WR121Syllabus

Class Location/Time: CRN 30015 meets in Pioneer 112 from 12:45-2; CRN 30023 meets in Pioneer 112 from 5:30-6:45

Instructor’s Phone: 541-383-7700 ext. 2281
Instructor’s Email: jagatucci@cocc.edu
Instructor’s Office: Modoc 224

Required Textbook: McKibben, Bill. Enough: Staying Human in an Engineered Age. New York: Henry Holt and Company, 2003.

WR 121 - English Composition
Introduces students to college writing: how to use experience, observation and critical reading to discover and support ideas. Students learn to organize an essay around a thesis, to use suitable patterns of development, to support ideas clearly, to revise to suit purpose and audience and to edit for college-level style. Timed writing in class is a major component. Prerequisites: COMPASS scores: reading 84-100, writing 71-100; or grade of "C" or higher in WR 65 or WR 75 or WR 95; or demonstrated equivalency and instructor approval. Credits: 3 Lecture: 3

Assignments: Your grade in this class is based on a 1000-pt system based on the following assignments:

*Assignment*	*Points*
Reading Journals:	50X5=250 points
Essay #1:	100 points
Essay #2:	150 points
Essay #3:	150 points
Peer Review:	50 points
Final Exam Essay:	250 points
Final Exam Prep Work:	50 points
Total:	1000points

WR121 Learning Outcomes (Skills you will develop as a result of this class):

Upon successful completion of WR 121, students will be able to:

Outcome 1 Write essays that use a thesis to establish control over content; supply relevant and adequate supporting details drawn from observation, personal experience and/or responsive reading; employ the organizational strategies of effective beginnings, transitions, and endings; and conform to standard edited English.

Outcome 2 Achieve outcome 1 under time constraints (prior to the final exam), while conforming to expectations of an assigned topic and of edited English appropriate for timed writing.

Outcome 3 Demonstrate the ability to use a variety of expository essay patterns, such as definition, classification, analysis, problem-solution, and comparison-contrast.

Outcome 4 Employ one or more sources responsibly (without plagiarizing) in a summary or aother writing assignment.

Outcome 5 Demonstrate, in an essay, a sustained style employing rhetorically effective tone, persona, diction, idiom, and syntax.

Outcome 6 Use critical reading and writing to analyze and synthesize ideas in an academic writing sample, identifying rhetorical patterns, major assertions, and supporting details.

Outcome 7 Complete appropriate written critical peer reviews of student essay drafts, including suggestions for revision and editing.

Outcome 8 Complete at least one (formal or informal) written review of the student's own writing strengths and weaknesses, including effective self-prescriptions for improvement.

Outcome 9 Demonstrate, monitor, and articulate the complete idiosyncratic process that the individual writer uses to complete an essay, including such steps as invention, thesis formation, organization, drafting, revising, editing, and proofreading.

Submitting Your Work/Tracking your grades: You will submit all of your to-be-graded work to an external web-service called Turn It In (www. turnitin.com). What the heck is Turn It In? Turn It In is an external web-service through which you will submit all your formal written assignments, conduct and view peer reviews, and check your grades. The set up process is very basic and Turn It In offers excellent instructions in Adobe Acrobat form. For more information and links to this site, click on the Turn It In button in our Blackboard class (or any of the Turn It In references in this paragraph).

Plagiarism Policy: Plagiarism is using someone else’s work as your own. Most of us know that it is plagiarism to copy, word for word, someone’s work and then turn it in as our own. However, it is also plagiarism to use someone else’s ideas without proper documentation. If you are ever unsure about what constitutes plagiarism, please ask me before you turn something in that may be questionable. For the first plagiarism offense, you will be asked to rewrite the paper. For the second offense (on the same or following assignments), you will be given a grade of F for that assignment. If a third offense occurs, you will receive an F in this course. Plagiarism is a serious matter and should be treated as such.

