ENG 200-634 Writing II
CaudillCollege of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences
MoreheadStateUniversity
Instructor: Rachelle W. Thompson
Office: Bath County High School Room 114
Office Hours: 6th Period / 3:15-3:45 pm
Phone: 606-674-6325 (BCHS) / 606-336-0633
Email: /
Webpage URL:
COURSE MATERIALS/TEXTBOOKS:
Austin, Michael. Reading the World: Ideas That Matter. 2nd ed. New York: W.W. Norton & Co., 2010. ISBN: 978-0-393-93349-9
PURPOSE OF COURSE/CATALOG DESCRIPTION
Prerequisite: successful completion of Writing I. An exploration of diverse texts with an emphasis on articulating written responses to these works from interdisciplinary perspectives. Building on information-literacy skills developed in Writing I and other general education courses, students read, analyze, and evaluate diverse cultural texts from different perspectives to find connections across the natural sciences, the social and behavioral sciences, and the humanities. This course satisfies the Core Writing II general education requirement.
APPROVED UNIVERSITY GENERAL EDUCATION STUDENT LEARNER OUTCOMES
1. Read college-level critical, creative and technical texts for comprehension (1b).
2. Write effectively for a variety of target audiences using conventions associated with standard English (1c).
3. Employ current technologies to locate, analyze, evaluate and use information in multiple contexts and for a variety of purposes (2a).
4. Thoughtfully analyze and evaluate diverse points of view (2c).
LEARNER OUTCOMES: Students will at the completion of the course be able to:
- produce a sustained piece of writing related to a specific text that maintains a clear focus with all parts working together to achieve a definite purpose or to develop a single dominant idea;
- locate through library resources and current technology peer-reviewed sources appropriate to their exploration of a given topic;
- write a summary of published research on a specific text;
- integrate source material within an essay of their own, keeping the borrowed content clearly subordinate to their distinctive purpose and line of reasoning and using discipline-appropriate source citations;
- produce written texts that conform to standard academic English;
- read and apply critical reasoning to texts from the world cultural heritage;
- articulate ethical positions in response to texts from the world cultural heritage; and
- analyze the use of inductive and deductive reasoning in an argumentative text.
CLASSROOM POLICIES:
PAPER FORMAT: All writing assignments and their drafts will be typed and double-spaced (one side of the paper only) in MLA format using a size 12 traditional font (such as “Times New Roman”). Sources will be cited using MLA conventions including a Works Cited page.
Attendance/Participation Policy: Absent students will be responsible for obtaining make-up work by checking Blackboard. It is the sole responsibility of the absent student to complete make-up work and submit it in a timely manner.
Tardy Policy: TheTardyPolicy correlates with Bath County High School Student Code of Conduct. Students late to class will receive break detention as outlined in the handbook.
Late/Makeup Work: Late writing assignments will be penalized 20% whether the absence was excused or unexcused. This applies to drafts and final copies of the major writing assignments described on the syllabus. If you are absent, you are expected to turn in assignments via Blackboard or email. Due dates of writing assignments will be given in advance, so plan ahead for emergencies. Parent notes and doctor office notes will not result in more time. Unexcused absences will cause students to receive no credit on quizzes or other class assignments. Snow days will NOT prevent due dates as work can be sent electronically via email and BlackBoard, an online virtual classroom to which all students will have an account.
ADA Compliance Statement: Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA): In compliance with the ADA, all students with a documented disability are entitled to reasonable accommodations and services to support their academic success and safety. Though a request for services may be made at any time, services are best applied when they are requested at or before the start of the semester. To receive accommodations and services the student should immediately contact the Disability Services Coordinator in the Office of Academic and Career Services, 223 Allie Young Hall, 606-783-5188, [NOTE: It is the student’s responsibility to inform the instructor of any special needs before the end of the second week of classes and to provide appropriate documentation.]
