Digital Rhetorics

English 106 :: First Year

Composition
COURSE & INSTRUCTOR INFORMATION

Instructor: Juliana Goodman

Course: ENGL 10600.R24 (CRN 64139)
Office: HEAV 310F
Office Hours: Fridays 2:30-3:30 and by appointment
Email: goodma12@purdue.edu (email is the best way to contact me)
Course Website: Blackboard

MONDAY

TUESDAY

WEDNESDAY

THURSDAY

FRIDAY

3:30-4:20
HEAV 109
Lecture

3:30-4:20
HEAV 223
Conferences

3:30-4:20
BRNG B280
Lecture/Lab

3:30-4:20
HEAV 109
Lecture

3:30-4:20
HEAV 223
Conferences

COURSE DESCRIPTION & LEARNING OBJECTIVES

Welcome to English 106: First Year Composition. While this class will help you build
on your knowledge of the writing process, I hope you will find that it will also push
you into new directions in composition across a wide array of media. English 106 is
designed to provide you with opportunities to write in ways where you discover not
only more about the social and cultural contexts that surrounds you, but also view
writing as a means to discover more about yourself as an individual. You should
leave this class with the confidence to create, interpret, and evaluate a variety of
texts integrating both verbal and visual components.

English 106 stresses the rhetorical nature of all situations, your ability to identify and
work in a variety of rhetorical situations, the ways in with the audience constantly
shapes the writers work, and the ways in which rhetoric involves thought, the spoken
work, the written work, design, and performance. Throughout this semester, we will
be thinking and writing about the connections between ourselves and others, and the
ways technologies effect those relationships and the ways we compose. Not only will
you start thinking about these connections and networks academically, but you also
will be creating projects that give you a deeper understanding of how the world
around us responds to these technologies that span from print to digital.

In each assignment, you will study the academic importance of technology through
composition and design. More than passively consuming technology, you will be
given the opportunity to produce digital artifacts in various projects alongside print
and text. As you compose in through these mediums, we will examine the roles of
symbols, pictures, and other signs so that you will begin to understand the
complicated interactions between print and digitality. In addition to working on your
own projects such as a podcast, video essay, e-portfolio, and other media-based
projects, you will also collaborate with one another to create a digital archive that
focuses on research and access. Overall, you will gain a deeper understanding of
how we compose both in print as well as in digital spaces.

REQUIRED TEXTS
You will have two required texts for this class in addition to several .pdfs, which I will be
providing during class. Please purchase these books as soon as possible as we will begin
using them immediately. University Bookstore is the only place you will find the correct
texts. When purchasing, be sure that you obtain the correct edition. Sometimes it is helpful
to bring along your syllabus so that the retailer may double check the author, edition, ISBN,
etc.
Composing Yourself 2014-2015, Samantha Blackmon, et al, ISBN: 978-1-59871-858-4
(only at University Bookstore)
Write Now, Daniel Anderson, ISBN: 9780132415477

ATTENDANCE

Regular attendance is strongly encouraged in this class. Not only will you benefit
from attending class, but you and your classmates will also benefit from regular class
discussion and participation that will go beyond the textbook readings. Attendance
will be taken each class period. You are allowed up to 5 absences for any reason,
however, it is your responsibility to ask a classmate for any notes or information you
have missed. For each absence after the allowed five, I will drop your final grade one
complete letter grade. Excessive absences will lead to a failing grade in the
course. Exceptions may be made for prolonged illnesses or extenuating
circumstances; however, these will need to be properly documented before they will
be considered excused. If you know you will be absent, it is best to email me as soon
as you know, rather than emailing after class.

TARDINESS

Please respectfully observe the start of each class period. You will be considered
tardy if you arrive after I have finished taking attendance. If this happens, please
make sure and tell me after class so that I will not mark you absent for the day.
While I will allow a few tardies, please do not make it a habit. If it becomes a
problem, I will speak to you and each subsequent late arrival will be considered an
absence after that point.

