English 106: Documenting Realities
Fall 2011
Instructor: Nicholas Mohlmann Section:332 E-mail: nmohlman@purdue.edu
Website: www.mohlmann106.wordpress.com
Classrooms: 12:30-1:20 pm: M and R: HEAV 105, W: BRNG B275 (in basement), T: HEAV 223, F: HEAV 223
Office Hours: Thurs. 2:00-3:00, and by appointment ICAP Office: HEAV 302
REQUIRED TEXTS:
- They Say/I Say. Gerald Graff and Cathy Birkenstein. Norton, 2006. ISBN:978-0-393-92409-1
- An MLA style manual of recent issue
COURSE OBJECTIVES: Welcome to English 106: Documenting Realities. This course aims to develop your writing and critical thinking skills so that you can successfully participate in the academic community here at Purdue, as well as in the larger ongoing conversation held by humankind. The approach we will use—documenting realities—focuses on how the way we speak together corresponds with the way we understand, interact with, and record reality. Your success both in college and in your chosen professions will largely depend upon your ability to reason and communicate your reality effectively; hence, your dedication to this class will pay off after the semester’s end. Instead of imparting knowledge solely through lectures, we will often conduct the class as a workshop, believing that this will more effectively hone your writing skills. For a rewarding workshop experience, all members must participate, and you will be expected to bravely contribute questions, original ideas and group work. You will also receive plenty of individual attention, as each assignment incorporates conference time with me. Additionally, I am available during my office hours as well as by appointment. You may contact me through e-mail, which I check at least every other day.
GENERAL COURSE DESCRIPTION:
ASSIGNMENTS:
Over the course of this semester you will create four or more compositions. You will want to have a safe space (a binder, a folder, etc.) in which to keep all of your notes, prewriting, and drafts as these must be turned in along with your assignment. If you turn in an assignment without these accompanying materials, I will not accept it. There will also be several short in-class assignments. Read the requirements for each assignment and be sure to follow them. Assignments that do not meet the minimum number of pages and required number of sources will, most likely, receive a less than stellar grade.
N.B.: At several points in the semester you will be asked to submit an assignment to me via e-mail. I realize that my last name is somewhat unusual and occasionally difficult to spell. When you submit these assignments, please be sure that you have spelled my e-mail address correctly. If it is not spelled correctly, I will not receive your e-mail and any assignments attached to it.
You are responsible for ensuring that your e-mail is properly sent. E-mailed assignments that I do not receive will be counted as late.
All assignments submitted via e-mail must be sent from a Purdue e-mail account.
LATE WORK:
Assignments are due at the beginning of class. If you are absent or late on the day a draft or assignment is due, then that assignment is late. A late penalty of one letter grade per day will be assessed on all late assignments. Hence a B paper due on Tuesday will receive a C when it is turned in on Wednesday. Weekends count as two days. If you know in advance that you will be absent on a day that an assignment is due, it would be in your best interest to get the assignment to me ahead of time.
N.B.: If one of your projects should receiving a failing grade due to lateness, then you will not be able to pass the course. Similarly, if you do not complete all four compositions and their constituent parts, then you will not be able to pass the course. To be clear, each assignment consists of several smaller parts. All parts of an assignment must be completed for an assignment to be considered completed.
ATTENDANCE:
Your attendance is required for all aspects of this course (class meetings, conferences, and any additional meetings I deem necessary.) Should you accumulate more than three absences (regardless of whether they are excused) your grade will suffer. For these purposes, missing a conference will be considered an absence. If you accumulate eight or more absences, then you will not be able to pass the course.
Coming to class late is disruptive to the classroom environment. Late arrivals will be duly noted and three late arrivals will count as an absence. I also reserve the right to count a single instance of excessive tardiness (ten minutes or more) as an absence. If you know you are going to miss class on a given date, let me know so I can tell you what we’ll be doing. You are responsible for material covered in classes you miss. Should you miss a class, talk to a classmate about what we did or come by my office hours so I can fill you in.
PARTICIPATION:
It is my expectation that you will come to class having done the required readings and/or outside assignments. You should come to class ready to share your ideas and consider the ideas put forth by others. Everyone is expected to participate in class discussions. If you never speak in class, I have no way of knowing that you prepared adequately and cannot give you participation credit. While occasionally nerve wracking, participating in class discussions will help you work through your ideas and improve your critical thinking. I will keep track of participation and it will constitute a portion of your final grade. Your participation grade will be based on your preparedness for class (having read and thought about readings/having done the work required for that day) as well as your active participation in the classroom (responding to questions, offering ideas in discussion, making presentations, etc.)
CONDUCT:
You are adults and I expect you to act as such. This means your cell phones must be turned off when class is in session (no texting or taking calls) and computers must be used for class work purposes only (this means no Facebook, games, etc.) Headphones must also be removed from your ears and the devices to which they are connected must be turned off. You should be focused on the task at hand and should understand that our classroom will include students from a variety of backgrounds and viewpoints which may differ from your own. In this course, we are engaged in civil, respectful discourse. Your instructor, your peers, and the classroom environment are to be treated with respect. Students who fail to conduct themselves in an appropriate manner will be asked to leave. Whether they return is based entirely on their willingness to recognize their error and respect their classmates, the course, and the classroom environment.
