Policies

Required Texts

Gaillet, Lynée, Angela Hall-Godsey, Jennifer L. Vala and Kristen Ruccio. Guide to First-Year Writing. 4^th Edition. Southlake, Texas: Fountainhead P, 2014. Print.

Guide to First Year Writing Companion Website

Online Readings

Academic Honesty/Plagiarism

The Department of English expects all students to adhere to the university’s Code of Student

Conduct, especially as it pertains to plagiarism, cheating, multiple submissions, and academic honesty. Please refer to the Policy on Academic Honesty (Section 409 of the Faculty Handbook). Penalty for violation of this policy will result in a zero for the assignment, possible failure of the course, and, in some cases, suspension or expulsion.

Georgia State University defines plagiarism as . . .

“ . . . any paraphrasing or summarizing of the works of another person without acknowledgment, including the submitting of another student’s work as one’s own . . . [It] frequently involves a failure to acknowledge in the text . . . the quotation of paragraphs, sentences, or even phrases written by someone else.” At GSU, “the student is responsible for understanding the legitimate use of sources . . . and the consequences of violating this responsibility.”

(For the university’s policies, see in the student catalog, “Academic Honesty,” http://www2.gsu.edu/~catalogs/2010-2011/undergraduate/1300/1380_academic_honesty.htm)

Accommodations for Students with Dissabilities

Georgia State University complies with Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act and the Americans with Disabilities Act. Students who wish to request accommodation for a disability may do so by registering with the Office of Disability Services. Students may only be accommodated upon issuance by the Office of Disability Services of a signed Accommodation Plan and are responsible for providing a copy of that plan to instructors of all classes in which accommodations are sought.

According to the ADA (http://frwebgate.access.gpo.gov/cgi-bin/getdoc.cgi?dbname=110_cong_bills&docid=f:s3406enr.txt.pdf):

‘‘SEC. 3. DEFINITION OF DISABILITY.  ‘‘As used in this Act: ‘‘(1) DISABILITY.—The term ‘disability’ means, with respect to an individual— ‘‘(A) a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities of such individual…major life activities include, but are not limited to, caring for oneself, performing manual tasks, seeing, hearing, eating, sleeping, walking, standing, lifting, bending, speaking, breathing, learning, reading, concentrating, thinking, communicating, and working. ‘‘(B) MAJOR BODILY FUNCTIONS.—For purposes of paragraph (1), a major life activity also includes the operation of a major bodily function, including but not limited to, functions of the immune system, normal cell growth, digestive, bowel, bladder, neurological, brain, respiratory, circulatory, endocrine, and reproductive functions.

Attendance and Punctuality

Nothing can replace the insight that fellow classmates and I can provide during face-to-face interaction.  Being late to class or absent from class WILL result in you missing invaluable information and chances to get insight about your assignments.  If missing class (or being tardy) cannot be avoided please arrange to get notes from a classmate and to discuss missed information with me during scheduled office hours–not via email.  Because we are lucky enough to be scheduled in a classroom with computers, I will ask that students please refrain from eating or drinking at computer stations for the safety of the equipment.  Also, please beware that saving to the desktop is not sufficient.  You will need to save to Cloud Storage or to a USB drive.

Electronic Communication

The preferred mode of communication with the instructor is in person during office hours, please email me to set up an appointment.  For your privacy, I will not be able to discuss grades via email; you must make an appointment to meet me in person, in my office.  However, if you need to ask quick, simple questions or set up an appointment with me via email, please send it to kwolfe5@gsu.edu.  I will check my email Monday through Friday between the hours of 8:00a.m. and 5:00p.m.  Emails sent to the instructor outside of this time period will likely not receive a response until the following business day.  

Plan to check your GSU email daily for announcements regarding this class.  If you prefer an email address other than your GSU one, set your GSU account to forward your email to that address.

Assignment Submission

All assignments must be complete by the time and day indicated on the syllabus.  All assignments should be submitted to canvas or emailed via kwolfe5@gsu.edu (I do not check other accounts as often and may not receive emails sent to other accounts).  If either of these options do not work for you, please see me to arrange paper submissions.

English Majors and the Graduation Portfolio 

The English department at GSU requires an exit portfolio of all students graduating with a degree in English. Ideally, students should work on this every semester, selecting 1-2 papers from each course in the major and revising them, with direction from faculty members. The portfolio includes revised work and a reflective essay about what you’ve learned.

Each concentration (literature, creative writing, rhetoric/composition, and secondary education) within the major has specific items to place in the portfolio, so be sure to download the packet from our website at http://english.gsu.edu/undergraduate/undergraduate_resources/senior-portfolios/. In preparation for this assessment, each student must apply for graduation with the Graduation office and also sign up in the English Department portfolio assessment system at http://www.wac.gsu.edu/EngDept/signup.php.

The Senior Portfolio is due at the midpoint of the semester you intend to graduate. Please check the university’s academic calendar for that date. Please direct questions about your portfolio to a faculty advisor or the instructor of your senior seminar. You may also contact Dr. Stephen Dobranski, Director of Undergraduate Studies, for more information.

Incompletes

In order to receive a grade of “incomplete,” a student must inform the instructor, either in person or in writing, of his/her inability (non-academic reasons) to complete the requirements of the course. Incompletes will be assigned at the instructor’s discretion and the terms for removal of the “I” are dictated by the instructor. A grade of incomplete will only be considered for students who are a) passing the course with a C or better, b) present a legitimate, non-academic reason to the instructor, and c) have only one major assignment left to finish.

Late Work

Late work will only be accepted if arrangements are made ahead of the due date.  Please contact me immediately if something comes up. 

Peer Review/ Revision Policy

Because I believe that writing is about going through a process of revising and not about the ability to produce a finished product, I accept revisions on all assignments that you have gone through the peer review process with.  Any assignment that you have turned in all drafts for, you may submit a revision of within one week after you received the graded assignment back–you may revise a paper with any grade, and it will be eligible for any grade (ie, you may redo a “b” assignment or an “f” assignment and on either you can receive up to an “a” if the work merits it).

This means that you must be in class the day peer review is indicated on the syllabus and you must submit all steps of an assignment.

Policy on Social Media

Lower Division Studies and the Department of English supports the use of social media such as Twitter, Facebook, and Tumblr as subjects for discussion and writing prompts in both ENGL 1101 and ENGL 1102 courses.  Student and instructor privacy, however, is of utmost importance; therefore, students will not be required to use social media.

Writing Studio

The purpose of the Writing Studio is to enhance the writing instruction by providing undergraduate and graduate students with an experienced reader who engages them in conversation about their writing assignments and ideas, and familiarizes them with audience expectations and academic genre conventions.  They focus on the rhetorical aspects of texts, and provide one-on-one, student-centered teaching that corresponds to each writer’s composing process. Although they are not a line-editing or proofreading service, the Writing Studio is happy to discuss grammar concerns with students from a holistic perspective. Tutors will be alert listeners and will ask questions, and will not judge or evaluate the work in progress. The Writing Studio offers 30 minute sessions (for undergraduate students) and 60 minute sessions (for graduate students) for face-to-face tutoring.  Through Write/Chat, our online tutoring service, they offer 15-minute sessions that address short, brief concerns.  In addition, the GSU Writing Studio will sponsor workshops, led by faculty and staff, on various topics dealing with academic writing. Please visit the Writing Studio in 25 PP or at www.writingstudio.gsu.edu for more information.

Online Evaluation of Instructor

Your constructive assessment of this course plays an indispensable role in shaping education at Georgia State. Upon completing the course, please take time to fill out the online course evaluation.