ENG102 Fall 2009 Syllabus
Glendale Community College

Item Instructor Information
Instructor: Dr. Alisa Cooper
Office: Building 05-118
Office Hours: MWF: 9-10am, Tues: Online 9-10am & 8-9pm, Thur: 12-1pm
Office Phone: 623-845-4915 
Cell Phone/Text: 602-325-3259
E-mail: dr.coop@freshmancomp.com
Class Time: MWF: 11-11:50am, Thursday 1-2:15pm & Online 24-7
Class Room: HT2 151
Item Additional Contact Information
Item Course Materials
Required:
  • A Writer's Resource, 3rd Ed. Maimon (2nd Ed. will work too)
  • 3 ring binder notebook,
  • 8 1/2 X 11 white notebook paper,
  • Email address and Freshman Comp Ning Account
  • USB thumb drive,
Optional:
  • ear phones and microphone headset

Item Course Technology
Item Course Description
This course further emphasizes critical reading and essay writing. Students write short essays as well as an extended research paper. Course work engages students in the reading, thinking, and writing processes central to academic research: paraphrase, summary, critical analysis, synthesis, argumentation. The course also utilizes current technology to aide in researching and writing.
Item Course Objectives
1. Students will exit the course having further developed their ability to read critically, generate original ideas, and present these ideas persuasively in academic, college-level essays. This includes writing well-supported, coherent, original arguments.

2. Students will refine strategies of academic research, including selecting a topic, generating an original thesis, understanding and evaluating sources, and planning and developing an extended documented research paper.

3. Overall, students will refine their reading and writing processes as they further develop confidence in their ability as readers, writers, and critics.
Item Grading Policies
Grades for completed written work are given in percentages:
90-100 = A, 80-89 = B, 70-79 = C, 60-69 = D
Below 60 is a failing grade on an individual assignment; however, a score of below 60 does reflect credit for the work done and certainly is more valuable than a zero (0), which is a score when no work is turned in.

Grades:
A = 1000-895 pts
B = 894-795 pts
C = 794-695 pts
D = 694-595 pts
F = 594-0 pts

Final Note: 60% of your grade in this class is dependent on your essay writing skills. That's over half of your grade. You are guaranteed to not do well if you do not complete any one of the essay assignments. To give you a fair opportunity to do well in ENG 101, please complete ALL essay assignments.
Item Attendance Policies

You are expected to attend all class sessions. Sessions in an online class include any schedule chats or IM. Attendance is also measured by your activity in the class. You should plan to participate at least 3 days a week. Should you miss more than that you may be withdrawn from ENG102 due to excessive absences. You may also lose class participation/attendance points for excessive absences.

You are expected to participate cooperatively, constructively, and to the best of your ability in all class and online activities. These activities may include class or small group discussion, peer-editing, in-class writing assignments and online discussion forums and writing assignments. In order to participate, you must be prepared--complete all class assignments before coming to class. If you come to class unprepared, you may be counted absent, and you will lose class participation points.
Item Late Work
You must turn in all assignments, discussion journals, and essays complete and on time. Complete means everything specified in the assignment. Incomplete assignments will not be graded. On time means by midnight on the date the assignment is due. The grade for any late ESSAYS or assignments will be reduced 10% each day it is late. Late essays and assignments will be accepted up to one week following the due date. Essay and assignments over a week late will not be accepted. No late discussion journals will be graded.
Item Plagiarism
It is important that you become familiar with the plagiarism policy of the English Division. Credit must be given where it is due. Creators of ideas deserve to be recognized for them. If you present material without acknowledging an outside source, readers will assume that you are its author. When writers deliberately present another author's work as their own, they are guilty of plagiarism. When you write for others to read, as in an essay, you are bound by certain rules of fair play. Specifically, unless you quote directly, you must completely restate material borrowed from your sources using your own words and your own style. Failure to do so is called plagiarism, an act of dishonesty. If you plagiarize in any assignment in this course, you will receive zero (0) points for the plagiarized assignment, and possibly a failing grade for the class.
Item Paper Format
All papers and writing assignments handed in electronically should:
1. be typed (double-spaced) with 12pt font
2. have 1" margins on top and bottom and 1.25" on the sides;
3. include the writer's name, course title/time, assignment # & name, and date in upper left corner of the page.
4. be saved as either MS Word (.doc) or Rich Text Format (.rtf). No Word Perfect (wpd) or Word (docx) files!
5. be saved with the following named format: first name and Assn.# (Tracy A1.doc)