Campus Safety Statement:
Emergency response information will be discussed in class. Students should familiarize themselves with the nearest exit routes in the event evacuation becomes necessary. You should notify your instructor at the beginning of the semester if you have special needs or will require assistance during an emergency evacuation. Students should familiarize themselves with emergency response protocols at
PLAGIARISM: The Department of English, Foreign Languages, and Philosophy is strongly committed to academic honesty. Plagiarism includes using another author's words, sentences, or even ideas without explicit acknowledgment is plagiarism. If you quote directly from a source, put the sentence(s) or portion(s) of the sentence(s) you use in quotation marks. Then indicate your debt with a parenthetical annotation.
Assignments with intentional plagiarism will not receive credit. Assignments with plagiarism will not receive satisfactory grades even if unintentional because instruction on how to avoid plagiarism has been provided as part of English 100. See also Appendix A of The Eagle Student Handbook (excerpt included with this syllabus).
ASSESSMENT:
Classwork / Homework – 10%
Participation – 10%
First Drafts and Pre-Draft Components (i.e. outlines, notecards, etc.) – 10%
Argumentative Essay –20%
*Analytical Essay –20%
*Reading Comprehension Quiz - 5%
Summary – 10%
*Informative Summary of “The Individual and the Pattern of Culture” by Ruth Benedict -10%
*Research Quiz and Research/Discussion Survey - 5%
(*Denotes required common assessments for ALLMoreheadStateUniversity Writing II students)
Assessment Descriptions:
First Drafts and Pre-draft components: These are the steps taken to produce a final, polished draft. These include research notes, outlines, and first drafts. I hesitate to use the word “rough” draft, because that implies that it does not have to be very good. The more work you put into your first draft, the better chance you have at producing an exemplary final draft. First drafts and outlines must also be typed and follow MLA conventions and format. This category is worth 10% of students’ grades.
Classwork/Homework: You will receive credit for the variety of exercises we do in and out of class. These exercises involve grammar, revision strategies, vocabulary, reading, discussion, and other topics essential to the production of effective writing. Grades for Vocabulary Quizzes and other quizzes will go into this category. This category is worth 10% of students’ grades.
Participation: These assignments are mostly bellringers and other class exercises for which we develop answers together. Attendance is necessary for keeping up with these assignments. This category constitutes 10% of students’ grades.
Argumentative Essay: Students will establish and support a claim (debatable thesis). Support will come from sources as well as the students’ own knowledge and commentary.Essay must be 3 – 4 pages long. This project will go through the draft and feedback process, and the final draft will be worth 20% of each student’s grade.
*Reading Comprehension Quiz: Students will take a reading comprehension quiz over a reading common to all sections to be administered during the month of March. According to the latest information passed to me from the Department Chair, the quiz opens on BlackBoard on Monday, March 4 at 8:00 am and closes on Sunday, March 31 at 11:30 pm. The common reading is “The Individual and the Pattern of Culture” by Ruth Benedict. This assessment is worth 5% of each student’s course grade.
Summary: Students will write an informative summary identifying the central idea and key points of a reading in order to practice and prepare for the common informative summary on the Benedict essay. This project will go through the draft and feedback process and the final draft will be worth 10% of the course grade.
*Informative Summary: Students in all sections will write a 250-word informative summary identifying the central idea and key points of a reading common to all sections of the course to be assigned in close proximity to the reading comprehension quiz during the month of March. The common reading is Benedict’s essay. This assessment will not go through a draft and feedback process and will be worth 10% of the students’ course grades.
*Research quiz and research/discussion survey: Students will complete a specialized research quiz and research/discussion survey to be administered on BlackBoard during the three full weeks after MSU’s spring break. According to the latest information passed to me by the Department Chair, this quiz and survey opens on Monday, March 25 at 8:00 am and closes on Sunday, April 14 at 11:30 pm. This assessment and survey are worth 5% of the course grade.
*Analytical Essay: Students will write a critical analysis that connects texts across disciplines. This is a common required assessment for all Writing II students regardless of campus location. This assignment will go through the draft and feedback process and will be worth 20% of the course grade.
GRADING POLICIES: Drafts and other assignments will be evaluated on a numerical basis. Revised, polished papers will be assigned a letter grade and percentage based on the rubric used to suggest revisions for the first draft.
