Syllabi for Dr. Fox

ENC 1102
ENC 1102

English 1102 Syllabus/ Fall 2013 

 

TR 11:30 – 12:45 in WC-005-229

TR 1:00 – 2:15 in WC-004-235

 

 Instructor

Dr. Dorinda Dawn Fox

 

407-928-1549.  This is most likely voicemail.  I return calls Wednesdays and Fridays from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. You may email me to set up another time to return calls.

 

dfox@mail.valenciacollege.edu

 

I return emails Wednesdays and Fridays from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

 

So that we both have a record of the question and the answer the best method of communication is email from your VCC account.

 

Office Hours

By appointment after class

 

Required Text

 

Portable Literature: Reading, Reacting, Writing by Kirszner and Mandell. The 6th, 7th, or 8th editions are fine.

 

Course Objectives Requiring Students to Think, Value, Communicate, and Act

  1. Develop critical reading, thinking, and writing skills related to poetry, short fiction, and drama.
  2. Engage in invention, discovery, drafting, and revision as a deliberate writing process.
  3. Learn a range of available choices to produce effective writing for specific audiences.
  4. Gain confidence and competence as a writer engaged in academic discourse.
  5. Learn to take ownership over assignments and to see them as opportunities for personal growth.
  6. Learn to appreciate complexity and diversity of issues.
  7. Understand that writing is a way to communicate and construct new knowledge.
  8. Develop several effective styles for written communication.
  9. Gain a foundation for future college-level research and formal argument.
  10. Improve and practice the conventions of academic writing.

 

 

Attendance and Participation and Tardies

 

Class attendance is MANDATORY in this course.  Students are expected to participate actively in writing assignments, peer editing activities, and conferences.  Students MUST be in class regularly to do that.  In-class assignments may NOT be made up.

 

During class on Tuesdays and Thursdays we go over assignments and I provide instruction. Students then post that in-class work on Wednesdays and Fridays to the Blackboard.  I take attendance from Blackboard posts.  Students will not know what to write if they are not in class the previous day.

 

Attendance = active participation in class activities.  Mere physical presence in the classroom is not attendance. 

 

Per VCC policy students receive a failing grade after two absences.  There are no excused or unexcused absences.  All absences are treated equally.  No medical documentation is needed.  I will send an excessive absence email after one absence.

 

Students are considered tardy five minutes after class begins.  Students are considered absent if they leave class early without first consulting the teacher.  I will send an excessive tardy/absence from class email if a trend of late arrival/early departure is noticed.

 

I do not talk to parents on the phone or return emails from parents. College students 18 or older are legally considered to be adults and must communicate with their professors themselves.

 

Participation is worth 20% of the final grades and includes:

  1. Class attendance. 
  2. Preparation of in-class writings.
  3. Serving as a discussion leader at least once during the semester to guide an in-class small group activity and reporting findings/observations to Dr. Fox at the end of class during class discussion.
  4. Providing substantive review to rough drafts of another student’s paper during pair review.
  5. Performing a portfolio review of papers.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Grading Policies

  1. I WILL NOT GRADE NOR READ NOR  PRINT STUDENT PAPERS THAT ARE EMAILED TO ME.  I understand that emergencies can happen. So ONE time this semester students can turn in a FINAL paper one class period late to the Blackboard. This late paper will need a formal memo explaining the syllabus rule for which the student wants an exception, the reason for the exception, and an explanation for why the syllabus rule that applies to all other classmates should not apply to the student.  The argument made in this memo must be persuasive and logical with few emotional appeals.  Students learned to write such arguments in the prerequisite ENC 1101.
  2. Other than this one emergency late work is unacceptable and I will NOT take late work unless arrangements have been made with me.
  3. No other extensions on essays are made without an advance arrangement before the due date.
  4. Students MUST turn in a rough draft of each core paper on time in order to earn a grade for the final draft.

 

 

Evaluation

 

Specific essay assignments will be discussed in class.  There are several required in-class pre-writing activities in-class and rough drafts required for each paper.

