Syllabus

English 1000: Composition
Instructor Jessie Adolph [e-mail] Section: Section 44 Section 84
Class meeting: T-Th 9:30-10:45 am T-Th 12:30-1:45 pm
Class location: Mumford Hall 321 Heinkel Bldg 146

Office: Tate 20 Skype Name: Oracle1906
Office Hrs: TBA or Skype by appt ONLY.

English 1000 is a writing course designed to help you become a more critical reader, a more efficient researcher, and a more effective writer. Central to effective writing is understanding what questions are worth asking and what conventions worth using in relation to a particular audience and situation. English 1000 focuses especially on the conventions you will use most frequently in your academic writing in college.

However, no single writing course can prepare you for all of the kinds of writing you will do in college, and this course does not pretend to do so. Rather than prepare you for all college writing, this course is a college writing course—it calls for college writing about some particular topics.

Like other sections of English 1000, this section requires at least three revised papers on a well-focused topic about which educated people may disagree to some extent. Some of the papers will require you to use and document other sources. Most of the papers will be analytic, argumentative, and evidence-based, not “creative” or “personal.” Like most sections of English 1000, this section also requires some shorter, single-submission papers.

Unlike other sections of English 1000, this section focuses on questions related to hip-hop and pop culture. Throughout this course, we will interrogate existing cultural values, politics, religious and social norms from an Afrocentric, multi-cultural, feminist, post-colonial, queer theory and Marxist perspective. From this material, you will be expected to produce your own, source-based analyses.

This course aims to enhance rather than erode the traditional curriculum by allowing students to geographically locate themselves within academic discourse; it prompts students to contribute to the scholarly conversation of their discipline. As students, you must be prepared to actively participate and engage in material and controversial subject matter that may affront more conservative audiences. With that being said, BRING AN OPEN MIND AND LOTS OF INK and let’s have fun this semester.

English 1000 Course Objectives:

To critically analyze literature
To formulate an academic argument
To develop and support a thesis
To demonstrate writing process (outlines, revising, peer reviews, multiple drafts)
To develop proper mechanics in academic writing
To write utilize properly cited sources
To develop an academic voice
To write both formal and informal situations and to distinguish between tentative and fully polished prose as you develop a personal writing style;
To understand the purposes of research and documentation
To produce a formal research paper using MLA documentation;
To develop a focused and persuasive argument;
To demonstrate in writing an ability to think critically about the ideas of others;
To use emotional, ethical and logical forms of persuasion;
To write analytic, expository, and persuasive papers specifically chosen audiences

Welcome to the class.

Texts required:

Any writing instruction text such as Bedford Handbook.

Beah, Ishmeal. A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier. Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2007.

Shakur, Tupac. The Rose that Grew from Concrete. New York: MTV Books, 1999.

Walls, Jeannette. The Glass Castle: A Memoir. New York: Scribner, 2005.

Attendance: Regular attendance is expected, since participation counts towards your grade, it is imperative that you contribute to the class on a daily basis. If a student has more than six absences he or she will immediately be dropped from the class. In-class exercises and reading quizzes cannot be made up.

Late assignments: IT IS IMPERATIVE THAT YOU TURN IN YOUR DRAFT ON TIME. IF YOU TURN IT IN ANYTIME AFTER YOUR CLASS PERIOD IT IS CONSIDERED LATE (ONE LETTER DEDUCTION PER DAY).

Plagiarism: Students are expected to maintain academic integrity, which means that they must turn in their own work. If a student is found plagiarizing it will result in an automatic zero for the assignment without an opportunity to submit a rewrite. Please make sure that you cite all sources appropriately. For more details on plagiarism check your MU Handbook.

Revisions/2nd Submissions: Only students that score a C or below on a essay are eligible to revise their essay (ONLY IF THE STUDENTS HAVE ATTENDED THE MANDATORY CONFERENCE). The revised paper must be turned in at the appointed time listed on the syllabus NO LATE PAPERS WILL BE ACCEPTED! The highest grade a student can receive on a rewrite is a B+.

