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English Composition 2

ENG 1002 Home Page | Illinois Valley Community College

ENG 1002-01 Course Outline (Summer 2005)

Instructor

Randy Rambo
Office: A313
Phone: (815) 224-0338
E-mail: randy_rambo@ivcc.edu
Home Page: http://www.ivcc.edu/rambo
Course Home Page: http://www.ivcc.edu/rambo/eng1002.htm
Office Hours: Before and after class and by appointment

Required Texts

  1. McMahan, Elizabeth, Susan X. Day, and Robert Funk. Literature and the Writing Process. 7th ed. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice, 2005.
  2. Hoy, Cyrus. Hamlet by William Shakespeare. 2nd ed. New York: Norton, 1992.
  3. Lynch, Rose Marie, and Kimberly M. Radek. Style Book. Available online at http://www.ivcc.edu/stylebook.

Course Description

ENG 1002 is a transfer writing course in which students continue to develop their writing abilities by reading and analyzing selected works of fiction, poetry, and drama and by writing analytical and persuasive papers based on those works. Students will develop the skills necessary to write a research paper, a paper longer and more complex than the short essay. This is a highly interactive course, and students are expected to contribute to class discussions and to help each other develop their writing skills. (Successful completion of ENG 1001, or its equivalent, is a prerequisite for this course.)

Expected Student Outcomes

Students successfully completing ENG 1002 will be able to

  1. Read literary texts with appreciation and understanding.
  2. React to texts by formulating well-supported and well-argued interpretations.
  3. Organize, develop, and support interpretations of texts in formal papers.
  4. Understand basic concepts of effective expository writing, such as purpose, organization, thesis, development and support of ideas, style, voice, and audience.
  5. Understand ways to correct common errors and to eliminate stylistic weaknesses in formal writing.
  6. Write papers free, or nearly free, from common weaknesses and errors in writing.
  7. Develop informed and insightful critiques both of their own papers and of papers written by peers.
  8. Demonstrate a familiarity with conducting research and an ability to locate and use sources.
  9. Develop and organize a paper that smoothly and logically incorporates a variety of sources.
  10. Write a research paper with proper MLA citation and documentation.
  11. Use word-processing software as a writing tools.

Course Work and Format

Short papers should be prepared following the guidelines in IVCC’s Style Book; specific guidelines for the Research Paper will be discussed in class.

Assessment

Writing assignments will be evaluated and graded according to the grading standards in IVCC's Style Book. Additional assessment criteria will be given for specific assignments. For example, students are expected to follow the conventions of MLA citation and documentation for papers requiring documentation. For revised papers, consideration will be given to the extent and quality of revision (possible reorganization, further development and support of ideas, the elimination of errors, etc.).

The final course grade will be determined as follows:
15% = Essay 1
15% = Essay 2
40% = Research Paper
20% = Miscellaneous Assignments
10% = Final Exam

Course work that is not submitted will receive a "0," not an "F."

At the end of the semester, final course grades will be calculated using the following scale: 90-100% = A, 80-89% = B, 70-79% = C, 60-69% = D, 0-59% = F.

Throughout the semester, you can check your grades online using Thinkwave.

Attendance

Students are expected to attend class regularly. Absences may result in a lowered course grade, and more than four absences may result in a withdrawal from the course without warning. Please do not be late for class.

Plagiarism and Cheating

Plagiarism is the use of another person’s ideas, information, or exact words in your own writing without properly acknowledging your source in accordance with a standard system of documentation. In writing classes, plagiarism most often occurs when students use someone's else work and submit it as their own.

Make sure that all of the work you contribute to the class is your own. A student discovered submitting work that is not his or her own will receive a failing grade in the course, and the student's name and a description of the incident will be reported to IVCC's Office of Academic Affairs. The Office of Academic Affairs will keep a file of these submissions. According to IVCC's "Student Code of Conduct," "when a student has been identified as committing an act of academic dishonesty twice [in any courses], the VPAA [Vice President of Academic Affairs] and VPSS [Vice President of Student Services] will conduct an investigation, which may include a formal hearing, and will recommend or impose appropriate discipline."

You can probably find free essays on the Internet that would satisfy the requirements for each of the essay assignments in this course. I can find them as well. Do not copy an essay from the Internet, or from anywhere else, and submit it as your own: the result will be a failing grade in the course and a report of academic dishonesty to the college's Office of Academic Affairs.

General Policies / Requirements for Successful Completion of the Course

  1. Come to class regularly and come to class prepared. You are expected to have all reading and writing assignments completed on time. A draft of at least 600 words for short essays and 5 pages for the Research Paper will be due at the time of peer critiques. If you do not have a draft of the required length, or if you are absent on the day of peer critiques, one letter grade will be deducted from the revised draft. All assignments must be submitted on the due dates; late work will not be accepted. In-class assignments cannot be made up.
      
  2. Be active participants in the class. Active and meaningful student participation is expected, so ask questions, offer comments and suggestions, share your thoughts, make a meaningful contribution to the exchange of ideas in the classroom.


