EN 216
Section 259- ONL1
The Short Story
Summer 2009
Instructor Information
Name: Ms. Kim Murphy Office: N/A
E-mail: kmurphy@frederick.edu
Phone Number: 443-812-4381
Office Hours: By appointment Campus Mail Box Number: 511
Course Information
Credits: 3
Prerequisites: EN101
|
Meeting Time: Weekly
Online |
On-Campus Exams: 2 |
Important Dates
·
Last Day to Drop: June 5,
2009
·
Last Day to Withdraw: July
8, 2009
Course Description
This
course surveys a wide variety of short stories.
It also analyzes the elements of the short story with emphasis on
thematic development and relevance of the stories to life experiences in a
variety of cultures and nations.
Core Learning Outcomes
Students
will have written papers, completed examinations, and participated in online
discussions that demonstrate:
1.
informed critical responses to a variety of short stories and to the human
values they express through an awareness of short stories as both a record and
a reflection of culture.
2.
college-level communication skills and appropriate documentation of source
material.
3. an
understanding and interpretation of social values by identifying and evaluating
moral issues and conflicts, by displaying academic honesty, and by valuing
lifelong learning.
4.
critical thinking skills in the analysis, comparison, synthesis,
interpretation, and evaluation of short stories and the techniques used by
writers to create them.
5.
appropriate use of literary terminology.
6. the
value of short stories as evidence of a multicultural society expressing the
universality and diversity of the human experience and the importance and
responsibility of the individual.
7.
the use of technology to format papers and conduct research.
This course consists of online
lectures, class discussion, collaborative learning, podcasting, instructor
comments on written work, and online (library) research.
Gioia,
Dana, and R.S. Gywnn. The Art of the
Short Story. New York: Longman/Pearson’s,
2006.
College
dictionary ( a good online dictionary and thesaurus can be found at
www.m-w.com
Internet Sites
Access to Blackboard
(Username:
W+student ID; Password: last 4
digits of student ID)
Supplies for Course
Blackboard
access, Microsoft Word 2003 or 2007, FCC email address
Essay
1: Character Analysis 10% 90-100%
A
Essay
2: Story Analysis 15% 80-89% B
Midterm
Exam 10% 70-79% C
Final
Exam 15% 60-69%
D
Quizzes
20%
Below 60% F
Discussion
Board Posts 30%
Total 100%
By the end of the fifth week of the
semester, students will have had their first major paper returned and will have
an opportunity to evaluate their progress in this course. At that point, students can decide if they
need to make any adjustments (additional studying, tutoring, conference with
instructor) to best assure their success in this course.
1. Students have the right to offer opposing
opinions and to reserve judgment about
their views, beliefs, academic
evaluations, and political affiliations.
2. Students have the right to fair evaluation by
instructions, based upon clearly defined
criteria presented at the beginning of the
course.
In
an online class, consistent attendance is paramount. Therefore, it is to
students’ advantage to log on to the class site a minimum of four times a week
to check announcements, contribute to class discussions and pick up any new
assignments. Students may reach the
instructor by phone at 443-812-4381 or by email at kmurphy@frederick.edu with any questions
regarding attendance.
Students are expected to attend all class
sessions except in cases of emergency, religious holidays, or participation in
official College functions. In these cases, notification or verification, if
requested, will be given to the instructor by the student. In the case of absence for special reasons
other than those mentioned above, it is the student's responsibility to confer
with the instructor about whether the absence is to be considered excused. When determining whether to consider an
absence excused, the instructor may require such evidence as seems appropriate
without placing undue hardship upon the student.
Responsibilities
of Students For Online meetings
1.
Students
are expected to be respectful to each other and to the instructor in discussion
board and email messages.
2.
Students
are expected to keep up with the flow of the course and to submit assignments
by the assigned deadlines. Students are expected to treat the deadlines in this
online course as they would the deadlines in a classroom course, not as a
correspondence course with open-ended deadlines. In other words, this is not a
self-paced course.
3.
Students
are expected to hand in all assignments no later than Sunday at
4.
Students
are expected to uphold the College's Code of Academic Honesty. Students are expected not to misrepresent
someone else's work as their own.
5.
All
students are expected to use their student email addresses provided by the
College. The instructor will use these addresses to communicate with students.
6.
Students
are expected to log on to the Blackboard website at least four to six times per
week to check announcements, contribute to class discussions of readings, turn
in assignments and pick up new assignments. All new material for the next week
will be posted by the following Sunday at
7.
