Mrs. Robbins - English 101, Fall 2015
Room: 522
Email: joy.robbins@gilbertschools.net
I. Course Description
English 101, Introductory College Writing, prepares students for academic writing as required in
college classes and introduces them to forms of thinking, reading, and writing that are applicable
in multiple contexts beyond the university. The strategies involved in producing written
arguments intentionally designed for specific audiences and purpose include data-gathering, prewriting and/or outlining, organizing and developing written ideas, and revising to increase
conceptual sophistication, enhance clarity, alter expression, and correct mistakes. To teach these
strategies, English 101 puts considerable emphasis upon the relationship between reading and
writing, specifically upon readers' expectations about the structure of texts; the writer's reliance
upon existing texts to produce new writing; and the process of collecting, interpreting, and
disseminating information through texts. As a dual-credit course, we will meet the requirements
of both 12th grade and first-year college English.
Prerequisites: Appropriate English placement score (≥5 onWRITE-PLACER)
II. Course Objectives
By the end of this course, you will have:
a. developed a level of critical thinking appropriate for conceptualizing complex issues and framing
difficult problems in written form;
b. learned to make critical use of evidence and secondary sources in developing arguments;
c. organized writing to support a central idea through unified and coherent diction, grammar, and
mechanics.
d. used writing in a variety of forms for different purposes;
e. produced relatively well-organized prose that is free of surface errors;
f. identified, selected, and used an appropriate documentation style to maintain academic integrity;
g. developed and internalized a workable writing process, including strategies for generating, revising, and
rewriting texts.
III. Materials:
▪ Blue or black pen
▪ Notecards
▪ Highlighters
▪ Five-tab binder divider
▪ Loose-leaf notebook paper
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One (1) ream of printer paper for the classroom
Flash drive ←Seriously, get one and use it
Plastic two-pocket folder for essay submission
Internet access
Computer access (for typing papers)
IV. College Enrollment and Fees
Campo Verde is teaming with Chandler Gilbert Community College for this course. It fulfills the
requirements for CGCC’s 101 course, and a passing grade in this class will earn a student three (3)
college credits. Enrollment in the course will take place within the first week of class. Per CGCC and
GPS policies, enrollment in CGCC Eng. 101 is required for continued participation in CVHS’s Eng.
101 course.
The current Maricopa County Resident Rate at CGCC is $84 per credit hour, plus a $15 registration
processing fee, bringing the cost for ENG 101 to $267 (subject to change, per CGCC’s rates). This
tuition must be paid directly to CGCC order to retain a spot in this class. Payment via CGCC’s on-line
payment portal is the preferred method of payment; however, this fee can also be paid in-person to the
cashier’s office on the Pecos Campus. Payment can also be made in installments through the CGCC
Student Tuition Payment Plan.
V. Classroom Policies and Procedures
Expectations of Conduct
I expect you to abide by the school rules (including dress code and restricted phone usage) and
show respect and civility. Rather than print an exhaustive list of my expectations for your
behavior, I’ll abbreviate my policy to this: this is being run as a college class. College classes do
not have behavior problems. Students will be respectful, get to class on time, be courteous, follow
directions the first time, and conduct themselves as adults.
CVHS's Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports
As members of the Coyote family, we pride ourselves on our dedication to Community, Values,
Honor and Scholarship. Students are expected to meet specific positive behavioral standards both
in and out of the classroom. These behaviors, such as being respectful and practicing academic
honesty, are what make Campo Verde such an amazing place to learn. During this school year,
students will participate in a school-wide initiative focused on the promotion and reinforcement
of the expected standards of behavior.
Computer Usage
We are assigned to a very unusual classroom, one that affords us computer access any time, but
one that can easily go awry. As such, it is very important that the following computer-usage rules
be strictly observed.
▪ Computers may be accessed upon my instructions. We will not use them every day.
▪ When we do utilize the computers in class, you may use them only for our assigned tasks.
▪ You must use only your assigned computer; additionally, you may log-in only to your own
account.
▪ Access to non-academic websites and activities (including but not limited to social
networking sites, entertainment/ gaming sites, instant messaging, and/or personal email) is
strictly prohibited.
▪ Please be aware that this classroom is my primary workplace. While I am glad to make
computers available to students outside of class for academic assignments, please do not
abuse the privilege.
Plagiarism
The principle of academic honesty is fundamental to a scholarly community. As such, plagiarism
will not be permitted in this class in any way. If you plagiarize, even once or even in a small way,
you will fail the assignment, you will be given a disciplinary referral, and written documentation
of the infraction will be put on file with CGCC, to be penalized as they see fit. The CGCC and
CVHS English Departments are very serious about this specific issue, and I enforce their policies
rigorously.
Plagiarism can be committed in, but is not limited to, the following ways:
▪ buying papers written by someone else, by hiring someone to write your assignment and then
claiming the purchased work is your own;
▪ "borrowing" or sharing work written by someone else (a roommate, parent, sibling, relative,
friend, stranger), claiming it is yours, and turning it in to an instructor for a grade;
▪ copying specific words, sentences, phrases, and/or paragraphs from sources, piecing them
together without citing the sources, and turning this cut-and-paste work in. This includes the
heinous and very easily detected crime of cutting and pasting information found on the
Internet;
▪ taking an idea originated by someone else, putting it in to your own words, and portraying
that idea as your own. Quoted, paraphrased, or summarized sources must be documented.
These specific means of plagiarism now having been addressed to you, you are responsible for
them. Ignorance is not and will not be an excuse. We will, however, talk much more about means
of avoiding accidental and purposeful plagiarism. Our use of Turnitin.com will be a wonderful
resource through which to understand plagiarism more completely and by which to avoid
plagiarism entirely. Finally, if you have any hunch that what you are including in an assignment
might be plagiarism, talk to me before the assignment is due, so that I can help you maintain your
academic integrity.
