Jeremy+Braun

Advanced Composition (and Rhetoric) 12 Instructor: Jeremy Braun Email: braunjb@hotmail.com Phone: 414.702.2250

Dear Reader, As you read through this syllabus, take the time to jot down any questions you might have, as this will be the first text we will discuss in this course. Consider, for example, how this text is functioning. What is it intended to do? Who is its audience? How does it attempt to negotiate with that audience? Or not? What sort of assumptions does it make about you as a reader? And what assumptions can you make about the writer of it? Other thoughts, questions, concerns? Advanced Composition (and Rhetoric 12) is designed to help students learn to communicate effectively in a variety of situations. To that end, the course develops students’ reading, writing, speaking, and listening skills through critical literacy. What critical literacy is, therefore, will be the focus of our first few class periods. An academic English essay (whatever that is exactly), for example, requires different writing conventions than does a letter to the editor, a poem, or a business report. With these thoughts in mind, we will attempt to use what Quintilian calls //facilitas//, the ability to express ideas and beliefs effectively in a variety of situations. __ Expectations: We will discuss these throughout the first week, but my major ones are listed below. As you read through, consider your expectations for me, the course, your classmates and yourself. __ **Course Policies** **__** Grading criteria for each unit assignment will be listed on each assignment sheet. Final Grades will be awarded on the following percentage scale as determined by the total number of points you earn: A: 100-93………Excellent implementation of the criteria B: 92-85………..Good implementation of the criteria C: 84-77………..Average implementation of the criteria D: 76-70………..Below average implementation of the criteria F: 69 & Below.....Unsatisfactory implementation of the criteria *Nicely laid out. Probably have to change the percentages when you get in the school system. Most are going to something more universal. The success of this course depends on your willingness to complete assigned readings and writings and contribute to class conversations. The instructor cannot guarantee the quality or outcome of these discussions. Your responsibility—both to yourself and to the other members of the class—is to participate as you are able in all class activities. Be prepared to contribute meaningfully (whatever this might mean) to the issues under discussion each day. Active participation includes demonstrating familiarity with daily readings, evaluating ideas in the readings, stating your opinions, and explaining how you have arrived at these opinions. It also includes listening to the opinions of others, and demonstrating respect for each participant in class. One more thing: you can’t participate if you aren’t here, so absences will hurt your participation grade (I realize that you'll probably talk about this during the first week, but I think that some clarity is necessary in here to explain exactly how participation will be graded. If you're using a rubric, attach it. If not, explain the manner in which this will be evaluated and accounted for ). That's a good point, and one I will have to think over. I haven't laid out exactly how much it will count alongside other assignments. How much do you make it worth?i = = = Publication of Papers = Any writing you turn in for this class is considered a public document, meaning that both the teacher and students may read your papers. As a learning activity, Short Writings (either in class or those that may be short assignments) and drafts may be copied and studied anonymously by the entire class.
 * Course Description **
 * Required Textbook **
 * Writer’s Inc.: A Student Handbook for Writing and Learning. New York: Write Source, 2001
 * Supplemental reading materials and texts throughout the course
 * [|www.wisc/edu/writing] (a guide for citation**)**
 * Grades **
 * Class Participation **

Daily attendance is //required//. Many of the in-class activities, including discussion, group activities, free writings (FWs) peer review, and others are designed to enhance your thinking about the upcoming essay, which may lead to improvement on your final paper. *Any issue for tardiness? May also want to say something about how you plan to deal with extended absences. Please make every effort to be on time for class. Excessive tardiness (should I put a specifc number? if i do, I worry that students will get exactly to that) will not be tolerated, and will be handled on a case by case basis. If you need to be absent for an extended period, please make the appropriate arrangements with me before hand. I am more than happy to work with you, but I need to be told up front.
 * Attendance **

Peer review improves critical thinking, reading, and writing abilities, and provides feedback on an essay before it is graded. For each peer review session, you should do two things: print the peer review sheets on our class wiki (Nice!) and print and fill out one author sheet, and bring both documents to class on peer review day, along with your essay. This way, you and your peers can respond to one another in terms of your intentions (author sheet) and in terms of the grading criteria (as stated on assignment sheet and turned into questions on peer review sheet). More on this later.
 * Peer Review **

You will be required to conference with me for several of your papers during this course. These will be scheduled during class. More on these later. I can also be reached via email or cell phone for particular questions
 * Conferences **

Please don’t be late with handing in your homework. All assignments are due at the beginning of class unless otherwise specified; anything turned in later is late. Late work will not be reviewed or commented on by your peers or by me. Late unit papers will have their grades lowered by one grade, from A to B, and this penalty sticks to each paper, even if you revise it later in the course (what motivation, then, would they have for revising? ).(my thought here was that their initial grade could get better, but maybe I should change this). And papers that are over one week late will receive an F. This does not mean, however, that you do not have to do them; instead, it means that if a paper is one week late the highest grade it can receive is an F. In case of emergency, please contact me to make other arrangements; I can be flexible, but I need to know ahead of time. Bottom line: I’m happy to work with you to ensure your success in getting the work in on time, but I cannot, and will not, do all the work. (Well put)
 * Lateness **

Submitting work that is not your own will not be tolerated (What does that exactly mean? How will they be punished? ). Acts of academic dishonesty include, but are not limited to: handing in someone else’s work; copying someone else’s work; copying sentences, phrases, and ideas, or using source information without proper citation. We will discuss plagiarism in class, but if you have any questions about it at all, ask.
 * Academic Honesty **

On this one I think I was assuming that the school would have a plagiarism policy, and I was planning just to add that in there. Written and oral work in this course should employ inclusive language, which displays that the writer honors the diversity of the human race by not using language that would universalize one element of humanity to the exclusion of others. For example, language can reflect and perpetuate inaccurate and hurtful prejudices toward groups of people, especially racial, ethnic, religious age, and sexual groups. Because it hurts or alienates, biased language disconnects the writer from the reader, and should not be used. Unbiased language is a courtesy to the reader. It does not submit to stereotypes, it treats people as individuals and it labels groups as they wish to be labeled. *Really interesting that you included this, and, once again, I assume that you'll talk about it in class. Perhaps including some words that reflect the idea here will help parents clearly understand what you mean.
 * Inclusive Language **

Here are a few specific thoughts: · Bathroom: Desperate times call for desperate measures. Appropriateness, however, is also key. We will discuss this on the first day of class and develop a policy we can all live with (great idea). · Others: Collaboratively, we will develop other policies as needed during the first week of school or as they arise in the semester.
 * Finally: ** You should feel comfortable to ask any questions and share any ideas you have. At the same time, you should do so with respect for yourselves, and for one another. In other words, just as you should feel comfortable and respected in class, you should also respect the rights of others to have the same type of experience. Disruptive or disrespectful behavior will not be tolerated.

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