English 151L Late Summer 2015Monday June 1 to Thursday August 6th Highlights from the syllabusdetailed schedule will be in the main syllabus

Hi! Welcome to the class. I am Kathryn Gordon (you may see Elizabeth in places same person!)

My email is kgordon@northampton.edu Backup e-mail is walk33@gmail.com

Office hours (you get an almost instant response): Mon. 2pm to 5pm & Wed. 6-8pm Working then? No problem: We will find a time you can make. Saturdays are good.

Office hours by phone, skype, text or email.I do not mind texts: 518/364-6813

Clear communication is a form of respect!

This is me at a surprise birthday/book publication party my fabulous sister threw for me. At the end of the course Ill tell you about my books and current writing projects. If youre interested. (I lost that jacket someplace )o:

Our BookBackpack Literature, 4th edition. W. J. Kennedy and Dana Gioia. ISBN: 978-0-205-15166-0. I do not use the My Literature Lab add-on. You do not need the Access card

There are eBooks and rentals that costless. There are 2 copies on reserve at the main library and 1 at the Monroe Library

Warning: this book has very small print. If that will matter to you, an e-book version may be better.

Get the book ASAPThe first weeks reading will be available on line because not everyone can get the book right away. But after that you really need the book. Again: You do not need the Access card

Find a way to get the book. I notice people who dont get the book by the 2nd week fall behind and often drop. Give yourself the tools you need to succeed.

Do you think you will have trouble getting the book by the end of the first week (June 6th)? Call me now 518/364-6813

How to earn points

Part of the courseTotal Points Possible 1040Point-earning chancesPaceEssays400 4 essays (50-150 each).All essays earn points. No essay fails unless you fail to turn anything in.1 rough or final draft each week except for weeks 1 & week 5. Posting rough drafts is optional but earns extra forum points.Forum discussion240 10 weeks - up to 20 each week and 10 extra in weeks when we workshop on the 4 essays1 forum per week. Post 3-4 times. Always post in reading-related threadsResponse Journal20010 posts (up to 20 each, with extra points given for extra long/good posts)1 per week. If you fall behind you can catch up, but no more than 2 catch-up posts in any one week.Imitate & Create Blog100Up to 20 points each. Topic options given each week. Self-paced, can be done any time, except no more than 2 in any one weekReading Checks100One check-test each weekDo any time during the week up until Sunday 11PM.Bonus point opportunitiesNo maximum. Worth up to 20 pts each with occasional Big Bonus Point OppsMany in all above areas. Announced ongoingly. See next slideSelf-paced. No max in any one week

About those Bonus Point Opportunities

Where points goWays to earn Bonus or Big Bonus pointsEssaysAdded to your points for that essay. No maxEssay guidelines describe ways to earn bonus points. Could be an amazing title, extra sources, or adding an extra story/poem/play.Weekly Forum DiscussionsAdded to your Forum points for that week, which adds to your forum total for the semesterTalk a lot. Write a lot & interact well with other posts and earn 5-10 more points over the max of 20. Scavenger hunt: Check announcements for things to look for in the weekly forum. Email in answers for the bonus points.In some weeks, student-started threads are allowed. These can earn up to 20 extra forum points if they are very active. Moderate to keep it going.

Workshopping on rough draftsAdded to your Forum points for that week During the 4 workshop weeks, earn 10 extra points for active workshopping.

Improve the course pointsAdded to the Bonus Pts column in the gradebook. Note that the Reading Checks part of the course is in beta version. There will be typos and questions that could be clearer.

Find a typo, flag a schedule glitch, suggest a great link, or in any way improve the course for 10-20 bonus points. Let me know by well-written email. The quality of the email effects the points, and there is a mistake in this sentence. Find it for 10 bonus pts. Hint: verb vs noun form.

Q & A about Bonus PointsQ: What if I have enough points for an A before the end of the semester?A: Then you can skip the last essay, or some other work. You earned it. But please do stay around in the discussion forum. We need you.

Q: Do I have to try to earn bonus points? A: No. The bonus points are not in the grading scale. You can earn 0 bonus points and still get an A. Many do. Bonus points might provide a buffer if you have some crisis or a very busy time during the semester. If you can earn them early, why not? Plus, less experienced writers who score low on essays can still do well in the course (and learn more) by earning bonus points. Hard work = high grade.

