Critical Reading and Composition
Course Info
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• Day/Time: T-R 2:50-4:05
• Room: Flinn Hall 102
• Professor: Dr. Byron Hawk
• Email: byron [dot] hawk [at] gmail [dot] com
• Office: HUO 316
• Office Hours: T-R 4:15-5:45
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Texts
Various articles online and PDFs in Dropbox.
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Description
In ENGL 101H, students will actively and critically read texts in order to analyze (see how a text works), synthesize (see how texts work together) and respond (see how you come to your own understanding). As this is a writing course, students will have the opportunity to do a lot of writing in the form of informal responses, formal responses, rhetorical analyses, first drafts, peer reviews, and final drafts. Students will practice and reflect upon their own writing and engage in revisions of their writing. Through a combination of critical reading and thoughtful writing students will gain insights into the uses of language, the structure of texts, and how reading, writing, and rhetoric shape and are shaped by their contexts. This course will focus on reading and analyzing argumentative texts in order to learn how to produce an argumentative response. From a rhetorical perspective, argument isn't a fight (where the loudest voice wins), or a polemic (where you take one of two pre-established sides and focus only on it), but a response (where you analyze a situation, synthesize multiple positions, and formulate a position in response). In short, this course will help students learn to think critically and clearly express their thoughts in writing.
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Goals
Through the course, students will:
• Analyze a variety of nonfiction, argumentative texts
• Read actively, critically, and carefully
• Work through a writing process, including invention, planning, drafting, revision, and editing
• Develop, organize, and revise effective college-level essays
• Learn to summarize, paraphrase, and document reading material in accordance with MLA guidelines
• Develop a clear, effective writing style, free of major errors and appropriate for informed general and academic audiences
• Develop a rhetorical perspective applicable to your studies in college and your experiences in life -
Attendance
Because this is a writing class that emphasizes the process of the class as a whole, attendance is extremely important. Everything we do builds on previous class periods and the class also relies heavily on in-class discussion and writing. Consequently, attendance will count as a part of your participation grade. In accordance with University policy, anyone who misses 25% of our scheduled class periods (7 of 28) will fail the course, and anyone who misses more than 10% (3 of 28) may receive a grade penalty. If you stop coming to class, it will be your responsibility to drop. Failure to do so will result in an "F."
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Enrollment
Students are responsible for verifying their enrollment in this class. Any schedule adjustments should be made by the deadlines published in the Academic Calendar:
• Wednesday, Aug. 24, 2022. - Last day to change a course schedule or drop a course without a grade of "W" being recorded.
• Wednesday, Nov. 2, 2022. - Last day to drop a course or withdraw without a grade of "WF" being recorded.
After the last day to drop a class, withdrawing from this class requires approval of the dean and is only allowed for nonacademic reasons. Again, if you stop coming to class, it will be your responsibility to drop. Failure to do so will result in an "F." -
Assignments
Grades this semester will be based on:
• Participation - includes attendance, in-class work, and ungraded homework assignments.
• Big 5 Questions - answer set questions in response to an essay, type up and handed in, counts toward participation.
• Summary/Responses - summarize the argument of an essay and respond to it, one page, single-spaced.
• Essay 1 - argument in response to an issue, 4-5 double-spaced pages, at least 4 sources.
• Essay 2 - argument in response to an issue, 4-5 double-spaced pages, at least 4 sources.
• Essay 3 - argument in response to an issue, 5-6 double-spaced pages, at least 6 sources.
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Grades
I will use this basic grading scale: A (90-95), B+ (85-89), B (80-84), C+ (75-79), C (70-74). Keep all assignments until after final grades are in for the semester in the event that there is any discrepancy. The following is a breakdown of percentages:
Participation 10 % Summary Responses 20 % Essay 1 20 % Essay 2 20 % Essay 3 30 % ------- 100 % -
Rewrites
For the Summary Responses and first 2 Essays, you will have one week after I return them to rewrite for a better grade. A rewrite goes beyond a slight edit or addressing a few comments and moves into some conceptual revisiting and development. Obviously, there will be no rewrites for Essay 3.
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Late Papers
It is my policy to accept no late assignments. It is crucial, then, to recognize the importance of attendance in relation to late homework. If you have to be absent on a day something is due, you can send the paper to me over email *before class* for a time stamp, and then bring a print copy to the next class. I will not print out papers.
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Office Hours
I will have office hours on T-R 4:15-5:45 in HUO 316, essentially right after class. If you have another class right after ours, then ask me to schedule a time that is convenient for both of us. I check my e-mail several times daily, so this will be the best way to contact me in a hurry if you have a question or problem, especially about what is due the next day.
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Plagiarism
Plagiarism is the equivalent of intellectual robbery and cannot be tolerated in an academic setting. It comes in two basic forms: taking a completed paper from another source or individual and passing it off as your own; or, using the exact words, opinions, or factual information from another source without giving that source credit. Writers give credit through the use of accepted documentation styles, such as parenthetical citation, footnotes, or end notes (a simple listing of books, articles, and websites is not sufficient). Student writers are often confused as to what should be cited. Some think that only direct quotations need to be credited. While direct quotations do need citations, so do paraphrases and summaries of opinions or factual information formerly unknown to the writers or which the writers did not discover themselves. Exceptions to this include factual information which can be obtained from a variety of sources, the writers' own insights or findings from their own field research, (what has been called common knowledge). What constitutes common knowledge can sometimes be precarious; what is common knowledge for one audience may not be so for another. In such situations, it is helpful to keep the reader in mind and to think of citations as being "reader friendly." In other words, writers provide a citation for any piece of information that they think their readers might want to investigate further. Not only is this attitude considerate of readers, it will almost certainly ensure that writers will not be guilty of plagiarism. For more see: Student Conduct and Academic Integrity
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Accommodation
In keeping with the University of South Carolina's commitment to non-discrimination--based on age, race, color, sex, religion, national origin, and sexual orientation--and to providing program accessibility for qualified students with disabilities, I am happy to provide reasonable accommodation through the Student Disability Resource Center. Students wishing to make such arrangements should contact the Student Disability Services office at 777-6142. For more see: Student Disability Resource Center