Distance Learning Course

ENG 102-600

Spring 2013

William Patrick Wend

http://eng102wwend.pbworks.com

 

Office Hours

Laurel Hall Faculty Work Rooms MW 11am-12pm F 1pm-2pm

Parker 413B T TH 10am-11am

 

I meet with my directed study student on Friday, so please let me know in advance if you would like to meet that day. I am also available by appointment if these hours don’t work for you.

 

Contact Information

wwend@bcc.edu

Office: 609-894-9311 #1401

Texting: 609-488-4483 (Please make sure you mention who you are in your first text so I can add your name to your texts)

Skype: professorwend

Google Talk: professorwend

Yahoo: professorwend

AIM: professorwend

Twitter: @wpwend42

 

I am primarily online during office hours except for Wednesday's when I do "EOffice" hours (8pm-9pm)

 

Required Texts

• Robert DiYanni, Literature: Approaches To Fiction, Poetry, and Drama, McGraw Hill, 978-0-07-312445-2

 

Optional texts you may want to check out...

• Thomas Kinsella, A Brief Guide To Punctuation, http://wp.stockton.edu/freestuff/2012/01/01/a-brief-guide-to-punctuation/ 
• Anne Frances Wysocki, Dennis A. Lynch, The DK Handbook, Pearson, 978-0-205-74143-4

 

Goals & Focus Of Course

• Discuss works of literature through extensive reading and discussion.
• Analyze short stories for plot, setting, characterization, theme, and point of view.
• Examine poetry for imagery, diction, tone, speaker, language, and structure.
• Examine plays, focusing on character development, dramatic structure, and performance.
• Write essays, using MLA-style documentation, analyzing works of short fiction, poetry, and drama.

 

Expectations & Policies

Below is a brief description of how I will grade writing in this course:

A: Mastery of essential elements and related concepts, plus demonstrated excellence or originality.

B+: Mastery of essential elements and related concepts, showing higher level understanding.

B: Mastery of essential elements and related concepts.

C+: Above average knowledge of essential elements and related concepts.

C: Acceptable knowledge of essential elements and related concepts.

D: Minimal knowledge of related concepts.

F: Unsatisfactory progress. This grade may also be assigned in cases of academic misconduct, such as cheating or plagiarism, and/or excessive absences.

 

Attendance

You do not "attend" a distance learning course in the traditional manner, but there are still some concerns we need to address in regards to this issue. Despite this not being a "face to face" course, all assignments, papers, etc, need to be complete by the due dates listed on the syllabus and assignment description pages. No work is optional. There is no extra credit. You can expect to spend anywhere between six to ten hours per week reading and writing for this course. If you spend less time on this course, it will be difficult to earn a passing grade. 

 

Electronic Literacy & Issues of Online Etiquette

Due to this being a distance learning course, the following skill set is required: Starting and ending programs on a Windows/Macintosh/Linux computer; opening, editing, saving, storing, and backing up files; creating, sending, receiving, and reading email, including attachments; uploading and editing files onto Blackboard. You must have a Burlington County College email account to participate in this class. 

 

In my classes, I have an expectation students will have access to email and computers in general. All of your work will be submitted to me digitally. Given there are public and school libraries, the ILC, coffee shops, etc, students need to budget their time better; I do not see any excuse for having “no access” to email outside of the classroom.

 

Students are expected to check their BCC email on a regular basis. I do not accept the excuse, “I didn't check my email for two weeks” as a valid problem. Digital correspondence should be written using proper grammar and form. I will not reply to emails filled with texting speak (2, u, 4, lol, j/k) or poor grammar and/or misspellings. Please include a subject and "sign" your email with your name and course section. 

 

Finally, a matter of general respect: I do not tolerate homophobic, misogynistic, ableist, or racist language in the classroom. Please be respectful to your classmates, and me, on the forums. 

 

Forum Journal Discussions

Each week, there will be a series of forum discussions, instead of the journal I normally do in face to face classes, on our topics for the week. These questions will be based around the readings we do for class. You are required to reply to each question with at least 50 words and, also, reply to at least one (1) of your classmates. These discussions are worth 10% of your grade. Please do not repeat observations previously made or reply with "I agree" style sentiments. Significant points will be taken off your grade for doing this. If someone has already stated what you wished to say, find a way to expand on their statement or reply to someone else. 

 

Your contributions to each forum will be due by 11:59pm each Wednesday. 

