Spring 2010
Instructor:
Rhonda
Gilliam
E-mail:
rgilliam@bellevuecollege.edu
Phone: (425)
564-2123
Office
location: C-207 H
Office
Hours: 11:15 – 12:15 MW
Course
Outcomes
According
to the English department at BC, by the end of the quarter, you should be able
to:
·
Demonstrate
various invention practices: brainstorming, free writing; outlining,
journaling.
·
Demonstrate
ability to write in various modes: personal narrative, expository, analytical,
descriptive, argument.
·
Demonstrate
the phases of writing: planning, drafting, revising (editing and proofreading).
·
Explore
sources of writing: reading, thinking, analyzing, discussion.
·
Create
a thesis statement focuses the paper, does not point out the obvious, and is
written as a single sentence.
·
Develop
and include enough details and examples to support the identified thesis and
reinforce focus.
·
Demonstrate
various patterns of organization and use the organization pattern that suits
your identified purpose & audience.
·
Illustrate
the concept of Audience in your writing.
·
Artfully
combine Audience, Purpose, and Tone in compositions written in and outside of
class.
·
Write
in a vocabulary appropriate to your subject and identified audience.
·
Begin
and conclude a paper effectively.
·
Show
effective control of mechanics: paragraphing, punctuation, spelling.
·
Differentiate
between key ideas and supporting details in reading.
·
Locate
the thesis statement in reading assignments.
·
Practice
good group skills: how to give useful feedback and how to make use of feedback
you receive.
·
Develop
self-assessment skills.
How
Outcomes will be met
I
have designed writing and reading assignments that require you to practice the
necessary skills to help you achieve these outcomes. We will discuss readings
from our textbook and our rhetoric (Marius) which will guide you to develop
reading, writing and critical thinking skills. Likewise, your paper assignments
will depend on your use of these skills in order to complete them successfully.
In
reading, discussion and writing assignments, you will be guided to develop the
following reading skills:
·
understand
literal meaning of text
·
make
reasonable inferences and offer support for them
·
analyze,
evaluate and interpret complex material
·
demonstrate
synthesis of multiple ideas
·
differentiate
between your personal opinions and assumptions from another
·
apply
a disciplinary framework to the text
In
the formal writing assignments, you will be required to:
·
use
a variety of prewriting methods to develop ideas and organize a writing plan.
·
revise,
edit, and proofread papers (both on and off the computer) until the final
submitted draft shows the skill and effort you have put into it.
·
write
for a specific audience with a specific purpose, as assigned, using an appropriate
voice and tone.
·
build
a complex, but coherent paper around your own thoughts and analyses.
·
use
a single, well-stated sentence that clearly expresses the central idea of your
essay, focuses your topic, and controls ideas to the point of creating unity.
·
connect
paragraphs to the thesis and to each other; produce a smooth flow of ideas
using appropriate coherence techniques.
·
construct
unified paragraphs that develop and support the main idea with specific
examples and concrete details.
·
write
essays with effective introductions and conclusions.
·
construct
clear, grammatically correct sentences of precise and appropriate words.
·
understand
and apply subordination and coordination in sentences to emphasize important
ideas.
·
be
able to self-assess.
Grading
This
course is a portfolio class. What that means to you is that you will have more
flexibility to plan, write, revise, and edit your papers to produce the best
work that you can. However, peer reviews and homework assignments from the
Marius text must be submitted on time. All final deadlines for peer review,
homework and final drafts of papers must be met by the date posted on the course
calendar.
Formal
Papers:
You are required to write 4 original, formal papers (750-1000 words) in this
class. Most of these papers we will workshop in class or in conference. Your
final paper, however, will be produced on your own.
Portfolios: Your formal papers will be gathered and submitted
twice during the quarter for grades. You
will submit a Mid-term Portfolio containing one paper (100 points) and a Final
Portfolio, containing the remaining
three essays and a self-assessment. (400 points)
Peer
Review Assignments:
Much of what you will learn about writing in this course will come from
participating in a peer review of others' papers. To do these reviews, you will
be required to read selections from the Marius text and use an assigned peer
review tool to apply the lessons from the Marius reading to critique the work
of other students. Do not fail to fully participate in this area of the course.
(8 peer reviews required @ 15 points each = 120 points)
The
College Grading Policy is located on page 10 of the Course Catalog and also on
the web at: http://bellevuecollege.edu/policies/3/3000_grading.asp.
Books
and Materials Required
Marius,
Richard. A Writer's Companion. 4th
edition. (ISBN: 0-07-304015-0)
Oliver,
Mary. Ed. The Best American Essays.
2009. (ISBN: 978-0-618-98272-1)
Instructor’s
Expectation
The
following list of policies will govern this course. Please read it carefully,
and ask questions if you are unclear on any part of it.
