Miami Dade College
Course Objectives and Policies and Procedures
ENC 1101
English Composition 1
Professor R.M. Stambaugh
Office: 3604-28
Telephone: 305.237.3709
E-Mail: rstambau@mdc.edu
Department Website: http://www.mdc.edu/wolfson/departments/english/
Course Description
This is the first required general core course in college-level writing. Students will
compose essays and other works using various methods of development. This course
fulfills 8,000 words of the Gordon Rule requirement. Note: this course must be
completed with a grade of “C” or better. Prerequisites: Placement by Scholastic
Assessment Test (SAT) verbal subtest score; American College Testing (ACT) English
subtest score; Computerized Placement Test (CPT) English subtest score; or ENC 0021
with a grade of “S.” (3 hr. lecture).
Course Objectives
In this course, the beginning college writer will learn how to create a personal
writing style by addressing those issues most needed to communicate effectively in
English. Focused readings and commentary about essays and literature; mastering
planning, organization, revision and rewriting techniques; beginning research; as well as
the cultivation of listening and note-taking skills will be the essential components of the
course that students will be expected to master by the end of term.
You will be assigned a number of essays to write during the term in response to
the class readings. They will be the primary basis for your final grade. From time to time,
the instructor may assign additional or optional work that will be figured in the course
writing content. You will also be expected to master some of the format requirements for
the Modern Language Association Research Paper Guide in this class as a preparation for
the research requirement in ENC 1102.
Policies and Procedures
Your attending this class implies full understanding and constitutes full acceptance of
the terms of this contract regarding its policies and procedures. Should you need further
clarification, please see me personally.
1. ATTENDANCE: The student is expected to attend class meetings because
consistent classroom participation is essential for student success. Legitimate
absences for personal illness or emergencies are, of course, recognized.
Nonetheless, the student is responsible for all work assigned and all deadlines.
Any student who misses class meetings in excess of standard attendance
expectation policy may be dropped from the class-roll at the discretion of the
instructor. The student is likewise encouraged to monitor his daily
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attendance at class and if in excess of standard attendance expectation policy
should withdraw from the class in a timely manner to avoid academic
penalties. The instructor may also ask for documentation when consecutive
absences occur.
EXAMS: The class essays serve as examinations. The final exam serves as an
exit exam and the student must pass the final exam to advance to the next writing
level.
LATENESS: The student must report to class on time. Excessive tardiness will
be penalized.
WRITING MAKEUPS: If the student is absent for an assignment or passes an
assignment due date, the student must inform the professor prior to the due
date that the paper will be late and he will have until the next class meeting
to complete the missing assignment. None will be accepted after that point
and the grade for the missed work will be recorded as 0. Please note that this
option is only for extenuating circumstances. It is not an automatic extension for
all papers. Any misuse of this policy will be considered a breach of this
agreement.
CODE OF HONESTY: The student is bound by Miami Dade College’s academic
honesty code. As such, the student is expected to conduct his academic affairs in a
forthright and honest manner. In the event that students are suspected of
classroom cheating, plagiarism or otherwise misrepresenting their work, he will
be subject to procedural due process. Academic dishonesty includes but is not
limited to the following:
 cheating on an examination;
 receiving help from others in work to be submitted, if contrary to the stated
rules of the course;
 plagiarizing, that is the taking and claiming as one’s own the ideas, writings,
or work of another, without citing the sources;
 submitting work from another course unless permitted by the instructor;
 stealing examinations or course materials;
 falsifying records;
 assisting anyone to do any of the above
A detailed discussion of the above may be found in the Students’ Rights and
Responsibilities Handbook or at http://www.mdc.edu/pdf/procedures/4074.pdf.
Grading
Essays, 100%
Office Hours
The Instructor will be available during regularly scheduled office hours during the
week. Printed times will be provided at a later date.
Miami Dade College
Course Syllabus for ENC 1101
English Composition 1
Professor R.M. Stambaugh
Office: 3604-28
Telephone: 305.237.3709
E-Mail: rstambau@mdc.edu
Department Website: http://www.mdc.edu/wolfson/departments/english/
Required Textbooks:
1. Reinventing the Wheel: An Answer to the Deconstructionists. Clark, Davis, et
al. Thomson, 2005.
2. The New McGraw-Hill Handbook. McGraw-Hill, 2007.
Week 1
Aug. 23
Course Introduction and Diagnostic Essay
Read “The Writing Process,” 591-606 (RW)
Week 2
Aug. 28
Conceptualizing the Course: Reinventing the Wheel
Read “Critical Reading,” 581-590 (RW)
Week 3
Sept 4
Recomposing the Self: Persona Personified
Selected Readings
Week 4
Sept. 11
Building a Personal Identity
Selected Readings
Week 5
Sept. 18
The Self, continued
Writing 1
Week 6
Sept. 25
Re-Combining---Nature and Environment
Selected Readings
Week 7
Oct. 2
Nature Continued
Writing 2
Week 8
Oct. 9
Re-envisioning the World---The New World Order
Selected Readings
Week 9
Oct. 16
A New World, continued
Writing 3
Week 10
Oct. 23
The Re-Cognition of Spirit---Divining the Language of the
Holy
Selected Readings
Week 11
Oct. 30
Spirituality, continued
Writing 4
Week 12
Nov. 6
Reconstructing the Story---Myth and Metaphor
Selected Readings
Week 13
Nov. 13
Myth, continued
Writing 5
Week 14
Nov. 20
Renaming the Animals---Breaking the Code
Selected Readings
Week 15
Nov. 27
Language, continued
Selected Readings
Week 16
Dec. 4
Language, continued
Final Examination/Writing 6
Week 17
Dec. 11
Final Assessments