ENGLISH 111.802 — INTRODUCTION TO COMPOSITION
Alyse Knorr
Fall 2014, Blackboard online
Office: ADM 101-G and via Gchat and Skype
Office Hours: MW 10 a.m.--Noon and by appointment.
Email: ajknorr@uaa.alaska.edu
Contact Information for Two Classmates
Name - ________________________ Email - _______________________ Phone - _______________
Name - ________________________ Email - _______________________ Phone - _______________
Course Goals
Welcome to English 111! This course is designed to help you improve your abilities to read,
write, and think at a college level. In this class, you will develop strategies to help you use
writing as a tool for exploring and reflecting on your own ideas, as well as for informing and
persuading your readers. This class emphasizes writing as a process: you will explore beneficial
ways to break a writing task into smaller steps such as generating and organizing ideas,
investigating your topic, creating early drafts, seeking feedback, and revising. You will also
improve your ability to adapt your writing to the needs of specific audiences or situations, and
your ability to revise and edit your own writing to fit new rhetorical situations. Finally, this
class emphasizes texts that can have an impact beyond the classroom setting, often using
multimodal approaches. At the end of this course, it is my hope that you will have an
appreciation of the ways writing can be used in both the academic environment and beyond.
Essential Course Questions
Throughout the semester, we will be exploring these three major questions:
1. What are some of the common purposes, media, and genres of 21st-century texts?
2. How can I adapt my writing to meet the needs of a specific rhetorical situation?
3. What makes a text effective as a form of communication?
Textbooks and Materials
 Everyone’s an Author (Lunsford et al.): available at the UAA Bookstore
 They Say, I Say, 2nd edition (Graff): available at the UAA Bookstore
 Access to Internet, computer, printer, Microsoft Word, Adobe Reader, UAA e-mail
account and Blackboard
 Notebook and pen/pencil every day for in-class writing
Methods of Instruction
This is an interactive class and will involve a significant amount of online student discussion
and writing. Students will be asked to work individually and collaboratively as they investigate
issues, practice writing strategies and techniques, learn research and critical reading
approaches, and review their own and their peers' writing. Students who stay engaged in class
activities, keep up with all of the assignments, and block off sufficient time each week for
thoughtful drafting and revising are more likely to succeed in this class.
Course Requirements and Grading Percentages
15%
Essay 1: Literacy/Language narrative, 750 words min.
20%
Essay 2: They Say I Say, 1000 words min.
25%
Essay 3: Researched Argument, 1500+ words min.
15%
Essay 4: Writing to Save the World, 300 words min.
25%
Weekly work (includes quizzes, peer review, discussion
involvement, “netiquette”)
COURSE POLICIES
Course Eligibility
You must demonstrate eligibility for this course in one of the following ways: grade of “C” or
better in English 109, PRPE 108, or approved transfer of a similar course from another
institution; assessment test placement into English 111 or higher; appropriate SAT or ACT
score.
Course Grading Policy
Different formal essay assignments will each have some different specific grading criteria.
However, in grading essays, I use the following general criteria:
A "C" level grade (70-79%) denotes average college-level writing and achievement. The essay is
a competent response to the assignment: it meets, to some degree, all the assignment
requirements, and demonstrates that the author has put significant time and effort into
communicating his/her ideas to his/her targeted audience. It has a thesis, presents some
support, and moves from point to point in an orderly fashion; sentence-level errors do not
significantly prevent comprehension. Essays that do not meet these criteria will not earn a "C."
Note: You must complete all main essay assignments to earn a "C" or higher. However, merely
completing assignments does not guarantee this grade.
A "B" level grade (80-90%) highlights a strong example of college writing and thinking. In
addition to meeting the "C" level requirements, such an essay goes further in some way(s): it
demonstrates some insight into the "gray areas" of the topic, provides original or very thorough
support that is tightly woven into the overall argument, reads smoothly at both the sentence
and paragraph levels, and/or exhibits a personal "voice" or style. It has few sentence-level
errors.
An "A" level grade (90-100%) marks an essay that is a delight for the reader. Even more than in
a "B" essay, its author anticipates and responds to possible reader questions, uses a wide range
of supporting evidence, engages the reader in a provocative conversation, provides unexpected
insights, and/or uses language with care and facility.
"D" and "F" level essays do not meet the basic expectations of the assignment.
Incompletes
To be considered for an incomplete, you must be passing the course; you must have completed
the majority of the assignments; you must have participated in class regularly; and the obstacle
to completion must be unexpected. Once a course ends, the instructor is not obligated to
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provide guidance for completing assignments. If you do receive an “I,” you are no longer
eligible for an “A” in the course.