Assignments that do not follow these format guidelines will be penalized no less than 5% and no more than 10% of the grade.
Item Communications Etiquette
I. You are permitted to contact the instructor via email, chat or phone (phone before 10pm). Please follow appropriate etiquette when doing so:
  1. Be sure to send your email from an email account that belongs to you, and make sure the account has your name attached to it.
  2. Use a proper subject for the title of your email
  3. When typing email, do not type in all capital letters
  4. Be sure you clearly identify what your problem, question or needs are
  5. When leaving a voicemail message, be sure to include your name, class, and phone number
  6. Lastly, please do not send chain letters, jokes, or any non-course related emails to the instructor.
When contacting your instructor, you can expect a response within 48 hours outside of office hours and within the hour during office hours.

II. You are permitted to send emails and messages from the course network to students in the class for only class related business. Please follow appropriate etiquette when doing so:
  1. Sending message from the course network will keep your email address private, but the recipient will not be able to reply back to that message.
  2. Be succinct when you state your business in an email or network message. 
  3. If you receive messages from a student and you do not want to communicate with him/her, inform the instructor so that she can contact the student.
  4. Do not send repeated emails if the person does not respond.
III. It is NOT recommended that you use the Blackboard email system to contact your instructor or your classmates, as most of us are not familiar with the new email addresses.
Item Student Support Resources

Glendale Community College offers a variety of resources to support student learning and offers the student support services listed below:

  • Need assistance with writing skills?  Check out GCC's Writing Center. Be sure to take note of the Electronic Writing Center listed on the main Writing Center home page.
  • Need assistance with study skills?  Time management skills?  Test-taking skills?  How about one-on-one tutoring?  GCC's Center for Learning offers a variety of services to support student learning.
  • Need to find more information on Therevada Buddhism?  Not sure where to find scholarly articles on religion and popular culture?  Trying to find primary sources on early Christianity?  Looking for a film on Hindu ascetics? Not sure how to cite a source?  GCC's Library and Media Services provide excellent resources and training.
  • GCC's Counseling and Career Services provides additional support to students interested in career exploration, enhanced study skills training, life coaching, and personal counseling.
  • Have general questions regarding enrollment, class schedules, advisement, and graduation?  Check out GCC's Enrollment Services.

Item Disability Services
If any of you has a disability, including a learning disability, please contact me as soon as possible to discuss any potential accommodation needs.

Glendale Community College's Disability Services Mission Statement:

"The Mission of the Glendale Community College's office of Disability Services & Resources is to support the campus community (students, faculty & staff, and administration) and local service providers (high schools, rehabilitation agencies) by offering individuals with disabilities the natural benefits afforded by access to our facilities, academic programs and student support services.


In addition, Disability Services & Resources aims to promote establishment of campus policies, procedures, and technology that are more inclusive and understanding of individual functional limitations through advocacy, academic advisement, and the use of effective, reasonable, and efficient academic accommodations designed to enhance equal access to education, self advocacy, and the independence of this uniquely diverse and historically disadvantaged population."

If you have a disability that may have some impact on your work in this class and for which you may require accommodations, you need to notify the Disability Services office, located in TDS-100. Telephone: (623) 845-3080.  Video Phone for the Deaf (623)-845-3083 or 1-(866)-869-7383.

This course uses Blackboard as the principle content delivery tool for the course.  To learn more about Blackboard's commitment to accessibility, please see their accessibility statement.

 
Item Final Statements
  • Information provided in the syllabus and due dates are subject to change due to the exigencies of the real world. Keep informed of any changes by attending class regularly and taking note of any announcements made in class. Students will be notified by the instructor of any changes in course requirements or policies.
  • As a registered student in this class you are responsible to know and understand the syllabus. The instructor is willing to answer any questions you may have concerning the syllabus. It is recommended that you keep this syllabus in the front of your notebook for this class to have easy reference.
  • Students are responsible to know their rights and responsibilities. You can find these in the College Catalog and the Student Handbook.
  • Lastly, a word to the wise: don't waste your absence on minor problems. You never know when a real emergency will occur, and one absence is one absence. Also, don't let the procrastination bug bite you. Get the work done early and avoid the last minute panic. You're guaranteed to do a better job on your assignments. Good luck this semester, and I really hope you enjoy the class.