January 21, 2009 Archives

LA101-06: Seminar in Thinking and Writing (Spring 2009)

Instructor Name: Dennis G. Jerz

Instructor Contact Information:
jerz@setonhill.edu, 724.830.1909, or St. Joseph 403

Office Hours:
Monday 3:30-4:30pm; Tuesday 3pm; Wednesday 11am; Thursday 3pm.
Also by appointment.

Course Scheduling (Section 06):

MWF, 10:00, Admin 403

Course Description:

Students will develop critical thinking skills in writing, reading, and speaking through the context of multiple points of view about cultural identities.

Division/Program: Liberal Arts Core
Major Prefix: LA
Course Number/Level: 101
Number of Credits: 3

Major Course Objectives:

Students will be able to:

1. develop critical thinking skills in writing, reading and speaking through the context of multiple points of view about cultural identities
2. recognize and employ a process-oriented approach to writing
3. demonstrate proficiency in persuasive communication
4. produce college-level, researched writing
5. evaluate their own progress in written and oral communication

[2] TILT (Texas Information Literacy Tutorial)

Access to TILT can be found via the Reeves Memorial Library web page under the heading "Information Literacy." When logging in users should choose "Full TILT" and register as "First Time Visitors." This registration will allow the users to take the quizzes at the end of each module and have them emailed to Seton Hill University. The user can choose from six topics of interest or concentrate on those selected by his/her professor. In each topic there are three modules which can be chosen. The user should complete the introduction module plus the three numbered modules and take the quizzes at the end of the three numbered modules. Once the quiz is taken is should be emailed to ilquiz@setonhill.edu. The quizzes will count toward the Drafts/Informal Essays grade.

Attendance

Students are expected to attend every class. (See Seton Hill University Catalog.) 

Seton Hill University recognizes that extra-curricular activities of all sorts are important components of a liberal arts education, but your instructors expect you to take an active role in reducing the impact of your absences.

Students who miss class for any reason are still responsible for the material collected, covered, and/or assigned during that period. An excused absence does not automatically include extensions.

I welcome the chance to help you get caught up, but would prefer to speak to you after you have consulted the syllabus and a classmate's notes. (Please resist the impulse to ask me to e-mail you a summary of what you missed.)

If you are absent from class on a day when a major assignment is due, I reserve the right to assess, on top of the unexcused absence, a late penalty of one extra day. (You might as well come to class so you don't fall farther behind, and then turn in the paper the next day.)

Emergency Absences

Those who miss class due to an unplanned emergency should submit an "Absence Form," with proper documentation, as soon as possible.

For each class that you miss, download the word processor version of my "Absence Form" (available at http://jerz.setonhill.edu/teaching/Absence.doc) and submit it to me (either via e-mail or as a printout).

After you initiate this contact, we will start working out whether or what kind of alternate assignments might be appropriate.

Scheduled Absences

Those who miss class due to a scheduled activity must plan to complete all make-up assignments before the missed class. This means that you must submit an acceptable "Absence Form" (see above), at least a week before the missed class. 

If there is insufficient time for us to agree upon an acceptable suggestion for making up missed work, or if an approved make-up assignment is late or unsatisfactory, then I may record the absence as unexcused.

Participation

Students are expected to contribute actively to a positive classroom environment, both in person and online. Students who dislike public speaking may wish to invest more effort in their online writing, and vice-versa.

Late arrivals and early departures, disruptive or inattentive behavior, and lack of preparation will impact your participation grade.

Those who participate above and beyond the call of duty will receive a bonus.

Late Penalties

If the assignment asks you to submit a printout, obviously you need to get the printout into my hands.

Most of your work will be uploaded to Turnitin.com. If you have a problem submitting your work in the proper format, you may stop the late clock by e-mailing your word-processor file as an attachment or by getting a printout into my hands.

Getting Credit for Late Work

If you submit your work before I've finished marking the stack of on-time submissions, I'll probably return your grade along with everyone else's. But if I finish the whole stack before you submit your contribution, I may never even notice when your late paper comes in.
If your assignment is not in its proper online slot when I finish marking the submissions, I will record a zero for the assignment. 

In order to replace that zero with my assessment of your late work, follow this two-step process.

1. Submit the paper in the online slot where it belongs.
2. Send me an e-mail that tells me I should look in the slot for your work. Include a subject line with your last name, the course name, the assignment name, and the word "Late".
   Example: "Smith EL267 Ex 2 Late" (There's no need to make an extra trip to slip a printout under my office door.)

I am willing to make exceptions in the event of extenuating circumstances, such as illness or conflicts caused by your mandatory participation in school activities. In the absence of an approved exception:

• By default, late assignments automatically lose one letter grade per day.
• By default, I will not accept any work that is more than a week late. (You may still have to submit, for zero credit, sequenced assignments such as a paper proposal or draft, before I will accept later assignments in that sequence. I will always be willing to meet with you during my office hours to help you catch up, but I cannot promise immediate turn-around if you submit a late assignment.)

All Late Work

For all late work, contact me to tell me what I should find in the Turnitin.com slot -- otherwise I may never see it, and won't know that I should change the recorded zero. If you are asking that I waive the late penalty, make sure that I get a copy of your completed Absence Form by sending it to me with an e-mail that has a subject line following this pattern: "Smith LA101 Ex 1 Absence Form".

Unless I grant you an extension in advance, all other assignments are penalized one letter grade for each day they are late, regardless of whether classes are in session.

Special Cases

Online participation and reflection papers. These time-sensitive assignments (which are due for every assigned reading) earn no credit if they are late. (You should still complete any items that you missed, in order to get full credit for your class participation portfolio.)

Disability Statement:

If you have a disability that requires instructor consideration, please contact the Director of Disability Services at 724-838-4295. It is recommended that this be accomplished by the second week of class. If you need accommodations for successful participation in class activities prior to your appointment at the Disability Services Office, you should offer information in writing that includes suggestions for assistance in participating in and completing class assignments. It is not necessary to disclose the nature of your disability.

Statement on Placement in this Course

Writing is essential--to communicate, to study, to thrive in SHU's writing-intensive classes, and to create a successful future. Therefore, it is especially important that SHU students receive the writing instruction and assistance they need during the first year. To ensure the best possible course placement, instructors will ask students to self-evaluate their readiness for STW during the drop-add period. At the same time, instructors will monitor student progress for STW-level writing skills. If either the instructor or the student believes that more writing assistance is needed, the student will be placed in Basic Composition, and will complete Basic Composition prior to STW. This placement is subject to review by the Writing Coordinator and/or an ad-hoc committee of writing instructors. Students are not permitted to take Basic Composition and STW concurrently.

Plagiarism

Seton Hill University expects that all its students will practice academic honesty and ethical conduct. The University regards plagiarism, cheating on examinations, falsification of papers, non-sanctioned collaboration, and misuse of library material, computer material, or any other material, published or unpublished, as violations of academic honesty. Violators of the code may expect disciplinary sanctions, which are discussed in the Seton Hill University Catalog. 

Any unreferenced use of the written or spoken material of another, or of previously submitted work of the student's own, constitutes plagiarism. Paraphrasing the thoughts or written work of another without reference is also plagiarism. Helpful information is available at the following web site: Plagiarism: What It Is and How to Recognize and Avoid It (http://www.indiana.edu/~wts/pamphlets/plagiarism.shtml). Any plagiarism on a draft will result in a zero as the final grade on that assignment. Any plagiarism on an informal essay will also result in a zero.