ENC 1102 Composition II
Policy Statement and Course Syllabus
Spring 2000

Instructor:       Jennifer Wojcik

Office:             Trailer C #105
OfficePhone:   590-7250
Office Hours:  MW 11:00a.m. – 1:00p.m.
                         Or By Appointment

E-mail:             jwojcik@fgcu.edu

Texts and Materials:
Elizabeth McMahan, Susan Day, and Robert Funk. Literature and the Writing Process. 5^th ed. Upper Saddle River, NJ:     Prentice Hall, 1999. (Required)

Myron C. Tuman and Ann Arbor Software. Norton Connect.Net Student Manual shrink-wrapped with Writing Essentials, a printed version of the Connect Online Handbook. The ISBN for the package is 0-393-97235-6. (Required)

Microsoft Word for Windows (version 6,7,or Word97) and dial-up access to the Internet through a commercial service, through a local Internet Service Provider, or through dial-up access to the FGCU network. PLEASE NOTE: Connect.Net works only with Word for Windows, not with Word for Macintosh. (Required)

A floppy disk—to be used for this class only. (Required)

A folder with pockets to keep any class handouts. (Required)

A good dictionary and thesaurus. (Highly recommended)

General Course Description: Like ENC 1101, ENC 1102 stresses the process of writing (prewriting, drafting, revising, and editing) in order to develop university level writing skills. Again, we will focus on Audience and Purpose and engage in a variety of writing strategies to continue developing the basic components of good writing: focus, unity, coherence, and development. Although our text is literature based, we will supplement our text reading with interdisciplinary and multicultural readings in order to introduce a diversity of perspectives and to further develop critical and creative thinking skills and critical reading skills. The central pedagogical strategy for the class will be collaborative and active learning, that is, the active and interactive engagement of the students with the material and concepts presented in the class. Students will regularly work in groups in order to analyze materials they have read, to critique each other’s work or to produce and evaluate their own student writing. Our particular sections of ENC 1102 will be using a computer program called Norton Connect.Net, a program that fully integrates word processing and file sharing to allow teachers and students to work together over a local area network or the Internet. Connect.Net will be used both during class time and for most out-of-class assignments. For this reason, it is necessary that the students enrolled in a Connect.Net section of ENC 1102 have access to and a knowledge of Microsoft Word for Windows and the Internet.

Attendance Policy: Because this is a skills course, not a content course, regular attendance is necessary to attain ENC 1102 goals; thus attendance is necessary. Understandably, you may miss up to 3 classes per semester; however, if you miss more than 3 classes your final letter grade may be lowered by one letter grade. If you come substantially late (10 minutes), or leave early, you will be counted absent. Once a student has accrued 5 total absences, I will withdraw the student from the course in accord with the university’s withdraw policy. If you miss a class meeting, it is your responsibility to obtain all information given in that class from the teacher or a fellow student. Quizzes and other material due in class may not be made up. Please note: we will have the advantage of occasionally participating in "virtual classes" through the use of Connect.Net. Attendance will be taken for these "virtual classes" and the same standards stand.

Conferences: Because I will be able to conference with you individually via e-mail or personal messages on Connect.Net, I will only require one face-to-face conference on a substantial draft of an essay. However, I encourage voluntary conferences at any time. During conferences (electronic or personal) we will only discuss the most important elements of the essay (purpose, focus, development); this does not mean that other elements of the essay, including especially unity, coherence, lead-ins, wordiness, grammar/mechanics, and spelling do not need work (they will!). Generally, you will need to write several drafts of your essay before it is satisfactory or "C" level.

Draft Workshops: As is the case in most composition courses today, you will be required to share your writing with the class in draft workshops. Although most students feel uncomfortable sharing their work aloud with others, and maybe even more so critiquing the work of their peers, it is a necessary part of the writing process. Learning how to constructively discuss and evaluate another’s work and your own takes time and practice. The more you do it, the easier it becomes and the more effective your writing will be. Throughout the course of the semester, each student will share with the class (in both written and oral form) the brainstorming, outlining/organizing, and drafting stages of the writing process. Each writer will have an assigned date to walk us through his or her process. The class members and I will then comment on the work—first in an open discussion and then in written form via Connect.Net—and will answer specific questions the writer has or questions I pose to the class for the assignment at hand. By way of this exercise, the writer will have 21 constructive evaluations of his or her work to continue through the writing process with the stages of revising and editing.

Essay Assignments: In ENC 1102, students will continue to develop their university level writing skills by engaging in a variety of writing situations in a process-centered environment. This course will reinforce the basic components of effective writing (focus, unity, coherence, and development) and introduce more advanced writing concepts such as tone and style. Students will write five out-of-class essays, will work collaboratively with a partner to compose an essay which will be accompanied by a brief presentation, and will complete one timed in-class Summary-Response essay which will act as the final exam. Together these essays will comprise a total of 6,000 words, thus satisfying a portion of the Gordon Rule. The five out-of-class essays will be approximately 750 words; the collaborative essay will be 1500 words; and the final in-class essay will be 750 words. More specific information about each of these assignments will be provided closer to their individual due dates. All essays will be assigned, composed, and turned-in through Connect.Net. (No more paper!) All writing must be your own work.

