English 101 RGilliam

Personal Journeys

Course Name: English 101 - OAS, OAC
E-mail: rgilliam@bcc.ctc.edu
Phone: (425) 564-2123

* I work from home so the best way to reach me is via the e-mail tool on the class website, or if the class website is down, e-mail the address linked above.

Introductory Remarks

The summer online course for English 101 offers students a chance to prepare for writing papers in college without the discomfort of having to sit in a room at a desk for 2+ hours while the warm sunshine tempts them to go outside. Students, enrolled in this specific class, will also get to read some inspiring books; plus, they get to pick the place to read them: perhaps in a local park in the shade of a tree feeling the grass between their toes or maybe at the beach soaking up the sun's ray's and sipping a tall, cool beverage. Whatever the preference, the choice is yours.

English 101 OAS/OAC is a completely online class; you are not required to attend classroom sessions. However, you are required to "attend" virtual sessions at least 4 days a week, at any time that is convenient for you 24/7. Sounds great, eh? It is. Still, online courses require particular skills of their participants besides the obvious computer expertise. Some personal attributes, such as being self-motivated and confident, are critical to your success; likewise, the ability to problem solve and to work calmly when complications arise is essential. The reading and writing assignments in this course will require that you read, write and think at the college level. If your reading skills are not at college level, I suggest that you plan to spend extra time working on this course. By its very nature, an online course is text-based, meaning that you must be able to read and comprehend everything as well as express yourself clearly, not only in papers but in e-mails and discussions. If your reading and writing skills will not allow you to participate in this fashion, you will be at a disadvantage.

Student Responsibilities

Because of the special method of course delivery, computer hardware and software requirements must be considered. Probably most important, the student enrolled in this course must have a word processor (Word 7.0 or higher is REQUIRED), an Internet Service Provider and a browser service. Even more importantly, the student must be familiar with the use of the above-mentioned items. I use a PC and Word 2003. If you use Windows VISTA and Office 2007, please let me know on the first day of class as compatibility problems may occur. I cannot emphasize enough that you, the student, must have at least a basic level of skill in using these tools and feel comfortable while using them. Please do not count on others to teach you as you go.

What will I learn in this course?

I expect that you will sign up for this course because you want to learn to read, think, and write critically. We call that formal academic writing. By the end of the quarter, you should learn to:

use a variety of prewriting methods to develop ideas and organize a writing plan;
revise, edit, and proofread papers (both on and off the computer) until the final draft shows the skill and effort you have put into it;
write for a specific audience with a specific purpose, using an appropriate voice and tone;
build a complex, but coherent paper around your own thoughts and analyses;
use a single,well-stated sentence that clearly expresses the central idea of your essay, focuses your topic, and controls ideas to the point of creating unity;
connect paragraphs to thesis and each other; produce a smooth flow of ideas using appropriate coherence techniques;
construct paragraphs that develop and support the main idea with specific examples and concrete details;
analyze, evaluate and interpret complex material;
write essays with engaging introductions and thoughtful conclusions;
construct clear, grammatically correct sentences of precise and appropriate words;*(Note grammar is not taught in English 101)
understand and apply subordination and coordination in sentence structures appropriately;
be able to differentiate your personal opinions and assumptions from another's; and
be able to self-assess.

What do I have to do for this course?

Written Assignments: You will write 3 original papers in this class. You will write, revise and edit these papers with coaching and comments from your classmates and from me. Finally, at the end of the quarter, these masterpieces of writing will collected in a portfolio of your best written work and graded holistically based on the standards which we will discuss and work with all quarter long.

Peer Review: Much of what you will learn in this course will come from learning to analyze and critique each other's papers in the peer review area. Peer reviews of your classmates' papers will be graded.

Discussion: I will post discussion questions about our books and students will respond to these questions as well as post questions of their own. Students will also respond to a couple of questions psoted by other students.

Marius Homework: Students will also post responses specific homework assignments from our Marius textbook.

Important Note! You must pass the portfolio the class with a C- or better in order to move from English 101 to any higher English class. Additional points awarded for discussions, Marius homework or peer review cannot be used to advance to the next class if you have failed to write papers at the appropriate level or failed to submit all of the required papers.

Books and Contact Info:

Books:

Fisher, Robert. The Knight in Rusty Armor.
Marius, Richard. A Writer's Companion.
Mortenson, Greg and David Oliver Relin. Three Cups of Tea.
Tempest-Williams, Terry. Refuge.

Contact Info:

If you have further questions about the course, please feel free to contact me at the e-mail address given above. For more information about enrolling in and starting this online course, please go to the distance education website at: http://distance-ed.bcc.ctc.edu

Bellevue Community College
http://vista.bcc.ctc.edu
Created: May 2008