ENGLISH 10600 COURSE POLICIES FALL 2011

Syllabus Approach: Writing Your Way Into Purdue

COURSE OVERVIEW
Welcome to English 10600: Introductory Composition.

Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday

Conference Computer Lab Classroom Conference Classroom
HEAV 225 BRNG B275 HEAV 105 HEAV 223 HEAV 105
ENGL 10600-205 ENGL 10600- Contact Information
ENGL 10600-183 ENGL 10600-206 ENGL 10600-183
CRN 41879 183 CRN 41857 Instructor: CRNAdrian McClure CRN 41857
41880
CRN 41857 Office: Heavilon 123
Office Phone: 49-40510
Our syllabus approach is called Writing Your Way IntoOffice Hours: Wednesday 10:30-11:30, and by appointment
Purdue. Each of the assignments in this sequence isEmail Address:
aimed at getting you actively involved with the Purdue
community—and exploring your own place within it— Class Website:
while developing college-level writing abilities and
research skills.

In this section of English 106 you’ll be examining your life at Purdue and beyond through a
series of five major projects. We’ll begin with who you are and how you got here (Literacy
Narrative). Next, you’ll write a report on how to do research in your major using the
collections and databases of the Purdue library system (Library Report) and then explore
(and enter) an argument among professionals in your anticipated career path, honing your
research skills and learning to produce an annotated bibliography in the process (Research
Paper Project). In the course of the semester, you’ll also write an impression paper on a
Purdue performance we experience as a class (Performance Project) and compose regular
blog entries that touch on your life before, during, and after your student career here at
Purdue (Blog Project). We’ll end with a multimedia group project oriented towards campus
social action (Public Service Announcement). Throughout all these assignments, we
will be focusing on learning to recognize, analyze, and effectively utilize
rhetorical strategies. (Rhetoric, as you’ll soon be learning, involves communicating
persuasively with an eye to purpose and audience.)

In addition to these major assignments, you’ll be doing numerous in-class writing activities.
Over the course of this semester, you’ll do regular planning and prewriting, compose and
revise numerous drafts, do peer reviewing of other students’ drafts, learn about and apply
principles of design and visual rhetoric, and write short reflections on each of your projects.
It sounds overwhelming, I know, but we’ll work through the process of composition step by
step, and at the end of the semester you’ll be amazed at all you’ve accomplished.

LEARNING GOALS
This course is aimed at developing writing and critical thinking skills that are of great
benefit to students in all majors and disciplines. Writing clearly and persuasively, practicing
effective time management, mastering academic research skills, and analyzing print and
visual texts are all important learning goals of English 106. Beyond this, the Writing Your
Way Into Purdue sequence challenges you to think about yourself in new ways and to
reflect on, and define yourself within, the rich variety of academic “discourse communities”
here at Purdue.
COURSE ORGANIZATION: Classroom, Conference, and Lab Setting
This class meets twice a week in a traditional classroom, once a week in a computer lab,
and once a week in smaller groups in the conference center.

English 10600/Fall 2011/Adrian McClure 1 of 7

 • In the conference setting, you will meet with me (and at times, a small group of your
peers) on a set day once a week. I will provide you with a conference schedule telling
you when your particular session (which will occupy only part of the 50-minute period)
begins and ends, and I will also inform you of any changes in this schedule over the
course of the semester. Missing your conference is counted as an absence, and it’s
important to be on time.

• In the classroom setting, there will be a mix of lectures, discussion, individual and
group writing activities, peer reviewing, and occasional quizzes.

• In the lab, you will receive training in important skills like how to navigate the Purdue
library databases, use movie making software, etc., and you will also be busy writing
and responding to blog posts.

ABSENCE POLICY
Regular attendance in all three of these settings is important to your success in the course,
especially because in many cases, the work you miss cannot be made up. I do realize,
however, that sometimes you have illnesses or circumstances beyond your control which
cause you to miss class, so I am allowing you three absences without any attendance
penalty. If you exceed three unexcused absences, however, your final letter grade will be
lowered. This means if you have 4-5 unexcused absences, the highest grade you may
obtain is “B.” If you have 6-8 unexcused absences, the highest grade you may obtain is “C,”
and if you have 9-11 unexcused absences, the highest grade you may obtain is “D.” If you
have 12 or more unexcused absences, the highest grade you may obtain is “F.”

OFFICE HOURS
If you want to discuss class topics one-on-one, or if you’d like to discuss your grade, I will be
happy to meet with you during my office hours. Our time will be most productive if you
come prepared with specific questions and concerns. (If you want to discuss your grade,
please send me an email in advance stating your area of concern and the reason you feel
the grade was unfair.)

COURSE EXPECTATIONS
Computer Lab Responsibilities
When we do computer work in the lab setting, you must be able to access the space
available to you on the server. In addition, you should back up your all your documents on a
flash drive. Needless to say, you are expected to treat all computer equipment with respect,
and you must follow Purdue’s and ITaP’s rules concerning your internet account and
software theft.

Professionalism and You

Please conduct yourself professionally at all times. You should not harass, threaten, or
belittle others in any way. As in any college classroom, you are expected to listen
respectfully to the views of others.

