English 210, Readings in American Literature: Immigrants, Outcasts, and Exiles
Tuesdays and Thursdays, 12-1:15 p.m.  

Thompson 105

Revised 2019.08.26

Dr. Donna Campbell
Avery 202G • 335-4831
campbelld@wsu.edu
https://hub.wsu.edu/campbell

Office Hours: Tuesdays and Thursdays 11-12.  You can also schedule meetings by appointment. I’m available in my office much of the day on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays.

Virtual office hours: Contact me by email to set up a time for Zoom.

About the Course

English 210, Readings in American Literature: Immigrants, Outcasts, and Exiles, is an introduction to short fiction, poetry, and nonfiction narratives from the nineteenth- through the twenty-first centuries. It has been approved as an American literature for English Education majors. We won’t read work from all periods and movements in American literature, but you’ll learn about important movements and trends through our course theme “Immigrants, Outcasts, and Exiles,” since many works of American literature address the issues of inclusion and exclusion from a dominant culture.

The goals for students in the course are as follows:

• To read and analyze a number of works of classic American literature in the areas listed above.
• To compare the social attitudes of our own time with those in the past by analyzing how social perspectives were revealed in literature of earlier centuries.
• To become familiar with some significant movements and trends in American literature (realism, naturalism, and modernism, for example).
• To work with and learn to evaluate primary and secondary resources, including locating primary print sources and digitized versions online, learning to use the MLA Bibliography and other databases to find secondary sources, learning to assess web materials for reliability, and locating primary source materials.
• To synthesize the knowledge thus gained into papers and presentations in order to disseminate those insights to the class.

Required Texts

Important: There is only one required text, but you will need to buy it and bring it to class with you each day. Googling the texts on your phone won’t work since many are under copyright. You can purchase the book in the Bookie or for as little as $4 plus shipping on amazon.com.

Having your book in class is a vital part of class participation: you’ll be asked to read passages aloud, give page citations, and so forth. Reading the book online and then coming to class is not sufficient.

Note: Some of the works we read will use offensive or racist language, often to protest racism. We will not say those harmful words aloud in class.

Schedule of Assignments. This is a tentative guide to the assignments; it may change as the course progresses. Unless otherwise indicated, the numbers in parentheses are page numbers for Belasco and Johnson’s Bedford Anthology of American Literature, vol. 2, first edition.

Requirements and Assignments

Attendance and Class Participation.  Class participation and attendance are important, and you should bring your book and come to class prepared to discuss each day’s reading. Since the syllabus is online, you should have no trouble in reading the next day’s assignments even if you’re absent on the previous day. If you have questions about the day’s reading, don’t hesitate to ask; chances are good that someone else had the same question.

• You have four free absences; after five absences your final grade will drop one full letter grade; after six absences (three weeks of class) you may fail the course.
• Because we will be reading and analyzing passages from the readings during the class period, bringing your book with you is an essential part of class participation and will count in your class participation grade. As mentioned above, reading the assignment online and then coming to class is not sufficient.

Formal Papers.  You’ll write three papers or projects in this class; two are short papers (750-1000 words) and one (final paper) is longer, 1500-2000 words. The final paper or project can be a group effort, with all members receiving the same grade. It will be the same length (1500-2000 words) whether written by an individual or by a group.

Papers are evaluated on the conventions of standard written English as well as on the content, and the comments on your papers will reflect conventions such as sentence structure and punctuation. Clear sentences, a logical organizational plan, an original thesis, and good support for ideas are the goal for your papers. At the college level, great ideas require clear exposition. If the paper can’t make the “great idea” clear, it’s not a great paper.

We’ll have a workshop before each of the first two papers so that you can become familiar with the conventions. You’ll need to bring a typed draft to the workshop; otherwise, the paper will lose 5 points.

Format. Papers must be neatly typed and carefully proofread. Citations should follow MLA style as outlined in the MLA Handbook. See more formatting guidelines at this link: https://hub.wsu.edu/campbell/courses/resources/formatting-guide/

Electronic Submission. Please upload your paper to Blackboard, http://learn.wsu.edu, by 11:55 p.m. on the due date. Electronic versions will be returned through Blackboard.Name your file as follows: LastnameFirstinitial_ClassNumber_Papernumber. Example: If Joan Smith turns in her first paper, the file would be called SmithJ_210_Paper1.doc. See the formatting guidelines for more information.