Grade disputes: Students who wish to dispute any grade received on essay must submit one-page paper (within 7 days after the graded paper is returned to the student). The paper must explain why the student feels he or she should receive a higher grade. It is important to note that the instructor makes the final decision on all grade changes.

Internet and Group Conference Days: On Internet and Group Conference days students are expected to enter into the virtual classroom on time students logging in ten minutes after class begin will be counted absent. Students are expected to participate in all class discussions during these sessions.

***IF A STUDENT SKIPS A CONFERENCE DATE IT WILL COUNT AS TWO ABSENCES AND STUDENTS WILL FORFEIT THE RIGHT TO A REWRITE.

Description of Major Assignment(s)/Project(s):

Assignment 1 (Exposition Paper): The assignment description will be provided on blackboard. MUST BE SUBMITTED TO SAFEASSIGN ON TIME!

For this assignment, you will develop your own thesis-focused argument based on the readings/discussions. (Student choosing this option must submit a one-page-proposal one week before paper assignment due date)

In this paper I am looking for:

1. An introduction that provides the reader with a brief overview of the entire argument
A balance of your original thought with source evidence (the film and secondary sources)

What I am not looking for:

A long drawn out summary of the argument
Over reliance on sources to the point that I am reading a string of quotes
A argument that reads as a rant with little or no support or evidence from the secondary source

Grading criteria:
Clear thesis statement
Sets forth an argument
Must have topic sentences and transitions that relate to the thesis
Conclusion must recap main ideas and answer the why is this important question
Move logically from cohesive paragraph to cohesive paragraph
Please cite all your sources in MLA format
Correct mechanics (style, usage, grammar, punctuation, etc.)
Accurate, specific, and effective use of sources as evidence
Must use Times New Roman
Must use 1 inch margins
Must meet paper length requirement

Assignment #2 (Argumentative Essay): The assignment description will be provided on blackboard.. Should be approximately (3-5) pages. MUST BE SUBMITTED TO SAFEASSIGN ON TIME! (for Assignment expectations and grading criteria refer to question 1)

Assignment #3 (Research Paper): The assignment description will be provided on blackboard. Should be approximately (5-8) pages. MUST BE SUBMITTED TO SAFEASSIGN ON TIME! (for Assignment expectations and grading criteria refer to question 1)

Access: If you have special needs as addressed by the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and need assistance, please notify the Office of Disability Services, A038 Brady Commons, 882-4696 or course instructor immediately. Reasonable efforts will be made to accommodate your special needs.

Assessment of Student Learning:

All Grades are Weighted

Three Essay Papers 95 %

(Essay 1 & 2 is worth 30% each
Essay 3 is worth 35%)

Daily Work/Participation 5%

Total 100 %

Grading Rubric Scale for Essay(s)

= 100
= 90
= 85
= 80
= 75
= 70
= 65 0.5 = 59

Grading scale:

96-100 = A+
94-95 = A
90-93 = A-
86-89 = B+
84-85 = B
80-83 = B-
76-79 = C+
74-75 = C
70-73 = C-
60-69 = D
59- below = F

Schedule of assignments (tentative check for updates):

