Donald Wolff
Office Hours: MTR 1-3, W 9-12, and by appointment
Office Phone: (541) 962-3527 Office: L153
Contact through Email: dwolff@eou.edu
ENGLISH 316: APPROACHES TO GRAMMAR
(online, asynchronous)
REQUIRED TEXTS
Hacker, Diana. The Bedford Handbook For Writers. New York: St. Martin's Press, 2002. 6th Edition. (H) (ISBN: 0-312-39317-2)
Morenberg, Max, and Sommers, Jeff. The Writer's Options: Lessons In Style And Arrangement. New York: Longman, 1999. 8th Edition. (M) (ISBN: 0-205-53316-7)
Weaver, Constance. Teaching Grammar In Context. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann, 1996. (W) (ISBN: 0-86709-375-7)
Catalog Description:
ENGL 316 – Approaches to Grammar
Credits: 4.00
(Old) Gen Ed-Language & Logic
(New) Gen Ed—AEH
(UWR)
Study of various traditional and nontraditional approaches to grammar with specific applications to and illustrations from the field of composition. Special consideration will be given to the linguistic and rhetorical theories that inform the study of grammar. Prerequisite: Upper division standing.
General Education Curriculum:
This course focuses on the logic of language—on language as a system—with special emphasis on the linguistic and rhetorical theories that inform the study of grammar, as well as the connections between language, including dialect, culture, literacy, and their relation to the differences between oral and written discourse and the problem of transference. This course is focused on effective approaches to teaching writing and grammar (conventions) in K-12 classrooms. Students successfully completing English 315 will have met four hours of the General Knowledge in the following categories: Content Knowledge, Communication, and Aesthetics and Humanities:
Content Knowledge: Demonstrate increased vocabulary, content, and conceptual knowledge in a breadth requirement
Means of Assessment: Students must demonstrate command of terms and concepts in the Study Guides and Exercises.
Communication: Demonstrate the ability to read, write, communicate, taking into consideration purpose, audience, and occasion.
Means of Assessment: Students must write clearly and effectively and edit carefully and accurately in the Study Guides and Exercises.
Aesthetics and Humanities: Demonstrate an appreciation for aesthetic expressions of humanity and the ability to analyze text
Means of Assessment: Students must demonstrate the ability to analyze texts and synthesize ideas in the Study Guides and Exercises.
COURSE DESCRIPTION: This course will focus on a study of basic elements of traditional and nontraditional grammar with specific applications to and illustrations from learning and teaching English. Students will put their knowledge of grammar into practice through traditional and nontraditional grammar exercises. The course should prove valuable for prospective teachers, for whom it satisfies a requirement, and also for anyone interested in how our sentences come together or in a review of grammar and working on his or her own academic writing style. However, most of our conversation will focus on the teaching of writing, with special emphasis on grammar, in elementary and secondary classrooms. So you must have a real interest in this subject--teaching grammar--in order enjoy the course.
ENGL 316 Outcomes
By the end of the course students should be able to
COURSE REQUIREMENTS: Virtual attendance. Assigned readings. Consistent participation on Blackboard Discussion Forums. (This is a four-unit course so you should plan to spend four hours per week in Blackboard). A series of Weaver and Hacker Study Guides and Morenberg sentence combining exercises. It is NOT necessary to do any of the exercises in Hacker or Morenberg, unless you are specifically asked to do so. Other written responses as required. There will be no midterm or final. All work must be completed by the end of this quarter:
NO "INCOMPLETES" OR "X" GRADES WILL BE GIVEN.
GRADING AND STANDARDS: Your final grade will take into account successful completion of assignments and active participation in our virtual (electronic) class. The sentence combining exercises will be worth 10 points each. The sentence combining exercises must be error free: I will usually deduct a point for EACH error. The Weaver and Hacker Study Guides are also worth 10 points each. The Study Guides should be written in academic prose: Use complete sentences; write solid, well-focused, well-developed and coherent paragraphs; employ precise language; edit carefully--even though I will not have time to mark all the errors. I do not expect you to write perfectly but I will look closely to see that you are writing clear sentences and have edited carefully.
