Austin Community College
Department of Composition and Literary Studies
English 1301: Composition I (Fall 2025)
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This document applies only to the specific course section(s) indicated below. It supplements the Departmental Syllabus, which applies to all sections of this course at ACC, and which covers information including the course catalog description, learning goals, and department-wide policies. All Departmental Syllabi can be viewed on the Composition and Literary Studies Department website.
SECTION INFORMATION
Section Number: 026; Synonym: 20821
Section Number: 057; Synonym: 20849
Modality/Section Type: Online/Asynchronous (Service Learning)
INSTRUCTOR INFORMATION
Associate Adjunct Professor Becky Villarreal
Office Hours: Tuesdays, 5-7 p.m. (Zoom 6-7 p.m.; Email 5-6 p.m.)
ACC Email: bvillarr@austincc.edu (preferred contact)
The Departmental Syllabus is linked above and supplements this Section Syllabus by explaining learning objectives, requirements, and policies that apply to all sections of across Austin Community College.
REQUIRED TEXTS & MATERIALS
This is a ZTC (Zero Textbook Costs) section. In place of required textbooks, all textbook materials needed for the class will be available online to students via Blackboard free of charge. Students may print copies of the resources but will be responsible for printing costs.
INSTRUCTIONAL METHODOLOGY
Students will write four essays and three journals over the course of the semester, for a total minimum of 4000 words (including revisions and short writing assignments); complete quizzes and tutorials, submit outlines, peer edit in the discussion board, participate in Zoom meetings; and read and watch online lectures.
DISTANCE EDUCATION INFORMATION
This is an asynchronous course and all materials are housed in Blackboard. Although this course is asynchronous, I hold office hours weekly via Zoom.
The Zoom office-hour meetings in this course are held Tuesdays at 6 p.m. During our Zoom sessions, I encourage all students to unmute and engage with me and your fellow classmates, reveal your faces (or upload a profile image that captures your essence), and provide your gender pronoun preferences if you wish-- all this will help me and the other students get to know you. If I provide an opportunity to review one of your papers during a Zoom session, by all means, take advantage.
If there is time before or after our Zoom meeting, I can Zoom with students privately by appointment. You must request such a meeting beforehand (via email), not during the Zoom class session.
If you have any problems with Blackboard, Zoom, or ACC email, call the Help Desk at: 512-223-4636.
ASSIGNMENT INFORMATION
Lectures: Each student will be required to study the assigned lectures for the course. The quizzes, discussions, journals, terminology, and papers are all focused on the lectures.
Quizzes and Tutorials: The quizzes will review content and assess what you have learned (lectures, terms, grammar, punctuation, MLA, etc.). The tutorials are required, and the results will be attached to specific assignments.
Essays and Journals: There are four major papers (3500+ words) and three journals (1000+ words) assigned for this class, totaling 4500+ words. Click here to read my paper guidelines and policies. Each paper is assessed based on the criteria set by this grading rubric.
Outlines: Before beginning each paper, you will need to complete an outline that will be graded. Once I have provided feedback for your outline, you can begin drafting your paper.
Discussion Board: All discussion board assignments involve peer editing and will be graded. Don't begin peer editing until I have approved your outline.
Attendance: Zoom meetings are required for the online class, whether asynchronous or synchronous. If you cannot attend the weekly meeting(s), you must watch the recorded session(s) in the Zoom folder in Blackboard.
Conferences: All students who are unable to attend and turn on their cameras during one of the first three Zooms (I will take attendance in the last ten min. of class) must meet with the professor in a 5-minute conference before the hard due date noted in the schedule. If you do not have an ACC ID card, you must visit the nearest ACC campus to update your Student ID card with your photo prior to attending the Zoom or scheduling the conference (email me for alternatives if you do not live near an ACC campus). The professor reserves the right to subject students to another conference in the event of suspected academic dishonesty, plagiarism, or improper AI usage. Students who do not comply with my conference requirement will be subjected to withdrawal. As long as you are maintaining a B-average or higher and turning in assignments on time, you will be exempted from the second conference.
Service Learning: Students can earn five extra credit points for Journal One after completing service-learning orientation (attach proof when you submit Journal One), and then an additional ten EC points will be added to the final paper after participating in two hours or more of an approved Service Learning Activity, which must be completed before the paper is due (proof must be attached underneath the WC for Paper Four). If you participate in six or more hours of service learning (before the last week of class) and/or present in the showcase, you will be exempt from Journal Three (proof of your service/participation must be provided in the Journal Three submission portal).
Grades and Feedback: It's important to keep up with your Grades and read the detailed feedback for Journals, Quizzes, Outlines, and Papers by clicking the Gradebook in the top Blackboard menu and then viewing the Results (to see the graded rubric and my detailed feedback for outlines, papers, and journals). For most written assignments, you are allowed to make corrections and receive extra points.
Announcements and Messages: Check the Announcements and Messages in the top Blackboard menu daily.
