English 111/009 Syllabus

“Were it left to me to decide whether we should have a government without newspapers, or newspapers without a government, I should not hesitate a moment to prefer the latter. But I should mean that every man should receive those papers and be capable” --Thomas Jefferson

“Writing is easy; all you do is sit staring at a blank sheet of paper until the drops of blood form on your forehead.” --Gene Fowler

“I love being a writer. What I can’t stand is the paperwork.” --Peter De Vries

Please make sure you have paid for the course right away. After a period of days, NovaConnect will boot you from this course if your payment is not resolved! Also, the NovaConnect system sometimes permits students to register for one part of this class without the other. Thus, it is vital that you make certain you are enrolled in the proper composition course. Please check your Compass Test Scores to be sure you are in the right level. If your scores do not match, see me immediately so that we can make sure you are placed in the proper course:

Course	Reading	Writing
111+009	81-100	69-84
111	81-100	85-100
Honors 111	92-100	94-100

You may also qualify for the course by a) successfully completing the ESL program including 017 or b) successfully completing English 05

English 111 and English 009 form a six-credit course that is designed to help you to improve your writing and your understanding of the writing process. You must be enrolled in both classes! By the end of the course, you should be able to produce an organized, coherent, and well-supported essay with a thesis statement, transitions, and topic sentences. You should also understand important issues relevant to good writing, such as audience, purpose, tone, and proper MLA documentation.

This class requires active participation and engagement with the material. It is not simply a writing class. I expect you to read, think critically, participate in the class and the world, and write. In a student-centered environment like this one, it is up to you to make our time together interesting. Just as classes are always better when the teacher loves what s/he is doing, writing is better when the author cares about what s/he is writing. Thus, it is crucial that you choose topics of genuine interest to you and that you try your hardest to produce quality work. I’ll do my part if you do yours!

REQUIRED TEXTS AND SUPPLIES: Please note that these texts are specifically prepared for my classes. Pay close attention to what you purchase when you go to the bookstore. Also note that you must bring copies of relevant texts to each class.

q A weekly subscription to The New York Times (Saturdays and Sundays optional): Most of the reading and writing in this course will relate to the newspaper. I’m very excited about this element of the class. This element of the class is an exciting and dynamic way for you to learn about our world while reading good writing. I expect many lively discussions, plenty of critical thinking, and a great deal of quality writing in response to our immersion in the newspaper.

q Rules for Writers, 6th edition, Hacker: This is the only book you are required to purchase for the class. This text will help you learn the nuts and bolts of the writing process. It is an excellent resource for all sorts of writing information. I expect you to be thoroughly familiar with it and refer to it regularly. Bring it to every class. I will assign reading and exercises from this text, but I will also expect you to take initiative and read sections that will be of use to your own particular writing. I may also recommend specific sections or chapters to you. If English is not your native language, I encourage you to pay close attention to the special ESL notes throughout the text and to take note of the ESL Menu at the end of the book. I will assign relevant exercises from the website http://dianahacker.com/rules/. I encourage you to explore these resources independently if you feel you need extra help.

q Dictionary: Every good writer should own a good dictionary and refer to it regularly.

q Access to the internet and a printer will often be necessary to complete assignments.

q A three-ring binder to hold all of your handouts, exercises, and notes. Because we will generate a great deal of paper that should be kept safe and well organized, it is crucial that you bring this binder to every class. Be sure to have some loose leaf paper for in class writing.

q Some means of storing newspaper clippings for the research paper and for vocabulary.

Ø You are required to bring The New York Times newspaper (of that day and of the weekdays since the previous class. For example, at Monday’s class meeting, you should bring Friday and Monday papers. For Thursday’s class meeting, you should bring Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday papers)

Ø Word of the Day: For every class meeting, you must bring in a word that is new to you from your reading in the NYT. I will call on a couple of you every day so that you can introduce your word to the class. Be sure to keep the article where you found your word. For every class period, you should have a piece of paper with your word, the MLA citation of the article where you found the word, and the definition of the word quoted from an online dictionary. Keep a document that lists these so that you can turn them in when I ask for them.

Ø If you do not have the newspapers and Rules for Writers with you, you will not be allowed to participate in the related class activities; consequently, your participation grade will suffer.

Ø You will be expected to use the class BlackBoard for specified discussions and to access assignments.

Ø Attendance is mandatory. Students in this class do much better if they attend regularly. Plan to be present and prepared for every class. If you exceed 4 absences, you will earn an automatic F in the course. If you have multiple absences, I encourage you to communicate with me privately regarding your progress in the course.

Ø You are required to attend both sessions of the class. Attendance will be taken separately for each session, and an absence in either of the sessions will count as one full absence.

Ø All students have competing responsibilities and complications in their lives, and all students are expected to complete the same work in the same amount of time. Understand that these rules exist in the interest of fairness to all individuals. If you have legitimate extenuating circumstances, please discuss them with me.

¨ Contact another student to find out what we did in class. I will not inconvenience the rest of the class by reiterating what you missed while you were absent. Please exchange phone numbers with two other students early in the semester so that you can pair up and collect handouts, share notes, etc.

Ø We will do many different types of writing in and out of class. I want you to improve all aspects of your writing including brainstorming, drafting, revision, and editing. We will do both informal (emails, freewriting, in class responses) and formal writing. Over the course of the semester you will produce multiple versions of each of the major essays. I will read many of your drafts and suggest improvements before assigning a letter grade. To be successful in the class, you must think of your writing as works in progress and be willing to revise thoroughly.

