Writing & Visual Culture Living‐Learning Community English 101: Introduction to College Writing Section 033, Fall 2011 Instructor: Rachael Sullivan Email: sulliv97@uwm.edu Office on campus: CRT 284 Campus office hours: M 2:30‐3:30pm / by appointment Office at Riverview: Riverview office hours: W 2‐3pm Class location: Riverview 254 Times: M/W/F 1‐1:50pm Class web sites: http://courses.rachaelsullivan.com/fall2011‐LLC http://writingandvisualculture.ning.com/ Any changes to the syllabus will be communicated to students in writing. Course Description This course introduces you to college‐level reading and writing practices through a sequence of writing assignments that integrates critical reading, writing, and reflection. You will develop skills to analyze the way writers and artists address audiences and achieve purposes within specific contexts. This type of analysis—a form of critical interpretation—is called “rhetorical analysis.” By paying attention to the strategies that writers and artists use to persuade their particular audiences, you will learn how to better respond to your own concerns and the concerns of others. You will read and reread texts, participate in discussions, work in groups with colleagues in our class or in other English classes, and write multi‐draft essays with the final goal of a polished portfolio in mind. I ask you to keep the following questions in the background as you work through this course: •
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What are the conventions of college writing? Why is rhetorical analysis important for college writers? How do the technologies I’m using and the community I’m engaging shape my learning and my writing? How does this learning and writing matter to me as a citizen, a scholar, and a person? This course is an opportunity for you to spend an entire semester working on your reading and writing skills. You will hone these skills by developing habits of critical reading and practicing a few versatile techniques for writing analytically. As we interact with visual/verbal texts—those assigned as course reading, those you encounter though living‐learning community (LLC) exchanges, and those you will discover on your own—be open to changes in your writing style and keep asking not “What do I think?” but “What do I notice?” and “What does it say?” Required Texts & Materials •
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A Student’s Guide to the First‐Year Writing Program at UWM 2011‐2012 (the “purple book”) First Year Composition Reader 2011‐2013 The DK Handbook, Second Edition Access to a computer equipped with internet, Adobe Reader, and a word processor that can create files in .doc format Prerequisites Students enrolled in this course need to have either scored a 1 or 2 on the English Placement Test (EPT), earned a grade of C or better in English 095, or been placed into 101 based on transfer credit from another university. 1 What it means to be an LLC… Living‐learning communities (LLCs) are experimental programs designed to ease the transition from high school to college life by placing you in a community of learners and by actively engaging you in the surrounding city and campus life. The LLC concept fits into English 101 in two distinct ways: •
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Since student texts are an important part of the English 101 curriculum at UWM, the LLC concept provides a unique advantage since we are already (hopefully!) invested in learning as a communal activity. Since you will likely spend time with each other outside of classroom walls, you may begin to learn more about your colleagues’ values, ideas, and writing. When I draw on this writing in the classroom and ask you to use their work in your own essays, consider your responsibility to your peers—to be respectful, helpful, and open‐minded. Whether aware of it or not, you already consume texts in sophisticated ways. These “texts” may not be printed in a book, but instead they might be video game graphics, web sites, TV shows, wall posters, and any number of different visual texts. The focus of our LLC will give you the chance to approach these texts rhetorically, constantly asking questions and critiquing what you read and see in your daily lives. As a member of this LLC, you will participate in group activities put on by the RA, mentor, and the instructor. Some of these activities will be purely social events, while other activities will have clear connections to class content. In both cases, however, activities are meant to bridge the classroom and how you engage the larger world. Course Vision Overall, this course is designed with the following positive outcomes in mind: •
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Students will be alerted to the processes by which texts—both inside the classroom and outside—
operate on them so that they can consume texts more critically. Students will employ this critical understanding in the service of their own compositions so that they may be more effective writers and speakers, both in college life and life in general. Students will benefit from being members of the LLC through the support it provides and through the opportunity to mature as a person by actively engaging with peers and with the surrounding community. Attendance UWM’s First‐Year Writing Program has specified an attendance policy. You can miss up to six class sessions, no questions asked. If you miss seven or more classes, you will be ineligible to submit a final portfolio and will thus fail the course. There are no excused absences. The six allowed absences are intended for unavoidable occurrences such as illness, accidents, doctor’s visits, religious observances, childcare emergencies, courtroom appearances, athletic events, etc. If you arrive after or leave before half the class is over (about 30 minutes), you will be counted absent. On days that you are absent, check the course blog (http://courses.rachaelsullivan.com/fall2011‐LLC) for updates. You should also contact one of your classmates to borrow his or her notes. 2 Punctuality As a sign of respect for me and other students, I ask that you come to class on time. Near the beginning of each class, I will pass around a sign‐in sheet. If you arrive after the sign‐in sheet has circulated back to me, you are officially late. Upon your third late arrival and/or early departure, one class absence will be added to your record. If you arrive after the sign‐in sheet has circulated, I do not take responsibility for counting you present. You must sign in to receive credit for a class. Due Dates & Late Work The major work of this class consists of numbered writing assignments, class discussions, and a final portfolio of essays. Some of this work can be submitted late, and other work cannot. • All numbered writing assignments have a due date. These must be completed before you are eligible to turn in a final portfolio, so if you miss the due date for a numbered assignment, it needs to be done at some point before December 12. You will be required to print and submit all numbered assignments in a folder (called a “working portfolio”) at the end of the semester. If you are missing any assignments in the working portfolio, you will not be eligible to submit a final portfolio and thus you will fail the course. Do not fall behind on assignments. Keep copies of your work; if an assignment is a blog comment, type it in a word processor first, save the document, then copy and paste the text into the blog. • Final portfolios and working portfolios are due in class on December 12. No late portfolios will be accepted. Grading •
