Course Syllabus
English 1000
Fall 2009
Instructor: Mr. Bill Devine
bdevine@taft.org
661-763-7883
Office: Mod G, 5B
This class has no prerequisite, but the successful completion of English 55 is
recommended.
Learning College: This course is designed to emphasize student learning. It
will help students get their ideas down on paper, develop their own voice as a
writer, and define the world as they see it. The main emphasis is to improve
student’s writing skills in preparation for the Composition course, English 1A.
The writing and grammar assignments are opportunities for students to
improve and show their abilities. The instructor’s role is to facilitate this
learning process in a positive classroom environment, so each student can
reach the next level of written communication and become more successful in
all of their college classes.
Course Description: This is a college preparatory course for those students
whose placement test scores indicate a need for a review of the mechanics of
written composition: sentence structure, punctuation, vocabulary, and spelling.
This course includes intensive training in paragraph and essay writing, reading
for understanding, and learning the grammatical aspects of the English
language. Students must pass this course to graduate from Taft College.
For this reason, it represents the writing standards for the college, and
students who pass this class must be expected to have achieved a minimum
level of competency in writing.
Textbook and Required Materials:
Sentences, Paragraphs, and Beyond, 5th edition, written by Lee Brandon and
Kelly Brandon (available in the TC bookstore).
Students must have access to a computer for writing assignments required
outside of class.
Suggested Texts and Materials
Roget’s Thesaurus (available on the Internet) is an enriching source for finding
the right word.
A dictionary (available on the Internet) can be helpful to verify the meanings of
words and to check spelling if a spell-checker is not an option or if the
spell-checker’s ability to nuance the correct word is in doubt.
A computer disk is useful for storing work done on computers (available in the
student bookstore).
Grading System:
The in-class essays, the out of class essays, and the tests, quizzes, and
assignments for submission will have points allotted to them. There will be
some points earned through group work in class. The points you earn will be
divided by the points possible to arrive at a percentage score, which is
converted to a standard letter grade.
Attendance:
Since your grade depends mostly on writing, tests, and work done in class, it
would be wise to attend every class. I reserve the right to drop students after
the third no-show of the semester. Communicate your situation with me if you
have a problem, but don’t let attendance get in the way of your being
successful in college. As for me, I will be missing certain days this semester
due to conferences and seminars, but there will be substitutes to facilitate
class on those days. No, students cannot provide substitutes for themselves.
Plagiarism:
Every year students try to cheat, and every year they get caught. All your
work must be your own. Turning in work you did not create from your own
intellect, or that you did not credit to the person who wrote it, is cheating, and it
is also called plagiarism. If you ever want to use the words of someone else
within your own paper, just put quotes around those words and put their name
in parentheses after the quote with the page number you “copied it from”
(Devine 2). Plagiarism results in zero points for that assignment, even if you
just plagiarized some of the essay or assignment from someone else. I have
the option of reporting cheating to the Dean of Instruction.
Practical Information:
All out of class essays must be double-spaced, size 12 font, with Ariel or Times
New Roman type.
Make sure I know which topic you are writing on (even if I
didn’t give you a choice) and do remember to put your name and my name on
the work, so it can be recovered if misplaced, and there will be no mistakes in
recording grades.
Disabilities:
I worked with people with disabilities as a full-time job for ten years in Student
Support Services. I was a learning disability technician, testing students for
most of those ten years. I am enthusiastic in regard to making the
recommended accommodations for people with physical disabilities and
learning disabilities to create a level playing field and an optimum learning
experience for all people. Please don’t hesitate to inform me if you have a
card from Student Support Services that allows you certain accommodations.
I will gladly make every reasonable effort to meet your needs.
Office Hours: Tuesday and Thursday, 11-12 and 5-6.
I’m looking forward to a great semester with all of you!
Bill Devine