College Now Literature

Ms. Strawder-Bubala

Spring Term 2003

Literature L104 – Introduction to Literature (Fiction)

Course Description: This course will deal with fiction (short stories and novels). The emphasis on basic themes underlying all literature will tend to emphasize the value and relevance of literature to the student. Selected readings will emphasize the truths fiction can draw from a variety of experiences.

Course Objectives:

To experience new worlds – places and happenings we haven’t yet felt – and allow new ideas to shape our daily lives. New ideas may help us deal more effectively with the problems we encounter in our daily lives.
To understand the elements of fiction.
To learn how to read and interpret fiction – to analyze the elements of fiction.
To develop individual ideas and to use evidence from the text to substantiate your interpretation in written or oral discourse.
To consider the narrator’s or author’s “center,” that thing, place, etc. that brings the world together and makes everything make sense.
To consider your own “center.”

Course Content Outline by Major Topics

ü Why People Read

ü Setting

ü Character

ü Plot

ü Point of View

ü Symbolism

ü Theme

ü Symbolism

ü Style

ü Research

REQUIRED TEXTS:

· The Lively Art of Writing by Lucile Vaughan Payne

· Literature: An Introduction to Fiction, Poetry, and Drama by X. J. Kennedy, editor

· Short story book TBA, including short stories about life in Oregon

· My Antonia by Willa Cather

· The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald

· The Old Man and the Sea by Ernest Hemingway

· One more novel you will select from a list of options?

Class Expectations

Be on time to class each day.
Come prepared with your class materials and assignments.
Participate in class on a regular basis.
Respect yourself, the instructor, and your peers.
Demonstrate behavior that is appropriate for the classroom.

Specific Notes: Do not wear your hat in this classroom. Take your hat off BEFORE you come into class. This applies to males and females. Do not bring your food or drink into this classroom. Do not chew gum in this classroom. Treat the room with respect. Keep your feet off of the furniture. Do not write on the desks. Obviously, all school rules apply in this classroom. Failure to follow these rules will result in disciplinary action.

Required Material:

Paper
Blue or black ink pen and highlighter
A spiral notebook JUST FOR THIS CLASS.
A folder where you will keep ALL PAPERS ALL SEMESTER LONG.
Course texts and paperbacks.

(There is a supply box with an eraser, stapler, etc., on the table in the back of the room. You may use these supplies as needed. If it’s not in the box, you can assume I don’t have it. Please do not ask me to borrow supplies off of my desk.)

Attendance Policy:

If you are absent it is your responsibility to get your assignments from the assignment board or the school’s website. Also, you will be expected to come to class prepared, even after an absence. Remember to follow any reading/work schedules. Please note: I will not remind you to do these things. You must be responsible for your make-up work. Students will not be allowed to make up work “after-the-fact.” It is sometimes impossible to make up certain in-class assignments, in which case I will work with you on an alternative assignment.

School Policy – Eight unexcused one-half day absences in any four-week period during which the school is in session shall be considered irregular attendance and will result in the student being referred to Lane ESD truancy officer (ORS 339.065).

IMPORTANT -- If you are absent, you must bring an admit slip to class on the day you return to school. Students must obtain these slips from the attendance office. If you come to class without a slip, you will be asked to report to the attendance office. You will be marked tardy to class. You will get a detention and/or referral for every unexcused absence.

SEE THE STUDENT HANDBOOK FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ON ABSENCES.

Tardy Policy:

If you are late to class, you are to enter quietly, hand me your pass, and take your seat. This is an excused tardy. If you do not have a pass, it is an unexcused tardy. You will get a detention on your third unexcused tardy and on every unexcused tardy after that. If the problem persists, you will be given a referral to the dean’s office.

School Policy – Students may be suspended from school on the seventh tardy. Students may be in jeopardy of losing credit when they are tardy eight or more times to any one class.

IMPORTANT – You will be marked tardy to class if you are not sitting in your seat when I start talking. Being more than 10 minutes late to class (without a pass) counts as an unexcused absence.

SEE THE STUDENT HANDBOOK FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ON TARDIES.

