FWIS 100 - 009 Fall 2017 Syllabus -Rice University Durian

Class Time: TR 7-8:15pm Instructor: E.L. Durian

Location: HUM 120 on T Email: [email protected]
SE 101 on R Office Hours: TR 6-7pm

Your Name: Click or tap here to enter text.

Course Description and Objectives: FWIS 100-009 “The Great Fairytale Tradition”
This is a writing course that will help students to develop their critical thinking, reading, and
analytical skills as they are introduced to college expectations for reading, writing, and source
use. This course will provide an introduction to the expectations of academic readers as well as
practice with the rhetorical and linguistic structures common to academic writing. Students will
also review grammatical points relevant to the course material and assignments and learn to self-
edit their own work. The theme for this class will be fairy and folk tales with an emphasis upon
how similar stories are told or retold in different cultures.

Part of what makes our American society wonderful is that we are the “melting pot” and have a
wide variety of individuals from different cultures existing together. One great example of the
fusion, blending, and borrowing from one culture to another at a global level can be seen in “the
great fairytale tradition.” Though each culture has its own fairy and folk tales, when we examine
stories from different parts of the world or different time periods, we can see patterns as similar
characters, themes, plots, motifs, etc. occur and reoccur. But does this mean that similar tales are
retellings of the same original story? Or is this just a coincidence due to shared values across
cultures? In this class, we will explore the significance of fairy and folk tales by reading and
discussing stories from different cultures and time periods, as well as scholarly and popular
secondary sources that analyze these stories.

Using these fairytale texts as our primary sources, students will learn to write in a variety of
genres, including some multimedia projects, in order to summarize, analyze, discuss, evaluate,
and create fairytale texts. Students will also learn how to properly incorporate and cite a variety
of different sources within essays and other projects, as well as learning about library research
tools. Finally, students will work on developing awareness of the rhetorical situation so that the
student’s own voice as a writer can develop and come through in an appropriate manner suited to
each genre and purpose. We will view writing as a process that begins with selecting a topic and
brainstorming and ends with reflecting on a “final” project that was submitted for a grade.
Prewriting, drafting, peer review, informal writing, and conferencing will be important steps in
this process, as will learning to write and edit to adhere to conventions of Standard American
English and to cite sources properly in MLA format. Students will write in class every day and
work in small groups frequently.

FWIS 100 Learning Objectives

1. Understand academic writing and communication as a conversation; specifically, that
academic reading and writing respond to the ideas of others and also contribute original
ideas.

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2. Demonstrate understanding of the purpose, argument, and structure of college-level

readings, by identifying the thesis, major claims, and broader conversation of a reading.
3. Improve sentence level accuracy of Standard Written English such that errors are not
distracting to the reader; and employ appropriate tone and word choice in formal
academic language.
4. Demonstrate basic awareness of rhetorical context in communication by identifying
the genre, audience, and purpose of each text encountered and produced.
5. Practice academic writing as a process by revising each major assignment, in part or in
full, at least once; and developing one or two personal pre-writing and revision strategies.
6. Recognize the academic practice of using and acknowledging the work of others in one’s
own writing. Specifically, identify attribution practices in assigned readings and identify
ideas and language that must be cited in student work.
7. Understand best practices of oral presentation relating to body language, audience
interaction and visual design.
8. Participate with confidence in academic discussions by acquiring the necessary language
to articulate one’s ideas; to briefly summarize another’s ideas; and to elaborate,
complicate, or disagree with those ideas.

Required Texts
Students are required to obtain the following texts and bring copies to class:
1. Bullock, Richard, Michael Brody, and Francine Weinberg. The Little Seagull Handbook
with Exercises. 3rd ed. W.W. Norton & Company, 2016. ISBN: 978-0393602647.
2. Tartar, Maria (Ed.). The Classic Fairy Tales. 2nd Norton Critical Edition. W.W. Norton &
Company, 2016. ISBN: 978-0393602975.
It is okay to buy the 2nd edition of Little Seagull or the 1st edition of Fairy Tales. The new
editions are very similar to the old. Please feel free to buy the edition that you can obtain
the soonest at the lowest cost!
3. Readings, handouts, prompts, and rubrics posted to Canvas as .doc or .pdf files.

Materials and Supplies Needed for Class

 Pens or pencils and paper to take notes and complete in-class writings
 The prompt, rubrics, and handouts for the current assignments
 Access to a word processor that can edit text and page formatting and save .doc files
 Access to a PDF reader/viewer, such as Adobe Acrobat (download for free!)
All computers on Rice’s campus will be able to accommodate these needs, as will any
personal computer.

Workload Expectation
This a writing course, and there will be homework and readings required to be completed outside
of class time. How long it takes to complete these out-of-class assignments will largely depend
upon each student’s individual abilities. In general, plan to spend at least 2-3 hours each week on
each of the following items: 1) reading, 2) completing homework, 3) writing or revising essays.
Again, it may take more or less time to complete an assignment type depending on individual
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abilities; there is no guaranteed minimum or maximum time.

Class Conduct
An important aspect of this class is proper conduct (behavior) and respect for peers, the
instructor, and self. At all times in class, students are expected to be prepared for class activities
and discussion, be attentive and on task, be respectful of the views and opinions of their
classmates, participate in class activities, and be polite. Please refer to the Student Handbook for
more details.

