Advanced Expository Writing
ENGL 249S-02 * Fall 2003
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Advanced Expository Writing |
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Because this is a complex course, made up of many elements, including humans, machines, and interactions between the two, this general information is provided to help acquaint you with differences between traditional and computer classrooms, as well as the class at hand. Please e-mail me with questions before the end of the add/drop period. After that, I will work under the assumption that you have read, understand, and agree to these policies and regulations.
English 249s is a writing course and a computer programming course. We will work on different kinds of writing this semester, ranging from short response papers, to a more traditional expository paper. You will also learn the computer programming language XHTML and will design your own web site.
In order to take English 249s, you must have completed English 105 and 109 (or their equivalents). Prior knowledge of the Internet and its workings, while helpful, is not required. Nor do you need to have prior experience with (X)HTML; in fact, the less experience you have the more you will get out of class. In other words, this course originates in the English department, not in the Computer Science department. Those of you with extensive HTML experience might not be as challenged by the programming assignments as you would like.
Our topics for discussion and writing will be contemporary issues of technology, including the social and cultural impact of the Internet, and how these issues collide with and affect our writing. Discussions will take up a great deal of class time. For a good part of the semester, we will also spend one day a week on web-page development.
Although I, as your instructor, am in charge of the classroom, the class itself is structured as a seminar. This implies a lot of give-and-take between us. You will very likely have more experience in some areas than I do, and I will have more experience than you in others. We should consider this a good thing. We will learn together; I will not feed you information that you will then regurgitate for tests. There will be no quizzes in this class, and there is no final exam.
This further means that we must all be adequately prepared for each class session. This is not a lecture course; it is a discussion course and a workshop course. The class depends on your participation and preparation as much as it does mine. Class will suffer if either you or I fail in this regard.
In such an atmosphere, you will be treated as adults. If you need to go to the bathroom, you are free to do so, but please don't be overly disruptive. You do not need to raise your hand to speak, but please be careful not to interrupt others. If your neighbor needs help, please help him. Recognize there may well be people of extremely different backgrounds and experiences in our class, and please be respectful.
I will treat you will politeness, respect and civility, and I expect you will do the same to me and to your classmates. Behavior related to such qualities includes taking off your coat (and hat) when arriving at your seat, and refraining from putting your head on the desk (which is not very conducive to your participation). Furthermore, I expect your full attention and cooperation when we are working with the computers. Together we might make other rules which will foster a more pleasant and professional working environment. Feel free to e-mail me with ideas.
Plagiarism has become a huge problem in the English Department, and across campus. If you do not know the English Department's policy on plagiarism, you can access it here. Plagiarized work, intentional or unintentional, will immediately receive a failing grade and disciplinary action on the university level. Do not buy papers or copy web sites from the Internet. I know where the cheat sites are and a quick check can prove that you haven't written the paper. I can find (and have found) copied web sites in less than two seconds (really). Finally, paper-mill papers are poorly written, so even if I don't catch your deception, my comments on your paper will reflect that lack of quality, which will impact your final grade. Please take your education seriously and don't cheat.
I will mention here that I fail on average one person per semester for plagiarism. Don't let this person be you.
One important clarification: collaboration is not plagiarism. A person who plagiarizes claims work he or she has not done is his or her own; people who collaborate on a project claim that the work that they have done together is their own and generally all take credit. Collaboration is encouraged in this course.
As this is a computer course as well as a writing course, you necessarily need to have access to a computer, on which all of your writing and coding must be done. If you own one, great; if you don't, you need to determine what computer you'll be using, and where you'll use it, before the end of add/drop period. Many of the dorms have their own computer labs, but be warned, they may not always be well-maintained, they may be running old(er) programs, and their virus protection may not be updated regularly. Our classroom is only open during class time; however, there are a number of public labs on campus.
Working in a computer-assisted classroom can, at times, prove frustrating. A room full of 20 students and 20+ machines can feel like a room full of 40+ people. I can only help one person at a time. Feel free to help your neighbors if you know what you're doing. If you don't, please be patient. Again, we all need to exercise patience in the lab.
But please remember that these computers are not yours. They are used by at least three classes each semester. The control panels and other settings have been arranged to facilitate the greatest efficiency, safety, and ease of use for all involved. You are hereby commanded NOT to adjust the settings for your own personal convenience. If something is particularly bothersome to you, you can switch seats, or you can talk to me about it after class. Changing settings can induce software conflicts, encourage virus infection, and can lead to loss of work. Please don't fiddle.
And just so you know, I am a native Macintosh user. Although I have used PCs in class for several years, they are not as second-nature to me as they probably are to you. I may call on your assistance at times. Please help willingly and cheerfully. It will make all of our lives run more smoothly. Thank you.
We have 75 minutes per class to cover a lot of material each day. Class time is for class work, and not for checking e-mail, or for surfing the web for extracurricular reasons. Non-academic and unprofessional Internet use are causes for expulsion and failure. On a related note, please turn off cell phones and all other electronic devices during class. If your phone rings, you should run out of class before I can berate you (and you'll be the victim of incessant teasing for the rest of the class period).
For the second half of the semester, Thursdays will be dedicated to learning how to hand-code XHTML and building your web page(s). I will discuss in class the reasons why it is important to learn how to hand-code as opposed to learning to design web pages exclusively from an HTML-editor. All you really need to know here is that you are required to hand-code for this class. The use of editors is considered cheating. Don't do it (see Plagiarism above).
I will be available in CLAS 201, or in my office, CLAS 206, across the hall, on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 11:30 am - 12:30 pm, and 1:45 pm - 2:30 pm. This time surrounds our class time. I am and will be happy to make an appointment with anyone who is not available during these times (but please recognize that I'm not on campus every day). Small details and quick questions can be addressed to me either before or after class, or via e-mail.
Office hours begin September 2, 2003. If I have to change or cancel my office hours, I will send a class e-mail announcement.