Instructor: TJ Puckett
Email: tpuckett@chabotcollege.edu Phone: 510-723-7408
Office: 452-H Hours: M 5:00-6:30; T 5:20-7:00; W 5:00-6:30
Course Overview: English 7 develops critical thinking, reading, and writing skills as they apply to the textual
analysis of primary and secondary book-length works from a range of academic and cultural contexts.
Required Textbooks:
Sherry Turkle, Alone Together
Philip K. Dick, Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?
Nicholas Carr, The Shallows
*Note: Please make sure you purchase the correct version of Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? There is a rewritten version out there that is NOT the original book written by Philip K. Dick. Accept no substitutes!
Communication: For many of you, email will be the ideal way to contact me. I will try and respond to your
emails/Blackboard inquiries within 24 hours during the week and within 48 hours on the weekend so please wait at
least that long before emailing me again.
As with any class, the earlier you contact me with your questions, concerns, and problems regarding the class, the
more support I can provide. If you contact me hours before an assignment is due, you might not hear back from me
in time to resolve the problem. Likewise, if you wait until the end of the semester to notify me of problems you are
having with the class (for example: missed or late assignments) do not be surprised if there is nothing I can or will
do about it. If a problem arises, you need to communicate with me early and often.
Please also realize that the only way I can contact you is via email. It is always frustrating when I email a student
(sometimes several times) and never hear back from him/her. Make sure you add my email to your contacts list and
that you regularly check your email and respond when/if I email you personally.
When you email me, please make sure you put the course number (English 7-ON) in the subject header.
Please also make sure your message is clear to read and that you include both a greeting (i.e. Hi Ms. TJ!) and
your name. Messages that do not come to me in this way are easy to miss and/or difficult to understand. It is
important in online learning to communicate with each other in a thorough way and also in as human a way as
possible.
Attendance: This class has two mandatory face-to-face meetings, on 8/23/2012 (from 6-7:55 p.m.) and 12/6/2012
(6-7:55 p.m.); both meetings will take place in room 354. Otherwise the class will take place entirely online. In order
to get credit for “attending” the class, you will be required to regularly participate in the course’s online activities.
Most weeks there will be 2 deadlines for you to adhere to. There will likely be multiple assignments for each
deadline (for example: a quiz and two discussion postings plus assigned reading of course texts, lecture
notes/handouts, etc). If you don’t meet these deadlines, I will count you absent. It is your responsibility to keep up
with my announcements and the assignments posted in the Weekly Assignments section of our course site.
Keep in mind that simply meeting the week’s deadlines does not constitute attendance. If your postings on
discussion boards topics do not reflect a familiarity with the readings and/or a serious consideration of the questions,
I will not give you full credit for attendance. If you miss four deadlines (which constitutes two full weeks of
class), I may drop you from the course.
Reading Quizzes: You will have regular reading assignments (both your course texts as well as handouts/lecture
notes/etc), and after you’ve finished the reading, you will take an online reading quiz. The quiz must be completed
each week by a stated deadline, almost-always the time and date the reading is due. There are no make-up quizzes.
The first quiz will be on the content of this syllabus. The quizzes will be timed.
Please do not open a quiz until you are ready to take it. You are not allowed to open a quiz, look at the questions,
close the quiz, and then take the quiz later. Once you have closed a quiz, you will not be allowed to open it again.
Only take quizzes on computers with a secure internet connection. If necessary, go to campus and take the quizzes in
one of the computer labs.
Reading Blog: A percentage of your grade will come from your active participation in your reading blog. For each
book we read this semester, you will write 1-2 original responses to the reading (400-500 words each). While these
responses can be somewhat informal, I expect them to reflect your careful consideration of the text. In addition, you
will be required to post comments on your peers’ blog entries. I will read and grade all blog entries and post my
comments. Ideally, your blogs will be a place for you to start brainstorming possible topics for your longer essays.
In addition, we will have a few shorter writing assignments for you to post on your blog.
Online Discussion of Readings: In order to get credit for attending class, you must participate in online discussion
of the readings. These activities are not time fillers. They will help you generate ideas to help you get started on your
longer essays. I encourage you to post your responses early and often. Due dates are not flexible. If you are having a
tough time keeping up with the work for any reason, you need to contact me ASAP about managing your time. I
will post discussion questions each week in the discussion forum on Blackboard. In order to receive full credit for
the discussions, you must complete the required amount of online posting by the stated deadline(s). Each discussion
question (including both your original response as well as your replies to your peers) will be worth 10 points, unless
otherwise indicated. I will participate in the online discussion, but I will not be able to respond to every post. I will,
however, read your posts and assign you a grade. Late and/or incomplete responses will not receive full credit.
Please don’t assume that completing the required number of posts means that you are automatically finished with the
discussion. When I respond to your posts, I often ask follow-up questions and/or offer insight to get you thinking. If
I do this, I expect you to respond to my questions/comments within 48 hours. If you don’t respond to my
questions/comments, you will have an automatic two points deduction from the discussion forum.
Grading:I will determine the bulk of your grade by 4 essays (typically 1250-2000 words in length) and one final
(given at our second face-to-face meeting). You must submit all of these essays in order to pass the class, and
you must pass the in-class final and the final essay in order to pass the class.
All essays will go through at least two drafts, the rough draft and a final draft that I will grade. I will post
information regarding the specifics of drafting and formatting these essays in the course materials section of this
site.
I will also determine a significant portion of your grade by your reading blog entries, reading quizzes, small group
work, and your participation in discussion forums. When taken seriously, these assignments become the foundation
of our discussion. Students who do not complete these assignments consistently will see their grade drop
significantly.