Students
are expected to contribute a minimum of one intelligent and substantial comment of their own per week on the
discussion board and are expected to post at least two responses to classmates’
posts. Students are expected to treat discussion board posts as they would
treat an essay by posting grammatically correct and coherent sentences.
Students will be graded on the quality of their posts.
8.
Students
are expected to complete one timed writing assignment that is proctored by a
staff member in the on-campus testing center.
9.
Students
are expected to submit all essays via email using Microsoft Word 2003 or 2007.
All Microsoft Word documents have the .doc extension. The instructor cannot support WordPerfect documents or any documents
that have a .wps extension. Students who do not have Word on their home
computers need to either purchase the software or find access to a computer
that supports Word.
10. All essays should be
submitted to the instructor as an attachment through the Assignments feature in
Blackboard. Students should not email essays the instructor, unless prior
arrangements have been made.
For ease of communication between students
and instructors, the College has made an email address available to all
students. This address becomes available to students once they have enrolled;
they need only to go onto the email website and activate it. Students should go
online to activate their email addresses at the start of the course if they
have not already done so. The instructor will communicate with students using
this address only. Therefore, students are required to use their FCC email
addresses. Students should check their FCC email daily.
Format
of Essays
All
essays should be formatted using MLA style. Students are expected to review the
information available through the class website to find out how to format a
paper’s headings and margins according to MLA style. Additionally, students are
expected to review information on how to format in-text citations and Works
Cited entries. Students who do not follow proper formatting will lose points on
essays, particularly on the text analysis essay and the final research paper.
First
Drafts
First
drafts are not a requirement of this course. However, the instructor will be
happy to review drafts at a student’s request if the draft is submitted one week before the due date.
Feedback
on Drafts
The
instructor will review drafts using the “Track Changes” feature in Microsoft
Word and emailed back to the student as an attachment. Specific instructions on
how students can turn off this feature once the paper is returned will be
posted on the class website.
Grading
of Essays
Students are expected
to write at the level appropriate to the course. The instructor will offer
comments on first drafts to help students improve papers and will use a grading
rubric to score final essays. Papers inappropriate for a mature, reasonably
intelligent audience, as well as those weak in grammar or presented in an
inappropriate format, may be failed or returned for a total revision.
Although
the grading of individual assignments may vary, the following standards will,
in general, be applied to written work in accordance with the statewide “C”
Standard Guidelines:
An “A” paper is substantial, well
developed, and effectively organized and presented. It demonstrates original or
thoughtful engagement with content and sensitivity to diction, tone, and style.
Its sentences are clear, precise, and well structured. The paper is
appropriately documented and virtually error-free (especially of run on
sentences and sentence fragments).
A “B” paper contains a number of
strengths of an “A” paper, but typically lacks the thoughtfulness, originality,
and sensitivity of the superior paper.
It is also virtually error-free.
A “C” paper fulfills the
assignment and is adequately organized. The writer communicates ideas and
develops a thesis, although supporting evidence may be minimal and organization
rather mechanical. The writing is not marred by habitual or serious grammatical
errors. Thought and expression are competent.
A “D” paper typically is marked
by failure to focus on a thesis, is poorly organized, contains undeveloped
ideas, and contains serious and habitual grammatical and mechanical errors.
An “F” paper may ignore the terms
of the assignment, or it may be devoid of a thesis statement, support or
organization. It typically contains numerous mechanical errors that seriously
interfere with the reader’s ability to comprehend the writing. It may also be
marred with serious errors in or a lack of documentation.
Grading
of Discussion Board Posts
Students
will be graded on the quality of their own discussion board posts and on their
responses to their classmates’ posts. The grading rubric for discussion board
posts can be found under the “Evaluation” button on the course site. Students
are expected use correct grammar and spelling and are expected to write
coherent sentences. Discussion board post grades will be factored in with the
final participation grade.
Exams
Students
taking online classes are required to take at least one exam on campus in the
Assessment Center. For this class, students will complete both the mid-term and
the final exams on campus in the Assessment Center.
Quizzes
Students
will complete exams through Blackboard and are open book.
Plagiarism
Students
are expected to uphold the College's Code of Academic Honesty. Students are expected not to misrepresent
someone else's work as their own (see the statement posted to Blackboard
regarding plagiarism).