  3. Demonstrate a genuine desire to learn and to succeed in the course. A positive attitude can take you far, so be willing to work: read and reread the texts carefully, take pride in your writing, and please see me if you need additional help. You probably need this course for the credit, but try to work hard both to gain the credit and to gain knowledge and better writing skills.

All assignments are due on the due dates. No late essays, quizzes, exercises, or other assignments will be accepted.

Working in the Computer Lab

All of our class meetings will be held in one of the college's computer labs. The computers should help us complete assignments and should not be a distraction from those assignments. While we are in the computer lab during class time, we must work on material related to the course. The following policy applies to students who use the computers during class time for purposes that are not course related (reading or writing e-mail, playing games, working on assignments for other classes, surfing the Internet for material unrelated to the course, etc.): the first time, the student will be asked to leave the classroom; the second time, the student will be withdrawn from the course. Please ask if you have any questions about whether a particular use of the computers is course related.

Academic Accommodations

If you need support or assistance because of a disability, you may be eligible for academic accommodations through IVCC's Special Populations Office. Visit office B-204 or call (815) 224-0284 for more information.

Most Important of All

It's my job to help you succeed in the course, so please let me help you. Do not hesitate to ask questions and to see me during my office hours. Also, be aware that additional assistance to help you succeed is available through the college's Writing Center.

ENG 1002-01 Tentative Schedule

This is a tentative schedule: assignments and due dates may differ from those given below. Additional assignments will be given in class, including frequent short quizzes and exercises. Please refer to the course home page for daily assignments.

Week 1 (6/15, 6/16)
Wed., June 15: Introductions.
Thurs., June 16: Review of the essay form. Read Robert Frost's "Mending Wall" (pages 499-500 or click title). In-class Diagnostic Paragraph on "Mending Wall."

Week 2 (6/20-6/23)
Mon., June 20: Discussion of Diagnostic Paragraphs. Read Ch. 4: How Do I Read Short Fiction?" (57-62) and selected short stories (specific stories to be announced). Discussion of selected stories and Essay 1.
Tues., June 21: Read Ch. 1: The Prewriting Process (3-16) and Ch. 2: The Writing Process (17-30). Discussion of Essay 1.
Wed., June 22: In-class work on Essay 1.
Thurs., June 23: Draft of Essay 1 due for peer critique.

Week 3 (6/27-6/30)
 Mon., June 27: Discussion of Essay 1 drafts. Read Ch. 10: How Do I Read Poetry? (395-98), Ch. 11: Writing about Persona and Tone (399-412), Ch. 12: Writing about Poetic Language (416-25), and selected poems (specific poems to be announced). Discussion of assigned poems and Essay 2.
Tues., June 28: Read Ch. 3: The Rewriting Process (32-53). Discussion of Essay 2.
Wed., June 29:  Continued Discussion of Essay 2.  
Thurs., June 30: In-class work on Essay 1 or Essay 2. Revised Draft of Essay 1 due.

Week 4 (7/4-7/7)
 Mon., July 4: No class (Independence Day).
Tues., July 5: Draft of Essay 2 due for peer critique.
Wed., July 6:  Discussion of Essay 2 drafts.
Thurs., July 7: Read How Do I Read a Play? (585-89) and Shakespeare's Hamlet (pages TBA). Discussion of Hamlet and the Research Paper. 

Week 5 (7/11-7/14)
 Mon., July 11: Read Shakespeare's Hamlet (pages TBA). Discussion of Hamlet and the Research Paper. Revised Draft of Essay 2 due.
Tues., July 12: Read Shakespeare's Hamlet (pages TBA). Discussion of Hamlet and the Research Paper.
Wed., July 13:  Read Shakespeare's Hamlet (pages TBA). Discussion of Hamlet and the Research Paper.
Thurs., July 14: Discussion of Hamlet and the Research Paper. Discussion of Optional Revisions.

Week 6 (7/18-7/21)
Mon., July 18: Discussion of Hamlet and the Research Paper. Rough outline for the Research Paper due.
Tues., July 19: In-class work on the Research Paper.
Wed., July 20: In-class work on the Research Paper.
Thurs., July 21: In-class work on the Research Paper. Optional Revisions due.

Week 7 (7/25-7/28)
 Mon., July 25: In-class work on the Research Paper.
Tues., July 26: In-class work on the Research Paper.
Wed., July 27: In-class work on the Research Paper.
Thurs., July 28: Draft of the Research Paper due for peer critique.  

Week 8 (8/1-8/4)
Mon., Aug. 1: Discussion of Research Paper drafts.
Tues., Aug. 2: In-class work on the Research Paper.
Wed., Aug. 3: In-class work on the Research Paper.
Thurs., Aug. 4: Review for the Final Exam. Final draft of the Research Paper due.  

Week 9 (8/8-8/10)
Mon., Aug. 8: Review for the Final Exam. Final Exam Pre-Test. 
Tues., Aug. 9: Review for the Final Exam. Answers to the Final Exam Pre-Test.
Wed., Aug. 10: Final Exam.

Note: Class sessions identified as being devoted to "discussion of Hamlet and the Research Paper" and "in-class work" often include in-class exercises and other assignments.

This page was last updated on June 01, 2006. Copyright Randy Rambo, 2005.