Santa Ana College 103-53824 Fall 2018

 

Instructor: Matthew Pelle                             Class Day/Time/Room: TTh 12:45-2:50 D 211

Email: Pelle_Matthew@sac.edu                                                 

                                                                                   

Santa Ana College Mission Statement

 

The mission of Santa Ana College is to be a leader and partner in meeting the intellectual, cultural, technological and workforce development needs of our diverse community. Santa Ana College provides access and equity in a dynamic learning environment that prepares students for transfer, careers and lifelong intellectual pursuits in a global community.

 

Santa Ana College English Department’s Mission Statement

 

The Santa Ana College English Department provides numerous opportunities for our students to develop and improve the reading, critical thinking, and writing skills required to succeed at their chosen careers, to meet the rigors of the writing demands at four-year transfer institutions, and to foster lifelong learning and an appreciation of literature.

 

COURSE OBJECTIVES

At the conclusion of this course, the student should be able to:

 

• Critically read, analyze, compare, and evaluate complex texts
• Demonstrate understanding of formal and informal fallacies in language and thought
• Identify a text's premises and assumptions in various social, historical, cultural, psychological, or aesthetic contexts
• Analyze and employ logical and structural methods such as inductive and deductive reasoning, cause and effect, and logos, ethos, and pathos.
• Compose thesis-driven arguments to suit a variety of rhetorical situations, including interpretation, evaluation, and analysis, and support them with a variety of appropriate textual evidence and examples
• Find, analyze, interpret, and evaluate primary and secondary sources, incorporating them into written essays using appropriate documentation format without plagiarism
• Use style, diction, and tone appropriate to the academic community and the purpose of the specific writing task; proofread and edit essays for presentation so they exhibit no disruptive errors in English grammar, usage, or punctuation

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

TEXTBOOK REQUIREMENTS:

• Frankenstein by Mary Wollstonecraft Shelly
• Brave New World by Aldous Huxley
• Ghost in the Shell by Junichi Fujisaku
• Literary Theory: A Very Short Introduction by Jonathan Culler

 

GRADING AND POINT BREAKDOWN

• Three Essays           150 points each (450 total)
• Research paper                        150 points
• Reading Questions                         100 points
• Annotated Bibliography                         50 points
• Research presentation                         50 points
• Classwork and reading quizzes                         100 points
• Drafting                                                                                                         100 points

 

Grade Totals

 

This course has 1000 total points.  The college uses a full letter (as opposed to a +/-) grading policy. Therefore, based on the points you earn, your grade in the course will be one of the following:

           

A – 900 – 1000 pts.     B – 800 – 899 pts.       C – 700 – 799 pts.       D – 600 – 699 pts.                  F – 599 pts or less.

 

Note: each student must earn at least 700 points (a C) in order to receive a passing grade in the class.  All essays must be submitted and graded to have the opportunity to pass, and you cannot get a higher grade than the highest grade you received on a formal essay.         

 

COURSE POLICIES

 

Essays

 

There will be three directed essays this semester.  You can expect to write a draft for each of them, which will receive drafting credit.  Drafts will be due one week after they are assigned.  Each final essay must be at least 4 pages long; drafts must instead by at least 3 pages long.  Each essay will ask you to analyze one of the books.

 

Research Paper

 

We will start working on a longer research paper at about the same time as we start working on the second book and essay.  The research paper must be relevant to the books, articles, and/or material covered in class, but the topic will be otherwise flexible.  There will be an annotated bibliography associated with the research paper, which will be due before the first draft.  You will also be presenting your research on the very last day of class, instead of a final exam.

 

 

Reading Quizzes

 

I will quiz you occasionally on the books we are reading for class.  These quizzes will focus primarily on plot, and will be designed to test whether or not you’ve been keeping up with the reading.  They will be pop quizzes, so you won’t know for certain when they will be, but they will always be on the novels, not on anything else we’ve read.  Quizzes will comprise approximately half of the classwork and quizzes portion of the grade, though I reserve the right to increase them in value if I feel reading is not being done.

 

Revisions

 

Revision is a huge part of the writing process, and so this class is designed to encourage it.  In addition to turning in rough drafts and peer reviews with your final drafts, you will have the chance to resubmit a revision of one of the first three essays for a higher grade.  You must discuss your choice of essay with me beforehand.  The revision grade will replace the original if it is higher.  You will never receive a lower grade than the original, so you have nothing to lose. 

 

Classwork and Homework

 

Over the course of the semester, you will have worksheets and other assignments that you will complete both in class and as homework. These will often, though not always, involve either responding to reading or practicing writing skills. Classwork cannot be made up if you miss class, while homework assignments will be available online in addition to in class.

 

Reading Questions

 

Each novel will have a worksheet with a number of plot and discussion questions, due the same day the reading for each book should be complete. There are 100 points associated with this part of the grade, but there will be more than 100 points across the 3 worksheets, meaning you’ll have opportunities to make up missing points.