The course is divided into several learning modules:
Orientation and Introduction to College-Level Writing
Expressive Narration Paper (Paper One)
Profile Paper (Paper Two)
Proposal Argument Research Paper (Paper Three)
Rhetorical Analysis Paper (Paper Four)
Reflection
GRADING SYSTEM
The percentages below are based on a 1000-point system:
Papers-- 40% (100 points max each)--400
Four Outlines -- 14% (35 points max each)--- 140
Three Journals -- 15% (50 points max each)--150
Five Discussion Boards-- 15% (30 points max each)--150
Four Quizzes-- 12% (30 points maximum each)--120
In-Person or Zoom Conferences--4% (40 points max)-- 40
Grading Scale
A-- 90-100%
B-- 80-89%
C-- 70-79%
D-- 60-69%
F- 59% or Below
CLICK HERE TO ACCESS THE COURSE OUTLINE AND CALENDAR
ATTENDANCE / PARTICIPATION
For online classes, you must complete the orientation quiz and the intro thread by the deadline in the course schedule in order to be counted present that first week.
Attendance is mandatory. In my online courses, you are required to either attend or watch the recordings of all Zoom meetings.
WITHDRAWALS
If you do not attend or participate in the first week of class (or the first few days in short semesters), you will be withdrawn for non-attendance.
Please do not withdraw from the course without first talking to me. We can discuss a plan of action to ensure your success in the class. If you are thinking about withdrawing, I will insist that you first visit with an academic advisor, the financial aid office, and/or an academic coach to discuss your options.
If you are failing the course and there is no pathway to success, I reserve the right to withdraw you from the class. If you do not want to be withdrawn for whatever reason (such as financial aid, veterans benefits, or graduation), it is your responsibility to let me know early in the semester. Check the Academic Calendar to view the final withdrawal date for this course.
MISSED EXAMS & LATE WORK
Refer to the soft due dates in the schedule to stay on track. In this class, I generally give students a one-week minimum grace period to complete all assignments, except for the first and last week of class.
Papers, Journals, and Outlines: After the hard due date has passed (one week after the soft due date), you will lose ten points for each day after that date, not to exceed more than a 40 percent deduction of the total points possible. However, if the assignment is not completed until the last week of class, you cannot earn more than 50 percent of its original value. You must post your outline BEFORE posting your paper to the discussion board or for a grade and give me time to provide feedback. Otherwise, you will receive a zero--no exceptions.
Discussion Boards: After the hard due date (one week after the soft due date), you are ineligible to receive credit (because you were not part of the discussion).
Quizzes: I will record a zero after the grace period is up, and then update once the assignment is completed by manually entering the grade, as long as the past due assignment is not submitted during the final week of the course.
Conferences: I will record a zero after the hard due date is up, and then update once the conference takes place (with a 50 percent penalty) by manually entering the grade. Students who do not comply with my conference requirement will be subject to withdrawal.
All work must be completed by the last day of the course-- no exceptions!
INCOMPLETES
Except in very rare situations, I do not give incompletes. You must be passing the class at the time of your request. I will review each case to determine whether I feel an incomplete is warranted or not. In general, however, barring extraordinary circumstances, and unless you have completed 75% of the coursework on time (and the drop date has passed), I will not grant you an incomplete. Refer to the soft due dates in the syllabus to stay on track.
ACADEMIC MISCONDUCT & PLAGIARISM
All acts of plagiarism and scholastic dishonesty, including having someone complete assignments for you, are violations of academic integrity subjected to disciplinary action.
Plagiarism is intentionally or knowingly representing the words or ideas of another as one's own.
Self-Plagiarism, which is submitting a paper you completed in another class (K-12 or college), is also forbidden.
If you plagiarize and it is unintentional, you will be given a warning. If you are asked to choose another topic or rewrite the paper, the professor is obligated to report your misconduct to the chair, dean, and Student Affairs. After the second incident, you will face disciplinary action. However, if you commit an act of plagiarism or scholastic dishonesty and it is intentional, you could receive an F in the course and face serious disciplinary action.
All students who are unable to attend and turn on their cameras during one of the first three conferences (I will take attendance in the last ten min. of class) will meet with the professor in a 5-minute conference early in the semester. If you do not have an ACC ID card, you must visit the nearest ACC campus to update your Student ID card with your photo prior to attending the Zoom or scheduling the conference (email me for alternatives if you do not live near an ACC campus). The professor reserves the right to subject students to another conference in the event of suspected academic dishonesty, plagiarism, or improper AI usage. Students who do not comply with my conference requirement will be subjected to withdrawal.
USE OF ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE
Artificial Intelligence (AI) cannot be used to write papers, create presentations, or complete graded coursework. Any improper generative use of AI-programs, including but not limited to ChatGPT or DALL-E, is subject to due process and disciplinary action. However, the instructional use of AI programs that assist in translating, formatting your papers, improving word choices, and utilizing proper grammar and spelling, such as Grammarly, Quillboth, Gemini, and Packback, is encouraged (please see the Department Syllabus for English 1301 for more information).
Disclaimer: In this course, we will be dealing with controversial and sensitive subject matter, so that all students exit the course with the ability to communicate effectively and use reliable sources to think critically. With that said, the topics in the assignments and papers, as well as the lively banter in discussion boards and Zoom meetings, are not an endorsement of the professor's viewpoints.
Updated: Fall 2025