WRA 150: The New Media, Technologies, Communities, and Cultures
of College Writing
Instructor Info
Guiseppe Getto
Office Hours: 1-3 p.m. Tues. (or by appointment)
Office Location: 283 Ernst Bessey Hall
E-mail: gettogui@msu.edu
Phone: 517-574-8965
Instructor's website: www.guiseppegetto.com
Syllabus in pdf:
Physical Time/Location
Tu/Th 10:20 AM - 12:10 PM C106 Wells Hall
Course Website
http://www.guiseppegetto.com/wra150/
Link to Angel
http://angel.msu.edu
Course Objectives
In this course, we will be reading about, examining, discussing, and writing about and in the
newest technologies, media, communities, and cultures of college writing. As this is a hybrid
course (half online and half in person), this seems particularly appropriate.
What this means: we will be doing lots of writing, discussing, and interacting in online
spaces. We will study the ways in which college writing has changed since the advent of
Internet communication technologies, particular Web 2.0 forms of interaction (blogs, wikis,
discussion boards, chat rooms, etc.).
Some of the key areas we will focus on in this class include:
 new ways of sifting through information
 new forms of reading and writing
 impacts of new technologies on the way people work, form communities, and contribute to our culture
Required Assignments
60% (600 pts.) for Major Assignments
 Project #1 (10%) Academic Blog
 Project #2 (10%) New Media Research Project
 Project #3 (10%) New Media Remix, Cut 1
 Project #4 (15%) Net Media Research Paper
 Project #5 (15%) New Media Remix, Cut 2
30% (300 pts.) Less Formal Assignments
 Homework assignments
 Blog entries
 Annotated bibliography entries
10% (100 pts.) Participation and Citizenship
 Small in-class (both on-and-offline) assignments
 Presentations
 Examples of your work for class discussion
Required Texts/Expenses


Ballenger, Bruce. The Curious Researcher. ISBN#: 0-205-74526-1. (available in the MSU
Bookstore(s)) http://spartanbook.com/)
Maimon, Elaine P. et al. The Brief McGraw-Hill Handbook. Boston, MA: McGraw Hill, 2009. ISBN#: 007340587-6 (available in the MSU Bookstore(s))http://spartanbook.com/

Numerous other readings will be linked to from this website or posted to Angel as PDFs (locations of readings
are always indicated in the schedule for each project, available here). You may download these to your
computer or view them online at no expense, or may print them out at some expense.

You will also be required to purchase/reimburse your instructor for tapes or other small storage devices, as
required by your new media project. The cost of this will not be significant (tapes are app. $3 a piece, jump
drives app. $10-15). If you design a website for this project and decide to purchase a domain name, that will, of
course, cost something as well, but this is not required for the class.
Attendance Policy
All courses in the Tier I Writing Program require high levels of student interaction. You are therefore expected to
attend each class session and to complete online activities on time (failure to post online activities by their stated
deadline will result in an absence). Because illnesses and emergencies sometimes occur, you are permitted two
absences without penalty. After two classes your final grade for the course will go down .30 for each additional
absence. Save your absences for emergencies. If an emergency arises that will require you to be absent more than
twice, contact me immediately. Also: if you are going to be absent for any reason, you should contact me to find out
what you missed in class.
Grading Scale For Class:
The total points possible in this class are 1000. Final grades will be tallied via the following
scale:
 4.0=A; 93-100%; (930-1000)
 3.5=A-/B+; 90-92%; (900-929)
 3.0=B; 83-89%; (830-899)
 2.5=B-/C+; 80-82%; (800-829)
 2.0=C; 73-79%; (730-799)
 1.5=C-/D+; 70-72%; (700-729)
 1.0=D; 63-69%; (630-699)
 0.5=D-/F+; 60-62%; (600-629)
 0.0=F; 59% or less; (599 or less)
Grading Criteria for Class



In-class activities and homework assignments are graded pass-fail: "pass" means you did the assignment well,
you did it completely, and you turned it in on time; "fail" means you didn't do it well, didn't do it completely,
or turned it in late (or not at all). No single one of these miscellaneous exercises will have that much impact on
your overall grade. However, collectively, they will have some impact.
Important: you must complete all the major writing assignments (including accompanying documents such as
cover letters, research summaries, etc.) in order to pass this class. Failure to complete any of these
assignments, regardless of your total point value, will result in a failing grade in the class.
Late major assignments will be downgraded 1.0 per day past the due date (the first reduction occurs at the end
of the class in which the assignment is due). This includes days when our class does not meet.
Due Dates of Major Projects
Note: the following schedule, as well as this syllabus in general, is subject to
change as per the provisions of the Students' and Teacher's Rights and Powers.





