Grading
This is how your final grade will be calculated.
 

Christine Bossard

Grading and Evaluation:
 

Essay #1	not graded	Annot. Bib.:	50 points
Essay #2	70 points	Revision:	30 points
Essay #3	80 points	Daily Work:	50 points
Essay #4	100 points	Group Work:	50 points
Essay #5:	125 points	Final Exam:	30 points

 
 

	509-565 points	The qualities of a "B" paper, plus imagination, originality, and effective expression.
	452-508 points	Thorough analysis of the assignment, a satisfactory response to the assignment, judgment and tact in presentation, good organization, and solid expression. No more than a couple problems with correctness.
	396-451 points	Satisfactory analysis of the assignment, organization, and expression; however, nothing remarkably good or bad about the paper. Acceptable sentence structure, although other problems in correctness may occur.
	339-395 points	Presence of a glaring defect in material, organization, and/or expression; inadequate treatment of the assignment. Possibly some sentence structure errors; several other correctness errors may also occur.
	338 (or fewer) points	Inadequate coverage of essential points; very serious defects in material, organization, and expression; glaring defects in correctness.

 
If you want to improve your grade, many resources are available to you. First, your texts are loaded with information you'll need to improve your writing process and/or grammar. They also offer you many fine examples of "good writing" to emulate. Second, if you find that you re not getting a grade you like, make an appointment with me, come to see me during my office hours, talk to me after class, e-mail me, or call me so I can help you. Third, make an appointment at the ISU Writing Center (Ross 418; phone: XXXX) a few days before your paper is due so you have enough time to make use of a tutor's comments. Finally, don't write your papers the night before; that is not how the writing process works. I consider myself to be a very good writer; however, I cannot produce a paper that Ivm happy with if I wait until the night before it's due to begin working on it.

Try to identify your weaknesses and needs early in the semester. Don't wait until the last month of class to start worrying about your grade, because at that point there will be little, if anything, you can do to improve.
 

Deborah Crown

 

Evaluation:
Papers 65%
Research paper 20%
Quizzes, Revisions, and Reading Responses 15%
Quizzes: There will be a combination of announced and "pop" quizzes over material taken from the readings, lectures, handouts, and discussions. These will be assigned a letter grade, and missed quizzes cannot be made up unless the absence is excused.

Late Work Policy:
Ouizzes and Reading Responses cannot be made up. Papers will be accepted one class period late but will be penalized two grading steps (a B will become a C+). After one class period, the late paper will not be accepted. Papers are due during the class period of the day they are due. Papers that are not submitted directly to me must be placed in my 206 Ross mailbox (the box is below my name; don't put your paper in another instructor's mailbox as this generally means the paper is lost) or slipped under my office door at 318 Ross. Do not leave papers with a secretary, with another instructor, or tacked to my bulletin board.

The Correctness Standard: you will need to show that you can meet the departmental standard on correctness on both in- and out-of-class papers, and that even if you begin the semester weak in correctness, you have addressed the problem(s) and are able to meet the standard consistently by the end of the semester. See pages 24-26 in your 104-105 Student's Guide for more on this. Keep track of the errors you are making and show progress toward improving your correctness mark. Seeing the same errors repeatedly from the same student tells me you are not seriously concerned with improving. I may tell you to visit the Writing Center (418 Ross); if so, I expect you to make an appointment and get help there.
 

B. Duffelmeyer

 
  

Grading:

The final grade for the course will be determined by the combination of grades on the following:
 

Taiyon Coleman

Grading:

Papers more than 1 day late will be penalized one letter grade per day (e.g. a paper due on Monday thats handed in on Tuesday (in my box) is I day late). All major writing assignments must be turned in in order for you to receive a passing grade in the course.