At no time during the class period are students permitted to use cellphones, tablets, laptops, etc.
for anything not related to the course. The instructor cannot be responsible for repeating
information that students miss because of phone use or other distractions. Students who do not
pay attention and participate in class tend to perform poorly because they miss important
information that causes them to not understand what is going on or what they are expected to do.
Students will be marked absent and will not receive credit for in-class work when off-task,
including using electronic devices or working on assignments for other classes.

Instructor Expectations of Students

 To attend class regularly and be prepared to participate and take notes. Complete reading
and assignments in advance of class; bring required materials to class.
 To treat classmates and instructor with respect and courtesy—this includes not using
cellphones or other electronic devices for personal matters during class.
 To take responsibility for completing and submitting original work and listening to,
reading, and following all directions for assignments and activities—this includes getting
materials from Canvas and asking questions when something is unclear.
 To take feedback on drafts and essays seriously and incorporate changes into final and
future assignments; read feedback promptly and ask questions within one (1) week.
 To adhere to the policies given in the syllabus. Remaining enrolled in the class constitutes
an agreement to follow these policies and any necessary amendments or emendments.

Student Expectations of Instructor

1. To enjoy teaching and want to be here as demonstrated by arriving prepared for class,
(re)reading all material assigned to students on schedule, not using a cellphone or other
devices for personal matters during class, being available to answer student questions
outside of class (within 24 hours for email), and treating all students with equal respect
and courtesy.
2. To be an expert on rhetoric and composition and to prepare appropriate learning materials
by designing assignments that meet IAI guidelines and teach transferable skills,
maintaining the Canvas site, and making expectations clear.
3. To give timely and useful feedback on assignments by assessing submitted assignments
in accordance with policies and rubrics provided and posting grades on all major writing
assignments within two (2) weeks of the due date.
4. To encourage students to produce their best writing by providing instruction on and class
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discussion and activities for all major assignments, teaching writing as a process that
breaks down projects into manageable steps (including revision and reflection), offering
two (2) one-on-one conferences per semester, and holding students to college-level
standards.
5. To retain the right to amend or emend course policies as needed in order to best help
students to learn and succeed. Should this become necessary, changes will be announced
in class and posted on Canvas prior to becoming effective.

Course Requirements & Evaluation

Final grades are determined by a weight grading system. Typically, 5% of the final grade will be
allotted to each assignment per each “week” of class (based on a 16-week semester or
approximately 150 minutes of class time per “week”) that we spend working on a project.
Projects that require Self & Peer Reviews are allotted an additional 5% of the final grade. Extra
credit will not be given in this course because we have sufficient opportunities to earn regular
credit. Projects are:

 Academic Review Project: 25% of final grade

Students will select two tellings/versions of one story from the Tartar Anthology. The two tales
selected should be from different time periods and/or cultures in order to have a clear contrast. In
an essay of 3-4 pages, students will first summarize the stories and then choose two literary
devices (plot, theme, tone, setting, moral, diction, etc.) to analyze, explaining how these devices
are the same/different in each of the two stories, why the author may have chosen this
presentation, and what effect that may have upon the reader. In order to help students decide
upon and support the aspects of their analysis, they will use a secondary source, the critical
introduction to the appropriate section of the anthology (i.e., “Introduction to Cinderella”) to help
explain how two versions of the same story may need to make uses of different features to fit
into their appropriate culture or time period. One of the prewriting activities for this project will
ask students to write their own retelling of the fairytale that they have chosen to work with and
share it with a group of peers. This project includes draft and final essays, prewriting and in-class
writing, class lecture and discussion, readings and reading logs, self and peer review, revision
activities, one CWOVC consultation, and a reflection. This project contributes to FWIS 100
objectives 1-6 and 8.

 Argument Paper Project: 35% of final grade

This project builds upon the previous by having students determine and develop a well-supported
argument for whether a third story is a retelling of the first two (from the previous project) or is a
distinct tale of its own. Students will use the two fairytales they have previously selected, as well
as a third story from a different culture and genre (a children’s book, myth, or song/poem for
example) that has some level of similarity to the fairytales. Students can choose a third text that
they have read before, if they know of one, or else can be assigned one. From there, students will
develop a central claim to the effect of “Story Z is/is not a retelling of fairytales X and Y because
of a, b, and c.” The three major points of the argument (a, b, and c) that students chose can be
literary devices, rhetorical appeals, aspects of SOAPS (Subject, Object, Audience, Purpose,

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Strategies), or other criteria that the student and instructor determine are appropriate to the
stories selected. In the conclusion, students will be asked to make a final statement about the
three texts that incorporates the Kairos into the final explanation of why story Z is/is not a
retelling of stories X and Y. (Here, we will define Kairos as being both timely and appropriate—
or, in saying the “right thing at the right time” in order to appeal to a specific audience…we
practice this in class with various texts!) In addition to the three primary texts, students will use
three secondary sources (critical articles) to help support their claims. Students may use one
article from the anthology or other class readings and are also required to find two additional
sources on their own, using the library research strategies and criteria we learn about in class. It
is strongly recommended that students use “Cross-Cultural Connections and the Contamination
of the Classical Fairytale” by Jack Zipes as one critical article, though this is not absolutely
required. This project includes draft and final essays, prewriting and in-class writing, class
lecture and discussion, readings and reading logs, self and peer review, revision activities, an
individual writing conference, two CWOVC consultations, and a reflection. This project
contributes to FWIS 100 objectives 1-6 and 8.