Week One
08/20: Introduction to class
08/22: Shakur (pp. 3-60) Tutorial: How to Analyze Poetry
Week Two
08/27: Shakur (pp. 61-120) Tutorial: How to Write a Thesis.
08/29: Shakur (Finish the text) (Homework – Write Poem)
Week Three
09/03: Poetry Reading (Assign Paper 1)
09/05: Poetry Reading (Thesis Statement Due)
Week Four
ROUGH DRAFT DUE – Peer Review
09/10: PEER REVIEW
09/12: ESSAY 1 DUE (Last day to drop class)
Week Five
09/17: CONFERENCE
09/19: CONFERENCE
Week Six
09/24: Walls (pp. 3-58)
09/26: Walls (pp. 59-116)
Week Seven
10/01: Walls (pp. 117-175)
10/03: Walls (pp. 176-233)
Week Eight
10/08: Finish the Book How to use a Counter-Argument (Thesis Statement Due)
10/10: Peer Review
Week Nine Rough Draft Due
10/15: Peer Review
10/17: Essay 2 Due
Week Ten
10/22: Conference
10/24: Conference
Week Eleven
10/29: Beah (pp. 1-55)
10/31: Beah (pp. 56-111) (Revised Paper Due)
Week Twelve
11/05: Beah (pp. 112-167)
11/07: Beah (Finish the Book) (Library Visit)
Week Thirteen
11/12: Peer Review
11/14: Essay 3 Due
Week Fourteen
11/19: Conference
11/21: Conference
Week Fifteen
11/26: Thanksgiving Recess
11/28: Thanksgiving Recess
Week Sixteen
12/03:All Students Must Come to Evaluations)
12/05: All Rewrites are due by 3pm (SafeASSIGN)

1 Essay 1: Tupac

This assignment uses SafeAssign. It will compare your paper against writing publicly available on the Web, in journals, and other student papers to find improperly cited content. While your own paper will not be read by anyone but you, your instructor, and TAs in this class, its content will be stored on servers not controlled by MU and for future comparison with other papers to discourage plagiarism. In some cases, the assignment will have an option to submit the paper to the Global Reference Database. If you accept this, future papers from other universities will be checked against your paper. If you do not accept this option, only papers from MU will be checked against yours in future. If you have questions about how it is being used in this course, please contact your instructor.

Tupac Shakur's The Rose Grew that From the Concrete is a series of poems about poverty, politics, love, teenage angst, and the human condition written by the slain rapper during his teenage years. For this assignment, students will write a poem that will express their viewpoint about life as a teenager. Students gain a greater appreciation for writing by becoming part of the creative process. Since, most contemporary poetry is written for the stage, each student/group is expected to perform their works before the class.

In college writing, students are expected to make the implicit explicit through an intensive examination of text. The explication paper should focus on various elements of poetry such as: the connotations of words, allusions, figurative language, irony, symbol, rhythm, sound, socio-political themes, etc. In addition, students such avoid the assembly line approach that begins each sentence with “In line one.” Students organize the paper around a central theme or thesis perhaps one that addresses the purpose of the poem. Lastly, students such keep in mind the explication of their poem is NOT A SUMMARY therefore students must focus on the effects and meanings produced in the poem.

In addition, students will write an 3-5 page essay that will explicate each line in the text from their original poem and then COMPARE AND/OR CONTRAST THE POEM WITH A POEM FROM SHAKUR'S BOOK.

Since all essays in this class will be argumentative consider the following questions:

Which poem is more effective for the projected target audience?

Which poem employed that best rhetorical strategy?

Which poem uses figurative language, allusions, metaphors, similies, more effectively?

Which poem depicts teenage angst about race, class, gender more realistically?

Which poets content regarding socio/gender politics proves less problematic and why?

Assignment 2: Argumentative Essay

For this assignment, students write a 3-5-page argumentative essay on one of the topics/questions below:

1. Does Wall's parenting style enable their children to be dependent or self-sufficient in their pursuit of the American dream?

2. Rex Walls frequently makes up fantastical stories to create a life of excitement out of his circumstances. Is this deceitful? In what ways can these stories be seen as an attempt to shield the family from the truth?

Students must use quoted information from the text to support your arguments.

OR

Students can construct their own thesis-based argument about the Glass Castle. Keep in mind, the topics must center on the American dream.

Assignment 3: Research Paper

For this assignment, students write a 5-8-page research papers on one of the topics below:

Former child soldiers can/cannot reintegrate into civilian life because _______

Former child soldier should/should not be held responsible for war crimes because______

Students must use quoted information from the text to support your arguments.

OR

Students can construct their own thesis-based argument about A Long Way Gone. Students must use at least scholarly sources (books or online scholarly journals only).