An approximate breakdown of your grade follows:
Essays 1-3: 33% combined
Essay 4: 20%
Reading Blog: 12%
Discussion Board: 17%
Reading Quizzes: 8%
Final Essay Exam (face-to-face): 10%
Peer Review: Before the final draft of each out-of-class essay is due, you will share a rough draft of your essay with
your classmates and receive feedback from them. You will post your first drafts online so that your peers can read
them and give you feedback. Peer review discussion forums will be worth 20 points; students who do not participate
in peer review will no doubt see their final grade lowered.
Essay Deadlines: Papers (including your blog entries, rough drafts, and drafts) are due on designated dates at a
designated time. You will submit all of your final drafts via SafeAssign (see below). I will allow you to submit one
late paper without penalty (the final draft of one of your essays, excluding Essay #4 which must be submitted on
time). Your late paper must be turned in no later than one week after the original due date. After the week extension,
your paper will automatically receive an F (50%). You may not submit a paper after two weeks after the original due
date. After you use your late pass, any other late essays will automatically receive an “F” (50%).
*Note: If you do not use your late pass on one of your longer essays, you may use it on one of your reading blog
entries. However, it would be better to use the pass on a longer essay as these are worth more in terms of your final
grade. The penalty for late blog entries is a deduction of 20 points for each day the entry is late. If you elect to use
your late pass on a blog entry, you should let me know by the end of the semester.
Saving and Submitting Your Papers: The final drafts of your essays must be submitted by 11:59 p.m. on the due
date through SafeAssign, a plagiarism-detection program available through Blackboard. In order to submit your
paper, first save it as an RTF file (Rich Text Format).
1. With your document open, go to the file menu and click on “Save As.”
2. In the menu that appears, look for words that say something along the lines of “Save File as Type” or “File Format.”
Click on the arrow next to these words to find a menu that will give you many options for saving your document.
3. Choose Rich Text Format.
4. Finally, make sure that your document’s name ends with .rtf and then click OK or SAVE.
Once you’ve saved your essay as an RTF file, complete the following instructions in order to submit it. It is very
similar to attaching a file to an email.
1. Go to our Blackboard site and click on the Submit Essays button, which you will find at the bottom of our course
menu, under the “ Tools/Grades” button.
2. Click on the “View/Complete” link under the assignment description.
3. Use the comment box only to write me a note about the assignment (something along the lines of “ Here’s my essay”).
Do not copy your essay into the comment box!
4. Click on the “Browse” button to search for your essay on your computer. Make certain you are submitting the final
draft of the correct essay.
5. Make sure you scroll down to the bottom of the page to click “Submit.” If you won’t complete this final step, you
won’t have submitted your paper.
Workload: One of the biggest misconceptions about an online class is the myth that it is easier than a face-to-face
class. It isn’t. In truth, online classes are not “easier” than face-to-face classes. In fact, many students say they are
even more demanding due to the extreme amount of reading and writing and the necessity to self motivate. In an
online class we complete work that would be considered “class work” in a face-to-face class as well as work that
would be considered “ homework.” In general, expect that you will spend approximately 9-10 hours every week
working on this class. That would break down to 3 hours of class work (discussion forums, responses to your peers,
quizzes, reading of lecture notes/handouts, etc.) plus 6-7 hours of homework (reading of course texts, writing your
essays, writing your blog entries, etc). This will, of course, vary depending on what you are working on and how fast
you complete your work.
The real difficulty I see in my online courses is that it is easy to simply disconnect and disappear. Something comes
up in your life that makes doing the work more challenging, and some students just stop. Don’t let this happen to
you. While I often send emails to students who have missed more than a couple of assignments, I am not a mind
reader. If something is going on in your life that is making completing your work in this class difficult, you need to
let me know immediately. It isn’t difficult to get caught up if you have missed one discussion forum or quiz. But the
more you miss, the more difficult it becomes. You should have a backup plan in case your work schedule changes or
you have computer problems.
In order to make sure this class is right for you, please read: Do you have what it takes to be a successful Distance
Learning Student? You may also go through the online orientation to online learning.
Technical Requirements/Support: In order to make sure that your computer has the necessary hardware and
software for this course, please see Chabot's online learning/Blackboard page.
Plagiarism:The St. Martin’s Handbook defines plagiarism as “the use of someone else’s words or ideas as your own
without crediting the other person.” Plagiarism is a highly unethical action, and anyone caught plagiarizing in this
class – whether intentionally or unintentionally – will automatically receive a zero on the assignment, no exceptions.
Multiple cases of plagiarism or extreme cases of plagiarism may result in further disciplinary action. Don’t risk it. If
you don’t understand what plagiarism is, ask me or refer to any writer’s handbook.
Learner Accommodation Needs: If you are a disabled student and need special accommodations this semester,
please let me know. Students with a disability – a visual limitation or reading difficulty – that limits access to online
materials may request online materials in alternate media. Students can make alternate media requests through the
Disabled Students Resource Center.
Final Suggestions: This is a tough course. It requires your time and attention. Keep up with the readings and other
assignments. Underline what you consider significant passages, take thorough notes, and jot down questions when
reading. You won’t understand everything you’ve read the first time you read a text, and that’s just fine. In fact, if
you think you know what a text is “about” immediately, you aren’t reading critically. Working through one’s
confusion is the most rewarding part of an English class.
This semester we will read material filled with complex and sometimes controversial ideas. Your
voice will be a key component in steering our discussions. And while it is fine to disagree with
one another, I expect you to be respectful. Personal attacks or insults are never acceptable. If
you disagree with one of your peers, don’t be afraid to speak up, but be sure you can support
your own ideas by using the text as evidence. Make sure you think through your words and how
others will hear them. And remember that all of Chabot’s rules of student conduct apply in this
class just as they would in an on-campus class.