SYLLABUS
UWRT 1103
Your course grade will be calculated according to the combination of percentages from your portfolio, major writing assignments, small-stakes writing assignments, and daily writing/class participation. Final grades will be determined using a ten point scale and derived from the following percentages:
aka Writer's Website
Assignments and Grading Policies
GRADING POLICIES
CLASS PARTICIPATION
I believe that a class should have a comfortable but focused atmosphere; however, this cannot be achieved unless everyone in class is committed to certain standards of behavior and engagement. Students must show RESPECT at all times. Every classroom participant must demonstrate respect and understanding toward me, other classmates, new ideas, and the materials that we are reading. (Just because you don’t agree with something does not mean that it isn’t valid or inherently valuable). Class discussion is not intended to make you believe in something specific, but rather to make you question, think, and ultimately know. Coming to class is important, but it is not enough.
The participation grade will be based not only on your daily presence, but also your level of focus and preparation. Preparation includes, of course, reading and your ability to engagingly respond to that reading both in the classroom and in online discussions. Rigor is the differentiating factor in curriculum, instruction, and assessment between a composition course in college and your previous classes. Determination and diligence are expected, whereas laziness and apathy are not tolerated.
To be particpating fully in class, you should:
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be actively engaged during class time and class activities
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respond to all class discussions at least once daily
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use the daybook as a way to organize your thinking and your writing
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offer insight into large and small group discussions
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commit to peer response workshops and offer critical feedback to peers
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arrive to class on time and stay the duration of the class
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only use technology (laptops, tablets, smartphones) when appropriate
The purpose of a portfolio is to allow you to gain some critical distance from your own work and reflect on your growth as a writer. Although the portfolio may serve to showcase your best writing in this class, its greater function is to provide you with a forum to defend the purposeful choices that you make as a writer and consequently, your development as a writer.
Your portfolio will be evaluated according to the engagement it demonstrates with all aspects of the class—daily writing, your blog posts, process work, reflection, connections, analysis, etc.—not just the polished drafts.
In this assignment, you will be exploring an aspect or an event of your own life and describing it for an audience of your peers. Your topic will be somewhat broad in that you will be recalling and describing a time when you came in conflict with a personal literacy or a cultural myth. You will describe the event in detail and then relate it to the greater cultural context.
This piece will be personal, but it will focus on a personal narrative style with attention to description and playing with language.
aka Cultural Literacy
E-PORTFOLIO
With a typical research paper, we tend to come up with a thesis first and then hunt down all facts and people who support that thesis. However, inquiry-based research is predicated on the idea that somewhere “out there” is something to discover that we don’t already know. I want you to think about yourself as a discoverer, a learner, and a writer after you leave this classroom; writing shouldn’t be some stagnant piece that never contributes anything new. Therefore, use this research project as an opportunity to not just practice researching, planning, and writing a research paper, but learning how writing is a way of thinking through something.
Your inquiry project will be focused on a chosen cultural narrative, practice, or mythology. You will be researching, presenting, and creating a digital inquiry research essay for this project.
aka Social and Cultural Narratives
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Homework/Classwork 10%
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Daybook/Participation 10%
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Inquiry Project 20%
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Personal Narrative 10%
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Portfolio Website 50%
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Blog 15%
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Reflection 15%
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Design 10%
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Content Choices 10%
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How is everything graded?
50% Portfolio | 30% Writing Projects | 20% Participation
The majority of your grade for this class will come from your portfolio, which will have all of your finished pieces as well as extensive reflection and work from over the course of the semester. We will begin these websites at the beginning of the semester and will use them weekly.
Aside from the portfolio, you will also be given smaller assignments (forums, reflections, responses, blog posts, etc.) that build into the major assignments. These smaller assignments will not have the benefit of a required drafting process; therefore, you must be assiduous in your completion of these “smaller” assignments. You will be graded on these small-stakes or homework assignments on a four-tiered quality scale (Awesome, Darn good, Meh, and Not so Much).
Awesome! (100): You have really expressed yourself in a way that shows deep engagement with the topic, a clear understanding of what you were trying to accomplish, taken some risks perhaps with your writing by trying out new forms, and/or have made some real discoveries while writing the piece. This is top-notch thinking and writing.
Darn Good (90): You have produced writing that shows thoughtfulness, care, and attention to the assignment, but is perhaps less engaging than what an Awesome piece may be.
Meh (80): You clearly understand the assignment but you could have done so more thoughtfully--with more attention, intention, or rigor.
Not So Much (70): You need to come talk to me. Either you didn't understand the assignment, or you didn't try very hard. Either way, we need to chat. Make an appointment to do so.
***If you fail to turn in the assignment or completely miss the mark, then you will receive no credit for the assignment.
NARRATIVE
INQUIRY
The Drafting Process:
As you work through the process of writing, you will be turning in drafts of your various assignments. Although you will earn points of credit for each assignment, keep in mind that writing is a process and you will gain points as you take part in that evaluation process. Each draft that you turn in will be given two grades: a completion grade and an evaluation grade. The completion grade will be “all-or-nothing” for every draft: if you turn it in according to guidelines, you receive full credit; if you fall short of guidelines, you receive no credit. The evaluation grade will be given in my comments on your revised draft for each assignment as well as be recorded on Moodle.
Ongoing Reading:
You will also be involved in a process of reading as you work through your writing process. You are responsible for bringing any required reading with you to class every day. Please keep in mind that we are reading to understand what the writer is doing with his text; therefore, it is imperative that you take notes as you read!!! If we are using ancillary texts, then you are responsible for printing, reading, annotating, and bringing the material to class with you.
After each reading you will be required to respond to the material through homework assignments, discussion forums, your daily writing notebook, or reading evaluations/reading quizzes. Your grades for these reading assignments will be reflected in your small stakes/homework grade or in your daily participation grade if given in class.