| Meeting Times | Assignments | Classroom Policies |
| Course Description | Writing Labs | Campus Resources |
| Expectations | Grading |
Meeting Times
Class:
Tuesday and Thursday 11:00 AM – 12:15 PM
Lucie Stern 006
Writing Lab:
Monday 4:00-4:50 PM or 5:00 – 5:50 PM
(depending on which group you are assigned to)
Final Exam:
Saturday 5 May 9:00 AM – 12:00 PM
Lucie Stern 006
Top of page
Description
Mills Course Description and Goals
The main purpose of English 1 is to help you to communicate effectively in your academic, personal, professional, and public lives. Reading, speaking, and writing are intricately intermeshed parts of communication.
College requires what we term “academic writing,” which means different things to different people. This course engages in conversations about the use of “academic writing” and makes explicit these skills and how to leverage them in your academic career. On the one hand, the process of writing is epistemological — a way of coming to know. Writing can be a medium for self-reflection, self-expression, and communication, a means of coming-to-know for both the writer and reader. It is also a skill that one can learn and one that improves with practice. Your writing practice in this course will include analysis of your own writing and the writing of your peers. This class will hone your identity as a writer — one who writes in a variety of academic and non-academic contexts —and help you communicate with increasing ease and fluency in college, but also in the public rhetorical spaces of work, activism, and the social.
This class does not only make you write, it requires that you think critically — a skill you already possess; you would not have made it to college otherwise. Together, through our collective reading, writing, and speaking, I hope we can become more critically conscious of both ourselves and the world we inhabit.
Top of page
Expectations
The success of this course depends on active participation and rigorous engagement. I expect you to read the assigned texts thoroughly, to prepare your writing assignments carefully, and to participate fully, energetically, and respectfully in class discussions. Writing for the academy can be challenging. Our job in class is to sort through questions and ideas together, and to provide a respectful, helpful, constructive audience for one another.
Class attendance is mandatory, and tardiness is disruptive. I expect you to respect the integrity and quality of your own work and the integrity and quality of others’ work. Plagiarism is unacceptable and insults you as well as your peers.
And finally, I expect you to be absolutely respectful in your treatment of one another. The course invites us to try out intellectual ideas, to learn new cultures and to remember that none of us have all the knowledge, and to act with kindness is key; ad hominem attacks will not be tolerated, nor will behaviors that suggest or display disrespect or intolerance. Our class discussions may be filled with spirited disagreement; that is how we will learn from each other. As my colleague Kara Wittman puts it, “do not mistake disagreement for dislike, and do not make disagreement into disrespect.” If you are having difficulties in this class of any sort please come and talk to me right away.
The course includes readings that are difficult at every level; I expect us to approach these texts critically and to read them thoughtfully and with care. Both fury and delight can be excellent fodder for argument and insight when pushed and parsed with precision.
Top of page
Assignments
Whether you are reading, writing, speaking aloud, texting an emoji, selecting an Instagram hashtag, or avoiding eye contact with a stranger on BART, you are engaging in some form of rhetoric. The assignments in this course will ask you to consider ALL elements of a given rhetorical situation in order to master the art of communicating effectively.
ALL assignments, including essay drafts, must be submitted using Google Drive, a ubiquitous tool found in nearly every academic and professional office. You must also bring TWO hard copies of each assignment to class. If we are doing a peer review exercise, please bring SIX hard copies to class.
Detailed guidelines for each assignment will be provided in class, and you will have an opportunity to ask questions and discuss expectations.
Assignments will include:
You will also be graded on participation. Work submitted late may affect your grade.
Top of page
Short Writing Exercises
Throughout the semester, you will complete a series of short exercises that ask you to analyze the compositional elements of assigned readings, your own writing, and/or the writings of your peers. Some exercises will be completed in class, while others will be assigned for homework.
Top of page
Essays
A total of four short essays will be required for this course:
- Literacy Narrative (2-3 pages)
- Object Essay (4 pages)
- Audience Essay (4 pages)
- Rhetorical Project Written (4 pages)
Because writing is a process and not simply a shiny, final product, each of your essays must be submitted as part of a portfolio which includes all drafts, peer review, and a record of your revisions. As a result, failure to include them will impact your final grade.
All essays must be formatted according to the MLA Style Guide.
Top of page
Rhetorical Project
The culminating project for this course will be a Rhetorical Project, in which you will demonstrate your mastery of rhetorical analysis through public speaking and visual media aids. You must prepare a visual presentation using the technology of your choice (PowerPoint, Prezi, Keynote, etc.) to articulate a logical, persuasive, and well-reasoned argument to our class.
Your Rhetorical Project should include the following elements:
- A bibliography of 5 sources, 3 of which you plan to incorporate into your work.
- Multiple drafts of your 4 page project proposal. The proposal should indicate the subject of your project, an idea or argument or curiosity you wish to investigate, and 3-5 possible sources that will help you craft a thoughtful, interesting, and relevant discussion of your subject.
