Please Make Sure That You Print Out a Hard Copy of the Complete Syllabus Posted in the Course.
“English 102 is the second half of the two-course sequence in English composition. Students continue to improve their academic reading and writing skills and critically examine issues raised by course texts. Course materials and the topics of study may vary in subject matter from one instructor to another. Course activities facilitate independent library and Web-based research. Students' work culminates in a final research paper.”
Required Texts:
How the Word is Passed by Clint Smith (ISBN978-0-316-49292-8)
Websites and assorted articles available through handouts, CCP Databases, or through Canvas.
CCP English Department Course Learning Outcomes for English 102:
Upon completion of English 102 (The Research Paper), students will be able to do the following:
1. Use texts ethically and effectively, through summary, paraphrase, quotation, and MLA or APA citation;
2. Identify a text’s thesis or evidence or both and evaluate through critical reading;
3. Write clear essays with well-developed arguments in response to assigned texts and located sources;
4. Formulate, review, and revise a research question and a research strategy;
5. Locate various, credible, authoritative sources up to an undergraduate reading level, demonstrating knowledge of how information is organized;
6. Answer a research question by using differing perspectives, ideas, or evidence from multiple sources in the form of a research paper.
Whether online or in person, the classroom must be a safe space for students to express their opinions and agree and disagree with each other and me respectfully and civilly. Inflammatory, profane, and/or insulting remarks or behaviors will not be tolerated. That said, materials and/or conversations about course content or local, national, and global news/issues may, at times, be overwhelming for students. You know what is upsetting to you. If you feel overwhelmed, please put yourself first. Feel free to leave the classroom or discussion and take care of yourself. When you feel able, rejoin us. (If you feel comfortable, send me an e-mail about how you felt overwhelmed and what I might be able to do to decrease those feelings.)
I believe that access to quality education is a human right and show prepare individuals for life-long learning. I am an educator and a community college professor because I find it rewarding and exciting to work with students to help them find their voices and passions. Together we will read and write about social, cultural, and political issues affecting our community, the nation, and the world. We will use various strategies to help all students think and write critically about the world around us. It is important to me that students are successful and feel valued, so that they can engage with the world and make it a better place.
Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, Antiracism, and Intersectionality Statement:
“I would like to acknowledge that we are all individuals with multiple sociocultural identities that intersect and shape our worldview through the lens of privilege and oppression. My commitment to you as your instructor is to minimize systemic forces of oppression within the classroom such as racism, ableism, classism, sexism, transphobia, and heterosexism in efforts to create a safe learning environment for all of us. I ask that you also join me in this commitment to foster respect for one another, enhance solidarity, and build community.”[1]
This course uses an unconventional approach to assessing student learning called specifications grading. Instead of grading each assignment on a measure of “quality,” everything will be assessed as Complete/Incomplete based on whether a student demonstrates the stated learning goals. Assignments will be “bundled into three tiers that reflect a hierarchy of learning goals for the course. Final grades (A, B, C, D, F) will be assigned based on which bundles of assignments a student satisfactorily completes—these final grades are not the goal or outcome of the course, but are designed to indicate which learning goals students demonstrate that they accomplished. Note that this is a new system for Dr. Murphey (and relatively new for CCP)—she agrees to take however much time is needed to ensure students understand the expectations and practices, and are poised to succeed to their desired level within the system. Her goal is to help each student achieve Complete levels of learning on all components of the course that they undertake, and to be transparent about expectations for learning throughout the semester.[2]
CCP Attendance Policy/Class Discussion/Participation:
Student’s participation in regularly scheduled sessions or classes is an essential part of the instructional process. Active class discussion/participation is required. In online courses, attendance is measured by active participation in class discussions. Less than the minimum class discussion will be seen as absence from class. All students are encouraged to post more than the minimum.
Students should be respectful of other people’s differing opinions and experiences. Do not use vulgar or profane language in class forums. This is especially important in an online class where we only have the text in front of us and not the nuanced mediums of facial expression and voice tone. (In the digital world, it is important to think before you post everything. A good rule of thumb: If you would not show or say something to your grandmother, your child, and/or your religious leader, don’t post it or say it.)
