English 111 Course Outline/Syllabus Ms. Melody Ramsey Room: 3061 – D 2009-2010
Course Title: College Composition I Credit Hours: 3 (CVCC); 1 (JFHS) Email: [email protected] Schoolnotes: http://new.schoolnotes.com/MRamsey School Phone: (434) 525-2674 Conferences by appointment- I am available from 8:00 – 8:25 a.m. and from 3:05 – 4 p.m.
Required Texts (provided by the school): Aaron, Jane E. The Little, Brown Compact Handbook. 5th ed. New York: Pearson, 2003.
Ramage, John, John Bean, and June Johnson. Writing Arguments, Brief Edition. 6th Edition. New York: Pearson, 2004.
Course Description: Introduces students to the fundamentals of academic writing as well as analytical and critical thinking. Develops writing ability for college based on experience, observation, research, and analysis of ideas and printed material. Guides students in learning writing as a process, understanding audience and purpose, exploring and integrating ideas and information, plus revising and editing for effective style and usage.
English 111 Goals and Objectives that student will: Write clearly organized and developed essays with regard to argument and audience Choose information from primary and/or secondary sources, including the Internet, and provide MLA (parenthetical) documentation in a research paper Correctly document all sources (including the Internet) to avoid plagiarism issues Write five to seven essays utilizing various forms of argumentation and/or analysis Demonstrate that he or she can construct a clear thesis statement and support that thesis with evidence from valid sources Improve his or her command of grammatical and mechanical skills Continue to practice revision and editing through proofreading and peer evaluations Meet deadlines/due dates for essays, projects, presentations and other assignments Participate in constructive peer reviews and collaborative learning situations Participate in class discussions of assignments, topics or issues Develop his or her writing skills in order to become a better writer Improve his or her skills of written persuasion
Instructional Methods: Assigned text readings Written assignments (responses, self evaluations and essays) 2
Lecture Tests Class discussion Videos Powerpoint presentations Student conferences Quizzes Peer evaluations
Attendance Policy: Regular attendance is expected. Per state policy for Virginia Community College courses, absences totaling more than 20% of a course’s scheduled class meetings (nine classes per Bedford County schools’ nine week grading period) will result in failure or dismissal from the course, regardless of the reason. Students who miss more than 10% of the course’s scheduled meetings may incur a grade penalty of one letter grade.
Honor Code: Students must conform to the CVCC and the JFHS Honor Codes. Violations of the CVCC Honor Code, including plagiarism and cheating; will result in a zero for the first occurrence, and may result in dismissal from the course for subsequent occurrences.
Assessment: Papers will be assessed utilizing a rubric (a copy is provided with the syllabus for reference) and will be assigned a numeric grade (0-100 points) and a rubric score: 4 (A), 3 (B), 2 (C), 1 (D), or 0 (F).
Expectations: Final copies of essays MUST be typed (Times New Roman, 12 point) and must be double spaced. The first draft may be handwritten (on the FRONT of the page only) but must include the student’s thesis statement. Second, third (if applicable) and final drafts MUST be typed. A letter grade will be taken off the final essay grade if any of these subsequent drafts are turned in handwritten. If your computer “crashes” there are computers here at school that you may use – bring in your flash drive and upload your paper, then print. In this technological age, there is little excuse for not being able to turn in a typed paper on time. This course will incorporate assigned reading selections from the WA text and from teacher- assigned (and provided) excerpts from other sources or texts. Students are expected to have completed the assigned reading on the due date. Quizzes may be given at the teacher’s discretion to check students’ completion of these reading assignments. Essays are to be turned in at the BEGINNING of the student’s class period on the DUE DATE. If the student cannot be at school on the day a draft or a final paper is due, send it by another student or you may email it to me (my email is on the first page). Make every effort you can to get your paper in on time. Late papers may be penalized.
Supply List: Notebook & paper (no spiral notebook, please) Colored folder for writing portfolio (solid color, please) 2 Sheets of Posterboard (any color) Ruled white 3 x 5 index cards Pens, pencils Flash Drive 3
Third Period – pack of red pens (a cheap multi-pack) Fifth Period – one or two highlighters (prefer yellow) Sixth Period – black, silver, or gold sharpie pen (only one) Dracula – prefer Barnes and Noble Classics Edition (brown cover) – 2nd semester
Grading: Classwork 10% Evaluations 10% Quizzes 15% Tests 20% Projects 20% Essays 25%
Grading Scale: Grades for dual enrollment classes are weighted for grade point value as per follows Bedford County policies: A = 5.0; B = 4.0; C = 3.0; D = 1.0; F = 0.0 Grades will be assigned using the Bedford County Schools’ letter grade and numerical equivalent scales for dual enrollment/AP classes:
A = 89.5 to 100 B = 79.5 to 89.4 C = 69.5 to 79.4 D = 59.5 to 69.4 F = 0 to 69.4
First Nine Weeks (August 24 – October 26): Assigned readings, class discussions, presentations, and classwork from Writing Arguments and other sources Narrative Essay (2-3 pages) Debate Essay (2-3 pages) Summary and Analysis Essay (3-4 pages) Debates Quizzes and Tests from Writing Arguments
Second Nine Weeks (October 27 – January 20): Assigned readings, class discussions, presentations, and classwork from Writing Arguments and other sources Classical Argument Essay (3-5 pages) Evaluation Essay (3-5 pages) or Proposal Essay (3-5 pages) Visual Argument Essay (3-5 pages) and Project Debates Research Paper Quizzes and Tests from Writing Arguments