English 108: Accelerated First-Year Composition
Instructor: Ellen M. Bayer Office: HEAV 307D
Office Hours: MWF 10:30-11:20, or by appointment Email: ebayer@purdue.edu
Class Website: http://www.digitalparlor.org/sp08/bayer1/
Required Texts: The following texts can be purchased at Von’s Books.
1. Hacker, Diana. A Pocket Style Manual, (4e). Bedford/St Martin’s, 2004
2. Goya, Francisco. The Disasters of War (Dover Books on Fine Art). Dover, 1987.
Course Overview
In this class you will practice the writing process from the planning to the revising stages. The class is structured by the theme “Documenting Reality.” Through this theme we will examine various documentary forms, such as newspapers and magazines, film, fiction, web sites, art, music, and “reality” T.V. You will examine, explore, and critique the many different ways in which we document our reality, and will learn to respond to various texts and situations with various genres of writing. You will learn to become an effective college writer, and learn the skills necessary to succeed as a writer in both your future classes and career. In addition to this, you will learn the skills necessary to complete various types of research, as well as documentation styles (such as MLA) you will encounter in college. This course is structured with the common goals of all 108 classes in mind (a list of these common goals will be provided for you), and uses the theme of “Documenting Reality” as a means for focusing course writing and discussion.
Classroom Environment
Our classes will involve a great deal of student-led discussions. Each student has important thoughts and opinions, and I encourage you to share, debate, and evaluate ideas. I expect each of you to be respectful of your classmates. Harassment of any kind will not be tolerated.
Attendance and Tardies
Attendance will be taken for each class meeting. You may miss six classes with no penalty. These absences may be for any reason. If you miss more than six classes you will fail the course. No exceptions. Please note that when you miss class you receive no participation points and cannot make-up any missed assignments. Thus, it is in your best interest to attend class regularly. If you know you are going to miss a class, plan to complete any assigned work by/before the due date. Consistently arriving late and/or leaving early will be considered an absence.
Intellectual Property
The work you submit for this class should be your own, and you should cite any sources you reference in any version (draft or final) of your class projects. Submitting another person’s work as your own or failing to cite sources you have used will result in a zero on the project or failure of the course. If you have any questions about using and acknowledging a source, please see me or visit the Writing Lab. Please also refer to the University’s guidelines on Academic Dishonesty: http://www.purdue.edu/odos/osrr/integrity.htm
Grading Policy
IMPORTANT NOTICE: ALL of the following projects must be completed in order to receive a passing grade in this course. Detailed Guidelines will be provided for each assignment.
• Participation, Homework, and In-Class Assignments (10%)
This class is a learner-focused class, which means that the instructor will not lecture for the entire class, but that students will engage in and lead a class or small group discussion. Therefore, your participation in class is vital. I expect each student to contribute to class and group discussions, and I will keep track of your participation. You will also complete short in-class assignments, peer review, and homework assignments.
• Blogs (10%)
The class blog will allow you to discuss course topics in an online environment. You will be expected to post weekly, and specific guidelines for each week’s posts will be available on the class website (on the calendar page). You will also be expected to respond to your classmates’ posts. You must write at least 250 words per week on the blog.
• Project One: “This I Believe” Essay (15%)
The first project asks you to develop a personal essay using NPR’s “This I Believe” radio essays as a template. You will choose a personal belief you hold that indicates something unique about you as an individual. Essays will be read to the class in brief presentations as well. Essays will be between two (2) to three (3) pages in length.
• Project Two: Analysis of Documentary Film (20%)
This project asks you to analyze the rhetorical strategies of a documentary film. You will consider the ways in which the filmmaker employs sounds, images, film techniques, etc. to present their argument, and determine the rhetorical soundness of these techniques. We will view the film in class. The paper will be Four (4) to Six (6) pages in length.
• Project Three: Compare/Contrast Visual Responses to War (20%)
Using Goya’s Disasters of War as a starting point, project three asks students to consider similarities in the ways people have responded to war throughout history, as well as explore how different our modes of commentary are today from Goya’s time. The paper will be six-eight (6-8) pages, and will incorporate visual images.
• Project Four: What is it Like to Be ____? (25%)
The final culminating project asks you to fill in the blank: What is it like to be [something/someone] you do not define yourself as? You will document the reality of someone/something from a sub-culture of your choice. The project may take the form of a film, slide show, website, or traditional paper. You will incorporate at least ten sources, including both archival and field sources. You will also write a brief proposal and project reflection paper.
• Additional Information About Papers
All papers must be typed, double-spaced, in 12 point Times New Roman font, with one inch margins (the default on most computers). All papers should adhere to MLA guidelines for formatting and citation. Papers are due at the beginning of class on the due date. Late papers will be penalized; your project grade will be lowered ten (10) percentage points for each day (including weekends and holidays) that it is late.
You are required to turn in a typed draft of each project so that you may participate in a peer review. Peer review is an important component of this class. If you do not have your draft with you on peer review day, you cannot participate in class, and thus will be marked absent. You will revise peer-reviewed drafts and submit them for a grade. You will have the option to revise the graded draft and re-submit it within a week. Revisions must be substantial in order to warrant a revised grade. Submitting revised work does not guarantee a revised grade.
• Writing Lab
The writing lab is an excellent (and free) resource provided to help students with their writing, and I highly encourage you to make use of this valuable campus resource. If you go, remember to take your assignment guidelines and any class notes with you. The Writing Lab is located in Heavilon 226, and you can make an appointment by calling 949-3723.
• Class Schedule
The course website includes a weekly schedule that indicates what we’ll be doing in class, gives details for daily homework assignments, and provides the prompt for that week’s blog. The calendar also includes due dates for drafts of larger course papers. Please consult the online schedule on a regular basis in order to keep up-to-date with course assignments and due dates.