CONFERENCES

A portion of English 106 will focus on individual conferences over various writing
concerns that may arise as the semester progresses. Each of you has enrolled in a
section that meets on either Tuesday or Friday of each week. During the semester,
you are responsible for attending every conference you are signed up for. I will break
the class up into groups and you will attend group conferences at a time designated
by me. For example, group 1 will meet with me at 3:30pm for 25 minutes and group 2
will meet with me at 3:55pm for 25 minutes as well. Groups will switch conference
times (not days) halfway through the semester. Every two weeks, I will hold check in
conferences where I will meet with each student individually to discuss your progress
and any concerns you may have.
For check in conferences, you will be expected to bring your completed PreConference Preparation Notes Worksheet (this can be found on page 121 of
Composing Yourself). This worksheet must be completed BEFORE your individual
conference. The day after your check in conference, you will turn in a completed PostConference Reflection (found on page 133 of Composing Yourself). Both of these
worksheets will be counted towards your participation grade as Assigned
Homework.
Since we will be focusing on specific writing issues as well as the assignments, please
think ahead and come prepared with questions. Please be aware that for each

conference that you are signed up for and do not attend you will be counted absent.
Please make note of this policy as it will be strictly enforced.

GRIEF ABSENCE POLICY FOR STUDENTS

Please refer to Composing Yourself, chapter 7, for the Grief Absence policy.

ASSIGNMENTS

Following is a breakdown of how each assignment will be weighted in this course. These
percentages are based on the final grade in the course for a total of 100%.

Class Participation (conferences, homework, class discussion, and in-class

assignments)

10%

Parallels Essay
10%
An individual 800-1000 word blog-style essay in which you will be asked to compare a real
world experience with its virtual counterpart.

Narrative Project
15%
An individual 800-1000 word essay in which you will tell a story from your personal life that
represents something you fear or worry about. You will then be asked to create a video photo
essay that illustrates your story.

Rhetorical Analysis Project

15%
An individual1000-1500 word essay that rhetorically analyzes an ad campaign. This assignment
is an individual project and will include document design based on HATS and CRAP so that your
final essay will look like a magazine layout.

Discourse Community Profile Project

15%
For this individual assignment, you will be defining the concept of community by analyzing a
group that you are a part of, or know someone who is a part of, and creating a script and a 5-7
minute video showcasing that community. You will also be designing a 500-800 word hand-out to
accompany your video.

Digital Archive Project

25%
A research project that asks you to research a part of Purdue's history, current environment, or
other aspects of Purdue. This project is two-fold: Individually, you will be responsible for a
research paper (roughly 1500 words) and supporting documents, such as images, videos, audio,
etc. You will then work together as a group to combine your research papers into a website (a
digital archive). You will also be asked to reflect on your project and complete a self and group
evaluation.

Portfolio
10%
An individual revision project in which you will revise a previous essay (excluding the digital
archive project) and include a separate 1-2 page cover letter essay that details your
improvements in the class and reasoning behind your specific revision decisions.
Each assignment will be letter graded on a scale from A+ to F. Attached to the syllabus is a
calendar that outlines readings for each week as well as deadlines for assignments; this is
also posted to the course website. While we will adhere to this calendar as closely as
possible, various circumstances may arise where we will need to adjust the calendar

accordingly. In addition to the listed readings, there may also be times that I assign
additional short readings based on class discussion for that week.

Participation

This category also includes short assignments and activities you may be asked to do
in or out of class. While most of these will be scheduled and assigned in advance, forcredit exercises may take place during class without warning depending on the needs
of the class. These assignments cannot be made up if missed, making a
strong attendance record essential.
Much of this class will center on classroom discussions over various readings as well
as workshops that focus on various composition strategies. In order to develop a
deeper understanding of the topics in this course, you will need to fully participate in
these activities. To help facilitate that learning, you will be asked to participate in
discussion, complete in-class writing assignments, as well as engage in peer review
workshops.
In-class assignments (Exercises that are collected during class)
Class Discussion (Being an engaged listener and contributing to the topic being
discussed)
Assigned homework
Textbook notes (For each reading chapter assigned, you will be expected to write a
half page summary of the chapters main points)
Conference participation (This includes not only showing up to all conferences you
are signed up for, but coming to the meetings prepared.)
Peer Review Workshop (This includes bringing a full rough draft to peer review day
and thoroughly completing the peer review worksheet. These will be collected at the
end of the class period)
Your participation grade will be based upon completion of assignments and
expectations in the 6 categories above.

