ENGL 1113: Principles of English Composition I

Fall 2015
William January
Office: 349 Gittinger Hall
wwjanuary@ou.edu Office hours: T 10:30-12p, W 2-3:30p
and by appointment
Sections:
ENGL 1113-059 MWF 10:30-11:20am PHSC 0119
ENGL 1113-060 MWF 9:30-10:20am BURT 0119
Course Overview:
In English 1113 students develop a rich and complex understanding of how writing is
constructed for various contexts and audiences. Through reading and writing about
literacy practices and studying conventions of writing in fields or communities they hope
to enter, students will develop a rich vocabulary to use in discussions of literacy broadly
conceived (reading and writing as arising from and inflecting the social context) and in
critical thinking about their own writing. The development of such a vocabulary has
proven to enhance writing expertise as well as the ability to transfer writing strategies
and assess conventions for new writing contexts. Throughout the course, students will
learn to discuss and plan writing projects, collect and analyze writing from academic
disciplines and the public sphere, and create a multimodal composition that prepares
them to generate writing outside of traditional alphabetic and textual modes. English 1113
concludes with a multimodal composition project that builds on earlier work and
showcases that knowledge for new audiences.
Objectives for 1113:
Use research (including personal writing/reflection, reading, interviewing,
observation, and analysis of primary documents) to investigate their own and
others literacy experiences
Produce texts in inquiry-based genres appropriate for subject matter, audience,
purpose, and context
Articulate a multifaceted understanding of literacy by integrating evidence from
personal experience and extensive research
Read critically and evaluate a diverse range of texts and articulate how features
(such as claims, evidence, organization, verbal and nonverbal elements, etc.)
function for different audiences and situations
Apply strategies for generating ideas for writing, planning, drafting, and
organizing material
Employ a range of strategies to revise drafts and ideas based on feedback from
instructor, peers, and others
Provide appropriate, engaged feedback in response to peers texts
Articulate their own strengths as readers, writers, and learners as well as areas for
development
Produce writing that adheres to conventions (including content, organization,
format, and documentation style) and remains free from errors that detract from
meaning
Required Texts and Materials:
Course materials will be posted on D2L or handed out in class.

Required Texts and Materials:

Course materials will be posted on D2L or handed out in class.
Informal Writing (IW):
I will often assign informal activities that ask you to practice processes and strategies you
will need to complete the major writing projects. These activities should be clearly
labeled with the date, activity, and your name. We will either use these assignments as a
point of class discussion or I will collect them (or both). You can lose points if we utilize
IW in class and your assignment is not complete. When I do collect your IW assignments,
I will respond to your writing and indicate how many points you have earned (between 1
and 10). As the IW assignments are in place to help you practice writing, reading, and
thinking processes, I will be assessing your efforts, level of detail, and depth of insight
rather than focusing on mechanics per se. If you spend time and thought on the IW
assignments, you can easily earn 10/10 points.
Participation:
The interactive nature of this course means that we rely on one another to learn. Engaged
participation not only requires that you are present and on time to class, but that you
actively engage one another and the course material. You are responsible for attending
and contributing to class discussion (asking questions, adding comments, sharing
ideas/observations). You will lose participation credit for absences, tardiness, incomplete
assignments, and/or failing to pay attention and engage in class activities (for example,
texting, sleeping, doing work for another class, zoning out, etc.).
Tardiness Policy:
As this class requires collaboration and engagement in class discussions and group work,
arriving to class on time is essential. If you are more than 5 minutes late to class you will
be counted as tardy. After your third tardy, each subsequent tardy will be counted as an
absence. If you know you will be late to class regarding an appointment or other conflict,
please inform me beforehand.
Cell Phones, Laptops, and Other Electronic Devices:
Please have cell phones off and put away. If, after a warning, a cell phone or other device
remains a distraction, you will be asked to leave the classroom and counted absent for the
day.
Laptops and tablets will be allowed, provided they do not become a distraction.