 Digital & Oral Rhetoric Project: 30% of final grade

Students begin this project by selecting a new fairytale (or author) that they would like to work
with for the next two projects. There are two major options here. The first is to create a brief
textual history (2-3 pages) that explains the origins of a fairytale, its basic plot and some
variations that exist, what cultures the story exists in, and any other interesting facts about the
tale that the student finds in his/her research. The second is to select a famous fairytale author
(e.g., the Grimm brothers, Basile, etc.) and present a brief overview (2-3 pages) of this person’s
life: where and when they were born, why/how they began working with fairytales, what
fairytales have they created/retold, what culture(s)/language(s) they represent in their works, and
any interesting information about the author that the student finds out. Students will primarily
locate their own sources for this project and are allowed to use credible popular sources (such as
websites that pass the Currency, Relevance, Accuracy, Authority, and Purpose “text”) in
conjunction with traditional academic sources (book chapters, articles) to obtain information
about their topic. A minimum of three sources are required, and part of this project entails
locating the overlapping information among multiple sources in order to “fact-check” the
findings. From there, students will “re-genre” the previous essay by using the new Google Sites
to create a website to share the information in the previous profile essay. Each major point in the
paper will have its own page on the website, which will also include a home/introduction page
and a Works Cited page, as well as parenthetical citations or footnotes. Sources cited in this
project will be hyperlinked to a copy of the original source whenever possible in order to
demonstrate the website’s place in the digital ecosystem and to encourage further reading on the
topic. Students will share their completed websites with the class in a brief oral presentation (3-5
minutes). Each student will give his/her own presentation; however, the presenters will be
grouped into panels of 2-6 students with similar topics/ideas. After each panel presents, there will
be a brief Q&A session so that students in the class can ask the panel or individual members
questions. This project includes draft and final websites, prewriting and in-class writing, class
lecture and discussion, readings and reading logs, self and peer review, revision activities, an

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individual writing conference, two CWOVC consultations, and a reflection. This project
contributes to FWIS 100 objectives 1-8.

 Final Project: Writing Portfolio with Reflective Cover Letter: 10% of final grade
In the final project, students will have the opportunity to reflect upon the semester and assess the
skills they’ve learned and how they’ve improved as writers. Students will compile their major
assignments from the semester into an online portfolio (using Canvas ePortfolios) and then
discuss their assignments and experience in the class in an accompanying reflective cover letter
(3-4 pages) that briefly explains what they did for each project, what they learned or
accomplished, what challenges they faced, what they enjoyed, how their confidence or ability in
writing has changed since the start of the semester, what they would like to continue to work on
in the future, and so on. The final project includes class lecture and discussion, readings and
reading logs (graded with previous project), and revision. This project contributes to FWIS 100
objectives 1, 3-4, and 8.

Extra Help
Students who have questions about assignments must contact the instructor for clarification. “I
didn't know,” “I didn't understand,” “It wasn't clear, “I thought that...,” etc. are not excuses for
failure to meet requirements. I also strongly recommend that all students take advantage of the
following resources offered by the instructor and university to help with their writing as needed:
 The Center for Written, Oral, and Visual Communication (CWOVC): Located on the
Second Floor Mezzanine of Fondren Library. Please see the CWOVC website,
https://cwovc.rice.edu/home, for more information to schedule an appointment. FWIS
100 students are required to attend an appointment at the CWOVC at least once every
two weeks; part of students’ grades for each writing project includes attending the
appropriate number of CWOVC sessions. There will be 1-2 CWOVC consultants
assigned to this section. Students in this section must schedule meetings only with
this/these CWOVC consultant(s)! Please see the separate handout containing
instructions on how to schedule an appointment with the correct consultant.
 Instructor’s Office Hours: My office location and office hours are listed on the top of the
first page of the syllabus. This is time I have set aside each week specifically to meet with
students, give additional help, and answer questions, and so on. I love when students
come to see me during office hours; please stop by! Outside of office hours, I will always
take questions by email and do my best to answer with a few hours (though probably not
in the middle of the night!).

Grading
For each essay, a prompt and rubric will be posted to Canvas to describe the assignment in detail
and list specific requirements and grading criteria. We will spend one class period covering these
directions. For smaller assignments, verbal and written directions, as well as a rubric, will be
posted to Canvas and covered in class. Students are expected to follow all directions and meet all
requirements given for all assignments, regardless of the type. This is a college-level course;
students will not receive credit for merely submitting work. Likewise, submitting an assignment

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does not guarantee a grade of 100%. Failure to fully complete or meet any aspect of the
requirements will have a negative impact upon grades, up to and including a score of 0 being
assigned. Questions about grades must be asked within one (1) week of the grade being returned.

