Fall 2002:: ENG 1131: Writing Through Media
Rules, Requirements, GradingIf you have any questions on this, ask me. You are responsible for all of this whether or not you choose to be fully informed. Also, I do reserve the right to amend teh syllabus and the schedule based on the needs of the class.
RequirementsYou must come to this class prepared to engage in the vigorous academic study of popular culture and different media. In this class and/or office hours, I will not waste time defending video games, comics, and other popular works as having worth and being worthy of study. We will not blandly accept my reasonings though, we will cover the discrimination of different media forms and we will cover reasoning behind this - including an investigation into the university as a political system.
Students requesting classroom accommodation must first register with the Dean of Students Office. The Dean of Students Office will provide documentation to the student who must then provide this documentation to the Instructor when requesting accommodation. If you need assistance let me know immediately.
ParticipationYou must be in class (whether virtual in the MOO, or physical in Rolfs) to participate, so also see below for the attendance policy.
This is the most important part of the whole syllabus:
Participation includes not only class interaction, but also fostering
the proper environment where class interaction is at its most beneficial.
As such, please remember that many different opinions will be expressed
in this class. Students are expected to respect the views of other
students. Sexist and racial hate speech will not be tolerated. A
difference of opinion will naturally result and is expected and
encouraged. But students must still respect the view points of the
other students in the class.
Participation means exploring and discussing topics, not simply adding bland comments like, "Gee, that was neat".
Attendance
In-class work is pivotal to this, and most, classes. As such,
the attendance policy is strict.
Excessive absences (more than ten periods) will automatically result
in a failing grade.
Attendance is mandatory. Students may miss a total of four classes,
either excused or unexcused. For each absence after the fourth absence,
the student's final grade will drop by one letter grade. Hence,
if a student has an A in the class and misses 7 days, then the student's
final grade will be a D.
Repeat tardiness will be considered absence, as will extreme tardiness:
coming in 15 minutes late to a 50 minute class is not tardy, it
is absent.
Tardy students will not be allowed to take the quiz for the day
that they are tardy- otherwise the entire class period could be
spent making up quizzes for latecomers.
You are responsible for any work missed in class as well as the
homework for that class. For this, you should get the phone numbers
of a couple of your classmates in case you miss a class. You can
also contact me by email. If you know you are going to miss a class,
please tell me in advance.
Absences for University supported events (sports, theater, dance,
and the like) will be excused only when I am given proper documentation.
Missed work for these absences must be made up in a timely fashion
as the work is not excused or dismissed.
YOU ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR BRINGING DOCUMENTATION TO ME FOR ANY EXCUSED
ABSENCES. IT IS NOT ACCEPTABLE TO MISS A DAY AND THREE WEEKS LATER
TELL ME THAT YOU CAN GET A DOCTOR'S NOTE IF NEEDED - YOU ARE RESPONSIBLE
FOR BRINGING THE DOCUMENTATION IN PROMPTLY.
Assignments are due on the class day they have been assigned for.
Late work will be penalized 20% per calendar day (so not
class day, but each calendar day) it is late. The exception to this
is your final project which will not be accepted after the deadline:
the only exception would be extreme and well documented circumstances.
1. All students are expected to honor the University's Honor Code.
All work must be your own. Copying without giving credit is plagiarism.
Collusion (working with another student or tutor not connected with
the class in an attempt to pass their work as your own) is equally
unacceptable. Multiple submissions, the practice of submitting the
same paper for more that one class also constitutues academic dishonesty.
Evidence of plagiarism, multiple submissions, and/or collusion will
be dealt with according to the university's regulations.
I will not permit violators of academic honesty guidelines to
pass the course and will suggest withdrawal.
2. Complaints about seperate assignments are to be discussed with me. Complaints about the final grade should be discussed with me in at least one conference soon after the next term begins. If the conference on the final grade does not resolve the problem in a valid, college-level manner, the complaint can be expressed on a form in the English Office, 4008 TUR; the form must be accompanied with copies of every assignment and my directions. The form and accompanying course material will be given to the Director of Freshman English for further action. Please note that the Department does not review the complaint about a seperate assignment nor will it review a complaint about final grades unless all assignments are submitted along with the instructor's directions for the assignments. The review committee may decide that the grade should remain as is, be raised, or lowered; but the review committee has the final decision. The material submitted for the complaint is to remain on file in the English Department.
3. Keep a copy of all work - for webwork, ftp your sites over to your plaza space periodically to protect against loss or damage. You will need copies of your work if you decide you would like a letter of recommendation from me, or to contest your grade. A computer crash is not a reason to be unprepared; you should have backups.
This is a Gordon Rule course. As such, you must write 6000 words to get credit for the course and writing under 6000 words will result in an automatic E.
Grading Scale A: 90 or aboveB+: 87-89
B: 80-86
C+: 76-79
C: 70-76
D+: 67-69
D: 60-66
E: failing, 59 and below
Grades are calculated as follows:
Participation and in class work (including peer review, working with classmates): 15%
Response papers: 25%
These must be posted on your website or on a weblog
(I'll explain this in class) by Friday of each week; if it's posted
Saturday at 2am, it's late and 20% off. Or, if you have trouble
with blogger, they can be emailed to me by midnight on the Friday
of the week that they're due. I may check these each week, or I
may do periodic unannounced checks throughout the semester. If you
are worried about getting these done on time, then work ahead. You
will never be penalized for working ahead; say you finish 8 response
papers by week 4, you would have done 4 extra. The 4 extra will
count for the next 2 weeks, so working ahead is a good idea. If
you're worried about these, as they are a huge portion of your grade,
then ask me and I'll tell you exactly where your grade stands on
the response papers. These must be 150 words each, 2 due per week,
one per week must be on THE VIDEO GAME YOU WERE ASSIGNED: 25%
(no response papers are due for weeks 1, 2, 5, 10, 12, 14, 15, and 16 - look at the schedule to see how the weeks are numbered that correspond to this) You can always turn these in early. I advise completing these easylt because there aren't that many due and they are worth a large percentage of your grade.
Quizzes: 10% (Most, if not all, of the quizzes will be pop quizzes so be prepared and be on time - remember if you're late then you cannot take the quiz and you will get a zero for it - there are no makeup quizzes.)
Project 1: 15%
Project 2: 15%
Project 3: 20%
First, I'll check to make sure the work meets the base requirements:
on time, word count, hyperlinks, graphics, cites, works cited, for
papers - the right font and spacing, etc. If it doesn't, then it's
unnacceptable and it's an E (0).
If it does, then it is graded on this criteria:
Writing
Content and Style: Your information and how well you convey the
information are most important.
Voice: You should be heard through your writing.
Spelling/Grammar errors or problems: No, I'm not going to be super
picky, but grammar and spelling errors can hurt your ethos, and
they can make your writing less clear and more confusing.
Flow: How well does your writing move: Does it confuse your reader?
Am I wondering how your moving between topics or am I absorbed in
your writing?
Accuracy/understandability: Are there any factual problems with
your information - are you citing Jennifer Lopez as singing "The
Thong Song"? This is part of content, but needs to be remmebered
because inaccurate information can really hurt any writing.
And, while not as important for this class as the writing content, still important is the
Form
Intelligent Links
Use of the Medium
Aesthetics
Appropriate Language/Phrasings for an academic work.
Since each student must earn a C average or better to
receive Gordon Rule credit for this class, anything below a C will
be counted as failing (E). Remember: you must write 6000 words in
order to get credit for this class. Even though you can not get
credit for a late essay, you must turn it in for word count.