Houston Community College
Department of English, Central College
Spring 2013 / ENGL 1302 (two sections): CRN 30199 (8:30 class) or 30200 (10:00 class)
Fine Arts Center (FAC) - Room 311, 8:30 - 10:00 or 10:00 - 11:30 a.m., Tue/Thu
3 hour lecture course / 48 hours per semester / 16 weeks
Professor: Roger Wood, Ph.D.
Contact information: 713-718-6247 / roger.wood@hccs.edu
Office location, hours: FAC 318 (also in 319), Mon/Wed 1 - 2 pm, Tue/Thu 2:30 - 3:30 pm
Course description: A more extensive study of skills introduced in ENGL 1301 with an emphasis on
critical thinking, research and documentation techniques, and literary and rhetorical analysis.
Course prerequisites: Completion of ENGL 1301 or a satisfactory score on the CLEP exam
Student learning outcomes: The student will be able to (1) apply basic principles of rhetorical analysis;
(2) write essays that classify, explain, and evaluate rhetorical and literary strategies employed in
argument, persuasion, and various forms of literature; (3) identify, differentiate, integrate, and synthesize
research materials into argumentative and/or analytical essays; (4) employ appropriate documentation
style and format across the spectrum of in-class and
out-of-class written discourse, and (5) demonstrate library literacy.
ENLG 1302 is a Core Curriculum course.
Instructional materials (two types):
Book: The Little Seagull Handbook by Richard Bullock and Francine Weinberg (2011).
Open-resource materials (available for free online): You will need to access the Internet and the
designated URLs to find the assigned open-resource materials listed on the course calendar.
Course Calendar / 16 weeks
NOTE: The title of The Little Seagull Handbook is abbreviated below as LSH. All other reading
assignments are open-resource materials, available (for free) online at the indicated URLs. You can
easily find each one by Googling the author’s name and the title (“quoted”) of the essay.
WEEK 1:
1/15: Introductions. Overview of the course and requirements. Brief writing sample composed.
1/17: Introduction to inference, argument, and analytical thinking. Read LSH 32-37.
WEEK 2:
1/22: Discussion of writing summaries and personal responses. Essay #1 assigned. Read LSH 38-41,
plus this open-resource essay:
“With Profanity in Public, Context Delivery Matter” by Kathleen Parker
http://www.chron.com/opinion/outlook/article/KATHLEEN-PARKER-COLUMN-With-profanity-in-public2134096.php
1/24: Beyond summaries and personal responses: critical analysis. Read LSH 63-65 and this essay:
“A Crime of Compassion" by Barbara Huttmann
http://www.darenville.com/pdf/cegep/b2/reading/Crime_and_Plot/A%20Crime%20of%20Compassion.pdf
WEEK 3:
1/29: Persuasion and logic: analysis of arguments. Read essays:
“Gay Marriages: Make Them Legal” by Thomas B. Stoddard
http://faculty.mdc.edu/dmcguirk/ENC2106/stoddard.htm
“Gay Marriage, an Oxymoron” by Lisa Schiffren
http://faculty.mdc.edu/dmcguirk/ENC2106/schiffren.htm
1/31: Analysis of arguments, cont. Read essays:
"Drugs: Case for Legalizing Marijuana" by Gore Vidal
http://www.nytimes.com/books/98/03/01/home/vidal-drugs.html
"Marijuana: A Case Against Legalization" by Kevin A. Sabet
http://blog.chron.com/bakerblog/2012/09/marijuana-a-case-against-legalization/
WEEK 4:
2/5: Analysis/Response Essay (Essay #1) due. Introduction to the major Research Paper assignment
and topic options. Read LSH 67-80.
2/7: NOTE: Class meets today only in the library. Research strategies and library orientation.
Research Paper: Preliminary Topic choice due by the end of class.
WEEK 5:
2/12: Review of research paper topic options and the research process. Read essays:
“In Houston, Art Is Where the Home Is” by Michael Kimmelman
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/17/arts/design/17kimm.html
"A History of the Orange Show Monument"
http://orangeshow.org/orange-show-history/
2/14: Discussion of MLA documentation and citation, evaluating sources and avoiding plagiarism. Read
LSH 80-92. Read at least one of the most recent essays at the following site:
"Bayou City History"
http://blog.chron.com/bayoucityhistory/
WEEK 6
2/19: Research Paper: Confirmed and Narrowed Topic due. Discussion of MLA requirements, cont.
