ENGLISH 103: Advanced Composition & Critical Thinking
ENGLISH 103: Advanced Composition & Critical Thinking
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ENGLISH 103 -- MODESTO JUNIOR COLLEGE, SPRING 2025 -- WOHLSTADTER
My goal is to help make your experience of our class valuable to your education and relevant to your everyday life.
Please look over the details of our syllabus and let me know if you have any questions or concerns. I typically respond quickly to emails, pretty much always within 24 hours, though often within just a few hours.
I look forward to working with you! I hope you enjoy the course!
Instructor Contact Info
Instructor Contact Info
Dr. Jason Wohlstadter
Office: 260E Founders Hall
Office Phone: (209) 575-6180
Email: wohlstadterj@yosemite.edu
Secure Your Spot in Our Class (Even If You're Enrolled)
For our class roster to accommodate students best, it's essential to determine, very early on, if space is available for any students looking to add. Therefore, our class utilizes a "First-Day Attendance Plan."
First-Day Attendance Plan
When students are absent on the first day of class, they risk being dropped. Since the spots of enrolled students who don't show up on the first day may go to students on the waitlist, please be certain to attend our first class meeting (or contact me beforehand) to secure your spot.
Course Overview Video & Course Description
Course Overview Video & Course Description
English 103 is an advanced composition course that focuses on the techniques and principles of argumentation and offers instruction in analytical evaluation of texts, research strategies, and proper documentation. The course examines style, diction, inference, evidence, reasoning, and rhetorical strategies of written argument.
Course Learning Outcomes
Course Learning Outcomes
Students successfully completing ENGL 103 should be prepared to
Analyze and evaluate the major parts of an argument such as claim, support, and counterargument.
Fairly and effectively summarize argumentative texts, frame quotations, and clearly distinguish one’s opinions from others’ views while avoiding plagiarism.
Compose grammatically and logically proficient argumentative essays that incorporate an established thesis, support, counterargument, and refutation.
Identify logical fallacies in various texts and demonstrate awareness of logical fallacies in one’s own writing.
In-Person Learning
In-Person Learning
It's great we have an opportunity to work together face-to-face (F2F) in the classroom! Our class thrives on F2F participation, and regular in-person attendance will be required to be successful; however, if any issues occur, I will try to be as flexible as possible because our well-being is our main concern. None of us have a crystal ball, and I understand that unforeseen issues sometimes occur.
So please be mindful of your health (please rest at home if you have any signs of illness), and please get in touch as soon as possible should a situation arise.
Support
Support
No one succeeds all on one's own.
Everyone benefits from some support from time to time.
Take advantage of free resources for success.
Below are some suggestions:
Contact Me
My office hours are as follows:
In-Person: Tues & Thur (11 am-12:15 pm). These are in-person, face-to-face hours at my East Campus office (260E Founders Hall).
Online: Mon & Wed (11 am-12:15 pm). These are online hours. You can see me via Zoom, or you can email or call and expect quick replies during that time, though reply times will vary based on the volume of requests.
Zoom appointments are also available by request. For more information, see our Canvas home page.
The MJC library has face-to-face visiting hours, and this link has chat, text, call, and Zoom options to help with research and citation
Use Canvas Discussion Forums
Take advantage of our Canvas module that has an open space for "Course Q&A Discussion" and a virtual "Student Lounge."
Contact Classmates
Build a student support network by connecting with classmates.
Access Canvas Help & MJC Services
See the end of our syllabus for details about the Canvas Help Desk and MJC Support Services.
Course Theme
Course Theme
What We Want & Why We Want It: Analyzing Our Aspirations & Desires
What We Want & Why We Want It: Analyzing Our Aspirations & Desires
Unit 1: Jobs
Weeks 1-4
Making a Personal Argument for What You Want
Unit 2: Justice
Weeks 5-8
Examining and Explaining an Academic Argument for a Cause
Unit 3: Possessions
Weeks 9-13
Studying Rhetoric in Advertisements (Analyzing and Evaluating Visual Arguments)
Unit 4: Power
Weeks 14-16
Studying Logical Fallacies in Political Speeches (Analyzing and Evaluating Verbal Arguments)
Required Reading Materials
Required Reading Materials
Print copies of Richard Rothstein’s The Color of Law: A Forgotten History of How Our Government Segregated America (ISBN #978-1631494536) are available for purchase at MJC’s East Campus Bookstore (and through online retailers).
Important Note: A print copy of this book is required.
Success Tip: Have the book before the end of week four.
All the rest of the reading for this course is either linked inside the course itself or connected to a homework assignment involving online research.
