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SENIOR INTERMEDIATE COMPOSITION

MS. ALVAREZ

RM. 305

COURSE SYLLABUS

sralvarez@capousd.org

Course Description

This senior English class prepares students for college-level composition.  The overall objective is to improve students' skills in the areas of academic reading and expository writing.  Students will mostly read non-fiction essays that are often topical and controversial.  Often the subject matter takes into account that students will probably be entering a college environment in less than a year's time; thus, students are expected to be mature and respectful as they interact with sophisticated texts. 

            While practicing writing, students should expect to: critically analyze ideas and arguments in texts or visual images; summarize information; synthesize ideas from several sources; generate an effective thesis; develop essays with well-chosen examples, logical arguments; use the internet to locate relevant sources; critically assess the authority and value of research materials; coherently document sources; edit for correct grammar, mechanics; revise for better clarity and style. While practicing critical reading, students should expect to: predict the intention of the author; understand separate ideas and see how they fit together as a whole; decipher the meaning of vocabulary in context; relate prior knowledge to new information; argue with the text; identify key examples to support writer's thesis; identify author's purpose.

 

Course Assignments

1)      Assignments will include journals, outlines, quick-writes, in-class essays, out-of-class essays, research-based essays, editing/revision work.

2)      In addition to formal, expository essays, students will practice timed in-class essays as well as informal writing.

3)      The amount of homework may vary throughout the semester, but students should plan on spending an average of 3-5 hours per week on English homework.

4)      All outside essays should be turned in on the due date.  If a student is absent, it is his/her responsibility to make sure the essay is delivered to me by the end of the school day.  Essays that are turned in on the following day will receive one grade lower.

5)      No essays will be accepted after the one-day grace period, unless there is an extraordinary situation that has debilitated the student. You may send your essay/assignment via e-mail only as a last resort. It is a student's responsibility to contact me regarding make up work (preferably during the tutorial period) and it must be completed within one week of absence.  

 

Additional Requirements

1)      Students will be expected to provide themselves with a dictionary and a Thesaurus.

2)      All formal essays must be typed and submitted to turnitin.com.  Hand written formal essay assignments will not be accepted.

3)      All students will be required to keep a writing journal.  Entries will be based on the activities assigned in class.

 

Classroom Conduct and Expected Behaviors

1)         Students must show a respect for the literature that is taught in the course.

2)         Students must show respect for the instructor and their classmates.

            3)              Students must come to class on time and prepared.

            4)             Follow the instructor's directions the first time they are given.         

5)              No eating, drinking or gum chewing is permitted in class.

6)             Use language that is appropriate to an academic environment.

            7)              Be prompt, prepared, polite, positive, and a full participant.

            8)             You will be permitted four hall passes per semester, any attempt to misuse the hall

pass (i.e. vending machines, talking to friends) will result in loss of the privilege.

 Tutorial Rules

            1)              Only students currently enrolled in the course may attend tutorial.

            2)             Tutorial is intended for use as additional instructional time for students with

                        questions and is extremely useful for students on group assignments or

                        consulting with the instructor.

            3)              It is expected that any conversation during tutorial will be directly connected to

                        course work.

 

 Plagiarism and Academic Honesty:

            All papers that are submitted are expected to be the student's own work. Information and/or opinions drawn from other sources are expected to be attributed to their respective sources and cited appropriately.  Students may be asked to submit work to a Turnitin.com, a plagiarism search engine.  A student who turns in work that is not his/her own will be referred to the site administration and the school's Academic Honesty Policy.

 

 

Grading/Make-up Policies

            1)             Grading

                        All scores will be placed on a 100 point scale.

                                    100-90 A, 89-80 B, 79-70 C, 69-60 D, 59 F

            2)             Make-up Work

NO LATE WORK WILL BE ACCEPTED.  Homework can be made up for any EXCUSED absence and it is due within the same number of days a student was absent.  It is the student's responsibility to see the instructor before school for make-up work. There is one day during each six-week period that is designated for make-up exams.  The testing will take place during tutorial only.  If a student fails to take their make-up exam at this time, their score for any untaken exam will become a "Zero".