English 4700-001 / Fall 2001
Advanced Composition: Computers and Writing
Textbooks:
Visit the World Wide Web site for CyberReader,
2/e or Writing for the World
Wide Web by clicking on the book cover below.
For detailed book and ordering
information:
Writing
for the World Wide Web
CyberReader,
2/e
Supplies:
You will need a collegiate dictionary and thesaurus, assorted highlight
markers, 3 1/2" computer diskettes, one Zip or Super disk (as necessary),
one small package of computer or typing paper, and a 1 1/2" notebook binder.
Description:
English 4700 is a course in advanced reading, writing and critical thinking
taught in a computer-mediated learning environment. Reading, writing, and
thinking are not easy tasks, so we will experiment with various systematic
ways of discovering and creating meanings. The main goal of the course
is to improve upon and refine our academic writing, particularly in terms
of its efficacy as electronic discourse. Students should be aware that
this is not a course in basic computer literacy; everyone is expected to
be able to point, click, and type. As the course progresses, students will
practice uploading and downloading Email and Internet documents, navigating
the World Wide Web, using Zip and Super disks, scanning text and graphics
into documents, developing and adding aural and visual material to documents,
collaborating with colleagues to compile selective databases, putting together
computer presentations, and so on. In addition, students will become knowledgeable
about Listservs, newsgroups, Netscape, Microsoft Office, and PowerPoint.
Also, everyone will design and mount an individual World Wide Web page;
this means that students will gain experience using Hypertext Markup language
(HTML) and working with Web editor utility programs. Part of designing
our individual Web pages will include incorporating the best of our electronic
papers. Students will save all of their work in the form of an electronic
portfolio.
Objectives:
Employ various reading strategies in order to summarize, synthesize, analyze,
interpret, and evaluate the reading selections.
Identify important theories and trends pertaining to electronic discourse.
Extend proficiency with Email communications by building signatures, uploading
and downloading documents, and managing electronic address books.
Demonstrate familiarity and competency with electronic communications through
Listservs and newsgroups.
Prove ability to use Internet browsers for research and design, professional
development, and recreation purposes.
Show proficiency with electronic storage devices, such as ZIP drives, Super
Disks, CD-ROM disks, and so on.
Exhibit capabilities in scanning, imaging, and sound technologies.
Display competency with presentation software by inventing, planning, and
producing a PowerPoint multimedia show that features original thought,
research, and an ability to assimilate and synthesize the ideas of others
on the research topic.
Demonstrate knowledge of electronic discourse through drafting, revising,
and publishing an individual and integrated World Wide Web page.
Enhance technological skills.
Outline:
This course runs from August 20 until December 7. It is not an independent
study course. Each week, the instructor will release course content to
you. You are expected to read the material and engage with the instructor
and your fellow students in discussion. As you participate in the discussions,
please keep in mind the consequences of nonparticipation. Also keep in
mind that, if at any point you decide to withdraw from the class, you must
complete a withdrawal form; otherwise, you will receive an F for the course.
In any event, if you withdraw after October 11, which marks the midterm
of the course, you will receive a grade of WF. If you have questions, comments,
or concerns about the course content, please contact your instructor by
Email or by phone.
Assignments and Grades:
All written coursework must be retained in an electronic portfolio and
submitted on an appropriate storage device according to the due dates on
the course calendar. Late work will neither be accepted nor graded. Students
are responsible for keeping up with their homework assignments and for
getting their completed work turned in on time. The final grade will be
either A, B, C, D, or F. An incomplete grade of "I" is given only to students
whose completed coursework has been qualitatively satisfactory but who
have been unable to complete all course requirements because of illness
or other extenuating circumstances beyond their control. The instructor
retains the right to make the final decision on granting a student's request
for an "I." Students are advised to retain copies of all assignments until
after final grades are received.
| Participation |
15% |
| Paper #1 (week three) |
10% |
| Paper #2 (week four) |
10% |
| Paper #3 (week five) |
10% |
| Paper #4 (week six) |
10% |
| Resumé (week eleven) |
5% |
| PowerPoint presentation (weeks twelve through fourteen) |
15% |
| World Wide Web site (week fifteen) |
25% |
Attendance:
Much of the work done in this class will be collaborative; therefore, active
participation is extremely important. For this reason, students must attend
class regularly. I will allow four absences throughout the semester. Please
note: Three tardies equal one absence, and students assume full responsibility
for withdrawing from the course should the need arise.