Course Requirements:
Attendance and Participation 25
Journal and Daily Assignments 100
Personal Pop Culture Analysis/Narrative 100
Tv/Ad Analysis 150
Gender/Rhetorical Analysis 150
Group Critical Review 50
Final 25
 

Jen Rouse

 
 
  

Grading and Evaluation
 

Essay #1	80 points	Final exam	60 points
Essay #2	80 points	Group projects	50 points
Essay #3	100 points	Journals	40 points
Essay #4	100 points	Participation	30 points
Essay #5	100 points

 

Calculation of Final Grade
 

Grade	Points	Explanation of the letter-grade you receive in each written assignment
	590-640	The qualities of a B paper plus imagination, originality, and effective expression.
	529-589	Thorough analysis of your topic, satisfactory conclusion, proof of effective judgment and critical thinking, persuasive argumentation, appropriate documentation, good organization, effective word choice, and solid expression. Few minor errors in correctness.
	468-528	Average work. Satisfactory analysis of your topic, organization, and expression but nothing remarkably good or bad about the paper. Acceptable sentence structure; few major errors or problems in correctness.
	407-467	Presence of major defects in material, organization, or expression; inadequate treatment of the assignment. Major structure errors as well as several grammatical and syntactical errors.
	406 or lower	Absence of thesis or inadequate coverage of essential points. Poor organization, ineffective garbled expression, serious defects in correctness.

Correctness

As stated in your Student's Guide you should make no more than one major error from the major error list for every 100 words of text (p 24). Therefore, an essay of 500 words will usually be marked failing in correctness if it has six or more major errors.
 

Julie M. Tsivakou

 

Evaluation:

All assignments will be graded on an individual point system, as listed below. This course emphasizes the evolution of the writing process, therefore, each paper assignment will lead into the next one, and the criteria for each subsequent assignment will increase. More detailed and specific directions for individual paper assignments will be provided on assignment sheets.
 

In-Class Diagnostic	No Grade
Paper #1: Summary	50 points
Paper#2: Audience Analysis	70 points
Paper#3: Rhetorical Analysis	80 points
Paper#4: Persuasion	100 points
Paper#5: Research	120 points
Paper#6: Revision	60 points
Journal (5 Entries)	100 points
Class Participation:	20 points
Total	600 points

 
Grading Scale:
 

92%-100%	A	80%-81%	B-	68%-69%	D+
90%-91%	A-	78%-79%	C+	62%-67%	D
88%-89%	B+	72%-77%	C	60%-61%	D-
82%-87%	B	70%-71%	C-	0%-59%	F

 

Matthew Wilemski

 

Grading

The most important qualities I will be considering when grading essays are based on a clear, convenient set of criteria set for my by ISU. Although individual grades will vary depending on each student's individual progress, the following are the main characteristics on which you will be evaluated:

• Material
• Organization
• Expression
• Correctness

Essays:

Essays count for the largest part of your grade because this is a composition course. (Duh, again!) Essays will reflect your understanding of materials and concepts dealt with in class. They will also demonstrate your ability to look at your world critically, apply various academic writing techniques to your work, convey your purpose to your intended audience, use a variety of information sources, and argue a point effectively and gracefully. I will return your essays to you after I have finished responding to everyone's essays. If I am running a bit behind, please be patient. In addition to teaching this class, I am taking three Graduate level courses, assistant editing a literary review, and am involved in a number of in-and out-of-school activities.. we're all busy. I will get to your essays as soon as I can.

PET PEEVE: Do not keep asking me if I've finished grading your essays, when you're getting your essays back, etc. Trust me; I will get them back to you.

I respond to essays using the following system:

Conan the Grammarian: This is the stage when I go through your essays correcting all of the items falling under the category of "Correctness," like punctuation, grammar, and spelling. These correctness items will be the first things mentioned on your comment sheets. The only time these things will affect your grade is if they affect the clarity of your ideas, or the meaning of your paper. This would generally be one major error, as defined in the SGE 104-105, per 100 words written.

