Inver Hills Community College

Courses I Teach

English 0099 (English Essentials)

English 1108 (Writing and Research Skills) syllabus:

Eng 1111 Research Writing in the Disciplines

English 2239 (Women in Literature)

English 1140 (Introduction to Literature)

English 1112 (Creative Writing)

Sample syllabus:

Here's a sample syllabus from Eng. 1108:

Eng. 1108-12 (9-9:50MWF) , 13 (10-10:50 MWF) B209

Writing and Research Skills, SS2006.

Instructor: Dr. Ellen Lansky

Office: L 227

Office hours: MWF 12-1pm; available online T and Th.

Office phone: 651 450-8660

e-mail Elansky@inverhills.edu

Required texts: Atwan, ed. Best American Essays, 4^th College Edition.

Hacker. Rules for Writers 5th edition

Blassingame et al., eds. Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass.

Course Description:

English 1108 emphasizes expository and persuasive writing skills with attention to rhetorical modes, audience awareness, logical reasoning, critical reading and response, and research techniques.

Procedures:

We will examine cultural issues (particularly issues pertaining to identity formation, race, class, and gender) and practice critical reading, writing, and research skills using the essays in the course texts and a film (Incident at Oglala). Class sessions will often be devoted to discussion of readings, writing practice, and sharing and discussing the writing we produce in and out of class. Students can expect to participate actively in each class session.

There is also an online component to this course, and we will use the college’s Desire2Learn online site. You will be able to use the computers on campus to do the coursework, and you will also be able to log in from off campus. You will need to activate your METNET email account and familiarize yourself with the functions of D2L. We will use the drop box, discussion board, and quizzing tools. This is a required component of the course.

Evaluation:

1 formal summary (Blassingame’s ‘Introduction” to Frederick Douglass): 10 points

3 short essays. For our purposes, a short essay is defined as a complete piece of edited, formal, college-level writing that makes a point in an interesting way. The short essays will be 500-750 words or at least two full pages, up to about three pages. These short essays must be typed or word processed with appropriate fonts and margins. MLA documentation, and a word count. The short essays will arise from discussion questions, in-class writing practice pertaining to the reading assignments, prep sheets, critical response writing, and quizzes. These essays should be clear, coherent, revised, and polished. The 3 short essays constitute about 60% of the final course grade (20 points each)

5 critical response papers. Critical responses will give you an opportunity to respond critically, in writing, to the texts we read (which is a major aim of the course). These writing sessions are designed to explore the intellectual terrain, do some preliminary writing, and help you organize your assertions, contentions, and reasoning for your short essays. We will write these responses in class or online, so they may be “rough” but they should also reflect careful thinking and some attention to thesis and organization. I will collect them, make comments, and return them so you can decide how you want to revise them. The critical response papers count 5 total points of your final course grade.

1 longer, research essay. The longer research will be at least 3 pages, up to about 5 pages--or 750-1250 words. This essay will arise from an argument or persuasive point you would like to make about the controversy featured in Robert Redford’s documentary, Incident at Oglala. This essay requires locating, integrating, citing, and documenting at least 3 outside sources, using the MLA documentation method. The longer research essay counts 20 points.

1 exam on argument and logical fallacies. 15 points

5 quizzes: quizzes will reward you for careful reading and preparation. They will also

provide opportunities for informal, in-class essays that can serve as starting points for the more polished, formal writing that the short essays require. The five quizzes count 50 points. (10 points each. You will take them online).

Online activities and discussion: Online posts are a key component of the course. For full credit, please post your responses, comments, and exercises by the designated deadlines. Late posts do not receive full credit. See the guidelines and evaluation criteria for online discussions. 20 points.

Presentation/workshop:

This course depends on your presence and participation, and each person will make a presentation of course material to the class. Please show up and be prepared to participate. Also, absences will impede your progress. You are responsible for completing the reading and writing assignments for days you miss. Check the schedule below.

If you miss more than three class sessions (and this includes excessive tardiness), you will forfeit all of your workshop points. If you miss three or fewer class sessions, you will not forfeit all of your workshop points. Presentation/workshop counts 5 points.

Final exam: The final exam for this course is scheduled for Monday, 5/8/06 10am-noon (section 13) and Wed 5/10/06 from 8-10am (section 12). The final exam counts 15 points.

A note on absences and late work: The due dates for essays are listed in the schedule. The essays are due at the beginning of class on those dates. Email is acceptable; please send your essays before class. Quizzes and critical responses are also listed in the schedule. Late essays, critical responses, posts, and quizzes are not acceptable for full credit.

Having said that, I do understand that emergencies and other inexplicable events happen. If you have a situation that will not permit you to attend class on the day an essay is due or a discussion, critical response or quiz is scheduled, please call my voice mail and leave a message or email a message. You may also email your papers to me (on the due dates).