The Writing Center:
The Writing Center in Gamble Hall 109 offers its services free of charge
to all AASU students. Writing tutors are carefully chosen and trained;
they can discuss any aspect of writing with you, from preliminary analysis
of a text to organizing your ideas to meet the expectations of an audience.
The Writing Center is not an editing service. Tutors will not correct all
of your grammar or rewrite your essay for you; however, they are qualified
to teach you how to do these things for yourself. I highly recommend using
the Center's services to assist you with your writing in this course as
well as in other classes.
Academic Honesty:
All students must comply with the Honor Code of Armstrong Atlantic State
University and the University System of Georgia. Plagiarism, or the presentation
of another person's work as your own, whether you mean to or not, is a
serious crime. Copying or paraphrasing passages from another writer's work
without acknowledging that you have done so is plagiarism. Allowing another
writer to copy or compose any part of your work is also plagiarism. Students
suspected of plagiarism will be called before the Vice President of Student
Affairs for disciplinary action. Plagiarism is easy to avoid. Simply acknowledge
the source of any words, phrases, or ideas that you use. If you are not
sure how to quote or paraphrase a source, or if you need help with the
format of textual notes or bibliographies, check with me. You can, and
in fact should, seek the help and advice of friends, classmates, and tutors,
to be sure that your written work is completely your own.
Electronic Devices:
Beepers, buzzers, pagers, cellular telephones, and all other kinds of electronic
devices are disruptive in the classroom. Make sure that your electronic
device will not make noise during our classroom meetings. If you must respond
to a vitally important message, do so outside of the class. It is the responsibility
of students to make up for any class discussion missed while responding
to electronic messages. Students who allow their electronic devices to
disturb our lesson times together will be asked to leave class and will
be counted absent for the day.
Students with Disabilities:
If any student requires an accommodation based on a disability, I would
like to meet with that person in the privacy of my office during the first
week of the semester to make sure that needs are properly met. Disabilities
must be confirmed through proper documentation submitted to AASU's Office
of Disabilities.
Calendar:
Week One--Email Accounts and Signatures
Assignments:
If you do not already have an Email account, sign up for
one. Computer Information Services, located in Victor Hall, can provide
you with a free student account. Make sure that your account is operating
as soon as possible.
Build an address list for this class to facilitate mass mailings.
Design an Email account signature.
Week Two--Listservs and Internet Discussions
Assignments:
Subscribe to an academic Listserv discussion.
Check out newsgroups and chatrooms.
Write a one paragraph report about a Listserv, newsgroup,
or chatroom discussion in which you lurked or participated.
Week Three--Introduction to Electronic Discourse
Assignments:
Read a CyberReader essay in the Virtual Books and
Libraries section.
In one to two pages, summarize and respond to Birkerts' essay.
Using the class address book that you created earlier, practice
uploading your sample so that your classmates can receive and read it.
Download at least one of your peers' reaction papers, print
it out, and write a one paragraph response to it.
Week Four--Further Discussions of Electronic Discourse
Assignments:
Read a CyberReader essay in either the Cyberspace
and Virtual Reality or Virtual Communities sections.
Analyze the essay's claim(s), grounds, and warrant(s) in
one to two pages.
Save your argumentative analysis in HTML code for future
inclusion on your Web page.
Read one of your peers' analyses and respond to it in one
paragraph.
Week Five--Internet Research and Design
Assignments:
Read a CyberReader essay in either the Freedom/Censorship
or Cyberpunk/Cyborgs sections.
Using Internet browsers, research related sites on the Internet
and make a note of their URLs (Uniform Resource Locators).
Compose a one to two page research perspective on the essay.
Pull down graphics, sounds, or movie clips to supplement
your analysis.