Formal standards of address are expected in my courses. E-mails should include introductory and closing salutations and names. (Dear Professor Murphey, Hi Dr. Murphey, Hello Derrick, Hi Shawna, and Best wishes, Mike; Yours, Dr. Murphey; Sincerely, Shawna; Regards, Derrick Students should use MyCCP e-mail (kmurphey@ccp.edu) instead of Canvas messaging or e-mail. (I do not use Canvas for e-mail.)
Abbreviations and text messaging abbreviations should not be used. (In particular, students should avoid using “ASAP” since the tone implied in commanding your instructor to do something as soon as possible is completely inappropriate.) Students are expected to use standard English in their communications. Despite the ease and apparent casualness of electronic communication, every e-mail a student sends is a documented communication, and students should take the time to think about their presentation of themselves in each communication.
All assignments in the course will be assessed as Complete/Incomplete, with specifications required for Complete articulated on each assignment. In general, Complete should not be viewed as “minimally competent” (as is typical for a C grade at CCP), but rather as a mark of having achieved the assignment’s learning goals and specifications (probably more like a B grade in an average CCP course). Either an assignment meets the goals, or it does not—there is no gradation of assessment.
The only letter grade that will be given in the course will be students’ final grades, and they will reflect the “bundles” of assignments and requirements students have satisfactorily accomplished in this class. That final letter grade is not an assessment of students’ intelligence, abilities, or value as people. Rather, the grade reflects what students demonstrate that they have learned in the course: no more, no less.
Built into this system is a good deal of choice as to how much students wish to learn and how hard students want to work to demonstrate and apply that learning. Students might choose that passing the course with a C is sufficient for their goals—it is perfectly appropriate and worthy of respect for students to make that choice, especially if it allows them to proactively allocate their time to other endeavors at CCP or beyond. If students strive to get an A in the course and maximize their learning, they should know that they are taking on that work and challenge themselves, and make sure they are in a personal and academic situation to achieve that level of engagement.[3]
English 102 Assignments
Thirteen Discussions plus introduction
Four Clint Smith text quizzes
Five Smith text and Slave Narrative assignments (1) paper topic, 2) draft (Turnitin/ChatGPT/Peer Review), 3) Copies of Peer Review, 4) Reflection assignment, 5) revised paper.
Nine Research Paper Assignments, 1) topic paragraph, 2) annotated bibliography, 3) 30 notes, 4) outline, 5) first draft (Turnitin/ChatGPT/Peer Review), 6) Copies of Peer Review, 7) Reflection assignment, 8) second draft, 9) revised final paper.
Tokens can’t change drafts of papers (short paper or Research paper) from incomplete to complete—but work on other assignments (absences/discussions, quizzes, paper drafting steps such as paper topic, bibliography, notes, outline).
A Bundle: 11 discussions and all assignments.
B Bundle: 10 discussions, three quizzes, research paper notes (3) or outline (4) can be skipped.
C Bundle: 9 discussions, two quizzes, research paper topic (1) or annotated bibliography (2) can be skipped, research notes (3) or outline (4) can be skipped.
D Bundle: The same as C Bundle but does not submit both drafts of the Research Paper but gets a complete on the Final Research Paper.
F Bundle: The same as C Bundle but does receive a complete on the Final Research Paper.
The FS grade as a final grade indicates that the student failed because he or she stopped attending in addition to not completing the final assignments of the course.
Since every element of the course is assessed on an all-or-nothing basis, it might be stressful to strive for Complete given the stakes for not meeting that threshold may be significant. To ease stress, to allow for flexibility, and most of all, to maximize opportunities for learning, every student starts the course with 3 virtual tokens that can be “exchanged” for some leniency or opportunities for revision. Using a token will allow a student to do one of the following:
1) Eliminate an absence from his/her/their attendance record;
2) Count an Incomplete assignment as Complete (excluding Paper Drafts and Final Paper Versions);
3) Revise and resubmit one of the assignments;
4) Submit an essay assignment up to 48 hours late.