1. I expect that you
will participate in all class activities as assigned on the class calendar and
described in the lectures, the syllabus and the assignments.
2. I expect that you
come to this class with some basic readings skills, such as
o
the
ability to identify most main points and key information in a text (i.e. the
literal meaning of the text)
o
the
ability to distinguish a main idea from a less important idea
o
the
ability to recognize obvious symbolism and other inferences
o
the
ability to accurately rephrase an original passage from a text
o
the
ability to write a paper that fits the conventions of modern English grammar and
mechanics
3. I expect that you
will attend class at its regularly scheduled dates and time.
4. I expect that you
will be responsible to save and backup your computer files, so that in
the event of some computer catastrophe, you will still be able to produce the
work on time as requested.
5. I expect that you
will show respect to everyone by responding to him/her in a way that is not
judgmental, degrading, or derogatory. I also expect tolerance for others. Even
though you may disagree on certain issues or with the interpretations of
others, please use some self-restraint and compassion in dealing with these
situations. Logical and questioning responses are encouraged.
6. I expect each
portfolio will be submitted to the location and in the manner specified on the portfolio
assignment sheet by the date shown on the class calendar. Mid-term portfolios submitted after that date
will lose 5 points per 24 hour period that they are late up to 3 days late. Final portfolios can be no more than 24 hours
late.
7. I am available for
face-to-face conferences on your work. Please note my office hour listed above.
We can also meet at another time, if we can arrange a mutually convenient time.
Otherwise, e-mail or phone conferences may be scheduled.
Affirmation
of Inclusion
Bellevue
College is committed to maintaining an environment in which every member of the
campus community feels welcome to participate in the life of the college, free
from harassment and discrimination.
We
value our different backgrounds at Bellevue College, and students, faculty,
staff members, and administrators are to treat one another with dignity and
respect. http://bellevuecollege.edu/about/goals/inclusion.asp
Division
Statements
Be sure to read the Arts & Humanities Division policy
statement located at the following address:
http://bellevuecollege.edu/artshum/policy.html
Since the English department is a part of the
Art& Humanities Division. This course is also goverened by these policies.
Please review them to be sure you understand what your responsibilities.
Student
Code
I expect honesty. I expect that you will
neither do work for others nor use work done by others. Cheating and/or
plagiarizing will not be tolerated. Plagiarizing is cheating, as is copying
answers on a test, glancing at nearby test papers, swapping papers, buying
papers, using ideas from other sources without proper documentation, writing
papers for others, or having them written for you. If I have even an inkling
that your word is not your own, I will submit your paper to turnitin.com (a
plagiarism detection service). Do not get caught using other people's ideas or
words without proper documentation. If you cheat or plagiarize, the following
actions will be taken:
Bellevue
College E-mail and access to MyBC
All
students registered for classes at Bellevue College are entitled to a network
and e-mail account. Your student network account can be used to access
your student e-mail, log in to computers in labs and classrooms, connect to the
BC wireless network and log in to MyBC. To create your account, go
to: https://bellevuecollege.edu/sam .
To
access the MyBC student portal, where you access student e-mail and the campus
network, go to the BC homepage: http://bellevuecollege.edu/ At the top of the web page, look for the
MyBC link and click on it. Use your student e-mail address and password to
access MyBC.
I
use the MyBC portal to post all files for this class, such as this syllabus,
assignment sheets, and the course calendar.
I will post these files during the first week of class.
Disability
Resource Center (DRC)
The
Disability Resource Center serves students with a wide array of learning
challenges and disabilities. If you are a student who has a disability or learning
challenge for which you have documentation or have seen someone for treatment
and if you feel you may need accommodations in order to be successful in
college, please contact us as soon as possible.
If
you are a person who requires assistance in case of an emergency situation,
such as a fire, earthquake, etc, please meet with your individual instructors
to develop a safety plan within the first week of the quarter.
The
DRC office is located in B 132 or you can call our reception desk at
425.564.2498. Deaf students can reach us
by video phone at 425-440-2025 or by TTY at 425-564-4110. Please
visit the DRC website for application information into our program and other
helpful links at www.bellevuecollege.edu/drc
Public
Safety
The
Bellevue College (BC) Public Safety Department’s well trained and courteous
non-commissioned staff provides personal safety, security, crime prevention,
preliminary investigations, and other services to the campus community, 24
hours per day, 7 days per week. Their phone number is 425.564.2400. The Public Safety website is your one-stop
resource for campus emergency preparedness information, campus closure
announcements and critical information in the event of an emergency. Public
Safety is located in K100 and on the web at: http://bellevuecollege.edu/publicsafety/