DEVELOPMENTAL ENGLISH 0321
INSTRUCTOR: LESLIE WEBB
OFFICE: L211
PHONE: 823-0370
E-MAIL: lwebb@acmail.blinn.edu
WEB PAGE: www.blinn.edu/brazos/parallelstud/home.htm
OFFICE HOURS: MWF: 10:00-10:50, 1:00-1:50
TTH: 10:35-11:50, 1:25-2:40
Course Description: English 0321 is designed to provide the culmination of English 0320. Students will apply the grammatical principles from the previous course as they learn how to write effective essays. Students will write short essays and participate in a mini-research project. The course combines audio-visual materials in a way that allows students to progress toward competence in college level English courses. This is a skill improvement course that may not be used as credit for an associate degree or as transfer credit to a four-year college. However, the skills taught in this course are essential for success in college courses. In order to adequately prepare for college-level writing, students should be prepared to spend at least two hours of study outside of class for every one hour spent in class (six hours/week minimum).
Prerequisite: Successful completion of English 0320 or appropriate score on the assessment instrument.
Credit: This course consists of three lecture hours weekly. Three non-degree credit hours are earned. These hours are averaged into the student’s grade point average and recorded on the student’s transcript.
Course Objectives: Upon completion of this course, the student should be able to demonstrate the following skills in a 450-500-word essay:
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Basic sentence skills (including absence of fragments, fused sentences, misplaced or dangling modifiers, tense and number shifts; and correct use of verbs, subject-verb agreement, parallelism, basic mechanics, and varying sentence patterns). |
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Paragraph unity (including developing and supporting a thesis and topic sentences). |
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Paragraph coherence (including recognizing and eliminating irrelevant sentences, planning and utilizing various patterns of organization, and providing effective transitions for the reader). |
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Essay development (including four of the following modes: narrative-descriptive, comparison-contrast, argumentative-persuasive, classification-division, and definition). |
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Research (including gathering sources in the library, taking notes, planning the paper, using proper MLA format to write a rough draft with proper internal documentation and works cited page, revising the draft, and presenting the final draft along with an oral class presentation).
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Texts Needed:
Langan, John. College Writing Skills with Readings. 4th
edition. New York: McGraw-Hill Publishing Co., 1989.
Allwrite lab manual
The Little, Brown Handbook. 7th edition. New York: Harper
Collins Publishers, 1992.
Materials Needed:
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Notebook for lecture note |
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Research folder |
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Portfolio |
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Red pen (for editing) |
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Highlighter |
Course Content: See attached schedule.
Specific Course Requirements:
In addition to the following assignments, the instructor will assign homework, lab work, and various in-class assignments (see attached schedule).
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Essays: The instructor will assign four essays/tests to help the student learn to critique, revise, edit, and proofread written assignments. All written tests will be developed to approximately 450 words. |
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Research project: A mini-research project (450-500 words) will be assessed throughout the course to determine knowledge of skills taught in the class. |
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Daily journals: Students will write a short journal on assigned topics during the first fifteen minutes of every class. |
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Textbook assignments: Textbook assignments are intended to help students improve their composition skills. |
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Computer lab: Computer assignments are intended to help students identify and eliminate grammatical and mechanical deficiencies in their writing skills. |
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Portfolio: Students are to keep ALL graded work (quizzes, journals, essays, research, etc) which is to be bound and turned in during the last week of class. |
| Exit exam: This exam will be given to determine whether the student has sufficient knowledge of the skills needed to advance to college-credit English. It will include both an objective test and an essay test.
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Tentative Calendar for Assignments and Exams: See attachment.
Evaluation Policy:
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A (90-100): The A paper represents original outstanding work; it shows careful thought, fresh insights, and stylistic maturity. |
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B (80-89): The B paper represents above-average college-level work; it reveals thought but not unusual originality. |
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C (70-79): The C paper represents average college-level writing; it is a competent expression of ordinary thought in ordinary language. |
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D (60-69): The D paper represents below college-level writing; it has only skeletal development and organization; serious mechanical and grammatical errors; and/or poor vocabulary and sentence structure. |
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F (0-50): The F paper falls below the minimal standards for college level writing; it shows lack of thought and purpose, little or no organization, numerous mechanical errors, and garbled or immature style. |
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0: A paper will earn a grade of 0 if it contains plagiarized content in any form. |
Course Grade:
Essay Tests-----------------------------------------------------40%
Research paper-------------------------------------------------10%
Daily journals---------------------------------------------------10%
Computer lab------- -------------------------------------------10%
Portfolio---------------------------------------------------------10%
Final exam------------------------------------------------------20%
Objective final exam (10%)
Essay final exam (10%)
Class Policies:
Attendance:
1. Attendance in developmental classes and
labs is mandatory.
cover EMERGENCY situations (medical emergency,
death in the immediate family). Anything which
can be scheduled and is scheduled during class
time will be considered and UNEXCUSED ABSENCE.
2. Blinn College policy states that students
in developmental classes will be dropped from
the course if they accumulate TWO WEEKS of
unexcused absences during the semester
(4 MW/TT classes, 6 MWF classes, or 3 summer
classes).
3. Class days missed due to inclement weather will
be made up as appropriate.
4 A student on scholastic or disciplinary probation
should not have any unexcused absences.
5. With permission, students may make up
an absence by attending one of the instructor’s
other classes.
Late assignments and make-up work:
| 1. Students are given a daily plan of all assignments; therefore, all assignments are expected to be completed whether the student attends class or not. |
| 2. Work missed due to an excused absence will be accepted on the day of the student’s return to class. All work turned in after that time will receive no more than half credit. |
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3. All late work must be accompanied by a memo signed by the student explaining why he/she missed classed and documentation to prove he/she could not be in class. |
| 4. No late work will be accepted for unexcused absences or absences without proper documentation. No in-class assignments may be made up for any reason. No late work will be accepted in the last two weeks of the semester. |
| 5. It is the student’s responsibility to find out from classmates what lectures and assignments were missed. I will not repeat an entire lecture for individual students.
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Food and drinks are not allowed in the classroom.
Scholastic dishonesty (as defined in the Blinn College Board Policy Manual):
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1. First offense: Depending on the situation, the student will receive an appropriate penalty ranging from a 0 on the assignment to an F for the course. |
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2. Second offense: The student will be referred to the Division Chair for appropriate action. |
Students with Disabilities:
Students with Disabilities must contact the ADA coordinator to determine whether they may receive accommodations on examinations and essays. After conferring with the ADA coordinator and providing the Academic Advising and Counseling Center (AACC) with proper documentation, these students must inform the instructor of their needs as soon as possible.