El Paso Community College
Syllabus
Part I
Instructor’s Course Requirements
Spring 2012
I. Course Number and Instructor Information
Course: ENGL 0310, Basic English Composition CRN: 20370
Instructor: James Gonzales
My Courses webpage: my.epcc.edu
Office: A1308 Phone: 831-2254 (messages also; give phone number s-l-o-w-l-y)
Office hours: MWF 8-10, 11-12; TTh 9-10 (and by appointment)
Our 7:00 MWF class meets in B108.
II. Texts and Materials (all required)
Hacker, Diana and Nancy Sommers. A Writer’s Reference: With Writing about Literature. 7th ed.
Boston: Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2010.
Muller, Gilbert and Harvey Wiener. The Short Prose Reader. 12th ed. Boston: McGraw Hill,
2009.
Johnston, Ted and Joe Old. Progress Markers. El Paso Community College, 2009.
a college dictionary
course syllabus (also available on My Courses)
printer paper and white loose-leaf composition paper (8 ½" x 11")
blue or black pens, good quality, plus a RED PEN
yellow highlighter
STAPLER with staples (bring to class each time)
USB for saving text
III. Course Requirements
―The readiness is all.‖ Hamlet
A. To pass the course, students must pass the Exit Exam and have enough points for a passing grade.
B. Once students pass the exit exam, the semester grade will be based on total points earned.
NOT PASSING
║
PASSING
700 — 799 = C
less than 700 = F
800 — 899 = B
900 — 1000 = A
Minimum to pass course
[Highlight grade you are aiming for. Then take care of your points to earn the grade you want.]
C. The coursework includes the following:
1.
Essays will count as 70% of grade. – 700 points.
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2.
Essays will be written and evaluated in two steps.
First, each essay will be written in class as if it were the exit exam. This draft will be
evaluated by the instructor and given a score of up to 50 points based on quality.
Second, students will complete a follow-up assignment on the essay (worth 50 points),
including Red Pen Work (25) and a word-processed version of the essay (25: 5 points of
which will be for listening, responding, and reading during essay presentations).
The sum of the two scores (50 + 50 = 100) will yield a final score for each essay.
3.
4.
5.
Fourteen copying exercises (10 points each) = 140 points (See instructions on p.6.)
Sixteen writing exercises = 160 points
If assignments are not done, a conference is required to discuss the matter.
6.
LATE WORK POLICY
practice late work label _________________________
Student must label and initial the assignment as Late .
Student must submit assignment within ONE WEEK of the original due date.
Late work will be worth less than work done on time. Ten-point assignments will be
worth one point. Major essay assignments will be worth 10% less.
D. Take pride in your work. Handwritten essays should be easy to read. Write essays in
blue or black ink on loose-leaf composition paper. Sheets ripped out of binders will not be accepted.
Staple multiple pages at upper left-hand corner.
E. Most assignments will be word processed. Select Arial 12-point font double spaced.
Computers and printers are available in A1721 and B120. Save your documents on your USB.
F. For help on your assignments, see instructor at A1308 during office hours. He will point out seven
improvements. The rest are your responsibility. The Writing Center, located in A1421, can also help.
G. Plagiarism or cheating of any kind will not be tolerated and will result in a failing grade on the
particular assignment and/or the course with possible further College disciplinary action, if necessary.
Copying from the internet without documentation is always plagiarism.
IV. Instructor’s Policies
Attendance and Drop Policy
You are always welcome in class. To make the course worthwhile, you should show up on time, pay
attention, and do the assignments. You will begin the semester with FOURTEEN POINTS extra credit.
Cross out points for absences, tardiness, and neglected assignments according to this scale. If you lose all
fourteen points, you will be dropped from the course.
Each absence (excused or unexcused) = -2 points
Walking in LATE = -1 point each for first three times; additional times = -2 points each
LEAVING (or being asked to leave) before class ends = -1 point
Each major assignment not done = -4 points (essays with follow-up work)
Each supportive assignment not done = -1 point (writing exercises, etc.)
