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Grading Policy & Procedures
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Course Requirements
I will not discuss individual student grades in class or in email. For questions about grades, students will need to attend my office hours or make an appointment with me. The grade breakdown is:
Assignment Papers (3 @ 100 pts each = 300 points)
Following the Manuscript Preparation guidelines (below), you will complete three formal assignment papers: an Illustration Paper, a Description Paper, and a Process Paper. Specific details on these assignments will be provided to you in class.
Preparation, Participation, & Attendance (10 points per class @ 16 classes, including final exam session = 160 points)
Because there is more to class than taking up space in a chair, being prepared for each class and actively participating in class- and small-group discussions, in-class writing, etc., is an important aspect of this course. Students boost their preparation and participation grade by attending all class sessions and workshops and doing ALL of the following in EVERY class:
--contributing regularly, enthusiastically, and respectfully to class discussion
--setting an agenda for class discussion and moving it forward, while giving others room to speak
--stating ideas clearly
--supporting opinions with specific evidence from the text, journal, or elsewhere
--following up on others’ ideas
--refining own ideas
--taking the lead in engaging others in discussion
--rephrasing accurately what others say
--asking genuine questions
Please keep in mind that you will lose points for failure to engage actively in class. If you are shy, self-conscious, or fearful, start by committing to contribute once per class session. As you feel more comfortable, participation will become more natural to you.
Minor Assignments (50 points)
▪ In-class Quick Writes, Homework Exercises, Peer Reviews, other activities.
Total Semester Points Possible: 510
Grading
Major assignments and final grades will follow an A-F grading system. Letter grades can be interpreted as follows: A-Excellent; B-Good; C-Average; D-Below Average (but passing); or F-Failure. To receive credit on a completed paper, you must have completed and submitted on time all of the pre-writing, planning, and draft work associated with that assignment.
Grading Scale (by %) (by points)
90-100 459-510 = A
80-89 408-458 = B
70-79 357-407 = C
61-69 311-356 = D
< 60 0-310 = F
A Word About Grading: I assume your written work represents your best thinking and writing about a selected subject. Your understanding of the subject, the language you choose, and individual style are what make your writing unique and interesting. These are the subjective elements of composition, and without them all essays would be the same—drab and boring. There are, however, various objective elements that govern the quality of any composition. These include, but are not limited to: grammar, mechanics, punctuation, documentation form, clarity, coherence, unity, thesis strength and placement, organization of information, development of point, strength of conclusion. In short, these and other elements control the overall quality, the “content” and “form” of written work. Because the focus of this course is writing according to MLA standards, your attention to MLA style conventions is mandatory. How well you use source information and how accurately you document your sources will also affect the overall quality of your work. I put a lot of time and consideration into grading your written work. Please read my commentary carefully, consult an MLA handbook to correct errors in grammar, mechanics, form and style, and if, after serious examination of your essay and my commentary, you have any questions about the grade you’ve received, please talk with me. Do so before the next assignment comes due. If I’m unavailable, seek help with improving your writing in The Writing Center. The bottom line on the final grade you receive in this course is that it reflects your successes, not my failures.
Late Assignments
As a rule, I do not accept late assignments. Absence is not an excuse for late work. If you must miss class when an assignment is due, turn it in prior to the due date. I may accept a late assignment, but only when you have an exceedingly good reason for being late; in those instances, work will be accepted only in the next class after the due date and will be penalized a full letter grade. In some instances, it is impossible for you to get the work in on time; please contact me if you think you have a good reason for being late. Please note, however, that dead relatives, running out of gas on the way to school, minor illnesses, hangovers, computer error/malfunction, quirky printers/running out of ink, and childcare issues are not considered good reasons. If you are absent on the day an assignment is due, you will not be allowed to submit it for grading. In respect for your conscientiousness to the schedule, I will make every attempt to have your papers graded and returned to you no more than one week from the due date.