Q: Where do bonus points go?A: Most go into the Bonus Point column in the gradebook. Forum bonus points go in the forum column. Essay bonus points usually just add to an essays overall score.

Q: Are bonus points included in my running total?A: Yes, but they are not counted in the total possible points. They are true bonus points. Thats why you dont need to earn ANY to still earn an A.

Q: What is the maximum bonus points I can earn?A: There is no maximum. Some students last semester earned close to 200. Some earned none or very few yet still earned a high final grade.

Q: How come we can turn in only 2 Bonus Point opportunities in a week?A: I dont want people disappearing and then doing a big chunk of the course at the end. Plus, it would not be fair to those with very busy schedules who dont have time to do a lot of extra work in one or two weeks.

Grading ScaleGrading Scale 1040 points is the total planned maximum

950 or higher A900-949 A 850-899 B+800-849 B 750-799 B 700-749 C+600-699 C 500-599 C 450-499 D449 or lower failsChanges to this scale will be announced and posted. Students can check total points at any time in the Grade Center. You never lose points once you earn them. Skipping an assignment is fine if you are happy with your point total.

Employers report thatthe leading cause of termination for 1st year employees is poor communication skills.

Where & When to turn in EssaysRough & final drafts of essays are due on Sundays at 11PM (unless announced otherwise). Bad day for you? Give yourself an earlier deadline. Ill score your work earlier.

Post rough drafts in the Discussion Forum. Turn in final drafts through the Final Work Here folder in Learning Content. E-mail is the backup turn in.

Late PolicyLate essays lose up to 10 points and generally will not be accepted more than one week late. Communicate if you have to turn an essay in late. Stay engaged. You could miss one whole essay and still receive an A or B in the course. If you fall down, get up; come back to the table; communicate.

Why this late policy? To be fair to those who manage to make the due dateTo challenge you to have high standardsTo coach you to be a writer who makes deadlines To invite you to make your college career a high priority!

If you have to turn an essay in lateDont panic! The late penalty is only 10 points, or less than 1% of the overall semester grade.Do get moving! Essays are not accepted more than one week late. If more than a week late, just move on to the next one.If you have to quit on an essay, dont quit on the course! The 4 essays are very different. One may be hard for you, the next easier. They do not get harder as we go. You could miss a whole essay and still earn an A or B. There are many ways to earn points. Dont quit.

A bit more about the late policy I know students sometimes procrastinate (I do), and that they have busy lives. I also know emergencies sometimes get in the way of meeting a due date. This policy isnt meant to judge you. If you are so busy or so in crisis that you must skip an essay or have a down week, keep communicating, dont isolate. In this short semester, more than one down week will cause you to drop behind and feel confused and frustrated. The essays we write are college level essays; they take time. Start early. Turn in the rough drafts. I read them and let you know if youre headed in the right direction. Dont think somethings wrong with you if it is hard. Walk away and come back, talk to other students, ask questions. Anyone who keeps trying can do well in this course.

You just cant beat the person who wont give up Babe Ruth

Bonus point opportunity 1: Send me a Dont Quit type quote, with a story of a time in your life when you or someone you know didnt quit. Up to 20 bonus. Please let me know if I can share it with the class or not.Bonus point opportunity 2: Say why you think this quote is true OR untrue, with an example to support your case. Turn in by e-mail. Bonus point opportunities are usually turned in by e-mail, and the quality of your e-mail adds to the points. kgordon@northampton.edu

E-mail detailsIll get to know your writing through your essays. Ill get to know you through your forum posts & e-mails. This is a writing class. Take care with words. Think about your tone. Revise before you send.To help me keep track of what you send, use a clear subject line such as Question, Bonus point opp I will lose a few emails. My apologies in advance. Its fine to send a follow-up e-mail after a few days if you have not received a response. Texts and calls are okay too.

Forum PostingTo earn the 20 weekly points, aim for 3-4 posts totaling about 1,000 words. Posts can vary in length. Post as early in the week as you can and come back to see what others have written. Finish by Sunday 11 PM. Good rule, if you come to the course for anything, post something.