2
Participation Scale and Extra Credit Points
warning
14
13
12
11
10
9
8
7
6
Excused
5
4
3
2
Unexcused
1
Drop
Promptness, Tardiness, and Courtesy
1. Points remaining on Participation
Scale at the end of the semester will
count as extra credit. In addition, any
student with eight points or more will
receive a coupon good for a letter of
recommendation from the instructor. 
2. Sign in before class to document
your attendance. Do not sign for your
classmates. Class will begin and end at
the scheduled time according to the
clock in the classroom. If you are tardy,
ask instructor after class to mark a T on
the attendance sheet; otherwise, you will
be considered absent.
3. Habitual tardiness disrupts class activities and is unacceptable. If you are tardy more than three times,
you must see a counselor and write a memo to the instructor which addresses the problem and specifies a
solution. The counselor, instructor, and student will try to find a solution.
4. Our counselor is Jose Baltazar at 831-2085, SSC Room 104.
5. If you miss a class, you must go to the instructor’s office (A1308) before the next class session to pick
up assignments and submit work due.
6. Do: learn classmates’ names, respond to each other respectfully, concentrate on the business of
learning how to write better, and put desks back in neatly aligned rows for class that follows us.
7. Don’t Do: don’t carry on private conversations; don’t eat, drink, or sleep; don’t clown around; don’t
use electronic devices.
8. Cell Phone Policy: Cell phones distract us from learning to write better. Texting is discourteous to
your instructor and classmates. While in class, turn phones off completely. If you want to learn and if
you want to pass the course, don’t text message.
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V. Calendar and Assignments
•
•
•
•
•
Check calendar daily. ―The readiness is all.‖ Hamlet
Bring Writer’s Reference to every class session.
Page numbers are all from The Short Prose Reader.
MC = My Courses webpage
Bring stapler, yellow highlighter, and writing supplies to class each day.
Points
Date
1000 possible
1-16
1-18
10
10
10
Topics and Assignments
Our business is to write essays.
1-20
1-23
1-25
10
10
50
10
10
10
10
10
10
10
1-27
10
10
10
10
10
10
2-8
2-10
1-30
2-1
2-3
2-6
2-13
2-15
10
2-17
2-20
10
100
10
2-22
2-24
2-27
2-29
10
3-2
Holiday
Class policies and coursework
A1: Written Commitment to College Class
Start Detective Work on Essays
A2: ―Didn’t wanted‖ ESL exercise, refer to Progress Markers
A3: Read and copy from ―Capturing an Essay‖ in MC or end of
syllabus—For instructions, see p. 6 in syllabus.
A4: Bring homophones page completely filled out (at end of
syllabus)
A5: Homophones and spelling exercise (to do in class)
Detective Work on Essays due—students present findings
A6: INVENTORY OF BOOKS AND MATERIALS
A7: Compound sentences and run-on sentences exercise
A8: Punctuation exercise (to do in class)
A9: Read and copy from ―Prison Studies‖ 74, see p. 6 for copying
Writing sentences with series 
A10: Read and copy from ―The Struggle to Be an All-American
Girl‖ 143
A11: Paragraph report on Progress Markers due word processed
A12: Grammar exercise (to do in class)
A13: Writing complex sentences 
A14: Idioms exercise due, refer to link in FWP
A15: Read and copy from ―Night Walker‖ 220
A16: Red Pen Work exercise (to do in class) See p. 9.
A17: Writing cumulative sentences 
Look at model essay ―Wading in Walden‖ in FWP
Write Essay 1 in class: Day of Silence (50 points)
A18: Read and copy from ―Simplicity‖ 30
Red pen work (25 points)
A19: Conciseness exercise (to do in class)
Word-processed draft of Essay 1 due: Essay presentations (25 points)
A20: Read and copy: ―Farewell to Summer and Its Buzzing
Creatures‖ 107
Look at model essay ―Nice Fireplace‖ in FWP
A21: Mechanics exercise (to do in class)
Write Essay 2 in class: Day of Silence (50 points)
4
10
3-5
100
3-7
3-9
10
3-19
100
3-21
3-23
10
10
3-26
10
3-28
3-30
4-2
100
4-4
4-6
10
10
100
4-9
4-11
4-13
4-16
10
4-18
4-20
4-23
100
10
4-25
4-27
4-30
5-2
A22: Read and copy from ―Mother Tongue‖ 40
Red pen work (25 points)
Word-processed draft of Essay 2 due: Essay presentations (25 points)
Look at model essay ―Big Floppy Ears‖ in FWP.