Late Papers and Extensions. Late papers are penalized at the rate of one letter grade (10 points) per class day late; a paper that would have received a “B” or 85 on Tuesday will receive a “C” or 75 if handed in on Thursday. If you don’t turn in a paper, you will receive a 0 for that portion of your grade. Papers received after four class days will receive 50 points but will not be formally graded.

However, you have one 48-hour extension in this class, like the “get out of jail free” card in the game Monopoly. This extension means that your paper will be due on the next class day, which could be more than 48 hours, without penalty. You’ll need to request the extension ahead of time.

Exams. This course has two exams: a midterm and a final. Exams in this course will consist of objective (multiple choice, short answer, matching) questions, identification questions, and an essay written in class.

Quizzes. Because quizzes have been proven to help students with the retention of material, unannounced multiple-choice quizzes over the reading will be given frequently in this class. Their purpose is to reinforce your close reading of the material by asking you about significant points in the book. Quizzes can’t be made up, even if you are absent because of illness, but the lowest quiz grade will be dropped, and there’s an optional makeup quiz at the end of the course. Students who have their books with them in class will be able to look up material for the bonus questions on quizzes.

Reports, Blogs, and Discussion Leaders. Students in this class will either present a brief oral report to the class, keep a weblog of their reading this semester, or volunteer to help lead a discussion of Tara Westover’s Educated or Tommy Orange’s There There, which are optional readings for the course.  All three options will involve about the same amount of work, but with the blog option, you’ll be spreading the work out over the entire semester. You can pair up with one or more people to write the weblog.

If you complete any two out of these three options, you will not have to take the final exam, although you can take the final if you want to. Also, if you complete all three, the lowest grade will be dropped and only the top two grades will be counted.

Class Policies

Electronics Policy. Except for laptop days, students won’t be using cell phones or laptops during class time without a documented accommodation.  Recent studies have demonstrated that people remember material better when they take notes by hand rather than on the computer, since typing on the computer tends to produce a transcription rather than the kind of selective note-taking that leads to understanding. Also, students participate more actively when they are not using a laptop, which benefits their class participation grade, and there are fewer distractions in the classroom without laptops.

Plagiarism Policy. Plagiarism is the unacknowledged use of someone else’s words or ideas. This definition includes not only deliberately handing in someone else’s work as your own but failing to cite your sources, including Web pages and Internet sources. Plagiarism also includes handing in a paper that you have previously submitted or are currently submitting for another course. For a first offense, any paper plagiarized in whole or in part will receive an “F” (0 points), and the incident must be reported to the WSU Office of Student Conduct.  You will NOT be allowed to rewrite the plagiarized paper for a better grade. Penalties for a second offense can range from failing the course to suspension from the university.

WSU Policies

WSU Email Policy: WSU’s email policy states that instructors can only respond to emails sent from a WSU email address.

WSU Statement on Academic Integrity. Academic integrity is the cornerstone of the university. You assume full responsibility for the content and integrity of the academic work you submit. You may collaborate with classmates on assignments, with the instructor’s permission. However the guiding principle of academic integrity shall be that your submitted work, examinations, reports, and projects must be your own work. Any student who attempts to gain an unfair advantage over other students by cheating will fail the assignment and be reported to the Office Student Standards and Accountability. Cheating is defined in the Standards for Student Conduct WAC 504-26-010 (3).

WSU Midterm Policy. Based on ASWSU student requests and action by the Faculty Senate, WSU instituted Academic Rule 88, which stipulates that all students will receive midterm grades. Midterm grades will be reported as they are calculated in Blackboard. However, at midterm only 35% of the total graded assignments will have been turned in. Midterm grades are not binding, and because the bulk of the graded work in this course occurs after the midterm point, it can only accurately reflect student performance up to that point.

WSU Policy on Students with Disabilities. Reasonable accommodations are available for students with a documented disability. If you have a disability and need accommodations to fully participate in this class, please either visit or call the Access Center (https://accesscenter.wsu.edu/ to schedule an appointment with an Access Advisor. All accommodations MUST be approved through the Access Center.

