INTD 105 (26) Writing Seminar: Envisioning Education
Fall Semester 2001
1:30-2:20 M/W/F
Sturges 109
Instructor: Dr. Jane Fowler Morse
Office: South Hall 221C
Office Phone: 245-5381
Home Phone: 243-3046 (but please do not call after 9:30 PM)
Office Hours: M/W/F 10:30-11:30 PM, or by appointment.
Email: jfmorse@geneseo.edu
Course Description:
Students in INTD 105, Envisioning Education, will read and write about a variety
of texts dealing with what education is, the role of education in human life, and how
education ought to be organized. Students will consider the vision of education the
authors express in order to think about how education might be reformed. Students will
formulate their vision of the purposes and organization of education.
As a writing intensive seminar, INTD 105 will require six writing projects.
Students will practice all stages of the writing process, including keep a reading journal
containing responses to the texts and ideas for writing projects. Peer review and
rewriting of assignments will be required.
I expect you to complete all readings before the class day on which they are
listed and to come to class prepared to participate in activities and discussions.
Assignments may include requirements to research in the library and on the web.
Always bring your handbook (Diana Hacker, A Writer’s Reference) and whatever other
assigned texts are currently under consideration to class to facilitate discussion. I may
add short quizzes or written assignments to the announced syllabus at my discretion.
We will practice editing skills as the need arises. This may involve quizzes or classwork
for a grade. We may deviate from the announced syllabus as occasion demands in
order to meet the needs of the class. Since this is a relatively new course, it is a work in
progress. Be prepared to be flexible.
Since you will be working in groups on peer editing in this class, your attendance
is important. You must keep a portfolio of all drafts, exercises, and quizzes. If you are
absent, I expect you to notify me before class. You will also be responsible for catching
up on any assignments, handouts, exercises, or quizzes that you may have missed
before the next class.
You are required to produce six writing projects (totaling 20 pages). One of these
will be an in-class essay. I will not accept late papers and other assignments without a
prior agreement with me regarding the circumstances.
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All handouts and assignments will be available in the outbox. You will be
responsible for picking up your own handouts and assignments from the outbox (see
instructions attached).
Course Outcomes:
All sections of INTD 105 at Geneseo share the following intended learning outcomes:
1. The ability to read significant texts carefully and critically, recognizing and
responding to argumentative positions.
2. The ability to write sustained, coherent, and persuasive arguments on significant
issues that arise from the content at hand.
3. The ability to write clearly, following the conventions of Standard English.
Required Texts:
Please buy the correct edition, so your page numbers will correspond to everyone
else’s.
Diana Hacker. A Writer’s Reference, fourth edition. Bedford/St. Martin’s Press. Boston
and New York: 1999.
Toni Morrison. The Bluest Eye. Penguin Books. New York, 1970 and 1994.
A.S. Neill. Summerhill School: A New View of Childhood. edited by Albert Lamb.
Penguin Books 1960 and 1992.
B.F. Skinner. Walden Two Reissued. Prentice Hall: Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey, 1948
and 1976.
Deborah Meier. Will Standards Save Public Education? Boston: Beacon Press, 2000.
Dead Poets Society (I expect you to watch this film by Oct. 23. During the October
Break would be ideal.)
Required Materials:
A school composition book for your journal.
Library Orientation:
A required library orientation will be announced shortly.
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Schedule:
Topic:
(listed on discussion date):
Reading:
(listed on due date):
Week One
Aug. 27-31
class
M
Read The Bluest Eye (finish by Sept. 24)
W
F
grammar review in class
(verb phrases, outbox)
due
Bring Hacker to
Read Hacker B, G
Writing Project #1 draft
for peer review
Labor Day Holiday Monday, Sept. 3
Week Two
Sept. 5-7
W
F
writing introductions, grammar review
grammar, continued;
Hacker C, W
Writing Project #1 due
Group A journals due
Week Three
Sept. 10-14 M/W writing body paragraphs, grammar review
Hacker E, S
(sentence elements, outbox)
F
grammar review (cont.)
Group B journals due
Week Four
Sept. 17-21 M
W
evidence,
Morrison, discussion
Morrison
Writing about literature
(organization of the novel, reading a novel as social commentary)
F
finding sources, giving
Group A journals due
being persuasive
Hacker R, P
Week Five
Sept. 24-28 M
W
F
Oct.1-5
M
W/F
F
Morrison, discussion
Morrison writing project #2, draft due for peer review
writing conclusions
Group B journals due
Week Six
Summerhill, discussion
Summerhill (cont.)
documentation
October 8-9, Fall Break
3
Writing Project #2 due
Hacker M, A
Group A journals due
Watch Dead Poets Society by Oct. 29
Week Seven
Oct. 10-12
W
F
Summerhill writing project #3, draft due for peer review
rewriting (developing ideas, using quotations)Group B journals due
Week Eight
Oct. 15-19
M
W/F
F
Walden II, discussion
Walden II, (cont.)
(compare and contrast papers)
Writing project #3 due;
Skinner
Group A journals due
Week Nine
Oct. 22-26
M/W Walden II, discussion
F
Writing Project #4 due for peer review
Group B journals due
Week Ten
Oct. 29-Nov. 2M
W
Dead Poets Society
Dead Poets Society
F
Group A journals due
Writing project #4 due
Dead Poets Society (cont.)
Week Eleven
Nov. 5-9
Nov. 7
blue books
M
W
(film as text)
Hacker D
Writing Project #5, in-class essay on Dead Poets Society, bring
F
Will Standards Save Public Education? Group B journals due
Week Twelve
Nov. 12-16
M/W Meier, discussions
Meier
F
(expository and argumentative essays) Group A journals due
Week Thirteen
Nov. 19
M
Standards (cont.);Writing Project #6 due for peer review
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November 21-23, Thanksgiving Break
Week Fourteen
Nov. 26-Dec.3M
W
F
Meier (cont.)
Meier (cont.)
catch up and review
Writing project #6 due
Group B journals due
Week Fifteen
Dec. 3-7-
M
W
F
review portfolios and journals
grammar review
editing review, portfolios returned
Dec. 10
M
Wrap up and review
Study Days: Dec. 11-12
FINAL EXAM:
Portfolios and journals
due
No Classes
Friday, December 14, 12:00-3:00
(essay, grammar test, editing test)
Grading:
Graded components of this course include six writing projects, class participation
(based on being there, participating in peer editing, quizzes and exercises, and
speaking up in class), and a final examination, weighted in the following percentages:
Five (graded) essays
journals
15%
Participation
15%
Final
20%
50%
Scale of letter grades:
A
AB+
B
BC+
C
CD
E
94-100%
90-93%
87-89%
84-86%
80-83%
77-79%
74-76%
70-73%
66-69%
65% and below.
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I calculate all grades by a spread sheet, rounding up from .5 and down from .4 on
each assignment. To calculate final grades, I weight and add percentages and assign
letter grades according to the chart above. Please consult me immediately after
receiving each graded assignment if you wish to discuss the grade. I do not write many
comments on finals, nor do I return them, since my questions are very general and
something like them must eventually appear again sometime. You are cordially invited
to stop by my office to see your final during the early weeks of the semester following
the semester you are enrolled. Please note: your participation grade counts for a hefty
20%. You will need to be present in class, speak up, and take part in peer editing and
other group work to earn these points. Preparation in discussion and discussion
assignments made in class will also contribute to this part of your grade.
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