English 3: Critical Reading and Writing

Schedule #58479

Fall 2008

Eileen Apperson

Office Hours: TWTH 1:00-2:00

Office: HUM 60

Office phone: 638-3641, ext. 3223

email: eileen.apperson@reedleycollege.edu

 

Course description: This course is designed to develop critical thinking, reading and writing skills beyond the level achieved in English 1A.  The course will focus on the development of logical reasoning and analytical and argumentative writing skills based primarily on works of nonfiction.  To take this course, you must have passed English 1A with a C grade or better.  If you received a C or B grade in English 1A, the department recommends that you take English 1B or English 2 prior to enrolling in English 3. 

 

Required Texts/Materials:

Elements of Argument, Rottenberg (8th edition?-- check with the

Reedley College bookstore for which edition was received from the publisher)

The Unsettling of America: Culture and Agriculture, Wendell Berry

            email account

            Necessary in order to do work from home, you should have the following

                    programs (all of these programs are installed on computers here on-campus):

        Internet browser (such Internet Explorer or Netscape); e-mail access; word   

        processor

 

           

Recommended Materials:

            Any writer’s handbook.  Shop around to see which one fits your need and pocketbook.

 

Minimum Class Requirements To Pass English 3:

 

            Participation/Attendance:  Class participation is vital.  Your final grade will suffer the consequences of lack of participation.  It is a good idea to check Blackboard and email on a daily basis.

 

            Reading Assignments:  Those who are good writers are good readers.  Weekly reading assignments will be given.

 

Reading Responses:  You will be required to complete reading responses in conjunction with reading assignments.  These must be in MLA format and on time.  Unless otherwise noted, all responses should be at least one full page minimum.  Most weekly assignments are worth, roughly, 10 points per written page.

 

 

            Peer Response Workshops: You will be workshopping your major writing assignments.  Failure to submit your writings to the workshopping sessions will result in a lowered final grade.  You will be graded on both having material prepared for workshop and the quality of your responses to others’ writings.  Workshops will make up at least ˝ of the participation grade.

 

            Online Activities/Quizzes/Discussions:  On a weekly basis, we will complete various activities worth a range of points.  No make-up work is allowed passed the due dates.  Weekly Discussion Board questions are generally 5-10 points each.  Please respond to Discussion Board questions early in the week.  Any last minute responses may not be graded.  Any responses that merely repeat what has already been stated will not receive a grade. 

           

            General Writing Assignments:  This class requires the completion of various graded writing assignments.  These must be in MLA format and on time.  Please keep all of your prewriting and drafts of each paper--I may ask to see your writing processes before I will accept assignments. 

           

            Late Paper Policy:  Papers, activities, workshops, discussions, etc. are not accepted after the due date.

 

            Due Dates: Generally, assignments will be posted by noon on Thursday for the following week.  Assignments for the week will be due Thursdays at noon. 

 

 

Other Items:

 

Plagiarism:  Plagiarism is the act of using another person’s words as your own.  This included having anyone else complete your work for you.  You will be caught, automatically dropped from the course, reported to the administration, and your college record will be in jeopardy.  If plagiarism and/or cheating are suspected, you may be asked to show drafts of your written work.  Keep all drafts of your writing assignments.

 

Grading:  You will be graded on a point system scale.  If you are failing the course at mid-term, you may automatically be dropped. 

 

Writing Center (HUM 58):  You are required to submit at least one major paper to the Reedley College Writing Center via their online tutorial: rc.writingcenter@reedleycollege.edu  .  The importance of this service to your success in English 3 cannot be stressed enough.  Consider additional submissions.  Web address: http://www.reedleycollege.edu/academic/Departments/CandL/Writing%20Center/writingcenter.htm#

 

Accommodations: Please inform me of any special circumstances you might have.  If you have special needs as addressed by the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), including alternate media requests, please notify me immediately.  Reasonable efforts will be made to accommodate your needs.

           

 

           

All assignments are subject to change.

 

            Percentages are as follows:

           

Research papers grade=50%

5+pgs. Short research paper and proposal

13+pgs.Synthesis research paper and proposal*          

            Written assignments grade=30%

30+pgs. Elements of Argument responses

20+pgs. Text (TBA) responses

10+pgs. Timed essay exams on reading assignments

Participation=20%

            5+pgs. Workshop responses

15+/- pgs. Discussion Board    

 

Additional assignments may be added at any time.

 

*You must receive a 70% or higher grade on your synthesis paper to be eligible to pass this class.

                                                                       

100% - 90% = A, 89% - 80% = B, 79% - 70% = C, 69% - 60% = D, 59%-50% = F

 

A final, important note:  Keep in mind that in this class, and for your entire academic future as well, your education is dependent upon you.  Your instructors are resources and facilitators.  It is you who is responsible for the learning that takes place.

 

“Ninety-nine percent of failures come from people who have the habit of making excuses.”

–George Washington Carver

 

Upon completion of this course, students will be able to:

 

A.      read and critically evaluate college-level non-fiction material from a variety of sources on themes from different content area.

 

B.       distinguish between valid and sound arguments and invalid and unsound arguments.

 

C.       demonstrate an ability to recognize formal and informal fallacies in language and thought and avoid them in the construction of their argument.

 

D.       recognize and use deductive and inductive language.

 

E.        distinguish factual statements from judgmental statements and knowledge from opinion.

 

F.        make effective inferences from information presented.

 

G.       recognize and use denotative and connotative aspects of language.

 

H.       research and evaluate outside sources for use in the development of their own writing.

 

I.         write summaries of one source, critical analysis of a single source or of two sources with a unified approach, and synthesis papers of multiple sources.

 

J.         use causal analysis, advocacy of ideas, definition, persuasion, evaluation, refutation, and interpretation effectively in college-level prose.

 

K.       demonstrate the ability to write correct college-level prose containing proper essay structure, organization, development and diction and mechanics.

 

L.        identify the deliberate abuses and manipulations of rhetoric so they can identify them in general usage and avoid them in their own writing.