Textbooks and Materials

Hirschberg, Stuart and Terry Hirschberg . One World Many Cultures.6th ed. New York:  Pearson/Longman, 2005.

Faigley, Lester.  The Brief Penguin Handbook.  New York:  Pearson, 2003.

Student Guide:  English 104-105, Iowa State University, Department of English, 2007-2008.

1 flat folder with double pockets

One World Many                  Student Guide       Penguin Handbook      
     Cultures

Assignments

In addition to major assignments, there will be shorter assignments, which you should keep in a flat pocket folder.  Shorter assignments serve different purposes:  to plan or revise a major assignment, to practice strategies important to a major assignment, to examine issues relevant to a major assignment, or to explore visual communication.  Therefore, failure to complete the smaller assignments on time may result in a failing grade for a major assignment. Shorter responses may not be graded if they are turned in late.

All work completed outside of class should be typed.  Make sure you have a backup copy of all work before you turn it in to be graded.  Major essays will be penalized one letter grade (from B to C) for every class period they are late.  All major essays must be completed for you to receive a passing grade at the end of the semester.

Assignments and Evaluation   
  The following is a list of the major assignments to be covered over the semester:                                                 

Assignment                          Points             Percentage
Summary                                                                        25                              2.5%
Documented Essay                                                       150                              15%
Rhetorical Analysis                                                       150                              15%
Narrative Writing                                                          100                              10%
Slideshow Production                                                   150                              15%
Quizzes and Finals                                                          75                              7.5%
Journal Entries                                                              100                              10%
E-Folio                                                                        150                              15%
Class Participation                                                        100                              10%
Total                                                                           1000                           100%

Grade Breakup
A 94-100%                  C 73-76%
A- 90-93%                  C- 70-72%
B+ 87-89%                  D+ 67-69%
B 83-86%                    D 63-66%
B- 80-82%                  D- 60-62%
C+ 77-79%                 F 59% and below

A         The qualities of a B paper, plus imagination and effective expression
B          Thorough analysis of the writing problem, appropriate and effective support, good organization, and solid expression / No more than              one or two small problems in correctness.
C         Satisfactory analysis of the problem, organization, and expression, but nothing
             remarkably good or bad / Acceptable sentence structure; other problems in correctness may occur.
D         Presence of a glaring defect in material, organization, or expression; inadequate treatment of the assignment / Possibly some sentence              structure errors or other errors in correctness
F          Inadequate coverage of essential points, poor organization, ineffective and garbled expression / Glaring defects in correctness

Class Attendance and Participation Policies
Much of our work will be in groups or may be on-line.  You are expected to fulfill your fair share of group work and to interact courteously with your peers at all times.  Classes are run in a discussion/workshop format; therefore, regular attendance and active participation are important.  You are expected to be in class on time. Coming to class ten minutes after it has begun or leaving class fifteen minutes before it ends will result in an absence. Missing more than four classes will lower your grade by one letter (e.g. B to C) for every absence, and more than eight absences will result in a failing grade for the course. 

As most of the classes will be conducted in a computer lab, it is class policy that you will not use the internet for checking email, surfing the web, or playing games during class time. You may use the net for personal work before and after class. Failure to follow the above policy would lead to loss of class attendance for that day.

Turning-in Assignments and Late Work Policy
Assignments are due on the date mentioned in the schedule. The assignment should be turned-in both as an electronic copy as an email attachment and as a hard copy during class or in my mailbox (203 Ross Hall) during working hours, stamped and signed by the department secretary. If you fail to do so, your paper would be considered late.

In addition to major assignments, there will be shorter assignments, which you should keep in a flat pocket folder.  Shorter assignments serve different purposes:  to plan or revise a major assignment, to practice strategies important to a major assignment, to examine issues relevant to a major assignment, or to explore visual communication.  Therefore, failure to complete the smaller assignments on time may result in a failing grade for a major assignment. Shorter responses may not be graded if they are turned in late.

All work completed outside of class should be typed.  Make sure you have a backup copy of all work before you turn it in to be graded.  Major essays will be penalized one letter point grade (from B+ to B) for every class period they are late.  All major essays must be completed for you to receive a passing grade at the end of the semester.

Revision Policy
Writing is an iterative process of revisiting your text and making improvements to previous versions. Keeping this in mind, I will let you revise once any individually composed major assignment if you are not satisfied with its quality. However, revision does not mean simply sentence-level changes. Your revisions should be substantial and should address issues such as organization, content, and development as well.

In addition to the revision, I would like you to reflect on your revisions and draft a letter (250 words approx) listing the changes you made and your rationale for incorporating them. The letter should be a carefully drafted document and will be a part of the new letter grade. The time limit for turning in the revised document and reflection is one week from the day I hand back the graded copy of your paper.

Academic Honesty
Thoroughly acquaint yourself with all of the material covered in your Student’s Guide to English 104-105, especially the section regarding ethics and plagiarism in the academy.  Understanding what constitutes plagiarism and how to maintain academic honesty will help prevent you from committing acts of plagiarism inadvertently and will strengthen your writing.  Plagiarism is a serious legal and ethical breach, and it is treated as such by the university.  If you have any questions about documentation, see me before you turn in an assignment.

Computer Ethics
Please check the Student’s Guide to English 104-105 for information on the university's computer ethics policy.  You are expected to use the university computers responsibly and to communicate courteously with others in your class.

Disability Accommodation

If you have a disability and require accommodations, please contact me early in the semester so that your learning needs may be appropriately met.  You will need to provide documentation of your disability to the Disability Resources (DR) office, main floor of the Students Services Building, Room 1076, 515-294-6624.