Final exam rescheduled

In case you haven't heard, I'll write it here: our final exam has been rescheduled by the Motlow administration for Monday, December 20, at the same time, same place.

Final exam content -- for the record

As we discussed in class today, the content of your final exam will be approximately as follows:

MLA format & plagiarism, 60%
Readings, 15%
Vocabulary, 15%
Writing process & "class motto," 10%

In-class writing assignment

In a 250- to 300-word essay, explain how Browning progressively reveals the Duke’s character throughout "My Last Duchess." In your conclusion, show that the speaker’s voice is not the same as the poet’s.

Assignment for Tuesday, December 7, 2010

• Turn in "Granny Weatherall" papers
• Learn these vocabulary words: arbitrary, bolster, conformity, disseminate, empirical, gestate, ideology, mutilate, patent (adj.)
• Read "Just the Facts, Ma'am"

Poetry reading

"My Last Duchess" by Robert Browning

Final graded essay assignment

Your final paper is a 500-word essay due Tuesday, December 7, 2010, on the following topic:

What life lessons does "The Jilting of Granny Weatherall" suggest to the reader? Use specific examples from the story to make your points. It may also be appropriate to use examples from your own life or those you know well to make your points.

You won't have an opportunity to rewrite this essay, so be sure to bring your best game.

Most critically, make sure you do your own work. You've made it this far in the semester; it would be a shame to blow it all on plagiarism this late in the game. The internet is full of temptation on this one. Resist.

Assignment for Tuesday, November 23, 2010

OK, scholars, here's your assignment for Tuesday. Please remember, this story is for you to read before coming to class. It won't do you much good (either for your quiz grade or for your understanding) if you try to read it for the first time on the screen while we discuss it Wednesday morning.

"The Jilting of Granny Weatherall"

Also, please have some idea of what the story is saying and what's really going on. "Jilting" has been around long enough that a simple Google search will give you more than enough critical writing on the story. Here's a good plan: read the story first, come up with your best interpretation, and then check your theory against some of what's been written online. Whatever you do, don't come to class with an "I have no idea" attitude.

Doing the instructor's evaluation

How to Complete an Online Instructor Evaluation

1. Go to the MSCC homepage and click on MSCC Online.

This can be accomplished by any one of the following:

a. Under Academics, there will be a drop down; on the drop down, click on Online Learning then on MSCC Online.

b. Under Quick Links click on Online Learning, then on MSCC Online.

c. Go to the bottom of the page and in the last line, click on MSCC Online.

2. Log into Motlow College Online

a. Type your regular Motlow Username and Password

b. You will be taken to the MSCC Online course page.

On this page, listed under My Motlow State Community College Courses,

will be all the courses in which you are currently enrolled, e.g.:

HIST – 2010 – F01 – United States History I

ECON – 2010 – L05 – Principles of Economics I BUS – 1210 – L01 – Introduction to Business

MATH – 1630 – M01 – Finite Mathematics

3. Click on the course in which you are to complete an evaluation.

An evaluation “pop-up page” will appear.

4. Simply click on the appropriate link to begin the evaluation

5. Complete the evaluation.

6. Click on the “submit button” when you are finished.

Research methods exam

Use this article to answer items 1-6.

Use the following articles for items 7-15.

7. 8. 9.
10. 11. 12.
13. 14. 15.

Make-up exam:
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.

No class Tuesday, and revised revised calendar

Well, scholars, I regret that because of a doctor's appointment Tuesday morning in Tullahoma we'll have to cancel class again this Tuesday. I apologize for the late notice. My absence will require us to revise the schedule yet again, as follows:

• Thursday, 11/4 -- Test over research methods & plagiarism. I'll also be available in-class to discuss your paper with you individually
• Tuesday, 11/9 -- Research paper workship. Bring your outline, rough draft, and works-cited page with you. Students will be working in groups to help each other out with the papers. I'll also be available to help you with the paper, and we'll have sign-ups for one-on-one conferences.
• Thursday, 11/11 -- One-on-one conferences. I'll meet with each of you for five minutes to discuss briefly the progress of your paper. If you need more time, we can meet again after class.
• Tuesday, 11/16 -- To be determined.
• Thursday, 11/18 -- Research papers due.

I regret that my health hassles are cutting into our class time, but we should have enough margin in our schedule to cover all the material we need to cover. I hope you'll make the most of your extra study time, and I look forward to seeing you again on Thursday.

Revised calendar

Update: This revised schedule has now been revised. Please see the post of November 1 for the revised revised calendar.

As we discussed in class Thursday, here is an outline of the days ahead:

• Tuesday, 11/2 -- Test over research methods & plagiarism. I'll also be available in-class to discuss your paper with you individually
• Thursday, 11/4 -- Research paper workship. Bring your outline, rough draft, and works-cited page with you. Students will be working in groups to help each other out with the papers. I'll also be available to help you with the paper, and we'll have sign-ups for one-on-one conferences.
• Tuesday, 11/9 -- One-on-one conferences. I'll meet with each of you for five minutes to discuss briefly the progress of your paper. If you need more time, we can meet again after class.
• Thursday, 11/11 -- To be determined.
• Tuesday, 11/16 -- To be determined.
• Thursday, 11/18 -- Research papers due.

I'll update the 11/11 and 11/16 listings soon.

No class Tuesday

I'm feeling pretty ill this evening, and the way this sickness has been building, I won't be coming to class on Tuesday. I suppose it's possible that I'll wake up well and re-energized, so it might not hurt to check this page first thing Tuesday morning. But unless you hear otherwise from me, Tuesday's class is canceled. One thing I've learned this semester is not to come to work when I'm too sick to do my job.

In short, my sickness is your respite. We'll simply do Tuesday's class on Thursday, and Thursday's test will have to be postponed till next Tuesday.

Assignments for Tuesday, 10/26/10

• Vocabulary words on p. 355, Patterns for College Writing (As always, it helps to understand meanings before doing the following reading)
• "Guns and Grief," Patterns for College Writing, pp. 350-53
• "Gun Control's Twisted Outcome"

Essay assignment, due Thursday, 10/21/10

Write a 500-word process essay describing the process of writing a 5- to 6-page research paper. You may use your own work as an example.

Readings for Thursday,10/14/10

"The Terms of Child Neglect Have Changed"
"The Trouble With Wikipedia"

Assignment for Tuesday, 10/12/10

Vocabulary (For best results, learn meanings before reading article)

• collateral
• consensual
• draconian
• euphemism
• exacerbate
• monotony
• nuance
• odious
• pervasive
• philistine
• pretense
• remnant
• repugnant

Reading: "The Drug War's Collateral Damage"

A few free research paper news links

Higher education costs:
http://www.goldwaterinstitute.org/article/4941

Gender inequality in colleges
http://pajamasmedia.com/instapundit/32378/
http://pajamasmedia.com/instapundit/019522/

Tea parties:
http://taxingtennessee.blogspot.com/2010/09/national-tea-party-news-headlines-for_29.html

NASA & commercial space flight
http://www.hobbyspace.com/nucleus/index.php?itemid=23944

Assignment for Tuesday, October 5, 2010

Vocabulary: aura, diminution, exemplary, forego, maternal, paternal, subsidy
Reading: "The Parent Trap"

Questions to ask in evaluating web sources

Author

• Who is the author of the article?
• Is the author writing as an advocate of a particular position or ostensibly writing as an impartial reporter?
• Is the author expressing only his or her opinions or that of an organization, publication, or website?
• Is the author qualified to write on the topic at hand?
• Does the author have known biases?
• Does the author have a reputation for telling the truth?