If you follow this procedure, you may turn in your essay or take your quiz for full credit when you return to class. You are responsible for making arrangements to take your quizzes. If you choose not to call my voice mail or leave an email message, I will read your late essay and make comments, but you will forfeit full credit for that assignment.

Also, if you miss two consecutive weeks of class without contacting me, then I will withdraw you from the course. This is a college policy.

Grading: I assign grades based on percentages, so you should be able to calculate your grades and determine your progress as we move through the course. I’m happy to discuss your course grade during my office hours.

A 90-100%

B 80-89%

C 70-79%

D 65-70%

F below 65%

A very important note on plagiarism: Plagiarism means using some, part, or all of somebody else's writing and claiming it as your own. This includes information you get from the Internet and use in your essays or quizzes. Plagiarism includes having somebody else actually write some, part, or all of your essays (this includes having somebody else tell you what to write, or plagiarism by dictation). Plagiarized essays are not acceptable and will receive a zero. Please do your own work. Also, please note that visiting the writing center or the instructor or having somebody help you with your writing is not plagiarism. Help is available. Please stop by my office hours or visit the writing center.

Accommodations: I would like to make sure that all the materials, discussions and activities that are part of the course are accessible to you. If you would like to request accommodations or other services, please contact me as soon as possible. It is also possible to contact the Disability Services Office, L-224; phone, 651/450-8628; TTY, 651/450-8369.

Student conduct code: Please familiarize yourself with the Code of Conduct for Student Behavior. The codes and grounds for disciplinary action should be familiar to you; however, please note that included in this list is “obstruction or disruption of teaching, research, administration, disciplinary procedures or other college activities.” Obstruction or disruption of teaching includes the following: disrupting teaching by coming in unreasonably late; disrupting teaching by having private conversations during class; disrupting teaching by eating and/or drinking during class; disrupting teaching by interrupting, which often includes getting up and leaving the room and then returning. I like to create and maintain a comfortable classroom atmosphere, and a key part of this atmosphere arises from everybody practicing simple acts of civility and consideration.

ACADEMIC INTEGRITY POLICY INVER HILLS: OCT. 29, 2002

Academic integrity is one of the most important values in higher education. This principle requires that each student’s work represents their own personal efforts and that they acknowledge the intellectual contributions of others. The foundation for this principle is student academic honesty.

IHCC students are expected to honor the requirements of the Academic Integrity Policy. The following are some examples of unacceptable academic practices that will be viewed as policy violations.

Types of Academic Dishonesty

Plagiarism: Using the words and/or ideas of another author without proper acknowledgement so they appear to be your work. This includes paraphrasing, and summarizing and/or copying part or all of another’s work without acknowledging the source.

Cheating: Using, or attempting to use, unauthorized materials in any academic exercise or having someone else do your required work, e.g., cheat sheets, copying from another’s paper, test, and/or homework.

Fabrication: Inventing or falsifying information, for instance, creating data for a required lab experiment that was not done or was done incorrectly.

Enabling academic dishonesty: Assisting another in committing an act of academic dishonesty.

Deception or Misrepresentation: Lying about or misrepresenting your academic work or academic records.

Multiple Submission: Submitting work in a class as new work that has already been used in other classes without instructor consultation.

Policy Implementation

Notification: In each class students will be notified about that class’ process regarding academic dishonesty. That notification is most often stated in the class syllabus and may contain definitions of academic dishonesty, required documentation style, a reference to the college’s Academic Integrity Policy and the Student Code of Conduct policy, and a statement of consequences in the class for any infraction.

Due Process: Students can expect fair treatment in academic matters and the following steps will be followed in each situation: 1. notification of the charge,

2. presentation of the evidence supporting the charge, 3. the opportunity to

respond, 4. notification of the consequences, and 5. information about the appeal process.

Consequences: There is a range of options available to instructors for dealing with cases of academic dishonesty. Consequences for a particular class may include, but are not limited to, lowering that assignment grade, lowering the course grade, failing the course, not counting the assignment, requiring an additional assignment, redoing the assignment, a warning, or dropping the charge.

Documentation: A written summary identifying the specific allegation of academic dishonesty, the consequences, and the documentation to support the charge will be provided to the student. Copies will be kept by the instructor and sent to the Dean of Students.

Institutional Response

Information sent to the Dean of Students will be used to maintain a master file of academic dishonesty cases. The Dean will identify any on-going patterns of academic dishonesty and will consider whether an institutional response to a Student Code of Conduct violation is warranted. If such a determination is made, the Dean of Students will initiate the formal due process procedure referred to in the Student Code of Conduct.