Cell phones and iPods should be stowed away, and you should not be conversing, reading
the newspaper in class, or surfing the net in computer lab unless it is part of our assignment
that day. (This is standard operating procedure in college, especially in courses with small
enrollment.) My policy is to give you one warning for unacceptable behaviors. If you
continue or repeat the behavior, I will ask you to leave class for the day, and you will
receive an unexcused absence.

GRADING
Over the course of the semester, you will accumulate 1000 points. The points will translate
into specific grades. I assign all grades using a +/- system. You will be given rubrics and
point values for each of your assignments. The rubrics indicate which areas you did well in
and which areas you need to improve in.

English 10600/Fall 2011/Adrian McClure 2 of 7

Assignments
Points
Literacy Narrative
Total
100
Planning/Prewriting
5
Drafts 1 and 2 (@ 5 pts ea)
10
Peer Reviews
10
Final draft
65
Reflection
10
Library Report
Total
100
Planning/Prewriting
10
Drafts
10
Peer Review
10
Reflection
15
Final Draft [formatted]
55
Research Paper Project
Total
200
Planning/Prewriting
10
Proposal
20
Drafts
20
Peer Reviews
10
Annotated Bibliography (5+ sources)
20
Final Draft
100
Reflection
20
Performance Project
Total
100
Planning/Prewriting
10
Draft
10
Peer Review
10
Reflection/Impression Paper
50
Evidence of Interview
20
Public Service Announcement (Group Project)
Total
English 10600/Fall 2011/Adrian McClure 3 of 7
 200
Copyright/Fair Use Questions
15
Storyboard and Script
20
Annotated Bibliography (4+ sources)
15
Video and Presentation
100
Reflection
25
Your participation on this project
25
Blog

100
Small assignments and quizzes

100
Participation in class/lab/conferences

100
Total Points Possible

1000

General Criteria
Here are the criteria I use in
grading your assignments—you
can use these statements as
clues about how you might work
toward a higher grade:

90-100 (A)—You did what the

assignment asked at a high
quality level, and your work
shows originality and creativity.
Work in this range shows all the
qualities listed below for a B,
but it also demonstrates that
you took extra steps to be
original or creative in
developing content, solving a
problem, or developing a verbal
or visual style.

80-89 (B)—You did what the

assignment asked of you at a
high quality level. Work in this
range needs little revision, is
complete in content, is
organized well, and shows
special attention to style and
visual design.

70-79 (C)—You did what the

assignment asked of you. Work
in this range tends to need
some revision, but it is

English 10600/Fall 2011/Adrian McClure 4 of 7

 complete in content and the organization is logical. The style, verbal and visual is
straightforward but unremarkable.

60-69 (D)—You did what the assignment asked at a low level of quality. Overall, the
work still needs significant revision; the content is often incomplete and chaotic and the
organization is hard to discern. Verbal and visual style is often non-existent or chaotic.

Below 60 (F)—There’s no reason to go here. If you put in honest effort, it’s extremely
unlikely you will receive an F in this course. Ordinarily, students who receive this grade
don’t show up or don’t do the work. (If you are doing your best and are receiving this grade,
you might consider dropping the class.)
ASSIGNMENT GUIDELINES
Formatting
The work you turn in for this course must be properly formatted and reasonably free of
typos. Sloppy or poorly-proofread documents will be returned to you for correction. Use a
12-point, readable, standard font and double spacing unless I instruct you otherwise. In this
class, MLA-style formatting is the default; you will be using it on all assignments unless
instructed otherwise. (I will be providing instruction on this in class.) In your heading, you
must include the following information (double-spaced) in the top left corner of the first
page:

Your name Jane Purdue

Name of paper/assignment, and draft # Literacy Narrative, Draft 2

Course number English 10600

The current date 23 January 2011

In the header of every subsequent page, right aligned, put your last name and the page
number. Unless otherwise announced, I will collect all assignments at the beginning
of the hour.

Grammar, Spelling, and Punctuation

Composition is not a course in grammar, although from time to time we may do quick
reviews of tricky topics. At this stage in your academic career, you are expected to take
responsibility for mastering whatever basic writing conventions you may need to improve. If
you are having problems in this area, you should see me, consult the Purdue OWL website,
and/or go to the Writing Lab for help.

Late Work
All work must be submitted on time. We do regular peer review in this course, and if your
assignments are late, you will not receive valuable feedback you need for revision. Late
work will be accepted only under extenuating circumstances, and you must consult with me
before the class period in which the work is due. Where no arrangement is made, work will
be docked one letter grade for each day it is late.

Drafts, Revising, and Peer Review

Revision is an essential part of writing well. This is why at least one draft of each paper will
be written for peer review in class, and both the drafts and the peer reviews are submitted
as part of the final project. As you revise your first draft, I expect you to add material, cut
extraneous information and redundancies, reorganize your thoughts and arguments, and
develop your ideas more fully. In later drafts, I expect you to do more sentence-level editing
for style and to proofread your work carefully. I will provide you with handouts that will
guide you though the peer review process as you work with each other's papers. In addition
to peer input, you will also receive general comments from me on each of your drafts
pointing out strengths and identifying any areas that need extensive revising.