Website

• What is the parent website?
• What organization is behind the website? Who funds it?
• Does that organization take an official position on the issue at hand?
• If so, what is that position?
• Whatever the organization’s position or values, is its work reputable and trustworthy?
• If the website is the work of a single author, is that author a legitimate authority in the field under consideration?

Article

• Is the article in question a primary or secondary source?
• Does the article cite sources for information?
• If so, do these sources appear to be valid for the subject at hand?
• If the article purports to be an unbiased treatment, are both sides of the issue treated fairly?
• If the article takes a position on an issue, does it acknowledge and interact fairly with opposing views?
• Does the article deal with a broad enough subject to be of more than anecdotal value?

In-class exercise, evaluating web sources

Current economic crisis

• http://www.un.org/esa/policy/wess/wesp2010files/wesp2010pr.pdf
• http://delong.typepad.com/sdj/2010/09/the-economic-situation.html
• http://www.theonion.com/articles/report-unemployment-high-because-people-keep-blowi,17803/
  

Space exploration

• http://www.ufos-aliens.co.uk/cosmicapollo.html
• http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/northamerica/usa/1508150/A-new-golden-age-of-space-exploration.html
• http://www.spacex.com/
• http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703382904575059350409331536.html

Gender disparity in higher education

• http://fabiusmaximus.wordpress.com/2009/07/07/women/
• http://mjperry.blogspot.com/2010/05/huge-college-degree-gap-for-class-of.html
• http://masculinisme.blog-city.com/youve_got_male_1.htm
• http://fathersunite.org/Letters%20and%20Articles/commentary_on_malenes

Cost of college education

• http://www.highereducation.org/reports/affordability_supplement/affordability_1.shtml
• http://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/05/your-money/paying-for-college/05money.html
• http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2008/04/07/miller
• http://pajamasmedia.com/instapundit/106553/

Tea party movement

• http://taxdayteaparty.com/about/
• http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/07/us/politics/08palin.html
• http://www.theonion.com/content/news_briefs/tea_party_movement
• http://www.teapartyexpress.org/

Instructions for plagiarism essay

If you scored less than 80 on the plagiarism exam (or missed the exam entirely), you can find instructions here for writing the make-up essay. Making an 80 or above on this exercise is required for passing the course.

Research paper topics

Update: This post has been changed to reflect a more accurate due date of Thursday, 11/18/10.

Choose one of the following topics for a 5- to 6-page research paper, due November 18, 2010.

1. U.S. citizens should prepare now, becuase the current U.S. economic crisis is serious, deep, and will not improve for many years.


2. The U.S. economy is strong, and the country should recover quickly from the current recession.


3. The cost of a college education is rising faster than the value of a degree, and a traditional four-year college education is no longer worth the cost.


4. Although the cost of a college education has risen dramatically over the past three decades, it is still well worth the heavy costs of earning a college degree.


5. Colleges should act now to correct the growing gender imbalance on college campuses nationwide.


6. Recent cuts to the NASA budget are a bad idea that will have seriously detrimental effects not only on America, but on the future of space exploration.


7. Recent cuts to the NASA budget, although an apparent setback, will in fact help to usher in a golden age of private space exploration.


8. The tea-party movement is truly a grassroots effort to restore constitutional principles and empower the average American.


9. The so-called tea party movement is a dangerous and destructive movement of racism, hate, and intolerance.

Assignments for Thursday, September 23, 2010

• Complete short persuasive essay
• Read "One Man, Many Wives, Big Problems"
• Read "It's Time to Stop the 'Redneck' Slurs"

What makes a good persuasive essay

Here are a few points to consider in evaluating a persuasive essay (yours or someone else's):

1. Does the writer take a firm, clear stand on a debatable issue?
2. Does the writer employ adequate evidence to support that stand?
3. Does the writer consider his or her audience?
4. Are main arguments based on logic but employ emotion effectively?
5. Does the argument take into account and refute counter-arguments?

This post is one worth coming back to throughout the semester.

Vocabulary and readings for Thursday, 9/9/10

These words and readings aren't due till next Thursday. It's a lot of work, however, so it's a good idea to get started now. Again, it helps to be familiar with the vocabulary words before doing the readings.

Vocabulary
All the vocabulary words in PCW, p. 579

Readings
PCW, pp. 547-78
LBH, pp. 176-95

Take heart: the reading load won't be this intense all semester, but we've got a lot of ground to cover here at the beginning. There's a lot of good, important information in these pages.

Readings for quiz on Tuesday, 9/7/10

Vocabulary (Be sure to learn the meanings of these words before doing the readings).
affirm
begrudging
divination
dogma
formidable
inherent
legitimation
martial
predisposition
recidivism
skepticism
subtle

Readings

"Really Bad Ideas: The Tyranny of Science"

"Social Harmony" (Old men should be dangerous)
Please be careful in printing this essay--the web page prints out as about 60 pages.

Reading for Thursday

"Excitement Deprives Children of Happiness"

Class motto

Accept it: you're all right a lot.

About your instructor

I'm honored to be your teacher this semester. In case you're interested, you can find out more about me here:

Curriculum vitae
Essays
Short essays
Full list of publications
Shorter list of publications

Once again, I look forward to working with you in this semester.

Welcome!

This weblog is for Motlow State Community College students in Milton Stanley's ENGL 1020 classes, meeting in McMinnville. Be sure to check back here daily for important course information. Please keep in touch, and may your work this semester be fruitful, rewarding, and enriching.

Important note on rewrites

Please note that if you want credit for rewriting one of your essays, you need to turn in two items when you come for the final exam Thursday:

1. The original, graded paper with my marks on it, and
2. The new, rewritten paper.

You do not need to give me an electronic copy of the revised paper.

Vocabulary and readings for Tuesday

Because they're short, we'll be reading two essays for Tuesday's quiz and class discussion. As always, please be familiar with vocabulary words before reading the essays.

1. Vocabulary:

afoul
clandestine
constituency
disdain
gadfly
incriminate
intemperate

2. "Who Will Stand Up for Campus Free Speech?"
3. "Controversy Proves Collusion Among Liberal Journalists"

In-class writing assigment for Monday

If the political conditions made it possible, could a Jedwabne-type massacre ever occur in McMinnville? Why or why not? How do you think you would act in similar circumstances? Why do you think so? Give specific evidence for your position.

Assignments for Monday, August 2, 2010

• Turn in literary criticism essay (see topics below)
• Vocabulary (Please learn definitions before reading linked article)

- anti-Semitism
- atrocity
- Auschwitz (know historical significance of this place)
- catalyst
- coerce
- cognition
- conscript
- crematorium
- genocide
- latent
- pogrom
- propaganda

• Quiz over vocabulary words and article, "In Jedwabne"

Topics for final essay

Choose one of the topics below for a 500-word essay due Monday, August 2, 2010.

• What life lessons does "The Jilting of Granny Weatherall" suggest to the reader? Use specific examples from the story to make your points.
• Demonstrate how the duke's character is progressively revealed in "My Last Duchess" and evaluate how the speaker's voice is different from the poet's.

Your essay doesn't have to be a research paper, but referencing one or two critical works could well make your paper stronger.

