Syllabus for English 1301

Composition & Rhetoric

Spring 2011
Instructor Course

Sean Ferrier-Watson, MA ENGL 1301.43

TR 2:25-3:40PM
PJC-GC 123

Office Office Hours

PJC-GC 201 after class,
or by appointment

E-mail/Phone # Website
[email protected] www.SeanENGL1301.wordpress.com
903-454-9333

Required Texts

Kirszner, Laurie G., and Stephen R. Mandell. Patterns for College Writing: A Rhetorical Reader and
Guide. 10th ed. Boston: Bedford, 2007. ISBN-13:978-0-312-60152-2

Hacker, Diana. A Writer’s Reference. 6th ed. New York: Bedford, 2007. ISBN-13:978-0-312-45025-0

Lee, Harper. To Kill A Mockingbird. New York: Warner Books, 1982. ISBN-0-446-22227-5

Course Content
This course is a study of grammar and composition through analysis of sentence structure,
paragraph organization, and theme development. You will be expected to conduct an analysis of
written discourse with emphasis on the writing of class themes, including critical observations
about your own work and material from the textbook and handouts.

Course Prerequisites
English 0302 with a grade of C or above, or placement by department based on admission
information.

Purpose
This course is a composition and rhetoric course. The class, for approximately 15
weeks, will concentrate upon improving thinking and writing skills. It will emphasize the aims—
the “why”—and the modes—the “how”—of composition as they apply to the communication
process. Assignments will include pre-writing activities, essay writing, editing, revision, oral
discussion, group work, and reading of novels, as well as lectures. Homework will include
readings and exercises in the textbooks. A major portion of the course will be devoted to writing
and will include documented papers when appropriate. The close of the course will focus upon
reading and discussion of the novels.

COURSE OBJECTIVES
Successful students in English 1301 will:
 Improve attitudes towards written communication
 Refine writing skills for college level discourse by:
 Identifying and utilizing Standard Written English
  Identifying and utilizing basic Academic Discourse
 Increase critical reading skills
 Build analytical thinking skills
 Successfully complete preparation of mode and argumentative essays and a
properly documented research paper.
 Successfully identify and utilize MLA style for citing and documenting sources.

Assignment Policy
With the exception of some daily grades, all assignments should be completed on time and
formatted correctly to be considered for full credit. Major essays must be formatted in accordance
with MLA guidelines and typed in legible twelve point font. The page length and other detailed
specifications are listed further below. These assignments will be submitted in class on the
deadline listed on the course schedule. All papers should be hardcopies (printouts). If class is
canceled for some reason on a due date, the papers may be submitted electronically to the class
email account ([email protected]) or left under my name at the front office. I will
deduct points for papers turned in late or electronically otherwise.

Procedure
Daily lecture, class discussion, some group workshops, some creative writing. Regular
attendance is required. Assignments will demonstrate comprehension of subject matter
and modes of writing; by end of semester, essays and tests should demonstrate practical
use of modes and academic discourse and substantial mastery of the basics of Modern
Language Association style.

Successful Students
ENGL 1301 students will improve attitudes towards written communication Refine writing
skills for college level discourse Increase critical reading skills, build analytical thinking skills
Successfully complete argumentative essays effectively using modes Successfully complete a
properly documented research paper. Successfully identify and utilize MLA style for citing
sources

Attendance Policy
Attendance is mandatory. As with any college class, attendance is a vital part of the learning
process. If a student misses more than three class sessions, a deduction will be applied to the
student’s participation grade (attendance is an important part of your grade, so please do not
underestimate the attendance policy). Absences are considered to be unauthorized unless due to
sickness, valid emergencies (i.e. hospitalization of family or friend), or sanctioned school
activities. The student must present proof of the incident before an excuse will be issued. If,
through a misfortune, a student should arrive after the instructor has recorded absences, it is the
student’s responsibility to talk with the instructor immediately after class in order to discuss
changing the unauthorized absence to a tardy. Excessive absences can result in a failing grade for
the class. If the problem is serious enough to miss a significant amount of class, then the student
should consider dropping the course or speaking with the university. There will be no make up
for missed assignments, but the instructor may allow for extra daily assignments for students with
authorized absences.