 

	Interpretation	Criteria
4	Excellent	Comments are accurate, original, relevant, and well written without mechanical or grammatical errors.
3	Above Average	Comments lack at least one of those qualities, but is above average in quality and still make a significant contribution to the discussion.
2	Average	Comments lack two or three of the required qualities. This grade can also include comments that are littered with personal experiences or opinion without context or attribution to their relation to the text.
1	Minimal	Comments provide little to nothing to discussion.
0	Unacceptable	Comments add/have no value to discussion.

 

Writing

I expect your work to be error free. You are expected to proofread for spelling, mechanics, and grammar. I will mark down for these errors; please revise and proofread often. All papers are to be typed, titled, double spaced, and given page numbers with your last name. All papers will be submitted digitally to my email by 11:59pm on the due date. I will not be accepting print copies of your papers.

 

If you use Microsoft Works, I would like you to convert your files (.wps) to something more accessible like .doc or .odt before submitting. Also, students writing in the .pages format will need to do the same. Please see me if you need help.

 

It is the student’s responsibility to get in touch with me about their work. I am not responsible for making sure you hand in your assignments; it is yours. Please make sure you are backing up your work to an external hard drive, flash drive, cloud based source or other backup method. I will not accept excuses involving crashed computers or broken files.

 

Finally, please follow the “24 hour rule” for paper returns. I do not discuss returned student papers until 24 hours have elapsed since I returned them. There will be no discussion in person or via email about them until that time window.

 

Paper Revision Policy

I strongly believe one of the most important lessons I learned about writing was that quality work almost always entails rewriting. In this class I will accept a rewrite of your papers until the Friday after grades are sent back to the entire class. This means if you are not satisfied with your grade, you may resubmit that paper for a predetermined period of time. This time period will be added to the online version of the syllabus and announced during class. Normally, this will be anywhere from three to five days. After that time period, you may not resubmit.

 

Obviously, just resubmitting the paper will not count as a rewrite. If you incorporate the feedback I give you on your papers when I send them back, the odds are pretty high you will improve your grade. Only making cosmetic changes will not improve it.

 

Of course, there are no revisions on term papers. 

 

Extension Policy

Extensions are gifts, not a right. College work involves responsibility and ownership over your individual situation. With that in mind, here are a few caveats about extensions. First, I need to know 48 hours before an assignment is due if you need an extension. This will be clearly addressed on the class schedule. To apply for an extension, we must speak in person or over email immediately. A rough draft of your paper in progress will be required to be handed in at this time. I will then determine whether to grant or deny the extension and how much time would be allotted for it. 

To apply for an extension beyond the 48 hour mark for reasons of hospitalization, bereavement, military service, observance of religious holidays, legal reasons (jury duty, etc), or work related issues (ie: getting called into work at the last minute), written documentation not given before the due date must be in by Saturday night after the due date.

For the following reasons, extensions will not be permitted: short term illnesses and family vacations.

Only one extension will be granted per semester, although an "emergency" extension can be granted under certain circumstances. 

 

Academic Honesty

Plagiarism will not be tolerated under any circumstances. Be aware that plagiarism includes (but is not limited to) copying someone else’s words without crediting the source; paraphrasing someone else’s words without crediting the source; using someone else’s ideas without crediting the source (even if rephrased in your own words); using facts not universally known which are obtained from a source without crediting the source; asking someone else to write your paper, either in whole or in part; or obtaining a paper or portion thereof by any means and submitting it as an original document. The penalty for plagiarism is failure of the assignment and potentially failure of the course (at the instructor’s discretion), and it may result in suspension or expulsion from the College (at the discretion of the Student Affairs Committee). Please refer to the BCC Student Handbook for additional information regarding College regulations and the handling of plagiarism.

 

With this in mind, all papers that use in-text citations must have a works cited page. Failure to include a works cited page will be an automatic zero for the paper. 

 

Course Contribution

I have found in past semesters that "participation" isn't a sufficient means of assessing students. How do you grade shy, or otherwise quiet, students who do very well in your class? At the same time, does a student who does very poorly on papers/quizzes/etc, but "participates" in class deserve a high grade? Instead, I have switched this to an assessment of a student's contribution to the course. How do you do in group work? Are you always on task, or do you take others off task with your actions? Do you bring useful ideas and thoughts into class? Do you go beyond commentary that is intended to please me or make you look smart? Do you experiment, take chances, and offer untested commentary? Do you attend our peer review sessions to not only accentuate your own work, but also help your classmates? Are you punctual and always prepared? Do you do more than just listen to me? What about your presence in the class adds to it? These are some of the factors I will consider when assessing your class contribution grade.