Academic Honesty and Plagiarism
When you join into a scholarly or civic dialogue, you will often need to read, incorporate, and
synthesize research, words, and ideas from other authors in addition to your own ideas. An
important skill you will practice in ENGL 111 is how to incorporate the research, words, and
ideas of others while also properly giving them credit for their work.
Plagiarism occurs when a writer uses the exact words, opinions, or factual information from
another source without giving that source proper credit. Writers give credit through the use of
accepted documentation styles, such as parenthetical citation, footnotes, or end notes; a simple
listing of books, articles, and websites is not sufficient. Plagiarism can also occur when a writer
represents the work of another author, organization, or website as his/her own work. You are
expected to maintain a high standard of academic honesty during your time at UAA.
Depending on the severity of the case, plagiarism or other types of academic dishonesty may
result in a failing grade on the assignment or in the course, a mandatory re-write, and/or being
reported to the Dean of Students office.
Disability Accommodations
At UAA, you should feel safe and comfortable anywhere on campus. In order to meet this
objective, you should (a) let your instructor know if an unsafe, unwelcome, or uncomfortable
situation arises that interferes with the learning process and (b) inform the instructor within the
first two weeks of classes if you have special needs or a disability that may affect your
performance in class. Any student with a documented disability needing academic adjustments
or accommodations is requested to speak with a counselor for disability services in Rasmuson
105. All discussions will remain confidential. Accommodations are NOT retroactive. That is,
you cannot inform me after a failed assignment that you required accommodation for that
assignment.
Campus Resources
UAA has a Reading and Writing Center (SMH 118) and a Digital Composition Studio (ADM
103 Q) where tutors will help you improve your writing and help you learn how to compose
multimodal texts. I encourage you to visit the centers at any stage of your process. UAA also
offers free student counseling at the Student Health and Counseling Center in Rasmuson 120.
Class Environment
I am committed to recognizing a diverse variety of voices and opinions and making this class a
safe space for productive discourse. Since many authors and students write out of personal
experiences, class readings and discussions may cover such topics as religious belief or lack of
belief, race and the experience of racism, gender relations and sexuality, homosexuality,
environmental concerns, wildlife welfare, or politics (conservative or liberal). If the discussion
of such topics would make you uncomfortable to the point of interfering with your learning
process, this course may not be for you. Though you may not always agree with assigned
readings or your classmates, I expect you to communicate your ideas politely and respectfully
at all times. Disrespectful or insensitive comments toward your classmates or me will not be
tolerated.
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Miscellaneous
 All e-mail communication must be handled through the school e-mail server. If you
send e-mail to or from any e-mail server other than the school’s, I cannot respond. Please
regularly check your school e-mail, as I will use it to communicate with you. Use
appropriate professional e-mail etiquette in your messages, including signing your name to
all messages. Please make sure your email communication is limited to class topics.
 Save all of your work! Back up your files on a flash drive, Google Drive, or Dropbox so
you’ll still have your work if your computer crashes unexpectedly. Malfunctioning
equipment unfortunately cannot be a valid excuse for missing or late work.
 Post-Virginia Tech caveat: If you write or say something that makes me think you might
harm yourself or others, I am obligated to report this to the UAA CARE team. I encourage
you to do the same should you notice a classmate, in our class or others, who is struggling.
 My office hours are there for you to use. Whenever you want to talk about an
assignment, a grade, or anything else, please come by my office or email me to set up an
online conference.
 This syllabus acts as a contract, stating policies and expectations for the course. Your
continued attendance in the class means that you have accepted this contract.
ASSIGNMENT POLICIES
Workload
Online classes offer students flexibility for when to complete assignments during the week;
however, online classes are just as intensive, if not more intensive, than face-to-face courses in
terms of workload. In a face-to-face class, the number of credit hours for the course signifies
how many hours per week the class actually meets. For example, a 3-credit course at UAA
would mean the students attend class with their professor for 3 hours total each week. In
addition, in college courses, for each credit hour, students are expected to spend 3 hours on
their own completing homework and studying (this would total 9 hours of study time per week
for a 3-credit college course).
In an online class, where we cannot meet face to face, you “attend” by completing weekly
assignments and discussion board posts online. Thus, the work you do each week for an online
class includes both your class “attendance” work in addition to the homework and work toward
major assignments that you would complete in a face-to-face class. ENGL 111 is a 3-credit
course, which means that you can expect to spend up to 12 total hours per week reading,
studying, and working on assignments for ENGL 111 online. If you can’t dedicate this amount
of time this semester, this course is not a good choice for you.
