ENGL160Summer 2021 - Syllabus PDF

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English 160: Academic Writing I: Writing in Academic and Public Contexts The Matrix and its Cultural Influence and Conversations Summer 2021 Instructor: James Drown Office location: University Hall 1807 Currently Online only E-mail: [email protected]

ENGL 160: CRN: 22155 Time and days class meets: T/Th 8am-9:50 Classroom: We will be using Collaborate, which is available on our BlackBoard site Student Drop-in hours: T/Th 7am-8am or by appointment

Student Learning Outcomes (SLOs) After completing English 160, students will be able to: 1. Demonstrate rhetorical awareness of audience through different genre-based assignments. 2. Read texts in a variety of disciplines and genres, using critical reading strategies. 3. Draw connections at the level of ideas across multiple texts. 4. Defend a position in relation to the range of ideas surrounding a topic. 5. Demonstrate knowledge of writing as a process, including consideration of peer and instructor feedback, from initial draft to final revision. 6. Demonstrate sentence-level correctness.

Course Description In this class we will be examining the ways in which the film The Matrix has created some public “conversations” and been used to focus and popularize other “public conversations.” During the semester you will have four major projects in different genres that look at the film and these conversations. The first will be a series of summary/responses that will not only help us understand how the film has had influence in a range of areas but will also help us develop better reading and critical thinking habits. Next you will write a review that looks at whether or not this 21-year-old film is still relevant for the people of your generation. In the third project, we will be writing proposals for the final research paper. This will prepare us for the final project, where we will take a critical look at one of the areas The Matrix has influenced, formulate a position, and create a populist argumentative essay based on that position. During the semester we will also be doing weekly writing in Journals and Discussion Boards. For example, you will be expected to reflect weekly on your reading and writing skills. You will also be expected to look up an article weekly related to one of the topics we are exploring and write a brief summary to post online. Finally, you will also be required to participate in weekly discussion questions. Each project will help you develop analytical skills and give you a chance to apply them in a particular genre and context. Most of the writing for the class will be shared with the other students in the class through in-class and online discussion, presentation, and peer editing. Finally, throughout the semester we will also apply specific writing processes, organizational strategies, and editing techniques to help us become more effective and efficient writers. Course Methods of Instruction

a. This class will be taught synchronously This means that class will be delivered in a live Collaborate class, accessed through BlackBoard. Assignments will also be available and submitted online. In order to create good class atmosphere and discussion, I request that everyone use cameras and microphones so we can engage in real-time class discussion. b. This course will require access to a laptop and Broad Band internet service. As noted above, a microphone and camera will also be needed. c. Course materials will be made available through BlackBoard. Some course material may include links to publicly available material accessed through the internet and include news sites and YouTube. Students will also need access to Google Docs for in-class work, sharing written materials for peer editing and for reviewing material directly with the professor. d. Links and access to tools required for this class, such as video conferencing and recording tools are available either through the university (Google Docs) or BlackBoard. e. Drop-in hours and face-to-face meetings will be held using BlackBoard Collaborate. Access to Collaborate session requires logging into BlackBoard first. Zoom is available through UIC/BlackBoard. While I will not be using Zoom directly, you may set up a Zoom meetings with your peers and/or invite the professor to a zoom meeting at a mutually agreed upon time. Student Accountability It is your responsibility to read all of the information in this syllabus carefully and ask for clarification, if necessary. University, program, and course policies are not negotiable. By remaining enrolled in this course, you are implicitly agreeing to abide by these policies and accept the consequences if you violate them. Course Texts and Resources The first text is an older version of a widely used textbook and it should be widely available used and online. Graff, Gerald, and Cathy Birkenstein. “They Say / I Say” : the Moves That Matter in Academic Writing . Third edition., W.W. Norton & Company, 2014. Available on Blackboard: Various articles TBD. These articles will either be provided as word documents, or as links to the original online articles. Available online: Purdue Online Writing Lab: https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/ (OWL) Other resources, such as videos and relevant websites will be listed in the Class Notes, provided as part of each class as a Google Doc UIC Add/Drop Policy Students enrolled in First-Year Writing courses may add, drop, or switch their FYW classes during the first two weeks of the semester. After the second week, however, students may neither add nor switch classes.