Late Policy
I will accept late major grades for partial credit up until one week after the due date. The grade
for these assignments will be determined by the paper’s merit and number of days past the due
 date. Daily grades and attendance are not redeemable under this policy. If you are absent or fail to
complete a daily assignment, I will not allow a make-up grade. You are responsible for getting all
of your papers in on-time.

Special Needs or Learning Disabilities

The Student Development Center is responsible for coordinating services for students with
special needs. Individual students have the right and the responsibility to decide whether and
when to choose among accessible service offerings. Paris Junior College provides equal
opportunities for students with disabilities and ensures access to a wide variety of resources and
programs. The College will make reasonable accommodations for qualified students with a
documented physical, psychological, or learning disability who have been admitted to the College
and have requested accommodations. Any student who has special needs or disabilities is
encouraged to feel free to discuss his or her concerns with me privately. Your concerns will
remain confidential.

Daily Grade/ Homework Policy

Daily coursework and homework will be assigned periodically throughout the semester. These
assignments are graded pass/fail. In other words, if you fail to complete the assignment or
approach it incorrectly, you will not receive credit for the assignment. Note: daily grades and
homework are not replaceable. If you miss a daily assignment, please do not ask to make it up. I
will, however, offer extra credit assignments for daily grades from time to time, but you should
not make a habit of missing these assignments.

Rewrite Policy
Students will be allowed to rewrite one major essay for full credit. I will not permit students to
rewrite a paper with a grade above an 88%. All rewrites must be submitted one week after the
graded assignment has been returned to the student. Since the final essay is due the last day of
class, it will of course be an exception to the rewrite policy. I recommend that students only
rewrite papers with a grade of C+ or lower. If you have any concerns about the rewrite policy,
please address these concerns with me as soon as possible. (Note: this policy will not apply to late
submissions.)

Peer Editing
Criticism is an important part of the writing process. It provides insight, awareness and
perspective to any well written work. As students of writing, you will need to practice well
developed and constructive criticism. To help cultivate this process, I will divide you into peer
editing groups. These groups must be composed of three to five students and will be expected to
meet in and out of class. Since many of you are new to college writing, I highly recommend that
you seek as much feedback as possible on an assignment before submitting it for a grade. Peer
editing and other in-class activities are an essential part of class participation. If you are not
participating in peer editing, then it is reasonable to expect a deduction in your final grade.

Grading Policy

Participation 20%
 Attendance 10%
 Homework/Daily Work/Peer Editing 10%
Weekly Response Papers 20%
 ½ to 1 page in length, typed and double spaced
 Respond to the reading or activity for the week
  Do not merely summarize the content of the reading
 Try to respond to what you find interesting or engaging about the reading
 These assignments are due Thursday of every week.
Essay #1: Persuasive/Argumentative Essay 20%
 3-5 pages in length
 Check handout for details
Essay #2: Informative Essay 20%
 3-5 pages in length
 Must contain a work cited page
 Check handout for details
Essay #3: Critical Analysis/Research Paper 20%
 3-5 pages in length
 Research Proposal (300 words)
 Must contain a work cited page
 Must contain a working bibliography to accompany proposal
 Check handout for details

Class Assignments & Reading Schedule

Spring 2011
January
Week 1

18—First Day!
 Class Introduction
 Review of Syllabus & Class Schedule
20—Narration & Description
 Sandra Cisneros, “Only Daughter,” 97p
 Martin Gansberg, “Thirty-Eight Who Saw Murder Didn’t Call the Police,” 120p
 Read 766-768
 View the “I Hate Writing” (video on the website)
 “Who Said 'Johnny Can't Write'?” (video on class website)
Week 2
25—Argumentation and Persuasion
 Read 547-563p from our textbook (glance over)
 Al Gore, “The Time to Act Is Now,” 617p
 Daniel B. Botkin, “Global Warming Delusions,” 623p