Ø Keep copies of all assigned drafts. You may be asked to submit them with your final.

Ø Be ready to hand in your essay at the very beginning of the class when the paper is due. I will not accept or read e-mailed deadline drafts.

Ø All formal writing for this course should be submitted in MLA format with proper MLA documentation. Essays not in the proper format will lose points. All papers must be typed in a reasonable 12 point font, be double-spaced, and use the proper heading and page numbering system. If I give you a word count to make sure you are properly developing your ideas, that number should appear at the bottom of the last page of your assignments. Paragraphs should be indented, and there should be no extra space between them. Every essay needs a creative and relevant title. For a sample of the proper format, please refer to pages 71 and 463 in Hacker. Essays not in the proper format will need to be revised and resubmitted.

Ø Revision of work, when assigned, is mandatory. If I do not see the assigned drafts, I will not accept a final essay, in which case your grade for that assignment will be a zero.

Ø If the submitted deadline draft of your essay is not adequate to receive a letter grade, I may give you a “redo,” in which case you must make an appointment to meet with me during my office hours, revise the essay, and resubmit it to me within two weeks of receiving it back—or you will earn a 0 for the assignment. A “redo” is my way of helping you see your essay as a work in progress and nudging you toward revising it.

Ø All assignments are due at the beginning of class unless you have made other arrangements with me in advance. If you have extenuating circumstances that prevent you from turning your work in on time, please contact me immediately.

Ø If class is canceled, please refer to Blackboard for details. Unless otherwise indicated, you should prepare your reading and writing assignments according to the syllabus even if we miss a class.

Ø The decision to close or delay classes at Northern Virginia Community College due to bad weather or flu pandemic is made independently of the decisions about public schools. Information about inclement weather closings is available online at the college website www.nvcc.edu. Night classes may be cancelled separately from evening classes. A longer statement concerning the rules of weather closings at NVCC is available here: http://www.nvcc.edu/depts/homepage/closing.htm#9

Ø Your grade in this course depends a great deal on your effort, including your commitment to learning, class participation, and attention to in-class and home assignments.

Ø A grade on a particular assignment will only be given on the final revision; however, all drafts related to that assignment will be taken into account to arrive at the final grade.

Class Participation: writing process work, preparedness, class contribution, in class writing, word of the day	15%
Essay 1: Compare and Contrast	15%
Essay 2: Advertising	15%
Essay 3: Argumentative Research Paper	20%
Clippings, Summaries, and Annotated Bibliography	10%
Quizzes	10%
Writing Exercises	10%
Newseum Reflection	5%

Ø I do not tolerate academic theft in my courses. It is a violation of trust that merits the strongest punishment available. If you plagiarize, you will earn an F in the course for failing to meet the course requirements, and I will notify the school’s administration.

Ø We will discuss plagiarism at length as part of the course itself, but here is a brief overview. Plagiarism is the use of someone else’s writing in your paper without proper acknowledgment of the source. Plagiarism is an extremely serious offense because you are stealing someone else’s thoughts and writing and representing these as your own work. The following situations are some of the more common instances of plagiarism and are to be avoided at all times: copying all or part of another student’s paper and handing it in as your own; copying all or part of your paper from a website, book, magazine, encyclopedia, etc.; handing in a paper written by a term paper service; using the ideas of other people and of books without acknowledging the source; having another person “help” you improve your paper by actually rewriting all or part of it for you; and copying another student’s quiz or homework exercise. If you are uncertain of what constitutes plagiarism, please consult with me, the Writing Center, and/or Hacker.

PEER GROUPS: A portion of our work will be dedicated to cooperating as a community of writers. You will work in small groups to read one another’s work and provide feedback, encouragement, criticism, and support. Not only will you receive valuable feedback, but you will also have an opportunity to learn from other classmates’ writing. You should have an early draft of each assignment reviewed by your group, so you need to bring enough copies for each group member. We will discuss the format for conducting these groups early on in the semester. Please note that if you come to class unprepared to participate fully in the peer groups, I will ask you to leave, and you will not receive credit for that draft.

THE WRITING CENTER: You will earn extra credit on your final drafts for visiting the Writing Center for help on your major essays. Be sure the consultant who you work with signs your draft. The Writing Center is staffed by students who are trained to work with you on your drafts. They are there to offer you feedback at any stage of the writing process, but they will not edit your essays for you. It is a good idea to make an appointment in advance because the WC gets quite busy. Call 703-450-2511 or go there to schedule an appointment. In order to receive maximum support, you may wish to consider enrolling in English 199. This is a one credit course for which you meet once per week with a tutor; your grade is based entirely on the number of times you come into the Writing Center. Speak with Jeremy Ruane, Writing Center Director, for further information about this course.

COUNSELING SERVICES (LC 253) (703.450.2571): Professional counselors are on duty from 8:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. Monday through Thursday and 8 to 5 on Friday to assist you with personal, academic, and career matters.

SPECIAL NEEDS STUDENTS: If you have a disability of which I need to be aware (for classroom and/or testing accommodations), please meet with me early in the semester to discuss it privately.

R-E-S-P-E-C-T: Please be considerate of your classmates and me. Don’t arrive late or leave early. Don’t wander in and out of class while it is in session because it distracts the other students and me. For the same reason, don’t whisper to your classmates. Always turn off your cell phones before entering the classroom. Finally, and most importantly, please be sensitive to the ideas and opinions of other students. In particular be aware that it is often scary to share one’s writing with others. The class will be successful if each of us strives to be open-minded and gentle with each other while offering our honest reactions to what we are reading. This includes me.