Weekly Online Work
Each week will include a new set of assignments, which may include readings and reading
summaries, skills practice, peer review activities, collaborative work, paper drafts, reflective
writing, components of major assignments, or Discussion Board posts. These assignments are
designed to help you directly with your major assignments; students who keep up with the
weekly work tend to succeed much more on major projects. Weekly online assignments will
each be graded out of 10 points on depth of thought, attention to detail, thoroughness, as well
as other varying factors. Late weekly online work will receive a 0. The deadline for each week’s
work will be Monday at 10 a.m. except for several deadlines related to first drafts and peer review,
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which will be noted in each Weekly Work folder. I will respond to your weekly work as soon as
possible with comments and feedback.
Please do not be mistaken about the nature of this course—you are expected to complete work
every week and will not be permitted to simply turn in all your assignments on the last day of
the semester.
Discussion Board Participation and Etiquette
Each student is expected to participate actively in class via the Blackboard Discussion Board
when I post discussion topics as assigned weekly work. I may join in some of your discussions
at certain points, but remember: just because I am not posting in a thread does not mean I am
not reading it. Students will read a guide to “net-iquette” and must exercise respectful, positive
online behavior. Remember to sign your name at the end of all posts and comments. Address
fellow students by name. Discussion board posts and comments will be graded on depth of
thought, proper etiquette, attention to detail, and engaging in a genuine conversation with
others. Late posts will receive a 0.
Online Attendance Policy
Your active participation and engagement in the online class community is critical for your
success in this course, and worth a significant portion of your grade (see details above). To this
end, if you do not participate in any class discussions or submit any weekly assignments for
three consecutive weeks, you will fail the course.
Format and Submission
Major assignments (listed in the chart above) must be e-mailed to me by the due date. All formal
assignments should be typed using Times New Roman, size 12 font, double-spaced. Put your
name, my name, the class session, and the date at the top of the first page. E-mail your paper to
ajknorr@uaa.alaska.edu as a .doc attachment (no other formats, please). DO NOT copy and
paste your paper into the body of the e-mail. I recommend CCing yourself on the e-mail you
send submitting work to me, so you can be sure the e-mail went through. Save your document
as “Your First Name_Your Last name_Paper#.” For example, John_Smith_Paper1.
Your weekly work—informal assignments—will be submitted using various means over
Blackboard.
Late Work
Late assignments are those arriving any time after the beginning of class on the due date. Late
assignments will lose a letter grade (or 10%) for each calendar day that they are late. Late work
penalties cannot be changed through revision. If you know you won’t be in class on a day that
an assignment is due, it is your responsibility to turn it in ahead of time. Late assignments
should be submitted by e-mail to ajknorr@uaa.alaska.edu. If your work is late due to a severe,
documentable emergency, e-mail me as soon as possible to discuss arrangements. When in
doubt about anything, always come and talk to me or send me an e-mail.
Emergency Late Pass
I will grant you one “emergency late pass” to e-mail a major assignment or homework
assignment up to 24 hours late, no questions asked. Simply type “Emergency Pass” in the
subject line of your e-mail or write it on your paper.
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Length Requirements
All assignments must meet the minimum word and/or source count requirement to receive a
passing grade. Essays that do not meet the full minimum word and/or source count will not be
read or graded and will be returned with a zero. If an incomplete essay is revised according to
the revision policy below, the new grade will be averaged with the initial zero grade.
Readings and Reading quizzes
You will read both rhetorical theory and sample essays throughout the semester. Most of these
readings will come from your textbooks, but some may be online. It is important that you keep
up with these readings not only to succeed on quizzes, but to succeed on your papers, as well.
You are responsible for all of the readings—as evidenced on quizzes and in your papers. All
quizzes will be open-note and open-book.
Revision
Revision is one of the most important aspects of the writing process. You will therefore engage
in revision constantly throughout the semester as you write, but any of the first three major
writing assignments may be revised and resubmitted for a new grade after it has been
graded—provided the student has completed all the weekly work leading into that writing project. For
example, if a student did not complete an outline for his/her research paper, s/he would not be
allowed to revise it for a new grade.
I allow these revisions because I believe writing is a process; you may require more time to
develop an effective paper, and you should use the opportunity to use feedback constructively.
Revisions must demonstrate substantial change to the focus, support, approach, and/or
organization of the essay in addition to comprehensive error correction, or they will be
returned with no grade change. If the revision warrants, a new grade will be given and will
replace the original mark. Revising a paper does not, however, guarantee a higher grade.
All revised papers must include a minimum 200-word reflection describing the strategies and
approaches you used for your revision and why you think the thinking and writing in the
essay’s revision is stronger. I will not accept the revision if you do not include the short
reflection. Revisions must be submitted with all previous drafts via email to
ajknorr@uaa.alaska.edu, and completed within two weeks of the essay’s return to you.
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