Project #1 (10%) Academic Blog In this project you will reflect on your identity as a networked learner
and citizen and how this identity has been influenced by/has influenced your use of various media literacies.
Based on this reflection, you will also propose how you will revise/expand this identity through your work in
this class. The product you create to house this reflection will be an academic blog post. Rough Draft Due: May
20; Final Draft Due: May 24
Project #2 (10%) New Media Research Project In this project you will do research into various new
media genres that you think will be useful to you in the future as a networker and citizen. The goal of this
research is to develop a proposal for a new media genre you will design during projects 3-5. You will also
prepare a short, multimodal report that depicts example modes you think will be useful, that clearly explains
what technologies the new media genre you are proposing will require, and that explains potential purposes
and audiences of this new media genre; at the end of the report, you will provide a timeline for producing the
project during the semester that meets the larger due dates of the class. Rough Draft Due: May 31; Final Draft
Due: June 2
Project #3 (10%) New Media Remix, Cut 1 In this project you will complete a first draft of your
multimedia project. You will then show it to the class and an expert audience outside the class and will do a
short reflection on how you will revise it for the end of the semester. Rough Draft Due: June 10; Final Draft
Due: June 14
Project #4 (15%) New Media Research Paper In this project you will have the opportunity to discuss
some of the ways that cultural trends/problems related to the new media genre you are composing are
currently affecting writing technologies, citizenship, literacy, and/or new forms of media. You will do this by
picking a trend/problem, analyzing it in relationship to what others writers/citizens are doing, and compiling
effective writing practices for yourself and recommendations for how you might use knowledge that you've
discovered to respond to this trend/problem in the future. Rough Draft Due: June 22; Final Draft Due: June
24
Project #5 (15%) New Media Remix, Cut 2 In this project you will complete a final draft of your new
media project and will show it to the class and your outside audience for feedback. After receiving feedback,
and doing any final revision on the project, you will do a reflection on how your new media project can be
expanded/revised after the semester ends, and on how your ideas about networking, citizenship, literacy, and
new media have been impacted by your work over the course of the term. Final Draft Due: July 5th
Students with Disabilities
Students with disabilities should contact the Resource Center for Persons with Disabilities to establish reasonable
accommodations. For an appointment with a disability specialist, call 353-9642 (voice), 355-1293 (TTY), or
visit MyProfile.rcpd.msu.edu.
Disruptive Behavior
Article 2.3.5 of the Academic Freedom Report (AFR) for students at Michigan State University states: "The
student's behavior in the classroom shall be conducive to the teaching and learning process for all concerned."
Article 2.3.10 of the AFR states that "The student has a right to scholarly relationships with faculty based on mutual
trust and civility." General Student Regulation 5.02 states: "No student shall . . . interfere with the functions and
services of the University (for example, but not limited to, classes . . .) such that the function or service is
obstructed or disrupted. Students whose conduct adversely affects the learning environment in this classroom may
be subject to disciplinary action through the Student Faculty Judiciary process.
Academic Honesty/Plagiarism
Procedures for responding to breaches of academic honesty and possible repercussions are outlined in Spartan
Life: Student Handbook and Resource Guide. They can also be found on the web
at: http://www.msu.edu/unit/ombud/honestylinks.html.
The Writing Center
A great resource to help you with your assignments for this class. Filled with writing specialists who are eager to
help you with all stages of the inquiry process. A free service. Located at 300 Bessey Hall/Tutors also available in
the library. Ph: 517-432-3610. E-mail:writing@msu.edu. Web: http://writing.msu.edu.
Additional Writing Resources
The Learning Resource Center and the English Language Center all offer additional support services for Tier I
writing students. You should consult these centers' web sites for information about their specific resources.