Dr. Murphey will track a student’s tokens throughout the semester. Exchanging them for absences, missed or revised work, or lateness will happen at the end of the semester.
Academic Honest and Plagiarism (or Cheating):
Please refer to the Student Code of Conduct for information on Plagiarism and Cheating in the Student Handbook. All behavior engaged in with reference to this course is expected to adhere to acceptable forms of college behavior whether through e-mail, asynchronous chat, papers, exams, or the traditional classroom setting. This includes Academic Dishonesty and avoiding Plagiarism. Multiple tutorials presents the issues of plagiarism and give suggestions on how to avoid it.
Any student caught plagiarizing may be reported to Student Affairs for a hearing and disciplinary action.
Students do not have permission to use ChatGPT or any other Generative AI applications, mechanisms and/or platforms for assignments in this course—except when specifically asked to do so for editing and proof-reading purposes. (Using such applications, mechanisms, and/or platforms for generating the primary content of major assignments (the short paper and the research paper) will be seen as a breach of academic honesty (i.e., plagiarism).)
Community College of Philadelphia maintains a license agreement for an online plagiarism detection service, Turnitin.com. At the instructor’s discretion, students will be required to submit their writing assignments to the Turnitin service. By taking this course, students agree to submit their writing assignment to Turnitin.com for textual similarity review for the detection of plagiarism. Please note that students are not required to, and should not, submit any personally identifiable information to the Turnitin service. Prior to submitting any writing assignment to Turnitin.com, students must remove any personally identifiable information (PII) such as their name, J-number, or any other information which would make a student easily identifiable.
Writing assignments submitted to Turnitin.com may be stored in the Turnitin.com reference database solely for the purpose of detecting plagiarism of such writing assignments. Use of the Turnitin.com service is subject to the Usage Policy posted on the Turnitin.com site.
The last date to withdraw from your courses is Monday November 21, 2022. Though you will not earn an F is you withdraw, before you decide to withdraw from this or any other course think about the following information: a) the “W” will be reflected on your transcript permanently; b) “Ws” on transcripts may have a negative impact on acceptance into select programs at the college; c) transfer institutions may view “Ws” negatively, and it may go against your application; d) your financial aid may be impacted.
Starfish Connect Statement:
Starfish Connect is a communication tool for students and faculty. Through Starfish instructors can provide feedback to students about course progress. Through the term, you may receive progress e-mails regarding your academic performance. The e-mails are designed to be helpful and increase your success in the course. Be sure to open any e-mails students receive and follow the recommendations. Instructors may also recommend that you contact a specific campus resources, such as the Learning Lab or Counseling Center. If an instructor makes a referral, students may also be contacted directly by this campus service as a follow-up. Starfish also allows students to see their student support network in one place. To access Starfish Connect, simply log into Canvas and click on the link, “Starfish Connect.” Students can even set up a student profile. If students need assistance with Starfish Connect, they can e-mail questions to starfishconnect@ccp.edu.
Students who believe they may need an accommodation based on the impact of a disability should contact their instructors privately to discuss their accommodation letter and specific needs as soon as possible (preferably within the first week of class). If you need to request accommodations, bur do not have an accommodation letter, please contact the Center on Disability (BG-39) at 215-751-8050.
CCP’s Library has on-line databases open or accessible to all currently enrolled CCP students. Students may access CCP’s On-line Databases by logging on to their MyCCP account through the College’s Home Page (hyperlink) (https://my.ccp.edu/cp/home/loginf) and on the right hand side there a link to the Library and from the Library, to the Online Databases.
[1] M.A. Fuentes and J. Madsen. “Rethinking the Course Syllabus: Considerations for Promoting Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion.” Teaching of Psychology. Sept. 2020.
[2] Adapted from Jason Mittell’s “Rethinking Grading: An In-Progress Experiment.” 16 February 2016. https://justtv.wordpress.com/2016/02/16/rethinking-grading-an-in-progress-experiment/.
[3] Also adapted from Jason Mittell’s “Rethinking Grading: An In-Progress Experiment.” 16 February 2016. https://justtv.wordpress.com/2016/02/16/rethinking-grading-an-in-progress-experiment/.