Assignment for Thursday

Your assignment is here.

Reading for Wednesday, July 28, 2010

OK, scholars, here's your assignment for Wednesday. Please remember, this story is for you to read before coming to class. It won't do you much good (either for your quiz grade or for your understanding) if you try to read it for the first time on the screen while we discuss it Wednesday morning.

"The Jilting of Granny Weatherall"

Also, please have some idea of what the story is saying and what's really going on. "Jilting" has been around long enough that a simple Google search will give you more than enough critical writing on the story. Here's a good plan: read the story first, come up with your best interpretation, and then check your theory against some of what's been written online. Whatever you do, don't come to class with an "I have no idea" attitude.

Research paper extension

Scholars, as I'm reading the essays on the progress of your research, I've come to realize that some of you would benefit from reading my comments before turning in your research papers. Therefore, when we meet on Monday I'll return your process essays, and your research papers won't be due till Wednesday.

This coming week

Dear scholars, I hope you're getting along well with your research paper. I have to attend a funeral Tuesday morning, and we won't be having class that day. So, in addition to turning in your paper, it will be doubly important to be in class Monday to plan ahead for the time we'll be missing. Happy writing, and I look forward to seeing you Monday. AMS

Article to evaluate in class Thursday, July 22, 2010

We'll be looking over the following article to bring together a number of the skills we've been discussing for research and writing:

"Doomsday: How BP Gulf Disaster May Have Triggered a 'World-Killing Event."

Although this essay won't be on the quiz Thursday, it's a good idea to familiarize yourself with it.

Assignments for Thursday, July 22, 2010

Scholars, I apologize for being about 45 minutes overdue on posting your assignments.

• Vocabulary words on p. 355, Patterns for College Writing (please understand meanings before doing the following reading)
• "Guns and Grief," Patterns for College Writing, pp. 350-53
• "Gun Control's Twisted Outcome"

Source for space exploration essay

If you're doing the space exploration subject for your research paper, you might like this movie:

http://www.pjtv.com/?cmd=mpg&mpid=56&load=3898

Sources for research techniques exam

• Source A: http://www.cnn.com/2010/US/07/19/gulf.oil.disaster/index.html?hpt=T2



• Source B: http://biggovernment.com/sright/2010/07/09/new-black-panther-party-president-admits-to-philadelphia-voter-intimidation-holders-justice-department-still-silent/



• Source C: http://gatewaypundit.firstthings.com/2010/06/its-official-obama-is-worst-president-in-history-on-job-creation-worse-than-hoover-on-job-losses/



• Source D: http://www.godlikeproductions.com/forum1/message483746/pg1

Reading for Tuesday, July 20, 2010

"War on Drugs: The Collateral Damage"

Quiz

Create a Works Cited entry, in proper MLA format, for the linked article:



http://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2010/07/more-on-debt-collection/59752.

Assignments for Monday, July 19, 2010

• Process essay due
• Complete MLA online exercise
• Read "The Terms of Child Neglect Have Changed"

Process essay topic

In a 500-word essay, describe the process you have used so far in preparing your research paper, along with the process that still remains to be done.

In-class MLA exercise

For each item create a quote or paraphrase and Works Cited entry in MLA format.

1. Source: http://www.ideasinactiontv.com/tcs_daily/2006/05/the-parent-trap.html
Quote: There's also the decline in parental prestige over generations. My mother reports that when she was a newlywed (she was married in 1959) you weren't seen as fully a member of the adult world until you had kids.

2. Source: http://reason.com/archives/2006/04/03/one-man-many-wives-big-problem
Quote: Here is something else to consider: As far as I've been able to determine, no polygamous society has ever been a true liberal democracy, in anything like the modern sense. As societies move away from hierarchy and toward equal opportunity, they leave polygamy behind. They monogamize as they modernize. That may be a coincidence, but it seems more likely to be a logical outgrowth of the arithmetic of polygamy.

3. Source: http://www.enlightenedredneck.com/2009/01/19/time-to-stop-the-redneck-slurs/
Paraphrase: Yes, that’s right, “redneck” is a slur. Some folks in the 21st century, including myself, embrace it as a symbolic term of endearment for the hard-working everyman.

4. Source: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/8651333.stm
Paraphrase: Experts believe the blow-out preventer (BOP) must have partially triggered otherwise the flow of oil to the surface would be more extreme than it is.

5. Source: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704269204575270950789108846.html
Quote: And now we have a videotape metaphor for all the public's fears: that clip we see every day, on every news show, of the well gushing black oil into the Gulf of Mexico and toward our shore. You actually don't get deadlier as a metaphor for the moment than that, the monster that lives deep beneath the sea.

6. Source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/09/03/AR2009090302859_pf.html
Quote: Obama's reaction to that resistance made things worse. Obama fancies himself tribune of the people, spokesman for the grass roots, harbinger of a new kind of politics from below that would upset the established lobbyist special-interest order of Washington. Yet faced with protests from a real grass-roots movement, his party and his supporters called it a mob -- misinformed, misled, irrational, angry, unhinged, bordering on racist. All this while the administration was cutting backroom deals with every manner of special interest -- from drug companies to auto unions to doctors -- in which favors worth billions were quietly and opaquely exchanged.

7. Source: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/northamerica/usa/1508150/A-new-golden-age-of-space-exploration.html
Quote: The New Horizons probe was due to be launched from Cape Canaveral, Florida, last night but strong winds led to its postponement for a day.

8. Source: http://edition.cnn.com/2010/US/07/11/gulf.oil.disaster/index.html?fbid=y4V2FWpNvxl
Paraphrase: The old cap had been diverting about 15,000 barrels a day (630,000 gallons) to a ship. BP still is recovering an additional 8,000 to 9,000 barrels a day (336,000 to 378,000 gallons) through a line connected to another vessel, the Q4000.

9. Source: http://www.dep.state.fl.us/deepwaterhorizon/files/sit_reports/0710/situation_report77_071410.pdf
Quote: Estimated release rate of oil from Deepwater Horizon at 35,000 to 60,000 barrels per day.

10. Source: http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2010/07/14/diverging-revised-policy-obama-links-radical-islam-terror-groups/?test=latestnews
Paraphrase: In a rare divergence from administration policy, President Obama used the term "radical Islam" to describe the African-based terror group that took credit Monday for killing 74 people in Uganda during an interview Tuesday with the South African Broadcasting Corporation.

11. Source: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/07/15/business/economy/15econ.html?src=mv
Paraphrase: White House economists praised the government’s $787 billion stimulus program as a success on Wednesday, saying it had saved or created 2.5 million to 3.6 million jobs since it was signed a year ago.

12. Source: http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE66D1DX20100714
Quote: Obama is increasingly turning to former President Clinton to help win over voters and the business community.

13. Source: http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/130746
Quote: Obama reportedly expressed support for the 2002 Saudi Initiative upon winning the presidential election in November of 2008.

14. Source: http://content.usatoday.com/communities/theoval/post/2010/04/another-obama-bow-flap/1
Paraphrase: Sure enough, Fox News, the Drudge Report, and conservative bloggers have focused on another example of President Obama bowing to another foreign leader, in this case Chinese President Hu Jintao.

15. Source: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/32712017/
Quote: Jones, who specialized in environmentally friendly "green jobs" with the White House Council on Environmental Quality, was linked to efforts suggesting a government role in the Sept. 11 attacks and to derogatory comments about Republicans.

