Instructor: Karen Amoani Office phone: 713-718-7750
English 0349
Email: Karen.amoani@yahoo.com
Course Syllabus CRN # 77992
Texts and Supplies
New Directions, Second Edition, by Peter S. Gardner (required)
English collegiate dictionary (no bi-lingual dictionaries)
Loose-leaf notebook papera flash or thumb drive
One manila folder for a comp portfolioan email address
a highlighter markera red pen
Course Goals
English 0349 helps ESL students prepare for American core academic college courses.
Students learn composition (comp) skills for writing in a variety of academic classes,
such as in the humanities, social sciences, and business. ENGL 0349 is the exit-level
comp class for non-native speakers who plan to continue their education and earn a
college degree. After passing this course, students should be ready to take ENGL 1301,
freshman comp, and to successfully complete any state-mandated writing assessment
designed to measure college readiness, such as THEA.
Specific course objectives include:

read, comprehend, and be able to discuss academic texts

write well-written 500-1000 word essays in response to those texts

use of a variety of rhetorical strategies (exemplification,
comparison/contrast, cause/effect, argumentative) to develop a thesis

apply critical thinking skills in writing

edit comps for accurate grammar, spelling, and punctuation

expand vocabulary

recognize the author’s tone in writing

demonstrate ability to paraphrase and summarize

use accurate MLA style guidelines to cite sources in-text

demonstrate ability to address a wide variety of writing tasks (journals,
essays, short-answer and test questions, e-mail)
Compositions/Papers
Students will write 4 comps, a midterm, and a final exam. Much of the class time is
arranged as a writing workshop in which students discuss ideas for writing, pre-write,
draft, edit, and revise their work with assistance from classmates and the instructor.
One or two drafts may be written before the final draft. Only the final draft is graded, and
students do not revise further after turning in a comp for a grade. All parts of the comp
process are kept in a manila folder, called a portfolio, and turned in with the final draft.
Unless otherwise directed, students must type or word-process the final draft (except for
the midterm and final exam) in 12 point Times New Roman font, double-spaced, and
identify their work in the upper left corner of page 1 with the student’s name, date,
course number, and comp number.
Journal (may differ depending on the instructor)
Students will use e-mail to submit their journal writing. Each week, the journal
assignment is due by 12 noon on the Friday in which the topic is given. The weekly
topics are included on the course calendar in italics. Length will vary, but in general,
each journal response should be between 100-200 words. No late journals are
accepted. If the journal is not posted by 12 noon of the week that it is due, I will not
respond to it or count it for a grade. The format for responding to journal topics is as
follows, for example:
Journal # 1: In order to avoid intercultural misunderstandings, a visitor to (X country)
should know that…
Journal # 4: I agree (or I disagree) that students who are accused of plagiarism should
get an F for the assignment.
You must make sure that I understand which topic you have chosen by paraphrasing or
quoting from the topic in the topic sentence of your journal response.
Homework (may differ depending on the instructor)
Students are expected to come to class prepared to discuss the readings listed on the
course calendar. Most reading assignments require students to work on some
preliminary vocabulary work and answer either pre-reading questions or post-reading
discussion questions that are in the textbook. Except for the Althen article, “American
Values and Assumptions,” every student will take a turn at leading a small group by
using the following 4-step process to discuss one of the reading assignments on the
course calendar:

