ENG 1141-D307: Course Syllabus
Course Identification
- ENG 1141-D307-Introduction to Creative Writing
3 hours, 3 credits
Course Prerequisite: ENG 1101 - Catalog Description: This course covers techniques and skills in writing poetry, drama, the short story and the essay with emphasis on the student’s awareness of creative potential.
- ENG 1141 Fulfills Creative Expression Category for Pathways
Instructor Information
Professor Jennifer Sears Pigliucci
For information about your instructor, feel free to visit my profile on the English Department’s website or my OpenLab Portfolio.
Instructor Email
- Students are invited to email me at anytime. I want to hear from you!
- Please use your City Tech email address when corresponding with me. Due to security filters, I may not receive your email if you do not use your student email address.
- My emails to the class will come via Blackboard and/or CUNYfirst, which also uses your school email addresses.
Office Hours
- Office hours; 4-5 pm on Tuesdays and Thursdays on ZOOM: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/82754062261
General Education Learning Outcomes
On completion of ENG 1141, students will be able to:
- Gather, interpret, and assess information from a variety of sources and points of view.
- Evaluate evidence and arguments critically or analytically.
- Produce well-reasoned written or oral arguments using evidence to support conclusions.
Course Specific Learning Outcomes
On completion of ENG 1141, students will be able to:
- employ characterization, specifically the representation of characters through their actions, words, descriptions of them, and responses of others to them;
- create stories and poems with convincing points of view, specifically as it functions through the narrators of stories, speakers of poems, and characters, and their perspectives on the subject matter of the works in which they exist
- create plots, specifically the selection and ordering of events as situations or scenes, to achieve suspense through exposition and action;
- employ style, specifically its identifiable components: patterned sentence structure, word-order, manipulation of the qualitative and quantitative features of sound, and the choice of appropriate diction and tone;
- utilize structure, as a planned framework for writing, selecting from several options to achieve most effective arrangement of parts, and the desired effect and impact of the work;
- understand and demonstrate the use of symbolism and allusion in different cultural contexts
- conduct online, archival and primary research, to mine raw material for creative works.
English Department’s Learning Outcomes (PDF)
Visit this post: https://openlab.citytech.cuny.edu/eng1141-d307-intro-to-creative-writing/2021/01/27/eng-1141-departmental-learning-outcomes/
Course Meeting Times
This 3 hour/3 credit course meets in person on Tuesdays and Thursdays, from 2:30-3:45 pm in Namm 521.
Statement On Attendance, Attending, and Attention
Learning is hard work! But one of the gratifying and transformative skills you can cultivate in college is learning to pay attention to your books, your peers, your instructors, and, most importantly, your own ideas. Attention in the classroom is reciprocal. As your instructor, I commit to paying attention to your ideas in class, when you communicate with me outside of class, and to the ideas you generously share with me through your writing assignments. In return, I hope you pay attention to our class texts and writing exercises, your peers who are your partners in this experience, and to me. As the philosopher Simone Weil writes in her First and Last Notebooks, “Attention is the rarest and purest form of generosity.” Extend this generosity to your peers, to me, and to your own new ideas with respect and interest.
Course Schedule/Agenda
See the course agenda on this post:
Course Technology Requirements and Platforms
OpenLab Course Site
Students in this class must have an active OpenLab account and be a member of the class. On our class OpenLab site you will:
- access the course syllabus, assignments, handouts, and links to course lecture materials
- participate on the class OpenLab when directed
- post work and respond to the work of others for peer review and workshop
- find links to our Blackboard site
Blackboard Course Site
On our Blackboard site, you will:
- access links to all course materials on the class OpenLab site.
- receive class announcements
- upload Poetry, Fiction, and Memoir assignments for course grades
- check your attendance, which will based on class participation in both synchronous and asynchronous course activities.
City Tech Technology Assistance
For information about City Tech’s Virtual Technologies, including Blackboard and OpenLab this page may be helpful:https://www.citytech.cuny.edu/virtual/technology-services-student.aspx
Blackboard and OpenLab Assistance
For Blackboard Student Resources: http://www.cuny.edu/about/administration/offices/cis/core-functions/cuny-blackboard/user-guides/student/
For OpenLab Help: https://openlab.citytech.cuny.edu/blog/help/openlab-help/
Email Assistance
For assistance with your City Tech email, Help Desk: StudentHelpDesk@citytech.cuny.edu
Loaner Devices for Students
For students who don’t have devices, there is a webpage for them to fill out to request a loaner. This is the address: https://www.citytech.cuny.edu/loaner/
ENG 1141 Course Grades and Assessments
Your completed assignments in Poetry, Fiction, and Memoir will compose the bulk of your final grade in this class (60%). The second primary component of your grade (20%) is comprised of active participation in synchronous and asynchronous class participation. Reading Quizzes comprise 15% percent and the Final Reflection Portfolio Activity is 5% your course grade.
