Welcome to English 28!

Instructor: Rebecca Lawson

Taking Attendance and Marking No-Shows

• Please note: if you are NOT currently enrolled in this class, you may not be able to stay.

• Please write down the following information on the sheet of paper at the front:– Full Name– Email you have registered with the school– Date of Birth: (Example: 10/15/1980)– Student ID: (Your ID number beginning with 88-)

• If there are more people than chairs, I will ask everyone not currently enrolled to leave to make room for people who are currently enrolled.

• If you are selected from the list, I will send you an email and you will then be able to gain access to the class.

Syllabus = Contract Between Student and Teacher

Your syllabus is a contract between you, the student, and me, the instructor.

Therefore, your syllabus tells you what I expect of you as a student, and what you can expect from this class over the course of the semester.

So… it is a good idea to know exactly what the syllabus says.

Let’s review it together.

Review Syllabus and Class Requirements

• The best way to reach me is by email. – lawsonrw@lamission.edu– professorrlawson@gmail.com

• You can also leave a message in my faculty mailbox, but keep in mind I only check it on Tues/Thurs.

• Assignments are due on the date they are listed under on the schedule.

• You are responsible for knowing and understanding the content of the syllabus.

Course Resources: TextbookEveryone’s an Author by Andrea Lunsford, et al. ISBN-10: 0393932117•Review the textbook, and highlight the 3 out-of-class essays we will be writing and the sections that relate to them:• Essay 1 – The Narrative: Chapter 8• Essay 2 – The Review: Chapter 11• Essay 3 – The Position Research Argument: Chapter 7

•Always bring your textbook to class! We will often use the textbook in class.

Course Resources: MyWritingLab• MyWritingLab is required by LAMC for all English 28

classes. • MyWritingLab will give you hands-on practice,

instructions, and exercises in important writing basics.

• You MUST buy the access code to MyWritingLab at the LAMC Bookstore.

• It is packed with a small book called “Research Simplified”. • Please note: You are not paying for the book “Research

Simplified”. It is a “freebie”. You are really paying for the REQUIRED access code.

Grades and AssignmentsGrading: You will receive a letter grade for this class. In order to pass and receive credit, you must earn above a "C," meaning 70%, in the class.

Your grade will consist of the following: •Homework, Readings, and In-class Assignments: 5-20 points each, depending on length and difficulty. •2 Essays: 100 points each•1 Research Paper: 200 points•Final In-Class Essay: 100 points •Extra Credit: I will give one extra credit assignment at the end of the semester. Details to come.

Drafts and Participation• Writing is a process, and it is important that you

participate in the process by bringing drafts of your essays to class on the designated dates.

• In order for your classmates and me to help you as much as possible, we need to see the direction that you are going with your paper. In order to do this we need to see a full draft. A full draft is NOT just an outline.

• A full draft might not be as long as the final draft BUT it is at least half the final length, typed, and it has an introduction, body, and a conclusion.

Paper/Essay Format

• All final drafts must be in 12-point, Times New Roman font. Margins must be one inch on all sides. All papers must include the following in the left-hand corner: your name, the date, your class and section number, the assignment name, and your word count.

• I will pass out an example of correct formatting in class. • Please refer to it every time you turn in a written assignment.

If you have any questions about how to format your paper correctly, please ask me or a writing center worker.

• All assignments should be carefully proofread for grammar and spelling errors.

Late Assignments/Papers• All papers and homework assignments are due at the beginning of the

period on the day they are due. • I will not accept homework turned in at the end of the period. • Expect to have computer difficulties at least once during the semester and

plan for them. • Remember, you can print in the LRC. • You will be allowed one late assignment and ONLY one. It must be turn

in within 2 weeks of the original due date with a late contract stapled to the front.

• Late contracts will be handed out NEXT WEEK. • I will not accept emailed assignments.

Record Keeping• It is your responsibility to keep track of which assignments

you have turned in and which you have not, and it is your responsibility to keep track of your grade. – While I always keep records of your points on every assignment, you

should keep records of your progress also.

• Please keep all of your work after I pass it back. – This means your in-class work, your essays, your homework, and any

other assignments we do.

• Also, you should never give me your only copy of an essay. – Always save your work on a computer or a flash drive or print out an

extra copy for you to keep in case something goes wrong with your computer or I misplace your work.

– Save each new draft as a new file. This means hitting “save as” instead of save.

Plagiarism• Plagiarism is presenting another person’s work as your own.

– This can include copying word-for-word from the internet or another source without properly citing and crediting it, presenting an idea as your own without acknowledging the source, or turning in a piece of writing that you did not personally create.

• I also encourage you to meet with me if you are uncertain about whether your writing could be misconstrued as plagiarism. – Minor accidental plagiarism will result in an "incomplete" on the

assignment with the option of revising for a passing grade.

• Wholesale or intentional plagiarism will have serious consequences. – Repeat offenders risk suspension from LA Mission College. – Once again, ask for help if you need it—especially if you are unsure

how to correctly cite and credit your sources.