 

Poetry – 20%

                        Final Draft                 9/19

Short Fiction – 25%

                        Final Draft                 10/15

Drama – 25%

                        Final Draft                 11/14

Portfolio Review/Final Exam – 10%

Final Exam Dates    12/10 from 10 a.m. to 12;30 p.m

                                    12/12 from  10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.

           

 

Participation – 20% 

 

There are several required in-class pre-writing activities in-class and rough drafts required for each paper. Students post these to Blackboard to earn points AND to record class attendance.

                                               

 

All work is posted the Blackboard site for the course. 

 

 

Grading Scale (based on 100 pts)

A                     100-93

A-                    92-90

B+                   89-87

B                     86-83

B-                    86-83

C+                   79-77

C                     76-70

D                     Not Available

F                      Below 70 (Gordon Rule)

 

Other Issues

  1. Please turn off your cellphone/Blackberry/Ipod/any portable electronic communication or entertainment device while in class if you are using it for personal business.  You must pay attention or you will miss instruction.
  2. Laptops are for academic assignments in this class only.  If I suspect a student is using a laptop or other electronic device for personal use or another class during the class session then the student loses the privilege of using the laptop or electronic device in class the rest of the semester.  Students who use laptops or electronic devices in class should agree to take their hands off the keyboard when requested so I can see what is on the screen. 
  3. Students who sit in the back row (particularly the corners) should expect to be called on first.  So if you are in the back row I assume you really want to answer questions posed to the class or volunteer for activities in class that day.

Computer Excuses

I do not accept technological problems at home as excuses for late work. If you are unable to complete your assignments on your own computer, I expect you to drive to campus and finish them here at one of the college's computer labs. I buy "My hard drive crashed" with the same skepticism as "The dog ate my homework."  All students are required to have a Plan B for computer and Internet access.

Academic Honesty

The American Heritage College Dictionary defines plagiarism this way: "To use and pass off as one's own the ideas or writings of another." To avoid this serious academic offense, properly document any direct quotations or ideas that you find and use in your papers. Follow the MLA guidelines [Chapter 21] on pp. 245 - 299 of your Brief Penguin Handbook.

Make note of these two important policies concerning academic honesty:

First, you must submit original work for ENC 1102, not essays submitted in any other course during any other semester, not even a previous attempt at ENC 1102. Turning in the same essay for two different courses is considered self-plagiarism and will result in a WF for this course.

Second, copying and pasting from Internet sources without providing correct documentation is not college-level work. The first instance--even if it is a single sentence--will result in a grade of zero for the assignment. The second instance will result in your immediate withdrawal from the course with a grade of WF.

Valencia Community College subscribes to Turnitin.com. This website allows faculty to upload student writing so that software can compare the papers to every available electronic resource in the world, looking for parts that match up with previously published sources. Any assignment that you submit is subject to analysis at Turnitin.com.

Print and keep hardcopies of all of your research sources and assignments.

Withdrawals

If you decide to drop this course for any reason, you must initiate the process. Otherwise, you will receive a WF at the end of the semester.

Last date to drop with a full refund is 9/3.

Last date for withdrawal with a W is 11/1.

Last date for withdrawal on Atlas is 12/17.

 

Resources

Computer Labs [available on all campuses]. If you are having technical problems at home, you have a variety of on-campus options for computer use.

Libraries [available on all campuses]. To access online databases, a required resource, you will need a valid Valencia ID and PIN. You have full Internet access and email opportunities from college computers located in the libraries.

Tutoring Services [available on all campuses]. Arrange a tutor if you believe that you will benefit from one-on-one help.

 

 

Students with Disabilities

 

"Students with disabilities who qualify for academic accommodations must provide a letter from the Office for Students with Disabilities (OSD) and discuss specific needs with the professor, preferably during the first two weeks of class. The Office for Students with Disabilities determines accommodations based on appropriate documentation of disabilities (West Campus SSB 102, ext. 1523)."

 

Gordon Rule