Write Essay 3 in class: Day of Silence (50 points)
Spring Break: March 12 - 16
A23: Read and copy from ―How to Write with Style‖ 23
Red pen work (25 points)
Word-processed draft of Essay 3 due: Essay presentations (25 points)
Figurative language: Writing a poem 
Look at model essays ―Before Long‖ and ―Ever Thankful‖ in FWP
A24: Read and copy from ―Pride‖ 383
A25: Poem due for our poetry reading
The ripeness is all.
Write Essay 4 in class: Day of Silence (50 points)
A26: Read and copy from ―Why We Crave Horror Movies‖ 294
Red pen work (25 points)
Look at model essay ―Pie in the Face‖ in FWP.
Holiday
Word-processed draft of Essay 4 due: Essay presentations (25 points)
A27: Read and copy from ―In the Jungle‖ 113
The readiness is all.
Write Essay 5 in class: Day of Silence (50 points)
A28: Read and copy from ―My Ticket to the Disaster‖ 129
Red pen work (25 points)
Word-processed draft of Essay 5 due: Essay presentations (25 points)
Look at model essay ―Prowess in Eating‖ in FWP
A29: Read and copy from text from your field
Write Essay 6 in class: Day of Silence (50 points)
Red pen work (25 points)
Word-processed draft of Essay 6 due: Essay presentations (25 points)
A30: Read and copy from an essay of YOUR CHOICE from our
reader
Book of your collected essays due.
It must be bound, have good covers, a boastful title, a table of
contents, an introduction, improved versions of the essays,
paragraphs, and poem, and continuous pagination. Something extra:
photographs, clip art, bilingual version of essays, or other creative
features will make it even better.
50
In class we will read the introductions.
P or NP
5-4
Final exam
Exit Exam topic given
EXIT EXAM
7:00 class:
7:00 to 9:00 on Monday
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Instructions for ―Read and Copy‖ Exercises
Rationale: To become more familiar with the written word, you will do some copying. Malcolm
X copied the entire dictionary on his path to becoming a literate man. Copying passages of good
writing will help you see and feel what good sentences look like in your own handwriting. Read
―Grammatical Footsteps‖ in MC for more explanation.
Directions: Paying close attention, copy the first 400 words from the assigned essay in your best
handwriting, using blue or black ink. Copy all the words and punctuation marks, just as they are.
Then analyze what you have copied, using your red pen and yellow highlighter.
Write title, author, and page number at the top of the page. Capitalize the title correctly.
Indent one inch when beginning a paragraph, including the first paragraph.
Leave margins for noting some labels later.
Skip a line between paragraphs.
Circle five words with red ink. Write out dictionary definitions for items in red at end of
the 400-word selection. While it is good to copy the vocabulary items provided in the
textbook, be sure to copy five additional words that you must look up in your own
dictionary.
For dashes, draw two hyphens like this - - . [Typing two hyphens yields a dash when you
are word processing.]
For hyphens, use a single mark like this - .
Don’t write down the hyphens that are used to divide words at the end of a printed line.
If a word is italicized, underline it in your manuscript. (M6 rules)
Highlight the periods. Note the number of sentences at the end of your copy.
Highlight every proper noun. It will be capitalized.
After reading the entire essay, write one sentence stating the author’s realization in red
at end of the selection. Start out like this: In “Prison Studies” Malcolm X
realizes that . . .
With your red pen, label in margins any five interesting sentence features.
o Figurative comparisons
o Series
o Complex sentences
o Sensory details
o Direct or indirect quotations
o Other things you have learned about in class
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Capturing an Essay
As students at EPCC, you will soon be asked to write essays. Since most
classes require some kind of writing, the sooner you get good at it, the better. If you are
curious and willing to apply serious effort, writing an essay can be as easy for you as
spinning a spider web is for a spider. Writing essays is in your nature.
