Syllabus for ENC-1102 SUMMER 2015 ONLINE
Professor Spottke
MY OFFICE: Valencia West, Building 1-Room 238A
My Office Phone: 407-582-1935
My Email: nspottke@valenciacollege.edu
Communications Department Located at 5-231;
Communications Department phone: 407 582 1313
Face-to-face Hours, this is the ONLY time you will catch me in my office.
Visit me on West Campus, building 1 room 238A
No appointment necessary, just drop in!:
Wednesdays 5pm to 6pm
Tuesdays and Thursdays 940-1140
Face-to-face Conferences outside of scheduled
face-to-face hours may be requested by appointment
Online hours, nspottke@valenciacollege.edu
I respond to email messages during these hours ONLY:
Monday through Friday 2pm to 3pm
BOOKS and MATERIALS
• The Little Seagull Handbook by Richard Bullock and Francine Weinberg
• Kirszner, Laurie G., and Stephen R. Mandell. Portable Literature, 7th ed.
GRADES
You will earn points for each assignment you complete. You must earn 700 points to pass the course with a C.
800 earns you a B.
900 an A.
A list of assignments, points, and due dates are posted on BLACKBOARD. You will earn points for two
essays, an annotated bibliography and a research paper as well as various discussions and free writes,
quizzes, and an end of year presentation. There is no formal midterm or final exam for this class.
There are 25 extra points built into the semester. Because of these extra points, there will be no “bumping
up” of grades due to being “so close” and no extra credit offered. Don’t ask.
700 points is absolutely REQUIRED to pass this course.
Failure to complete the three essays and annotated bibliography will result in an F for not meeting Gordon
Rule Requirements.
BLACKBOARD
This is the online class site. You will utilize this site to view instructions and requirements; check for important
announcements; post essays and assignments; read through learning modules, keep track of your class standing (grades);
and stay up-to-date on when work is due. You are responsible for checking the announcements regularly—at least three
times a week.
GETTING STARTED WITH BLACKBOARD:
Access our class site via the following link: learn.valenciacc.edu
--Use the same USER ID and PASSWORD as you use to access your ATLAS account.
--remove popup blocker for this site prior to logging in for the first time.
Any troubles with Blackboard?
My recommendation: Download three browsers to your computer:
Firefox
Explorer
and Chrome.
If something doesn’t work on Blackboard, try another browser. If all three browsers show the same trouble, call Online
Courses Help Desk and make sure to ask for a confirmation code:
Blackboard Help Page or 407-582-5600.
Only after doing all of this should you contact the professor and alert her of the problem—be sure to give her the
confirmation code as well.
COURSE PREREQUISITES
ENC 1101 or ENC1101H with minimum grade of C.
COURSE DESCRIPTION
Application of skills learned in ENC 1101. Emphasis is on style; use of library; reading and evaluating available sources; planning,
writing, and documenting research paper using MLA style format.
GORDON RULE
State Board of Education Rule 6A-10.030, the Gordon Rule, requires that students complete with grades of C or better 12 credit hours in
designated courses in which the student is required to demonstrate college-level writing skills through multiple assignments

Failure to complete ALL assigned essays and the quotes list will result in an F for the course.

Individual essays UNDER the length requirement will not be accepted. Student can turn in completed essay late to meet Gordon
Rule Requirements or else will result in an F for not meeting Gordon Rule. See assignment sheets for individual length
requirements.

Essays, Annotated Bibliography & Research Essay on a Novel & Late Policy Regarding…
Submission in .doc or
.docx/Microsoft Word format
Your essays must be submitted as an attachment in
Microsoft Word (.doc or .docx format) ONLY to
Blackboard. Failure to submit in this format
will result in a loss of up to ten points—more for the
documented essay, for proper formatting of MLA
documentation will not be verifiable. All word
processing programs have the capability to SAVE
AS a Word, .doc, or .docx file.
 Failure to Complete any essay
Four essays are due during the semester. If you fail to submit even one of these--you have up to FOUR days
past the deadline. You will earn a zero for that missed assignment and you will fail the course for not meeting
Gordon Rule Requirements.
 LATE essays
Late essays will incur a penalty of 20% per calendar day. This is non-negotiable and will be strictly enforced
for everyone. No exceptions will be made to this policy for any reason including technology issues (i.e.
computer crashing, uploading wrong file, etc. The late penalty will be waived only when official, written
documentation of an emergency, such as hospitalization documents, is presented within 48 hours of the
missed work (no hand written doctors’ notes, please).

length requirement
In the case of failing to meet the length requirement when submitting the final draft, the professor will return
the essay ungraded. Student will be responsible for resubmitting essay for Gordon Rule Requirements no
more than four days after the student has been informed of the short length. Failure to submit by this late
deadline will earn you a zero for that missed assignment and you will fail the course for not meeting Gordon
Rule Requirements. (see GORDON RULE above); zero will remain.