Genre Writing Assignments-60%
3 Assignments, 20% each
Each of the genre assignment grades will assess your effort in the specific genres: poetry, fiction, and memoir/creative non-fiction. To do well, you are expected to turn in original work and to contribute to class workshops, which will be conducted on the OpenLab. For each of these assignments, you will have opportunity to experiment in class with free writing, structured exercises, and Writer’s Notebook handouts. There will also have model texts, which will be introduced through class lectures and asynchronous activities.
For the poetry assignment, you will submit a variety of poetic forms and free verse. For the fiction assignment, you will submit a series of flash fiction or short stories. For the memoir and creative non-fiction assignment, you will submit a series of flash memoir or longer essays. The memoir assignment will also include a research component. For each major assignment, complete and clear guidelines will be given regarding length requirements and expectations. For detailed descriptions of the assignments as we work through the semester, check the Assignments page on this site:
https://openlab.citytech.cuny.edu/eng1141-d307-intro-to-creative-writing/assignments/
Grading/Late Paper/Revision Policy
For the three major assignments, you will workshop them in class and turn them in on Blackboard for a grade from the instructor. After they are graded, students will have a one week opporunity to complete a full revision with the possibility of receiving a higher grade if the revision warrants it. Late papers can be turned in with the second round of revisions. Those who turn in their major assignment at this later date will have forfeited their opportunity for revision.
Course Participation-20%
This portion of your grade will be configured by participation during in class meeting times and other participation activity outside of class. Our class meetings will include writing activities and lecture and also occasional group work. Outside activity will include posting work on the OpenLab. The Attendance category on Blackboard will keep track of class attendance, so you know where you stand throughout the semester.
Reading Quizzes-15%
3 Quizzes, 5% each
There will be reading quizzes on Blackboard covering our class readings in Poetry, Fiction, and Memoir.
Final Reflection Activity-5%
This assignment will take place during finals week. You will reflect on what you believe is the most successful writing you did over the course of the semester. More information will be provided in-class before finals week.
College Policy on Academic Integrity
Students who work with information, ideas, and texts owe their audience and sources accuracy and honesty in using, crediting, and citing sources. As a community of intellectual and professional workers, the College recognizes its responsibility for providing instruction in information literacy and academic integrity, offering models of good practice, and responding vigilantly and appropriately to infractions of academic integrity. Accordingly, academic dishonesty is prohibited in CUNY and at New York City College of Technology, and is punishable by penalties, including failing grades, suspension, and expulsion. The complete text of the College policy on Academic Integrity may be found in the catalog.
Accessibility Statement
City Tech is committed to supporting the educational goals of enrolled students with disabilities in the areas of enrollment, academic advisement, tutoring, assistive technologies and testing accommodations. If you have or think you may have a disability, you may be eligible for reasonable accommodations or academic adjustments as provided under applicable federal, state and city laws. You may also request services for temporary conditions or medical issues under certain circumstances. If you have questions about your eligibility or would like to seek accommodation services or academic adjustments, you can leave a voicemail at 718 260 5143; send an email to Accessibility@citytech.cuny.edu or visit the Center’s website at http://www.citytech.cuny.edu/accessibility/ for more information.
Diversity and Inclusive Education Statement
This course welcomes students from all backgrounds, experiences and perspectives. In accordance with the City Tech and CUNY missions, this course intends to provide an atmosphere of inclusion, respect, and the mutual appreciation of differences so that together we can create an environment in which all students can flourish. It is the instructor’s goal to provide materials and activities that are welcoming and accommodating of diversity in all of its forms, including race, gender identity and presentation, ethnicity, national origin, religion, cultural identity, socioeconomic background, sexuality and sexual orientation, ability, neurodivergence, age, and etc. Your instructor is committed to equity and actively seeks ways to challenge institutional racism, sexism, ableism and other forms of prejudice. Your input is encouraged and appreciated. If a dynamic that you observe or experience in the course concerns you, you may respectfully inform your instructor without fear of how your concerns will affect your grade. Let your instructor know how to improve the effectiveness of the course for you personally, or for other students or student groups. We acknowledge that NYCCT is located on the traditional homelands of the Canarsie and Lenape peoples.