Basic Grading Information
Basic Grading Information
Course Grades are determined by five weighted parts: our four essays (one essay is the final) and "other work," which refers to all our other coursework and activities, such as quizzes, peer review, group work, and other brief assignments. More details about grades are listed in our Canvas rubrics.
Essay 1 = 15%, Essay 2 = 25%, Essay 3 = 25%, Final = 20%, Other Work = 15%.
Course Grades: 100-89.5% is an A; 89-79.5% is a B; 79-69.5% is a C; 69-59.5% is a D; Less than 59.5% is an F.
Extra Credit
Extra Credit
A little extra credit is offered on occasion, but it mainly serves students who have missed or submitted late some of our minor assignments. Extra credit in this class only adds points to the "other work" category, and if points exceed the maximum of that category, they cannot be transferred to essays. While extra credit can definitely boost the "other work" category, Canvas limits the maximum of that category to 100% when we reach the end of the semester
Class Time, Class Tools, & Turning in Assignments
Class Time, Class Tools, & Turning in Assignments
As we know, this is an in-person class that meets twice a week.
Being in the classroom together will allow us to share ideas and learn from one another while discussing class materials.
Our in-person interactions are likely to make our class materials more memorable and meaningful as we develop a sense of class community throughout the semester.
However, we'll also be using online tools (such as Canvas) when they're convenient for us.
For example, our use of Canvas will allow you to
access readings, class information, and tips,
take quizzes without in-class time limits,
submit work along a more flexible timeline.
Taking advantage of Canvas for certain tasks means that we'll be able to maximize our time together in the classroom. It also means you'll have more flexibility with completing assignments. For instance, without Canvas, we'd be limited to only two days a week to submit our essays (e.g., Tuesdays or Thursdays), but with Canvas, we can set up wider windows of opportunity where a paper could be submitted, say, any time before 11:59 pm on a Monday night (rather than at specific class time such as Thursday morning).
The Pace of the Class
The Pace of the Class
Be prepared for about 10 hours of work per week in this course. A three-unit college "lecture" course, by virtue of what is known as the Carnegie Unit, mathematically establishes a standard amount of work expected from a student (and the instructor) in a 16-week course.
If you ever find yourself falling behind, please don't hesitate to contact me.
Think of me as your coach: I'm here to support you, and often that means being flexible, but I'm also here to support your success, and sometimes that means being firm with policies and deadlines to encourage you to stay on track. I want you to be connected with the course, and I want to see you fly across the finish line at the end!
"Other Work": Assignments That Help Prepare Us for Essays
"Other Work": Assignments That Help Prepare Us for Essays
This section addresses "Other Work," such as quizzes, group work, peer review, and brief submitted homework assignments. For information about essays, please see the next section.
Quizzes: Quizzes are included in this class to help ensure learning is happening along the way. They're incorporated into Canvas to enhance the learning process. More than one attempt (and sometimes unlimited attempts) is allowed because, more than anything else, the quizzes are there to promote learning. Because it helps the class to take quizzes on time, late quizzes will earn *two points less* than quizzes taken on time, and late quizzes are only eligible for credit if they are taken no more than *two days late.* Since the score adjustment of late quizzes happens manually rather than automatically, please note that it will take a little time before the score adjustments are processed in the grade book.
Group Work: Group work is time sensitive. At some point this semester, everyone will be a "Team Leader" of a small group project. When that time comes, you'll want everyone in your group to share their contributions on time. A lot of group work happens inside the classroom during class time; however, whenever group work is assigned as out-of-class homework, it's expected to be submitted on time (usually through Canvas) to help the group and to earn credit.
Peer Review: Peer Review is a kind of group discussion project centered around drafts of essays. Like all group discussions, it's time sensitive, so much so that rough drafts and peer reviews need to be submitted on time to earn credit. More details for each review session will be explained in class.
Brief Submitted Homework Assignments: This includes any brief work that isn't one of the activities above or a graded essay. The message you send me during Week 1 about yourself and your job idea, for example, is a brief homework assignment. Expectations for these, including matters of timeliness, are posted in Canvas with the rubrics accompanying them when they are assigned.
Late Essay Policy
Late Essay Policy
One essay can be submitted late--without penalty--but that one late essay must be received within 72 hours (three days) of the essay's due date, and this policy only includes our first three essays, not the final.
If a late essay doesn't fit the description above, it will still be accepted--up to two weeks late--but students need to notify me that I'll be receiving the work late, and it will be graded accordingly:
Essays that are less than one week late, automatically score ten points less than if they were on time.
Essays that are more than one week late, automatically earn less than a passing mark (which is less than 70).
Essays that are more than two weeks late are generally not accepted, which results in a zero, so students should contact me (the sooner the better) if a situation prevents a late essay from making the deadline to see if any partial credit is still available.
