Orange Coast College
English 099: Fundamentals of Composition
Spring 2013
TR 2:20 – 4:25
Lit & Lang 117
Instructor: Christen McGaughey
Office Hours: Ask or email for Appointment.
E-mail: [email protected]
Required Texts Fawcett, Susan. Evergreen: A Guide to Better Writing with Readings, 9th Edition.
Wadsworth Cengage Learning.
Articles & Reading Assignments posted on course website
Course Goals (Student Learning Outcomes)
1. Apply the fundamentals of grammar, sentence structure, and pre-compositional techniques.
2. Read and analyze text using critical thinking skills.
3. Write structurally varied and grammatically correct sentences, paragraphs, and essays.
Course Description
This course is designed to help you not only improve your writing skills and methods of communication, but
also to develop your analytical and critical thinking abilities. Throughout the semester we will be working
together to learn how to write structurally varied and satisfactorily edited sentences and clearly organized,
appropriately detailed paragraphs. Ultimately, we will put these techniques into practice as we apply them to
expository essay writing. In addition, there will be an emphasis on group work and collaborative discussion, and
thus high expectations of participation and contribution on your part. Furthermore, because the best way to learn
how to write is to gain practice doing so, you can expect to do a great deal of writing in this course, most likely
more than you have ever done before… so be ready.
Class Conduct:
Within the classroom, I expect others to be open to and respectful of other students and their opinions. This
class is largely based on discussion and collaboration, and it’s important to maintain a positive, supportive and
respectful environment. If a student acts disrespectfully toward the instructor or other students, they will be
asked to leave.
Students are responsible for completing their assignments on time and typing the formal essays and rough drafts
Attendance & Participation:
Attendance is based on participation in all assignments and in class activities (refer to daily quizzes and in-class
activities later in the syllabus). Therefore, if you are not in class, you will not receive credit for ALL
assignments completed during class or due during that class period (including online assignments). You
CANNOT make up missed assignments including journals, quizzes, discussion questions, workshop activities,
homework assignments, and in-class essays & exams. I will take role daily, but your attendance is based on the
work and participation completed during class. If you are absent, it is your responsibility to get assignments,
notes and announcements from one of your peers or the course website.
I suggest you use your absences wisely and save them for emergency situations. If you have a major issue it
is essential that you speak to me As Soon As A Problem Arises. You may also be asked for documentation of
extenuating circumstances (i.e. doctor’s note)
Tardy Policy:
I ask that you respect your fellow students and arrive to class on time, so you don’t disturb them. As with
absences, any work you miss as a result of arriving or leaving class early cannot be made up and you will lose
points from your assignment grades. Same policy applies if you leave class early or leave for extended periods
of time in the middle of class. If an activity is completed or if I collect an assignment, you will not receive
credit/points if you are not present in class.
Drop Policy:
If you are not present the first day of class, you will be dropped from the course. Otherwise, it is the student's
responsibility to officially drop classes and to verify the drop. Although instructors may request that a student
be dropped for absences, it is NOT the instructor's responsibility. Students who never attend a class or stop
attending a class at any time, MUST officially drop themselves, according to stated deadlines. It is also the
student's responsibility to verify their withdrawal from a class by the stated deadlines to avoid a "W" and/or a
grade in the class.
Electronic Devices:
Cell phones are strictly prohibited during class (unless explicitly being used for class purposes). As adults, I
expect you to treat the classroom like any business meeting, conference or any other type of professional event.
These can be major distractions not just for you but everyone around you, and I expect you to respect your
fellow students and your instructor and not use your phones. If I do see your cell phone out for any reason, I
will simply ask you to leave the classroom, and you will be responsible for retrieving missed material and
will not be able to makeup missed assignments for that portion of class time.
At the same time, I do encourage the use of laptops and tablets for class purposes and will frequently ask you
to utilize these tools in-class. Again, I expect you to treat the classroom like a company or work meeting and out
of respect for your classmates and your instructor, do not use these tools to check facebook or search the web.
You are responsible for any material you miss because of these distractions. I will not repeat material or
important information to students I see misusing their electronic devices.
Class Preparation:
You must come to every class fully prepared with ALL readings (read and annotated), both textbooks, research
assignments, and engaged, positive and proactive attitude. If you are unprepared or underprepared (this includes
missing textbooks, online readings, (you must have the concrete materials), completed assignments, or lack of
general preparation for the class), you will be asked to leave and will not be able to make up missing work. It is
also your responsibility to get class notes and information from a classmate.