16. Source: http://www.whitehouse.gov/issues/health-care
Paraphrase: Health reform will make health care more affordable, make health insurers more accountable, expand health coverage to all Americans, and make the health system sustainable, stabilizing family budgets, the Federal budget, and the economy

Assignments for Thursday, July 15, 2010

• Vocablulary: aura, diminution, exemplary, forgo, maternal, paternal, subsidy
• "The Parent Trap"
• LBH 611-25 (will be on quiz)
• LBH 626-35 (your grade depends on it)

Readings for Wednesday, July 14, 2010

• "One Man, Many Wives, Big Problems"
• LBH, pp. 589-622

Have you sent me an electronic copy?

Remember, it's required only if you want to receive a grade for your work.

Assignments for Tuesday, July 13, 2010

• Vocabulary: derivation, etymology, pejorative, wanton (adjective)
• "It's Time to Stop the 'Redneck' Slurs"
• LBH, Chapter 9
• Exercise 9.3, LBH p. 195

Instructions for plagiarism essay

If you scored less than 80 on the plagiarism exam (or missed the exam entirely), you can find instructions here for writing the make-up essay.

Questions to ask in evaluating web sources

Author

• Who is the author of the article?
• Is the author writing as an advocate of a particular position or ostensibly writing as an impartial reporter?
• Is the author expressing only his or her opinions or that of an organization, publication, or website?
• Is the author qualified to write on the topic at hand?
• Does the author have known biases?
• Does the author have a reputation for telling the truth?

Website

• What is the parent website?
• What organization is behind the website? Who funds it?
• Does that organization take an official position on the issue at hand?
• If so, what is that position?
• Whatever the organization’s position or values, is its work reputable and trustworthy?
• If the website is the work of a single author, is that author a legitimate authority in the field under consideration?

Article

• Is the article in question a primary or secondary source?
• Does the article cite sources for information?
• If so, do these sources appear to be valid for the subject at hand?
• If the article purports to be an unbiased treatment, are both sides of the issue treated fairly?
• If the article takes a position on an issue, does it acknowledge and interact fairly with opposing views?
• Does the article deal with a broad enough subject to be of more than anecdotal value?

In-class exercise: evaluating web sources

BP oil mess

• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deepwater_Horizon_oil_spill


• http://edition.cnn.com/SPECIALS/2010/gulf.coast.oil.spill/


• http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/8651333.stm


• http://www.governor.alabama.gov/oilspill/


• http://www.dep.state.fl.us/deepwaterhorizon/


• http://www.hdforums.com/forum/off-topic/529251-north-koreans-torpedoed-deepwater-horizon-2.html
• http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-5738-Political-Buzz-Examiner~y2010m7d8-The-latest-updates-and-pictures-from-the-Gulf-oil-spill
• http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2010-07-08/hard-times-wash-up-before-bp-oil-in-gulf-of-mexico-s-coastal-towns-bayous.html
  

Obama's performance

• http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704269204575270950789108846.html


• http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/09/03/AR2009090302859_pf.html


• http://www.theonion.com/articles/president-obama-mentions-hed-like-to-see-lebron-ja,17512/


• http://aconservativelesbian.com/2010/02/01/obama-is-a-sociopath-and-ridicule-is-his-kryptonite/


• http://o.bamapost.com/


• http://www.theonion.com/articles/obama-to-make-reassuring-eye-contact-with-every-la,17574/


• http://www.examiner.com/x-6495-US-Intelligence-Examiner~y2010m6d13-Censored-news-Crackdown-on-news-leaks-Gulf-oil-spill-news-blocked-leak-amount-minimized-more

Space exploration

• http://www.ufos-aliens.co.uk/cosmicapollo.html


• http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/northamerica/usa/1508150/A-new-golden-age-of-space-exploration.html


• http://www.spacex.com/


• http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703382904575059350409331536.html

Gender disparity in higher education

• http://fabiusmaximus.wordpress.com/2009/07/07/women/


• http://mjperry.blogspot.com/2010/05/huge-college-degree-gap-for-class-of.html


• http://masculinisme.blog-city.com/youve_got_male_1.htm


• http://fathersunite.org/Letters%20and%20Articles/commentary_on_maleness_becoming_a_crime.html

Assignments for Monday, 7/12/10

1. Turn in 500-word persuasive essay on a topic of your choice
2. Know the following vocabulary words (For best results, please be familiar with these words before reading the article linked below).
aspire
culmination
exploit
lascivious
paternalism (be sure you know this one; it doesn't mean what you probably think it does).
provocative
renegade
reprimand
subtlety
3. Read "Ruining Kids in Order to Save Them"
4. Complete second page of logical fallacies worksheet

Keeping track of sources

Every time you use a source for your research paper, make sure to keep track of the following information for future reference:

• 1. Name of the author
• 2. Title of the article
• 3. Title of the larger work in which it appears
• 4. Date published
• 5. Date accessed
• 6. URL.

We'll come back later and study how to put this information into MLA format. In case you're interested in doing that now, you can find information on MLA format in section 46 of LBH.

Update: 3.a. Person or organization publishing the larger work.

Assignments for Thursday

• Prepare for plagiarism exam
• "The Tyranny of Science" (link below)
• "Social Harmony" (old men should be dangerous) (link below)
• Vocabulary: exemplar, incongruous, dogma, predatory, recidivism, skepticism, divination

Pay attention to the sticky posts

Immediately to the right of this posting (at least today) are four "sticky posts" that might help you all through the (very short, hurried) semester. I especially recommend the site on finding information about current events.

What makes a good persuasive essay

As we discussed in class today, here are a few points to consider in evaluating a persuasive essay (yours or someone else's):

1. Does the writer take a firm, clear stand on a debatable issue?
2. Does the writer employ adequate evidence to support that stand?
3. Does the writer consider his or her audience?
4. Are main arguments based on logic but employ emotion effectively?
5. Does the argument take into account and refute counter-arguments?

This post is one worth coming back to throughout the semester.

Upcoming readings

"Excitement Deprives Children of Happiness"

"Really Bad Ideas: The Tyranny of Science"

"Social Harmony" (Old men should be dangerous)
Please be careful in printing this essay--the web page prints out as about 60 pages.

Class 'motto'

Accept it; you're all right a lot.

Research paper topics

Your five- to six-page research paper is due three weeks from today. Please have your topic selected no later than the end of this week. You must select one of the following topics for your research paper.

• The current Gulf oil leak is one of the greatest disasters of the past fifty years
• In context the damage from the current Gulf oil leak is being greatly exaggerated
• Barack Obama is well on his way toward becoming one of the the greatest presidents in United States history
• Barack Obama is well on his way toward becoming one of the worst presidents in United States history
• The United States is poised to enter the next golden age of space exploration and development
• Gender disparity in higher education is a problem and needs to be remedied
  

Yes, I will require that you write your paper on one of these topics. In past semesters I've found that opening up the list of topics presents three problems: students wavering too long on choosing a topic, unscrupulous students recycling essays from high school or other courses, and even more unscrupulous students downloading ready-made essays from the net. So you do have flexibility in choosing a topic, but only from the list on this page.

Syllabus

ENGLISH COMPOSITION II (ENGL 1020)
MOTLOW STATE COMMUNITY COLLEGE – SUMMER 2010
Monday--Thursday 7:30-9:40 a.m.