Late Work Policy: All assignments must be submitted to Turn It In by their respective due dates. No late essay assignments will be accepted without prior notice/permission from your instructor. Discussion Board Assignments, Reading Journals, and Peer Reviews, based on their timely nature, cannot be made up under any circumstances. Note concerning emailing your assignments: Unless special permission is given, please do not email your assignments to me (always submit them to Turn It In).

Attendance: Regular attendance is expected in this class. Assignment details and instructions will be given during class; if you miss class, it is your responsibility to consult the syllabus. Additionally, it is important to remember that missing a significant number of classes will affect your progress. I cannot help you improve your writing if you do not attend classes.

ADA statement: Students with documented disabilities who may need accommodations, who have any emergency medical information the instructor should know of, or who need special arrangements in the event of evacuation, should make an appointment with the instructor as early as possible, not later than the first week of the term. Students may also wish to contact the COCC Disability Services Office in BEC, ext. 7583.

Material disclaimer: Readings and topics discussed in this course can be assumed to be of an adult nature. Most will deal with current discussion in the public realm: politics and social concerns. If you find you have any concerns about any of the topics, you are encouraged to talk with me prior to any due dates for assignments.

Week 1
Monday	Read In Class: Intro to Enough. Discuss: Scope of the class	Notes:
Wednesday	Read Before Class: Begin Ch. 1 of Enough with the intent of completing the chapter by the beginning of our Thursday class. Discuss: Close Reading Skills, Reading Journal #1, Summary Writing
Thursday	Read Before Class: Complete Ch. 1 of Enough Discuss: Review of Close Reading Skills and their importance for summary writing and Ch. 1 of Enough Workshop: Small-Group Collaboration on Comprehensive Chapter Summary of Ch. 1 of Enough

Week 2
Monday	Read Before Class: Begin Ch. 2 of Enough with the intent of completing the chapter by the beginning of our Thursday class. Discuss: Ch. 1 of Enough, Essay #1: The Writing Process Assignments Due: Reading Journal for Ch. 1 of Enough will be submitted to Turn It In at the beginning of today's class.	Notes:
Wednesday	NO CLASS: Happy 4th of July NOTE: There will be no Small-Group Collaboration project this week.
Thursday	Read Before Class: Finish Ch. 2 of Enough. Discuss: Prompt Analysis, Pre-writing strategies in response to Prompt Analysis Workshop: Determining Thesis Objectives from Essay #1 Prompts

Week 3
Monday	Workshop: Drafting Essay #1 Assignments Due: Reading Journal for Ch. 2 of Enough must be submitted to Turn It In at least 15 minutes before class begins.	Notes:
Wednesday	No Formal Class Meetings on Wed. and Thurs. Draft Conferences: At the end of Monday’s Draft Workshop, you’ll sign up to meet individually with your instructor to discuss your draft of Essay #1. At least 15 minutes prior to your meeting, you must submit your Essay #1 draft to Turn It In. All meetings are held in your instructor’s office, Modoc 224.
Thursday

Week 4
Monday	Read before Class: Begin Ch. 3 of Enough with the intent of completing the chapter by the beginning of our Wednesday class. Discuss: Essay #2, incorporating sources into your writing (MLA style) Assignments Due: Final Revision of Essay #1 must be submitted to Turn It In at least 15 minutes before class begins.	Notes:
Wednesday	Read Before Class: : Complete Ch. 3 of Enough Discuss: Ch. 3 of Enough Workshop: Small-Group Collaboration on Comprehensive Ch. Summary for Ch. 3 of Enough
Thursday	Read Before Class: n/a Discuss: Prompts for Essay #2 Workshop: Determining Thesis Objectives from Essay #2 Prompts