Accommodations for Disabilities:
Students with verifiable disabilities who want to request academic accommodations are responsible for
verifying their disability with Disabled Students Programs and Services (DSPS): (714) 432-5807/(714) 4325604 (TDD). Once you have registered with DSPS, you need to see me as soon as possible regarding any
relevant or necessary accommodations you will need for the course.
Plagiarism
Plagiarism is considered a grave violation of academic integrity and the sanctions against it are correspondingly
severe. If anyone is found to have plagiarized any part of any assignment, that student will receive an “F” for
that assignment. Repeated offenses can also lead to an “F” in the class and will be reported to the proper
authorities.
Plagiarism is:
- The submission of material authored by another person but represented as the student’s own work,
whether that material is paraphrased or copied in verbatim or near-verbatim form.
- The submission of material subjected to editorial revision by another person that results in substantive
changes in content or major alteration of writing style and
- Improper acknowledgment of sources in essays, papers, or presentations.
If you have any additional questions about what constitutes plagiarism, please ask. Ignorance is not an excuse.
Assignment Submission:
All assignments will be submitted electronically (I will not accept hard copies). You will submit your
assignments to the following email: [email protected]. Assignments must be sent as an
attachment in Word format, follow MLA guidelines and be titled in the following manner: Firstname lastname
assignment name (i.e. Christen McGaughey Essay 1). If your assignment is not titled correctly or in the correct
format it will be considered late. You must submit the assignment to the email before class on the day the
assignment is due. Once class has started your assignment is considered late. You will receive your graded
assignments via a private box folder. It is your responsibility to make sure that this information is private.
All major assignments will be posted to my course website at least 2 weeks before they are due.
Late Work Policy:
All writing (out-of-class) assignments are due before the noted due date and time. After this point, 10% will be
deducted from your final essay grade for each day the essay is late. If you are absent the day an assignment is
due you must still submit the assignment to the above email address on time. Even if you are sick, you must still
submit the assignment via email. If there are major issues, it is always important to talk to me before the
essay is due (and documentation may be requested). I suggest you plan your time wisely and plan ahead. It is
also essential that you show up to class on days assignments are due, refer back to the attendance policy.
You CANNOT submit a late assignment after I have graded and returned the assignment to the class as a
whole. I will no longer accept assignments at this point. Be careful as sometimes. It may take as little as a few
days to a week to return assignments with a grade. (This becomes critical later in the semester). Your final
essay cannot be late.
Note: It is important that you read the assignments provided in class carefully and ask about any details you do
not understand. If you do not fulfill all the basic requirements (page length, word count, formatting, etc…)
of an assignment you will automatically lose 10% of your grade for each missing requiAssignments
Assignments
Daily Reading Quizzes:
For each class, you will be assigned articles, essays or other texts to read. During each class, you will be given a
quiz on the materials. You will not be allowed to use the texts and you must come to class prepared to provide
details from the materials. Each quiz will have 5 questions and you must answer 4 questions correctly (80%) to
pass. You are allowed 3 free quizzes and after that you will lose 50 pts from your overall grade for each
quiz you do not pass. You cannot make up quizzes if you’re absent, and missed quizzes will be considered a
“no pass.”
Class Participation Journal:
Throughout the semester you will be keeping a journal. You will need a bound composition notebook (not
spiral) to record you journals.
- Group Discussion & Activities: during each class, we will do various activities in groups in response to
readings, grammar topics, and writing techniques. You will be expected to record brief notes in your
journal.
- Grammar Homework: each night you will complete your assigned grammar homework in your
journal. Come prepared to review work in class and ask questions.
- Individual Activities (at-home & in-class): finally you will frequently be asked to complete some
individual writing activities in class, and you will record these assignments in your journal.
Your journals will be counted toward your participation & in-class assignments grade. Your journals will be
checked 3 times during the semester.
Grammar Quizzes:
You will have 4 grammar quizzes worth 40 pts each. Each quiz will ask questions regarding grammar topics
covered in the course up to that point, primarily focused on the topics covered in the weeks prior to the quiz.
You cannot make up these quizzes, so make sure you’re in class.
Out -of-Class Essays:
Each of your out-of-class essays will be completed in a portfolio format, which will be comprised of several
pre-writing materials and drafts. Every essay portfolio piece will be submitted to the assignment email above.
You will send the following drafting activities to the assignment email as they are due: In-class pre-writing, a
peer review draft, a conference draft, any independent drafts, a final draft, and a reflection on the process. Title
your document and email subject line as follows: First name Last name Name of essay Draft title (Christen
McGaughey Essay 1 Introduction Draft).
