Spring 2003 Supplementary Syllabus
Korpi

The following on-line document is part of the syllabus, or governing document, for my English 102 sections in Spring 2003.  This is required reading, and students will bound by the policies outlined here.

Course Description (from the Clark College Catalog)

Continued studies in exposition, emphasizing the research paper.  Focus on analysis and synthesis of electronic and print texts in the context of supporting the writer’s ideas with appropriate documentation.  Students refine skills through pre-writing, drafting, revising, and editing.

Course Philosophy

My goal within English 102 is to teach you how to find materials using various electronic and non-electronic sources, to evaluate these sources' value within academic research, and to incorporate these materials ethically and professionally, into a research paper of at least 3000 words. Since students have passed English 101 at some point when entering this class, I assume that students have some grasp on how to structure and write an essay of 750-1000 words.  Most of the in-class work early in the course deals with search tools and methods rather than rhetorical reviews.

Clark College Outcomes and Abilities

The department and the college have been working on outcomes for this course based upon the Clark College Abilities.  The definitions for the six college abilities are available at http://www.clark.edu/About/Abilities/abilities.html. 

Within this class, the most emphasis will be on three of the six: Communication, Information/Technology, and Effective Citizenship. 

·         Communication is emphasized because this is a course in writing, a communicative device. 

·         Information/Technology is emphasized because students doing college research today must be able to competently use computer-based materials and indices to perform this research. 

·         Effective Citizenship is emphasized because students must be able to fulfill the course within the rules and regulations set forth by the College, Department, and myself.  Students should also ask appropriate questions with regard to these rules and regulations (including challenging them when such rules and regulations seem arbitrary, capricious, unfair, discriminatory, or illogical).

Department Standard Learning Objectives (SLOs) have also been defined for English 102.  SLOs relating to each specific assignment are defined below.  A copy of these SLOs is available via my web site <thor.clark.edu/korprt>.

Student Conduct

Students who engage in conduct that disturbs the class may be asked to leave.  Such conduct includes sleeping, talking on the side outside the bounds of course activities, doing other homework or other reading or activities in class, inappropriate language or behavior, and/or behavior that threatens, insults, or degrades others.  Reports of such behavior, especially if repeated, will be made to the VP of Student Services.  Students who are dismissed from class will have an absence counted against them and can definitely expect a deduction from their participation grade.

Cellular Phones

Cell phones should be turned to the off position.  If you must use a cell phone because of work, child-care issues, or an emergency, set it on Vibrate mode and let me know that you may receive a call because of one of these conditions.  If you do not have Vibrate mode, definitely let me know in case the phone will go off.         

Paper Return Policies

I try to turn back papers in a timely manner.  I consider two weeks after the submission due date to be “in a timely manner,” though I will often do better than this; the research paper dates above are guarantee dates—I will have papers done by the time listed above.  Students who choose to submit their papers during the grace period may expect a longer turn-around time as I count ALL on-time submissions in ALL of my sections as having priority over late papers.  When papers are returned, I impose a 24-hour bubble on any and all discussion of the paper or the grade—this ensures that you have taken the time to read the comments in a thorough and critical manner.

Need Extra Copies?

You will be given one paper copy of each document for the course.  Should you lose your paper copy, electronic copies are available at my web site.  To get there, go to the URL listed on page 1, then scroll down and click on my name.  Look at the course calendar, find the assignment name, and click on the one you want.

E-mail and Confidentiality

You may submit papers via e-mail.  Submission of a paper via e-mail by a student, in this classroom, constitutes a waiver of confidentiality laws governing the student’s work.  If you do not wish to have someone else see your work (possibly), then submit only via hard copy.  Any paper submitted electronically must be submitted as an attachment and be sent to me in a format that I can open.  The document must meet manuscript requirements as defined below.  Should these not be met, I will return the paper and note the violation of this statement. 

I do not send grade information over e-mail as I cannot guarantee that you are the only one who will see it.  Please do not ask me to do so—it is against College policy. 

However, I will ask you for an e-mail address this quarter for announcements, discoveries, and similar materials.  This will again save the copy budget (which is already strained, and if I can cut down on copies, this will keep more of the cost from being passed on to you).