This is a Writing Intensive Course, so by the end of the quarter students should be able to do the following:
**Writing Intensive Outcomes For Graded Work**
Students should be able to
* write consistently well-focused paragraphs and short essays;
* write well-organized analytical paragraphs and short essays;
* write well-developed, appropriately amplified, coherent paragraphs and short essays;
* discuss complex issues by deepening the discussion, raising questions, exploring contradictions, anticipating readers' questions and objections, and allowing for lack of closure;
* qualify assertions and avoid oversimplifications when writing;
* avoid simple casual explanations and platitudes when writing;
* analyze readings fully, carefully, and critically in writing;
* integrate into their own writing secondary sources through effective use of summary, paraphrase, quotation, and signal phrases;
* argue effectively by generating convincing interpretations and effective arguments, analyzing information, marshaling resources, synthesizing material, and employing convincing presentations;
* evaluate claims of various arguments found in sources and determine their relative merit;
* document sources consistently and correctly when writing;
* adjust rhetorically by taking into account the subject, occasion, audience, and purpose in writing and oral presentation;
* employ various formats, genres and media, adjusted for the subject, occasion, audience, and purpose;
* write fluently and edit carefully.
In all other Forums (except for the Evaluation Forum), you are free to use a more informal style, where I will focus almost exclusively on what you are saying, insofar as it can be separated from how you write it.
Each group of assignments from Weaver, Hacker, and Morenberg will be averaged at the end of the quarter. Each grade for an assignment group will be rounded off to the first decimal point. So if your average is 8.5, then your grade for that group will be an 85 or a B. Grades will NOT be rounded of past the first decimal point. So if your grade for the group is 8.59, then your grade is still 8.5 or 85 or a B, NOT 86, a B+. The same will hold true of your final grade, which will be an average of the assignment group averages (the averages for the Weaver Study Guides, the Hacker Study Guides, and the Morenberg Exercises).
***ALL EXERCISES AND STUDY GUIDES MUST BE SUBMITTED TO ME FOR GRADING THROUGH ASSIGNMENTS LINK IN BLACKBOARD. DO NOT SUBMIT WORK TO THE FORUMS, WHERE THE PUBLIC NATURE OF THE FORUM WILL NOT ALLOW ME TO GIVE YOU GRADES AND COMMENTS. DO NOT MAIL YOUR ASSIGNMENTS TO ME THROUGH THE POST OFFICE. DO NOT EMAIL ME YOUR ASSIGNMENTS. USE THE ASSIGNMENT AND GRADEBOOK PORTALS IN BLACKBOARD EXCLUSIVELY.***
UWR Writing Intensive Outcomes:
Means of Assessment: Thirty formal writing assignments.
Means of Assessment: Study Guides require analysis of professional articles and parts of books, employing APA documentation.
Means of Assessment: A number of Study Guides require comparison of professional texts; all must employ APA documentation style.
Means of Assessment: Students may submit work for the class to review before submitting it for a grade.
Means of Assessment: Study Guides receiving a grade of C- or below will be referred to EOU’s Online Writing Lab for tutorial assistance.
Means of Assessment: Final grade/grading scale.
Means of Assessment: Formal written assignments (Study Guides and Morenberg Exercises) constitute 100% of the grade for the course; students are responsible for submitting their work to classmates for feedback or to a Writing Tutor and for following through on sound feedback.
Grading Scale (Final Grades)
100 - 95 = A
94 - 90 = A-
89 - 86 = B+
85 = B
84 - 80 = B-
79 - 76 = C+
75 = C
74 - 70 = C-
69 - 66 = D+
65 = D
64 - 60 = D-
59 - 0 = F
Study Guide and Exercise Grading Scale
10 = A
9 = A-
8 = B-
7 = C-
6 = D-
5 = F
0 = Work Not Turned In (also counts as an "F," but much harder to make up with subsequent grades--avoid at all costs!)
STUDY GUIDE EDITING MARKS
S (sentence) P (paragraph)
GLOBAL ISSUES
**Focus**
scope too general
unclear or non-existent focus/thesis
oversimplified
**Organization**
confused, inconsistent, oversimplified P arrangement
off topic in places
focusing S's needed
**Development**
more examples needed
need to amplify and explain more thoroughly
**coh** (P coherence)
P's lack coherence/focus/ consistency
**Analytical Writing or Critical Thinking**
need to deepen and widen discussion
need to allow for more complexity (raise questions, point out contradictions, allow for ambiguity and lack of closure, anticipate readers' questions and objections)
need to qualify assertions/avoid over-generalization
need to avoid simple causal explanations and platitudes
need to analyze reading more fully or carefully
SENTENCE LEVEL ISSUES
**Grammar** (Most references are to _The Bedford Handbook for Writers_, 5th ed. Most are from the "Correction Symbols" section at the back of the book; some refer to items found in the Index; a few are my own.):
art (article)
sp (misspelled word)
agr (agreement)
trans (transition needed)
cs (comma splice)
u (usage)
frag (fragment)
vb (verb problem)
dd (manuscript form/document design)
we (word ending: -s or -ed)
id (idiom)
? (clarity)
mix (mixed construction)
apos (apostrophe)
para (parallelism)
exact (inexact or misused word)
ph (phrasing)
** (innumerable errors)
pn agr (pronoun agreement)
sig (signal phrase)
prep (preposition)
cit (page reference needed)
punc (punctuation)
ref (reference)
37e (words as words)
39d (ellipsis)
23d (use of "you")
17d-e (slang and informality)
11c ("is when")
17f (sexist language)
50/51 (integrating sources)
53a (MLA intext citation form)
56a (APA intext citation form)
BLACKBOARD DISCUSSION FORUMS: This course is designed for what is known as asynchronous learning in a virtual classroom. This means that our classroom will be electronic, so we will not actually meet face-to-face. We will carry on our discussion of our texts and related issues in the Forums I've defined below, and you will submit your written work electronically.
