Professor Radek's English 1002 Syllabus

This course introduces you to several literary genres: poetry, drama, and the novel. This course will teach you to read critically and to write clearly, logically, and fluently about texts within these genres. This course assumes that by becoming better readers of literature and other kinds of writing, you should become better readers of any text(s) and that, likewise, by learning to think and write analytically about literature, you should become better at thinking and writing analytically on any subject matter. This course will also teach you the skill most needed by anyone who will be pursuing a college education: how to write and properly document research papers.

This course assumes that writing is a social action, an act of communication, and it introduces you to an academic community of discourse. Thus, you will participate extensively in workshop activity in this course; you will write often, and you will get responses to your writing from both me and your peers. Additionally, you will use computers, the most efficient medium for writing, and you will learn how writing processes change in relation to an electronic medium. You will communicate with me through e-mail, as well as through the more traditional means of communication. If you do not currently have an e-mail address, then you may sign up for a free school e-mail address in the Computer Resource Center, LRC-D.

You must have passed English 1001 to receive credit for successfully completing this course. Additionally, you must have passed English 1001 with a C or better to receive transfer credit for either of these courses.

This is an advanced composition class; it assumes that you have the grammatical skills necessary for this class. If you believe you will need more help with your basic writing skills, then you can make an appointment with me or with the Peer Tutors, the Reading, Writing, Study Skills Lab, or the Writing Center—or work on your own. Mr. Rambo's webpage contains some useful web sites.

Brown, Dan. The Da Vinci Code. New York: Doubleday, 2003.

Bullock, Richard. The Norton Field Guide to Writing. New York: Norton, 2006.

Glenn, Cheryl, et al. The Writer's Harbrace Handbook. Brief Second Edition. United States:

Thompson Wadsworth, 2005.

Lynch, Rose Marie and Kimberly M. Radek. Style Book. 2002.

A college dictionary (hardcover recommended), notebook paper, writing utensils, 3.5" computer micro disks or rewritable CDs or a flash drive/memory stick, a large manilla pocket folder, colored highlighting markers, and six-nine hours of study/writing time a week.

You cannot learn or help others learn in a workshop classroom unless you are there. Each student is allowed three absences. After three absences your final semester grade will be lowered by one letter grade for each absence. Thus, seven or more absences will guarantee a grade of "F" for the semester. If you are no longer attending, you need to notify me that you want to withdraw, as I will not automatically withdraw you from the course. Keep in mind that withdrawing could cause complications in your financial aid or scholarship monies. If your work, sports, or family schedule will prevent you from attending three or more classes, you should probably not be in this section, as your grade will be negatively affected. You will not receive credit for any work you miss or fail to turn in to me while or because you are out of class. Late work is accepted and graded at my discretion.

Note: The only absences I consider excused are school-sponsored trips. If you will be attending one of these, I must be notified in writing by your instructor in advance of the trip and your work—papers, homework, etc.—must be turned in to me in advance of the trip.

Class Participation: 15%

The Papers: All submitted drafts must be done on the computer, double-spaced, laser-printed, and follow MLA format. Several of these papers require research. Papers are due at the beginning of the class period on the date indicated on this syllabus. Late papers may not be accepted and are graded at the discretion of the professor. Papers are evaluated on audience, content, documentation, grammar, organization, presentation, spelling, and style, especially as described in your Style Book. At the end of the semester all papers and their drafts must be turned into me in a manilla pocket folder; failure to do so will lower your final grade by one letter.

Class Participation: All homework, quizzes, computer assignments, oral presentations, and exams—in short, anything not a paper—will be graded and make up part of your class participation grade. Additionally, preparation for class, participation in peer groups, extra credit (if any), and tardiness contribute to this category of evaluation.

General Education Credit

This course is a general education course, which fulfills a humanities requirement toward a bachelor's degree. It has been accepted by IAI as a C1 901R (second semester of the writing sequence) course, so you know that it will be accepted by all participating schools. Additionally, this course will help you attain the following goals, deemed central to IVCC's general education program:

1. To apply analytical and problem solving skills to personal, social, and professional issues and situations.

2. To communicate orally and in writing, socially and interpersonally.

3. To develop an awareness of the contributions made to civilization by the diverse cultures of the world, including those within our own society.

