Honors
English 1302-Composition II-Science Fiction and/or Mystery
Professor Marcella Phillips
Office Times: Are available in the online directory, on Blackboard, or you may call me at 233-6046, or email me at phillips@austincc.edu.
Texts George,
Elizabeth, ed. A Moment on the
Edge: 100 Years of Crime Stories by Women
isbn 0-060-58821-7 (available bookstores and on-line) Paper
Pohl, Frederik. SFWA
Grand Masters, Vol. 2.
isbn 0-312-86878-2 (available bookstores and on-line)
Lostracco, Analyzing
Short Stories (available ACC and UT)
an unabridged dictionary, preferably
The American Heritage Dictionary, and a thesaurus
Prerequisite
A passing grade in English 1301(3 hours) is
required. The student must verify this prerequisite by faxing a grade report
or transcript to the instructor at 512-223-8900 during the first week of class,
unless the class was taken at ACC.
According to departmental policy, students who fail to do so will be
withdrawn at the end of the first week.
Note
The
professor reserves the right to change, as necessary, any information contained
in the document with adequate notice given to the student.
Students are responsible for knowing their status in the course.
Students are required to keep all drafts of their papers until the course is completed.
Assignments
Assignments
are due upon the assigned dates. Late papers will not be accepted. Allow forty-eight hours for responses
regarding submitted papers.
Specific Requirements
Assignments
will not be graded, but all assignments must be accepted by the instructor,
according to the deadlines, for the student to remain in the course.
Acceptance
means that the instructor has determined that the student has mastered the
assignment.
Students
will write five papers.
Paper 1 is a conflict, setting,
and central idea paper.
Paper 2 is a character and
point of view paper.
Paper 3 is a language and tone
paper
Paper 4 is a seven element
paper
The C test is the same format
as paper 4, all elements, and must be taken in an ACC testing center. A signed
permit, a current ACC id (available at any campus), and a photo id is required.
B and A papers may be written. B papers may be rewritten once; A papers may
not be rewritten. The permit will be sent on-line when the student is eligible
to take the C test.
Assignment sheets are located
on my web site.
Students
will read the selections and choose a story with which to work. It is essential
that the reading be completed and fully comprehended. The stories may need to
be read many times. They are the basis of the course and careful, critical
reading is essential.
Format
Papers
need to be computer-generated with standard margins, twelve point standard
font, double-spacing, with paragraph indentations, as required by MLA. The
heading on the first page needs to include the following:
Student’s Name
Course and Section
Professor’s Name
Date
Paper number and Assignment Topic
(for example: Paper 1: Central
Idea, Conflict, and Setting)
Student’s Original Title for Essay
(for
example: Moths of Memory)
Evaluating
the Essay
An
effective essay is clearly stated (coherent), unified (cohesive),
well-developed through concrete detail, and interesting. To achieve clarity,
attention must be given to diction (word choice), syntax (sentence structure),
grammar, and usage. An acceptable paper contains no comma splices, run-on
sentences, fragments, or distracting mechanical errors and is written at
college reading level using compound complex sentences and sentence variety.
(Students need to avoid lists of short, choppy sentences.)
In a
unified essay each sentence is connected to the preceding sentence, or each
sentence is connected to its topic sentence, and each topic sentence is
connected to the thesis. Additionally, the primary source needs to be cited in
the introductory paragraph, and the thesis must be more than a statement of
existence;i.e.: “There is a setting in this story.”
A
well-developed paper will have introductory and concluding paragraphs and as
many supporting paragraphs as is necessary to comprehensively develop the
topic. Topics are developed through the use of example (quote, paraphrase, or
summary), description, contrast, comparison, cause-effect, and limited
narration.
An
interesting essay shows insight, employs a different approach, and expresses
ideas worth expressing as opposed to repeating general information or
expressing obvious ideas or conclusions. In other words, some digging should be
evident.
Editing
and proofing are essential to a successful paper.