Week 5
Monday	Workshop: Drafting Essay #2 Assignments Due: Reading Journal for Ch. 3 of Enough must be submitted to Turn It In at least 15 minutes before class begins.	Notes:
Wednesday	No Formal Class Meetings on Wed. and Thurs. Peer Review: At the end of Monday’s Draft Workshop, you’ll be paired with another student in your class for peer review. You and your partner will be assigned a Group within Blackboard. From this medium (i.e., Blackboard), you’ll post your essay for review, read your partner’s essay, and provide feedback. Your partner will do the same for you. In the end, you’ll use the feedback you receive to revise Essay #2 for final submission. Your instructor will be available during normal office hours. NOTE: This draft does not need to be submitted to Turn It In. It only needs to be submitted to your Peer Review Group within Blackboard.
Thursday

Week 6
Monday	Read Before Class: Begin Chs. 4&5 of Enough with the intent of completing both by the beginning of our Wednesday class. NOTE: This will complete your reading of Enough. Workshop: In-class timed writing of Essay #2. NOTE: You will already have completed this essay and submitted it to Turn It In by the beginning of today’s class. The timed-writing will ask you to rewrite the essay from memory and is meant to mimic the Final Exam Essay conditions. Assignments Due: Final Revision of Essay #2 must be submitted to Turn It In at least 15 minutes before class begins.	Notes:
Wednesday	Read Before Class: Complete Chs. 4 & 5 of Enough. Discuss: Comparative analysis of your Final Revision version of Essay #2 and your in-class version of Essay #2. We'll also discuss Essay #3 to prepare for the workshop described below. Workshop: Design-a-prompt: with Chs 4 and 5 as your subject matter, you'll design your own prompt for Essay #3.
Thursday	Read Before Class: Complete both Chs. 4 & 5. Assignments Due: Your last Reading Journal Close-up must be submitted to Turn It In at least 15 minutes before class begins. NOTE: Base this last Close-Up on a Chapter Chunk from either (NOT BOTH!) Ch. 4 or Ch. 5 of Enough. Workshop: Drafting Essay #3 (make sure you bring your prompt analysis and your outline to class today).

Week 7
Monday	Assignments Due: Final Revision of Essay #3 must be submitted to Turn It In at least 15 minutes before class begins. Read before Class: n/a Discuss: Final Exam Essay. NOTE: Prompts for the Final Exam Essay will be handed out in class today. Workshop: In-class timed writing of Essay #3. NOTE: You will already have completed this essay and submitted it to Turn It In by the beginning of today’s class. The timed-writing will ask you to rewrite the essay from memory and is meant to mimic the Final Exam Essay conditions.	Notes:
Wednesday	Workshop: Determining Thesis Objectives from the Final Exam Prompts. NOTE: You will need to post your Prompt Analysis to Blackboard by midnight tonight This assignment represents Pt. 1 of your Final Exam Prep Work.
Thursday	Assignments Due: Draft of Final Exam Essay must be submitted to your Blackboard Group Discussion Board by midnight tonight. Read before Class: n/a Final Exam Prep Workshop: Online Peer Review for Final Exam Essay. NOTE: You will need to post your Peer Review to your Group Discussion Board in Blackboard by midnight on Friday, August 10th. This assignment represents Pt. 2 of your Final Exam Prep Work.

Week 8
Monday	Workshop: Revise your Final Exam essay with the intent of submitting it to Turn It In at least 15 minutes before this week's Wednesday class.	Notes:
Wednesday	Assignments Due: Final Revision of Final Exam Essay must be submitted to Turn It In at least 15 minutes before class begins. Final Exam Essay In-class Writing Part 1: You’ll have today’s 1hr 15 min class period to draft your in-class version of your Final Exam Essay.
Thursday	Final Exam Essay In-class Writing Part 1: You’ll have today’s 1hr 15 min class period to revise your Final Exam Essay. At the end of today’s class, you must print out and hand in a hard-copy of your Final Exam Essay to the proctor. In addition, you must also submit a copy to Turn It In (you’ll have until 30 minutes after the official end of class to complete this Turn It In submission.

WR121SyllabusSummer2007.htm
Last Updated: 18 June 2008

This webpage is maintained by Jacob Agatucci, Instructor of Composition,
Humanities Department, Central Oregon Community College
I welcome comments: jagatucci@cocc.edu
© Jacob Agatucci, 2001