Attendance• As a member of this class, you are part of a community of

writers. – It is important that you be here to participate in class activities and offer

your contribution to your classmates’ learning process. – Please note that we will also often do activities and assignments during

class that cannot be made up if you are not present. – Please refer to the syllabus and the class website for upcoming

assignments and instructions. – You may also wish to exchange phone numbers with someone else in the

class so that you can catch up on what you missed.

• You are allowed 4 absences total in case of illness/emergency.– Don’t waste them. If you are absent 6 times or more, you will be dropped

from the course –or- given an automatic F if it is after the drop period. – Save your absences for days when you truly need them. In the case of

an emergency, please contact me as soon as possible via email to let me know your situation.

Tardiness• It is essential that you be on time. I will be taking roll

at the beginning of class each day. If you arrive after I have taken roll, you will be marked tardy.

• Three tardies will count as one absence. – If you are tardy, please come into class quietly without

disturbing others.– After class, you must come see me to make sure that I

change your absence to a tardy. – Do not leave class early.

• I will often make announcements at the end of class that you will need to hear, and if you do choose to leave before class is finished, you will be marked partially absent.

Student Conduct• This class will be a place of learning and respect for all people

and points of view.• Students are expected to be respectful to each other and to me

while in this class. Disruptive or disrespectful behavior will not be tolerated and may affect your grade.

• Students who disrupt the class may be asked to leave and will be marked partially absent.

• The includes not disrupting class with cell phones ringing or other devices making noise.– This ALSO applies to doing non-class related things on cell phones and

computers, etc. – No texting, no listening to ipods, no playing games, going on facebook, etc

during class. It is disrespectful and rude. – Simply put: use class time for class related things ONLY. After all, you

signed up for this class—commit to it fully!

Special Concerns and/or Disability Services

• If you have any learning accommodation needs, please see me privately. If you have any other situation that may affect your ability to learn in this class, please let me know.

• Sharing your situation with me will help me to be a more effective instructor.

• If you are a student with a disability and require classroom accommodations, please see me to discuss arrangements. The sooner I am aware that you are eligible for accommodations, the quicker I will be able to provide them. – If you have not done so already, you may also wish to contact the DSP&S

Office in Instruction Building 1018 (phone #818.364. 7732/TTD 818.364.7861) and bring a letter stating the accommodations that are needed.

Syllabus Group “Quiz”1. What happens if I need to turn in a late paper?

2. How many absences or tardies can I have before being dropped?

3. I don’t like doing drafts. Can I just skip peer review days?

4. How can I tell if I have an assignment due on a particular day?

5. Can I throw away my papers, homework, and class work after they

are passed back?

6. I'm going to miss class. Can I email you my paper and have it be on

time?

7. How many essays and drafts to do actually need to write in order to

to pass the class with a C?

Taking a Look at the Schedule

• What’s ahead for our class?

Emailing Your Professor

A Guide

lawsonrw@lamission.edu

Put the Reason for Your Email in the Subject Line

• A subject line helps your professor to know what to expect in your email.

• A subject line will help your professor to find your email in their already full inboxes.

• Make your subject line as specific as possible. – A poor subject line: “Class”– A useful subject line: “Question about LAMC 28

Reading due Friday”

Identify Yourself

• Sign your email with the name your professor knows you by, even if your name is in your email address.

• This is especially important if your email is not the same as your name. I once got an email asking, “What did we do in class?” from a student who could only be identified as rockstar85.

Identify the Class You Attend• Remember, your professor teaches more than

one class. • Especially early in the semester, it is important to

tell your professor which class you attend. • Mention the course name and dates/times that

the class meets. (Many professors teach more than one section of the same course.)

• Do not send an email that simply asks “What did we do in class?” without identifying which class you are talking about.

Ask Smart Questions• Come to think of it, do not ever, under any

circumstances, send your teacher an email asking “What did we do in class?” Your professor does not have time to re-teach an entire lesson in response to your email.

• If you miss a day of class, contact a classmate and ask what you missed before contacting your professor for clarification.

• Look on your syllabus and at any handouts your professor gave you for clarification before emailing your professor.

Ask Smart Questions: Part 2

• Example of a smart question: Dear Professor Smith,

I am a student in your English 101 class that meets from 9:00 to 12:10 on Mondays and Wednesdays. I was absent on Monday, and I saw that a handout with instructions for the reading journal assignment was posted on the website. I read the handout, but I was wondering if we needed to do a new reading journal for each poem assigned on the syllabus.

Mary Jones

Be Respectful of Your Professor’s Time

• Politeness will score you points with your professor. Rudeness will get you nowhere. Or laughter and accidental deletion of your email.

• Do not make demands of your professor. Grading papers and responding to emails takes time.

• Make sure to give your professor enough lead time to respond to your question before the deadline for an assignment. (Emailing your professor at 1 AM the night before an assignment is due at 9 AM is ridiculous.)

Homework For Thursday:

• If you have not already done so, get the textbook: Everyone’s an Author– Bring it to class!

• Read “Thinking Rhetorically” p. 5-17