The following scale will be used in determining grades on assignments during the course and for
final grades: A+ 97-100% A 93-97% A- 90-92%
B+ 87-89% B 83-87% B- 80-82%
C+ 77-79% C 73-77% C- 70-72%
D+ 67-69% D 63-68% D- 60-62% F 0-59%

Statement about Grades of “F” and Withdrawal from Class

Students may not withdraw from FWIS 100. When a student who does not turn in one or more
essay assignments, and/or has frequent absences, and/or does not complete smaller assignments,
it may become impossible for him/her to earn a passing grade in this course. Repeated lack of
attendance and assignment completion may cause the student to receive a grade of “F,”
depending on course progress or course attendance, which will become a part of the student’s
permanent record. With this in mind, even if a particular project seems challenging, it is far
better to keep working at it and ask the instructor and/or CWOVC consultant for help than to
give up on the course.

Assignment Submission Policy

All work in this course counts toward the final grade, and it is possible to fail if not enough work
is submitted. Please be aware that failure to submit an assignment will not exempt the student
from it. Unless otherwise noted, all work other than in-class writings are required to be uploaded
to Canvas dropboxes as .doc or .docx files. Assignments must be uploaded to the proper place for
the student to receive credit. Students are responsible for submitting their own work and
checking for the confirmation screen and attached file. Uploading errors will not be considered
valid excuses for missing deadlines. Students must submit work for it to be received and graded.
HAVING A FILE SAVED ON A COMPUTER IS NOT THE SAME AS SUBMITTING IT TO CANVAS; please do
not suggest that it is or ask for exceptions to policies based upon having a computer file. I DO
NOT ACCEPT ANY ASSIGNMENTS BY EMAIL FOR ANY REASON; DO NOT EMAIL ME ASSIGNMENTS.

Expectations of College Level Essays

Below are some basic expectations for college-level writing:
1. All essays must be formatted in MLA. At a minimum, text must be double-spaced and the
font must be Times New Roman 12 for the assignment to be graded.
2. Writing in essays must adhere to conventions of Standard American English (SAE).
3. Credible sources must be used and properly acknowledged in both drafts and final essays.
All required sources must be both listed on a Works Cited at the end of the essay and be
cited within the essay using parenthetical citations. Direct quotations, summary, and
paraphrase all must always be marked with proper parenthetical citations. Failure to cite
sources is considered plagiarism. Any essay that does not contain both parenthetical
citations and a Works Cited will receive a score of 0.

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4. Minimum word counts must be met in to ensure sufficient information in essays and
adherence to outcomes. Essays that fall short of minimum word counts will be penalized.
If at least 70% of the minimum word count is not met, the student will not receive a
passing grade on the essay.
5. We will learn how to use library databases to find sources. Unless otherwise specified, it
is required that all students will use these databases, not Google (or another search
engine) to find sources for papers. Sources not obtained from databases will not be
counted unless otherwise stated and approved by the instructor.

Cheating, Plagiarism, Self-Plagiarism, and Originality Policies

All students are expected to abide by the Honor Code (http://honor.rice.edu/). Original work is
required for this course. Cheating, plagiarism, self-plagiarism, and other instances of non-
original work are considered Academic Dishonesty—a serious offense that violates the honor
code and carries serious consequences for the student.

Cheating includes, but is not limited to:

1. The use of any unauthorized assistance, resources, materials or electronic/cellular devices
with or without photographic capability in taking quizzes, tests or examinations;
2. Dependence upon the aid of sources beyond those authorized by the instructor in writing
papers, preparing reports, solving problems, or carrying out other assignments;
3. The acquisition, without permission, of a test or other academic material belonging to
Rice University, to any department, or to any staff.

Plagiarism includes, but is not limited to:

1. Use, by paraphrase or direct quotation, of the published or unpublished work of another
person without full and clear acknowledgment;
2. Unacknowledged use of materials prepared by another person;
3. Use of an agency engaged in the selling of term papers or other academic materials.

It is assumed that students in college can differentiate between their own words and the words of
others (i.e., can understand that information cannot be directly copied from any source or text
and passed off as the student’s own). We will learn how to properly acknowledge the words/ideas
of others within essays and other projects early on in this course and build on these skills as the
semester progresses. Writing Workshops (drafting, revision, consultations, reviews, etc.) include
components designed to help students recognize and correct any instances of uncited source
material. Should plagiarism occur in revised projects, the student will receive a score of 0 for the
first offense and be required to meet with the instructor to review the problem and revise the
plagiarized text. For the second offense, the student will receive an F as his/her final grade in the
course. This policy also encompasses self-plagiarism, which means reusing an assignment (or
parts thereof) that the student has previously or concurrently turned in for another class or
purpose.

Reading and Informal Writing Policies

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Readings and smaller assignments are designed to help students prepare to write essays. The
following policies apply:
1. Any in-class activities (e.g., In-Class Writings) cannot be made-up if missed and will not
be accepted later or earlier than the end of the class period on the day they are assigned.
Students will not receive credit for In-Class Writings if they are not present the entire
period, are off-task, are disrupting the class, and/or are using electronic devices for
personal matters.
2. Students are responsible for all information in all assigned readings and sources. Students
are required to read all assigned readings on the schedule and all sources used for
projects. We will use Canvas Quizzes to have Weekly Reading Logs to test knowledge of
the readings. I strongly encourage every student to take notes on and/or annotate all
materials read for this course and to create and keep bibliographies of all sources located
for assignments. Skimming or only reading source abstracts is not acceptable; reading
and using the entire text is required. If it becomes clear that a student is only using
information from abstracts or does not have a copy of a source claimed to be used for an
assignment, the source will not be counted for the first offense. Should a second offense
occur, the students will receive a failing grade on the assignment.
3. Prewriting Activities will be done on a weekly basis until a complete draft is due. They
serve as a way for students to organize thoughts and information in reparation for the
draft and to allow the instructor to do a preliminary checking of understanding. If
Prewritings are off-topic, the student has not prepared appropriate material, and the
assigned score will be 0.

