Effective Writing ENG
101
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| ENG 101 is a 21st-century writing
course based on critical reading across the academic disciplines and
designed especially to meet Bridgewater College's goal of educating the
whole person in a technology-rich environment. |
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Course Content
ENG 101 is a reading-based writing course with an across-the-disciplines
focus. The course develops writing ability for study, work, and other
areas of writing based on experience, observation, research, and reading of
selected texts. ENG 101 will guide you in learning to write as a
process: exploring ideas and information, understanding audience and
purpose, developing your approaches to planning, composing, and revising. The course will give attention to reading, discussions of reading
assignments, writing and research processes, and computer technology.
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Goals and Objectives
During the semester, you will
- engage in individual and collaborative activities as you examine
texts--both published and student-written--and produce a substantial
portfolio of your own writing, complete with various stages of drafts,
writing exercises, planning, outlines, bibliographies, etc. and at least 3
reading-based essays that demonstrate competence in the use of standard
written English;
- practice research, writing, and various documentation conventions within
different disciplinary areas (humanities, sciences, and social sciences);
- develop your critical thinking skills and your analysis of rhetorical
features through oral and written responses to reading selections;
- receive an introduction to computer technologies useful in the writing
process through discussions of formatting and the use of e-mail, listservs,
interactive electronic writing environments, and the critical use of the
Internet as a research tool.
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Texts and Other Materials
Texts: Each
semester, I will provide information about the specific texts which you will
need for the course: these will be available from the College
Bookstore. You MUST have all of these texts throughout the semester,
available to bring with you to each class session. While you may choose to
share texts with a roommate or friend, it is your responsibility to make sure
that this arrangement allows you to bring a copy of each text with you to each
class meeting--there are no substitutes for this expectation and I will not
accept any excuses.
Midway through the semester, the
Bookstore often returns the unpurchased texts to publishers; therefore, it is
NOT a good idea to buy only a few of the texts at a time (i.e., the ones we'll start with); students who have made this unwise decision have
discovered that in the 10th or 12th week, when everyone else is beginning to
read a particular text, they have no copy, the Bookstore has no more copies of
it, and often neither do the libraries or other area bookstores. The
Lesson here? Buy all of the books at the start of the semester &
always bring to class each book which we're discussing/reading at the time.
Other Materials:
- You will need regular lined notebook paper and blue or
black ink (read that again: blue or black ink only--no rainbow colors,
please--I use purple, turquoise, or green, usually, when I
make comments on your papers and/or grade them) for in-class assignments
(such as in-class paragraphs, worksheets, group work, quizzes, etc.).
- You will need a spiral notebook (NOT a 3-ring binder)
for your Reading Journal. This should be a separate (not necessarily
thick) spiral notebook--NOT just part of a large spiral notebook in which
you're keeping all notes for the whole semester for all your courses.
I will be collecting, reading, & evaluating these periodically, so the
only information you should keep in it should be related to Reading Journal
questions and writing prompts.
- You will need a pocket folder at the end of the
semester for your Writing Portfolio--again, NOT a 3-ring binder--just a
regular pocket folder: your papers will all be tucked into the
pockets, NOT affixed with any kind of binding device.
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Requirements and Policies
Attendance
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Much of the work for this course occurs during class
time. You should plan on attending every meeting so that you can
participate in discussions, listen to presentations, complete in-class
writing activities, and offer your own suggestions to others about revising
their assignments. I expect all of you to attend regularly.
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- Occasionally, illness or other personal situations
interfere with regular attendance; for that reason, I will permit absences of
approximately 10% of our class meetings (i.e., 3 absences from a MWF section, 2
absences from a TTR section) without penalty. Absences beyond 10% will
adversely affect your final grade.
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- You are always responsible for all material covered in
class whether you are present or not; please exchange phone numbers and/or
e-mail addresses with one or two classmates so that you have a contact for
missed material and assignments.
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- Please use
the allowed
absences for necessary personal, medical, athletic, or other academic-commitment
absences only; please remember that absences, for
whatever reason, will adversely affect your ability to participate fully in the
course.
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Classroom Management
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I will do my best to be present and on time for each class
session, to arrive with a prepared lesson plan, to use all the resources at hand
to provide you with useful information, to be polite and discreet in my
communication with each of you, and to apply uniform standards to my evaluation
of your work. I expect the same degree of courtesy from each of
you--toward me and toward your classmates.
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Class sessions will be conducted as a
reading/writing/discussion seminar in which each of you will be expected to come
to class prepared to share your ideas and insights of reading assignments and
writing activities. I will evaluate your reading, writing, and your
understanding of the material through quizzes, editing sessions, formal and
informal writing activities, essays, documented research papers, and your
participation in and readiness for class.
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Please remember that
any kind of disruption causes inconvenience to
everyone in the classroom--please arrive on time, stay for the full class, and
please place beepers, pagers, and cell phones in the "silent mode" or
off position while you are in class. I trust that each of you will be a
cooperative, courteous, and active participant in what I hope will be an
enriching educational experience for you.
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Grades:
Writing Assignments
Your midterm and final grades will be based on your
portfolio of work, your class participation, and your successful completion of
other reading, writing, and technology activities. Your portfolio will
contain both formal and informal writing; your informal writing both in and out
of class and your completion of other activities will be considered evidence of
participation. You should include an essay that introduces and explains
the contents of your portfolio.
In general, the standards for acceptable work will
include:
- clear focus and organization;
- full development of general statements;
- use of relevant evidence;
- appropriate documentation, according to an accepted style (such as MLA,
APA, CBE (CSE), CMS);
- adherence to the conventions of standard written English (grammar, usage,
spelling, & punctuation);
- understanding of the rhetorical requirements for each writing assignment.
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Writing Portfolio
A portfolio must contain all of the required assignments
to receive an average (C) or above-average (B) grade. Excellent (A) work will meet the
above standards and, in addition, show:
- thorough research,
- thorough revising,
- originality,
- substantive critical thinking,
- sophisticated expression.
Cover
Essay and Final Portfolio
Contacting the Instructor
- Office:
My office is located on the first floor of Bowman Hall--it's Room 117.
From the main first floor hallway, enter through Room 114: you will be in
a small waiting/testing area with shelves and tables; there are also 4 faculty
offices: mine is the third door from the left. Each semester I will
post my teaching and office schedule for the semester so that you will know when
I'll be on campus and where I'll be.
- Phone: My phone number is
828-5664. If you are calling from a campus phone, just enter the last 4
digits. If I'm not in my office when you call, please feel free to leave a
message on my Voice Mail. Please speak clearly, give me your full name
(i.e., not just "It's me--Sam") and the course and section number, and
your message/question. Ordinarily, I reply to phone messages via your
Bridgewater College email account, so be sure to check this account for a
response.
- Email: my account address is acook@bridgewater.edu
and if you are emailing me from an on-campus computer, all you need to enter is
acook; however, if you are emailing me from off campus, you will need the full
address. I open my email each morning and keep it open until I leave for
the day, so this is the best way to contact me (also, my Bridgewater email is
automatically forwarded to my home email account, so I will also receive your
email messages at home in the evenings and on weekends). I reply to every
email message.
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created and maintained by Anita L. Cook; last modified 22
September 2004