Prof. Richard F. Johnson
English 101-096: Fall 2011
Fridays from 12 pm to 2:40 pm in L216

Syllabus for English 101-096

"The desire to write grows with writing."
-- Erasmus

Taking its cue from Erasmus, this course aims to increase students' desire to write. The course attains this objective by helping the student understand the writing process so that he/she gains confidence and control over his/her writing. As writing demands a degree of critical thinking, our class sessions should be thought of as workshops in which we consider how best to express our ideas and how other people might receive them. In class, we will be introduced to the elements of composition and argument through the analysis of essays and articles. The readings will be used as models for the development through writing practice of persuasive writing skills. Class time will also be devoted to planning papers, writing sections of them, reading works-in-progress, and evaluating drafts.

• Class Guidelines
• Daily Schedule
• Formal Assignments
• Useful Electronic Resources
• Instructor Contact Information

Required Textbooks:

English:

• Simon Winchester, The Professor and the Madman: A Tale of Murder, Insanity, and the Making of the Oxford English Dictionary. HarperCollins Publishers, 1998.
• Jon Krakauer, Into the Wild. Anchor Books, 1997.
• Diana Hacker. A Pocket Style Manual. 5th Edition. Boston and New York: Bedford/St. Martin's Press, 2008.
• A dictionary of your choice, preferably one with etymologies in it. The paperback version of Webster's New World Dictionary would be an excellent choice.
• Please print the Writing Workshops Handout and bring it to class.

Course Requirements:

1. Complete and submit all assignments (reading, written assignments, drafts, final revisions) in class on the day they are due.
2. Prepare for class each day and participate in discussions and workshops.
3. Complete ten (10) Reading Quizzes based on class reading assignments.
4. Write TWO formal papers, putting each through one revision and peer review.
5. Conduct Research-writing activities.
6. Write ONE Mini-Research paper, putting it through at least one revision.
7. Save all written materials on a flash-drive or other such electronic device.
8. Keep all hard copies of all materials (pre-writing, drafts, research articles, etc.) for the duration of the semester.

General Course Guidelines:

Students are urged to participate enthusiastically and consistently. Attendance is mandatory at all classes. You are allowed TWO absences during the term. Upon the third absence, five (5) points will be deducted from your semester total of points. For every absence after the third, five (5) additional points will be deducted. If you have five absences before mid-term, you should strongly consider dropping the course. A pattern of unexcused absences may result in failure of the course. Failure to complete assignments on time or to prepare for class will result in lowered grades. There will be no make-up assignments except in extreme cases.

Academic Honesty:

Late Assignments:

All written assignments for each paper (drafts, final papers, and homework assignments) must be typed, double-spaced and submitted in class on the dates they are due. I do NOT accept assignments submitted through email. Since students who turn in late drafts miss out on classwork crucial to the revision of papers, late drafts will result in a final grade of no better than a C for that paper. Furthermore, this grade will result only if the paper is completed by the next class meeting. Written comments from the instructor will not be given on late work.

Course Grading:

Your final course grade will be based on the following criteria:

Performance: Attendance at every class meeting. Prompt arrival to class. Regular and active participation about the reading assignments and about the student's own work consistently at every class. Papers and homework handed in on time. Demonstration of engagement in the course and in the student's own personal writing development.

Product: Completion of formal paper for each unit demonstrating an understanding and application of the writing concepts and techniques introduced in the course.

Control of Process: Completion of in-class and home assignments of a quality demonstrating serious and reflective critical thought and attention. Includes whether the student experiments with pre-writing techniques; writes perceptive and thoughtful peer and self evaluations, and reading responses; understands the concept of revision and demonstrates this understanding by revising drafts substantially; resourcefully locates necessary documents for research, and demonstrates ability to synthesize and evaluate them; carefully edits and proofreads documents.

Final Grades are computed by letter, not numerical, grades according to the following equivalents: A= 900-1000 points; B= 800-899 points; C= 700-799 points; D= 600-699 points; F= anything less than 600 points.

Finally, your success in this class is important to me. If you have a disability and may require some accommodations or modification in procedures, class activity, instruction, requirements, etc., please contact me early in the semester so we can discuss and arrange for necessary accommodations and/or modifications with the Center for Students with Disabilities (Building D, Room 119, Extension 6266).

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Please note that ALL assigments are due in class on the day under which they are listed.

Week One:

August 26:

• Introduction to course: aims, assumptions, expectations, and procedures.
• Introductions to each other.
• Discussion of syllabus and books.
• Overview and discussion of the Writing Process.
• Read Botany of Desire, Introduction.
• Assign Essay 1.