Late Policy
Due dates and times for all assignments are given on the schedule and on Canvas and are
staggered throughout the week to give students the maximum amount of time possible to work
on assignments. Due dates are meant to be at latest time at which work is accepted, not the time
at which to begin completing or submitting work. Dropboxes will open for submissions once an
assignment is introduced and will close at 11:59pm the night the assignment is due. While there
will not be a penalty for submitting between the due time (usually 6pm) and close time,
absolutely no work will be accepted once the dropbox is closed. Canvas will time-stamp each
submission, and this will be considered the official time of submission. If a file does not upload
to Canvas, it was not turned in and will receive a score of 0. If a student is absent, s/he is still
responsible for submitting work on time.

Writing Workshop Week Policies

There will be a series of workshop and revision activities, both in and out of class time, during
the week drafts are submitted. Because these activities are designed to help students revise and
edit papers, they must be completed during the allotted time frame to be useful and for students
to receive credit. The following policies apply:
 Drafts, like final essays, must contain parenthetical citations and a Works Cited. A draft
missing one or both will receive a score of 0 because this is plagiarism. Drafts must be
submitted on time for students to participate in Self & Peer Reviews. There can be no

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exceptions; please do not ask.

 Revision Activities are designed to help students plan for revising the draft. Revision is
required; students may not re-submit the same copy of the essay for both the draft and
final. If this occurs, the instructor will remove draft credit for the first offense and score
the final essay as 0 for any subsequent offenses by the same student.
 Participating in and providing quality self and peer feedback is an important part of the
writing process. The best way to get quality feedback from peers is to provide them with
quality feedback--take these sessions seriously. If a student receives feedback that seems
questionable, s/he must notify the instructor immediately. If a draft is late, off topic,
contains no citations, or is less than 50% complete, the student author will not be eligible
to participate in Self & Peer Review. Again, there are no exceptions; please do not ask.
 There will be required conferences scheduled for two papers in this class. Conferences
will not require students to meet with the instructor outside of class time and cannot be
made-up if missed.
 The instructor will not read drafts in detail, nor proofread or copy-edit them, nor check
for plagiarized material. These items are the responsibility of the student writer. However,
I will skim draft essays to look for major problems. If I note that a student needs to
correct something in the draft and s/he chooses not to correct it for the final, I will no
longer be able to provide that student with feedback on future drafts, excluding scheduled
one-on-one writing conferences.

CWOVC Consultation Policy

Students are required to meet with the assigned CWOVC consultant(s) for this section a
minimum of once every two (2) weeks and are graded upon completing these consultations.
Following each consultation session completed, the student will complete a brief reflection using
Canvas Quizzes in order to assess his/her experience and discuss what aspect(s) of writing were
addressed during the consultation. These CVOWC Reflections will be count toward either the
IW or WW portion of the grade for the current project, depending upon when the deadline for the
consultation is. Please see Canvas to access the CWOVC Reflection “quizzes,” see the deadline
for each session, and check how the session will be calculated into the final grade.

Attendance and Participation Policy

FWIS 100 is a required course that may not be dropped, and attendance is mandatory. As adults,
it is each student's responsibility to ensure that his/her classes do not pose conflicts to other
engagements in his/her life. The choice of whether to attend class each day is the student's and
the student's alone. Deadlines and due dates for all assignments apply regardless of whether a
student is present in class. Any in-class work missed cannot be made-up. Students will be
marked absent if they do not participate in class, turn in the in-class writing activity, and/or are
doing other work or attending to personal matters during class time.

Because we always learn about and discuss writing in class, students miss important information
when absent. Students who miss class are still responsible for the material covered in class that
day, inclusive of directions and homework for the next class period and must check Canvas
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and/or check with classmates to determine what was missed. If a student attends no (i.e., 0) class
meetings during the time allotted to work on a project, no work will be accepted for that project
from that student. To accommodate “unexpected surprises,” infrequent absences will not have a
significant impact upon any student's final grade. However, frequent absence from class may
prove to be detrimental. Should a student need to miss class due to a university-sponsored event
that is mandatory for him/her, the student must provide documentation for the absence and meet
with the instructor in advance of the absence in order for it to be excused and accommodations to
be arranged. Unless otherwise specified in writing by the instructor, it is expected that work
missed due to an absence will still be submitted by the due date/time.

An advance response to all inquiries to the effect of “I was absent…Let me know what I missed”:
Students already have access to this information—nice! Check the schedule, get the appropriate
handouts from Canvas, ask a classmate for a copy of his/her notes, and then see me with any
questions.