OVER the length requirement
Furthermore, going OVER the length requirement will result in up to ten point deduction depending on how
far over the length. Good writing must be condensed, succinct, and to the point.

Essay Formatting
Type Your Essays According to MLA Format. Failure to meet the required formatting will result in a loss of
up to ten points for each requirement. Essays and the annotated bibliography each list format requirements
and point deductions for not following format rules.
ESSAY GRADES ARE CALCULATED ACCORDING TO THE FOLLOWING CRITERIA:
F
Focus. Thesis statement is important in literary writing as well as generic essays as you completed
in 1101. Failure to have a strong argument by which to focus your paper, will result in a weak paper.
D
Development. You argument will not be strong if you do not develop. Just as you did in 1101, you
must fully reason (explanations) and offer specific detail (PROOF) to prove your point. The best way to do
this with literature is to directly quote passages from the short story or novel.
O
Organization. Organization is important for literary analysis on three levels: One, sentence to
sentence organization of ideas; two, paragraph to paragraph arrangement of the points of your argument;
and three, integration of quotes from the poetry, short stories, and novel on which you are writing.
S
Style. Throughout the semester, I will introduce you to various stylistic devices, poetic schemes.
You will be responsible for creating your own versions of these devices and integrating them fluidly into your
essays. Failure to include the required devices will result in a loss of points.
C
Conventions. How is your grammar? Comma splices, run-on sentences, fragments, subject/verb
agreement, subject/pronoun agreement and spelling are just some of the errors you should work on. Use your
handbook as your guide to bettering your writing.
ONLINE ETIQUETTE
Go to the Blackboard course and click on the tab in the list on the left, “Online and Email Etiquette.”
ACADEMIC HONESTY & PLAGIARISM
Plagiarism is the use of someone else’s words, ideas, pictures, design, and/or intellectual property without the
correct documentation and punctuation.
Your professor has a no tolerance approach to plagiarism. Students’ essays will be submitted to a Blackboard
program for verification of originality. If you submit work that is wholly or partially plagiarized, you will be
penalized for the offense, depending on the extent of the offense.
This includes reusing old work from a previous class without permission from your professor.
Basically, if you are cutting from somewhere and then pasting into your essay without
1. quotation marks, AND
2. citations, AND
3. a bibliographic entry on the works cited page,
then you ARE plagiarizing!
Do NOT open a web site and start reading and/or copying.
You will be taught MLA citation and formatting. If you take a passage from a source, a single sentence or
more without appropriately citing that information, you will receive an F in the course. Offering a sentence,
sentences, a full paragraph(s) or even a full essay will result in an F in the course. In extreme circumstances,
academic action may be taken against you including suspension from your courses.
Read the Academic Dishonesty policy found in Valencia’s online policy manual:
http://valenciacollege.edu/generalcounsel/policy/default.cfm?policyID=193&volumeID_1=8&navst=0
ONLINE PARTICIPATION
Online attendance is required and necessary for your receiving information and earning points. Logging on
only once a week is not sufficient. To get the most of this course, you are responsible for logging in and
checking ALL mail messages, announcements, and discussion messages every four days or less
The professor reserves the right to post an announcement and/or send out an email message worth points.
You will be responsible for responding to this message within four days’ time.
You will also be required to post & respond to your classmates.
Failure to complete the first week’s assignments will result in your automatic withdrawal from the course.
You will receive a warning message via Atlas mail for failure to log in as instructed for two weeks in a row
during the course of the semester BEFORE the withdrawal deadline. If you do not log in the week following,
you will be withdrawn from the course. There will be no instructor withdrawal after the withdrawal deadline
(see IMPORTANT DATES below).
WITHDRAWAL
See IMPORTANT DATES below for withdrawal deadlines (with refund or without academic penalty).
Students can withdraw themselves, receiving a grade of W in the course BEFORE the withdrawal deadline
