OVERVIEW
English 1010 should serve students as an introduction to college level English composition standards. Brooklyn College requires that students successfully complete this course. The intention, here, is to ground students in a foundation from which they can write and communicate effectively throughout their college experience. In English 1010, students will read and write regularly and thoughtfully. Our focus will be expository writing. Consequently, assigned readings will consist mostly of helpful and engaging examples of expository writing.
OBJECTIVES
To complete this course, I expect students to demonstrate their ability to read and write thoughtfully and critically . In the process, students will develop various theses and argumentative analyses . Effective summaries of relevant and meritorious texts will be helpful in this regard, as will a student’s ability to synthesize information from a variety of sources into a cohesive and structured essay form. To practice this set of crucial compositional processes, students will—among other things— learn MLA formatting, revision techniques, and appropriate college-level expectations for language and grammar.
REQUIRED MATERIALS
● First-year common reading: Becoming by Michelle Obama
● Course packet
● Grammar handbook
ATTENDANCE & PUNCTUALITY
● More than four absences
disqualifies your participation
credit.
● Arrival after ten minutes from the start of class (2:30 p . m.) is tardy.
● Two tardy arrivals equals one absence.
ASSIGNMENTS
ESSAYS & OTHER WRITING
Students will write the following: a personal narrative (750-1000 words), two summaries (250-500 words each), an argumentative essay (1000-1250 words), a compare and contrast essay (1000-1250 words). Students will revise each of these essays. These essays must be typed, double-spaced, in 12-point font, and formatted with one-inch margins. In addition, students will have an in-class essay exam. Students will be asked to complete other assignments, such as journal entries, in-class writing, and reading responses.
!!!PLEASE NOTE!!! Essays are due at the beginning of class. I will not accept essays submitted via email.
FINAL EXAM
English 1010 students must take a final exam. The exam is based on responses to two pieces of writing: one 5-7 page essay, distributed one week before the end of the term, and a second 1-2 page piece, distributed along with the question on the day of the exam. The exam will count for 20% of the final grade for the class. The instructor will discuss the test format in class.
LOOP WORKSHOP
The Brooklyn College Bulletin states the following:
All students in English 1010 will complete the required Brooklyn College library orientation, which will introduce them to the services and resources of the library, including access to and ethical use of its print and electronic resources.
GRADING
POSSIBLE FINAL GRADES FOR ENGLISH 1010 ARE AS FOLLOWS:
A+ A A- B+ B B- C+ C C- NC F
≥98 96-33 92-90 89-88 87-83 82-80 79-78 77-73 72-70 <70 ***
***Note that the minimum passing final grade is C-.Students who have completed all the
course work but are not yet writing at the college level will receive a grade of NC; students
who have not completed the coursework will receive a grade of F.
STUDENTS WHO DO NOT PASS ENGLISH 1010 MUST REPEAT IT THE FOLLOWING
SEMESTER. The course may not be taken more than three times; students who receive
three grades of F, NC and/or WU may be dismissed from the college.
Essays turned in late will be penalized half a letter grade for each class meeting they are
late. Late work will not be accepted after one week has passed from the original due date.
If students miss a class during which an essay is to be submitted, students are still
responsible for submitting (e-mailing) the essay on the same day AND bringing a hard
copy of it the next time they attend class .
POSSIBLE ASSIGNMENT GRADES FOR ENGLISH 1010 ARE AS FOLLOWS:
A+ A A- B+ B B- C+ C C- D+ D D- F
≥98 96-33 92-90 89-88 87-83 82-80 79-78 77-73 72-70 69-68 67-63 62-60 60 ≤
GRADING BREAKDOWN
● Essays: 60%
○ Personal Narrative: 10%
○ Summaries: 10%
○ Argumentative Essay: 15%
○ Compare & Contrast: 15%
○ In-Class Compare &
Contrast: 10%
● Final Exam: 20%
● Other Assignments: 10%
○ E.g., take-home assignments,
in-class writing, and quizzes.
● Attendance & Participation: 10%
○ E.g., attendance,
promptness, participation,
in-class discussion & group
work, etc.
IMPORTANT INFORMATION
PLAGIARISM
Brooklyn College’s statement on plagiarism is as follows:
The faculty and administration of Brooklyn College support an environment free from
cheating and plagiarism. Each student is responsible for being aware of what constitutes
cheating and plagiarism and for avoiding both. The complete text of the CUNY Academic
Integrity Policy and the Brooklyn College procedure for implementing that policy can be
found at this site: http://www.brooklyn.cuny.edu/bc/policies .
