English 1020 is a composition course emphasizing documented critical writing, based on an introduction to fiction, drama, and poetry. 

Students will be able to

• apply Composition I planning, organizing, drafting, revising and editing skills to the writing of literary argument papers in Composition II.
• read closely primary and secondary sources and understand them at interpretive and evaluative levels in preparation for writing about them.
• distinguish among opinions, facts, inferences, and persuasive approaches in primary and secondary sources.
• formulate thesis sentences based on readings of primary and/or secondary sources, select material from them to support theses, and write papers with well-developed ideas supporting the thesis.
• use appropriate rhetorical patterns, such as comparison/contrast and argumentation, to demonstrate an understanding of the elements of fiction, poetry and drama in coherent essays which develop literary arguments from process to product.
• manage, coordinate, and document primary and secondary sources according to MLA style in solving problems and arriving at decisions in the writing process.
• compose papers using correct diction, syntax, usage, grammar, and mechanics.

English 1010: Composition I

Course Topics:

The required course topics are rhetoric, argument and persuasion, research, and literary analysis of poems, short stories, and plays.

Specific Course Requirements:

Students should have basic Composition I knowledge of essay composition and development. Students should be able to read poems, short stories, and plays critically and interpretively.  They should have college-level competency in grammar, punctuation, and mechanics. They must be familiar and comfortable with basic computer and Internet skills. They must be familiar with or willing to learn a variety of WebCT tools.

Required Textbooks:

         available at http://rodp.bkstr.com

Software Requirements:

Microsoft Word is the recommended word processing software for this course. Students who do not have Microsoft Word should be able to submit essays as web pages (HTML files) or as rich text format files (RTF files). Essay assignments will be submitted to the WebCT assignment dropbox.

At least one of the course assignments allows but does not require Real Player audio. This is free software available from the Internet at http://www.real.com.

Please click on the "Professor" link on the WebCT navigation bar to find instructor contact information as well as other communication information.

Assignments:

Students will read assignments in the text, post homework assignments, and submit six formal essays.  Formal essays include one diagnostic essay, five other developed and revised essays, and one timed essay submitted as a final exam.  Students may be asked to engage in peer editing, revision assignments, grammar quizzes, and reading quizzes at the discretion of individual professors.

Essay 1 (diagnostic essay on a poem) = 50 points

Essay 2 (on a designated poem) = 100 points 

Essay 3 (on a designated short story) = 200 points 

Essay 4 (on a designated short story plus a secondary source) = 200 points 

Essay 5 (on a designated short story plus one poem) =  200 points 

Essay 6 (on a designated play; timed; submitted as a final exam) = 50 points

Homework Postings (9 total) = 100 points 

Essay Corrections (Essay 2, 3, 4, 5) = 100 points

Total = 1,000 pts. possible 

Optional Assignments: Peer editing and response, revision requirements, grammar quizzes, or reading quizzes (at the discretion of the professor).

Assignments for the summer term will vary slightly.

Grading Procedure:

Each essay is evaluated on its own merits. There is no formula for judging a paper. When grading an essay, the professor will consider the quality of content and organization, thesis, specific detail to support and develop general statements, and the number and frequency of serious composition errors (e.g. fragments, comma splices, errors in agreement and tense, and misspellings). A paper may be relatively free from errors but lacking in insight, thought, or content; the instructor must give such a paper a low grade. 

On the other hand, a paper with strong content and organization may receive a low grade because of serious errors in grammar, punctuation, sentence structure, and spelling. Progress is a principal objective; therefore, repeated errors and deficiencies weigh more heavily in the grading as the semester goes on.

Homeworks are graded based on a rubric provided for each individual homework assignment.

Corrections are graded based on correctly applying rules from the Handbook to the rhetorical context of errors.

Grading Scale:

 Note: There are no plus or minus grades permitted for the final grades in RODP.

900 - 1000 points = A
800 - 899 points   = B
700 - 799 points   = C 
600 - 699 points   = D 
<600 points          = F 

Assignments and Projects:

Students will complete rough drafts and final copies of essays, post homework assignments, and correct essays.

Each essay will be evaluated, marked, and returned to the student. Once an essay has been submitted for a grade, students cannot revise it for a higher grade. 

Students must keep copies of their essays and other work on their home computers. Students must resubmit any essays that are lost or misplaced inside WebCT.

The instructor must have on file a copy of each graded essay before she/he can record the final grade that essay. 

The professor may refuse to accept essays that are not written according to class requirements or those for which there is a question about authorship or revision. 

Class Participation:

Students must participate in all interactive aspects of the course. For example, students must post to the discussion board and submit essays to the assignment drop box for the course.  Students are expected to communicate with the instructor on a regular basis and check the Calendar and email frequently for announcements or changes in the course. Students must actively participate in the class consistently and at a steady pace.