The Writing Center

Many universities have a writing center, a place for students, faculty, and staff to meet
and talk about writing. The Writing Center here at OU is a resource I, as a writing
consultant myself, encourage you to use. As a writer you will want to seek feedback from
many different readers at any stage in the process and for any course you are taking. We
can coach, guide, and collaborate with you as you brainstorm, outline or draft your
writing assignments.
You can make an appointment (online or by phone) and you can drop in whenever they
are open.
I urge you to visit the web site or talk with me for more information: http://write.ou.edu
Course Policies
Late Work:
Assignments are due on the day they are listed on your syllabus and will be turned in via
D2L before the beginning of class, in some cases you will be required to bring a hard
copy to class as well. If you are absent on the day the assignment is due, the assignment
must still be turned in via D2L before the start of class. Late work is strongly

copy to class as well. If you are absent on the day the assignment is due, the assignment
must still be turned in via D2L before the start of class. Late work is strongly
discouraged.
If you dealing with extenuating circumstances you may request an extension no later than
48 hours before the assignment is due. If an extension has not been requested or was
denied, each day an assignment or paper is late will result in a deduction of one letter
grade. If you have questions or concerns regarding due dates or extensions, please talk
with me as soon as possible.
Revision Policy:
You will be able to revise one paper during the semester, except for the final paper. You
will have one week after papers are graded to meet with me and devise a revision plan.
The revised paper is due within a week of receiving your paper back. The revision paper
will be graded individually and both papers will then be averaged. This is the only
revision that will be allowed. Revision is built into the class in the form of peer review
and drafts and I will expect you to take advantage of the resources that are structured into
the class. There are also outside resources such as the OU Writing Center, which are
powerful tools for revising.
Grade Breakdown:
Participation

10%
Homework Assignments

10%
Literacy Narrative

20%
Literacy Profile

20%
Literacy Case Study

20%
Multimodal Composition/Presentation

20%

Release Statement:
The policies and schedule of this class are subject to change at the instructors discretion
and according to the needs of the class
Major Paper Due Dates:
Literacy Narrative

September 18
Literacy Profile

October 16
Case Study

November 16
Multimodal Justification & Presentation
Final exam class period
Important Dates: Fall Semester 2015:
August 28

Sept. 4

Sept. 7
Nov. 25-29

Dec. 14-18

Last day to add a course

Refund on dropped courses until this date
Labor Day Holiday No Class
Thanksgiving Holiday No Class
Finals Week

Departmental and University Policies:

Accessibility Statement
Disabilities can be visible and invisible, and I am dedicated to creating an inclusive
classroom environment. If you have a disability, or think you may have a disability, I
encourage you to contact me so we can work together to develop strategies for your
success. The Disability Resource Center (DRC) provides support for students with
documented disabilities, and you can contact them at drc@ou.edu or 405-325-3852. You
may contact DRC without notifying me if you would prefer to keep your disability
confidential.
Academic Integrity
The Provosts website (intergrity.ou.edu) provides the definitions of academic integrity,
plagiarism, collusion, and cheating that are used by all instructors, in all courses at the

Academic Integrity
The Provosts website (intergrity.ou.edu) provides the definitions of academic integrity,
plagiarism, collusion, and cheating that are used by all instructors, in all courses at the
University of Oklahoma. Each student is individually responsible for accessing, reading,
and understanding these definitions, and for conducting him-or herself in accordance with
the highest standard of academic integrity. Any concepts you do not fully understand
need to be cleared up with your instructor before you submit any work for a grade.
The most common violation of academic integrity in First-Year Composition courses is
plagiarism, which the Provost has defined as:
1. Copying words and presenting them as your own writing.
2. Copying words (even if you give the source) without indicating that they are a
direct quotation by enclosing them in quotation marks.
3. Copying words and then changing them slightly or substituting synonyms (even if
you give the source).
4. Presenting someone elses ideas as your own, even if you change the wording.
It is also a violation of academic integrity to submit the same work for more than one
course, unless you have the express permission of both instructors.
Violations of academic integrity carry penalties up to and including expulsion from the
university.
Important note regarding contestation of misconduct: In the event of plagiarism, the instructor
may charge the student with either an admonition or an academic misconduct charge. Any student
who receives an admonition can contest it. To do so, the student must contact the Student
Conduct Office within 15 regular class days after receiving the admonition. Any student who
receives the charge can deny the charge through an appeals process.