Electronic Communication Policy

I will communicate announcements and reminders to the class via Canvas. In compliance with
FERPA, I can only respond to emails from students' college email accounts. I always send replies
as soon as I read an email. Before emailing, please check all relevant course materials (e.g.,
prompt, rubrics, syllabus) to ensure that your question has not already been answered. If a
student’s question is already answered elsewhere, my response will be to refer the student to that
resource.

Fairness and Accommodations

All class policies are designed with fairness in mind—not only to individual students, but also to
the class as whole and to the instructor. Every student in the class will be held to the exact same
standards, expectations, deadlines, and policies; no one will receive special treatment.

If a student has a documented disability that may affect academic performance, s/he must: 1)
make sure this documentation is on file with Disability Support Services (Allen Center, Room
111 / [email protected] / x5841) to determine the accommodations you need; and 2) meet with
the instructor to discuss his/her accommodation needs.

Once a student has registered with the DSS Office and a disability that necessitates
accommodations had been documented, s/he will receive an Accommodation Letter for each
professor, which is to be delivered by the student as soon as possible. The instructor will not be
able to offer any accommodations until the student has made arrangements with the DSS.

What questions do you have about the syllabus, policies, or expectations???

Click or tap here to enter text.

This is page 11 of 11 total pages

FWIS 100-009 Fall 2017 Course Schedule – Rice University Durian

Reading Abbreviations: LS = The Little Seagull Handbook,

PDF = a reading posted on Canvas, CF = The Classic Fairy Tales

Week One Class meets on Tuesday, August 22 and Thursday, August 24

Readings Prior to class Tuesday, Read the Syllabus

Prior to class Thursday, Read LS W10, One fairytale from CF

Homework Reading Log is due to Canvas by 11:59pm Friday

Prewriting Activity #1 is due to Canvas by 6pm Friday
Topics Course Expectations, Critical Reading, Brief MLA, Fairy and Folk Tales,
Academic Review Project
New Current Academic Review
Writing Project
New Handouts Syllabus*, Schedule*, The Writing Process*, Academic Review Project
Prompt, Academic Review Essay Rubric, Prewriting Worksheet and Rubric,
All MLA Handouts*, Reading Log Quiz and Rubric*, Narration

A note on handouts: Once we start a project, handouts listed will be used until the end of the
project; new handouts refers to items added for the current week. Items marked with an asterisk*
will be used all semester for each project.

Week Two Class meets on Tuesday, August 29 and Thursday, August 31

Readings Prior to class Tuesday, Read LS W1-2, LS W8

Prior to class Thursday, Read A second fairytale from the same group in CF
and LS W11
Homework Reading Log is due to Canvas by 11:59pm Friday
CWOVC Reflection is due to Canvas by 6pm Thursday (IW grade)
Prewriting Activity #2 is due to Canvas by 6pm Friday
Topics MLA Formatting & Citations, Rhetorical Situation, Analyzing a Text, Literary
Devices, Narration, Fairy and Folk Tales, Source Synthesis
Current Academic Review
Writing Project
New Handouts Components of an Academic Review, SOAPS Method, Literary Devices and
Techniques, Rhetorical Appeals, Prewriting Worksheet and Rubric, CWOVC
Reflection Quiz and Rubric

This is page 1 of 8 total pages

FWIS 100-009 Fall 2017 Course Schedule – Rice University Durian

Reading Abbreviations: LS = The Little Seagull Handbook,

PDF = a reading posted on Canvas, CF = The Classic Fairy Tales

Week Three Class meets on Tuesday, September 05 and Thursday, September 07

Readings Prior to class Tuesday, Read the critical introduction to the fairytale group
selected in CF

Prior to class Thursday, Read LS W3-4

Homework Reading Log is due to Canvas by 11:59pm Friday
Prewriting Activity #3 is due to Canvas by 6pm Friday
Draft Academic Review Essay is due to Canvas by 6pm Sunday
Topics Writing an Analysis, Fairy and Folk Tales, Criticism, Drafting, MLA, Sample
Writing, Critical Reading, Source Synthesis
Current Academic Review
Writing Project
New Handouts Sample Essays, Prewriting Worksheet and Rubric, Draft Essay Rubric

Week Four Class meets on Tuesday, September 12 and Thursday, September 14

Readings Prior to class Tuesday, Read HWA Peer Editing PDF, LS S1-2

Prior to class Thursday, Read HWA Revising Your Own Work PDF, LS S3-4
Homework Self & Peer Review Responses are due to Canvas by 6pm Wednesday
Reading Log is due to Canvas by 11:59pm Friday
CWOVC Reflection is due to Canvas by 6pm Thursday (WW grade)
Revision Activities are due to Canvas by 6pm Friday
Final Academic Review Essay is due to Canvas by 6pm Friday
Topics Writing Workshop, Revising & Editing, Self & Peer Review
Current Academic Review
Writing Project
New Handouts Self & Peer Review Worksheets and Rubric, Checking Quoted Material
Worksheet, Responding to Draft Feedback Worksheet, Revision Activity
Rubric, CWOVC Reflection Quiz and Rubric

