English 102

Winter 2010 North Seattle Community College

English 102 (M-F 10-10:50 pm)

Instructor: Mr. David Bucci

Office: IB 2423C #9 Email: dbucci@sccd.ctc.edu

Office Hrs: T & Th 11am-12pm, or by appt.

Required Texts:
A Social History of the Media by Asa Briggs and Peter Burke

Course Description:

The goal of English 102 is to further develop students’ use the writing process to produce clear, coherent, purposeful writing that is the product of careful reading and thoughtful analysis. This is an intensive reading, writing, and discussion class that will include an introduction to research methods and MLA documentation. The theme for this class is "A Social History of Media,” and all your papers, including the research project will involve topics that fall under this general theme. In this course we will explore the intersection of media, economics, and technology, as we look for patterns in historical and contemporary relationships between media and power. How you choose to approach the theme of media in history in your own individual research is up to you.


Course Assignments:

Papers:

• Three Papers (3-5 pages) – 50 points each

• One Research Paper with Works Cited Page (5-8 pages) – 75 points

• Annotated Bibliography for Research Paper – 50 points


All out-of-class writing must be typed. All papers are due at the beginning of class, and papers handed in after the first ten minutes of class will be marked late and penalized. No other late papers will be accepted. If you think you are not going to be able to make a paper deadline, please speak with me before the paper is due. Absolutely, no emailed papers will be accepted. All papers (and associated outlines, drafts, and peer reviews) must be stapled together and clearly labeled with the student’s name on every section. If you fail to include a required outline, first draft, or peer review response with your paper, your grade will be reduced by 10%.


Attendance, Participation, In-Class Work, Quizzes:

•Attendance -- 50 points •Short Answer Tests -- 10 points each


You are required to attend class on time, and expected to have completed all reading and assignments before coming to class. If you are not physically present in the classroom when your name is called, you will be marked absent for the day. If you are late, it is your responsibility to find me immediately after class to convert your absence to a tardy, otherwise you will be marked absent for the day (no exceptions). Two tardies equal one absence. You must attend 80% of the class meetings (45 out of 55) to pass the course. If you are absent more than 10 times you will receive the grade of NC (no credit) and have to repeat the course. You are allowed 5 “sick days,” use them wisely. After that, you will lose one point for each of the next 5 absences before losing all credit for the course on the eleventh absence.


There will be frequent short answer tests on assigned readings, videos, and class discussions. These 10-point tests will be given on most Fridays. There will be no make-up tests for absent or tardy students. I will drop the lowest test score at the end of the quarter.


Important: You are responsible for all assignments given in class whether you were present or not. “I wasn’t here that day” is not an excuse. I will do my best to keep the class web page updated with assignments, but I suggest you trade contact information with several of your classmates just in case.


Grade Conversion:

95%-100% = 4.0 84% = 2.9 73% = 1.8 60%-62% = 0.7

94%= 3.9 83% = 2.8 72% = 1.7 Below 60% = 0.0

93% = 3.8 82% = 2.7 71% = 1.6

92% = 3.7 81% = 2.6 70% = 1.5

91% = 3.6 80% = 2.5 69% = 1.4

90% = 3.5 79% = 2.4 68% = 1.3

89% = 3.4 78% = 2.3 67% = 1.2

88% = 3.3 77% = 2.2 66% = 1.1

87% = 3.2 76% = 2.1 65% = 1.0

86% = 3.1 75% = 2.0 64% = 0.9

85% = 3.0 74% = 1.9 63% = 0.8


Plagiarism Policy: Plagiarism is the intentional use of someone else’s words or ideas without giving that person credit. Plagiarism is absolutely prohibited. Examples include, but are not limited to: failure to cite a source, quoted or paraphrased (including books, articles, websites, etc.); purchasing a paper from an online source; having someone else write a paper for you, etc.

Don’t embarrass yourself. If I discover someone plagiarizing, that paper will receive a grade of “F.” A second infraction results in an “F” for the entire course, and you will be referred to the VP of Instruction for disciplinary action and possible expulsion from the college.