Name and Pronoun Use If your name does not match the name on my course schedule (and my class roster), please let me know as soon as possible so I may adjust my records. My pronouns are he/him. If you would like to share your pronouns with me, I welcome that. For more information about pronouns, see this page: https://www.mypronouns.org/what-and-why. The Writing Center The Writing Center will be offering online tutoring. If you are using the Writing Center for the first time, tutors will be happy to guide you through your first session. You have two options for appointments: you can meet remotely with the tutor synchronously (using chat, audio, phone, or video), or asynchronously by submitting up to 3 pages of text (1500 words) and receiving written feedback within 48 hours. For longer papers, you may schedule additional appointments. To schedule an appointment, visit https://uic.mywconline.com/. For more information, visit our website at https://writingcenter.uic.edu/. Assessment Federal law (FERPA) prohibits me from disclosing or discussing grades over email. Visit me during remote drop-in hours if you want to talk about your work, though please be aware that it’s your responsibility to keep these conversations private without anyone else listening. For more information about FERPA, consult the UIC Office of the Registrar at https://ferpa.uic.edu/.

Grading Scale A=90% and above, B=80-89%, C=70-79%, D=60-69%, F=59% and below Midterm Grades Midterm Grades will be posted for students to view by the Thursday of Week 7. This will be a good opportunity to check in with me to ensure that you are meeting your goals for the course. Overall Point Allocation Writing Project #1 (20%) (Summary/ Response) Writing Project #2 (15%) (Review) Writing Project #3 (10%) (Proposal) Writing Project #4 (25%) (Populist Argumentative Essay) Weekly Writing (30%) (Discussion Boards and Journals) Each writing project requires a minimum of two drafts, and the second of these drafts receiving instructor feedback prior to being graded. Instructor feedback will usually be given during individual conferences. Weekly Writing grades will be primarily based on the content, not on style. Assignment Timing: All work, unless otherwise discussed, will be turned in on the following schedule: Writing Assignments, including Sections, Drafts, and Final Drafts will be due Mondays at 5pm Discussion Board Responses will be due Thursdays at 5pm and the discussion board responses to Other students are due Saturdays at 5pm Journal Responses are due Fridays at 5pm Attendance and Course Engagement Students are allowed up to two weeks of absence from the course without penalty. However, each additional absence will reduce a student’s final grade by one letter. For example, a student earning a B at the end of the semester with one absence beyond two weeks will receive a C. Students who miss four sessions beyond the two weeks will not receive credit for the course. Additionally, students who are more than ten minutes late to class will be given one-half of an absence. Finally, you are required to let me know as soon as possible if you have health-related or technical concerns that keep you from participating in the coursework so that we may make additional arrangements if you’ll be absent for more than two weeks. Religious Holidays Students who wish to observe religious holidays will not be penalized for missing class, but they must notify the instructor within the first ten days of the semester of the day(s) they will be absent. The official UIC Senate Policy on religious holidays and schedule can be found here: http://oae.uic.edu/religious-calendar/. Academic Integrity Policy A student who submits work, at any stage of the writing process, which in whole or part has been written by someone else or which contains passages quoted or paraphrased from another’s work

