Syllabus
Wr 122, Fall 2000
College Composition II: Argument
CRN 15499, 1:00 MWF, 184 PLC
Instructor: Dr. Susan Fagan
Fall Term Office Hours:
MWF 10:15 - 11:45 and by Appointment
Office: 529 PLC
Phone: 541-346-3978
Email: sfagan@oregon.uoregon.edu
To learn to write is to learn to have ideas. --Robert Frost
What You'll Find On This Page
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Course Objective
This course will help you develop skills in critical reading, critical thinking, and expository writing. In class you will examine the writing of others, discuss the ideas presented in those selected writings and why they are successful (or why not), and explore your own and your classmates' ideas. Wr 122 emphasizes argument as a means of responsible inquiry, expressing ideas and discovering reasons to support them, and developing those ideas and reasons in essay form to communicate effectively to a particular audience.
Prerequisite
You must have completed Wr 121 or its equivalent to enroll in Wr 122 .
Required Texts
Richard Holeton, Composing Cyberspace:
Identity, Community, and Knowledge in the Electronic Age
Muriel Harris, The Prentice Hall Reference Guide to Grammar and
Usage
Course Packet
Other Required Supplies
You will need a folder with pockets to hold your accumulated work. You will probably find having a computer disk formatted for use in the computer classroom helpful.
Required
Assignments
- Three "formal" essays, the first 3-4 pages in
length, the second 4-5 pages, and the third 5-6 pages, 25% each. A
minimum of two versions of each essay (a rough draft and a
revision) will be required.
- Reading summary/response
assignments--approximately 10-12 for the term, 1-2 pages each,
10%.
- A writing portfolio with your collected work
and a reflective essay. (See Grading, below, for more information
on how the portfolio and reflective essay contribute to the final
grade.)
- Completion of various short writing
assignments and exercises.*
- A group oral presentation based on selected
readings.*
- Completion of assigned readings and
participation in class discussion.*
*These items comprise a participation component of the grade, 15%.
Writing Mechanics
- All assignments should be typed or printed on
8 1/2 by 11" paper. Do not use ease-erase or onion-skin paper.
Dot-matrix is acceptable if legible (i.e., use a clean, dark
ribbon; readable print style; etc.).
- Papers should be double spaced, with at least
a one-inch margin on all sides. Do not use a cover or title sheet
(one staple in the upper left hand corner will suffice). Place
your name, date, and the assignment number in the upper right hand
corner of the first page, and your name and the page number on
each succeeding page.
- Rough drafts and all working papers (i.e.,
brainstorming, outlines, etc.) must be submitted with the final
copy of your work.
- Keep a copy of your written work until your original is returned.
Attendance
This course is primarily a discussion and workshop course. What happens in class cannot be duplicated or summarized for you if you are not present. Therefore, attendance is required. More than three unexcused absences will reduce your final grade (by one full letter grade for each absence over 3). Six absences will result in an automatic failing grade. Being late to class three times will count as one absence.
In general, excused absences are given for illness if the student provides a doctor's note, or for a conflicting University obligation when the student provides a signed request by the appropriate University supervisor. "Doubling scheduling" of classes (such as weekend workshops) during class time is not considered reason for an excused absence.
Grading
- Assignments must be completed by the beginning
of the designated class period. This policy covers rough drafts,
final drafts, reading, and preparation of topics for discussion.
Your success depends on your participation; coming to class
unprepared for the day's activities is like not attending at all.
NOTE: Do not plan to print assignments in the computer
classroom in the few minutes available before class begins. This
time has proved to be not adequate and thus such printing is
disruptive to your instructor and other students.
- Late papers and/or papers without a rough
draft will be accepted, read, and commented on, but will not be
graded. However, a late paper with no grade is better than no
paper at all, as the latter will be averaged into your final grade
as a zero. Late papers can be revised for the portfolio, but
cannot be revised and resubmitted to earn a higher grade (see next
two items).
- Students may revise and resubmit the first two
essays for regrading one time each, if the following conditions
have been met: (1) the rough draft was completed for the
scheduled peer review session and the student participated in that
session; (2) the assignment was turned in on time with the
rough draft and peer review attached and with all other required
materials assembled in the student's portfolio; (3) the
student is in class and receives the paper with comments on the
day the assignments are returned; (4) the student prepares
a revision in time for a review conference with the instructor
(usually during office hours); and (5) the student meets
the revision due date (generally within one week--due dates will
be announced in class). Time does not allow for revision of the
third essay for a higher grade.
- Revising does not mean simply recopying the
assignment to incorporate grammatical and spelling corrections, or
merely responding to instructor comments, but rethinking,
reorganizing, and rewriting the paper (see Guidelines for
Revision). A higher grade on revised work, if earned, will be
counted in your final grade, but will not replace the original
grade (the two grades will be averaged). If you would like more
than the allowed time to complete a revision, you may revise work
to place in your portfolio. However, work revised for the
portfolio will not be regraded as individual essays, but will be
reread and evaluated in the context of the portfolio.
- Form and content cannot be separated. A
grammatically or mechanically perfect paper will not automatically
receive an A grade, as content, style, and logic will also be
considered. Neither can a grammatically flawed or unprofessionally
prepared paper earn a top grade. In addition, your writing should
improve; the level of work which receives an A at the beginning of
the course might not be A-level work at the end of the
term.
- The final grade will be based primarily on the
writing assignments and class participation, as outlined above. In
addition, class attendance, the group presentation, and overall
improvement in writing performance (based on an evaluation of the
papers collected in your portfolio and your reflective essay) will
be considered. Failure to turn in a portfolio will reduce your
grade by one full point; turning in a hastily prepared or
incomplete portfolio will reduce your grade by 1/2 point.
- All work submitted in this course must be your
own and written exclusively for this course. The use of sources
(ideas, quotations, paraphrases) must be properly documented. If
you use a professional typist to prepare your final copies, you
must instruct the typist not to make any changes in or edit your
work in any way. Please consult pages 235-238 of the Prentice
Hall Reference Guide to Grammar and Usage for a definition of
plagiarism, how to avoid plagiarism, and information on proper
documentation. For the consequences of academic dishonesty, please
refer to the Code
of Student Conduct in the Time Schedule
of Classes. In cases where plagiarism has been clearly
established, the award of an F for the final course grade is the
standard practice of the Composition Program. Please see your
instructor if you have any questions about your use of
sources.
- No incompletes will be given in this course.
Accommodation
Students with a documented disability (physical or learning) which they think may affect their performance in this class should contact the University's Counselor for Students with Disabilities during the first week of the term and request that a letter be sent verifying the disability. They should then meet with their instructor to discuss whatever accommodations may be necessary.
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Last Updated 09/23/00