Attendance
Students are allowed three (3) unexcused absences per semester in a course that meets
three times a week, or two (2) in a course that meets twice a week. The penalties for
missing more than that are as follows:
Penalties for Unexcused Absences
2x/week Course 3x/week Course Penalty
3
4
1 letter grade
5
7
2 letter grades
7
10
Automatic F
Three (3) unexcused tardies= 1 unexcused absence
It is the policy of the University to excuse absences of students that result from religious
observances, Provost-approved activities, and legally required absences (such as military
service and jury duty) and to provide without penalty for the rescheduling of examinations
and additional required coursework. (Faculty Handbook)
Student Athletes and others engaged in Provost-approved activities must notify the
Should you have to miss class, you must inform the instructor of the reason for the
absence ahead of time and arrange to complete all coursework in a timely fashion.
Meeting for Final Examination
All First-Year Composition courses must meet for their final examination periods. The
time for your final for this class is:
ENGL 1113-059: Wednesday, December 16, 2015; 8-10am at PHSC 0119
ENGL 1113-060: Tuesday, December 15, 2015; 8-10 am at BURT 0119
Retention of Graded Papers
The English Department require instructors to collect all graded major writing
assignments by the end of each semester, and keep them until the grade challenge period
for that semester has passed.

assignments by the end of each semester, and keep them until the grade challenge period
for that semester has passed.

Campus Resources:
OU Writing Center
http://www.ou.edu/writingcenter/
325-2936
Disability Resource Center
http://www.ou.edu/drc/home.html
325-3852
Goddard Health Center
http://goddard.ou.edu/
325-4611
OU Health Services:
Counseling Services
http://goddard.ou.edu/counselingservices.html
325-2911
First-Year Composition Office
www.ou.edu/fyc
Gittinger Hall, Room 122
325-5927
OU Cares
325-0841
oucares@ou.edu

*Homework Schedule*
Readings and essay assignments are due on the date at which they are listed. Assignments
to be turned in are indicated in boldface type.
*Note: This schedule is subject to change at the instructors discretion and according to

*Note: This schedule is subject to change at the instructors discretion and according to
the needs of class.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Week 1 (week of Aug. 24) Introduction to First Year Composition
M
W

Course introduction
Finish reading the course syllabus.
Read Barton and Hamilton Literacy Practices posted on D2L using the

active reading strategies discussed in class.

Review Barton and Hamilton. Brainstorm personal encounters with literacy

practices in community and life, and bring a list of 3-5 literacy practices

you to class on Friday.

with

Week 2 (week of Aug. 31)

M

Bring an artifact that members of the literacy practice in which you

participate use or produce. For example, if you engage with

scrapbooking, you

could bring a scrapbook that you have created.

Discuss Unit 1 paper assignment sheet.
W
My

D2L post over Digital Archives of Literacy Narrative, Maribel Gaytans

Bilingual Education.

Type up your individual practice profile.

Week 3 (week of Sept. 7)

M

Labor Day - No Classes

Continue collecting artifacts/examples of your chosen literacy practice that

could be used for references/examples in your upcoming narrative and

Fridays class.

bring to
F

Complete a draft of the literacy narrative introduction and submit to D2L

dropbox.

Week 4 (week of Sept. 14)

M

Submit rough draft of literacy narrative by Saturday, Sept. 12 at 5:00 pm.

Bring a hard copy or electronic copy of rough draft for in class peer review.

Bring a hard copy or electronic copy of updated draft for in class peer review.

Final draft of literacy narrative due at 11:59 pm.

