Welcome to English 28 or English 101 Online! I will be teaching the following sections
totally online during Fall '07:
English 28
Sections 7014 & 7015
English 101
Sections 7016 & 7018
The following is information to help you succeed in this class. Please read it carefully
and feel free to email me (Marion Heyn: heynmg@lavc.edu) if you have any questions.
What you should know about the content of the class:
Both of these are reading- and writing-intensive classes that teach you how to craft
thesis-driven, research-based college-level essays. English 28 is the prerequisite
course to English 101, and placement into either of them is by successful completion of
the prerequisite course or placement via the English Placement Test. If you are not sure
which course is correct for you or have not yet taken the English Placement Test,
please see the Counseling Department.
English 28 students will do extensive reading of short essays and a full-length book,
while English 101 students will be required to read many longer essays and articles as
well as a full-length book. All English 101 students must satisfactorily complete a
research paper which involves multiple exercises and submissions. Discussion of the
assigned readings are required and graded in both courses. Some group work—all
arranged fully online—will be required for both courses.
In both classes, students will be completing the same course work as the regular
classroom course; that means that you should expect to spend between 9 to 12 hours
per week on this one course.
What you should know about the structure of the class:
Heyndocs/instruction/F07

The class is entirely on-line – there are no required on-campus meetings.

You have a great deal of flexibility in doing the course work, but regular
participation and weekly submission of work is essential to success.

The class will be available starting September 4th (no sooner) through the
ETUDES-NG website. A link to the website and information on how to figure out
your username and password can be found at:
http://www.lavc.edu/virtualvalley/loggingonline.htm

This class proceeds at the same pace as the in-person sections. You will need to
log on at least several times every week. Content and assignments will open and
close on specified dates—you can’t do it all the last week. In addition, the class
content is constantly building on previous knowledge. It is very important to keep
up and make sure you understand all of the current material before moving on.

An online class is not any easier nor does it take any less time than the in-person
version. You need to have the time and be self-motivated and self-disciplined to
succeed. If you are not sure if an online class is really for you, take the quizzes
at:
http://www.lavc.edu/virtualvalley/areyouready2.htm

Due to the nature of the online environment, there will be a lot more reading and
writing involved in this class than in a traditional class.

All of the following books are required. They are available at the LAVC Bookstore
and Amazon.com; other bookstores may also carry them. Titles followed by an
asterisk * are on reserve in the LAVC Library:
English 28 Textbooks
They Say/I Say: The Moves That Matter in Academic Writing
by Gerald Graff, Cathy Birkenstein
Models for Writers: Short Essays for Composition, 9th ed.*
by Alfred Rosa, Paul Eschholz
A Writer's Reference, 6th ed.
by Diana Hacker
The Color of Water: A Black Man's Tribute to His White Mother*
by James McBride
Heyndocs/instruction/F07
English 101 Textbooks
Language Awareness: Readings for College Writers, 9th ed.*
by Paul Eschholz, et al.
The Argument Culture: Stopping America's War of Words
by Deborah Tannen
A Writer's Companion, 4th ed.*
by Richard Marius
A Writer's Reference, 6th ed.
by Diana Hacker

Students enrolled in the course must have the word processing application
Microsoft Word or a fully-equivalent and compatible alternative. WordPad and
Works are NOT acceptable. Also, the new versions of Office are set to save files
with a .docx extension. Learn how to change that to the standard, cross-platform
.doc extension. All assignments must be submitted as .doc or .rtf file
attachments; all work must be submitted to the ETUDES course site. You must
be fully familiar with working with text files and attachments in order to succeed in
this course.
What you need to do:

Make sure that you have easy and reliable Internet access. Dial-up service works
but you will find it very slow. DSL or cable access are recommended.

Check to make sure that your computer system is adequate, that you have all the
needed software, and that your cache settings are correct. Please see the
following webpages for instructions on setting up your computer and do it
BEFORE class starts:
http://www.lavc.edu/virtualvalley/whatyouneed.htm
http://www.lavc.edu/Distance/etudes_login_tips.htm
Heyndocs/instruction/F07

Have a back-up computer lined up (such as the computer labs on campus or the
public library) in case of problems. Technical difficulties will not be an acceptable
excuse for late or missed work.

Have a working email address that you check regularly.

Log on at least once before September 8th (If you do not do so, I will drop you
from the class as a “no show”).

Log on several times a week, preferably every week day, after that.

Read all of the content materials, complete the assignments, and participate in
the discussions.

Ask questions whenever you have them.

Learn some new interesting, fun and useful (honest!) things!
How to contact me:
If you need to contact me before class starts, email is your best option—my email
address is heynmg@lavc.edu. My campus phone number is 818-947-2532. I usually
work from my home, but occasionally you can find me in my campus office, Campus
Center Room 240. I look forward to meeting you in the discussion forums online during
the first week of class.
Heyndocs/instruction/F07