ENG 1113 – Rev. Fall 2015
COURSE SYLLABUS
ENGLISH 1113: ENGLISH COMPOSITION I
COURSE DESCRIPTION: In English 1113 students will learn to write essays with a formal outline, a thesis (a one-sentence summary of the theme), an introduction and conclusion, a coherent and logical thought pattern, supporting paragraphs developed by specific details, and well-structured sentences showing mechanical correctness.
RECOMMENDED TEXTBOOKS: Textbooks are selected by campus.
UNIT OBJECTIVES: Complete unit objectives will be distributed to students.
UNITS OF STUDY:
· Prewriting the Essay
· Writing the Essay
· Revising the Essay
COURSE REQUIREMENTS: Students will be required to earn a D (60) average or better.
1. A minimum of three 500+ word essays including the final exam must be written in class.
a. Instructors must assign a minimum of 3000 words and five essays including the final exam.
b. At least three essays must be expository.
c. At least two essays must be analytical responses to reading – reading type and length is at the discretion of the instructor.
d. At least one essay must include two documented sources using MLA format.
e. Instructors may vary the number of papers and number of words as long as the minimum requirements above are met.
2. write an essay of 500+ words for the final exam
3. A minimum of 80% of the final grade must be determined by essays (including the final exam).
4. Instructors may weight individual essays as they deem fit.
GRAMMAR PROFICIENCY REQUIREMENT: Students should demonstrate mastery of standard American English through directed review of major areas of concern and through essay writing.
PLAN OF EVALUATION: Students will be evaluated according to course/exit requirements.
EXIT REQUIREMENTS: At the conclusion of English 1113, the student shall have written essays with
1. a formal outline
2. a thesis (a one-sentence summary of the theme)
3. an introduction and a conclusion
4. a coherent and logical thought pattern
5. supporting paragraphs developed by specific details
6. well-structured sentences showing mechanical correctness
DISTRICT GRADING SCALE:
A 90-100
B 80-89
C 70-79
D 60-69
F Below 60
Eng 1113 -- Current
DISTRICT ENGLISH DEPARTMENT GRADING CHART: English Composition I
Name______Class ______Theme#_____
_____ A (90-100)_____rich content
_____engaging title
_____engaging introduction
_____readily identifiable central focus
_____meaningful pattern of development from beginning to end
_____thoroughly supported assertions
_____stylistic techniques and devices
_____fresh and highly specific phrasing
_____varied sentence structure
_____varied, concise, precise vocabulary
_____identifiable tone
_____artful transitions
_____no major mechanical errors
_____few minor mechanical errors
_____correct MLA form
_____B (80-89)
_____informative, interesting content
_____readily identifiable central focus
_____clear, logical pattern of development
_____well supported assertions
_____varied sentence structure
_____concise, pleasing vocabulary
_____generally smooth transitions
_____no more than one major mechanical errors
_____few minor mechanical errors
_____few minor errors in MLA form
_____C (70-79)
_____average content
_____competent organization
_____generalities; acceptable support
_____predictable sub-vb sentence pattern
_____occasional redundancies; oversimplified and/or limited vocabulary
_____frequent choppiness; weak transition
_____no more than two major mech. errors
_____several minor mechanical errors
_____violation of MLA form
_____general lack of imagination and intellectual rigor / _____D (60-69)
_____underdeveloped content
_____inconsistent, ineffective pattern of organization
_____insufficient support
_____awkward, ambiguous sentences
_____limited and/or misused vocabulary
_____choppiness; serious lack of transition
_____no more than three major mechanical errors
_____many minor mechanical errors
_____violation of MLA form
_____appears to have been written in haste and/or with little regard for composition standards and/or with few composition skills
_____ F (below 60)
_____superficial treatment of topic
_____lack of support
_____high frequency of errors in standard English
_____four or more major mechanical errors
_____violation of MLA form
_____ideas, organization, and style fall far below the level of acceptable college writing / *Serious Violations of MLA Form
Resulting in a grade of C, D, or F
· failure to introduce a quotation properly
· inaccuracies in quoted or paraphrased material
· overuse of quoted material
· use of back-to-back or irrelevant quotations
· incorrect form in blocked quotations
· violation of rules of internal documentation
· failure to follow correct form in Works Cited entries
· omission of publication data in Works Cited entries
· omission of a source which should be listed on Works Cited page
· over reliance on one or two sources
· any serious violation of instructor’s directions regarding form
Plagiarism (Unforgivable violation of MLA form)**
· failure to give a source for paraphrased material
· failure to use quotation marks around quoted material
· slightly changing the wording of a source and using it as paraphrased material
Major Grammatical Errors
Each of the following errors counts as one major error:
§ fragment
§ fused or run-on sentence
§ comma splice
§ verb error
§ subject/verb agreement error
§ three different misspelled words
§ three of the following minor errors:
ü incorrect punctuation
ü pronoun/antecedent disagreement
ü misuse of pronouns
ü incorrect plural and possessive forms
**According to the Hinds Community College Student Handbook:
“Cheating on any examination, quiz, work to be completed in class, assigned work to be completed outside class; cheating on term papers; cheating on final examinations; plagiarism on any assignment; theft or attempted theft of examination questions or possession of examination questions prior to the time for examination period shall be offenses subject to the following penalties. The penalty for commission of any offense set out above is failure in the course and possible dismissal or suspension from the College.” (page numbers change with each year’s handbook)
Eng 1113 -- Current
UNIT 1: PREWRITING THE ESSAY
English 1113: ENGLISH COMPOSITION I
UNIT OBJECTIVE: The student will plan an essay.
PLAN OF EVALUATION: The student’s performance will be evaluated on writing assignments.
LEARNING OBJECTIVES:
The student will
- learn what an essay is
- use restriction in selecting an essay subject
- write a restricted, unified, and precise thesis or statement of intent for an essay
- prepare an outline as a guide for organizing an expository essay, including an
5. appropriate title
- learn the steps in the essay-writing process
- learn the structure of a five-paragraph essay
- practice expressing ideas specifically, clearly, accurately, and coherently through such writing assignments as the journal, in-class topic responses, and grammar/usage exercises
- demonstrate the skill necessary to identify, express, and solve problems
UNIT 2: WRITING THE ESSAY
ENGLISH 1113: ENGLISH COMPOSITION I
UNIT OBJECTIVE: The student will use conventional skills in essay writing.
PLAN OF EVALUATION: The student will be evaluated on the ability to use conventional skills in essay writing.
LEARNING OBJECTIVES:
The student will
- use edited American English
- develop a thesis or statement of intent fully, accurately, coherently, and interestingly in an expository essay from an outline
- write introductory paragraphs
- write supporting paragraphs with specific details
- write concluding paragraph
- write an essay that is unified, coherently presented, and mature in thought and expression*
7. *Supports the development of the institutional competency for Critical Thinking
UNIT 3: REVISING THE ESSAY
English 1113: ENGLISH COMPOSITION I
UNIT OBJECTIVE: The student will improve and correct essays through revision.
PLAN OF EVALUATION: The student will be evaluated on the ability to improve and correct essays through revision.
LEARNING OBJECTIVES:
The student will
- use specific wording to support topic sentence ideas
- use a variety of sentence patterns
- write well-structured sentences showing persistent effort to attain mechanical correctness
- make stylistic improvements and grammatical and structural corrections in the rough draft stage of essay writing
5. proofread the final copies of essays - identify areas of weakness in essay writing and take steps to strengthen skills