identify the author and his/her credentials

summarize the author’s purpose

locate the thesis and main supporting details

coordinate the discussion of “Reflecting on Content” questions

See the reading assignment titles on the course calendar.
Quizzes
Quizzes generally cover the material from the reading assignments and vocabulary.
These reading comprehension quizzes are unannounced. Therefore, students should
be prepared for a quiz on every reading on the course calendar whether or not they are
leading a small discussion group.
Final Exam
The final exam consists of an impromptu essay based on the reading assignments in
New Directions. This essay will have a persuasive purpose and is used, along with the
other work done in this class, to determine whether or not a student is ready to succeed
in college credit classes. A student who has a passing class average but who does not
pass the final exam with a 70% or higher grade will have his/her portfolio reviewed by
the Asst. Department Chair for Academic ESL.
Texas Public Universities, Placement Rules
Beginning in the Fall 2003, the Texas legislature instituted new rules for developmental
students called the Texas Success Initiative (TSI). Under TSI rules, most new students
must be tested for placement (with THEA, ASSET or COMPASS) and placed into
developmental courses if they do not score high enough to demonstrate college
readiness. Successful completion of developmental coursework, ENGL 0349 and GUST
0342 (or an appropriate test score), enables students to advance to ENGL 1301.
Classroom Policies (may differ depending on the instructor)
Placement in ENGL 0349 is based on not only test scores and previous coursework but
also on the in-class assessment during the first weeks of the term. A student who is not
qualified to stay in this class will be notified and advised to take the appropriate class.
Students who fail to follow the teacher’s recommendations for course placement will be
referred to the college counseling department. Also, students are expected to arrive on
time to class. I will mark you absent for any time missed after the class is scheduled to
begin. If you return from a break, leave early, or fall asleep in class, I will mark you
absent for the time you miss. If you are absent from class, you are responsible for
contacting me about the missed work. When students are absent on the day of a
scheduled in-class assignment, they must come to the next class prepared to make up
the work. A comp or paper that is turned in past the due date will be lowered by 10
points for each class day that it is late. There are no make-up tests or quizzes, but I will
drop the lowest test/quiz grade for each student at the end of the semester. NOTE: All
cell phones and electronic devices must be turned off and out of sight when the class is
in session. If you have an emergency and must have a phone handy, please tell me
before class begins.
College Grading System
Students may earn an A, B, C, F, or IP in this class. IP means “In Progress” and is given
to the student who makes a good-faith effort to complete the work of the class but is not
ready to advance to the next level and could benefit from another semester in 0349. If a
student receives an IP, he/she must repeat ENGL 0349. However, if the student is
repeating 0349 for the second time and not passing, the final grade will be F.
The W grade is given to the student who exceeds the allotted number of absences (8
hours) before the last day for Administrative Withdrawals. An F is given to students who
do not make a good-faith effort to successfully complete work in the class and to those
who take 0349 for the second time but fail it. Students are responsible for completing
the process to drop a class if they wish to stop attending. See the “Last Day to
Withdraw” date in the HCCS Schedule of Classes.
Tutoring and the Language Assistance Center (LAC)
You are encouraged to take advantage of the student services at your campus. Tutors
are available to assist you with any reading/writing assignments that you need help with.
You may make an appointment in advance or drop in (if no one has an appointment
when you arrive). Prepare yourself before you see a tutor to ask specific questions in
order to use your time together well. Reminder: the tutor is not your editor and will not
write papers for you. In addition, online tutoring is available at: www.askonline.net
Each campus has an LAC where you can use a computer to work on grammar
software, online resources, and word processing. No appointment is needed to use an
LAC; however, if a teacher schedules a class there while you are visiting the lab, you
might be asked to leave. NOTE: Unless otherwise directed by the teacher, students
must pay for all copies printed in the LAC. Lab aides manage the labs and are there to
assist you with technical questions about the computers.
English 0349 Grading Formula (may differ depending on the instructor)
The final grade is calculated as follows:
Comps 1 & 220%Comps 3 & 430%
Mid-term Essay15%
Final Exam15%Homework, Journal & Quizzes20%
College Grading Scale
90—100A70—79C
80—89B60—69IP or F
Academic Dishonesty
Students are expected to do their own work. The instructor can not help a student
unless she knows who is authoring the assignments. Copying another person’s words
without giving credit to the source is considered cheating and called “plagiarism.” All
other forms of cheating as defined by the Student Handbook are penalized as
plagiarism: a grade of 0 is recorded for all forms of academic dishonesty that appear in
ANY of the work done in this class. Repeated problems with academic dishonesty will
result in disciplinary action, including being asked to leave the class and/or referral to
the Academic Dean of Instruction.
English 0349 Course Calendar
June 6 First day of summer semester classes
June 7 Last day to add/drop/swap a class
June 14 Official Date of Record
July 4 Independence Day Holiday
July 26 Last day (by 4:30 p.m.) to drop with a “W”
Aug. 7 Instruction ends
Aug. 8-14 Final Exam Period (See calendar, below)
10 weeks Summer Course Calender
Week 1 Diagnostic assessment; introduction to the course; intro. to academic writing
Begin Chp. 1: Read ”American Values and Assumptions,”
by Althen, pp. 5-17
Journal # 1: Establish e-mail contact; introduce yourself
Finish Althen
Journal # 2: Respond to one topic from “Reading Journal,” p. 13
Week 2 Continue Chp. 1: Read “Polite but Thirsty,” by Tang, pp. 36-39
Journal # 3: Read the “Stages of Cultural Adjustment,” p. 38 and identify
the stage that you are in now. Which previous stage was hard for you?
Explain.
Begin C1D1; see instructor’s handout for the assignment
Complete C1; final draft due______________
Week 3 Begin Chp. 2: Read “How the Web Destroys the Quality of Students’ Research
Papers,” by Rothenberg, pp. 68-75
Continue working on the Education chapter by using Web Evaluation Criteria to judge
online resources
Journal # 4: choose one sentence (1--10) from “Agreeing and Disagreeing,”
p. 67 and respond to it
Week 4
Read “The Teacher Who Changed My Life,” by Gage, pp. 88-92
Begin C2D1; see instructor’s handout for the assignment
Journal # 5: Who will be the subject of your C2? Why have you chosen this
person?In-class
In class Midterm Essay
Week 5 Complete C2; final draft due _____________
Begin Chp. 4: Read “Sex Roles,” by McCubbin and Dahl,
pp. 189-195
Week 6 Journal # 6: Respond to topic # 1 under “Reading Journal,” p. 195
Continue Chp. 4: Read “Sex, Sighs, and Conversation…,” by Tannen, pp. 211-21
Journal # 7: Respond to question # 1 under “Reflecting on Content,” p. 214
Complete C3; final draft due _______________
Week 7 Begin Chp. 5: Read “Our Schedules, Our Selves,” by Walljasper,
pp. 260-266
Journal # 8: Respond to one topic from “Reading Journal,” p. 263
Continue Chp. 5: Read “Los Pobres,” by Rodriguez, pp. 274-277
Begin C4D1; see instructor’s handout for the assignment
Journal # 9: choose one sentence (1--10) from “Agreeing and Disagreeing,”
p. 259 and respond to it
Week 8 Complete C4; final draft due _______________
Begin Chp. 3: Read “Propaganda Techniques in Today’s Advertising,” by
McClintock, pp. 158-168
Journal # 10: Describe one advertisement (from any kind of media) that
EITHER attracts you OR offends you. Explain your reaction.
Week 9 Review and practice writing strategies for the Final Exam
Week 10 Final Exam: ____________________