ENG 111 – College Composition I
Meghan Pierce – Dual Enrollment Adjunct
Course Syllabus
Instructor: Meghan Pierce
Email: Meghan.pierce@lcps.org
I am usually available AFTER school for 30 minutes. If you need longer or more focused
attention, please see me/email me to make an appointment.
Instructional Materials:
Kennedy, X.J., Dorothy M. Kennedy, and Jane E. Aaron. The Bedford Reader. 10th ed. Boston:
Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2011. Print.
Various articles and essays will also be used.
Course Purpose:
English 111 will prepare students for all other expected college writing and for writing in the
workplace through understanding the writing process and creation of effective texts. Please note
that this syllabus covers the first half of the English 12 Dual Enrollment (DE) for Loudoun
County Public Schools. You will receive a second syllabus for the second semester (English 112)
Course Credit: 3 credit hours
Prerequisites:
Students must achieve satisfactory scores on placement tests or SATs as established by the
VCCS.
Drop Date:
The last date to drop this course is October 19, 2015. If you opt to drop this class, you will be
moved into a regular English 12 Academic class. This may cause significant changes to your
overall schedule.
Withdraw Date:
The last date to withdraw is December 11, 2015. If you missed the drop deadline, you may also
be withdrawn from the course. A withdraw places a W on your college transcript but does not
impact your college GPA. To be withdrawn, with your permission, your DE Instructor will
complete the DE withdraw form and send to the DE Registrar. Please note, too many “W”s on a
college transcript can impact your ability to secure financial aid in the future!
Course Objectives:
Upon completion of this course, students will be able to:
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produce an effective essay through an organized and coherent process.
develop a topic, draft an essay, revise the draft for improvement, and edit a final copy.
market and enhance presentation of strengths and experiences for competitive writing
situations such as college essays, resumes, cover letters, etc.
incorporate reading and experience into their writing.
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ENG 111 – College Composition I
Meghan Pierce – Dual Enrollment Adjunct
Course Syllabus
explain, describe and inform in expository writing and will be able to identify the purpose
of the mode of argument in persuasive writing.
organize and explain ideas with clarity, vividness, effectiveness and grammatical and
mechanical correctness in expository essays.
use evidence in a thesis-driven essay argumentatively asserting one viewpoint over
another.
analyze and investigate ideas and present them in well-structured prose appropriate to a
particular purpose and audience.
read, summarize, and respond to college level texts – their own and others--of varying
lengths
create unified, coherent, well-developed texts that demonstrate a critical awareness of
rhetorical elements such as purpose, audience, and organization.
employ grammatical and mechanical conventions in the preparation of readable
manuscripts, including the documented research essay.
use and evaluate outside sources of information, incorporate and document source
material and avoid plagiarism.
produce 15-20 pages of finished, graded text, including a documented (research) essay.
Major Topics to be Included:
 Critical thinking
 Selecting/Refining topics
 Composing effective sentences and paragraphs
 Developing, organizing, and supporting ideas
 Investigating and evaluating resources
 Incorporating appropriate resources into a text
 Considering context, audience, and purpose
Ongoing Course Information
Daily assignments and agendas will be located on Park View High’s website under the Staff
section. See Staff/Pierce to be directed to the instructor website.
In addition, you will be required to subscribe to the class Remind text messaging service. This
will allow immediate notification of schedule changes and snow day assignments. This service
will also provide reminders on upcoming large assignments and scheduled quizzes.
Grading Scales
Northern Virginia Community College grading scale:
A—90-100
B—80-89
C—70-79
D—60-69
Note: The NVCC grading scale does not use pluses or minuses.
