A Note on Academic Performance

Oral Contributions:

Since all of the courses I teach involve discussion, your contributions to class discussions carries significant weight with respect to your performance (and your assessment of your performance) in the course.  Your oral contributions to the course should aim to

(1)    demonstrate preparedness and understanding of material being discussed;

(2)    advance the discussion by responding meaningfully to what others in the class have said;

(3)    articulate coherent, interesting, thoughtful, and original ideas, questions, and arguments.  

Active/Critical/Reflective Reading: 

I define active/critical/reflective reading as “holding a conversation with the text.”  (The "conversation" takes place in the margins--yes, you have to actually write in your book--and involves making statements, reflecting on what you have read, evaluating, summarizing, asking questions, and more).  I will ask you to  actively/critically/reflectively read all of the reading material assigned in the class. It is my belief--and the belief of many (but certainly not all) of my former students--that active/critical reading improves your engagement and retention of what has been read and (ultimately) saves time.

Contemplative Practice:

Contemplative practice, including slow, reflective reading, freewriting, periods of silence, and meditation is often a part of my courses.

 Papers: 

Personal reaction/response papers are usually a reader's thoughts to a particular reading and typically do not involve rewriting. These papers offer the chance to react/respond to a reading (or other assignment) before the material is discussed in class. Reaction/response paper can raise issues, ask questions, argue, and more.  (Occasionally, a reaction/response paper will be written during or after a class discussion.)  Reaction/response papers may be graded on a credit (points)/ no credit (no points) basis depending upon the course. (In several courses I use "contract grading.")

Essays are more formal in nature and can be either a personal narrative and/or a more formal  argument, interpretation, or analysis.  Writers will write and rewrite essay(s) before submitting a “final” draft. That is, other writers in the class (and in other classes) will read and comment on drafts. In English 110 writers may also have the opportunity to write short stories (fiction).  The short story challenges you  to “tell a good story,” one that involves imagination and that is memorable and meaningful.  As with the essay, writing fiction involves rewriting.  

"Final” drafts are evaluated as part of a writing portfolio.

In addition, my writing classes often offer the opportunity to practice a variety of other writing exercises.

Finally, with respect to writing, I am a firm believer in the writing process: prewriting, writing, rewriting, editing, and proofreading.  Keep in mind that the writing process is often much more chaotic than what I have just described!

Some characteristics of effective writing: 

    (1) The topic is worth writing about;

(2) Carefully written;

(3) Coherent; clear;

(4)  Meaningful to the writer;

(5)  Demonstrates actual thinking; "deep" thinking;

(6)  Interesting;

(7)  Draws the reader in;

(8)  Free of most surface errors.

 A word about early and late work:

At first glance, my early/late work policy may seem a bit draconian.  Typically early/late work is not accepted (other than for illness or family bereavement)

I do this not because I want you to learn to meet deadlines--although in a writing course deadlines are vital--and not because of some desire to punish students who don't do their work.  Rather, your writing, whether reactions/responses or drafts, often serves as the text(s) for the course.  For example, writing workshops involve your drafts, and if a student doesn't have a draft then the workshop can't happen. I like to compare it to a musician going to a music lesson without his or her instrument.  Reaction/response papers often contain the issues and questions that will form the content for class discussions.

When a student submits an assignment early or late, he or she has completed only one part of the learning process; reading reaction/responses in class or bringing a draft to a workshop is also an essential part of the learning process because at that point the student becomes an active participant in the learning community that is the classroom. Having your work on the day it is due also demonstrates your commitment to the subject matter, to the course, to your classmates.

Exams:

English 110 will not include any exams, including a final exam.  There may be quizzes.  Rather than a final exam, English 110 typically requires students to submit a writing portfolio at the end of the course. The writing portfolio allows you to submit your best work at the end of the semester.

Other courses, including English 111 and 214, may include a final exam along with quizzes.  The final exam may ask students to recall important facts, concepts, theories, and/or to analyze and interpret.

Class Attendance/Commitment Policy:

I was a lousy--emphasis on the lousy--high school student.  If you had asked most of my teachers at the time, they would have said I was clearly not "college material."  And because I was  a poor high school student, I "had" to enroll in a community college, Mt. San Antonio College in Walnut, California.  I loved it.  I never missed--and I attended six semesters.

But like a "reformed" ______ (fill in the blank), who is a fanatic about ______ (fill in the blank), as a teacher I am a fanatic about attendance.  For me, attendance is strong evidence of engagement.  True, a student could attend every session of a course and sit in the back row ("Siberia") and not be engaged.  But I promise you that if you attend my courses: there are no rows; I will continually encourage you to be engaged; class meetings will be mostly discussion (I rarely lecture); the subject matter is interesting and provocative; class sizes are small, so you will get to know your classmates; you will be responsible for your learning; we will eat (not every class but ever so often).

Historically students who have taken courses with me and who attended class and completed their work did well.  It’s that simple. 

By making a concerted effort to attend all class sessions you are making a commitment to learning, to yourself, to your classmates, to me, to the subject matter.  My commitment to you is to make each class session worth attending.  When you feel I don't, I expect you to tell me. Honest.  Feel free to ask Who Gives a Damn? (WGAD?)

So here's what some may see as the reformed rarely-attended-class fanatic's attendance policy:

Students missing three to five classes (for other than verified medical illness and/or family bereavement--see KVCC Student Handbook--) cannot receive a grade higher than a 2.50.  Students missing six or more classes will receive a 0.00.  (Summer sessions will be different with respect to attendance.)

If this policy doesn't sit well with you, that's okay.  It's really intended for students who have struggled with class attendance in the past.  That is, if a student is engaged, this policy is a non-factor.  And if a student is not engaged, this policy is a non-factor.