Students
with Disabilities
FCC
provides reasonable accommodations to otherwise qualified students with
disabilities in accordance with the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990
(ADA) and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (Section 504) and
amendments. Students with disabilities
who are in need of accommodations must contact the Services for Students with
Disabilities (SSD) office at 301-846-2408 (A Building, Room 106A) in order to
request and apply for services. The SSD
office will require appropriate documentation of a disability. Questions related to accommodations or
services can be directed to the SSD office.
Additional information related to services can be viewed at the
following FCC web page: http://www.frederick.edu/student_services/disability.aspx.
Students
who currently receive services from the SSD office, should submit their Student
Success Plan to the instructor and make an appointment with her to discuss their
accommodations and needs in class. Any
information shared with the instructor will be held in strict confidence,
unless the student gives the instructor permission to do otherwise.
This is a tentative
course schedule. Changes will be made based on class progress. Students are
expected to be aware of any changes made to the topical outline, as updates
will be posted on the Blackboard website.
|
Week Number |
Subject |
Assignment Due |
|
1 (5/31-6/7) (Last Day to Drop: 6/5) |
-Introduction
to course -Review
“C” Standard -Formatting
Your Essays -Discuss
the art of the short story -Discuss
characterization -Essay 1 Assigned -Quiz #1 (By 6/7) |
Read in Short Story “The Art of the
Short Story,” pgs. 3-6 “Characterization,”
pgs. 854-857 “A
Rose for Emily,” pgs. 238-245 “Revelation,”
pgs. 689-704. Link to Handout and
read
“Zebra Storyteller” Answer
Questions on the Discussion Board |
|
2 (6/8-6/14) |
-Discuss
writing about fiction -Discuss
setting -Quiz #2 (by 6/14) |
Read in Short Story “Writing About
Fiction,” pgs. 863-867—Check the marginal notes in the sample “Setting,”
pgs. 859-860 “The
Lottery,” pgs. 390-398 “Happy
Endings,” pgs. 22-25 “Where
are you going, Where Have You Been?” pgs. 664-676 “Dead
Man’s Path,” pgs. 10-13 Discussion Board: Answer questions on
discussion board. |
|
3 (6/15-6/21) |
-Discuss
symbolism -Discuss
plot -Discuss
theme -Quiz #3 (by 6/21) |
Link to Handout and
Read: Symbolism Read in Short Story “Writing About
Literature,” pgs. 863-877 “Plot,”
pgs. 849-854 “Theme,” pgs. 860-861 “Barn
Burning,” pgs. 225-238 “Young
Goodman Brown,” pgs. 348-357 “The
Yellow Wallpaper,” pgs. 297-309 “How
I Met My Husband,” pgs. 649-662 “The
Story of an Hour,” pgs. 157-158 “Roman
Fever,” pgs. 832-842 “A
Good Man is Hard to Find,” pgs. 678-689 Discussion Board: Answer questions on
discussion board. Answer
questions on discussion board |
|
4 (6/22-6/28) |
Go
to the Assessment Center to take your mid-term Due: Essay
1 Essay
2 Assigned |
Link to Handout and
Read:
How to take an essay exam |
|
5 (6/29-7/5) |
-Discuss
point of view -Discuss
Style -Quiz #4 (by 7/5) |
Read in Short
Story “Point of View,” pgs. 857-858 “Style,”
pgs. 861-862 “Mythological
Criticism,” pgs. 890-892 “The
Open Boat,” pgs. 196-216 “A
Party Down at the Square,” pgs. 218-223 “Everyday
Use,” pgs. 810-818 “The
Rocking-Horse Winner,” pgs. 517-529 |
|
6 (7/6-7/12) (Last Day to Withdraw with a grade “W”: 7/8) |
-Discuss
Critical Approaches to Literature -Quiz #5 (by 7/12) |
Read in Short
Story “Background,” pgs. 878-879 “Psychological
Criticism,” pgs. 887-889 “Formalist,”
pgs. 879-88 “Biographical,”
pgs. 881-884 “Historical,”
pgs. 884-887 |
|
7 (7/13-7/19) |
-Discuss
Critical Approaches to Literature -Quiz #6 (by 7/19) |
Read in Short
Story “Psychological,” pgs. 887-889 “Mythological,”
pgs. 890-892 “Sociological,” pgs. 892-895 “Gender,”
pgs. 895-897 “Reader-Response,”
pgs. 897-898 “Deconstructionist,” pgs. 899-900 |
|
8 (7/20-7/25) |
Due: Essay 2 Got
to the Assessment Center to take your final exam |
Enjoy the rest of
your summer! |