Writing 312 Syllabus

A Brief Note: Below, you will find a copy of my syllabus for my English 312 class. I tried to make my syllabus match my Teaching Philosophy so that students will get to know what I value and prioritize as a teacher fairly quickly. My Revision Policy demonstrates my belief that writing is a process and not a product. My Grading Policy shows students that I am a responsive professor, but also willing to listen to their concerns. It also shows my prioritization of timely feedback. I reward students who go the extra mile, attend class regularly, and complete their work on-time. The textbook that we selected for the course, Make it Stick, is a book that will teach them good writing principles, but also principles for being a better overall student. My aim with my syllabus is to lay out my expectations for my students clearly, so we can get to the important work of improving the students as writers! 

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Instructor: Sariah Fales

Email: falessariah@gmail.com 

Office Hours: By Appointment Only 

Course Description:

Welcome to English 312: Persuasive Writing. I know that many people aren’t super jazzed about a mandatory GE writing class. You might be thinking, “I want to be an astronaut or an engineer or a dancer: I don’t need writing.” As your instructor, my goal is to show you that writing applies to every area of our lives. Learning to become an effective writer is an important part of a college education, regardless of your field, major, or discipline. Our goal is high competence and high confidence in creating effective communication within your chosen discourse community; specifically, creating persuasive arguments that are discerning, compassionate, and ethical━to fortify your professional and personal communication. The course requires extensive writing, reading, and research. And, hopefully, we have a little fun along the way (could that even be possible?)!

Required Materials & Technology: 

• Make it Stick by Heath and Heath (Link to the Online E-Book provided)

• Laptop or tablet to access Zoom

• BYU Zoom account

• Google Drive account

Learning Outcomes: 

Argument: Analyze, generate, and compose persuasive oral and written arguments adapted to the needs of various disciplinary, public, professional, and interpersonal audiences and contexts. Apply key rhetorical principles for organizing arguments and incorporating artistic proofs (ethos, pathos, logos) and inartistic proofs (research and evidence). Anticipate, understand, and respond effectively to audience values, beliefs, objections, and counterarguments.

Rhetorical Situation: Employ rhetorical principles to adapt written and oral forms of communication to respond to the constraints and affordances of a specific rhetorical situation.

Research: Find and evaluate both scholarly and credible popular sources appropriate to particular persuasive purposes; analyze sources to determine their weight and persuasiveness for specific audiences; synthesize source findings; effectively incorporate sources into writing, and appropriately and accurately document sources. 

Process: Employ informed and flexible processes for writing and speaking, including creating and finding ideas, evidence, and data to write about; planning, prewriting, and drafting; peer-reviewing and workshopping; revising; editing and proofreading; designing or presenting a message so that it is successfully understood by a specified audience.

Style & Conventions: Write coherent and unified texts, including effective introductions, clear claims and reasons, supporting details, transitions, and strong conclusions. Write in a correct, clear, and graceful prose style.

Classroom Policies: 

Late-Work Policy: My love of late-work is about as strong as my love of black licorice: non-existent. I expect all work to be completed on-time, and I do not accept late-work for small assignments. For the five main assignments (Literacy Essay, Genre Catalog, Enthymeme, Two-Sided Argument, and the Big Idea Paper), I have a five-minute grace period, because I know that sometimes things don't submit, the Internet stops working, or the elevator breaks and you have to use the stairs. During those five minutes, please email me your work. However, after those five minutes, you will be docked 15% for each day the assignment is late. In order to make things fair for the other students in the class, I will stick very closely to this policy throughout the semester. 

Grading Policy: I have a one-week turnaround time for grading that I try my best to stick with. If I am running late in my grading, you'll be notified. I try to answer all emails within 24 hours Monday-Friday. If you are unhappy with the grade that you receive, I am more than happy to meet with you and talk it over. I request that you wait 48 hours before reaching out to me. I’ve found that waiting a few days takes a lot of the emotion out of the revision process. 

Extra Credit Policy: I believe in rewarding over-achievers! I randomly give out extra credit for work that goes above and beyond the call of duty. I also offer extra credit if you take one of the Five Main Assignments to the Research and Writing Center. Beyond that, if you need extra credit, please reach out to me and we will handle that on a case-by-case basis.  