This is page 2 of 8 total pages

FWIS 100-009 Fall 2017 Course Schedule – Rice University Durian

Reading Abbreviations: LS = The Little Seagull Handbook,

PDF = a reading posted on Canvas, CF = The Classic Fairy Tales

Week Five Class meets on Tuesday, September 19 and Thursday, September 21

Readings Prior to class Tuesday, Read LS W15-17

Prior to class Thursday, Read LS R1-R4

Homework Reading Log is due to Canvas by 11:59pm Friday
Prewriting Activity #1 is due to Canvas by 6pm Friday
Topics Persuasive Writing; Claims, Reasons, and Assumptions; Evidence; Logic;
Rhetorical Appeals; Finding Sources of Information, Evaluating Source
Types, Scholarly Sources, Reading Strategies, Databases
New Current Argument Paper
Writing Project
New Handouts Argument Paper Essay Prompt; Argument Paper Rubric; Prewriting Activity
Worksheet and Rubric; Conference Schedule; Claims, Reasons, and
Assumptions; Research Databases, Credible and Non-Credible Sources,
Assessing Source Credibility

Week Six Class meets on Tuesday, September 26 and Thursday, September 28

Readings Prior to class Tuesday, Read LS W7, One new fairy/folk tale (or similar)

Prior to class Thursday, Read Scholarly Source #1

Homework Reading Log is due to Canvas by 11:59pm Friday
CWOVC Reflection is due to Canvas by 6pm Thursday (IW grade)
Prewriting Activity #2 is due to Canvas by 6pm Friday
Topics Scholarly Sources, Reading Strategies, MLA Formatting and Citations,
SOAPS Method, Source Synthesis, Toulmin Method
Current Argument Paper
Writing Project
New Handouts Prewriting Activity and Rubric, CWOVC Reflection Quiz and Rubric,
Writing Project Reflection Worksheet and Rubric

This is page 3 of 8 total pages

FWIS 100-009 Fall 2017 Course Schedule – Rice University Durian

Reading Abbreviations: LS = The Little Seagull Handbook,

PDF = a reading posted on Canvas, CF = The Classic Fairy Tales

Week Seven Class meets on Tuesday, October 03 and Thursday, October 05

Readings Prior to class Tuesday, Read Scholarly Source #2

Prior to class Thursday, Scholarly Source #3

Homework Academic Review Reflection is due to Canvas by 6pm Tuesday (tentative)
Reading Log is due to Canvas by 11:59pm Friday
Prewriting Activity #3 is due to Canvas by 6pm Friday
Working Draft Argument Paper is due to Canvas by 6pm Sunday
Topics Academic Arguments, Toulmin Method, Drafting, MLA Formatting and
Citations, Source Synthesis
Current Argument Paper
Writing Project
New Handouts The Toulmin Method Handout; Prewriting Activity and Rubric, Working
Draft Essay Rubric, Sample Essays

Week Eight Class meets on Thursday, October 12 (Conferences)

Readings NO CLASS Tuesday, October 10 (Midterm Recess)

Prior to class Thursday, Read LS S5-9

Homework Reading Log is due to Canvas by 11:59pm Friday
CWOVC Reflection is due to Canvas by 6pm Thursday (WW grade)
Full Draft Argument Paper is due to Canvas by 6pm Sunday
Topics Writing Workshop, Revising & Editing, Self & Peer Review, Conferences
Current Argument Paper
Writing Project
New Handouts CWOVC Reflection Quiz and Rubric, Conference Attendance Rubric, Draft
Essay Rubric

This is page 4 of 8 total pages

FWIS 100-009 Fall 2017 Course Schedule – Rice University Durian

Reading Abbreviations: LS = The Little Seagull Handbook,

PDF = a reading posted on Canvas, CF = The Classic Fairy Tales

Week Nine Class meets on Tuesday, October 17 and Thursday, October 19

(Conferences)
Readings Prior to class Tuesday, Read LS L1-5

Prior to class Thursday, Read LS L6-10

Homework Self & Peer Review Responses are due to Canvas by 6pm Wednesday
Reading Log is due to Canvas by 11:59pm Friday
Revision Activities are due to Canvas by 6pm Friday
Final Argument Paper is due to Canvas by 6pm Friday
Topics Writing Workshop, Revising & Editing, Self & Peer Review, Conferences
Current Argument Paper
Writing Project
New Handouts Self & Peer Review Worksheets and Rubric, Checking Quoted Material
Worksheet, Responding to Draft Feedback Worksheet, Revision Activity
Rubric

Week Ten Class meets on Tuesday, October 24 and Thursday, October 26

Readings Prior to class Tuesday, Read LS W9, Multimodal Assignments PDF

Prior to class Thursday, Read Credible Source #1

Homework Reading Log is due to Canvas by 11:59pm Friday
CWOVC Reflection is due to Canvas by 6pm Thursday (IW grade)
Prewriting Activity #1 is due to Canvas by 6pm Friday
Topics Informative Writing, Finding Sources of Information, Evaluating Websites,
Narrowing Focus
New Current Digital & Oral Rhetoric
Writing Project
New Handouts Evaluating Websites, Digital & Oral Rhetoric Prompt, Digital & Oral
Rhetoric Rubric, Prewriting Activity Worksheet and Rubric, CWOVC
Reflection Quiz and Rubric, Conference Schedule

