OAKTON COMMUNITY COLLEGE
GENERIC COURSE SYLLABUS
I.
II.
Course
Prefix
Course
Number
Course
Name
EGL
094
Reading Improvement
Credit
Lecture
Lab
3
3
0
Prerequisite:
Appropriate score on placement test.
III.
Course (Catalog) Description:
Course helps students further develop reading proficiency with comprehension,
vocabulary, and critical reading, and become more active, reflective, and strategic readers.
Emphasis is on approaches to reading that apply to college-level courses across the disciplines.
IV.
Learning Objectives:
Students must be able to:
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V.
Identify their reading process, evaluate comprehension, and adjust it accordingly.
Demonstrate comprehension of multi-page, nonfiction texts of various genres
whose difficulty is at or near the college-level
Write summaries that distinguish between minor details and key ideas of texts.
Critically analyze and evaluate texts at or near the college-level
Demonstrate the ability to relate background knowledge to texts.
Connect different ideas found within a single text.
Identify distinctions between what the author of a text states and what their
sources state.
Employ word-learning strategies to unfamiliar vocabulary items independently.
Reflect on the processes of reading and learning.
Academic Integrity:
Students and employees at Oakton Community College are required to demonstrate
academic integrity and follow Oakton’s Code of Academic Conduct. This code prohibits:
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cheating,
plagiarism (turning in work not written by you, or lacking proper citation),
falsification and fabrication (lying or distorting the truth),
helping others to cheat,
unauthorized changes on official documents,
pretending to be someone else or having someone else pretend to be you,
making or accepting bribes, special favors, or threats, and
Generic Syllabus
EGL 094
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any other behavior that violates academic integrity.
There are serious consequences to violations of the academic integrity policy. Oakton’s
policies and procedures provide students a fair hearing if a complaint is made against
you. If you are found to have violated the policy, the minimum penalty is failure on the
assignment and, a disciplinary record will be established and kept on file in the office of
the Vice President for Student Affairs for a period of 3 years.
Details of the Code of Academic Conduct can be found in the Student Handbook.
VI.
Sequence of Topics:
A.
Plagiarism
B.
The Reading/Learning Process
C.
Schema Building/Activation
D.
Meta-cognition
E.
Responding to texts
F.
Strategic Reading: Organize Information, Summarize
G.
Summary Writing
H.
Annotation
I.
Vocabulary strategies: Dictionaries, Contextual Inferences, Word Parts
Topics may be covered concurrently, recursively, or in other orders.
VII.
Methods of Instruction:
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Course may be taught as a face-to-face, hybrid, or online course.
Lectures, readings, formal and informal assessments, lab work, and writing-to-reinforcereading assignments
VIII.
Course Practices Required:
Per departmental policy, course readings will include a minimum of 350 pages, primarily
nonfiction that is at or near the college level, and will include at least one book-length
text. Students will write a minimum of 1,500 words during the semester.
Instructors will vary in the particular readings and assignments. Assignments may include
comprehension questions (multiple-choice or short-answer), critical thinking questions,
vocabulary questions, reader-response questions, analysis of case-studies of learning,
personal reflections, summaries of readings, annotated versions of readings, reading
journals, vocabulary journals, etc.
IX.
Instructional Materials:
Note: Current textbook information for each course and section is available on Oakton’s
Schedule of Classes.
Per departmental policy, texts for EGL 094 will be primarily nonfiction, from various
genres and academic disciplines (e.g. from an anthology). The difficulty level will be at
or near college-level. The length will be multi-page, including at least one book-length
text. The text may be a traditional textbook, a nonfiction trade book, or an anthology.
X.
Method of Evaluating Student Progress:
Whether a student’s reading placement moves up to EGL-110 will depend on their
receiving a passing course grade in EGL-094. The following formula will be used:
Common Summary
At the end of the semester, all EGL-094 students will complete the Common
Summary, an in-class summary of a short reading chosen by the department.
Grading Formula
Individual faculty have discretion over assignments and assessments, but per
department policy, the overall grade in the class will consist of the following
percentage breakdown:
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10%
Class participation (attendance, group-work, discussion,
other in-class activities)
40%
In-class assessments of reading ability (e.g. quizzes and
tests), including but not limited to the EGL 094 Common
Summary. Other in-class assessments may include, but are not
limited to, comprehension questions (multiple-choice or shortanswer), critical-thinking questions, vocabulary questions,
reader-response questions, analysis of case-studies of learning,
summaries of readings, etc.
50%
At-home assignments, which may include, but are not limited
to, comprehension questions (multiple-choice or shortanswer), critical thinking questions, vocabulary questions,
reader-response questions, analysis of case-studies of learning,
personal reflections, summaries of readings, annotated
versions of readings, reading journals, vocabulary journals,
etc.
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At the end of the term, the course grade is computed as follows:
Pass
70% and above
Fail
Below 70%
XI.
Other Course Information:
A.
Attendance policy
B.
Class policy on make-up exams, incomplete grades, late assignments,
classroom behavior, etc.
C.
Support services i.e., the Academic Assistance Center, tutorial program
If you have a documented learning, psychological, or physical disability you may be
entitled to reasonable academic accommodations or services. To request
accommodations or services, contact the Access and Disability Resource Center at the
Des Plaines or Skokie campus. All students are expected to fulfill essential course
requirements. The College will not waive any essential skill or requirement of a
course or degree program.
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Effective beginning term: Spring 2016
Ending term:
Syllabus prepared by:
Date:
Revised by: Danielle Aquiline, Dan Roth, Lori Oster
Date: May 2015
Reviewed by Chair:
Lynn Woodbury
Date: July 2015
Approval by Dean:
Linda Korbel
Date: August 2015
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