Revision Policy: A major part of the writing process is revising our work. Because revision is a huge part of what we do, I will accept revisions if you receive an 80% or lower on any of the Five Major Assignments. You must contact me within the week of receiving your paper back from me. I will not accept revisions past that point. In addition, if you revise an assignment, you cannot get higher than an 80%. This keeps things fair for students who scored highly the first time, without being completely unmerciful. 

Since I want you to get the most from these revisions, I require the following: 

1. Read carefully my comments on your paper, and, if you would like, schedule a meeting with me to go over things more in-depth. 

2. Schedule a time to visit the Reading and Writing Center (this does not count toward the extra credit) and have them give you some guidance. Make sure to fill my email in (falessariah@gmail.com) at the consultation, so I can give you credit.

3. Rewrite the paper with significant revisions highlighted (with a highlighter or using mark-up on Google Docs/Microsoft Word). 

4. Write a reflection (between 300-500 words) describing (1) the changes you made, (2) how the changes make the paper more effective, and (3) how revising the paper will help you in future writing tasks, in this class or other classes. Please be specific in your reflection by providing details, referring to specific page numbers, and using language from class instruction. 

5. Submit both documents (the revised paper and the reflection) to my email (falessariah@gmail.com).

Attendance Policy: Emergencies, mistakes, and late-night road trips happen. Everyone is human! The English Department’s policy allows for three free absences. After those three absences, your final grade will be reduced by one-third (for example, B to a B-). If you miss more than 1/3 of a class, you will be considered absent. Since this is a college-level course, I expect you to act professionally; this includes being on-time and staying the entire class period. Please self-govern and be respectful of my time and your peers' time. If your tardies become excessive (i.e. happen each class period), I will reach out and discuss point deductions. 

Major Assignments: 

• Task One (5%): For our first assignment of the semester, you will reflect on your own definition of “literacy” in your homes growing up. In this two-page double-spaced personal essay, you will pick one of five potential angles (Language Use, Family Dialectics, The Language of Love, Family Fandoms, & Communicating with Style) to take in your essay. 

• Task Two (10%): Your job is to find an artifact from your intended field and write a 500-word analysis on some of the typical genre constraints and affordances of this genre. 

• Task Three (10%): This assignment is a mini-group presentation in-class. You will work in small groups to locate a clip from a well-known movie or TV show that shows reasoning based on the principles of the enthymeme. A group of your members will need to present a WATCO, a claim, a because clause, and briefly address the assumptions of the audience. 

• Task Four (10%): For task four, you and a partner will find a kairotic issue to write about. One person will write about one side of the argument, while the other person will write about the other side of the argument. While you will be turning in your own 5-6 page paper and you will be graded individually, your partner will help you make a nuanced, well-represented, and fair argument. 

• Task Five (30%): For your final paper, you will write about a project you can joyfully pursue and enthusiastically defend. You will create either a 5-6 page letter, a proposal, or a brochure or “media” kit that is tailored to a specific, explicitly stated audience, whose support you are seeking to bring your Big Idea to life. 

• Final Exam Presentation + Slides (15%): You will create a five-minute presentation (with a PowerPoint) to give in front of the class. You will be graded for your professionalism, clarity, and thoughtfulness as a rhetor. 

Weekly Assignments: 

• Each Friday at midnight, there will be a “Friday Foundation” due at midnight. These weekly assignments will correspond to the readings in our textbook, Make it Stick, as well as other readings throughout the semester. In order to get full points, you must think critically about the prompt and have an error-free response. These should not be first-drafts or hastily written. Rather, you should look at the prompt at the beginning of the week and think about it throughout the week. 

Other: (5%) 

• Participation: Each class period, you will have an “exit slip” that you will turn in for participation points. This will count as a way for me to mark participation and to check comprehension in the classroom. I will grade these exit slips twice in the semester. 

University Policies: 

Honor Code: In keeping with the principles of the BYU Honor Code, students are expected to be honest in all of their academic work. Academic honesty means, most fundamentally, that any work you present as your own must in fact be your own work and not that of another. Violations of this principle may result in a failing grade in the course and additional disciplinary action by the university. Students are also expected to adhere to the Dress and Grooming Standards. Adherence demonstrates respect for yourself and others and ensures an effective learning and working environment. It is the university's expectation, and every instructor's expectation in class, that each student will abide by all Honor Code standards. Please call the Honor Code Office at 422- 2847 if you have questions about those standards. 