More
Specific Essay Guidelines
The
designated audience for the essays is the class peer group. The writer is to assume
that the peers have read any material that is the subject of the essay;
however, each reader brings different insights and experiences to a piece of
writing. Therefore, the material should never be dealt with generally. An
original title and an introduction that appeals to the audience and includes
citation of author and title opens the essay. Referential papers require third
person, objective writing. The introductory paragraph ends with the thesis
statement for the essay. In the following paragraphs within the body of the
essay, partially-quoted material, paraphrase, and summary are used to give
detailed support to the thesis. (Always assume that the reader will disagree
with one’s thesis and provide ample support.) In-text (parenthetical) documentation,
using MLA style, will state page number only since there is only one entry on
the works cited page. A concluding paragraph, or concluding sentences, is
required.
Scholastic
Dishonesty
Scholastic
dishonesty will result in an F in the course. Consult the departmental
syllabus. Primary sources must be credited within the text by using
parenthetical citations. For example, “the valley was like a closed pot “(7). Any
borrowed idea must be cited, whether quoted, paraphrased, or summarized.
An Important Note About the
Schedule
The schedule is set up to allow every
student to earn an A in the course. Some students will not earn A’s because
they will not or cannot keep up with the schedule, or because they have
deficiencies in their backgrounds which make them unprepared for the course.
Most college
courses require two to three hours outside of class for every hour in class;
this course certainly does. Many students take too many courses for the amount
of time that they have available. They need to consider seriously the demands
on their time and adjust their course loads accordingly. Keeping up with the
schedule will be the student’s responsibility. Exceptions will not be made
to accommodate individual students except under extraordinary, documented
circumstances.
Turning In
Assignments
Assignments
must be sent as Rich Text Formatted (.rtf) attachments.
Caution
Success in
this class depends in part in being able to adhere to a schedule. Careful
editing and proofreading of the originals, the rewrites or the revisions and of
separate correction items will serve to keep the students on schedule. Turning
in carelessly edited work will cost them time and can cause them to be defeated
by the schedule. At best they may end up settling for lower grades than represent
their abilities.
Assignment Schedule and
Editing
Students
must adhere to the schedule; no more than one paper may be sent in at a time.
Also, the professor serves as a reader not an editor; therefore, papers sent in
that clearly lack attempts to edit and proof will be rejected for the students
to edit.
Conferences
Student-professor
telephone conferences may be required of some students.
Learning Lab Use
The
students’ work is to be original and only help from the instructor or the
writing lab personnel may be used. ACC Lab tutors at all campuses are to help
but are not to edit or proof papers. Lab time is to be part of the learning
process. If one depends on tutors to do his work, he will have a difficult time
with the C test since he will be working entirely on his own for the test.
However, tutors can be the best resources for helping students identify
problems and eliminate them from their writing. In fact, they may be required
to seek help in the lab, and may not be allowed to submit papers until they have
completed lab work.
A,B,C Tests
Only the C test is taken in the testing center.
The A/B papers will be written as the other paper assignments were.
Testing
Center
The C test
will be taken under supervision only in the Testing Center. Students are responsible
for reminding the testing center that the test must be sent to Marcella
Phillips at Pinnacle Campus. C test permits will be available from me by
e-mail. Permit, photo id, and current ACC id are required by the testing
center. For the test, students must follow the instructor’s directions,
available under C test instructions.
Failure to
Progress
Assignments
will be rewritten / revised / edited until they are evaluated as acceptable;
however, students are not considered to be progressing in the course if they
exhibit in their papers the same errors, flaws, weaknesses as they rewrite,
revise, or edit; or if they edit, revise, or rewrite more than once per paper.
Students who cannot proof or edit their own papers as the course progresses are
not demonstrating progress. If the professor determines that a student is not
progressing in the course, the student will be withdrawn after notification by
e-mail. No incomplete grades may be initiated by the students.
Deadlines
Deadlines
will be strictly enforced. Students who miss paper deadlines will be withdrawn
from the class. See the due date schedule for the exact dates.
Textbooks
The
assigned texts are not optional. It will be to the students’ advantage to be
able to take notes in their books.
Special Accommodations
If students have letters of accommodation
from the Student Services Office, those letters need to be faxed to the professor
and she will be happy to work with them.