WSU Safety Policy. Washington State University is committed to enhancing the safety of the students, faculty, staff, and visitors. It is highly recommended that you review the Campus Safety Plan (http://safetyplan.wsu.edu/) and visit the Office of Emergency Management web site (http://oem.wsu.edu/) for a comprehensive listing of university policies, procedures, statistics, and information related to campus safety, emergency management, and the health and welfare of the campus community.

WSU Policy on Excused Absences. Section 73 of WSU’s regulations does not permit instructors to request official documentation to allow excused absences except for military personnel and those traveling on WSU business; hence no other excused absences are permitted by WSU policy. The attendance policy for this course has been relaxed from previous versions of the course to include an additional absence to make up for this decreased flexibility in policy.

WSU Civil Rights Policy. Discrimination, including discriminatory harassment, sexual harassment, and sexual misconduct (including stalking, intimate partner violence, and sexual violence) is prohibited at WSU (See WSU Standards of Conduct for Students). If you feel you have experienced or have witnessed discriminatory conduct, you can contact the WSU  Office of Civil Rights Compliance & Investigation (CRCI; https://crci.wsu.edu/), formerly the Office for Equal Opportunity (OEO), and before that the Center for Human Rights (CHR) and/or the WSU Title IX Coordinator to discuss resources and reporting options. (Visit oeo.wsu.edu for more information, including a list of confidential and other resources)

WSU employees, with limited exceptions (e.g. confidential resources such as health care providers and mental health care providers – see https://crci.wsu.edu/reporting-requirements-2/

for more info), who have information regarding sexual harassment or sexual misconduct are required to report the information to OEO or a designated Title IX Coordinator or Liaison. Addition to WSU’s policy: rude, profane, threatening, or otherwise inappropriate emails will receive no reply and will be forwarded to the appropriate administrative office.

Weight of Assignments

Because of FERPA and privacy issues, no grades can be discussed or transmitted by e-mail or instant messaging. Emails about other matters will usually receive a response within 24 hours except on weekends, when replies will be sent on Monday morning. Please identify yourself using first and last name and use conventional email etiquette.

Grading Criteria

A note on the evaluation process in this course: Each piece of written work, from an essay on an exam to a formal paper, starts as a “0” and rises to one of the levels listed below based on the quality of its ideas, development, and writing.

Your writing does not start from an “A” and “lose points” based on certain errors; instead, grading starts from a baseline of 0 and points are added based on the quality of your work. Think of the grading scheme as you would think of a game or a job. You don’t start with a perfect score (or a high salary) and lose points by making errors; rather, you start from a baseline and gain points based on the quality of your skills as demonstrated by your performance. The same is true here.

I will use abbreviations as references to grammatical principles on your corrected papers. The abbreviations and accompanying explanations are available on the “Key to Comments” document at https://hub.wsu.edu/campbell/courses/resources/key-to-comments

A (Excellent)

• Ideas and analysis.Greatly exceeds expectations and develops in a consistently excellent manner. Readers will learn something from this piece of writing. Ideas are original or especially insightful for the level of the class (i.e., an excellent paper in a 200-level course does not need to demonstrate the same level of originality and depth as an excellent paper in a 300- or 400-level course).
• Organization. Organizational plan is clear, as is the thesis and purpose of the piece. Thesis is original and interesting.
• Development and support.Develops its points effectively, logically, and in an original fashion. Assertions are supported by evidence. Paragraphs are unified, coherent, and complete.
• Sentences are fluent, graceful, and a pleasure to read. They are free from errors, although there may be a minor error in the piece.
• Mechanics (spelling, usage, and punctuation such as commas, semicolons, and possessive apostrophes, quotation marks, and title punctuation).Papers will be almost entirely free from mechanical errors.
• Has a clear understanding of audience as demonstrated by the paper’s use of tone and an appropriate level of diction.

B (Good)

• Ideas and analysis.Exceeds expectations and develops in a good but perhaps predictable fashion. Paper will cover the most logical points about a piece of writing but may not provide as much new analysis. Ideas may be good but perhaps not as insightful or well developed as those for work in the “A” range.
• Organization. Organization and thesis are logical but could be clearer. Thesis is solid but less innovative than in an exceptional paper. Some transitions may be missing.
• Development and support.Includes a thesis idea that is generally supported by evidence and a logical order of paragraphs. Some unsupported generalizations may occur, or  some paragraphs may lack unity or support.
• Demonstrates correct sentence construction for the most part, although some sentences may be awkward or unclear. Papers will generally have few (1-2) or no comma splices, fragments, fused sentences, tense and agreement errors, or other major grammatical problems. Minor errors in grammar may occur.
• Mechanics. One or two instances of an incorrect use of words, spelling errors, or punctuation errors such as missing possessive apostrophes may occur
• Audience. Clear sense of individual voice and awareness of audience expectations. Level of diction may be uneven or somewhat inappropriate for the assignment.