Preventing & Responding to Sexual Misconduct: In accordance with Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, Brigham Young University prohibits unlawful sex discrimination against any participant in its education programs or activities. The university also prohibits sexual harassment including sexual violence-committed by or against students, university employees, and visitors to campus. As outlined in university policy, sexual harassment, dating violence, domestic violence, sexual assault, and stalking are considered forms of "Sexual Misconduct" prohibited by the university. University policy requires all university employees in a teaching, managerial, or supervisory role to report all incidents of Sexual Misconduct that come to their attention in any way, including but not limited to face-to-face conversations, a written class assignment or paper, class discussion, email, text, or social media post. Incidents of Sexual Misconduct should be reported to the Title IX Coordinator at t9coordinator@byu.edu or (801) 422-8692. Reports may also be submitted through Ethics Point at https://titleix.byu.edu/report or 1-888-238-1062 (24-hours a day). BYU offers confidential resources for those affected by Sexual Misconduct, including the university's Victim Advocate, as well as a number of non-confidential resources and services that may be helpful. Additional information about Title IX, the university's Sexual Misconduct Policy, reporting requirements, and resources can be found at http://titleix.byu.edu or by contacting the university's Title IX Coordinator. 

Student Disability: Brigham Young University is committed to providing a working and learning atmosphere that reasonably accommodates qualified persons with disabilities. A disability is a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities. Whether an impairment is substantially limiting depends on its nature and severity, its duration or expected duration, and its permanent or expected permanent or long-term impact. Examples include vision or hearing impairments, physical disabilities, chronic illnesses, emotional disorders (e.g., depression, anxiety), learning disorders, and attention disorders (e.g., ADHD). If you have a disability which impairs your ability to complete this course successfully, please contact the University Accessibility Center (UAC), 2170 WSC or 801-422-2767 to request a reasonable accommodation. The UAC can also assess students for learning, attention, and emotional concerns. If you feel you have been unlawfully discriminated against on the basis of disability, please contact the Equal Employment Office at 801-422-5895, D285 ASB for help. 

Plagiarism: Intentional plagiarism is a form of intellectual theft that violates widely recognized principles of academic integrity as well as the Honor Code. Such plagiarism may subject the student to appropriate disciplinary action administered through the university Honor Code Office, in addition to academic sanctions that may be applied by an instructor. Inadvertent plagiarism, which may not be a violation of the Honor Code, is nevertheless a form of intellectual carelessness that is unacceptable in the academic community. Plagiarism of any kind is completely contrary to the established practices of higher education where all members of the university are expected to acknowledge the original intellectual work of others that is included in their own work. In some cases, plagiarism may also involve violations of copyright law. Intentional Plagiarism-Intentional plagiarism is the deliberate act of representing the words, ideas, or data of another as one's own without providing proper attribution to the author through quotation, reference, or footnote. Inadvertent PlagiarismInadvertent plagiarism involves the inappropriate, but non-deliberate, use of another's words, ideas, or data without proper attribution. Inadvertent plagiarism usually results from an ignorant failure to follow established rules for documenting sources or from simply not being sufficiently careful in research and writing. Although not a violation of the Honor Code, inadvertent plagiarism is a form of academic misconduct for which an instructor can impose appropriate academic sanctions. Students who are in doubt as to whether they are providing proper attribution have the responsibility to consult with their instructor and obtain guidance. Examples of plagiarism include: Direct Plagiarism-The verbatim copying of an original source without acknowledging the source. Paraphrased Plagiarism-The paraphrasing, without acknowledgement, of ideas from another that the reader might mistake for the author's own. Plagiarism Mosaic-The borrowing of words, ideas, or data from an original source and blending this original material with one's own without acknowledging the source. Insufficient Acknowledgement-The partial or incomplete attribution of words, ideas, or data from an original source. Plagiarism may occur with respect to unpublished as well as published material. Copying another student's work and submitting it as one's own individual work without proper attribution is a serious form of plagiarism.