Essay Revision Policy
Essay Revision Policy
Doing revisions for a higher mark can be a great learning experience, and this class offers certain opportunities for it, but all of the following limitations apply:
Revisions are limited to the essays that benefit from it the most: the papers that weren't yet passing (but that were at least 70% of the required word count) when originally submitted.
If the essay you submitted already earned a passing mark, I encourage you to move forward and focus on our upcoming work.
Only one essay--either Essay 1 or Essay 2--can be revised, not both.
Revisions are due within two weeks of grades being posted.
The essays we complete toward the end of the semester--Essay 3 and the Final--are not eligible for revision.
Essay Due Dates
Essay Due Dates
Essay 1: Due by 11:59 pm Wednesday, Feb. 12
Essay 2: Due by 11:59 pm Monday, Mar. 10
Essay 3: Due by 11:59 pm Thursday, Apr. 10
According to the MJC Finals Schedule, in-class finals are as follows:
Section 3301: Tues, Apr. 29, 7:00-9:50 am.
Section 3305: Tues, Apr. 29, 10:00 am-12:50 pm.
Important Administrative Dates:
Last day to drop without a W: Jan. 26
Last day to withdraw (and receive a W): Apr. 7
Note: The teacher holds the right to alter the schedule and/or syllabus if the teacher sees such adjustments as serving the best interests of the class and its learning outcomes. Any changes would be announced in class and through Canvas.
Attendance & Other Keys to Success
Attendance & Other Keys to Success
Attendance
Attendance
Your attendance benefits you and your classmates. Given the challenging content of this course, your attendance is essential to your success. Students who miss class, arrive late, or leave early are more likely to fall behind. Regular attendance not only satisfies college and state requirements but also improves individual learning and our class learning environment.
Students with more than four absences may be dropped from this course.
Arriving to class late or leaving class early counts as half of an absence.
Students who are absent, late, or leave early, have the responsibility to find out missed class information.
First-Day Attendance: When students are absent on the first day of class, they risk being dropped. Since the spots of enrolled students who don't show up on the first day may go to students on the waitlist, please be certain to attend our first class meeting (or contact me beforehand) to secure your spot.
Accommodations for unavoidable absences: Please contact me as soon as you can, in advance if possible, whenever you become aware of any circumstances (such as illnesses or emergencies) that may prevent you from attending class and participating. I'm glad to help whenever I can.
Class Conduct & "Netiquette"
Class Conduct & "Netiquette"
Students at MJC are expected to adhere to its Standards of Student Conduct, which include Academic Honesty. For details on both of those important topics, please see the links below under "Academic Honesty" & "Avoiding Plagiarism."
Please help us stay focused and connected as a group in class: Remove headphones and keep electronic devices silent and out of sight.
To minimize distractions, laptops are only allowed in the classroom with permission, and permission depends on evidence that laptops are necessary for our classwork and are not distracting others.
We strive to create a safe learning environment for everyone, so please follow "The Core Rules of Netiquette" when interacting online with me and your fellow students. Note: you can find detailed explanations of our list of "The Core Rules of Netiquette" posted in our Course Introduction module on our Canvas site.
Improper conduct in any course-related communication will not be tolerated. If you are experiencing a communication problem with another student, please bring it to my attention.
Class Participation
Class Participation
One of the best things about in-person learning is active student participation.
Please contribute to our class environment by sharing your views in our class discussions and by being mindful of others' views.
Even though input is always appreciated, please note that if individual students have already been generous in sharing ideas on any given day, there are times when those students will be praised but passed over to promote a greater diversity of voices.
All students will be invited to share ideas in our class.
Academic Integrity
Academic Integrity
At MJC, we expect academic honesty and integrity in all of the work you submit. This means completing your own, original work for every assignment.
Course policy: Any assignment where academic dishonesty is involved may receive an F (zero points), which can result in the student failing the course and a report being filed.
For additional information, see the link below from MJC's Office of Student Conduct:
Avoiding Plagiarism
Avoiding Plagiarism
In this course, plagiarism detection software such as Turnitin may be used on assignments you submit.
What Is Plagiarism?
Plagiarism includes copying writing or even ideas from the published or unpublished work of another without full, clear acknowledgment of the source.
If you paraphrase or summarize ideas another source deserves credit for, you must acknowledge that source even when you put those ideas into your own words.
You are plagiarizing if you cut and paste bits and pieces of writing from the internet or any other source and make it appear as if you wrote those words. To include words of other sources, use quotation marks and cite sources.
Plagiarism also includes copying from yourself--that is, turning in the material you wrote for another course or in a prior attempt of a course.