***ALL EXERCISES AND STUDY GUIDES MUST BE SUBMITTED TO ME FOR GRADING IN BLACKBOARD'S ASSIGNMENT AND GRADEBOOK PORTALS ACCESSED THROUGH THE MENU ON THE COURSE HOMEPAGE. DO NOT SUBMIT HOMEWORK ANY OTHER WAY.***
NO WORK WILL BE ACCEPTED THROUGH REGULAR MAIL OR BY MEANS OF EMAIL. ALL WORK MUST BE SUBMITTED ELECTRONICALLY THROUGH BLACKBOARD.
This means you will have to know how to use BLACKBOARD effectively and efficiently. Descriptions for each of our BLACKBOARD FORUMS are provided below. Our FORUMS will be: COURSE ANNOUNCEMENTS, WEAVER LECTURE, HACKER LECTURE, MORENBERG LECTURE, CLASS DISCUSSION, CAFE GRAMMATIQUE, TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE, and COURSE EVALUATION.
IF YOU HAVE NOT TURNED IN ANY ASSIGNMENTS BY THE END OF THE THIRS WEEK, YOU WILL BE DROPPED FROM THE COURSE.
** BLACKBOARD FORUM DESCRIPTIONS**
COURSE ANNOUNCEMENTS. Always check this FORUM first for information about the course, including reading assignments, writing assignments, syllabus adjustments, notification of activities, and other notices.
WEAVER LECTURE. Always go to this FORUM second each week for mini-lectures on this text. I will highlight what I consider the most important points in each chapter of this work. I will also provide Study Guide questions for review of the week's reading, which can also be found in Assignments on the course menu.
HACKER DISCUSSION. Always go to this FORUM third for a mini-lecture highlighting important points I want you to consider in the assigned reading from this text. I will also provide Study Guide questions for review of the week's reading, which can also be found in Assignments on the course menu.
MORENBERG DISCUSSION. Always go to this FORUM fourth for a mini-lecture highlighting important points I want you to consider in the assigned reading from this text. I will also assign a specific exercise from each chapter we study, which can also be found in Assignments on the course menu.
CLASS DISCUSSION. This is the place to raise questions and explore issues about grammar either based directly on what we have read and studied for the week or about related issues. You are encouraged to respond to one another and establish a dialogue about your concerns and interests. I will also respond directly to the issues you raise as often as I can, but if everyone participates fully then I will have time only to participate as one of you, rather than as "THE TEACHER." If I see a recurring or nagging issue I will address it, insofar as my time permits.
CAFE GRAMMATIQUE. This is the FORUM where you should exchange social comments with one another, so that you will be able to get to know one another better, at least electronically. You may talk about grammar if you wish, but anyone may raise any issue or exchange and pleasantry here. Think of this as an electronic cafe where you can relax and share conversation and get to know others in the class. Introduce yourselves and say something personal.
316 TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE. This is the place to ask questions about operating in Blackboard. I will assume that you are reasonably familiar with Blackboard, since that is required for admission to this class. For technical assistance all Blackboard questions should be routed to the DDE office, 800-544-2195. That's what I do. In terms of technical assistance, think of me as an ineffective last resort--I too am new to the system. But in this Forum the more proficient of us can help the less proficient.
316 EVALUATION. I will be continuously concerned about how we are doing and will ask you occasionally to tell me how we are doing by entering a REPLY in this FORUM. I hope to address any issues that come up, to learn from you how to improve the delivery of this course electronically, and to use your comments to tell others what taking a course on BLACKBOARD is like.
**ENGLISH 316 SYLLABUS**
WEEK 1 9/28-10/2. Introductions: W Preface, 1-6. H v-xxxiv, 1-75. M xi-xix; 3-17.
WEEK 2 10/6-9. Teaching Grammar: W 1-6. H 1-71. M 21-36.