Policies and Procedures
▪ Assignments – essays, homework, notes, drafts, etc. – will be collected and/or graded within
the first five minutes of class. Incomplete versions of assignments will not be awarded credit.
Unless specified, assignments may be submitted up to one week late for a maximum of 50%
credit. Certain assignments, including major essays, will be specified as illegible for late
submission.
▪ Turnitin.com –It is with great delight that CVHS will be using Turnitin.com this year. While
students will still turn in paper versions of major assignments, they will also submit rough and
final drafts of these assignments to Turnitin.com. Final drafts of major essays are due to
Turnitin.com before the class meeting at which the paper version is due to be submitted.
▪ Since full and active participation is essential to success in this course, regular attendance is
required. It is highly unlikely that a student will pass if absence is an issue.
▪ Prompt attendance is appreciated. A third tardy class entrance will result in in-class detention; a
fourth will result in a call home. Upon five tardy entrances, students will be referred to the
office.
▪ In the case of absence or tardiness, missed quizzes and tests will be replaced with alternate
versions. Alternate versions tend to be much more difficult.
▪ You are responsible for finding out what was missed in the case of an absence.
▪ All at-home essays must be typed in 12 point Times New Roman font, with black ink, exactly 1
inch margins, double spacing, and a staple in the top left corner. All major writing assignments
must be turned in with all pre-writing, drafts, and research.
VI. Grades
Formal Communication – 50%
Diagnostic Synthesis Essay
Personal Rhetoric Narrative
Rhetorical Analysis Essay
Annotated Bibliography
Satirical Analysis Project/Essay
Homework – 5%
Small Assignments & Notes– 10%
Bell Work – 5%
Quizzes & Exams – 10%
Final Exam – 10%
Final Essay - 10%
Grading Scale
93.0-100%
89.9-92.9%
86.9-89.8
82.9-86.8
79.9-82.8
76.9-79.8
etc.
A
AB+
B
BC+
Extra Credit is not available for this class. As will be the case in most of your college classes,
work done for a class should receive regular credit and is more than sufficient to assess the
understanding of material presented in the course.
VII. Communication
Virtual Classroom: I keep all of my classes up-to-date on Virtual Classroom, posting all
possible agendas, assignments, and resources there in an effort to keep students and parents
apprised of what is going on in class. In many instances, materials and resources will ONLY be
posted on Virtual Classroom. It is important for students and parents to be familiar and
comfortable with this site. Lack of internet access will not be considered a valid excuse for
failure to complete work accessible through this site, considering the ready access students have
to campus computing. All classroom and District rules regarding behavior and technology apply
to the Virtual Classroom environment.
Infinite Campus Grades: Please allow at least 48 hours after submitting an assignment before
anticipating a grade upload to the online gradebook. This time will be significantly longer for
essays and late-work. If you identify an error in grade entry on this site, please inform me in
person at our next class meeting.
Gmail and Google Apps: Google Apps offers paperless communication, collaboration, and
publishing tools. Individuals set up their own Gmail address and corresponding Google Apps
account, which allow them to receive and submit assignment forms, collaborate with peers, and
save documents without the need of disks or drives. This can help the school save paper, the
course can be managed more easily, and students can access work from any computer with
internet connectivity.
FERPA Acknowledgement: FERPA gives parents certain rights with respect to their children's
education records. These rights transfer to the student when he or she reaches the age of 18 or
attends a school beyond the high school level. Instructors must speak with the student
regarding standing in the class unless the student has signed the form granting permission to
inform parents of the student’s standing.
Remind.com: Students and parents alike are encouraged to sign up for my Remind.com text
messages. Text @7aee5b to 81010 to sign up.
VIII.
Course Content
Because this course is being administered through CGCC, our campus has adopted their primary
101 textbooks, Writing Today, brief ed., and Everything’s An Argument,5th ed. We will be reading
the work of literary greats such as Frederick Douglas, Maxine Hong Kingston, David Sedaris, and
Toni Morrison. We will watch portions of a small number of films (nothing R-rated) and clips
from certain television broadcasts to be used as primary texts. Because we will be using realworld texts, students may on rare occasion be exposed to crude or profane language. Every effort
will be made to limit this exposure.
While dual-credit English 101 offers students a structured and safe environment in which to earn
college credit, the content of a college course does not and should not shelter students from attimes controversial ideas. In the readings and viewings for this class, students may encounter
ideas with which they and/or their parents do not agree. Understanding, confronting, and refuting
these ideas is fundamental to the writing process and to the growth of mature individuals. The
authors we will read hold and express opinions that do not necessarily represent the views of
CVHS or your instructor. This course does not seek to change minds or affect ideologies; it seeks
to build reading and writing capabilities, and exposure to new ideas is a necessary part of that
goal.
IX. Disclaimers
CGCC’s policy regarding dual-enrollment ENG. 101 and ENG. 102 is "no pay, no stay," meaning
you are either enrolled with and paying CGCC for college credit, or you un-enroll from the
course and enroll in English IV instead. Payment and enrollment will happen in the first few
weeks of class. In this, as in all things, I stand by and enforce the CGCC's policy.
Failure to pay CGCC’s required tuition for this course will result in failure to earn college credit.
Students are responsible for ensuring their payments are received by CGCC in a timely manner in
order to retain enrollment status.
Assignments and their point values may change slightly throughout the semester. Students will be
made aware of any and all changes, and are thusly responsible for meeting all requirements
regardless of inclusion on this syllabus.