Academic Integrity and Plagiarism

Plagiarism is the act of appropriating another person’s work, in whole or in part, and calling
English 10600/Fall 2011/Adrian McClure 5 of 7
it your own. We will have discussions throughout the semester about what constitutes
plagiarism and how to avoid it. Penalties for plagiarism range from a failing grade on the
plagiarized assignment and notification of the Dean of Students' Office to failure for the
course and, in extreme cases, expulsion from the university. (See
http://www.purdue.edu/odos/osrr/academicintegritybrochure.php for more information on
this topic.) Academic honesty is expected of all students at Purdue, and the vast majority of
students respect this. Those tempted to plagiarize should bear in mind that all final drafts
may be submitted to a plagiarism checker.
THE COURSE WEBSITE
The website for this section of English 106 is http://courses.rhetorike.org/mcclure/. You will
be signing up for membership on your first day in the lab and consulting it regularly
throughout the semester to check on the weekly class schedule, explore links, post and
comment on blogs, turn in project assignments, etc.

Website Homepage
The class schedule for each upcoming week is posted on the website homepage. The
advantage of this system is its flexibility—all major project due dates are set, but daily
lessons, activities, and reading assignments can be tweaked or altered as the semester
progresses depending on class needs.

Syllabus Tab
Here you can find the syllabus as well as the current schedule of conference sessions.

Calendar Tab
The calendar lists all major project due dates.

Projects Tab
The assignments, rubrics, and associated handouts for each major project can be
downloaded here.

Blogs Tab
This is the tab you use to view, respond to, and edit class blogs.

Links Tab
Here you can find useful links related to each of the major projects as well as other related
topics.

My Toolbox
Your personal toolbox enables you to post blogs and to turn in your assignments using the
dropbox.

IMPORTANT PURDUE RESOURCES

In addition to meeting with me in conferences and office hours, you have other valuable
resources at Purdue to help you with your writing and writing assignments.

• The Writing Lab in Heavilon Hall, Room 226, offers FREE tutoring services to Purdue
students at any stage in the writing process, either by appointment or on a drop-in
basis. (Visit their website for more information, or call 494-3723 to make an
appointment.) There are also two drop-in only, satellite locations with evening hours
at Hicks and Meredith Hall.

• The Purdue Online Writing Lab (OWL) is used by millions of users worldwide and
provides a wealth of accessible information on all aspects of composition
(http://owl.english.purdue.edu).

• The Digital Learning Collaboratory (DLC) provides help with creating multimedia
projects (such as our final PSA assignment). You can check out equipment like digital
cameras, use the computers, learn new software, or reserve space to work

English 10600/Fall 2011/Adrian McClure 6 of 7

 collaboratively on your project. For more information, go to
http://www.lib.purdue.edu.

STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES

Students with disabilities must be registered with Disabilities Resource Center (DRC) in the
Office of the Dean of Students before classroom accommodations can be provided. If you
are eligible for academic accommodations because you have a documented disability that
will impact your work in this class, please schedule an appointment with me as soon as
possible so that we can discuss how to effectively implement your accommodations.

REQUIRED TEXTBOOKS AND MATERIALS

There are two required textbooks for this
course: They Say/I Say: The Moves That Matter in Academic Writing, 2nd ed. by Gerald Graf

ISBN: 9780393933611

Guide to Writing with Readings, 2nd ed. by Richard Bullock and Maureen Daly Goggin, Norton, 2009.

33819

In addition to these two required textbooks, which you should bring to

class every day during the relevant sections of the course, you will also
need the following materials:

• A computer storage device, preferably a flash drive. Make sure you bring your storage device
with you on our lab days.
• A supply of “spring” clips and a stapler. Please staple your individual short assignments
together, but hand in your entire project with all the individual elements held together with a
“spring” clip (NOT a wire paper clip!). This is a requirement, not a request.
• Writing materials. Make sure you always come to class with paper and pencil (or pen).
• A good print or online college-level dictionary.
• A binder or folder in which to keep your assembled semester’s body of work. You should
always keep your notes, planning, prewriting, peer reviews, and EVERY draft of your work in
progress since you need to hand these in with your final projects.

Finally, you are required to purchase a $12 student ticket to the Wednesday, February 23rd
7:30pm Purdue Theatre performance of Arabian Nights. This performance will be in Hansen
Theatre, which is located in Pao Hall. I will purchase the tickets as a block, and later in the
semester, you will need to pay me in cash to receive your ticket. Attending this
performance is a requirement of this section of English 10600, so mark your calendar now.

FINAL NOTE
Composition,
rse requirements, deadlineslike
andany skill,
grading requires both
percentages are subject to changes that may be necessitated by a revised semester calen
training in techniques and long hours of
practice. You will work hard this
semester, but you will also definitely
grow as a writer. As a medievalist, I
encourage you to think of this course as
an apprenticeship from which you will
emerge as a "journeyman" writer, ready
to independently pursue your own path
to mastery.

English 10600/Fall 2011/Adrian McClure 7 of 7