WEEK 3 10/12-16. Teaching Grammar cont'd.: W 7-28, 187-90 (Parts of Speech). H 792-809 (Parts of Speech). M 37-53.
WEEK 4 10/19-23. Linguistic Competence: W 29-57; 190-213 (Syntax). H 145-204 (Sentences), 810-40 (Sentence Structure). M 54-72.
WEEK 5 10/26-30. Error Analysis: W 58-101. H 445-56 (Spelling). M 73-89.
WEEK 6 11/2-6. Syntax: W 102-47. H 335-70 (ESL), 527-790 (Research). M 90-108.
WEEK 7 11/9-13. More Theory: W 148-80. H 371-432 (Punctuation). M 109-130.
WEEK 8 11/16-20. Sentence Combining Revisited: W 214-27. H 76-99 (Paragraphs). M 131-47.
WEEK 9 11/23-4. Dialect: W 227-36. H 205-36 (Words), 798-800 (Verbs). M 151-72. Thanksgiving Break 11/25-29.
WEEK 10 11/30-12/4. Mechanics: W 185-7, 236-42. H 239-44 (Grammatical Sentences), 433-66 (Mechanics),841-57 (Usage). M 235-52. ALL ASSIGNMENTS MUST BE IN 12/4.
Disclaimer:
Class schedule, syllabus, and assignments may be altered during the course of the term as needed.
Statement on Academic Misconduct:
Eastern Oregon University places a high value upon the integrity of its student scholars. Any student found guilty of an act of academic misconduct (including, but not limited to, cheating, plagiarism, or theft of an examination or supplies) may be subject to having his or her grade reduced in the course in question, being placed on probation or suspended from the university, or being expelled from the university—or a combination of these. (Please see the Students’ Academic Honesty Code at http://www2.eou.edu/saffairs/handbook/honest.html).
Accommodations for Disabilities:
If you have a documented disability or suspect that you have a learning problem and need reasonable accommodations, please contact the Disability Services Program in Loso Hall 234. Telephone: 962-3081.
Netiquette Guidelines and Responsibilities
Pay attention to the course calendar, keep up with the course work, and submit your work on time.
Assume that a worldwide audience will read all of your messages and emails. Although email is sent to only one person, it is very easy for the recipient to send your private email to thousands of people. Unless you completely trust the person to whom you have sent a message(s), be aware that others may read it. The same applies to any World Wide Web (WWW) documents you create and upload to the Internet. Since the world will see your submissions, make sure the information is representative, appropriate, accurate, and informative as possible.
It is very difficult to effectively communicate emotions through text on the Internet since viewers cannot view your body language, emotions, mood, and tone. If someone sends you an message that sounds critical or a little too offensive, chances are that you may have misinterpreted the meaning of the sender. Perhaps the message was meant to be sarcastic and humorous and not attacking. Therefore, do not become upset or start a "flame war" where only you and a few people engage in
pointless verbal warfare. Instead, be polite and courteous to one another. Those participating in sucH an excHAnge will receive a "0" for that week's assignments.
Please behave online as you would in person. Be aware of what you type and the intentions of your text. If you are hostile or disrespectful, it will not only make the recipient angry and likely to retaliate making your online class a miserable experience, but it will also upset your fellow classmates who are here to learn and not be caught in abusive and threatening situations. Any student who does not follow this simple rule will be immediately dropped from the class and receive a failing grade.
When posting comments to other students in our discussion groups, profanity is considered rude, inappropriate, and may be very offensive to some people. Again, please refrain from this behavior to make everyone's learning experience a positive one. Any student who does not follow this simple rule will receive a "0" for that week's assignments.
When posting to discussion groups, please be as focused as possible and do not submit poorly written, mindless verbal ramblings. Be respectful of others' time and energy because we are all busy people and we don't want to spend our time reading inappropriate materials that are not related to course content.
The form of your posts does matter and will be highly scrutinized. If you write well, your classmates will think of you as intelligent, educated, and respectable. If you compose haphazardly and sloppily, however, your classmates may perceive you, perhaps inaccurately, as unintelligent and not caring about the material you are writing. Please make your writing look as professional as possible or else readers may not pay much attention to what you have to say.
However, please be forgiving of your classmate's mistakes—and mine. Sometimes when we are in a hurry, under pressure, or misunderstand the material, we may submit text that contains poor grammar, misspellings, or appears to be poorly written. Regardless of the reason, each classmate
deserves more than one chance before judgment is passed. If somebody appears to be totally inept after several postings, however, a kind word of helpful advice will be much better than a verbal barrage. Please be kind with your criticism. If you feel really upset at somebody, please do not
post your messages for the entire class to see. Again, let us all be cooperative, caring, respectful, and have fun.