Final Portfolio (50%) In order to submit a final portfolio, you must turn in every numbered writing assignment (which also means submitting drafts for each essay), comply with the attendance policy, and submit the final portfolio by the deadline on Monday, December 12. If you are not eligible to turn in a portfolio, you will not pass the class. Your final portfolio includes three substantially revised essays that come out of your writing during the semester. Two of the essays will be “interpretive” essays (roughly 3‐4 pages each), selected from those you have written in response to the readings throughout the semester. One essay will be a “reflective” essay in which you describe and evaluate the work you and other writers in class have accomplished during the term. An assessment committee comprised of English 101 instructors at UWM will read the final portfolio. The results of this assessment determine whether or not you pass the course. Additionally, please see pages 15‐16 of the Student’s Guide for more information about final portfolio assessment and how this affects course grading. •
Assignments (25%) Writing assignments and essay drafts do not receive grades until the end of the semester because none of your writing will be in “final draft” form until then; however, your classmates and I will read your work throughout the semester and offer suggestions for you as you continue writing. At the end of the term, I will re‐read all of your writing and grade your work holistically in the working portfolio. This approach allows me to evaluate your work as part of a larger learning process. It also offers you an opportunity to try new approaches to writing without having to worry about your grade. When I calculate grades at the end of the semester, I will mainly account for the effort and 3 care that you put into your assignments. I expect a few rushed assignments, but if you consistently submit sloppy, incoherent work that you obviously completed quickly, this portion of your grade (25%) will suffer. •
Participation (25%) Your fellow students count on you to provide quality participation and feedback. Moreover, it is one of the best ways for you to become engaged with the material and to mature as a college writer. Thus, classroom participation will count toward 25% of your final grade, as will participation in LLC functions and online activities moderated by me, your RA, or mentor. Email Correspondence UWM requires that faculty and staff use UWM email accounts to email students. I will not send emails about grades to personal accounts, and I ask that you email me using your UWM student account. Web Sites The blog (http://courses.rachaelsullivan.com/fall2011‐LLC) is the main online hub for our class. The Ning (http://writingandvisualculture.ning.com/) is a space shared between English 101 and 102 for the purposes of sharing peer work, analyzing peer work, and discussing topics related to writing and visual culture. Essay Format & MLA Style The required paper format and citation style for all essay assignments (including drafts, revisions, and the final portfolio) is MLA. This format has specific fonts, font sizes, margins, spacing, and headers. The DK Handbook explains MLA in Part 8, and the Purdue OWL (http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl) provides many examples of citations. There is also a sample paper on page 331 in the DK Handbook. Conferences I hold two mandatory one‐on‐one conferences with students and one optional conference at the midterm. You will sign up for your conference time slot a week in advance. Conferences are an important way for me to talk with you personally about your writing. You also have the opportunity to ask me specific questions or get help with an issue. I cannot reschedule conferences if you forget your time. When you miss a required conference, that counts as a class absence. Writing Center It is always helpful to get additional feedback and support at any stage of writing; trained tutors at the Writing Center are an invaluable resource. See page 19 of the Student’s Guide, email writing@uwm.edu, or go to http://www4.uwm.edu/writingcenter/ for more information. The Writing Center has two locations on campus. Academic Honesty Please refer to pages 12‐13 in the purple Student‘s Guide. In short, know that the consequences of plagiarism range from failing the course to expulsion from the university. You are responsible for these consequences regardless of whether or not the plagiarism was intentional. I have been reading first‐year composition essays since 2004 when I started teaching, so it is usually very easy for me to sense fabricated, unauthentic writing. 4 Administrative Drop Any student who does not attend the first week of class or who does not contact me will be dropped from the course. For more information on add/drop policies, see page 14 of the Student’s Guide. A grade of “incomplete” cannot be given in English 101. Student Accessibility Center (SAC) If you have a chronic health condition or disability that may prevent you from meeting the requirements of this course, you must submit a Verified Individual Services and Accommodation (VISA) form completed by a SAC counselor within the first week of classes. I will work with your SAC counselor to establish a specific plan that allows you to meet the goals of this course. If you do not follow this plan, you will fail the course like other students who do not meet the standard syllabus policies. Please do not give me a VISA form and expect me to allow limitless exceptions. Students with conditions that are not documented by SAC at the beginning of the semester will not receive exceptions to any of the course policies, so it is important that you visit the center as soon as possible if you need accommodations. Military/Religious Observances Please inform me at the beginning of the semester if you anticipate any absences for religious observances. You will still receive an absence for any time missed for these events. If you serve in any branch of the military, please check http://www4.uwm.edu/current_students/military_call_up.cfm ESL Students If you grew up speaking a language other than English, you can fulfill your English writing requirements in English as a Second Language (ESL) courses. If you are interested in this option, please contact the ESL coordinator, Cathy Kaye, at cjkaye@uwm.edu. 5