4. To understand and use contemporary technology effectively and to understand its impact on the individual and society.

5. To work and study effectively both individually and in collaboration with others.

6. To understand what it means to act ethically and responsibly as an individual in one’s career and as a member of society.

7. To develop and maintain a healthy lifestyle physically, mentally, and spiritually.

8. To appreciate the ongoing value of learning, self-improvement, and career planning.

Plagiarism

The College's policy on plagiarism applies in this class; read it in your IVCC catalogue and note the penalties. I will feel free to question you if your work does not appear to be your own. Keep all notes, outlines, drafts, and finished assignments so that you can demonstrate that writing you have submitted is your own work, should any question of plagiarism arise.

Expected Student Outcomes
At the conclusion of the course, a successful student will be able to:

Students will respect each other's personal beliefs and be committed to helping each other learn more about the texts and themselves, as well as being committed to helping each other improve their written and oral communication skills. This course will cover controversial issues, so you will need to be respectful of others' opinions, even if you do not support or agree with those opinions.

Note: Request for exceptions to any of these policies must be submitted to me in writing as close as is possible to the event that has precipitated the request. Requests will be evaluated on a case by case basis. Submitting a request is no guarantee that an exception will be made. All written requests must be made to me at my e-mail address, as listed at the top of this document. No others will be considered.

Assistance

If you need support or assistance because of a disability, you may be eligible for academic accommodations through the Special Needs Educational Support Services office. Stop by office B-204 or call (815) 224-0284.

Week One
January 15th
Introduction, Explanation of Syllabus
Explanation of Paper #1
Please send me an e-mail introducing yourself
Read Field Guide, Part 1

Week Two
January 22nd
Introduction to issues relating to the concept of Evolution
Read Field Guide, Part 5: 45
Peer Revision of Paper #1
Paper #1 Due

Week Three
January 29th
Consideration of more issues relating to the concept of Evolution
Read Evolution Debate page
Read Field Guide, Part 2: 7-12 and 19

Week Five
February 12th
Happy Birthday, Charles Darwin!
Introduction to Fiction
Read The Da Vinci Code
The Da Vinci Code Group Projects
Read Field Guide, Part 5: 39-45

Week Six
February 19th
Read The Da Vinci Code
Peer Review of Paper #2
The Da Vinci Code Group Projects Introduced
Paper #2 Due
Read Field Guide, Part 6

Week Seven
February 26th
Explanation of Paper #3
Group work on The Da Vinci Code projects

Week Eight
March 5th
Group work on The Da Vinci Code projects
Paper #3 Preparation

Week Ten
March 19th
Reading/Viewing X-Men
Read Field Guide, Part 3: 21-23
Group Projects Due

Week Eleven
No School from March 23rd-27th, Spring Break for Faculty and Students
April 2nd
Viewing Jurassic Park or Deep Blue Sea
Read Field Guide, Part 3: 24-26

Week Twelve
April 9th
Viewing Evolution
Let me know by April 10th, if you'd like to withdraw from this class
Paper #4 Due, Explanation of Papers #5 and #6
Read Field Guide, Part 4: 28-33 and 38

Week Thirteen
April 16th
The last date the Registration will process a withdraw is 4/15/09.
Please see or e-mail me by noon on Friday, April the 10th, if you wish to withdraw.
Preparation of Paper #5

Week Fourteen
April 23rd
Paper #5 Due

Week Sixteen
Paper #6 Due
May 7th
Take Final Exam Online by 11:59 PM on Tuesday, May12th

Six Papers:
Paper #1	5%	Position Paper
Paper #2	10%	Review of Sources Paper
Paper #3	15%	Literary Analysis Paper
Paper #4	15%	Researched Definition Paper
Paper #5	20%	Researched Position Paper
Paper #6	20%	Revised Researched Position Paper