C (Satisfactory or Acceptable)

• Ideas and analysis. Meets expectations but does not go beyond them. May respond to the assignment in a satisfactory but predictable or superficial way. May have more plot summary than analysis.
• Organization. Exhibits a discernable organization but may not provide a clear connection to the thesis. Thesis may be obvious or too general. Paragraphs may not follow the most logical order.
• Development and support. Development may consist of obvious generalizations that only tell readers what they already know with limited support from the text.
• May demonstrate little sentence variety. Grammatical errors such as comma splices, fragments, agreement errors, vague or awkward phrasing may obscure the meaning of an otherwise good paper.
• Mechanics. May contain odd word choices, consistent errors in punctuation, or problems with usage.
• Voice and diction may be significantly inconsistent with audience expectations or the requirements of the assignment.

D (Deficient)

• Ideas and analysis.Limited ideas and cursory development; does not meet expectations or the terms of the assignment on one or more dimensions.
• Focus may be unclear or the essay may lack an arguable thesis. Paragraph order may be confusing. May lack adequate organization or sufficient support for its argument.
• Development and support.Relies strongly on generalizations rather than support and may lack specific references to the text. Paragraphs may lack unity, coherence, and completeness. Paragraphs may be insufficiently developed.
• Contains many errors in sentence construction, including comma splices, fragments, fused sentences, agreement problems, and awkward sentences. Some parts may be difficult to read and interpret.
• Mechanics. May demonstrate significant deficiencies in punctuation, word choice, and spelling.
• Paper may demonstrate a consistently insufficient awareness of audience.
  
  F (Unacceptable)
• Ideas and analysis. Fails to meet expectations for ideas and analysis.May include too much plot summary or so many quotations that analysis is missing.
• Focus many be diffuse or unclear. Sentences and paragraphs do not follow a logical order.
• Development and support.Thesis may be missing.Generalizations may be used in place of analysis. Insufficient development for the requirements of the assignment.
• Serious errors such as comma splices, fragments, fused sentences, and agreement problems obscure meaning and make this paper inconsistent with college-level writing standards. A paper at this level may be difficult, frustrating, or confusing to read.
• Contains numerous errors in grammar, spelling, and punctuation.
• Serious problems with tone, diction, and sense of audience.
• A paper will receive an “F” if it is plagiarized in whole or in part.

Grade Cutoffs for Assignments

The total number of points varies by assignment. The chart below shows the approximate letter grade for points earned in each assignment.

WSU final grade submission permits only solid, plus, and minus grades (e.g., C, C+, or C-).
WSU final grade submission has no “A+” grade, so the highest paper grade will be “A” (95) in compliance with WSU standards. There is no “D-” grade, so a final average of 60-62 = D for the same reason.

UCORE Goals and Course Goals

The following UCORE goals govern the syllabus of this class: (https://ucore.wsu.edu/documents/2018/04/ucore-handbook-v3-march-2018.pdf/”):

HUM courses are required to:

• Introduce students to basic theories of interpretation or theoretical models in the humanities.
• Introduce students to key texts, monuments, artifacts or episodes within humanistic traditions or disciplines.
• Help students develop the ability to construct their own artistic, literary, philosophical, religious, linguistic, or historical interpretations according to the standards of a humanistic discipline.
• Teach basic information literacy skills applicable to the discipline. As part of information literacy instruction, the course must not only require students to use library resources, but also provide UCORE Handbook v.3 | March 2018 | Page 104 instruction on the use of library resources and services. Instruction can be done by library personnel, or be provided in detailed notes that accompany assignment prompts. In whatever instruction method the course uses, the instructor should work with the library to develop or offer the instruction.
• Meet requirements for all UCORE courses for critical thinking, writing, information literacy, and assessment of student progress on learning goals.