Course Policy for ENG 1121—Section D5650

English Composition 2

 

Course Title: Composition 2

Section: D560

Time: THIS CLASS MEETS IN PERSON, Tuesdays and Thursdays from 2:30 – 3:45. 

Place: Namm N 1006

Instructor: Sean Scanlan, PhD

Email: sscanlan@citytech.cuny.edu

Course Website: https://openlab.citytech.cuny.edu/profscanlan-english1121-d560-fall2022/

Office Hours: I will hold office hours via Zoom on Mondays from 10-12; Zoom links TBA

Office: Namm 511, (718) 260-5123

Welcome:

Welcome to City Tech and English 1121. We are living through a very difficult time in our city, country, and world, and trying to adapt. In our class, we will prioritize intellectual nourishment, community, and humanity. If you have any concerns about the course or college, or if there is any situation preventing you from participating, please do not hesitate to reach out to me. Know that I am here to work with you.

Course Description:

An advanced course in expository essay writing that requires a library paper. Further development of research and documentation skills. Assigned literary and expository readings.

Every City Tech (and CUNY) student takes Composition 2, which features reading and writing assignments that will help prepare you for college and beyond. Together we will work on communicating effectively, building an argument, adapting your writing for different needs and situations, interpreting and responding to a text, incorporating and citing secondary source material. We will be reading pieces both for their inherent literary and informational value and also as models for our own writing projects. Sharing your own ideas and experiences and adding your voice to our discussions will enrich our class community.

Prerequisite: 

English 1101 or equivalent

Course Meetings:

This course will meet twice a week for an hour and fifteen minutes in person.

I will post the class agenda and the upcoming homework on OpenLab before each class. Many times, I will ask students to respond to our texts by asking direct questions. I will also ask students to respond to our formal and informal writing. We will work on developing community through both spoken and written communication. This work is required.

Course Website: 

This course will take place in person, but we also have online components.

1–Email: Check your City Tech email every day. I will only use City Tech email. I do not receive or send email through any other system. If you do not have a working City Tech email, it is vital to solve this issue immediately.

2–OpenLab: It is extremely important that students become familiar with our OpenLab website. Find out where everything is and how to post–there is an extensive help page if you have questions. OpenLab is where students will find assignments and where homework will be posted. Students can communicate with me and with each other via OpenLab. Once students have signed up for OpenLab and joined my class, they will receive a daily digest of any updates and posts. Students are responsible for being up-to-date and knowing what is on our course site. Please contact me if you are having trouble!

 

Required Texts:

  • All readings, except for our novel, are available in the Readings menu tab.

       •   Required Novel: American Spy by Lauren Wilkinson, Random House, 2019. ISBN: 9780812988284. List price: $17.00. Amazon new: $9.98. Used from $1.36

Cover of American Spy

What! No grammar textbook? While students are not required to purchase a grammar book for this course, we will discuss grammar frequently. In order to help us improve and understand college-level grammar, we will use a free, online grammar guide called Purdue OWL, published by Purdue University. http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/

 Other Materials: 

You must devise a system to record, store, and organize the course materials. It is very important that you save all of your work for this class. Devise a filing system that allows you to maintain prior drafts and final copies of all major assignments, as well as your research notes, outlines, and written evaluations. In addition to keeping a copy of your work on the hard drive of your computer, save all drafts of assignments on a stable format such as a flash drive or on a remote hard drive/server such as iCloud, Dropbox, or Google Docs. Never throw away or delete drafts or notes until after you have received your final grade. Computer/Printer malfunctions are not viable excuses for late or lost work.

 Assignments and Grading: 

Completing all the required elements in good order and form constitutes the average, or a C. To raise your grade above this average, you will need to invest your time, talents, and energies to add insightful commentary, sound argumentative reasoning, and show initiative in your approach to scholarship. It should be understood that revision and refinement are necessary, though not the sole, qualifications for success. Each major assignment will be returned to you with specific comments and suggestions on how to improve your work. I recommend that you make an appointment to see me if you receive a grade of C- or lower.

There will be times when student expectations and my evaluation do not match. I am always willing to explain my comments on your assignments, and to discuss ways in which student work might benefit from additional effort. Lower grades most often result from misunderstanding the assignment goals, and from insufficiently realized or poor executions of these goals. I do not grade beliefs or values. If you are unhappy with a grade, or unsure as to why you received such a response to your work, please make an appointment to see me.

All Three Essays must be typed, use standard college-level grammar, spelling, and punctuation, and use Modern Language Association citation, formatting, and style. Computer spell and grammar checkers help to spot some errors (but not all). In general, use carefully divided and constructed paragraphs and full sentences. The content should logically progress from one idea to the next in such a way that the entire essay has a clear beginning, middle, and end.

