130 Syllabus

A Survey of World Literature

English 130, 131- sections OAS, OAC
Spring 2007

Instructor:Rhonda Gilliam

E-mail: rgilliam@bcc.ctc.edu(M-F)

Office:C207-H*

Phone:(425) 564-2123*

*I work primarily from home, so please make an appointment with me BEFORE you decide to meet with me in my office. Unless the VISTA server is down, the fastest way to contact me is to use the e-mail service on the class website. Please do not contact me at my BCC address unless you have an emergency and cannot reach me on the class website. Only in this case should you send an e-mail to my BCC address. You may also choose to leave me a message on my voice mail. If the return call is local, I will call you back; however, if the call is long distance from my home, I will have to wait until I am in the office to call you. I am usually on campus at least once per week.

Required Text

Rosenberg, Donna. World Literature: An Anthology of Great Short Stories, Drama and Poetry. Glencoe Edition. ISBN: 0-07-860352-8

Introductory Remarks
Student Responsibilities
Course Policies
Work Required
Learning Outcomes
Participation/Communication Requirements

Introductory Remarks

English 130 offers students a survey of World literature, including poetry, drama, and fiction. The course is designed to help college students develop their analytical and critical thinking skills as well as their ability to write.

English 130 is a completely online class; therefore, you are not required to attend classroom sessions. However, English 130 is not a correspondence course, completed on your own timetable in isolation. If you signed up for this course thinking that it will have less work than a course in the classroom, you are mistaken. I teach this online course exactly like the classroom-version. A successful student in this course will submit work according to the deadlines published on the class calendar AND participate in group discussions of the literature.

Online education is not for everyone. At this time, the online classroom is a totally visual medium. Therefore, your ability to read, comprehend and infer at college level is essential for successful completion of this class. How well you manage your time, understand written materials, ask questions of me and your classmates, and follow written directions will be a good indicator of your success in this class.

Recommended Prerequisites: Placement in English 101 or higher; college-level reading skills.

Equipment Recommendations: Word 97 or better; Internet Explorer 6.1 works best or Netscape Communicator 4.7. If you use AOL, you may have challenges in using this website.

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Student Responsibilities

Because of the special method of course delivery, several requirements must be considered.

First and most important, the student enrolled in this course MUST have not only a computer and the attendant software and services, but also be familiar with the use of the above-mentioned items, including the ability to upload Word files, to follow simple directions, to attach files to e-mail messages, and to problem-solve issues which arise with your computer system. I do not teach computer skills; I teach English. I will help if I can, but I am no expert in computer systems.
Always keep me informed if you have problems, and I will try to find help for you. I do my best to establish what our challenges will be within the first two weeks of the course, but I expect that you bring some expertise with you to help in solving any problems that arise on your end. Ultimately, that is your responsibility.
In order to submit your work and use certain parts of our website effectively, you MUST set up your computer to the appropriate specifications. Check out that information by clicking on the "Run a Browser Check" link on the "Log In" page, to the right of the box where you enter your username and password.

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 don't count on others to teach you as you go.

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Course Policies

The following list of policies, along with the Arts and Humanities division policy, will govern this course. Please read both policy statements carefully.

I expect that you will participate in all class activities as assigned on the class calendar and described in the lectures, the syllabus and on the assignments page on the website.
I expect that you come to this class with some basic readings skills, such as

the ability to identify most main points and key information in a text (i.e. the literal meaning of the text)
the ability to distinguish a main idea from a less important idea
the ability to recognize obvious symbolism and other inferences
the ability to accurately rephrase an original passage from a text
the ability to write a paper that fits the conventions of modern English grammar and mechanics

I expect that you will "attend" class at least 5 days per week. Attendance in an online course constitutes a minimum of checking the discussion area and your private mailbox for important messages.
I expect that you will be responsible to save and backup your files, so that in the event of some computer catastrophe, you will still be able to produce the work on time as requested.
I expect that you will show respect to everyone by responding to his/her e-mail/discussion/chat transmissions in a way that is not judgmental, degrading, or derogatory. I also expect tolerance for others. Even though you may disagree on certain issues or with the interpretations of others, please use some self-restraint and compassion in dealing with these situations. Logical and questioning responses are encouraged.
I expect each paper and test will be submitted to the location and in the manner specified in the learning module by the date shown on the class calendar. Papers submitted after that date will lose 5 points per 24 hour period that they are late. I will accept late paper up to 4 days late. Late tests will not be accepted.
I expect honesty. I expect that you will neither do work for others nor use work done by others. Cheating and/or plagiarizing will not be tolerated. Plagiarizing is cheating, as is copying answers on a test, glancing at nearby test papers, swapping papers, buying papers, using ideas from other sources without proper documentation, writing papers for others, or having them written for you.
As a matter of routine, I will submit both of your formal papers to turnitin.com (a plagiarism detection service). Do not get caught using other people's ideas or words without proper documentation. If you cheat or plagiarize, the following actions will be taken:

You will receive a grade of "0" on the work (period).
A report of the incident will be filed in the Dean of Students Office. This report may become part of your permanent record or the Dean may choose to pursue further disciplinary action.

I am available for face-to-face conferences on your work if we can arrange a mutually convenient time to meet on campus. Otherwise, e-mail or phone conferences may be scheduled.

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Work Required:

Formal Papers: You will write 3 formal papers in this class. Each paper assignment is structured around one of the literary genres we will cover (i.e. poetry, drama, or fiction) as specified in the assignment sheet. Each 750-1200 word paper is worth 100 points.
Total -- 300 points

Your papers will be graded based on the standards posted using the written descriptions of an A, B, C, etc. under the Grading Standards link. This page may be accessed from the syllabus or the Resources and Tools area.