CONFERENCES:
As you work on your compositions, you will have opportunities to meet with me in a conference setting. Sometimes these will be small group conferences and sometimes they will be one on one. I am here to help and you can help me help you by coming to conferences prepared and genuinely interested in working on your writing. Our regularly scheduled conferences count as class time and an absence from a conference will be considered an absence from class with the attendant consequences. Should you desire additional meeting time, feel free to come by my office hours or make an appointment.
E-MAIL: A crucial skill for succeeding in our increasingly electronic world is that of writing a respectful e-mail. E-mails should begin with the name of the person to whom you are writing and end with your name. I have many students in multiple sections and it is not always clear who you are from your e-mail address, so including your name is crucial. I usually check my e-mail at least once a day, but you should not expect my response to be immediate. I endeavor to reply within 24 hours if possible. If you have a question about an assignment, it behooves you to ask that question before the assignment is due. In other words, I am not going to respond to e-mails sent at 2 am the night before something is due.
WRITING CENTER: The Writing Lab offers consultations to graduate and undergraduate students at Purdue. You can visit the Lab for feedback on any aspect of writing, including getting started on an assignment, grammar, or developing an argument. Sessions are thirty minutes long, so come with some specific questions about your assignment. Also, be sure to bring your assignment sheet with you so they can better assist you. To make an appointment for a consultation, you can call 494-3723 or stop by Heavilon 226. For more information about the Writing Lab you can visit http://owl.english.purdue.edu/writinglab/.
GRADES:
Your grade for this course will be determined as follows:
| Assignment | Percentage Value | Grading Percentages | Point Value |
| A#1: Rhetorical Analysis | 15% | A/A+ 93-100 | 3441-3700 |
| A- 90-92 | 3330-3404 | ||
| B+ 87-89 | 3219-3293 | ||
| A#2: What is a text? | 15% | B 83-86 | 3071-3182 |
| B- 80-82 | 2960-3034 | ||
| C+ 77-79 | 2849-2923 | ||
| A#3: Space is the Place | 20% | C 73-76 | 2701-2812 |
| C- 70-72 | 2590-2664 | ||
| A#4: Wikipedia Research | 25% | ||
| A#5: Documenting Your Reality | 10% | ||
| Participation/Attendance (200) | 15% |
You will note that some point totals fall between grades. In these cases, I will look at your work as a whole and determine which grade is appropriate.
PLAGIARISM:
As per the Purdue Student Conduct Code, section 2, paragraph a: “The commitment of the acts of cheating, lying, stealing, and deceit in any of their diverse forms (such as the use of ghost-written papers, the use of substitutes for taking examinations, the use of illegal cribs, plagiarism, and copying during examinations) is dishonest and must not be tolerated. Moreover, knowingly to aid and abet, directly or indirectly, other parties in committing dishonest acts is in itself dishonest.” (http://www.purdue.edu/ODOS/osrr/conductcode.htm)
Plagiarism also includes using another’s writing/words and presenting them as your own. All material taken from sources must be properly acknowledged as such through the use of quotation and citation. When in doubt, cite. If you are uncertain about a particular situation, come talk to me.
To be clear: plagiarism is using another’s words or ideas without proper attribution. It also includes turning in someone else’s work as your own, allowing your work to be turned in as someone else’s, and having someone else significantly alter your writing. It is one thing to get feedback from a peer, it is another entirely to have them make revisions and changes for you. Plagiarism will result in a failing grade for the course and possible suspension or expulsion from the University. It is far better to be honest and turn in something that is not your best work than to be dishonest and turn in the best work of someone else.
IMPORTANT RECOMMENDATIONS:
–Be sure to keep copies of every composition you turn in and receive back. If a composition gets lost or I don’t have a grade recorded for it, you will need to provide me with a copy ASAP to receive credit.
–If, for some reason, I have to cancel class, I will either tell you beforehand or a sign will be posted on the door. I tend to be punctual, but things happen. If I’m not there the second class is supposed to start, don’t assume I will be absent. The University requires that students wait fifteen minutes beyond the class start time before assuming the instructor absent and leaving.
–I am always available to help you. I want you to succeed and if I can provide assistance, clarification, or guidance don’t hesitate to ask.
DISABILITIES:
Students with documented disabilities that require accommodation should let me know as soon as possible. You must be registered with Adaptive Programs in the Office of the Dean of Students before accommodations can be made.
EMERGENCIES:
In the event of a major campus emergency, course requirements, deadlines and grading percentages are subject to changes that may be necessitated by a revised semester calendar or other circumstances. I will notify you of any such changes at the earliest possible date.
You may also want to sign up for Purdue’s emergency text message program. Information can be found here: http://news.uns.purdue.edu/mail.html
Grief Absence Policy for Students (GAPS).
“GAPS Policy: Students will be excused for funeral leave and given the opportunity to earn equivalent credit and to demonstrate evidence of meeting the learning outcomes for missed assignments or assessments in the event of the death of a member of the student’s family…A student should contact the Office of the Dean of Students to request that a notice of his or her leave be sent to instructors. The student will provide documentation of the death or funeral service attended to the ODOS. Given proper documentation, the instructor will excuse the student from class and provide the opportunity to earn equivalent credit and to demonstrate evidence of meeting the learning outcomes for missed assignments or assessments.”
This syllabus subject to change.