Read LSH 92-102, and see 356 ff. Plus, individual student presentation guidelines explained (RE: "an
introduction to, and defense of, my choice of narrowed topic for the research paper"). Students will be
assigned to make their presentations on either 2/21/13 or on 2/26/13.
2/21: Student presentations (for individuals assigned to this date, approx. five minutes each).
WEEK 7:
2/26: Student presentations, cont. (for those assigned to this date, approx. five minutes each).
2/28: Discussion of Argument Essay strategies via the position paper outline. Preparation for upcoming
in-class essay.
WEEK 8:
3/5: Argument Essay (Essay #2) written in class.
3/7: Research Paper process review and discussion of Working Bibliography requirements and deadline.
Read LSH 103-135.
NOTE: HCC Spring Break, March 11-17, no class sessions
WEEK 9:
3/19: Research Paper: Working Bibliography due. Also, introduction to literary analysis: poetry, key
terms and concepts. Read poems:
“Promise” by Paul Lawrence Dunbar
http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/promise-97/
“Is My Team Ploughing” by A. E. Housman
http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/is-my-team-ploughing/
“The Lake Isle of Innisfree” by W. B. Yeats
http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/the-lake-isle-of-innisfree/
“Stopping By Woods On a Snowy Evening” by Robert Frost
http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/stopping-by-woods-on-a-snowy-evening-2/
3/21: Research Paper process reviewed. Literary analysis, continued. Read poems:
“Tell All the Truth” and “I Felt A Funeral in My Brain” (2 separate poems) by Emily Dickinson
http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/tell-all-the-truth-but-tell-it-slant/
http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/i-felt-a-funeral-in-my-brain-280/
“When I Heard the Learn’d Astronomer” by Walt Whitman
http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/when-i-heard-the-learned-astronomer/
“Dream Boogie” by Langston Hughes
“Taxi” by Amy Lowell
http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/dream-boogie/
http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/the-taxi/
“So You Want to Be a Writer?” by Charles Bukowski
http://www.poets.org/viewmedia.php/prmMID/16549
WEEK 10:
3/26: Workshop for the ongoing Research Paper process: note-taking and outlines. Read LSH 230-261.
Research Paper: Sample Note Cards due for in-class consultations.
3/28: Literary analysis, continued: prose fiction, key terms and concepts. Read short story:
“The Story of an Hour” by Kate Chopin
WEEK 11:
http://www.vcu.edu/engweb/webtexts/hour/
4/2: Research Paper: Working Thesis and Preliminary Outline due for in-class analysis. Various other
Research Paper issues reviewed.
4/4: Literary analysis: prose fiction, cont. Read short story:
“Hills Like White Elephants” by Ernest Hemingway
http://www.gummyprint.com/blog/archives/hills-like-white-elephants-complete-story/
WEEK 12:
4/9: Research Paper: Rough Draft due for in-class consultations.
4/11: Final discussion of Research Paper issues. Discussion of solving common sentence problems and
editing for proper format. Bring LSH to class to consult.
WEEK 13:
4/16: Research Paper: Final Draft due. Literary analysis: prose fiction, cont. Read short story:
“The Necklace” by Guy de Maupassant
http://www.eastoftheweb.com/shortstories/UBooks/Neck.shtml
4/18: Literary Analysis: prose fiction, cont. Read short story:
“The Cask of Amontillado” by Edgar Allan Poe
http://www.eastoftheweb.com/short-stories/UBooks/CasAmo.shtml
WEEK 14:
4/23: Individual in-class presentations (approx. three to four minutes each) RE: “The three most
important things I learned in doing the Research Paper process for this course.”
4/25: Literary analysis reviewed. Preparation for the upcoming in-class essay.
WEEK 15:
4/30: Literary Analysis (Essay #3) written in class.
5/2: Review of key concepts for the course, and preparation for the upcoming final exam.
WEEK 16:
5/9: Final Exam
Student Assignments:
Out-of-class Essays: Final drafts should generally be approximately 600 or more words in length (or as
otherwise directed), preferably typed, double-spaced paper format according to guidelines in the
Handbook or Purdue Online Writing Lab (see Instructional Methods, below); should include a title page,
with all pages of main text numbered (MLA-style) and stapled or clipped together (in proper sequence) in
the upper left-hand corner; must be submitted in hard copy and directly to the professor (i.e., not left in
mailboxes, with a secretary, under an office door, etc.); and may not be submitted by email. If you must
miss a deadline, communicate with the professor to request an extension (which may or may not be
granted, at his discretion).