Save your research perspective in HTML code for future inclusion
on your Web page.
Week Six--Zip Disks, Super Disks, CD-ROMs, and
Storage Devices
Assignments:
Read a CyberReader essay in either the Sexual Politics
or
MUDs/MOOs sections.
Using Reader Response theory, respond to the essay in one
to two pages.
Bring a storage device other than a 3.5" floppy diskette
to class.
Learn the protocol for using your device to store your virtual
documents.
Save your sample in HTML code for future inclusion on your
Web page.
Week Seven--Introduction to PowerPoint Software
Assignments:
Select a colleague with whom to collaborate on a PowerPoint
presentation.
Agree upon a writing-related topic to explore in the presentation.
Begin developing topic-oriented ideas for the presentation,
to be delivered at the end of the term.
Experiment with PowerPoint software.
Save the partially developed presentations to a storage device.
Go over protocols for translating PowerPoint presentations
into HTML for possible inclusion on your Web page.
Week Eight--Scanning and Imaging Technology
Assignments:
Bring pictures of yourself, your family, friends, pets, favorite
places, things, and so on, to scan and build into your Web page.
Learn and practice scanning protocols.
As necessary, learn and practice graphic conversion protocols.
Search the Internet for backgrounds, graphics, and pictures
to support your Web site.
Compile a classroom database of images and graphics.
Week Nine--Introduction to Home Page Design
Assignments:
Read WWWW, pp. xiii-xix (Intro) and pp. 1-11 (Chap.
1). Also, skim the overview in Chap. 3, pp. 51-61. We will talk about these
pages and their implications for the construction of our Web sites.
Read WWWW, pp. 66-78 (Chap. 4). This excerpt talks
about the home pages of typical Web sites and will guide us in the task
of beginning a home page.
Note: Please bear in mind that Chap. 2 of WWWW
discusses at length HTML and gives examples of tagged pages. You will want
to refer to these resource pages throughout the remainder of the term.
Week Ten--Collaborative Web Design
Assignments:
Read WWWW, pp. 182-90 (Chap. 9). These pages provide
a good template for designing entire sites, and we will continue working
on our home page.
Read WWWW, pp. 90, 94, 104-115 (Chap. 5). These sections
talk about the pages attached to our home pages, and we will begin linking
up our writing samples.
Week Eleven--Collaborative Web Design
Assignments:
Read the handout from The Bedford Guide for College Writers,
pp. 324-325. These pages discuss resume writing. You should bring some
necessary information to class so that we can begin composing our resumés
in Microsoft Word.
Complete your resumé. Save one version in Microsoft
Word and one in HTML for inclusion on your home page.
Read WWWW, pp. 61, 79, 116-117. These pages talk about
adding signatures to our Web sites, and we will each construct a home page
signature.
Week Twelve--Collaborative Work and Computer Presentations
Assignments:
Several of you will give your PowerPoint presentations. The
presentations will last approximately 10 minutes each.
Examine the resource pages at the end of each chapter in
WWWW for possible relevance to your individual Web site, and continue
to collaborate on your home page.
Begin to make the final decisions regarding your home page--whether
or not you plan to include additional writing samples and so on.
Week Thirteen--Collaborative Work and Computer
Presentations
Assignments:
More of you will give your PowerPoint presentations. We will
continue to collaborate with each other by asking questions, giving suggestions,
and offering constructive criticism, so that our pages might present us
in the best light possible.
Read p. 161 in WWWW, and talk about uploading. Afterwards,
we will look for sounds, graphics, and other finishing touches for our
Web sites.
Week Fourteen--Collaborative Work and Computer
Presentations
Assignments:
The rest of you will give your PowerPoint presentations.
Week Fifteen--Collaborative Work and Electronic
Portfolios
Assignments:
Electronic portfolios are due. Organize your virtual documents
and images; download everything to your storage device(s).
Week Sixteen--Revision and WWW Compliance
Assignments:
Web pages will be published by this point; check your pages
for WWW compliance.
Edit, amend, and repair your web site as necessary.
Look at the pages of your colleagues.
Let's congratulate ourselves on our fine work!
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