27—Argumentation Cont.
 Martin Luther King Jr., “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” 588p
 Linda Chavez, “American Dreams, Foreign Flags,” 648p

February
Week 3

1—Argumentation Cont.
 Patrick Buchanan, “To Reunite a Nation,” 671p
 Michael Levin, “The Case for Torture,” 681
 John McCain, “Torture’s Terrible Toll,” 696p
3—Peer Editing for Essay #1
 Bring a draft of your essay to class

Week 4

8—Cause and Effect

 Robin Tolmach Lakoff, “The Power of Words in Wartime,” 363p
 Jonathan Kozol, “The Human Cost of an Illiterate Society,” 248p
 Essay #1 Due

10—Exemplification & Process

 Lillian B. Rubin, “Gun and Grief,” 350p
 Linda M. Hasselstorm, “A Peaceful Woman Explains Why She Carriers a Gun,” 357p

Week 5

15—Compare and Contrast

 Ellen Laird, “I’m Your Teacher, Not Your Internet-Service Provider,” 416p
 Bharati Mukherjee, “Two Ways to Belong in America,” 411p

17—Definition
 Judy Brady, “I Want a Wife,” 520p
 Roberto Santiago, “Black and Latino,” 537p

Week 6
22— Classification and Division
 William Zinsser, “College Pressures,” 462p
 Jonathan Koppell, “On the Internet, There’s No Place to Hide,” 495p

24—Classification & Division Cont.

 Amy Tan, “Mother Tongue,” 477p
 Nancy J. Peters, “Milestones of Literary Censorship” (handout)
 Stanley Fish, “Getting Coffee Is Hard to Do” 287p

March
Week 7
1—Classification & Division Cont.
 Stephanie Ericsson, “The Ways We Lie” 485p
 MLA Lecture

3—Peer Editing for Essay #2

 Bring a draft of your essay to class
Week 8
8—Combining the Patterns
 Jonathan Swift, “A Modest Proposal” 745p
 David Kirby, “Inked Well” 738p
 Essay #2 Due
10—MLA Style & Revision
 Watching out for Plagiarism, 766-768p
 Drafting A Thesis Statement, 769p
 Documenting Your Sources, 772-782p

Week 9
15—Spring Break! No Class.
17—Spring Break! No Class.
Week 10
22—Controversial Texts and Literary Genres
 “Howl” (handout)
 Charles Bukowski, “Hot Lady” (handout)
 Marguerite Krause, “Harry Potter and the End of Religion” (handout)

24—Fiction & Poetry

 Shirley Jackson, “The Lottery” 311p
 Janice Mirikitani, “Suicide Note” 377p

Week 11
29—Fiction & Poetry
 Gwendolyn Brooks, “Sadie and Maud” 443p
 Grace Paley, “Samuel” 258p

31—Fiction & Poetry

 Kate Chopin, “The Storm,” 109p
 Edwin Brock, “Five ways to Kill a Man,” 501p

April
Week 12

5—Fiction & Poetry

 Philip Levine, “What Work Is,” 542p
 Sherman Alexie, “Indian Education,” 135p

7—Fiction & Poetry

 John Updike, “A&P” (handout)
 Jack Kerouac, “Good Blonde” (handout)
Week 13
12—Novel
 To Kill A Mockingbird, Chapters 1-8

14—Novel
 To Kill A Mockingbird, Chapters 9-12
Week 14
19—Novel
 To Kill A Mockingbird, Chapters 13-21

21—Novel
  To Kill A Mockingbird, Chapters 22-31 (or end)
Week 15
26—Research Day in the Library
28—Proposal Due & Final Discussion over Research

May
Week 16
3—Peer Editing (must bring paper to class)
5—Peer Editing (must bring paper to class)
Finals Week
12—Tentative date for Final Research Paper