  1. Intellectual Home Essay                                       20%      (Argument, Comparison, Reflection) (100 points)
  2. Poetry Explication Essay                                      20%      (Analysis, Close Reading) (100 points)
  3. Literary Research Essay                                        20%      (Literary Research, Analysis, Synthesis) (100 points)
  • Quizzes (3)                                                                    15%      (75 points total; 25 points each)
  • Homework and 4 Coffeehouse posts           13%      (65 points)
  • Participation                                                                12%.    (60 points total; Midterm  = 30; Final = 30)

100% (500 points)

 

IMPORTANT NOTES:

1–Attendance and participation. It is expected that students arrive on time for each class for the entire semester. Absences and tardy arrival will result in a lower participation grade. If a student is not present, he or she cannot participate, and therefore, no points are awarded for that day.

2–Drafts and Typing: The three major essays will require organization, honesty, and clarity. In order to practice the process of writing, the essays will require drafts. If you have word processing questions, please ask me. City Tech students have free access to Microsoft Word. In addition, you can use Google Docs for free (https://docs.google.com/) or Open Office for free (www.openoffice.org/). UPDATE: If students have difficulty with using these formats because of internet connection issues, I will accept work that is typed in the body of an email. Please contact me if you have questions or problems with submitting work.

3–Late Papers and homework: 10 points will be deducted for each day that an assignment is late. After ten days, the assignment will be recorded as a “0.” If you have difficulties with due dates because of illness or other situations, please contact me so that we can work things out.

4–Revision Policy: students may revise the first two major essays. Such revisions must be submitted, at the latest, two weeks before the end of the semester (December 7). The overall grade for the essay will be the average of the original essay grade and the revised essay grade.

 

University Policies:

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. 

Academic Integrity:

Students and all others who work with information, ideas, texts, images, music, inventions, and other intellectual property 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 The City University of New York 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.[9] 

Support Resources:

College Writing Center:

Online writing tutoring is available through the Writing Center at City Tech! I encourage you to utilize their services. Keep in mind you’ll need to make an appointment ahead of time. It’s unlikely they’ll be able to squeeze you in at the last minute, especially during busy times, so plan ahead!

Advisors:

The transition to college is challenging for everyone. It is helpful to periodically reflect on how you are doing in your classes, how your anticipated area of study (major) is progressing, and how to plan next steps. Once advisement begins, you will be assigned a faculty advisor. During this period, if you have not been emailed and/or you do not see your advisor/appointment on CUNYFirst, go to your major’s homepage; there, you will find advisement details that will include contact information, as well as dates and times.

 

English 1101 Learning Outcomes:

 

Departmental Learning Outcomes:

It is expected that at a minimum, students in ENG 1101 will:

Read and listen critically and analytically in a variety of genres and rhetorical situations: Identify and evaluate exigencies, purposes, claims, supporting evidence, and underlying assumptions in a variety of texts, genres, and media.

Adapt to and compose in a variety of genres: Adapt writing conventions in ways that are suitable to different exigencies and purposes in a variety of contexts, including academic, workplace, and civic audiences. When appropriate, repurpose prior work to new genres, audiences, and media by adjusting delivery, design, tone, organization, and language.

Use research as a process of inquiry and engagement with multiple perspectives: Learn to focus on a topic and develop research questions that lead to propositions and claims that can be supported with well-reasoned arguments. Persuasively communicate and repurpose research projects across a variety of contexts, purposes, audiences, and media. Demonstrate research skills through attribution and citation gathering, evaluating, and synthesizing both primary and secondary sources. Learn how to use appropriate citation styles depending on disciplinary and situational requirements (MLA, APA, Chicago, etc.).

Use reflection and other metacognitive processes to revise prior assumptions about reading and writing and transfer acquired knowledge into new writing situations. Students write reflections of their own reading and writing process from the beginning and throughout the semester with the intention to transfer their acquired knowledge about genre and composing practices into new writing situations.

Demonstrate the social and ethical responsibilities and consequences of writing: Recognize that first-year writing includes academic, workplace, and civic contexts, all of which require careful deliberation concerning the ethical and social ramifications concerning fairness, inclusivity, and respect for diversity. Write and revise for academic and broader, public audiences accordingly.

Compose in 21st– Century Environments: Learn to choose among the most current and effective delivery methods for different composing situations. Students learn to compose in new media environments, including alphabetic texts, still and moving images, sonic, and mixed media compositions. Use digital media platforms appropriate to audience and purpose.

 

CUNY Pathways Learning Outcomes:

A course in this area must meet all of the following learning outcomes. A student will:

 

  • Read and listen critically and analytically, including identifying an argument’s major assumptions and assertions and evaluating its supporting evidence.
  • Write clearly and coherently in varied, academic formats (such as formal essays, research papers, and reports) using standard English and appropriate technology to critique and improve one’s own and others’ texts.
  • Demonstrate research skills using appropriate technology, including gathering, evaluating, and synthesizing primary and secondary sources.
  • Support a thesis with well-reasoned arguments, and communicate persuasively across a variety of contexts, purposes, audiences, and media.
  • Formulate original ideas and relate them to the ideas of others by employing the conventions of ethical attribution and citation.