without acknowledgment (quotation marks, citation, etc.), has plagiarized. In addition, a student who submits work for an FYW course that s/he has also submitted for other courses has plagiarized. Maintain your integrity when completing assignments and give credit where it is due. If you are ever unsure about what constitutes plagiarism, ask me. Students who are found to have plagiarized may be subject to various disciplinary actions, including a failing grade on a particular assignment or failure of the entire course; I may also file an incident report with the Office of the Dean of Students. For more information about violating academic integrity and its consequences, consult the website of the UIC Office of the Dean of Students at https://dos.uic.edu/community-standards/academic-integrity/. Disability Accommodation Policy Students with disabilities who require accommodations for access to and/or participation in this course must be registered with the Disability Resource Center (DRC). Please contact the DRC at (312) 413-2183 or visit http://drc.uic.edu. Instructor Policies Late Work Policy Late work will be accepted at the instructor’s discretion. However, remember that continually turning in work late will affect the acceptance of that work. Also, remember that falling behind makes catching up with the work more difficult. If you are having difficulties, you should contact me. Waiting until the last minute is never a good idea. Drafting and Feedback Policy Each writing project requires a minimum of three drafts. One draft will be peer edited and a second draft will receive instructor feedback. None of these initial drafts will be formally graded (but the will count towards the final project grade). Only the final draft will receive an evaluation grade. During the drafting process, I encourage you to come to drop-in hours and discuss your drafts before they are due. I will also have individual meeting scheduled every two weeks to review the material we are working on. Submission Policy MLA style is the default for FYWP courses. For our class, this will mean that article, book and media citations will be in MLA format. Sometimes these citations are provided as part of a document. Other times you will need to create them. Use of an online tool that creates citations for you, such as RefWorks (available through the University Library), is acceptable. Writing project assignment files should be labeled with Project Number/Draft/Name. For example: Summary/Response file for my second draft of the second reading would be namedProject1b_Draft2_Drown.docx This will allow you to know what you are sending, and me to confirm what I am reading.

Discussion Board and Journal entries Discussion Board and Journal entries must be entered as text (just use copy/paste into the text box). Entries uploaded as attachments, such as Word documents, will not be read or counted for credit. Privacy Notification and Policy for Videorecording of Synchronous Class Sessions (The following does not apply to Drop-In hours, which will never be recorded.) We may be recording the class sessions, or portions of the class, for students who are unable to attend synchronously. The recording feature for others is disabled so that no one else will be able to record this session through Collaborate. Recording by other means is not permitted. The recorded class sessions will be posted on our Blackboard class website unless otherwise notified. If you have privacy concerns and do not wish to appear in the recording, turn OFF your video and notify me in writing (via email) prior to the next class session. If you prefer to use a pseudonym instead of your name, please let me know what name you will be using, so that I can identify you during the class session. If you would like to ask a question, you may do so privately through the chat feature by addressing your question to me only (and not to “everyone”), or you may contact me by another private method, which we will agree upon in advance of class. If you have questions or concerns about this videorecording policy, please contact me before the end of the first week of class. Online Course Communication Guidelines (Netiquette) 1. Be respectful of others’ views and opinions. 2. Be mindful of different cultural and linguistic backgrounds, as well as different political ideologies and religious beliefs. 3. Take a professional approach to your written communications. 4. Use good judgment when composing your written responses. 5. Swearing and profanity should be avoided. Also consider that slang terms can be misunderstood or misinterpreted. 6. Be careful using all capital letters when composing your written responses. This can be considered “shouting” on the internet and is regarded as impolite or aggressive. It can also be stressful on the eye when trying to read your message. 7. In emails, always identify yourself and what class and section you are in. It is a good practice to put your course and section in the subject line. This helps your instructor identify course-related emails. Extra Credit Policy No extra credit will be offered. Email Communication Policy Emails will typically be answered within 48 hours, typically sooner. Make sure you include your name and class in your email. Also, make sure that the question you are asking is clear. Remote Drop-In Hours Student drop-in hours is a time reserved for you! Tell me about your academic life at UIC. Come discuss the material presented in the course. Ask questions about your assignments. I am looking