Exams: You will take one required exam this quarter, a test on literary terminology. You may also take an optional final exam if you wish. Each exam is worth 100 points.
Total -- 100 points (required) + 100 more points (optional)

Seminar Papers: You will write 3 seminar papers in this class. These responses should be a minimum of 600 words in length (unless otherwise noted), though certainly they may be longer. Minimums mean just that to me--a minimum effort. See the Writing Seminar Papers lecture in the Fiction module for more help with these assignments.

If you are interested in getting an A in this class, I expect that you will write at least 700 words.

I do not accept late seminar papers, so please submit your work on time. Each seminar paper is worth 25 points.
Total -- 75 points

Literature Discussions: I have created a topic forum on the discussion board for each genre of work we will be reading (drama, fiction, and poetry). Your discussion assignment is to post two (2) questions on two different works (your choice) from our reading list for each genre. For example, you will post two questions (on different poems) from the poetry section. Avoid posting a question that someone else has posted. For each discussion (drama, fiction, poetry), you will also need to respond to ten (10) other questions or comments by other students. Please spread your work around, so that you will benefit from the discussion. Each student question/answer/comment is worth 3 points. Twelve (12) responses (including two questions) are required per section (poetry, drama, fiction). The class calendar will publish a date and time for each discussion to begin and end. Late work will not be accepted in this area. Each section is worth 36 points. See "Literature Discussion Requirements" in the Fiction Module for more specific instructions on this task and grading.

Though I cannot respond to everyone's question or comment, I will try to participate in the discussion as much as I can. If I see a discussion getting too far off-track, I will try to gently guide it back in a suitable direction. However, I will not be the "police" or the "ultimate authority."
Total -- 108 points

Total Points for Course: 583 points ------------- **683 points (if you take the optional final)

* NOTE.To figure out your grade at any time, simply divide the total points you have earned by the total points you have submitted to that point. I use standard percentage markings:

94-100% = A, 90-93% = A-, 87-89% = B+, 84-86% = B, 80-83% = B-, and so on.

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Learning Outcomes

According to the English department at Bellevue Community College, the learning outcomes for English 130 or 131 are as follows:

Demonstrates an increased level of comfort with the genres: poetry, drama, fiction.
Identify and use terminology specific to literature.
Recognize some major authors.
Read, analyze, and explicate complex literature at both the literal and inferential levels.
Practice inferential reading skills to analyze and synthesize difficult literature, both orally and in written assignments.
Show ability to identify, analyze, and synthesize elements of literature in interpreting works, through oral (discussion) and written (paper writing) activities.
Develop a process of analyzing works of literature.
Use evidence from text to support a thesis.
Enjoy literature and appreciate unique characteristics of each genre.
Apply writing skills to analyzing literature.

This course is designed to instruct the student in the reading, writing, and critical thinking skills that are required in order to meet the learning outcomes set by the college. Therefore, by the end of the quarter, you should be able to:

Respond, in discussion and in paper writing, to literature in appropriate public and private manners.
Possess a sense of open-minded inquiry about written works and respond actively and imaginatively to those works.
Analyze poetry, drama, and short fiction.
Use various approaches to analyze and write about poetry, drama, and fiction.
Identify your own assumptions about the world, its literature and its people.
Distinguish between your own and the writer's assumptions in a piece of literature.
Plan, write, revise, and edit focused, unified, coherent and well-developed papers with and/or without using secondary sources.
Recognize similarities in the human experience through the diversity of the world's literature.
Appreciate various authors and forms of literature.

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Participation/Communication Requirements

The discussion area for the class provides an asynchronous place for student discussions regarding course materials. I have divided the discussion area into three categories: Class Communication, Literature Discussions, and the Writing Workshop. Some of the prominent threads in these areas are noted below.

Questions for Instructor forum - Here you post the questions for me. I will check this forum at least twice per weekday, (morning and afternoon) if not more. If your question is of a very personal nature, please feel free to use my website mailbox.
Student Union - Here you will have discussions with your classmates. I rarely read this area, so please do not post anything for me here.
Drama/Fiction/Poetry - These topics will house the seminar discussions in which you need to participate. As noted above, you and your classmates will post participate in the discussion according to the dates on the class calendar. I have allowed time for you to do this work; don't fail to do it before the deadlines posted on the class calendar. Late work will not be accepted.
Writing Workshop - Here you may post rough drafts of your papers to ask classmates for help. Since this is not a writing class, this activity is not required. However, you will benefit from utilizing this forum, whether you post your paper or merely help out a classmate. Think of it as earning karma points. See the Composition Help area under Resources & Tools for info on writing and on how to post and comment on papers.

You are responsible for posting the discussion messages to the correct forum depending on its purpose. You must also handle the postings, creating folders to store information you wish to keep. You may choose to save some messages to a diskette or your hard drive.

A chat room is provided on the web site. Please post the best times for you to chat in your introduction to the class, so that you can see who will available at what time. Then you can contact that person for chat, if you want to get together and talk about the course. Chat is available 24/7, so you can meet in chat anytime you wish to meet there. YOU are NOT required to participate in chat, though I have found that people who do use this tool seem to make better scores overall. If you wish to talk with me in chat, I will be happy to meet you there at a particular time as long as we can work out a mutually convenient time BEFORE the chat session.

A class e-mailbox has been provided for private e-mail communication between you and I or you and other classmates. Please use this service when you need to communicate with me about personal matters which you do not wish to share with the rest of the class.

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Bellevue Community College
URL: vista.bcc.ctc.edu
Site Updated: 03/30/2007