Hey everyone! I wanted to continue answering some great questions that were posed in our first class. I'm hoping some of these will help give you some clarity, and they'll make you feel more comfortable about how and what is needed/expected in class:
"Will we need to do assignments before class?"
All assignments will have different stipulations depending on the material. If the assignment is a reading, those will need to be done before class, so we can all be prepared to discuss the texts. Any extra materials I may require you to bring will be posted on here and will be mentioned before the class period in which the materials are due.
"Will we ever need to bring a computer to class?"
I'd actually prefer that computers were not brought to class. It's hard to interact and have discussions if I'm only getting to stare at a lit-up apple or Dell logo. If any writing in-class is going to be more than a page or so, I will be doing my best to secure a computer lab. So, rest assured that you won't have to lug a heavy laptop up 2-3 flights of stairs!
"I was wondering whether or not it was you can't reach four days, or exceed four day on the attendance policy."
You have four days to miss. Anything after those four days will negatively affect your grade. Also, while I'm talking about it, it's REALLY important that you check this blog and do the work for the days you've missed before the next class period(email it to me!), so you can still get your participation points! I'll post our class assignments on this blog as we do them.
"Could we possibly use an essay for or from another class we may have? If so, what steps would we take?"
In all honesty, it would be rare to find two essay assignments that have the exact requirements. Essays should be new and original, but, if you find you've written an essay similar to one of the assignments I give, you're welcome to get ideas from previous assignments. Just please, for the love of everything, don't self-plagiarize!
"Do the students get to choose over which peers get to review over the essays?"
The short answer is no. The long answer is this: Having different students (students who may not know you) looking over your work, while intimidating, can be very worth-while. It gives you the opportunity to know others in the class, and it allows you to be exposed to other writing styles. These, of course, are just a few great things about peer reviews.
ALSO
I received a lot of questions about 1. The Writing Center (TWC) and 2. Extra Credit(EC)
With your points being disbursed the way they are, EC in other aspects of the course isn't very necessary. Since I have an unlimited revision policy, this means you can revise and improve your grade on any essay assignment given (other than the final). And, giving extra credit for visiting the writing center AND the tutors will both improve your grade through the revision process.
As an example:
Suzie made a 70 on her first paper. She revised the essay on her own, which brought it up to a 75. After telling Suzie she could bring it up more through the extra credit available, she takes it to the writing center. She has TWC send me the form she filled out when she got help, and next she asks a tutor in the English department for some help with her grammatical errors.
She attaches the essay the tutor signed to her revised essay, I've received the form from the writing center, and she turns in her revised essay. With all that help, her paper is now worth an 85, but, since she went to both TWC and to the tutors, Suzie turned her essay from a C paper to an A paper, making a 90 (including EC).
Last, but not least, if you have questions about the writing center or want more information, just CLICK HERE! This link is also in the upper right side of this blog!
See you all tomorrow!!
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