Instructor: Milton Stanley, M.F.A.W., M.Div.
Office hours: Monday-Thursday 1:00-4:00 p.m. and by appointment

Required Materials
Patterns for College Writing: A Rhetorical Reader and Guide, Eleventh Edition
The Little, Brown Handbook, Eleventh Edition
College dictionary
Notebook for freewriting, written responses, and quizzes

Course Description
English 1020 builds upon the basic skills covered in ENGL 1010. This course is designed to help you enhance and build your critical thinking skills through an emphasis on argumentation essays, literary analysis, and the completion of a research paper. For a comprehensive list of course goals and objectives, see the ENGL 1020 Weblog (http://mscc﷓engl﷓1020.blogspot.com/).

Class Requirements

• Do all assigned readings in time for quizzes and class discussions.
• Always come to class ready to write.
• Participate in class discussions.
• Complete and turn in all writing assignments on time.
• Do all in-class assignments in dark ink on wide-ruled paper.
• Turn in both printed and electronic copies of out-of-class assignments (please talk to me if you do not have access to word processing and printing services).

Essay Papers
To complete this course, you’ll write four formal essays:

• Essay 1 Brief argumentative essay
• Essay 2 Brief descriptive
• Essay 3 Research paper (long argumentative essay)
• Essay 4 Literary analysis

You will also do in-class writing every day, graded pass-fail.

Grading
Grades in this course will be assigned according to the following scale:

• A = 90-100
• B = 80-89
• C = 70-79
• D = 60-69
• F = 0-59

Remember that, according to academic convention, a C is an average grade. The grade of B indicates above-average work, and an A is given only for outstanding performance. I want you to make the best grade you honestly can. I’m willing to work individually with you through the semester to help you improve your grade. I urge you also to take advantage of a wide range of services offered by Motlow State. Late-term begging, however, is a very bad idea.

Your final grade will be determined according to the following formula:

• Research paper -- 30%
• Other formal essays -- 25%
• Exams -- 15%
• Quizzes -- 15%
• In-class writing -- 10%
• Class participation -- 5%

In short, 45 percent of your final grade is determined by what you do in class. No matter what your other averages may be, however, you must have an average of D or better on your formal essays to pass this course.

Essay Format
For all out-of-class papers, use a 12-point standard font. Double space your essays on plain white paper with one-inch margins. See The Little, Brown Handbook for manuscript guidelines. Please follow MLA format.

Major Error Policy
During this course you’ll be reminded how to eliminate these major grammatical errors:

• Fused sentence (FS)
• Dangling modifier (DM)
• Comma splice (CS)
• Lack of subject-verb agreement (SVA)
• Sentence fragment (Frag)

Each instance of one of these errors in an essay will result in a one-half letter grade penalty.

Attendance Policy
You are expected to attend classes regularly, and attendance is sometimes critical for mastering the skills developed in this class. Please remember that quizzes and in-class writing assignments will be given every day and cannot be made up.

Classroom Deportment
Please keep in mind we’re all adults here. Texting, talking on the telephone, web browsing during class, or getting up to leave before class is over is simply rude and shows disrespect to your teacher, your fellow students, and yourself.

Plagiarism
Plagiarism is copying someone else's work without giving proper credit to the author. It's cheating, and a single instance of flagrant plagiarism will cause you to fail the course if you're caught. Even inadvertent plagiarism, such as failing to cite a source, is a serious academic offense. Make sure you avoid plagiarism with everything you write. If you're not sure what plagiarism is or how to avoid it, review your Little, Brown Handbook. Use other resources as well, such as the Writing Center and the Turnitin online service. I am available to help you in person or by e-mail, provided you come to me before turning in your paper.

Weblog
Assignments, helpful information, and special notices will be posted each day on the course weblog: http://mscc-engl-l020.blogspot.com. Be sure to check the site frequently for important information about the course. Please see me if regular Internet access is a problem for you.

Writing Centers and SmarThinking
You can get one-on-one help with your writing at one of the MSCC writing centers. You also have the benefit of online tutorial help from the SmarThinking service at http://mscc.edu/smartthinking.html. Please take advantage of both.

Other Information
I accept late work only in unusual circumstances. In no circumstance will I give make-ups for daily quizzes or in-class writing assignments. Late work will be lowered at least one letter grade. I do not accept very late work (e.g., saving all your essays till the end of the semester).

In most cases, in-class essays will be graded pass/fail. For the in-class average, every passing essay will be averaged as a grade of 100 and every failing essay as a 50. A missed assignment is averaged as a 0. That said, the vicissitudes of life are sometimes outside our control, so I'll cut you some slack. I will drop your three lowest quiz grades and your three lowest in-class essay grades. You will also be given the option of rewriting one out-of-class paper. For rewrites, I will accept only papers that have already been graded and returned.

Please see me if you need special accommodations in keeping with the Americans With Disabilities Act.

You’ve paid money for this course, and I want you to get what you’ve paid for. Should the McMinnville campus be closed due to unforeseen circumstances, we will, if possible, soldier on using the course weblog and other online resources.

Special Note on Summer Short-Burn Courses
The pace of a summer short-term course is intense and unforgiving. In this course we will cover a full week or more of material every day. Falling behind for even a few days could have catastrophic consequences on your performance and grade. If you’ve signed up for this course, make sure you set aside adequate time to do the work. I want you to do well in this course, but you have to do the work to make the grade.

Disclaimer
This syllabus hits only the high points and cannot include everything you need to know during the semester. Stay tuned for more.

A Final Note
Don't let all these dos and don'ts get you down. If you've made it this far, you probably have what it takes to make it through this course. I want you to do as well as you can, and I'll do my best to help you. But remember that you're the one in charge of your education, so take the initiative in doing the work, asking questions, and seeking help when you need it.

About your instructor

I'm honored to be your teacher this semester. In case you're interested, you can find out more about me here:

Curriculum vitae
Essays
Short essays
Full list of publications
Shorter list of publications

Once again, I look forward to working with you in this very brief summer term.

Welcome!

This weblog is for Motlow State Community College students in Milton Stanley's ENGL 1020 class, meeting in McMinnville. Be sure to check back here daily for important course information. Please keep in touch, and may your work this semester be fruitful, rewarding, and enriching.

Last call for electronic copies

Scholars, remember that I must have an electronic copy of each your out-of-class essays before I'll give you a grade for the paper (even if I wrote a grade on the hardcopy, you won't get credit if I don't have the e-copy). I'll let you know at the final if I don't have all your electronic copies. In the mean time, if you know you still haven't given me a copy, I hope you do so forthwith. I urge you not to let all your hard work for the semester go to waste by ignoring this portion of the course requirements.

No class today

I'll be grading research papers, and I encourage you to be doing all the things you need to do to finish up the semester, such as finishing your literature essays, clearing your schedules for doing your rewrites, and reviewing for the final exam. I'll be returning your research papers on Thursday and will accept rewrites the day of the final. Most, if not all, of you will definitely want to take advantage of rewriting a paper.

Literature essay

Choose one of the topics below for a 500-word essay, due Thursday, April 29, 2010.

• What life lessons does "The Jilting of Granny Weatherall" suggest to the reader? Use specific examples from the story to make your points.
• Demonstrate how the duke's character is progressively revealed in "My Last Duchess" and evaluate how the speaker's voice is different from the poet's.

Your essay doesn't have to be a research paper, but referencing one or two critical works could well make your paper stronger.