Sharing Writing/Ideas
Writing is public. Even when writing is in draft form, professional writers circulate copies of what they are working on for feedback. Even when writing is meant to be private, it leaks into the public realm with startling regularity. For this reason, writers need to become comfortable sharing their writing with others and hearing, seeing, or reading reactions to it. In this class, you can expect to share your work with your peers, either face-to-face and one-on-one or, at times, with the entire class at once. This sharing is intended to provide you with models of effective writing, feedback to improve your writing, and give you experience offering feedback. It is imperative we all respect this process and come to class prepared to share writing and comment constructively.
Intellectual Property
All course materials and course content are the intellectual property of me, your classmates, and/or their respective authors. As a result, recording audio or video of the class, as well as the duplication of or forwarding of e-mail and Blackboard postings is prohibited without written permission. This means, for example, that you may not post materials from the class, audio of lectures/discussions, or video of the class to personal web pages, Facebook, YouTube, or any other electronic medium without the written consent of the instructor, and if appropriate, all relevant class members. Students may, however, request permission from the instructor to record course lectures/discussions for personal academic use.
Manuscript Preparation
Major writing assignments should be printed from a digital file (double-spaced) in black ink using a Times New Roman font (11- or 12-point). Use MLA guidelines for spacing, margins, heading, and page numbering. Your assignments do not need a title page, but the following information must appear in the upper left-hand corner of the first page: your name, my name, course name/number, date, and assignment. On all assignments, each page will have your last name and page number in the upper right-hand corner (this tends to trip people up; we’ll go over it together in class to alleviate frustration). Length of the essay will be determined by the nature of the assignment and by the choice of thesis, but all will satisfy the minimum of a well-developed, college-preparatory essay (app. 2 pages).
Saving and Printing Assignments
Print a hard copy of your work before closing the program you’re using. Always save your work on your hard drive and email it to yourself. You should also save your work on a separate flash drive.
Email Correspondence
Emails are written communication, and you should be aware of your audience. Craft a subject line that reflects the main purpose of your message, use appropriate language, and sign your name (first and last), as well as indicate your class by section, day, and time. I will make every effort to reply to emails in a timely fashion during the week; I do respond to student emails on weekends, especially when you’re polishing an assignment to be turned in the following week.
Professional Etiquette
You and your classmates are paying to be here and most of you are trying to get things right the first time, which can demand concentration. I am trying to help all of you. For these reasons, please be professional in all activities associated with this class. Ways to show courtesy to your classmates include:
--Coming to class on time
--Treating all class members with respect
--Listening attentively
--Not packing up early
--Bringing the needed materials
--Turning off/silencing & stowing cell phones
--Speaking distinctly
--Not eating in class
--Bringing all assignments, completed
--Not reading or working on material unrelated to class
--Using appropriate language
--Only having beverages that are capped
--Not wearing headphones/earbuds
--Doing your fair share in groups
--Not leaving class to use the restroom
Students who ignore these policies may be asked to leave class; they will also lose points from their final course grade.
- Students with legitimate reasons for leaving their cell phones on should see me before class.
- Please silence or turn off your phone when class begins. Unauthorized use of your phone during class, which includes ring tones, reading or sending a text/email, a tone that indicates an incoming text/email, a timer/alarm going off, or accessing a website that is unrelated to class discussion will result in the loss of 20 points from your next graded assignment. The penalty will be incurred for each infraction. We’ll discuss together the penalty you would like me to incur if I commit a phone infraction.
- Coming into the classroom late and leaving early during class (except in emergency situations) are behaviors that distract your instructor and your classmates and interrupt the discussion. Such behaviors are unacceptable in academic environments, since they suggest a student is indifferent to her/his own education and uncaring about her/his fellow classmates and theirs. Also, specific misconduct which may subject a student to disciplinary action includes the failure to comply with the verbal or written direction of college employees acting in the performance of their duties.
Please be aware of how your behavior impacts not only yourself, but also others around you. Also note that inappropriate classroom behavior can lead to you being marked absent even if you are here physically.
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