For more information on avoiding plagiarism, check out the brief videos and tutorials at the MJC Library link below:
We all have a lot of experience thinking and expressing ourselves, and college composition gives us an opportunity to sharpen those fantastic skills. When AI is used as a shortcut, it's like having a robot assistant go to the gym for us: like our bodies, our brains won't get the same results.
Artificial Intelligence Policy
Artificial Intelligence Policy
Depending on the situation, using artificial intelligence (AI) can foster learning or reduce the likelihood it will occur. The way our assignments are currently designed, using AI is more likely to hurt than help students trying to strengthen their thinking and writing skills. In the near future, this class will likely include AI--not as a shortcut but as a focus of study--but we're not quite there yet.
This is the English Department's AI policy: Unauthorized use of AI is considered a form of plagiarism. This means that AI-assisted work is not allowed in this course, except when the instructor approves of its use and the student acknowledges using it.
Our class promotes DIY (Do-It-Yourself) writing. Therefore, in our class, using generative AI (such as ChatGPT, Claude AI, and Google Gemini) is not allowed, but students can use basic grammar-checking programs (such as Grammarly) to identify issues with spelling, punctuation, and grammar. In other words, students can use grammar detectors to check their own writing but not to compose their writing. There's no need to acknowledge the use of basic ("one-word-at-a-time") grammar checkers, which are tools that single out specific words writers can choose to revise one at a time. More sophisticated AI tools (such as Grammarly's "Improve It" and "Rewrite It" features, GrammarlyGO, and other online paraphrasing tools) are not allowed because they can subvert the goal of composing one's own work when they instantly write or rewrite entire chunks of text without a student's word-by-word involvement in the writing and revision process.
Results from AI detectors are reviewed and may be used to back up allegations of academic dishonesty. In our course, submitting AI work violates our academic integrity policy. This means work generated or paraphrased by AI may earn a zero and the student may meet with school officials to discuss the matter.
If you have any questions about plagiarism or our artificial intelligence policy, please let me know. I'd be glad to help.
Mental Health Support
I want this class to provide a positive educational experience, so it's my goal to create a safe and caring learning environment where students can do their best. At the same time, I recognize that it's not uncommon for emotional, psychological, and/or physical issues to create learning challenges for students. If you experience such issues, please don't hesitate to let me know. I'm here to help. We can also discuss campus resources available to students.
TimelyCare
MJC's Health Services website includes a variety of mental health resources, such as this one: "Modesto Junior College students have FREE, 24/7 access to virtual care services with TimelyCare--the virtual health and well-being platform from TimelyMD, designed for college students." It also mentions that TimelyCare services include "TalkNow: 24/7 on-demand emotional support to talk about anything, including anxiety, relationships, depression, and school-related stressors."
Mental Health Resources
Where to Find Help: Technical Assistance & MJC Services
Where to Find Help: Technical Assistance & MJC Services
MJC offers many valuable services for students. Here's an especially useful one for us:
CANVAS HELP DESK
MJC Daytime Canvas Support: (209) 575-7900
Evening and 24/7 Canvas Support: (844) 303-8280
For Canvas help and tutorials with screenshots for a ton of different topics, check out the Canvas help links below:
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Let MJC help you succeed!
In our Course Introduction module of our Canvas site, on the "Where to Find Help" page, there are many links to helpful MJC Services, including these:
Health Services
Financial Services
Accommodations and Support Center (ASC)
For more MJC Student Services, you can also set up your Starfish account for integrated support services. For further information about Counseling, Health Services, the Career Center, Veteran Services, Student Government, ASC, and other resources, check out the link below:
photo credits
photo credits
all images from unsplash unless noted otherwise
lightbulb by joshua melo
golden gate bridge by modestas urbanas
bay bridge by freddie collins
crystal ball on beach by photoholgic
balanced rocks by holger
like a boss mug by brooke lark
power and equality mural by mana5280
times square at night by joshua earle
us capitol rotunda by joshua sukoff
hand holding note by kelly sikkema
three students at desks by javier trueba
two people talking by laptop by mimi thian
two working at computer by desola lanre ologun
runners by braden collum
spray-painted runners by lance grandahl
pocket watch by pierre bamin
hands on laptop by john schnobrich
corkboard calendar by onica sauro
attentive audience by recovery ministries
computer saying be kind by dayne topkin
kindness message on window by chris curry
photo of raised hands by elissa garcia
graduate by i putu balda yogi pranata
library by ciprian boiciuc
AI letters by neeqolah creative works
close-up of a succulent by derek quesada
mjc student services building from mjc
modesto junior college logo from mjc
blue background by annie spratt
pink-peach background by max fuchs
multicolored-tile background by socialcut
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