Assignment for Thursday, April 22, 2010

Your quiz on Thursday will be over "My Last Duchess" and these vocabulary words:

avow
countenance
dowry
earnest
forsooth
mantle
munificence
officious
pretense

As always, for best results learn the vocabulary words before reading the assignment.

Overview of the end of the semester

Well, scholars, we've almost made it through the semester. Here's an overview of what we'll be doing in these final days.

• Thursday, April 22--Topics given for literary essays
• Thursday, April 27--Literary essays due; research papers returned
• Tuesday, May 4--Final exam, literary essays returned, rewrites due

Notice that because of the tight end-of-semester schedule, your final essay won't be a candidate for a rewrite. These deadlines are rather tight; please plan accordingly.

Reading assignment for Tuesday, April 20, 2010

OK, scholars, here's your assignment for Tuesday. Please remember, this story is for you to read before coming to class. It won't do you much good (either for your quiz grade or for your understanding) if you try to read it for the first time on the screen while we discuss it Tuesday morning.

"The Jilting of Granny Weatherall"

Also, please have some idea of what the story is saying and what's really going on. "Jilting" has been around long enough that a simple Google search will give you more than enough critical writing on the story. Here's a good plan: read the story first, come up with your best interpretation, and then check your theory against some of what's been written online. Whatever you do, don't come to class with an "I have no idea" attitude.

Works cited exercise answers

My knowledge of how to format text on Blogger is limited, and I haven't figured out how to post the answers to last Tuesday's in-class exercises. Please see me if you'd like a printed copy.

Works cited in-class exercise, Tuesday, 3/30/10

You'll find the exercise here.

Extra credit question for Tuesday's quiz

What is a filibuster (in current U.S. politics)?

Reading for Tuesday, March 23, 2010

"The Freedom to Be an Adult"

Extra credit item for Thursday's quiz

What country is currently in a diplomatic disagreement with the United States over that country's decision to build housing in a disputed territory? Who is disputing the territory with that country?

Web vocabulary for Thursday, March 18, 2010

As always, please make sure you know the meaning of these words before reading the essay linked below.

converge
forebear
illustrious
lurid
rebuke
stringent
subsequent
vigilante
vigor
zealous

Web reading for Thursday, March 18, 2010

"Gun Control's Twisted Outcome"

Vocabulary words for Thursday, March 4, 2010

For maximum effect, please learn the definitions of these words before reading the online article for class on Thursday.

• algorithm
• contemptuous
• cynical
• denunciation
• exacerbate
• foil (verb)
• inherent
• omniscience
• protocol
• resilient
• technocracy
  

Reading for Thursday, March 4, 2010

Please notice the date of the article. It was written less than a week after Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab tried to blow up a plane over Detroit on Christmas day.

"The God That Fails"

Online reading for Tuesday, March 2, 2010

"War on Drugs: The Collateral Damage"

Extra credit assignment for morning class

Write a one-page persuasive letter trying to influence the decisions of a leader in business, education, or politics. Your letter should follow appropriate business letter format and be limited to one page.

To receive any extra credit, turn in a copy of your letter no later than the beginning of class on Thursday, March 4, 2010. The letter will be graded pass-fail and (if passing) will replace your lowest in-class writing grade. Should you decide to mail or email your letter to the addressee, you may also receive extra credit on a quiz grade (depending on the response you receive). You do not need to give me an electronic copy of the letter.

Note on today's homework assignment

Just so we're clear: the one-page writing assignment for today counts as an in-class writing exercise and will be graded pass-fail. You don't need to give me an electronic copy. For those of you who have already sent me an e-copy: thanks for going the extra mile.

Questions to ask in evaluating web sources

Author

• Who is the author of the article?
• Is the author writing as an advocate of a particular position or ostensibly writing as an impartial reporter?
• Is the author expressing only his or her opinions or that of an organization, publication, or website?
• Is the author qualified to write on the topic at hand?
• Does the author have known biases?
• Does the author have a reputation for telling the truth?

Website

• What is the parent website?
• What organization is behind the website? Who funds it?
  
• Does that organization take an official position on the issue at hand?
• If so, what is that position?
• Whatever the organization’s position or values, is its work reputable and trustworthy?
• If the website is the work of a single author, is that author a legitimate authority in the field under consideration?

Article

• Is the article in question a primary or secondary source?
• Does the article cite sources for information?
• If so, do these sources appear to be valid for the subject at hand?
• If the article purports to be an unbiased treatment, are both sides of the issue treated fairly?
• If the article takes a position on an issue, does it acknowledge and interact fairly with opposing views?
• Does the article deal with a broad enough subject to be of more than anecdotal value?

In-class exercise: evaluating web sources

Deficit spending
http://www.theonion.com/content/node/30089
http://publicservice.evendon.com/OmniApprop2009M.htm
http://talk.baltimoresun.com/showthread.php?t=238563
http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1109/29471.html

Police force militarization
http://www.crossroad.to/articles2/08/swat-team.htm
http://www.ntoa.org/
http://www.cato.org/raidmap/
http://reason.org/news/show/death-by-swat-raid

Red-light speeding cameras
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/yourview/1559771/Has-Big-Brother-taken-over-our-security.html
http://www.prisonplanet.com/cash-to-become-extinct-as-chips-take-off.html
http://citizencoma.com/big-brother-and-the-police-state.php
http://www.iihs.org/research/qanda/rlr.html

Tea party movement
http://taxdayteaparty.com/about/
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/07/us/politics/08palin.html
http://www.theonion.com/content/news_briefs/tea_party_movement
http://www.teapartyexpress.org/

Iranian & North Korean nukes
http://www.globalsecurity.org/wmd/world/iran/nuke.htm
http://www.psaonline.org/article.php?id=635
http://www.bible-prophecy.com/2009/wars2009.htm
http://pajamasmedia.com/blog/irans-nukes-and-other-illusions/

Keeping track of web sources

We haven't begun studying the details of what's needed for the Works Cited page of your research paper, but it's still a good idea to keep track of the information you'll need when you first read the article you'll reference. For web sources, you'll need the following information when available:

• Author's name
• Article title
• Publication in which the article appeared
• Date article was published or posted
• Article website address (http://.....)
• Date you accessed the article

Remember, it's easier to gather this information the first time around than to have to go back and find it at the last minute.

Preparing for the research paper

Write a one-page essay answering the following questions.

1. What is the topic of your research paper? What is the topic sentence?
2. What is your paper’s preliminary title?
3. Where and how have you looked for sources?
4. What have you found? How many sources? How have you kept track of that information?
5. What are three main points you plan to develop in your paper?
6. How to do you plan to avoid plagiarism?

Your essay is due at the beginning of class Thursday, February 25, 2010, and will count as an in-class writing grade.

Unable to access email

Well, I'm still unable to access my email from the Motlow computers, but I'll see if I can't do better from my laptop.

Assignment for Tuesday, February 23, 2010

As always, please learn your vocabulary words before doing the reading assignment.

Vocabulary:
cajole
craven
demographics
diminution
forego
forensic
genocide
gravamen
maternal
monopoly
paternal
procreation
rebarbative
recrimination
sartorial
usurp

Reading: "The Parent Trap" by Glenn Reynolds

Be prepared in class to share the main idea of your research paper and discuss your general plan for finding and organizing information.

Extra credit for quiz: Who is chief justice of the United States Supreme Court?