F—59 or below
ENG 111 – College Composition I
Meghan Pierce – Dual Enrollment Adjunct
Course Syllabus
Minimum Grade Expectations
A successful grade in college is an A or a B. Within the first month of school, a student who is
receiving a C should consider the importance of starting a college transcript with good grades
and should strongly consider exercising his or her “drop” or “withdrawal” options. I will work
closely with such students as they weigh their options. If these options are not exercised by the
deadline and a student ends the fall semester with an F, this grade will stay on the student’s
permanent transcript, and the student will not be permitted to continue into English 112. Instead,
the student will be placed in English 12A.
Format for Written Assignments
All written assignments will follow the MLA Style Guide sheet provided the first week of class
and located on the instructor website. If an assignment does not conform to required format, the
student will be asked to correct and re-submit.
Written assignments will be submitted via TurnItIn.com and peer edited with this tool. More
details on this online tool will be forthcoming.
Thematic Focus for Fall 2015
Classroom discussions and readings will incorporate issues related to immigration in a global,
national and local context. Most of the writing we engage in will address topics involving
immigration. By using this thematic approach, we will develop a deep understanding of issues
on immigration in preparation for the upcoming presidential election as well as an understanding
of the changing societal demographics within our country and communities. We will be
exploring and evaluating immigration from personal perspectives, legal and political standpoints,
educational and community concerns as well as situations in other countries.
Assignments
Reading Assignments — Class discussions and writing assignments will be paired with
assigned readings. Students are responsible for all reading assignments both in and outside of
class.
Blog Posts/Responsive Writing – online discussions on writing and reading topics will allow
students to share ideas that will support formal writing activities.
Quizzes — Students may be assigned quizzes based on reading or workshop-related activities
including writing mechanics and integrating and citing sources. Vocabulary Unit quizzes will be
scheduled approximately every two weeks.
Rough Drafts — Formal writing will begin with a full-length rough draft.
Peer Review/Edits — Rough drafts will undergo mandatory peer editing by one or more
students during class time. One or two visits to the Nova Writing Center will also be required.
ENG 111 – College Composition I
Meghan Pierce – Dual Enrollment Adjunct
Course Syllabus
Final Drafts — Final drafts reflect substantial time and effort devoted to revising, with evidence
of drafting and editing.
Final Research Paper with cited sources – a comprehensive, well-researched and documented
5-7 page research paper on an aspect of our theme for the semester, immigration.
Fall 2015 Class Schedule (subject to revision based upon inclement weather, testing, etc)
Writing Topics,
Activities &
Assignments
Course intro &
guidelines/Aspira
tions for
Future/Writing
Process
Resumes, Cover
Letters, Thank
You Notes
College
Essays/Personal
Statements
Voice &
Expression
Literacy &
Narrative Writing
Compose our
own literacy
narratives
Intro to thematic
focus on
immigration
Immigrant/Multicultural
Experiences –
Narrative Essay
Readings
Week 6
10/5
Use of tone, word
choice and
devices in writing
Khan, “Close Encounters with US Immigration” – pages 558-560.
Judith Ortiz Cofer, “The Myth of the Latin Woman: I Just Met a Girl
Named Maria”
http://www.quia.com/files/quia/users/amccann10/Myth_of_a_Latin_Wom
an
Week 7
10/12
Argument Theory
& Structure
Legal & Political
Issues
Mark Krikorian, “Safety Through Immigration Control” – pages 567 -569
Edwidge Danticat, “Not Your Homeland” – pages 572-575
Articles/editorials on immigration
Vocab Unit 2 Quiz
Week 1
8/31
Week 2
9/ 7
Week 3
9/14
Week 4
9/21
Week 5
9/28
Articles on Writing in Careers & Job Hunting
PVHS Library Visit
Articles on Impactful Business Writing
Labor Day Holiday
Vocab Unit 1
Visit to Nova Writing Center
College Essay Samples.