In addition you must submit 2 Writing Center 001 DLAs with writing center drafts with each essay (I suggest
you complete this in 2 visits and not one). You will submit these to me the day your essay is due.
Detailed essay assignments will be provided online at least 2 weeks before the essay is due. It is your
responsibility to obtain these assignments if you are not in class on the day they are provided. Every essay will
follow MLA (Modern Language Association) format. Consult your textbook and online resources for details.
For example: Purdue Online Writing Lab: http://owl.english.purdue.edu
Note:
It is important that you read the assignments provided in class carefully and ask about any details you do not
understand. If you do not fulfill all the basic portfolio requirements (page length, word count, formatting,
missing drafts, reflection, DLA 001 etc…) of an assignment you will automatically lose 10% of your grade
for each missing requirement.
Peer Review:
For each out-of-class essay, you will complete a peer review workshop, providing feedback on your classmates’
essays. You will be expected to come prepared with a full draft of your essay, and provide extensive feedback
to your fellow students. Peer review will count towards your grade in 2 ways. First: It must be included in each
of your essay portfolios. If you do not have a peer review draft in your portfolio your essay grade will be
reduced 10%. Second: You will receive a grade based on how well you respond to your peers’ essays. Each
peer review will be worth 50 points and will contribute to your final grade. Peer reviews cannot be made up, so
you must be present in class.
Mid-Term:
There will be one in-class exam. You will need an 81/2 x 11 bluebook. The assignment will be provided to you
on the day of the exam, and will test you on skills we have learned in class up to this point.
Rewrites:
If you would like to improve your grade on any out-of-class essay, you may rewrite the assignment. For your
rewrite, YOU MUST: schedule an appointment with me or see me in the WC to meet and discuss my
comments, must visit the writing center again, track all changes with “track changes” in Microsoft word and
include a reflection on your revision experience, changes and development as a writer. You will have 2 weeks
after an essay is returned to submit your rewrite. A rewrite cannot improve points deducted for missing
portfolio pieces (reflection, drafts, DLA 001). These points will remain. You cannot rewrite the final
essay.
Final Presentation:
During finals week, you will give a 10 minute presentation on the materials you collected and used for your
final mini-research paper. You must be in attendance for both days of presentations or you will lose 5% from
your grade on the presentation.
Writing Center:
You must visit the Writing and Reading Center for 5 hours over the course of the semester. You will complete
up to 1.5 hours (two 001 DLAs) for each essay assignment, due the day you submit your assignment. This is
considered a minimum requirement for each of your out-of-class essays, and you will lose 10% from your essay
grade if you are missing a DLA. Also, at the end of the semester, you should have completed at least 5 hours.
You will lose 100 pts from your overall grade for each hour you are missing at the end of the semester.
Grading:
Grading will be based on a point system and demonstration of readiness for English 100. You must maintain a
minimal amount of points to pass the class. The course is worth approximately 1210 points; you must receive at
least 908 points (75%) to be considered for a passing grade. Keep in mind that accruing points does not
guarantee passing. Your writing must show improvement to the 100 level. Therefore, you must have at least
75% overall on your essay assignments. The following breakdown will help you keep track of your progress:
Personal Goal Statement
In-class Activities
Out of class essays
Peer Review
Mid-Term
100
100
450 (150, 150,150)
200
100
Presentations
Grammar Quizzes
100
160
Below is a tentative list of assignments and due dates (Readings may be added, switched, or deleted). Make
sure to make note of changes announced in-class and check your email regularly.
Please read and complete assignments before you come to class. The “Assignments Due” column indicates
which assignments are due for that class period class period. Each class we will discuss a current event, discuss
one reading, discuss and review one grammar issue, and finally discuss, practice, and review writing and
drafting techniques.
