Course Elements:
- Essays: You will write three essays that will be derived from class readings and, when appropriate, independent research. Since revision is essential to writing, there will be at least two drafts of each essay (additional revisions are ALWAYS welcomed and encouraged). While each draft is required on the due date, only your final draft will receive a letter grade.
NOTE: All essays should be formatted ccording to the Modern Language Association’s (MLA) style guidelines. Please purchase an MLA handbook or visit Bentley’s library website (http://libguides.bentley.edu/citingsources) to familiarize yourself with the protocols.
NOTE: Any draft not handed in by the start of class on the due date will be penalized by one letter grade for EACH day it is late. YOUR IDEAS MATTER and they deserve to be given time to be considered and appreciated.
NOTE: All drafts should be kept in a special Essay Folder, in which early drafts will be kept on the left and the final draft will be presented on the right. Once both drafts have been reviewed and (where appropriate) graded, they may be put in your Master Binder.
- Refection Journal: You will be expected to reflect on each reading independently in a journal that you provide. These journal entries will include identification (where possible) of the moves used in each reading as well as thoughtful questions about the text (as you may have composed using Cornell Notes and Costa’s levels of inquiry in other classes) and possible responses. They are intended to help you assess and clarify your own thinking so that you can understand and engage the material more effectively.
Though these entries will not be graded as such (i.e., they will not be scored according to strength of thesis, appropriateness of grammar, etc.), it may be productive to think of these entries as “mini-essays” in which you need an arguable claim, topic sentences and paragraphs, and an explanation and support of the rationale of your claim.
As this is a discussion/participation-driven class, your journals MUST be brought to EVERY class so that they can be shared and discussed. Again, YOUR IDEAS MATTER and we expect and look forward to hearing and discussing them.
- Participation: YOUR IDEAS MATTER so we ALL need to hear them. You will be encouraged and expected to participate in ALL discussions, even if it is about a topic about which you know (or frankly care) little. It is hoped that, through participation, we will all come to explore and appreciate other perspectives and expand our own as well.
NOTE: Participation may include comments, questions, or any form of engagement. Therefore, even if the topic is somewhat foreign to you, you can participate fully in and enhance the conversation even by expressing concern or inquiring about the topic.
- Workshops: After the first draft of each essay has been composed, we will engage in discussions aimed at clarifying and strengthening our ideas and our understandings of them. These workshops, and your active participation in them, are crucial to improving not only your own writing but also that of your peers. Please do not miss workshop days as such absences will not only affect your grade (and, more importantly, your understanding and potential enjoyment of the class) but also those of your peers.
- Quizzes: As this class will not only introduce new ideas and issues but also new vocabulary, occasional quizzes may be included in order to ensure that everyone is following along and understanding the texts and the themes with which we are dealing.
- Oral Presentation: At the end of the semester, all students will present their final essays. In addition to providing opportunities to practice the art of public speaking, these presentations will also allow you to combine and practice the moves discussed in class. It will also give you another opportunity to investigate a topic that matters to you and to others as well and, by doing so, enhance the conversation of culture. YOUR IDEAS MATTER and this presentation will be yet another opportunity to prove it!
- Conferences: In addition to considering your papers with your peers, each of you will have the opportunity to discuss drafts with the instructor. During these discussions, we will both come up with questions and supportive comments intended to further our shared understanding of the topic and ways in which we can deal with it effectively.
Please come to these conferences with your own initial questions so they can be most effective in terms of your learning and understanding, but also be prepared for and encouraged by the addition of other questions that will surely arise in the midst of our shared consideration and conversation.
- Attendance: As this class is discussion-based, failure to appear will result in failure to participate, which will hurt not the entire class. Therefore, ALL expected absences MUST be cleared with the instructor beforehand. As for unexpected absences, it is requested that you contact both the instructor and at least one peer (an “email buddy”) so that they can be sure to collect materials for you. You are college students now and are expected to be responsible for yourselves. Please do not expect the instructor or anyone else to do your work for you.
NOTE: More than three (3) absences—excused or unexcused—will result in an automatic failure for the course; every two tardies will equate to one absence.
Grading: The final grade will be broken down as follows:
- Essay #1 (open topic): 10%
- Essay #2 (summary): 20%
- Essay #3 (analysis): 20%
- Essay #4 (problem/solution): 10%
- Essay #5 (synthesis): 20%
- Reflection Journal: 10%
- Oral Presentation: 5%
- Other writings/Participation: 5%
NOTE: Extra credit IS available for additional effort (e.g., analyzing/presenting outside readings, etc.)