Manning, “Arm Wrestling with My Father” – pages 146-150
View & respond to literacy narratives on the Digital Archive of Literacy
Narratives - http://ccdigitalpress.org/stories/chapters/frost/the-literacynarratives.html
Articles on Immigration Issues – Scope
Vocab Unit 1 Quiz
Amy Tan – “Fish Cheeks” – pages 99-100 (Bedford)
Maxine Hoang Kingston – “ No Name Woman” – pages 620-630
Washington Post Magazine articles – July 26, 2015
Vocab Unit 2
ENG 111 – College Composition I
Meghan Pierce – Dual Enrollment Adjunct
Course Syllabus
Week 8
10/19
Week 9
10/26
Argumentative
Essay on
immigration
issue
Media’s use of
argument theory
in advertising,
entertainment &
information
Comparison/Co
n-trast Essay
Education &
Community
Week
10
11/2
Week
11
11/9
Week
12
11/16
Week
13
11/23
Week
14
11/30
Week
15
12/7
Week
16
12/14
Week
17
1/4
Week
Annotated
Bibliography
Intro
Annotated
Bibliography
Evaluating &
Analyzing
Sources
Developing
Position & Thesis
Statement
Incorporating
Source Info
Columbus Day Holiday
Gloria Anzaldua, “How to Tame a Wild Tongue”
http://wolfweb.unr.edu/homepage/calabj/282/how%20to%20tame%20wil
d%20tongue.pdf
Review of TV, web and print sources
Vocab Unit 3
Bharati Mukherjee, “Two Ways to Belong in America”
http://www.anderson.k12.ky.us/Downloads/Mukherjee%20%20Two%20Ways%20to%20Belong.pdf
Richard Rodriguez, “Aria: A Memoir of a Bilingual Childhood” – pages
651-661
PVHS Library Visit
Vocab Unit 3 Quiz
Teacher Workdays – Nov. 2-3
PVHS Library Visit
Vocab Unit 4
Interview ideas for research project
Vocab Unit 4 Quiz
PVHS Library Visit
Research Rough
Drafts Due
Thanksgiving Break
Research methodology
Peer Review
Vocab Unit 5
Revision &
Works Cited
Vocab Unit 5 Quiz
PVHS LibraryVisit/Computer Lab
Final Research
Papers Due
Computer Lab
Winter Break
Process Analysis
Essay
Sherman Alexie, “The Joy of Reading and Writing: Superman and Me”
http://www.pasadena.edu/files/syllabi/stvillanueva_39386.pdf
Vocab Unit 6
Zora Neale Hurston, “ How It feels to Be Colored Me”
Description
ENG 111 – College Composition I
Meghan Pierce – Dual Enrollment Adjunct
Course Syllabus
18
1/11
Week
19
1/18
Week
20
1/25
Essay
use of Imagery &
Metaphor
Description
Essay
Martin Luther King, Jr. “I Have a Dream”
Reflective
Writing
How Do Immigration Issues Affect Our Community?
End of Semester
Martin Luther King, Jr. Holiday
Vocab Unit 6 Quiz
Academic Honesty:
Neither cheating nor plagiarism will be tolerated. If you are found cheating or plagiarizing, the
incident will be reported to the administration at Park View and the dean at NVCC. According
the NOVA Student Handbook, “Academic dishonesty cannot be condoned. When such
misconduct is established as having occurred, it subjects you to possible disciplinary actions
ranging from admonition to dismissal, along with any grade penalty the instructor might, in
appropriate cases, impose. Procedural safeguards of due process and appeal are available to you
in disciplinary matters.” See Section VII of the Student Handbook, which is available online, for
more information about this policy.
Attendance & Late Work
Regular attendance is essential for success in the class. If you are absent, submit your
assignment via email or send in with a classmate. Since assignments are scheduled and
announced well in advance of due dates, students should not assume that their absence allows
them extra time on the assignment.
Late work will be accepted the next day (not the next class meeting) for 50% credit
consideration. For example, if the assignment is due in class on Tuesday, the student needs to
turn it in on Wednesday to receive 50% credit consideration. Adhering to due dates is preferred.