Reminder: Remember the "class motto."

Unable to access email

For some reason I haven't been able to access my Motlow email account this week.

Update: I'm up and running again, at least on my home computer.

Bonus question for Thursday's quiz

What nation recently announced it would deliver a "punch" that would stun the world on Thursday, February 11, 2010?

Vocabulary for Thursday, February 11, 2010

academia
articulate (adj)
consensus
demagogue
efface
freighted
hemorrhage
locution
orthodoxy
pseudo- (prefix)
remnant
resurgence

Readings for Thursday, February 11, 2010

"Has the Right Surrendered in the Culture War?"
"Touching at Work: The Good Ole Girl Network"
"The Media Mob"

Research paper topics

Choose one of the following topics for a 10- to 12-page research paper, due April 15, 2010.

• Deficit spending by the U.S. government
• Militarization of civilian police forces
• Red-light speeding cameras
• The tea party movement
• U.S. responses to Iranian and/or North Korean nuclear weapons development

Refine your topic into a clearly worded topic sentence no later than Tuesday, February 16, 2010.

Current events question for Tuesday's quiz

Who is the U.S. congressional representative for the district that includes McMinnville?

Instructions for plagiarism essay

If you missed the plagiarism examination or scored less than 80 on the exam, you're required to write a 300- to 500-word essay as a make-up. The grade on your essay will replace your exam grade. Your essay must include the following information:

• Definition of plagiarism and why it's considered a serious academic offense,
• Standards in this course for determining intentional and unintentional plagiarism,
• The penalties in this course for either intentional or unintentional plagiarism,
• Difference between a direct and indirect quote and what is required to keep each from being plagiarism,
• Specific information on exactly when quotation marks or indentations are required in referencing a source.

In addition to providing good information on plagiarism, please pay careful attention to spelling, punctuation, and grammar, as they will be factored into your essay grade. It should go without saying that if you reference any source (including this blog post) in writing your paper, you must attribute that source properly (in MLA format, as best you're able to decipher it from LBH, Section 46).

Essays are due no later than Tuesday, October 12, 2010. Please see me before then if you hit any snags or need any assistance in writing your essay.

Note: This post was updated on September 28, 2010, to reflect requirements for the current term.

Vocabulary words for Tuesday, 2/9/10

As always, please be familiar with the meanings of these words before doing the day's assigned readings.

aegis
comity
connotation, denotation
copious
etymology
mendacity
monogamy, polygamy, polyandry, polygyny, polyamory
perspicacity
wanton (adj)

Readings and questions for reflection for Tuesday, February 9, 2010

Read the following two articles and be prepared in class to discuss answers to the following questions.

“Its Time to Stop the ‘Redneck’ Slurs” by Danny Glover

1. What negative term does Glover use to describe the word “redneck”?

2. How, according to Glover, do some writers from other regions use the word “redneck” inappropriately?

3. What kind of bias does the college student’s essay describe?

4. Do you agree that “For whatever reason, it remains perfectly acceptable to insult a large swath of the U.S. population—the common folk who live in ‘flyover country’—as ‘bitter’ or ‘racist’ or ‘redneck’”? Have you ever encountered this kind of bias? Write two or three sentences on your thoughts and feelings about his idea.


"One Man, Many Wives, Big Problems” by Jonathan Rauch

1. What is the main idea of Rauch’s essay? Does he state it explicitly? If so, where?

2. On what grounds does Rauch oppose polygamy? What evidence does he cite to support his position?

3. Is polygamy an “individual choice issue”? Why or why not? How did Rauch’s essay affect your views on this issue?

4. Is marriage an area the government ought to regulate? Why or why not?

5. If true, is it relevant that “no polygamous society has ever been a true liberal democracy”? Why or why not?

Essay topics

Choose one of the following topics for a 500-word essay due Thursday, 2 February 2010. You don't necessarily have to agree with the topic you choose--just write the essay as if you do. Your target audience is your teacher and fellow classmates in ENGL 1020.

1. Studying persuasive writing is a waste of time, and it should not be a required course for graduation at MSCC.

2. Persuasive writing is the most valuable course a Motlow State student can take (Don't assume I prefer you choose this one. While this one is closer to my view, reading an essay on #1 would be much more fun).

3. The so-called Tea Party movement is the most significant grassroots movement in American politics this century.

4. The so-called Tea Party movement is dangerous and un-American.

5. Religion is a highly personal matter, and discussing religion in public is inappropriate.

6. Humans are religious beings, and efforts to cleanse religion from public life are not only futile, but dangerous.

7. Fluency in Lithuanian should be a graduation requirement for all students at Motlow State (Yes, this one is goofy, but if you're creative it could also be fun).

8. If you just can't get started on any of these choices, then select one of the following choices from Patterns, pages 703-04: number 1, 3, 7, 8, or 9.

Come to class Tuesday with at least a topic, main idea, and rough outline. If you want to do more, up to and including writing a rough draft, please don't hesitate, but it's not required. We'll spend a few minutes in groups discussing your main idea and how you plan to support and develop it. For this essay you don't need any sources or works cited, but you certainly may cite sources if you want to do so and are comfortable in documenting them.

I'll go over the mechanics of the paper on Tuesday, but for those of you who are interested, here is a little early guidance (from my lecture notes):

* 500 words
* Typed, double-spaced
* 12-point standard font (Times New-Roman, Arial, or other sans-serif font)
* No cover page
* Name, date, course listed in the upper right-hand corner
* Skip few lines after name, date, course, and center title in bold-face font
* Double-skip after title, then body of essay.

Happy prewriting!

Avoiding plagiarism

In addition to the readings in your two textbooks, you may find these resources helpful for getting a firm grasp on plagiarism and how to avoid it.

• Avoiding Plagiarism.This article is from The Writing Place at Northwestern University.
• Is it Plagiarism? This guide comes from Purdue University's Online Writing Lab.
• Avoiding Plagiarism exercise. This excercise is also from the Purdue OWL.
• Citing Sources and Avoiding Plagiarism. This one comes from Duke University Libraries. It's short but not very comprehensive.
• PowerPoint presentation on plagiarism. This comes from the MSCC Languages Department.

Trouble commenting

For some reason I'm unable to respond to your comments from my home computer. Please be assured I'm reading them, though. If your comment calls for a response, I'll email you through our mscc.edu accounts.

Evaluating a persuasive essay

1. Does the writer take a firm, clear stand on a debatable issue?
2. Does the writer employ adequate evidence to support that stand?
3. Does the writer consider his or her audience?
4. Are main arguments based on logic but employ emotion effectively?
5. Does the argument take into account and refute counter-arguments?

Current events question for Thursday

Who is the governor of Tennessee, and with what political party is he affiliated?

Vocabulary for Thursday, January 28

For best results, please be familiar with these words before reading the article linked below.

aspire
culmination
exploit
lascivious
paternalism
provocative
renegade
reprimand
subtlety

Readings for Thursday, January 28, 2010

"Ruining Kids in Order to Save Them"

Vocabulary words for next time

In case you couldn't read my handwriting today, here are your vocabulary words for next time:

divination
dogma
exemplar
incongruous
predatory
recidivism
skepticism

Bonus question: which word did I quasi-misspell today on the board (using a British, rather than American, spelling)? Please leave your answer in the comments section.

Second bonus question: What does "quasi-" mean?