Reading some good essays will soon dispel the mystery of writing one. Nine
times out of ten, an essay is just a personal story. In “A Latina in Kentucky,” Pat Mora
tells about visiting a school, reflecting on her expectations and the pleasant outcome of
her visit, which reinforced her commitment to write for children. In “Once More to the
Lake,” E. B. White tells about a fishing trip he took with his son to a lake in Maine,
where his father used to take him when he was a boy. Besides telling about the fish
they caught, White reflects on time, nature, and the bond between generations. These
essay-stories are interwoven with more reflection than a typical story told to the family
over the evening meal. Still, they are basically stories about something that happened
to the writers.
To write an essay, you must be a living, breathing human being who takes an
interest in the things that you experience. By now, your life is rich with experiences. A
slice of your life will usually be the best subject. You may write about your
neighborhood, your parents, your siblings, your job, your grandparents, or your dreams.
In an essay, you explain something you have experienced, clarifying what it taught you.
You may give praise or assign blame. You may give advice on how to do something
as this essay does. In any case, the act of writing will help you clarify your realization,
what you think about the subject.
You capture your thoughts in writing much as a snapshot captures a scene. If
you try to capture that scene on another day, the result will be different, depending on
the light, the time of year, and other variables. Likewise, if you write the essay on
another day, it will be different from the one you can write today. Writers make a
lifestyle out of capturing their thoughts every day. Writing an essay is an art. As in any
other art, you need a vision, creativity, commitment, resourcefulness, and energy. How
will you combine the ingredients this time? Writers surprise themselves each time,
coming up with interesting things that they didn’t realize they had in them.
On the practical side, you can begin an essay by making notes. Brainstorming is
essential before trying to write that first sentence. Don’t waste time staring at a blank
piece of paper. My favorite method of brainstorming is clustering, which I learned
from Gabriele Rico at San Jose State College. Instead of struggling to write the first
sentence, jot down the topic in a circle in the middle of your page. Then go shopping
in your mind for ideas, images, and connections, anything that occurs to you until you
have plenty of material to work with. Think of a sequence for your ideas. Some
numbers on the clustering page will help you get all your ducks in a row.
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Writing the notes will get the wheels of your mind turning. When you start to
write, just do it. Express yourself however you can. Don’t stop to worry about
spelling or exact facts. Keeping a calm confidence, write deliberately, glancing at
your clustering now and then for fresh ideas. Exert your personality. Tell your story
the way you want to tell it. Adopt the tough guy’s attitude: “That’s my story, and I’m
sticking with it.” If you have a sense of humor, harness it and crack the whip.
Whatever you do, don’t stop writing until you have filled several pages with your
handwriting. Once your story is out on paper, you can start to make it better. When
you tell your story to your family over the supper table, you have only one chance to
get it right. When you write it down, you can go back and change it as many times
as you wish.
Once the sentences are all on paper, you can go back and read them, pen in
hand, working in improvements. You can add more sensory details, more examples,
more figurative comparisons. You can develop a series. You can switch compound
sentences into complex sentences or some other alternative. You can tighten up the
sentences by cutting unnecessary words and phrases. You can cut out complete
sentences that repeat something already stated better elsewhere. Think critically.
Next, word process your essay. The computer makes your story into a malleable
mass of words, fluid and forgiving. Its blinking cursor invites you to add the special
facts and delete the clutter. It points out misspelled words and ungrammatical
phrases. Some of what the word processor tells you may not apply. You are the
captain of your essay. You must make judgment calls. Seeing your essay neatly
printed out will give you a fresh look at your ideas. Don’t be satisfied too quickly.
Double check the spelling, punctuation, and mechanics, taking care of each letter,
mark, and space.
Finally, look through your essay for a clever phrase to use as a title. Don’t use
the topic for a title. “How to Write an Essay” is a sorry title. The title shouldn’t be too
long, just enough to grab the reader’s attention and provide a clue as to where the
essay is going. A good title may contain sensory detail or a clever play on words.
For this essay, I might consider “Like a Spider” or “A Slice of Your Life” or “Capturing
an Essay.”
If you write some essays and follow up on suggestions given, you will soon
become more comfortable sharing your ideas in this format. Soon writing an essay
will be as easy for you as spinning a web is for a spider.
1016 words, James Gonzales
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