NON-ATTENDANCE BECAUSE OF RELIGIOUS BELIEFS
Brooklyn College’s statement on non-attendance because of religious belief is located on
page 66 of the Brooklyn College Undergraduate Bulletin:
http://www.brooklyn.cuny.edu/web/off_registrar/2017-2018_Undergraduate_Bulletin.pdf .
STUDENT BEREAVEMENT POLICY
Brooklyn College’s statement on non-attendance because of religious belief is located
here: http://www.brooklyn.cuny.edu/web/about/initiatives/policies/bereavement.php .
NOTE: English 1010 is an Academic Foundations course. Brooklyn College’s policy on
withdrawing from English 1010 is as follows:
Students are not permitted at any time to delete, drop, or withdraw from an assigned
Academic Foundations course without obtaining permission of the academic department
involved and consulting the Center for Academic Advisement and Student Success.
The full academic calendar, including many other important dates, and the undergraduate
final exam “grid” are available on the Office of the Registrar’s website.
English 1010, 1 // Composition
with Will Newman // wmnewmanjr@gmail.com
Fall 2019 // Mondays & Wednesdays 2:30 - 3:45 p.m.
CLASS SCHEDULE
Wednesday, August 28 ***FIRST DAY OF SEMESTER***
Introduction to course + in-class excercise
Monday, September 2 ***NO CLASS, COLLEGE CLOSED***
Thursday, September 5 ***CONVERSION DAY***
To Read: Becoming by Michelle Obama
Monday, September 9
To Read: Becoming by Michelle Obama
Wednesday, September 11
To Read: Becoming by Michelle Obama
Monday, September 16
To Read: “Letters from a Birmingham Jail” by Martin Luther King Jr.
Wednesday, September 18
To Read: “I Have a Dream” by Martin Luther King Jr.
Monday, September 23
To Read: “Peculiar Benefits” by Roxane Gay
Wednesday, September 25
To Read: “Confederate Memorials as Instruments of Racial Terror” by Brent Staples
Monday, September 30 ***NO CLASS***
Wednesday, October 2
ESSAY 1 DUE
Monday, October 7
To Read: “Why Chinese Mothers Are Superior” by Amy Chua
Wednesday, October 8 ***NO CLASS***
Monday, October 14 ***NO CLASS, COLLEGE CLOSED***
Wednesday, October 16 ***CONVERSION DAY***
Monday, October 21
REVISION OF ESSAY 1 DUE
To Read: “Leave Your Name at the Border” by Manuel Munoz
6 // ENGLISH 1010 SYLLABUS
Wednesday, October 23
To Read: “Politics and the English Language” by George Orwell
Monday, October 28
WORKING THESIS & EXAMPLES OF SUPPORT FOR ESSAY 2 DUE
Wednesday, October 30
To Read: “Thugs, Students, Rioters, Fans: Media’s Subtle Racism in Unrest Coverage”
by Akiba Solomon
Monday, November 4
ESSAY 2 DUE, PLEASE REMEMBER TO BRING THREE COPIES FOR PEER REVIEW
Wednesday, November 6
To Read: “Notes of a Native Son” by James Baldwin
Monday, November 11
REVISION OF ESSAY 2 DUE
Wednesday, November 13
To Read: “Black Bodies: Rereading James Baldwin’s Stranger in the Village” by Teju Cole
Monday, November 18
To Read: “Just Walk on By: Black Men and Public Space” by Brent Staples
Wednesday, November 20
ESSAY 3 IN CLASS
Monday, November 25
To Read: “The Case for Reparations” by Ta-Nehisi Coates
Wednesday, November 27
To Read: “The Ugly Tourist” by Jamaica Kincaid
Monday, December 2
ESSAY 4 DUE, PLEASE BRING THREE COPIES FOR PEER REVIEW SESSION
Wednesday, December 4
To Read: “Regarding the Pain of Others” by Susan Sontag
Monday, December 9
To Read: “The Braindead Megaphone” by George Saunders
Wednesday, December 11
REVISION OF ESSAY 4 DUE
7 // ENGLISH 1010 SYLLABUS
Friday, December 13 ***READING DAY***
FINAL EXAMS: Saturday, December 14 - Friday, December 20