Week Two:

September 2:

• Essay One and "Author's Reflections" due in class.
• Read Botany of Desire, Chapter Three, Part A.
• Assign Essay Two.
• Writing Workshop 1: The Parts of Speech

Week Three:

September 9:

• Bring in 10 articles for Essay 2.
• Assign Thesis and Outline with Works Cited page for Essay 2.
• Introduction to MLA Documentation style.
• Read Botany of Desire, Chapter Three, Part B.
• Writing Workshop 2: The Parts of a Sentence

Week Four:

September 16:

• Thesis and Outline for Essay 2 due in class.
• Read Professor and the Madman (PAMM), Preface -- Chapter Two.
• Read Pocket Style Manual (PSM): pp. 14 - 15 and 42 - 47.
• Writing Workshop 3: Fragments & Run-ons

Week Five:

September 23:

• Read Professor and the Madman (PAMM), Chapters Three and Four.
• From outline to draft: next steps
• Read PSM: pp. 21 - 31.
• Writing Workshop 4: Subject & Verb Agreement

Week Six:

October 30:

• Bring two copies of Rough Draft including Works Cited page of Essay 2 to class.
• Submit articles used in Paper 2 with Instructor copy of Rough Draft.
• Assign Peer Review of Essay 2
• Read Professor and the Madman (PAMM), Chapters Five -- Seven.
• Read PSM: pp. 32 - 34.
• Writing Workshop 5: Pronoun Agreement

Week Seven:

October 7:

• Peer Review of Essay 2 due.
• Read Professor and the Madman (PAMM), Chapters Eight -- Ten.
• Read PSM: pp. 11 - 13.
• Writing Workshop 6: Confusing Modifiers
• Assign Mini-Research Paper.
• Introduce Four-Step Process.

Week Eight:

October 14:

• Read Professor and the Madman (PAMM), Chapter Eleven -- Suggestions for Further Reading.
• Essay Two due in class.
• Four-Step Process due.
• Bibliographic Instruction Session; Go to Library at 1 pm.

Week Nine:

October 21:

• Read Into the Wild, Author's Note -- Chapter Four.
• Thesis Paragraph for Mini-Research Paper due.
• Assign Annotated Bibliography.
• See Sample Annotated Bibliography for reference.
• Read PSM: 12b - d, pp. 34 - 39.
• Writing Workshop 7: Pronoun Reference

Week Ten:

October 28:

• Annotated Bibliography due.
• Assign Full Research Outline.
• Read Into the Wild, Chapters Five -- Seven.
• Read PSM: pp. 5 - 6.
• Writing Workshop 8: Parallel Structure

Week Eleven:

November 4:

• Full Research Outline due.
• Read Into the Wild, Chapters Eight -- Ten.
• Read PSM: pp. 58 - 65.
• Writing Workshop 9: Commas

Week Twelve:

November 11:

• No Class: Veterans' Day holiday

Week Thirteen:

November 18:

• Read Into the Wild, Chapters Eleven -- Fourteen.
• Read PSM: pp. 65-67.
• Writing Workshop 9a: Semicolons

Week Fourteen:

November 25:

• No Class: Thanksgiving holiday

Week Fifteen:

December 2:

• Rough draft of Mini-Research paper due in class. Only full drafts (6-8 pages) with Works Cited page will be accepted. Bring TWO copies to class.
• Read Into the Wild, Chapters Fifteen and Sixteen.
• Writing Workshop 10: Colons & Quotation Marks

Week Sixteen:

December 9:

• Peer Review of Mini-Research Paper due.
• Read Into the Wild, Chapter Seventeen -- Epilogue.

Finals Week:

Wednesday, December 14: Anytime before 3 pm in Dr Johnson's office or submitted to his mailbox in L-203.

• Final Draft of Mini-Research Paper

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Click on the appropriate assignment to get a full description of the requirements for that assignment.

• Essay One
• Essay Two
• Quotes, Introductions, and Conclusions
• Peer Review of Essay 2
• Mini-Research Paper
• Four-Step Process
• Annotated Bibliography
• Sample Annotated Bibliography
• Sample Research Outline
• Peer Review of Mini-Research Paper

• Harper College's Writing Center provides limited instructional assistance with software, editing assistance and suggestions, and specific answers to grammatical questions. More extensive help is offered by the Tutoring Center (see below). The Writing Center is located in Room F-303 of the Academic Resource Center; the phone number is 847-925-6000, ext. 2719.
• Harper College's Tutoring Center is available free of charge to Harper students in most academic areas. They provide both walk-in and appointment tutoring. Students usually receive between fifteen- and thirty-minutes worth of help per week. For writing help, the Center requests that you bring the syllabus, a copy of the assignment, class notes, and textbook, so that the tutor will understand the goals of the assignment and will then know how to help you. The Tutoring Center is located in Room F-315 of the Academic Resource Center; their phone number is 847-925-6539. Please call or check their website for more information about services and scheduling appointments.
• Harper's On-line Writing Lab-HOWL
• Evaluating Web Sites for Research
• Oxford English Dictionary Online: For more than a century, the OED has been the definitive dictionary of the English language.
• Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary: Merriam-Webster's online version of their popular dictionary is very reliable and has fairly full etymologies as well.

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