The Respondent: This is where I look closely at the categories of Material, Organization, and Expression and how they relate to your intended purpose and audience. This will be the bulk of your comment sheets, because I believe it is extremely important for me to give feedback which will help you in further writing assignments, as well as other ISU courses.
 

Journals/Reading Logs/In-Class Writing:

Journals are good opportunities to get your thoughts straightened out at the beginning of each class period so you can participate in class with a fresh, open mind. You will keep your journals in a different file on your diskette as your essay assignments (or the other side of your two-pocket folder of hard copies of class assignments), and I will be looking at them at various points throughout the semester, just to map your progress. At the end of the semester, you will turn in 22 journals for my review. As you have noticed, this is only half as many days than we have in the semester. That's because you have the option of writing journal entries that I don't see. Maybe you want to completely trash me, write in your native language because you're sick of English, or maybe you simply want to get something off you chest, and would rather I didn't read it. Bearing this in mind, it might be wise to have two journal files: one that you want me to read, and one that is "for your eyes only." Remember, journals are for you, not simply to "do an assignment."

Reading Logs are a part of your journal. You can write them at any time, and in place of any Journal assignment. Reading Logs are simply opportunities for you to respond to anything you've read, whether in- or outside of class. You can ask questions, respond to issues or opinions generated by a particular author, or brainstorm connections for an upcoming essay assignment. When you turn in your 22 Journal assignments at the end of the semester, I would like at least 4 to be Reading Logs.

In-Class Writing Assignments are just that: writing assignments that you do during class time.

Final Exam:

The final exam will be weighed the same as a full essay. You will not be tested on your knowledge of any particular subject or field of interest. What the final will consist of, is a revision of your very first essay assignment. This will be unbelievably easy given the computer technology we have available to us. Trust me, by the time the end of the semester rolls around, you'll all be more than familiar with desktop editing, revising, as well as the techniques necessary to revise a paper to the point where it is seen as a clear, focused piece of writing with a specific purpose and audience that was written by a credible member of the ISU academic community. The specific dates and times will be announced.
 

E. Anderson

 
 
 

Grade Breakdown
 

In-class writing assignments/Daily Work/Participation	20%
Paper 1	10%
Paper 2	10%
Paper 3	15%
Paper 4	20%
Paper 5	25%

Late Papers

A late paper is defined as any paper handed in after I have picked up the assignments due that day during class (ordinarily at the beginning of the class period). This means that you need to have your paper printed, proofread, and stapled by this time. After hand-in time, a paper is considered late. I take 1/2 letter grade off for each day that a paper is late.
 

Erin Duncan

 

Grading/Evaluation

Like most students, you may want to know how I arrived at the decision to assign a particular grade to your writing. The clue is to read my responses to your writing. I will be looking at several things: first, have you successfully determined who your readers are for this paper? Second, is your purpose clear (what do you want to accomplish with your readers)? Third, is there sufficient material (what you have to say to your readers) to achieve your purpose? Fourth, how does your piece's organization lead readers through the text? Fifth, is the expression appropriate (tone? voice? sentence clarity & variety?)? Last, I will consider correctness (spelling? punctuation? word usage?).

Letter grades assigned to your essays represent the following:
 

	holds the reader's attention throughout, shows creative thinking or uncommon insight and analysis of the writing problem, effective organization, and solid expression.
	holds the reader's attention well and shows a good understanding of the assignment, has a logical organization, and has effective expression. There should be no more than one or two small problems with correctness.
	essay attracts the reader moderately, shows competent understanding of the assignment, but nothing remarkably good or bad about the paper. There may be some problems with correctness.
	falls short of appealing to the reader's interest, shows a glaring defect in material, organization, or expression; inadequate treatment of the assignment. There are probably some sentence structure errors along with several other errors in correctness.
	shows complete lack of effort on or understanding of the assignment, poor organization, ineffective and garbled expression with glaring defects in correctness.