 

A lot of these ideas were inspired by Lisa M. Lane's writing about this issue. 

 

Evaluation

Journals 10%

Time Management Paper 10%

Citation Practice 5%

Midterm Exam 10%

Short Story Paper 20%

Take Home Poetry Exam 15%

Play Paper 20%

Course Contribution 10%

=100%

 

A 100-92

B+ 91-88

B 87-80

C+ 79-75

C 74-70

D 69-65

F 64-0

 

Notification For Students With Disabilities

Burlington County College offers reasonable accommodations and/or services to persons with disabilities. The Office of Special Populations offers comprehensive services to all students with any form of disability (with appropriate official documentation) which hinders their academic success. Students must request the accommodation(s) from the Office of Special Populations. Please contact the Special Populations Coordinator at (609) 894-9311 or (856) 222-9311 Ext. 1803 at or visit the website at:http://www.bcc.edu/pages/182.asp.

 

Additional Support/Labs

Burlington County College provides confidential advising and counseling services free to all students through the Department of Academic Advisement & Transfer. For more information about advising and counselling services, visit the Parker Center or call Extension 7337 at (609) 894-9311 or visit the websites:

 

Advising: http://staff.bcc.edu/advising/

 

Counseling: http://staff.bcc.edu/counseling/

 

Free tutoring is also available for all currently enrolled students. For more information regarding The Tutoring Center call Extension 1495 at (609) 894-9311 or visit the website

 

Tutoring Center: http://staff.bcc.edu/tutoring/

 

Finally...

Students in my classes are responsible for reading and understanding these course policies. Do you have questions? 

• Send me an email: wwend@bcc.edu  
• Come to my office during office hours (Parker 413b)  

 

If you are a student who has progress reports for a sport, EOF, or anything else, I will only fill these out during office hours. I will not fill them out at the end or beginning of classes.  

 

The syllabus is a living document. Sometimes, things might not work and we will need to make a change. This syllabus is subject to change at all times. Any changes will be discussed in class and announced on the wiki.  

 

Just a reminder that all readings should be completed before class begins. Make sure you are also carefully examining the course wiki's page for that specific topic as well. 

 

Week One (January 23rd-January 30th)

• Introduce Time Management Paper Assignment
•  Also please read about critical thinking on pages 1-23 in Literature  
•  Read about using sources on pages 1521-1540 in Literature
• Read John Updike's A&P (32) 

 

Remember: If you have not yet purchased the required texts for this class, please acquire them as soon as possible. Your time management paper is due in one week.

 

Week Two (January 31st-February 6th)

• Introduce citation practice assignment 
• Read about plot (49-51)
• Read about point of view (77-78)
• Read about theme (90-91)
• Read about fiction (27-32) 
• Read Kate Chopin's Story Of An Hour (38)
• Read Charlotte Perkins Gilman's The Yellow Wallpaper (379) 

 

Remember: If you have not yet purchased the required texts for this class, please acquire them as soon as possible. Your time management paper is due to my email (wwend@bcc.edu) by 11:59pm on Wednesday (6th) evening. 

 

Week Three (February 7th-13th)

• Midterm Exam Google Doc
• I will open up the discussions for stories, plays, and poems
• Introduce Short Stories Paper 

 

Remember: Your citation practice assignment is due to my email (wwend@bcc.edu) by 11:59pm on Wednesday (13th) evening. 

 

Week Four (February 14th-20th)

• Read Kate Chopin's The Storm (335)
• Read Shirley Jackson's The Lottery (409)
• Introduce Play Paper 

 

Remember: Your short story paper is due to my email (wwend@bcc.edu) by 11:59pm on Wednesday (20th) evening.

 

Week Five (February 21st-27th)

• Read Henrik Ibsen's A Doll House (1105)
• Introduce Poetry Exam 

 

Remember: Your play paper is due to my email (wwend@bcc.edu) by 11:59pm on Wednesday (27th) evening.

 

Week Six (February 28th-March 6th)

• Read Sylvia Plath's Mirror (579)
• Read Matthew Arnold's Dover Beach (613)
• Read Emily Dickinson's The Soul Selects Her Own Society (631) 
• Read Edna St. Vincent Millay's I Being Born A Woman & Distressed (828) 

 

Remember: Your poetry exam is due by 11:59pm on Wednesday (13th) evening.  

  

ENG102-106 Syllabus Spring 2013 by William Patrick Wend is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.