This is page 5 of 8 total pages

FWIS 100-009 Fall 2017 Course Schedule – Rice University Durian

Reading Abbreviations: LS = The Little Seagull Handbook,

PDF = a reading posted on Canvas, CF = The Classic Fairy Tales

Week Eleven Class meets on Tuesday, October 31 and Thursday, November 02

Readings Prior to class Tuesday, Read Credible Source #2

Prior to class Thursday, Read Credible Source #3

Homework Reading Log is due to Canvas by 11:59pm Friday
Revision Activity is due to Canvas by 6pm Friday
Prewriting Activity #2 is due to Canvas by 6pm Friday
Topics Creating Websites, Web Design, Digital Rhetoric, Multimodal Projects, Re-
genre
Current Digital & Oral Rhetoric
Writing Project
New Handouts Creating Websites Using Google Sites, Prewriting Activity Worksheet and
Rubric

Week Twelve Class meets on Tuesday, November 07 and Thursday, November 09

Readings Prior to class Tuesday, LS W5, LS W6

Prior to class Thursday, Read BP 16 Online Genres PDF

Homework Argument Paper Reflection is due to Canvas by 6pm Tuesday (tentative)
Reading Log is due to Canvas by 11:59pm Friday
CWOVC Reflection is due to Canvas by 6pm Thursday (WW grade)
Prewriting Activity #3 is due to Canvas by 6pm Friday
Working Draft Digital and Oral Rhetoric is due to Canvas by 6pm Sunday
Topics Digital Rhetoric, Oral Rhetoric, Multimodal Projects, Genre Translation,
Presentations
Current Digital & Oral Rhetoric
Writing Project
New Handouts What to Include in an Oral Presentation, Including Citations in Presentation,
Prewriting Activity Worksheet and Rubric, CWOVC Reflection Quiz and
Rubric, Writing Project Reflection Worksheet and Rubric, Working Draft
Essay Rubric, Sample Projects

This is page 6 of 8 total pages

FWIS 100-009 Fall 2017 Course Schedule – Rice University Durian

Reading Abbreviations: LS = The Little Seagull Handbook,

PDF = a reading posted on Canvas, CF = The Classic Fairy Tales

Week Thirteen Class meets on Tuesday, November 14 and Thursday, November 16

(Conferences)
Readings Prior to class Tuesday, Read HWA Designing Print and Online Documents
PDF, LS P1-2

Prior to class Thursday, Read LS P3-P6

Homework Reading Log is due to Canvas by 11:59pm Friday
Full Draft Digital & Oral Rhetoric is due to Canvas by 6pm Sunday
Topics Writing Workshop, Revising & Editing, Self & Peer Review, Conferences
Current Digital & Oral Rhetoric
Writing Project
New Handouts Conference Attendance Rubric, Draft Essay Rubric

Week Fourteen Class meets on Tuesday, November 21 (Conferences)

Readings Prior to class Tuesday, Read LS P7-11

NO CLASS Thursday, November 23 (Thanksgiving Recess)

Homework Self & Peer Review Responses are due to Canvas by 6pm Wednesday
Reading Log is due to Canvas by 11:59pm Friday
Revision Activities are due to Canvas by 6pm Friday
Final Digital & Oral Rhetoric URL is due to Canvas by 6pm Sunday
Topics Writing Workshop, Revising & Editing, Self & Peer Review, Conferences
Current Digital & Oral Rhetoric
Writing Project
New Handouts Self & Peer Review Worksheets and Rubric, Checking Quoted Material
Worksheet, Responding to Draft Feedback Worksheet, Revision Activity
Rubric

This is page 7 of 8 total pages

FWIS 100-009 Fall 2017 Course Schedule – Rice University Durian

Reading Abbreviations: LS = The Little Seagull Handbook,

PDF = a reading posted on Canvas, CF = The Classic Fairy Tales

Week Fifteen Class meets on Tuesday, November 28 and Thursday, November 30

Readings Prior to class Tuesday, Read BP 15 Presentations PDF, LS 13

Prior to class Thursday, Read HWA Writing Portfolios PDF and Reflective
Cover Letters PDF
Homework Reading Log is due to Canvas by 11:59pm Friday
CWOVC Reflection is due to Canvas by 6pm Thursday (WW grade)
Practice presentation to be prepared!
Start working on the Final Project; do not wait!!!
Topics Presentations, Writing Portfolios, Cover Letters, Reflection
New Current Finish Digital & Oral Rhetoric
Writing Project Start Writing Portfolio with Reflective Cover Letter
New Handouts Writing Portfolio with Reflective Cover Letter Prompt, Writing Portfolio with
Reflective Cover Letter Rubric, How to Create a Canvas ePortfolio

Finals Week Class does not meet during final exam week.
But the FINAL PROJECT IS DUE Thursday, December 04
And we have a couple smaller assignments to finish up along the way
Readings n/a
Homework Digital & Oral Rhetoric Reflection is due to Canvas by 6pm Tuesday
Writing Portfolio with Reflective Cover Letter URL is due to Canvas by 9pm
Thurs. 12/04
Topics Writing Portfolios, Cover Letters, Reflection
Current Writing Portfolio with Reflective Cover Letter
Writing Project
New Handouts Writing Project Reflection Worksheet and Rubric, CWOVC Reflection Quiz
and Rubric

This is page 8 of 8 total pages