As stated in your Student's Manual, you should make no more than one major error from the major list for every 100 words of text. Therefore, an essay of 500 words will usually be marked failing in correctness if it has six or more major errors.

If you are unhappy with a particular grade and think it deserves better, I am always willing to listen. Note, however, that there is a 24-hour cooling off period that you must observe before discussing it with me. You must present your case for a grade change logically and with good reasons that pertain to the essay--not just because you worked so hard on it or that you need an 'A' in this class to get into your major program. A final note: your grade in this class will not be determined by me but by you and your performance. Remember that at the end of the semester.

The breakdown of points for the semester is as follows:
 

	Points
Reading Responses	120
Weekly Homework	75
Writing about Community	50
Summary	40
Essay Analysis	50
Evaluating Difference	60
Position	100
Portfolio final	75
TOTAL POINTS POSSIBLE	570

 
 
 

Suzanne Guess

 

Grading

Your grade on assignments will be determined by your performance in relation to what I think an ideal performance on the assignment would be and your performance in relation to the performance of the rest of the class on the same task. However, if the majority of the class does well on an assignment, I will not grade some people lower just to meet some imaginary quota of lower grades. I'll do my best to let you know what I expect beforehand, and I'll also do my best to let you know specifically how your performance measures up to standards. If you have concerns or questions about grades or any other problems in the course, I would like to be the first to know, so please make an appointment to discuss them with me.

Letter grades will be assigned according to the following scale:
 

94-100	A	80-82	B-	63-66	D
90-93	A-	77-79	C+	60-62	D-
87-89	B+	73-76	C	59 -0	F
83-86	B	67-69	D+

When I calculate the final grade, I'll translate any letter grades into points by taking the middle number in the above point ranges; e.g., A=97, B=85, C=75, etc.

I am currently formulating the scale of how each assignment figures into the final grade and will get it to you soon.
 
 

Neil Lindeman

 

Grading

Attendance, Participation, Advocacy Statements, and Conferences 15%
Journals and Other Writing 15%
Group Projects 10%
Writing Projects 60%

For attendance, participation, and conferences, your grade will be based primarily on regular and punctual class attendance and on meeting with me for the required conferences. Those who have no more than 5 unexcused absences and who have the required conferences can expect to receive a C for this portion of their grade. Those who have more than 5 unexcused absences can expect this portion of their grade to much lower. Those who have 10 or excused or unexcused absences will receive no credit for this portion of their grade (in addition to other possible penalties). To receive a grade higher than a C, students must expend significant effort in participating in class discussions, workshop sessions, and other class activities (e.g., writing advocacy statements for others). Grades above a C will depend on my observations of each students' participation and on each students' written self evaluation of his/her participation at the end of the course. Students who wish an assessment of this portion of their grade at midterm must request it in a written self-evaluation by October 8th.

For journals and other writing, I will give each assignment that you turn in a +, a, or a -. Your grade will be based on the number of each mark that you receive.

Unless I deem a paper to be clearly not appropriate, your writing projects will receive one of three responses each for each submission: continue revising, satisfactory, or outstanding. To pass this course with a C-, each student must have submitted at least four different assignments at least once each. Grades will be assigned according to the highest evaluation received for each paper (regardless of the number of submissions):
 

F	no acceptable drafts submitted
D-	1 continue revising
D	2 continue revising
D+	3 continue revising
C-	4 continue revising
C	4 continue revising, 1 satisfactory
C+	2 continue revising, 2 satisfactory
B-	1 continue revising, 3 satisfactory
B	4 satisfactory
B+	3 satisfactory, 1 outstanding
A-	2 satisfactory, 2 outstanding
A	1 satisfactory, 3 outstanding
A+	4 outstanding

NOTE: The requirements at each grade level are minimums. Therefore, 3 continue revising and 1 outstanding would still be a C. You must get a satisfactory evaluation on each of four writing projects to get a B or better.
 
 

David Wallace