English 101, Composition-Ruiz

Course Syllabus, Page 1

Syllabus

English 101, Composition

Winter Quarter 2006

9-9:50am: Monday – Friday, BE4149

Instructor: Cathy Ruiz

SCCC Office: BE3190

Phone: 206-587-6908

Office Hours: 10:00-10:50am, Monday through Friday.

E-mail:

Required Texts: 75 Readings. An Anthology. Buscemi & Smith, 9th Ed.

A Pocketful of Prose, Vol II, David Madden

Rules for Writers, 5th Ed. Diana Hacker

Course Description and Goals: This class will help you further develop your writing skills. This is mainly in terms of composing the college-level essay. But you will also learn what it is to be a writer in general. The bulk of this class involves writing and reading. But you will spend a fair amount of time in discussion. For the generation of ideas, which can evolve from discussion, feeds all good writing.

You will be asked to be creative in your work and you will be asked to be original, based upon your honest admissions. This is the backbone of all good writing, whether it is essay paper writing or poetry. You will also be expected to follow correct English language usage.

Overall, you will be offered the opportunity to develop your skills in preparation for future writing, whether this is within an academic, professional or community-oriented sphere.

Assignments:

1. Essay papers: There will be five essay papersdue.One essay will be written in class as your Final Exam at the end of the quarter.

You’ll have the opportunity to rewrite your essays once except for the final in-class essay.

All essay papers should be 3-5 pages in length.

Follow the essay format guidelines included with this Syllabus.

Essays must be submitted to me in paper copy on Fridays of the week they are due.

2. Responses to questions on reading. Respond in writing (most weeks) to the set of questions handed out on the essays and stories.

3. Preparation for Class Discussions on Reading. This means you have answered the questions on the readings and are prepared to discuss them if called upon in class.

4.In-Class Peer Critique Workshops. You must attend class with 4 copies of your essay on the days the class is involved in critique workshops. You will lose 20 points off your total essay score of 100 points if you do not attend these workshops.

5. Journaling: See information on journaling at the end of this syllabus. This is a requirement and will earn you a total of 150 points for five submitted checks.

6. In-class writing: In-class writing assignments (which will be given randomly throughout the quarter) will not be graded but will be checked off as done or not done.

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Point Breakdown:

Essay Papers: 500 (at 100 points each x 5)

Journal (5 checks at 30 points each) 150

Assignments (150) & Mid-Term Quiz (50): 200 points

Class Participation: 150 points

Total: 1000 points

Class Participation: This includes being prepared for class and participating in discussions and workshops. Bring relevant texts to all classes. Have all assignments done on time and in good form.

I am here to help so don’t hesitate to drop by my office after class to meet with me and talk. You may also email me with questions. At Week 6, I will hold conferences with each of you to discuss your work in the class.

Class Policies:

1.Begin class with the understanding that you are responsible for your own learning. If you attend all classes and do the online work, turn in all the essays on time and write them to the best of your capability, participate in discussions, and exhibit sincere effort, you will do fine in this class.

2.All essays and assignments are due on the assigned date. Late essays and assignments will be deducted five points per class period they are overdue. There will be no late papers accepted one week following their due date. The Mid-Term quiz and the Final Essay paper can only be written on the date it is scheduled in class.

  1. Make every effort to attend all classes. You will receive the best learning experience from being in class every session. Remember: To simply stop attending class does not mean you are officially withdrawn from the class. It is your responsibility to follow through with the appropriate paperwork within the college’s withdrawal deadlines. If you do not officially withdraw, your grade at the end of the quarter will be based upon the work you did up to the time you stopped attending class.
  1. If you are late for class, it is your responsibility to inform me of your presence or you may be marked absent.
  1. Once you have arrived in class, please be courteous and remain for the entire class period. If you need to leave early, inform me before class begins or you will be marked absent for walking out of class early.

Plagiarism: College policy on plagiarism is outlined in the SCCC catalogue. This basically says that if you are found to have used someone else’s writing anywhere in your work, you will fail the class.

Special needs: If you need classroom accommodations based on a documented disability, have emergency medical information, or you need assistance in case of building evacuation, please see me as soon as possible.

English 101, Composition-Ruiz

Course Syllabus, Page 1

[Use this Format for Essays]

English 101-Ruiz

Your Name

Current Email Address

Date

Essay #

TITLE

Work should be double-spaced with one-inch margins on all sides. Use a 12-point Font in either Times Roman or Courier. Center the title of the work, then double space and begin with the manuscript text. Follow standard rules for grammar. Use the MLA guide for quote references and add a Bibliography on a separate sheet at the end of your paper to list source information if you use quotes.

For each full page of text, your last name, and the page number should go in the upper right corner. Example: Last Name - 2. The manuscript would start again one double-space down. You should end with approximately 25 lines to each full page of text.

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English101-Ruiz

On Journaling

A Journal is a place where you record your thoughts in writing. It is normally a place that is private and where your thoughts can run free.

For the purposes of this class, your Journal will specifically be used to record your thoughts about the essays and stories you read for class. It can also be a place where you respond to class discussions from your personal perspective.

It will overall be a place where you can work with ideas from all of the above to ready yourself for upcoming essays.