Journal: Using Connect.Net, you will write in an online journal in and out of class, including responses to the material we read, as well as entries for prewriting and researching essays. The journal may be collected at any time, unannounced, to check for completion of entries; if checked, and you have not completed the entries, you cannot make them up.

Research: Every essay you write should include various methods of development: traditional textual research, interviews, personal experience, literary and other works, and Internet/database sources. Throughout the semester, you will be required to include research in your essays from at least seven (7) different sources. You may use research as you see fit, including it in essays when it will benefit and support your argument. Research should not be viewed as a "filler" or merely stuck in the essays to fulfill a requirement. As part of the course, we will discuss and practice effective use of and documentation of sources. As a Connect.Net class we have the advantage of using Web links in our assignments and in our writing. This also helps in that you will not have to hand in hard copies of any research that may be found on the Internet. However, because you are graded on the correctness of the citation and the documentation of your research, you will have to provide photocopies of your textual research and highlight on the copy any passages that you quote in your essay. Your research must be documented in either MLA or APA style as specified by me.
 
 

Essays: Essays must meet all criteria for a "good" or "satisfactory" essay to receive a C: good focus, unity, coherence, development, purpose, and a sense of audience, and relatively few grammatical, mechanical, or punctuation errors. Only those essays which meet these criteria in an outstanding way, and which are original and provocative and have virtually no major errors, will receive grades higher than a C. Refer to your grading standards handout for a more detailed description of what constitutes a(n) A, B, C, D, or F paper. Essays that receive a C+ or lower can and should be revised (one time) following all of my marginal and end comments; they must be turned-in no later than 2 class meetings after I return the graded essays; the highest grade a revision can receive is a B+. If you need help with grammar, punctuation, mechanics, spelling, or research citation and documentation, you may use Writing Essentials (print or online) or the AllWrite tutorial program in the computer labs. You may want to see a writing consultant in the T-lab if a problem is recurring.

Deadlines: Unless I make official changes, all assignments are due at the beginning of our scheduled class meeting on the day listed in the course syllabus. Papers must be turned-in on time when using Connect.Net. There is no way to "sneak in" a late paper, as the program will not let you "post" a paper (turn it in) after I have "collected" them. If you must "post" a paper late, you will have to notify me. Essays posted late will be down-graded one full letter grade per class meeting that they are late. I will grant extended deadlines only in the case of a documented personal illness, documented emergency, or documented death in the family. No exceptions! It is your responsibility to

                    1. Notify me before the class of your situation—either by e-mail or voice mail;

                    4. Provide official documentation of your situation.

Journals: To receive an A on your journal, you must complete all entries in a thoughtful and responsible fashion on time. If we do a timed writing in class, you must stay on-task and write for the entire time; for responses to materials you read outside of class, you must provide substantial entries that demonstrate that you have thoroughly considered the implications of the piece and the assignment. Entries not completed thoughtfully and on time will not be given credit. If you complete 85% of the entries thoughtfully and on time, you will receive a B; 75% a C; etc. Each separate entry should be clearly marked as instructed.

Quizzes and Class Participation: You will also be given occasional quizzes (announced or unannounced) at the beginning of class on any material covered in class or on the assigned reading material. These quizzes will be completed on Connect.Net. You will also be expected to participate in every class session, whether that is an actual discussion or some online activity. Indeed, absences will directly affect your Quiz/Class Participation grade.

Grading Scale: I will be using a plus/minus grading system. The grade distribution will be as follows:

I use a total point system. The point value of each assignment will be announced in advance. 750-word essays count 100 points each. Quizzes/Participation typically add up to a paper grade (usually 10 points each). Journal grades will depend on the number assigned by the end of the semester (usually 5-10 points each). The collaborative essay counts 200 points, and the presentation counts 50 points.
 
 

Jan. 6            Introduction to the Course

        11          Illusion and Reality, reading

        13          reading cont’d

        18          workshop

        20          workshop

        25          Illusion and Reality Essay Due; begin Innocence and Experience reading

        27          reading cont’d

Feb. 1           workshop

        3            workshop

        8           Innocence and Experience Essay Due; begin Conformity and Rebellion reading

        10         reading cont’d

        15         workshop

        17         workshop

        22        Conformity and Rebellion Essay Due; begin Natural World reading

        24         reading cont’d

        29         workshop

Mar. 2          workshop

        7           Spring Break—No Classes

        9           Spring Break—No Classes

        14         Natural World Essay Due; begin Discoveries in Science and Technology reading

        16         reading cont’d

        21         team work

        23         conferences

        28         conferences

        30         team work

APR 4         Discoveries in Science and Technology Essay Due; Team Presentations

        6          Team Presentations

        11        Love and Hate reading

        13        workshop

        18        workshop

        20        Love and Hate Essay Due

        25        Last Day—Review for Final In-Class Essay