Week
Day
Week 2
Tuesday 2/5
Thursday 2/7
Week3
Tuesday 2/12
Grammar
Assignments
Due
N/A
E: Chap 25:
Simple
Sentences
Thursday 2/14
Week 4
Week 5
Tuesday 2/19
E: Chap 26
Subordination &
Coordination
Thursday 2/21
E: Chap 27
Avoiding
Sentence Errors
Grammar Quiz
Tuesday 2/26
Thursday 2/28
Week 6
Tuesday 3/5
E: Chap 28 &
29: Present
Tense & Past
Reading Assignments Due
Writing
Assignments Due
N/A
N/A
Website: “Shitty First Drafts”
“Leaving Work to Watch the
Sunset” / “Finding Hope in HipHop” / “There Is No Such
Thing as Too Much Barbecue”
E: Chap 1 & 2: Getting Started Personal Goal
Chap 7: Description
Statement
Website: “Pop culture vs. Real
America: Introduction” “Liz
Smith And Jo Piazza Debate
America's Unhealthy Obsession
With Celebrities”
E: Chap 6: Narration
Chap 16 Part A: The Narrative
Essay
Website: “Pop culture vs. Real
culture: “Gossip Girl” and
“Helping Family, Friends, and
her community””
Website: “Pop culture vs. real
culture: “notorious” and
“perfecting their pitch””
E: Chap 14: The Process of
Writing an essay.
E: Chap 5: Illustration
Chap 16: Part A: The
Illustration Essay
Descriptive
Paragraph Draft
Narrative Body
Paragraph(s) Draft
Complete Rough
Draft & Peer
Review
Essay 1 Final &
Portfolio Due
Tense
Week 7
Week 8
Thursday 3/7
E: Chap 30: Past
Participle
Tuesday 3/12
E: Chap 32:
Pronouns
Thursday 3/14
Grammar Quiz
Tuesday 3/18
Website: Frontline: “The
Merchants of Cool”
“Good Times on Campus”
“Post Cool”
E: Chap 22:
E: Chap 13: Persuasion
Revising for
Chap 17 Part D: The Persuasive
Sentence Variety Essay
Website: “The Fairy Tale”
“Stuff & Nonsense”
“Clutter Culture”
NO CLASS
NO CLASS
Thursday 3/21
Spring
Break
Week 9
Week
10
Tuesday 3/26
Thursday 3/28
Tuesday 4/2
NO CLASS
E: Chap 21:
Revising for
Consistency &
Parallelism
Thursday 4/4
Tuesday 4/9
Thursday 4/11
Week
11
Website: “Pop culture vs. real
culture: “notorious” and
“perfecting their pitch””
Website: “Ridin Dirty” (Lyric
& Video) and “White & Nerdy”
(Lyric & Video)
“Poetry and Pop music are just
good friends”
Website: “The Beatles as
Music experimentalists”
Beatles songs: “Hey Jude,”
“Here Comes the Sun”
Tuesday 9/16
Intro Draft
Outline &
Illustration
paragraph (s)
Complete Rough
Draft & Peer
Review
NO CLASS
Website: “The Responsibility
Revolution” “Time: “Keeping
The Dream Alive””
Essay 3 Final &
Portfolio Due
NO CLASS
NO CLASS
Argument
Paragraph
Mid-Term
E: Chap 35:
Apostrophe
E: Chap 12: Cause & Effect
Chap 17 Part C: The Cause &
Effect essay
Website: “What is it about 20somethings”
Website: “The American
Dream: A Perfect Idea for Dark
Times” “My Life as an
Undocumented Immigrant”
“Not Legal, Not Leaving”
Website: “The Betrayal of the
American Dream” (Articles &
Intro Draft
Outline Draft &
Cause & Effect
Videos)
“America’s Mobility Problem”
Week
12
Week
13
Thursday 4/18
Grammar Quiz
Tuesday 4/23
E: Chap 36: The
Comma
E: Chap 19: Strengthening an
Essay with Research
Website: “The Culture of
Celebrity”
Thursday 4/25
E: Chap 37
Mechanics
E: Chap 9: Definition
Website: “The Good, the bad &
the Daily Show”
Daily Show Episode
Website: “Celebrity Culture,
Definition
Media & Politics”
Paragraph (Intro
“Obama & Hollywood”
Draft)
E: Chap 10: Compare &
Contrast Chap 17 Part A:
Compare & Contrast essay
Tuesday 4/30
Thursday 5/2
Week
14
Week
15
E : Chap 23 :
Revising for
Language
Awareness
Tuesday 5/7
Thursday 5/9
Tuesday 5/14
E: Summarizing Quoting and
Avoiding plagiarism
Website:“Billionaires Fuel the
Race to the White House”
Readings TBA
Grammar Quiz
Complete Rough
Draft & Peer
Review
Essay 4 Final &
Portfolio
Outline Draft
&Compare/contras
t paragraph(s)
Tuesday 5/21
Complete Rough
Draft & Peer
Review
Essay 5 final &
Portfolio
Presentations
Thursday 5/24
Presentations
Thursday 5/16
Week
16
(Finals)
paragraph(s)