ADA Accommodations

If you have emergency medical information that should be shared, or if you require assistance in case the building should be evacuated, please make an appointment to see me as soon as possible during the office hours indicated in this syllabus.

Any student with a disability who may require some consideration or assistance in order to fully participate in this class should contact the Disability Support Services office at 992-2580 or 992-2835 (TTY), or stop by Gaiser Hall 141.

Manuscript Requirements

The following are the minimum requirements for submitting out-of-class work to me:

• No papers are accepted in handwritten form (see dept. policies and practices).
• The paper must have one-inch margins all around.
• The paper should have your name, class number and day, my name, and date in either the upper-left or upper-right.
• Papers should be double-spaced.  This includes submissions of bibliographies, which should be double spaced.  Exception:  The annotated bibliography may be submitted in single-spaced format, provided that there is an extra line of space between each bibliography entry and each annotation.
• Papers should be stapled in the upper-left hand corner.  Note:  I do not always have a stapler for use—invest the three dollars in a small one.

It is always safer to submit papers to me during class time, but to accommodate your busy schedules, many of the due dates and times parallel the library hours.  If you wish to submit a paper outside of class and if you cannot find me to give it to, you have three secure choices:

a.  If my office mate is here, you can ask to leave the paper on my desk.  DO NOT LEAVE ANY PAPERS IN THE RACK ON MY DOOR!!!

b.  If my office door is closed, you may take the paper to one of the secretaries in Foster 205 (at the opposite end of the hall from my office), and they can put the paper in a secure location for me.  In order for your paper to make it to the secure location, you need to follow the directions above.

c.  If the secretaries’ office is closed, as might happen at night or early in the morning, there is a secure After-Hours Drop Box, next to the west entrance to Foster 205.  If you use the drop box, place your paper IN A MANILA ENVELOPE and put my name on the outside of the envelope.  This way, your paper stays together.

d.  If the building is locked, DO NOT ask Security to let you in.  Submit the paper at the next available opportunity when the building is open.

You do also have the option, as noted above, of submitting the paper to me via e-mail attachment.  The e-mail attachment must be in a format that I can open using Word 2000; note that MS WORKS is not directly supported by this format—send a document formatted as a Rich Text File (using Rich Text Format to save formatting) if you use Works.  I will not spend extra time reformatting attachments to meet the criteria above or to get the attachment to open.  I will simply send the e-mail back to you noting the problems.  I will also notify you of any virus warnings I get from your e-mail.

                Failure to meet the formatting criteria above delays the grading of the paper.  It is your responsibility to ensure that the formatting is done correctly.  If you have completed the assignment, but the formatting is incorrect, I will give you one free chance to correct the error of your ways.  On the second (and successive) submission of an improperly formatted paper, you will suffer the penalties of a late paper.

Smart Computer Usage

In this world of advancing technology, the computer has replaced the dog as the primary homework predator.  However, unlike the dog, one can use the features of the computer to help one avoid such delays in completing work.  A person who makes an investment in a computer needs to be cognizant of the proper operation of the machine and needs to take care that computer problems do not hinder with the educational process.  Therefore, the smart computer user WILL BE EXPECTED to do the following to be successful in this class.

Smart Computer Users . . .

• will make a back-up copy of every document that is submitted for the class.  Students should save all papers on both their own hard disk and on at least one floppy disk.
• will know what word-processing program is on their primary homework machine so that documents can be saved in proper formats for portability between the primary homework machine and Clark College lab facilities.
• will know how to save in Rich Text (PC) or Interchange (Mac) formats so that any document can be opened on any word processor.
• will buy an extra ream of paper and an extra printer cartridge before the end of week 1 so that these do not run out unexpectedly.
• will know that there are several computer labs on campus that are FREE for them to use and that there are generous open hours for these facilities.
• will print two copies of any document submitted for a grade in case of major catastrophic computer failure.
• will know how to save from the Internet, to use e-mail to receive articles from InfoTrac and ProQuest, and to make wise use of college paper.
• will remember the last sentence above:  that Smart Computer Users will be expected to follow these guidelines when working in this class.