forward to connecting with you and supporting your academic success! During this time, these drop-in hours an integral part of our class. In addition to speaking to the professor, it can be a chance to also get together with your classmates and have discussions about the class, or things other than the class. I see these sessions, potentially, as a way to create a more traditional classroom experience by giving us a chance to meet-up and talk freely. COVID-19 Infection Procedures, Testing and Tracing UIC has built an infrastructure for COVID-19 testing and tracing of UIC community members. Please refer to the UIC website, Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) | UIC Today, and the Circle Back to Campus Plan website and newsletter for up-to-date campus policies and procedures. For information about what to do: UIC FAQs. Students who think they have been exposed to COVID-19 or who have tested positive should inform Student Health Services at (312) 996-2901, as soon as possible, so that the University can take action in accordance with University policies. Please do not hesitate to share a positive diagnosis; your identity will NOT be revealed to your classmates. UIC’s utmost concern is for the students’ welfare and trying to ensure that everyone can take the needed precautions to reduce the likelihood of additional infection. Arrangements will be made with students on an individual basis to accommodate missed classes or assignments due to illness. Student Resources FYWP website maintains a list of campus resources that includes resources covering Academic Support, Health and Safety, University Administration (such as Registration, Advising and Financial Aid), and Campus Life. The listings can be found at: http://engl.uic.edu/programs/firstyear-writing-program/campus-resources/ I recommend you take a look at the listings; you may find it beneficial to know about what services are available to you. This Syllabus, the Writing Project Descriptions, and the Daily Schedule are subject to change based on the needs of the course. Changes will be announced in class and, when necessary, through Blackboard Questions? Concerns? Contact Mark Bennett, Director of the First-Year Writing Program, at [email protected], call (312) 413-2249, or stop by UH 2001.

Requirements for Project Submissions/Formats 1. Uploads need to be in word format (.doc or .docx) 2. Peer edits will be done in Google docs for ease of access. 3. All assignments turned in must have the following formatting: a. Times New Roman 12point font (Titles may have up to a 16point font) b. 1” margins c. Double-spaced d. Place your name in the upper right-hand corner e. Provide page numbers for all work longer than 2 pages f. Provide a printing date for all work. g. At the end of the document, list the word count. 4. MLA formatting is the English Department standard for any work that requires in-text citations and end of document works cited pages. This class is not an exception to this. Perdue OWL and Easybib.com are resources that can assist you with your citation needs for this class. 5. While I recommend writing your responses for the Journals and Discussion Boards in a Word or a Google documents, the Journals and Discussion boards must have the text copy and pasted into the text box. DO NOT UPLOAD DOCUMENTS FOR THE JOURNALS AND DISCUSSION BOARDS Deviations from these any of these standards will affect your grade.

WRITING PROJECT DESCRIPTIONS Writing Project #1: Summary/Response: Weeks 1-4 Page Requirement: 6-9 (6 summaries- 400-500 words each (approximately 1.5 pages)) Due Dates: Summary/Response 1 Outline- Wed, Jan 16 and Draft 1 for instructor meeting- Fri, Jan 18 Draft 2 Rewrites due to instructor- Tues/Thurs Jan 22-24 (Individual Meetings) Summary/Response 2 Outline- Fri, Jan 18 Draft 1 for Peer Edit- Wed, Jan 23 Draft 2 Rewrites due to instructor- Mon, Jan 28 Summary/Response 3 Outline- Fri, Jan 18 Draft 1 for Peer Edit- Wed, Jan 23 Draft 2 Rewrites due to instructor- Mon, Jan 28

Summary/Response 4 Outline- Fri, Jan 18 Draft 1 for Peer Edit- Wed, Jan 23 Draft 2 Rewrites due to instructor- Mon, Jan 28

Summary/Response 5 Outline- Fri, Jan 18 Draft 1 for Peer Edit- Wed, Jan 23 Draft 2 Rewrites due to instructor- Mon, Jan 28

Summary/Response 6 Outline- Fri, Jan 18 Draft 1 for Peer Edit- Wed, Jan 23 Draft 2 Rewrites due to instructor- Mon, Jan 28

Summary/Response folder with the 6 summaries is due on Monday, Feb 11 for a final project grade Student Learning Outcomes relevant to this project: Demonstrate rhetorical awareness of audience through different genre-based assignments. Read texts in a variety of disciplines and genres, using critical reading strategies. Draw connections at the level of ideas across multiple texts.

Defend a position in relation to the range of ideas surrounding a topic. Demonstrate sentence-level correctness.

Resources: Summary- Harvard Guide to Using Sources: Summarizing, Paraphrasing, and Quoting https://writingcenter.fas.harvard.edu/pages/summary Reading and Summarizing Instructions (Word Document on BlackBoard) Situation: We are how the film The Matrix has been involved in various cultural conversations. During this semester we will exploring a number of different areas of interest around ...