Grading Scale:
90 – 100% A
80-89 % B
70-79% C
60-69% D
59% and below E.
Note: Students may NOT use work from other classes or classes prior to English 200. Papers written for other classes and other teachers will receive NO credit. Only new, original work will be accepted. No shortcuts!
FERPA: According to the Family Educational Rights and Protection Act (FERPA), the instructor is not permitted to discuss a student’s progress with parents and other family members if that student is no longer a minor (under age 18) without the student’s permission.
Final Exam: There is no separate final exam administered for English 200 other than the required informative summary and reading comprehension quiz on the Benedict essay. Students will take a final exam over ALL Vocabulary Collections, and this score will be put in the Homework/Classwork category.
January, 2013
Dear Parents and Students:
I hope everyone had a restful and blessed Christmas vacation and is now ready to continue preparing for college. This semester, you will be pioneers because this is the first time ever that BathCountyHigh School has offered a dual-credit English 200, or Writing II, course. You will be the first Bath County Wildcats allowed to get a total of 6 general education credit hours in English as Morehead State University Eagles.
The early college classes offered here at the high school give students the chance to have college hours and to experience college-level work while in the familiar setting of their high school building around familiar teachers and friends. However, with the college experience comes college responsibility. Students need to have access to a computer and the internet outside of the classroom. They will be expected to turn in typed copies of their major writing assignments and drafts. Students will need access to the internet for BlackBoard, an online virtual classroom environment where students can get and turn in assignments. Students will be expected to turn in their major writing assignments on time, and this may mean turning it in electronically via BlackBoard or email if unable to turn in a hard copy at school. Late drafts and final papers will be penalized 20% regardless of absences from class, because due dates of major projects will be announced well in advance.
The attendance policy will correlate with the BathCountyHigh School Code of Conduct Handbook this year. Unexcused absences will result in lost credit on assignments. The main difference between the Code of Conduct policy and the policy for this class is that late writing assignments will be penalized 20% regardless of whether the absence is excused or unexcused.
I am again looking forward to teaching the students who have chosen to get a head start on their future with a dual-credit course offered through MoreheadStateUniversity. Please sign and return the acknowledgement at the end of this syllabus and letter, signifying that both students and parents/guardians have read and understood the syllabus and class policies. Keep in mind that parents and students may contact me with questions and concerns. I want the students who are beginning their college career with this class to be successful.
Let’s have another great semester!
Rachelle W. Thompson
Syllabus and Policy Acknowledgement: PLEASE REMOVE, SIGN, AND RETURN
Failure to sign and return the top section of this acknowledgement letter will result in ineligibility to receive dual credit with MoreheadStateUniversity, and the class will revert back to a high school English IV credit.
I ______have read the syllabus and understand the expectations and responsibilitiesof the Morehead State University English 200 dual credit class. I understand my drafts and writing assignments will be penalized 20% if they are late, and this will occur whether I had an excused or unexcused absence. I realize that I need computer and internet access outside of class time. If I don’t have computer access at home, then I need to make arrangements to go to the BathCountyHigh School library, Bath County Memorial library, or some other location when necessary. I understand that writing assignments that do not follow the established paper format of being typed and double-spaced following MLA conventions will be penalized. I understand that plagiarized work and work I have done for other or prior classes will not receive credit.
Student Signature______
I have had the opportunity to read Mrs. Thompson’s class syllabus for English 200 MSU. I am willing to help make sure that my child has computer and internet access outside of class time. I know that my child will have 4 major writing projects that will be penalized 20% automatically if late for any reason. The English 200 instructor will not be permitted by law to discuss my child’s grade with me if my child is 18 years old unless my child gives signed permission.
Parent/Guardian Signature______
Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) Waiver --- Fill in applicable information.
I am already 18 years old or older. Yes No
I will turn 18 years old on the following date:______.
I hereby give Mrs. Rachelle Thompson permission to discuss my class progress and grade with my parents or legal guardians Yes No
______Student Signature
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