In-class Essays: Each submission will be composed in the professor’s presence within a 75-minute time
limit; should be approximately 500 or more words in length, handwritten, double-spaced, with numbered
pages following the guidelines in The Little Seagull Handbook; and must be based on topic options and
guidelines previously assigned and discussed in class.
Research paper and process: Final draft must be typed and approximately 1500 or more words in length;
must utilize at least five sources and make at least fifteen in-text citations; must follow MLA format and
guidelines in all matters; must be based on a topic option approved by the professor; and will earn a
process grade based on timely completion of each process step (see the Course Calendar)--one factor in
determining the final grade for the Research Paper project.
In-class presentations: Each student will make two brief, relatively informal oral presentations in class (for
more details, see Weeks 6-7 and 14 of the Course Calendar), to be evaluated in terms of
appropriateness, unity and focus, development, organization, and clarity.
Final exam: In Week 16 the course concludes with a written examination testing students’ knowledge of
key terms and concepts relevant to this course, as well as their editing skills regarding sentence
grammar, diction, and mechanics.
Attendance: Your regular attendance and on-time arrival in class are necessary for success. You will
earn an attendance grade (see below) based on the following scale:
0 absences = 100 (A+); 1 absence = 90 (A -); 2 absences = 85 (B); 3 absences = 75 (C); 4 absences =
70 (C-); 5 absences = 65 (D); 6 absences = 55 (F); 7 + absences = 50 or less (F).
Assessments (grade values of assignments):
Essay #1 (written out of class)
Essay #2 (written in class)
Essay #3 (written in class)
Research Paper and Process (written out of class)
Presentations (two, in Weeks 6 or 7, plus Week 14)
Attendance
Final Exam (written in class)
10%
10%
10%
35%
10%
10%
15%
Grading scale: 90 - 100 = A, 80 - 89 = B, 70 - 79 = C, 60 - 69 = D, 0 - 59 = F.
Instructional support and policy information:
Open Computer Labs: Computers are available for word processing in FAC 302, JDB 203-204, the
library and other sites in LHSB, and elsewhere on campus. Check those sites for open hours.
Tutoring: For free assistance on any of the writing requirements for this course, visit the English
Department Writing Lab in FAC 321-B. Check the sign posted on the door there to determine specific
hours of operation during the current term. (It’s generally open mornings through early evenings, Monday
through Thursday, plus half a day on Friday.) NOTE: In addition to his scheduled office hours, your
professor will normally be available for consultation in the Writing Lab on Mondays and Wednesdays 8 11 AM.
Services to students with disabilities: Any student with a documented disability (e.g. physical, learning,
psychiatric, vision, hearing, etc.) who needs to arrange for reasonable accommodations must contact the
Disability Services Office at the beginning of each semester. For more information, please contact the
disability counselor on campus (or call 713-718-5165).
Academic honesty: Students are expected to be familiar with the HCC policy on academic honesty (as
detailed in various HCC publications) and are responsible for conducting themselves with honor and
integrity in fulfilling course requirements. HCC officials may initiate penalties and/or disciplinary
proceedings against any student accused of scholastic dishonesty (which includes, but is not limited to,
cheating on a test, plagiarism, and collusion). Should you have any questions about proper handling of
source material for your writing, consult the MLA guidelines, your professor and/or a tutor (FAC 321-B).
Evidence of plagiarism results in a grade of F.
Course withdrawal: If you elect to withdraw formally from any HCC class and thereby receive a “W” on
your grade transcript, you must contact a HCC counselor or your professor prior to the withdrawal
deadline for the current semester to initiate the process. If you do not do so and simply cease to attend,
you will receive the institutionally mandated final grade of “FX”). HCC policy establishes that a student
may be administratively withdrawn from a course upon missing more than 12.5% of the scheduled
sessions (i.e. more than four class sessions).
Classroom decorum: No cell phones or electronic communication devices may be used in the classroom
for extracurricular or personal matters. No disruption (behavioral, electronic, or otherwise) of class is
acceptable. Please be courteous and respectful of others.
At his discretion, the professor may announce necessary changes in this syllabus and
assignment calendar at any time during the term.
EGLS3 -- Evaluation for Greater Learning Student Survey System: At Houston Community College,
professors believe that thoughtful student feedback is necessary to improve teaching and learning. During
a designated time, you will be asked to answer a short online survey of research-based questions related
to instruction. The anonymous results of the survey will be made available to your professors and division
chairs for continual improvement of instruction. Look for the survey as part of the Houston Community
College Student System online near the end of the term.