- An 8-10 minute presentation that you will share with the class using the technology of your choice (PowerPoint, Prezi, Keynote, etc.). Presentations will take place during our scheduled Final Exam time — I consider this a time for celebration and will bring beverages and snacks for you to enjoy. Feel free to bring anything else you’d like!
Top of page
Participation
You will also be graded on participation based on the following:
1) Showing up — you may miss two classes over the semester without it affecting your grade; you are responsible for turning in the work for these classes on time [see policy on late work], and you may not be able to make up classroom work unless you have an excused absence;
2) Being prepared — having read the material thoughtfully, completed the work for and in class with care; and
3) Participating in class — sharing verbally when called upon, volunteering to speak and speaking when not called upon, thoughtfully listening to and engaging others’ speech and their written work.
Top of page
LATE WORK
Turning your work in late does not serve you well because you will be crushed under an avalanche of tasks; it is always better to turn something in that is adequate, rather than wait to finish something you think is terrific. This is school! The world will not end if your assignment is just ok, not amazing! So my policy on late work is designed for your benefit: late work goes down a third of a grade per calendar day it is late.
Short writing assignments will not be accepted at all after three days from the due date unless you have a verified reason.That said, life shows up. So, you have ONE free (up to three day) extension on one short assignment, no questions asked, no penalties.
Peer Review Drafts may not be made up, unless you have a verified excuse (because you are letting down yourself and your friends). BUT if you do not have a draft, you can still get partial credit from coming and reviewing! It is much better than no credit at all!
Final Drafts go down one third of a grade for each calendar day they are late and are not accepted at all after one week past the due date.
Top of page
Writing Labs
Top of page
Grading
| Short Writing Assignments | 20% |
| Literacy Narrative | 5% |
| Object Essay | 10% |
| Audience Essay | 15 % |
| Rhetorical Project | 20% |
| Writing Support Lab | 20 % |
| Essay Drafts and Revision | 5% |
| Participation | 5% |
Top of page
Classroom Policies
Gender Identities
I strive not to make assumptions about people’s gender identities. Please let me know if there is a name other than the one listed on the registration roster that you wish to be known by, or if you wish to be referred to by a particular set of pronouns.
Due Date Extensions
A request for an extension must be made prior to the due date. All extensions are granted or denied at the discretion of the instructor.
Incompletes
Students qualify for incomplete grades only if they have completed 2/3 of the total coursework and are responding to unforeseen circumstances. In this class, students must complete all work except the final paper to qualify for consideration of an incomplete.
Students who have not completed substantial coursework should not assume that they will be “given” an incomplete at the end of the semester.
Academic Integrity
Students shall honestly prepare assignments and submit them at the time and in the manner specified by the instructor. The content of all submitted assignments is assumed to represent the student’s own work unless otherwise specified.
Plagiarism is a serious breach of academic trust. For purposes of the Mills College Honor Code, plagiarism is defined as intentionally or knowingly using someone else’s ideas, words, and/or thoughts without properly crediting the source. All work for which a source is not cited is presumed to be that of the writer.
If the Academic Integrity Standards described above are violated, the instructor will decide on an appropriate response that may include the assignment of extra work, lowering grades on a particular assignment, failure of the course, and/or the report of the incident to the Provost and Dean of the Faculty for further sanction.
Top of page
Campus Resources
Student Access and Support Services (SASS)
Every effort will be provided to make this class universally accessible. Though reasonable accommodation is the legal right of people with disabilities, this course is designed to be universally accessible for students regardless of disability or other individual categorization. If you anticipate issues related to the format or requirements of the course, please meet with me. I would like us to discuss ways to ensure your full participation in the course. If you determine that formal, disability related accommodations are necessary, it is important that you register with Student Access and Support Services (SASS) so that accommodations can be arranged for this course and your future courses here at Mills. Please call (510) 430-2130 for an appointment.
Counseling and Psychological Services
Mills has a Counseling Center staffed by professional counselors from varied ethnic, educational, and experiential backgrounds. The Center offers group and individual therapy as well as crisis prevention. Mills students are eligible for up to ten counseling sessions each academic year free of charge. Health and counseling workshops on topics such as stress management, body image, and healthy relationships are also offered, as well as referrals to off-campus resources for ongoing psychological services. Visit Health Programs and Counseling and Psychological Services in the Cowell Building for more information (health@mills.edu).
The LAB and The Writing Center
The Mills LAB (or Center for Learning, Advisement, and Balance) is housed on the first floor of Carnegie Hall and offers a variety of services to support students with academic success.
The Writing Center, staffed by helpful graduate and undergraduate students approved by the Mills English department, provides free tutorial sessions in which you may receive help with a paper at any stage of the writing process from brainstorming ideas to working with thesis development and organization. For further information and/or to make an appointment, visit the Writing Center online.
Rhetoric and Composition 