diverse types of both print and electronic source materials.
B. Demonstrating an understanding of central issues and assumptions in an argument, recognizing important relationships, making reasonable inferences, deducing conclusions, interpreting whether conclusions are warranted from sources, and deriving a personal opinion based on the information analyzed.
Technology related Course Goal & Objectives:
Goal 5: The ability to use a computer to access and communicate information. This Goal will be met by a student attaining the following Objectives:
A. Demonstrating an understanding of how to find, access, and use electronic documents and resources.
B. Demonstrating an understanding of how to use computers as a composition tool.
VI. EXPECTED STUDENT OUTCOMES: These are reflected in the course goals and objectives.
VII. INSTRUCTIONAL METHODOLOGY:
Students will be instructed through lecture, class discussion and related activities, and through the completion of writing and reading assignments.
VIII. WRITING ACROSS THE CURRICULUM STRATEGY:
Students will write and revise formal written assignments.
IX. GRADES:
Semester grades will be determined by a compilation of attendance, paper, and quiz grades. Semester exam grade will be determined by the quality of a final portfolio.
X. MAKE-UP POLICY:
Assignments must be submitted the day they are due. Any late papers will be marked down accordingly. Any paper that is turned in one class period late will automatically drop one full letter grade. Papers that are later than three periods will not be accepted, unless there are special circumstances
- ATTENDANCE POLICY/WITHDRAWAL POLICY
River Valley High School’s attendance policy will be strictly adhered to. Please see student handbook.
XIII. ASSIGNMENT SCHEDULE:
The Assignment Schedule will be followed as closely as possible; however, changes may be made at my discretion. This schedule lists material to be covered in the approximate order in which it will be covered. Because the writing process is fluid, no specific time-lines are given. What is ultimately important is that we all achieve the same goal: improved writing.
ACADEMIC INTEGRITY: Every student must do his or her own work. Deliberate or grossly negligent misrepresentation of the work of other writers as your own writing is cheating. Students caught cheating will be given a failing grade for the entire course.
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