 

Late Work

 

All assignments must be turned in on time, at the beginning of the class period they are due.  I do understand that sometimes life all piles up at once, and sometimes things conspire against you.  For this reason, I will allow you to turn in ONE essay late, at the beginning of the next class period, no questions asked.  I recommend that you only use this allowance if you absolutely must.  Any other late papers will lose ten points for each day (not class period, but day) they are late.

 

NOTE- I will never FAIL a paper simply for being late.  If you turn in a passing paper, it will pass, but will have its possible grade capped at a C.  You should turn in EVERYTHING, no matter how late.  The easiest way to fail this class is to simply not turn things in.

 

 

 

Attendance and Absence Policy

 

Attendance in classes and labs is mandatory and expected. Policy establishes 2 class sessions of absence, irregular attendance, or a pattern of absences as sufficient cause for dropping a student from class, unless prior arrangements have been made with the instructor. You shall be considered absent if you miss more than half the class.  There is no differentiation between excused and unexcused absences. Students who are absent from class after the final drop date will miss necessary instruction and may have their final course grade lowered. Please notify me as soon as possible via e-mail if you have to miss class for several days in a row, as I’ll know not to drop you and we can work together to make sure you don’t fall behind. Any assignments or announcements you miss are your own responsibility.

 

Participation

 

To get the most out of this semester, you have to be actively engaged in all aspects of class.  While this does not mean you have to speak up at every opportunity, you must be paying attention and mentally involved in what is going on.  This is definitely the type of class where the more you put into it, the more you get out of it.  By participating in class wide discussion, small group discussion, and lecture, you will gain much more than simply being a passive presence in the classroom.  I encourage as much conversation and as many questions as the class can generate.

 

I expect all discussions to be conducted in a respectful manner.  You are allowed and actively encouraged to disagree with one another, and challenge each other’s ideas, for the betterment of your own and the rest of the class’s.  You ARE NOT allowed to engage in name-calling, verbal attacks, or any other form of abuse.  Any such behavior WILL NOT be tolerated, and offenders will be asked to leave the classroom for the day, and may face further consequences based on the severity of the attack. 

 

Classroom Etiquette

 

Please turn all cell phones to silent or vibrate, and refrain from using them during class time.  I have no interest in policing cell phone use in this class, but if it is noticeable enough to distract me, I will assume it is noticeable enough to distract your classmates.  Laptops may be used for note taking and any other task that will enhance your classroom experience.  If you are caught using it for anything else, you will lose this privilege for the remainder of the semester. 

 

You do NOT need my permission to leave this classroom.  If you need to step out for any reason, you may do so; I simply ask that you do so quietly.  If you vanish for the day, I will mark you absent.  You may eat and drink in class as long as it is quite and not distracting.  If the room starts to become too messy, this privilege will go away.  If the class is in a computer room, however, you are limited to water in bottles you can fully seal. 

 

 

 

Academic Honesty Policy (http://www.sac.edu/StudentServices/AdmissionsRecords/Pages/Academic-Honesty-Policy-.aspx).

 

Students of the Rancho Santiago Community College District are expected to be honest and forthright in their academic endeavors; to falsify the results of one’s research, to steal works or ideas of another person, or to cheat on an examination, corrupts the essential process by which knowledge is advanced. Academic dishonesty is seen as an intentional act of fraud, in which a student seeks to claim credit for the work or efforts of another without authorization, or uses unauthorized material or fabricated information in any academic exercise. The Rancho Santiago Community College District, as an institution, also considers academic dishonesty to include forgery of academic documents, intentionally impeding or damaging the academic work of others, assisting other students in acts of dishonesty or coercing students into acts of dishonesty. Plagiarism is defined as the use of intellectual material produced by another person without acknowledging its source. Plagiarism is a violation of the Santa Ana College Student Code of Conduct and students who knowingly steal the words or ideas of another will be be subject to a failing grade and possibly more severe action. For more information, please visit: http://www.sac.edu/StudentServices/Library/Pages/Plagiarism.aspx

 

Special Needs

 

Please let your instructor know during the first week of class if you require special accommodations. A student with a disability, who would like to request an academic accommodation, is responsible for identifying herself/himself to the instructor and to the Disabled Student Programs and Services (DSPS). To facilitate these arrangements, contact the DSPS Office located in the Village, VL-204, or phone (714) 564-6264, TTY (714) 564-6284 for a referral to the appropriate DSPS department. More information about Disabled Students Programs and Services can be found at: http://www.sac.edu/StudentServices/DSPS/Pages/default.aspx

 

Final Word

Please feel free to email me as frequently as you need.  I check my email often, and respond quickly.  If you need any extra assistance outside of class-time, please feel free to approach me and arrange a meeting.  I am available after class.