Remember to:

1. Date your journal entries.

2. Place your name at the top of the first page, or on the cover of your Journal.

You must turn in your Journals every two weeks for me to check. You will earn a total of 30 points for each of five journal checks (total 150 points).

You must have at least two pages of journal writing at the time of each check for a total of 10+ pages of Journal writing at the end of the course.

Requirements for Journal - Use either of the two below writing tools:

1)Paper – At least the size of a Blue Book (see Instructor example) or 8 ½ X 11. Write legibly using pen or hard pencil.

2)Computer file titled, “Journal-Your Name” that you send to me by email as an MSWord document or a Rich Text Attachment for my checks.

Class Schedule: English 101, 9am Daily, Winter06, Ruiz

75 Readings. An Anthology = 75

A Pocketful of Prose = PP

Rules for Writers = RW

This class schedule is subject to revisions as the quarter progresses. Revisions will be announced in class.

READ THE CHAPTERS LISTED FOR EACH WEEK.

YOU WILL ALSO COMPLETE QUESTIONS ON ESSAYS and STORIES LISTED FOR EACH WEEK. DUE DATES ANNOUNCED IN CLASS.

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Week One: Jan. 4th-6th

INTRODUCTION to the Essay; Narration & Description

READ: “Salvation,” Langston Hughes. Be prepared to discuss it Friday, Jan. 5th

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Week Two: Jan 10th-13th

CLASS DOES NOT MEET ON MONDAY, JANUARY 9TH

READ:

75: Chapter 1, Narration AND Chapter 2, Description.

RW: The Writing Process, P. 1-59

PP: “A Clean Well-lighted Place,” Ernest Hemingway. We will also view a video on this story in class. ALSO: “The Tell-Tale Heart,” Edgar Allan Poe; “The Handsomest Drowned Man in the World,” Gabriel Garcia Marquez.

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Week Three: Jan 16th-20th

HOLIDAY: MONDAY, JANUARY 16TH - CLASS DOES NOT MEET.

READ:

75:Chapter 6, Comparison and Contrast

PP:“A Jury of Her Peers,” Susan Glaspell, AND “Everyday Use,” Alice Walker

DUE:

Friday:Essay #1 FINAL (Narration-Description)

Journal Check #1

VOCABULARY: 1-2 words with definitions and a sentence using EACH word. THIS IS AN ONGOING ASSIGNMENT FOR EVERY FRIDAY OF THE QUARTER UNLESS NOTED OTHERWISE IN CLASS.

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Week Four: Jan 23rd-27th

RW: Clarity, P. 83-154 (Especially Important: Sections 8, 13, 17 & 18)

DUE:

Friday:Essay #2 DRAFT (Comparison-Contrast) with 4 copies for Peer Workshop.

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Week Five: Jan 30th -Feb 3rd

CHAPTER 3 AND 8 STORIES FROM LAST WEEK

75: Chapter 9, AnalogyAND Chapter 7, Example and Illustration

PP: “The Catbird Seat,” James Thurber, AND “A Small Good Thing,” Raymond Carver .

RW: Review all of Grammar and Punctuation Sections.

DUE:

Friday:FINAL Essay #2

Journal #2

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Week Six: Feb 6th-10th

75:Chapter 10, Argument and Persuasion

PP: “Rape Fantasies,” Margaret Atwood AND “The Jilting of Granny Weatherall,” Katherine Anne Porter

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Week Seven: Feb 13th-17th

CLASS DOES NOT MEET OVER MONDAY-WEDNESDAY THIS WEEK. ON THOSE DAYS: MEET ME IN THE CLASSROOM AT YOUR ASSIGNED TIME FOR STUDENT-INSTRUCTOR CONFERENCES.

THURS: LIBRARY WORKSHOP

75:Chapter 10, Argument and Persuasion, Continued

PP: “Gimpel the Fool,” Issac Bashevis Singer AND “First Confession,” Frank O’Connor

FRIDAY: MIDTERM QUIZ

DUE:

Friday:FINAL Essay #3 (Example and Illustration/Analogy)

Journal #3

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Week Eight: Feb 20nd-24th

HOLIDAY: MONDAY, FEB 20TH - CLASS DOES NOT MEET.

CHAPTER 9 AND 10 + RAPE FANTASIS

REWRITE: ESSAY #3

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

THURS AND FRI: GROUP PRESENTATION OF CH10-ARGUMENT TOPICS

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Week Nine: Feb 27th-March 3rd

READ: CHAPTER 11: MIXED STRATS AND ALL THE STORIES NOT COVERED SO FAR: THURBER, PORTER, SINGER, O’CONNER, PERKINS-GILMAN, CRANE

DUE:

Mon: Draft of Essay #4 with 4 copies for Peer Workshop.

Fri:Journal #4

Essay #4 Final

FINAL VOCABULARY

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Week Ten: March 6th-10th

STUDENT PRESENTATIONS OF ESSAY #4

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Week Eleven: March 13th – 17th

Monday & Tuesday: Film: TBA

DUE: Wednesday: Reflection on Film should be inJournal #5 (Last one)

FINAL EXAM Thursday OR Friday. Essay #5 written in class.

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Week Twelve:CLASS DOES NOT MEET-ENJOY THE SPRING BREAK!