but may NOT withdraw themselves after the withdrawal deadline. It is your responsibility and your decision
to withdraw from the course unless otherwise mandated by the instructor and/or the dean of the
Communications Department. (See Online Participation above).
WEEKLY ASSIGNMENTS
On your Blackboard Course Tab Menu on the left, you will see a button/tab labeled “Weekly Work due.”
Due Dates for all work are Fridays and Mondays by 11:59pm.
There is NO SUCH THING as late work with the exception of the three essays and annotated bibliography
(see Essays, Annotated Bibliography & Research Essay … above).
ATLAS MAIL and Student Questions—ONLINE Hours
You may send me questions via ATLAS mail. These questions will be responded to
Monday through Friday only (see hours listed above).
You MUST check your Atlas email account regularly— at least every four days—
for class cancellation notices, important announcements, etc..
You may also contact me via telephone. However, these calls will be responded to
ONLY during live engagement hours only (as listed above).
As for engagement hours, my doors are open to you according to the hours posted
on my office door and at the top of the syllabus. Want to work on homework?
Drop by. Want me to take a look at your essay? Drop by.
Appointments for other dates/times may be made when necessary, just ask.
IMPORTANT DATES
Friday July 4. No classes, college wide.
July 24 Withdrawal deadline
Final Exam. There is no final for this class, only a PowerPoint Presentation.
IMPORTANT LINKS
POOKY’s PANTRY
For students who are homeless and or hungry, non-perishable items are available in the Student Development office,
building 3 room 147. If you need or would like to donate, the pantry is open Monday through Thursday 8am to 7pm and
Friday 9am to 5pm. A Valencia ID is needed and five items per day may be retrieved from the pantry.
Communications Center
Writing Professionals available to work with you on essays, research, and overall writing skills (1/2 hour appointments; 1
hour appointments available for research paper). West Campus Building 5, room 155; (407) 582-1812
There are also writing centers at every campus, not just West. Check the campus website for whichever campus is closest
to you.
Computer Lab at the Library
Computers available for student use. Software support for all disciplines. Internet & word processing for research
papers. Atlas & E-mail, Software catalog available in Lab. Photo ID required.
Valencia Library West Databases
Log in to ATLAS, Click on "Search the Library." Click on "Databases A-Z." Scroll down through this list of various
databases. Choose one, click on it, and begin searching that database.
Having trouble with Blackboard?
Do NOT contact your professor, contact the Online Courses Help Desk:
For most common problems: http://d2.parature.com/ics/support/default.asp?deptID=8191
If the above link proves unhelpful, call: 407-582-5600
Tutorials on Evaluation of Web Resources: http://faculty.valencia.cc.fl.us/infolit/evaluation/default.htm
Offices for Students with Disabilities
Students with disabilities who qualify for academic accommodations must provide a Notification to Instructor (NTI) form
from the Office for Students with Disabilities (OSD) and discuss specific needs with the professor, preferably during the
first two weeks of class. The Office for Students with Disabilities determines accommodations based on appropriate
documentation of disabilities.
Contact information:
East Campus
Bldg. 5, Rm. 216
Ph: 407-582-2229
Fax: 407-582-8908
TTY: 407-582-1222
West Campus
SSB, Rm. 102
Ph: 407-582-1523
Fax: 407-582-1326
TTY: 407-582-1222
Osceola Campus
Bldg. 1, Rm. 140A
Ph: 407-582-4167
Fax: 407-582-4804
TTY: 407-582-1222
Winter Park Campus
Bldg. 1, Rm. 212
Ph: 407-582-6887
Fax: 407-582-6841
TTY: 407-582-1222
Valencia College is interested in making sure all our students have a rewarding and successful college experience. To that
purpose, Valencia students can get immediate help with issues dealing with stress, anxiety, depression, adjustment
difficulties, substance abuse, time management as well as relationship problems dealing with school, home or
work. BayCare Behavioral Health Student Assistance Program (SAP) services are free to all Valencia students and
available 24 hours a day by calling (800) 878-5470. Free face-to-face counseling is also available.
FINAL NOTE:
Some students seek “extra credit.” The professor does not offer extra credit, for such translates to extra work for the
professor, and she hasn’t the time for it. Instead, points can be offered at the end of the semester for visits made to either
the professor’s office or the writing center to review any of the assigned essays.
THIS SYLLABUS IS SUBJECT TO CHANGE.