Posts should be interactive:

Comment directly on assigned reading. If you didnt read it dont post like you did, but do read & discuss others postsQuote the reading and other students postsGive examples from the reading and your lifeConnect someones post to the reading, your life, world events Compare and contrast posts Point out a theme running through the posts that weekAsk questions of the other studentsAnswer questionsUse peoples names

Do you dislike discussions forums?I know some people have many on-line courses and so are required to do a ton of posting. If you have had bad experiences or just feel forum-fatigue, give my forum a chance. Its different. If you still feel like its not useful to you, just busy work, and youre faking it, call or email me. Well try something else. 518/364-6813, kgordon@northampton.edu.

Forum posting continuedPosts should be respectful:

Be respectful in what you write and how you react to what others write. I read/skim all posts. Personal attacks will lose the attacker all the points for that week. Anyone showing continued disrespect will be dropped from the course.Be respectful in how you write. That is, be clear and readable. Casual is fine for the forum, and some text-type shortcuts are okay, but the forum is our classroom. Your words are your clothes.If you are a weak typist/speller, type posts in MS Word first to get spelling help. If you are an ESL student, do your best to be clear.Note that you can edit or delete your own posts. If you write fast in response to another post, great. But know that you can go back later to correct and clarify.E-mail me if you feel attacked, insulted or undermined. Our readings will generate lively discussions. Disagreement is fine; disrespect is not.

Forum Workshopping

For each essay, we read and comment on each others rough drafts. You wont grade: youll react to the style and ideas. Youll help the writer know whats working, whats funny, whats confusing, what makes you want to know more. Youll be a real-life reader, an audience the most valuable thing to a writer.

Writing & reading other students rough drafts is very helpful. You get to see how everyone else is handling the essay. You might find out your work is actually better than you thought. Its fun and interesting.

Note: I often give extra points for active workshopping.

Response JournalsUp to 20 points each post for a max of 200 Do one post per week on the assigned reading. 2 catch-up posts accepted in any one weekLearn and hone skills needed in the essaysOther students cannot see journal postsWe rotate through 4 types of responses React and evaluateQuote and interpret the quoteCompare and contrastAnalyze a literary element (plot, character, tone, style etc)

Imitate & Create Blogs a self-paced part of the courseUp to 20 points each post for a total max of 100 points (less than 10% of the overall grade) Do about 5 posts in the semester self paced. Up to 2 catch-up posts can be done any weekTry out creative writing. Creative options to choose from each weekOther students can see blog posts (commenting optional and not expected/required)

Note: Interested students can double-down on the blog. How? Move up to 100 points from another part of the course to the blog. E-mail for details.

Mid-term and finalthere is no mid-term & no final(0:

My teaching approachI revise the course regularly based on student feedback, to make it: Interesting & EnrichingFair & Bias-freeChallenging but SupportiveLow-stressUseful to you in your career and life goals

I respect my students. You work hard, often working one or two jobs while raising families and taking heavy course loads. Im here for you not you for me. I take pride in my work.

Quotes from past course evaluationsOne of the best Professors I worked with. Great course, great Professor and overall experience. Professor Gordon is very organized and does an excellent job at making this course productive and fun!Professor Gordon was a really creative and helpful educator this semester and I would definitely take her class again. I had her last semester and it was because she was so easy to talk to and really opened up discussions so that it had practical connections to the material we were learning as well as fun engagement activities to keep ourselves interested in the topics. I loved the variety of different writing assignments because we were able to use many of the skills we learned this semester. She was great at grading things on time and giving feedback through all stages of the learning process from rough drafts to final papers and I really appreciate that because it allows me to see that my hard work is not going unnoticed.SUPERB is how I would describe Prof. Gordon. She was always available to answer questions and she was constantly online reviewing and commenting on the students' posts. What I most appreciate is that Prof. Gordon selected a variety of literary types for this course which made the course very interesting. She also helped us to engage in thought provocating discussions about the pieces we were working on. In doing so, we were able to better learn the material. Quite frankly, I yawned when I selected this course. I thought for sure it would be boring and the material would be redundant. As it turned out, of all the courses I took this semester, I enjoyed this one the most.Loved having this course with Prof Gordon you can tell she really loves what she does and cares about her students!Professor Gordon is very timely and committed to her course and did an outstanding job guiding me throughout this course. She participated in every single discussion numerous times. I have not had such a wonderful instructor or experience in an online course like I did with Professor Gordon!

These are highlights from the syllabus presented in a way that I hope is

ClearEncouragingInvitingLow stress

Send questions and comments any time to kgordon@northampton.edu or 518/364-6813. I do not mind texts

Lets have an awesome semester!