LBH edition issue

Several of you have asked if the tenth edition of the Little, Brown Handbook would work for this class. I'm not familiar with the tenth edition, but I think it probably will. In Comp 2 we use the LBH mainly as a guide to MLA formatting, and the tenth edition should work about as well as the eleventh (which isn't particularly impressive in its sections on documenting web sources). If you have the tenth edition, I don't recommend buying the eleventh. Go ahead and try using the tenth, but of course you're responsible for figuring out which pages in the tenth correspond with those in the eleventh.

Help with critical errors

Here are a few links for guidance on overcoming the critical errors we've discussed in class:

Fused sentence or comma splice,
Sentence fragment,
Dangling modifier,
Subject-verb agreement error.

I hope these are helpful. If you'd like more help with these, then let me know. I'll be happy to work with you.

Update: Here are a few more resources to help you with run-on sentences (fs or cs):

• Read this article from Literacy Education Online.
• Take these self-guided quizzes: Exercise 1 and Exercise 2.
• Read this article on run-on sentences and take the quizzes.

Web sites for current events

These are some of the best I've found:

Basic news coverage

• CNN (liberal leaning)
• Fox News (conservative leaning)
• Google News (computer-generated)
  

News analysis (for more in-depth coverage)

• National Review (rightwing)
• Newsweek (leftwing)

Essays and Weblogs (for more depth and breadth of coverage)

• Huffington Post (very blue)
• Daily Kos (very blue)
• The Corner(very red)
• Instapundit (libertarian)
• Reason Magazine weblog (libertarian)

Links for upcoming web readings

"Excitement Deprives Children of Happiness"

"Really Bad Ideas: The Tyranny of Science"

"Social Harmony" (Old men should be dangerous)

Class 'motto'

Accept it: you're all right a lot.

Syllabus

MOTLOW STATE COMMUNITY COLLEGE – SPRING 2010
Tuesday & Thursday 8:00-9:15 a.m. or 1:40-2:55 p.m.

Instructor: Milton Stanley, M.F.A.W., M.Div.
Office hours: TR 9:20-12:20 and by appointment
Phone: 931.409.5436
E-mail: mstanley@mscc.edu

Required Materials
Patterns for College Writing: A Rhetorical Reader and Guide, Eleventh Edition
The Little, Brown Handbook, Eleventh Edition
College dictionary
Notebook for freewriting, written responses, and quizzes

Course Description
English 1020 builds upon the basic skills covered in ENGL 1010. This course is designed to help you enhance and build your critical thinking skills through an emphasis on argumentation essays, literary analysis, and the completion of a research paper. For a comprehensive list of course goals and objectives, see the ENGL 1020 Weblog.

Class Requirements

• Do all assigned readings in time for quizzes and class discussions.
• Always come to class ready to write.
• Participate in class discussions.
• Complete and turn in all writing assignments on time.
• Do all in-class assignments in dark ink on wide-ruled paper.
• Turn in both printed and electronic copies of out-of-class assignments (please talk to me if you do not have access to word processing and printing services).

Essay Papers
To complete this course, you’ll write three out-of-class papers:

• Essay 1 Brief argumentative essay
• Essay 2 Research paper (long argumentative essay)
• Essay 3 Literary analysis

Several of your in-class papers will also receive a letter grade.

Grading
Grades in this course will be assigned according to the following scale:

• A = 90-100
• B = 80-89
• C = 70-79
• D = 60-69
• F = 0-59

Remember that, according to academic convention, a C is an average grade. The grade of B indicates above-average work, and an A is given only for outstanding performance. I want you to make the best grade you honestly can. I’m willing to work individually with you through the semester to help you improve your grade. I urge you also to take advantage of a wide range of services offered by Motlow State. Late-term begging, however, is a very bad idea.

Your final grade will be determined according to the following formula:

• Research paper 30%
• Other out-of-class essays 20%
• Exams 15%
• Quizzes 15%
• In-class writing 15%
• Class participation 5%

In short, 50 percent of your final grade is determined by what you do in class. No matter what your other averages may be, however, you must have an average of D or better on your out-of-class essays to pass this course.

Essay Format
For all out-of-class papers, use a 12-point standard font. Double space your essays on plain white paper with one-inch margins. See The Little, Brown Handbook for manuscript guidelines. Please follow MLA format.

Major Error Policy (grade-killers)
During this course you’ll be reminded how to eliminate these major grammatical errors:

• Comma splice (CS)
• Dangling modifier (DM)
• Sentence fragment (Frag)
• Fused sentence (FS)
• Lack of subject-verb agreement (SVA)

Each instance of one of these errors in an essay will result in a one-half letter grade penalty.

Attendance Policy
You are expected to attend classes regularly, and attendance is sometimes critical for mastering the skills developed in this class. Please remember that quizzes and in-class writing assignments will be given almost every day and cannot be made up.

Classroom Deportment
Please keep in mind we’re all adults here. Texting, talking on the telephone, web browsing during class, or getting up to leave before class is over is simply rude and shows disrespect to your teacher, your fellow students, and yourself.

Plagiarism
Plagiarism is copying someone else's work without giving proper credit to the author. It's cheating, and a single instance of flagrant plagiarism will cause you to fail the course if you're caught. Even inadvertent plagiarism, such as failing to cite a source, is a serious academic offense. Make sure you avoid plagiarism with everything you write. If you're not sure what plagiarism is or how to avoid it, review your Little, Brown Handbook. Use other resources as well, such as the Writing Center and the Turnitin online service. I am available to help you in person or by e-mail, provided you come to me before turning in your paper.

Weblog
Assignments, helpful information, and special notices will be posted each day on the course weblog: http://mscc﷓engl﷓1020.blogspot.com/. Be sure to check the site frequently for important information about the course. Please see me if regular Internet access is a problem for you.

Writing Centers and SmarThinking
You can get one-on-one help with your writing at one of the MSCC writing centers. You also have the benefit of online tutorial help from the SmarThinking service at http://mscc.edu/smartthinking.html. Please take advantage of both.

Other Information
I accept late work only in unusual circumstances. In no circumstance will I give make-ups for daily quizzes or in-class writing assignments. Late work will be lowered at least one letter grade. I do not accept very late work (e.g., saving all your essays till the end of the semester).

In most cases, in-class essays will be graded pass/fail. For the in-class average, every passing essay will be averaged as a grade of 100 and every failing essay as a 50. A missed assignment is averaged as a 0. That said, the vicissitudes of life are sometimes outside our control, so I'll cut you some slack. I will drop your three lowest quiz grades and your three lowest in-class essay grades. You will also be given the option of rewriting one out-of-class paper. For rewrites, I will accept only papers that have already been graded and returned.

Please see me if you need special accommodations in keeping with the Americans With Disabilities Act.

You’ve paid money for this course, and I want you to get what you’ve paid for. Should the McMinnville campus be closed due to unforeseen circumstances, we will, if possible, soldier on using the course weblog and other online resources.

The final exam for this course will be given in accordance with the MSCC exam schedule.

Disclaimer
This syllabus hits only the high points and cannot include everything you need to know during the semester. Stay tuned for more.

A Final Note
Don't let all these dos and don'ts get you down. If you've made it this far, you probably have what it takes to make it through this course. I want you to do as well as you can, and I'll do my best to help you. But remember that you're the one in charge of your education, so take the initiative in doing the work, asking questions, and seeking help when you need it.