Punctuality:

To receive full credit, all assignments, including essays and homeworks, corrections, and the final exam essay, must be submitted on time. Ten percent (10%) of the score will be taken away for each 24-hour period a paper or other assignment is late.  Once the deadline has passed, students may lose access to submitting the assignments. Students should be aware that the course is delivered in Central Standard Time, and students who are able to work on class assignments only in the evenings should make plans to complete assignments on the evening before the day of the deadline.  

Students are expected to communicate with other students, learn how to navigate in WebCT, keep abreast of course emails, and read directions in the Course Modules and Units thoroughly and in detail.  They should use WebCT email in regular communication for the class; email outside WebCT should be reserved for emergency use only. They should also give the instructor a web-based email address (such as those available from Hotmail or Yahoo) as a back-up. Students should address technical problems immediately. (See the help information below.) 

Students should observe course netiquette at all times. 

In an online composition course, regular attendance takes the form of turning assignments in on time, keeping up with email from the professor and other students, and participating in class assignments on time.   

If for some reason the student must hand in any assignment late, it is his or her responsibility to contact the professor. The student must hand in missing essays even if they are so late that they cannot receive a passing grade. The professor must have all essays from the student before the student can pass the course.

Plagiarism, cheating, and other forms of academic dishonesty are prohibited. According to Webster's Ninth New Collegiate Dictionary, plagiarism is to "steal and pass of as one's own (the ideas or words of another); to present as one's own an idea or product derived from an existing source." Students who plagiarize or commit any other form of academic dishonesty will receive a zero on the paper and may receive an F in the course. Using information from an Internet page, another student's paper or other assignment, or paraphrasing material from books, journals, and databases are all forms of plagiarism, cheating, and academic dishonesty.

Email:

• Always include a subject line.

• Set email to the UNREAD option.

• Never use all capital letters; this is known as "screaming" in netiquette.

• Remember without facial expressions some comments may be taken the wrong way. Be careful in wording your emails. Use of emoticons might be helpful in some cases.

• Use standard fonts.

• Do not send large attachments without permission.

• Special formatting such as centering, audio messages, tables, html, etc. should be avoided unless necessary to complete an assignment or other communication.

• Respect the privacy of other class members.

• Check email frequently; checking email once every day or once every other day is probably about right for most students.

• Always include a subject line.

• Respond to email from others by using the QUOTE feature in email.

Discussion Groups:

• Set discussion to UNTHREADED and UNREAD option.

• Review the discussion threads thoroughly before entering the discussion. Be a lurker then a discussant.

• Read what other students have posted before posting your own message.  Much can be learned from what others have to say.

• Reading what other students have posted before posting your own message also serves to give students models of writing that might be helpful in writing your own messages.

• Try to maintain threads by using the "Reply" or "Quote" button rather starting a new topic, when appropriate.

• Do not make insulting or inflammatory statements to other members of the class on the discussion board.  Discussion boards are public communication and should be treated as such. Be respectful of other’s ideas.

• Be patient and read the comments of other students thoroughly before entering your remarks.

• Be cooperative with other students in completing assigned collaborative tasks.

• Be positive and constructive in discussion boards.

• Respond in a thoughtful and timely manner.

• Avoid responding to how something is said; usually, responding to what is said is a better idea.

• Feel free to disagree with the ideas of others, but do not attack or denigrate their opinions, analyses, or interpretations.

• Always include a subject line when posting a discussion message.

• Respond to discussion postings from others by using the QUOTE feature.

• Respond to discussion postings from others by using REPLY PRIVATELY feature if your response is sensitive or personal in nature.

Chat:

• Chat is not required in this course.
• Introduce yourself to the other learners in the chat session.
• Be polite. Choose your words carefully. Do not use derogatory statements.
• Be concise in responding to others in the chat session.
• Be prepared to open the chat session at the scheduled time.
• Be constructive in your comments and suggestions.
• Avoid creating private rooms if several people are chatting.
• If you wish to chat, be sure to set up days, dates, times, and chat rooms to enter with other students before trying to chat.

Web Resources: 

• Columbia Guide to Online Style by Janice R. Walker and Todd Taylor 
• http://www.bedfordstmartins.com/online/cite6.html gives MLA citation format for online materials

The Tennessee Virtual Library is available to all students enrolled in the Regents Degree Program. Links to library materials (such as electronic journals, databases, interlibrary loans, digital reserves, dictionaries, encyclopedias, maps, and librarian support) and Internet resources needed by learners to complete online assignments and as background reading must be included in all courses.

Qualified students with disabilities will be provided reasonable and necessary academic accommodations if determined eligible by the appropriate disability services staff at their home institution. Prior to granting disability accommodations in this course, the instructor must receive written verification of a student's eligibility for specific accommodations from the disability services staff at the home institution. It is the student's responsibility to initiate contact with their home institution's disability services staff and to follow the established procedures for having the accommodation notice sent to the instructor.

The instructor reserves the right to make changes as necessary to this syllabus. If changes are necessitated during the term of the course, the instructor will immediately notify students of such changes both by individual email communication and posting both notification and nature of change(s) on the course bulletin board.

Telephone Support: