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Markel. Technical Communication. 7^th edition.

Course Description

English 270 is intended for students who are within thirty (30) credits of graduating. According to the BCC Course Catalog, degree programs that require the course for graduation define it as a second year option. As a 200-level course, it is more difficult and demanding than English 201, both in content and work load. This class is not recommended for first year students, students that only marginally passed English 101, or those with a difficult course load this quarter.

Grading

Attendance 10%

Daily work and Participation 25%

Instruction Manual 10%

Project Development (Memo, Proposal, Bibliography and Outline, Progress Report) 25%

Final Project 25%

Oral Presentation of Project 5%

The instructor reserves the right to adjust the grading scale to fit the progress of the class. Any changes will be announced during class time.

Written Assignments

Unless otherwise instructed, all assignments are to be typed or printed in black ink. Use a 12-point font in either Courier or Times. Each assignment will have a specific format that will be discussed in class. The standard format is single spacing between lines with double spacing between paragraphs.

Attendance

All students must attend every scheduled class meeting. I do not accept excuses for absences or lates; I just assume that you have a good reason. If you must miss a class, all work for that day must be turned in early or arrangements must be made with the instructor. The policy for the attendance grade:

“A” 0-4 absences

“B” 5-7 absences

“C” 8-10 absences

STUDENTS WITH ELEVEN (11) OR MORE ABSENCES WILL RECEIVE A FAILING GRADE FOR THE ENTIRE COURSE.

Attendance will be taken at the beginning of each class period. Arriving late twice will equal one (1) absence. If arriving late becomes a habit, I reserve the right to mark lates as absences.

Final Project

The bulk of the class will focus on the creation of a Final Project. The first part of the quarter will focus on helping each student create a focused problem to research. The rest of the quarter will focus on the major parts of any complete professional report: Problem Identification, Proposal, Progress Report, Final Report, and Presentation. It is important that each student focus on a topic they find relevant and interesting. I suggest that you find a topic that either relates directly to your current job or is at least relevant to your future plans for employment and/or education.

Late Assignments

Assignments are due at the beginning of class on the due date. All late assignments will be reduced one full grade (the equivalent of ten percentage points) for each day late. Assignments submitted after the beginning of class on the due date are considered late.

Expectations
1. I expect respect. All discussions will be handled in a way that is not judgmental, degrading, or derogatory. Even though we may disagree with the interpretations of others, please use some self-restraint and compassion in dealing with these issues. Logical and questioning responses are encouraged. Choose your words and the tone of your response with utmost care. I also expect tolerance for others' abilities and learning styles.

2. 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. I spot check almost 100% of essays for signs of plagiarism. If you cheat or plagiarize, the following actions may be taken:

A grade of "0" on the work.
A failing grade for the course.
A report of the incident 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.

3. I expect communication. It is the student's responsibility, not the instructor's, to initiate communication about progress or concerns with the course. Instructors are under no obligation to inform students that work is overdue, to nag students to complete assignments, to call students who fail to attend class. Similarly, students need to keep themselves informed about syllabus changes that may have been made in class. I suggest finding a partner the first week of classes and keeping each other up to date if one is absent.