Grading Policy:

All work has a point value. Points accrue throughout the semester. You will receive at least one progress report each nine weeks. You will have a CUMULATIVE FINAL EXAM at the end of the semester. (Do not throw anything away.) Semester grades are the final grades that are posted to your transcript.

The grading scale is 100-93% A, 92-90% A-, 89-88% B+, 87-83% B, 82-80% B-, 79-78% C+, 77-73% C, 72-70% C-, 69-68% D+, 67-63% D, 62-60% D-, 59%-BELOW F. On your grade reports, I will mark pluses and minuses for the high and low-end grades. This is for your information only. The school grading policy does not allow for adjustment to GPA points for high or low-grades. Lane Community College, however, does adjust GPA points for high or low-end grades. You will decide at the end of the semester if you want your grade recorded on an LCC transcript. NOTE: You may not earn LCC credit for a D (or obviously F) grade. You must earn a 70% or higher in the class to earn LCC credit.

NO LATE WORK WILL BE ACCEPTED. WORK MUST BE TURNED IN DURING CLASS ON THE DAY IT IS DUE, UNLESS OTHERWISE SPECIFIED. ANY WORK THAT WILL BE TURNED IN MUST BE WRITTEN NEATLY WITH A PEN OR TYPED, DEPENDING ON THE INSTRUCTIONS.

REPEAT – NO LATE WORK WILL BE ACCEPTED. IF YOU RUN INTO A PROBLEM, COME UP WITH A PLAN TO FIX IT. THE MOST COMMON PROBLEM (OTHER THAN JUST NOT DOING AN ASSIGNMENT) IS OFTEN A COMPUTER-RELATED MISHAP. SHOULD THIS OCCUR, WRITE YOUR PAPER NEATLY IN PEN (BE SURE TO DOUBLE SPACE).

All students will start the semester with 100 participation points. You might make it through the semester with all of your points, or you may lose points for any of the following reasons:

· Being unprepared for class.

· Not participating in a classroom activity.

· Not answering a question when called on.

· THIS LIST IS NOT EXHAUSTIVE.

(You may raise your hand to ask a question, but I will call on students most of the time so that every student gets to speak on a regular basis. You must be prepared EVERY DAY IN CLASS.)

Another Note on Grades: All assignments will be assigned a point value. Sometimes, I will specify what you must do and to what level of competence you must do it to receive the points. Other times, I will give more general outlines and guidelines. Also, you might occasionally have a ‘completion’ assignment. For such an assignment you would receive all, partial, or no credit for completing the basic requirement of the task. If you receive back a paper with a numerical score indicating the points earned, you may wonder at the randomness of assigning points for work. Think again. If you figure the percentage earned on the assignment, you can translate the points to a letter grade earned. Basically, an A is for EXCELLENT WORK, a B is for GOOD work, a C is for AVERAGE WORK, a D is for BELOW AVERAGE WORK, and an F if for FAILING WORK.

Academic Integrity:

You may not “cheat” on any work for this class.

Cheating includes, but is not limited to, copying work to be graded from another student and plagiarizing work. (You may copy class notes from another student if you are absent from class.) Both parties will receive 0 points for ANY work on which cheating was involved. Also, both students will receive referrals to the dean’s office.

The following definitions of plagiarism are taken from The Handbook of Current English. You commit plagiarism if you:

Borrow the ideas, examples, or structure of a source without acknowledging your use of it.
Take, buy, or receive a paper written (in part or total) by someone else and present it as your own.
Fail to acknowledge a direct quotation by using either quotation marks or (for longer passages) indentation.
Fail to acknowledge the source of any information in your paper that is not common knowledge or personal knowledge.
Improperly paraphrase the original words of your source.

Tutoring:

If you feel you need individualized assistance with assignments, test preparation, etc., you may ask me for one-on-one help before or after school. Also, the school provides free English tutoring on Tuesdays and Thursdays after school. Report to the library.

PARENT/GUARDIAN SIGNATURE:

Please read the course handout for your student’s class. (Also available later this week on the school website.) Your student is going to ask you to write a note indicating that you have read the class policies. The student will give this note to me for 10 points and the assurance that someone at home knows what is expected of your student in my classroom. THANK YOU!

STUDENTS: Keep your course handout.