Bring a hard copy or electronic copy of polished draft for in class peer review.
Review of writing assignment sheet and peer editing exercise.

Week 5 (week of Sept. 21)

M
W

Reflect on Unit 1. Introduce Unit 2.

Read Roozens Journalism, Poetry, Stand-up Comedy and Academic
Literacy: Mapping the Interplay of Curricular and Extracurricular Literate
Activities from the bottom of page 11 to near the bottom of page 18. When

Read Roozens Journalism, Poetry, Stand-up Comedy and Academic

Literacy: Mapping the Interplay of Curricular and Extracurricular Literate
Activities from the bottom of page 11 to near the bottom of page 18. When
reading this article pay special attention to how Roozen discusses Charles literate
activities both within and outside of the classroom. Use the following questions to
guide your reading:
What are a few of the differences Charles experienced when writing for
his high school newspaper vs. his Rhetoric 101 class?
What is the turning point for Charles in his Rhetoric 101 course? In other
words, when does Charles start to connect with the material from
class?
In what ways was Charles able to merge his previous literacy
experiences with his experiences in Rhetoric 101?

ead Roozens Journalism, Poetry, Stand-up Comedy and Academic

R
Literacy: Mapping the Interplay of Curricular and Extracurricular Literate
Activities from the bottom of page 18 to the top of page 26. Post
approximately 150 words to the discussion board regarding the following:
What non-academic literacies do you have that you could incorporate
into your academic literacies/career?

Week 6 (week of Sept. 28)

M
Explore websites for academic disciplines/professions of interest come to
class with and post to the D2L discussion board:
3 disciplines/professions you find interesting
What kinds of reading and writing do you think happen in this
discipline?
What aspects of reading and reading in this discipline/field would you
like to learn more about?
Choose 1 discipline and list at least two people in that discipline who
seem like someone you may want to interview
Answers should be approximately 150 words.
(FYI: Need to complete your interviews by the Monday of Week 7)
W

Conduct independent research online or in library to find tips/dos and donts of

conducting/participating in interviews. Pick at least three tips and in a D2L
Discussion Board Post of at least 150 words, discuss your
familiarity/unfamiliarity with these tips and how these tips can help in your own
primary research. Also, choose a discipline/profession you would like to study,
and begin narrowing down individuals within the discipline you would like to
interview.
(FYI: Need to complete your interviews by the Monday of Week 8)

F
Develop a list of at least 5 questions to use in class on Friday to use in
interviewing your
fellow classmates regarding their academic and non-academic literacies, how they
connect, and how they diverge. Upload this list to D2L discussion board before
next class, and bring a hard copy of this list to class with you on Friday.

Week 7 (week of Oct. 5)

M

Conduct the following:

choose a discipline to study
draft 5-8 interview questions designed to learn about the literate
practices of a person in a specific discipline
contact 3-4 potential individuals within chosen discipline to interview
upload draft/revision sample email to D2L discussion board.

 contact 3-4 potential individuals within chosen discipline to interview

upload draft/revision sample email to D2L discussion board.

W
F

egin conducting interviews by the end of next week, Friday, October 9,

B
2015

Post a status update of your research progress on the appropriate D2L

discussion board (approximately 100 words), noting challenges, solutions,
interesting discoveries, surprises, etc. The discussion post should also include
the text-based interview questions they created with their group today.
Continue conducting interviews and collecting pertinent artifacts/sources.

Week 8 (week of Oct. 12)

M

Bring a 3 page rough draft of Literacy Profile to class. Peer review the
first half of Literacy Profile essay

Bring full rough draft of Literacy Profile to class. Peer review full draft of
Literacy Profile essay

F
Bring a print copy of a draft they wrote for either Unit 1, 2, or 3 to the
next class,
and post this draft to the D2L discussion board.
Final review of Literacy Profile essay. Essay due by 5 pm.

Unit 3 Case Study DUE:

Unit 4 Multimodal Justification & Presentation DUE:

November 13
Final exam period