GRADING
Breakdown of points: All major assignments will be graded using this standard (+/-) letter
grade scale.
(A+ to A-) 90-100You did what the assignment asked at a high quality level, and
your work shows originality and creativity. Work in this range shows all the
qualities listed above for a B; but it also demonstrates that you took extra steps to be
original or creative in developing content, solving a problem, or developing a verbal
or visual style.
(B+ to B-) 89-80You did what the assignment asked of you at a high quality level.
Work in this range needs little revision, is complete in content, is organized well, and
shows special attention to style and visual design.
(C+ to C-) 79-70You did what the assignment asked of you. Work in this range
tends to need some revision, but it is complete in content and the organization is
logical. The style, verbal and visual, is straightforward but unremarkable.
(D+ to D-) 69-60You did what the assignment asked at a low level of quality.
Work in this range tends to need significant revision. The content is often incomplete
and the organization is hard to discern. Verbal and visual style is often non-existent
or chaotic.
Below 60 (F)Dont go here. I usually reserve the F for people who dont show up or
dont do the work. If you give an assignment an honest try, I doubt you would receive
an F. If you feel you put in your best effort and still received an F, you might consider
dropping from the class.

*Note on grammar and spelling: English 106 is not a grammar course. By this time in your
academic career, you should have a fairly strong grasp on the mechanics of writing.
Grammar and spelling mistakes will be counted against your grade. A portion of the writing
process is revision, so please do not overlook this. If you find that you are having problems
with grammar, please feel free to ask me for help and I can provide additional materials or
direct you to a good writing manual, or we can address these concerns during conferences.

LATE PROJECTS
Please be respectful and take notice of all project due dates. A project is considered

late when a hard copy is not turned in at the beginning of the class period it is due.
For each additional day that the project is not turned in, you will be docked one full
letter grade. This includes weekend days.
While you should be able to complete each assignment within the timeframe, there
are a few cases where asking for an extension is appropriate. If you find that you
need an extension, you will need to contact me no later than 48 hours before an
assignment is due, and you will need to document the reasons why you need an
extension. I reserve the right to decide whether or not to grant you an extension
based on the evidence you provide.

ACADEMIC INTEGRITY AND PLAGIARISM

We take your academic integrity seriously, and so should you. As a writer and student at
Purdue, you are cautioned against
submitting someone else's work as your own, even if you have paid for it or obtained
the author's permission
using, without acknowledgment, word for word phrases, sentences, or paragraphs
from the printed or electronic manuscript material of others
using the materials of another after making only slight changes
using a rewritten form of someone else's materials.
These guidelines apply to the work of fellow students as well as the published work of
professional writers, information found on the Internet, and electronic compositions such as
Web sites and PowerPoint presentations. Penalties for plagiarism are serious and are clearly
stated on the Office of the Dean of Students Web Site.
If you knowingly plagiarize or commit academic dishonesty, I will either give you a
zero for the assignment or fail you for the course depending on the severity. We
will cover plagiarism as well as other acts of academic dishonesty in class so that
you will clearly understand what constitutes plagiarism and academic dishonesty.
You should become familiar with the following websites related to Purdues rules and
regulations. Purdue Universitys Student Conduct Code at
http://www.purdue.edu/studentregulations/student_conduct/index.html
The Dean of Students Academic Integrity: A Guide for Students at

https://www.purdue.edu/odos/osrr/academic-integrity-brochure/
Purdue Universitys student regulations at
http://www.purdue.edu/studentregulations/student_conduct/regulations.html

CLASSROOM ETIQUETTE

While in class, you should conduct yourself professionally at all times. Please be
respectful of not only myself but of your fellow classmates. Many of us will come
from different backgrounds and have very different views and ideas about various
issues. Belittling, harassing, and threatening anyone in this class is completely
uncalled for and will result in dismissal from the classroom.

As a student, you should also be respectful of our class and your instructor. I expect
to be addressed as Professor Goodman or Ms. Goodman. While I enjoy classroom
discussion and hearing your thoughts, you should remain professional at all times in
the way you address me and your classmates. Any misconduct during class will result
in loss of points on your participation grade and/or being asked to leave the
classroom. If you are dismissed from the room due to behavior, regardless if it is
3:35pm or 4:19pm, you will take an absence for the day.

During lab days (Wednesdays), we will be working in a computer lab. Facebooking,

tweeting, etc. is not acceptable unless it is the focus of our lesson. During lecture and
conference days, unless I inform you otherwise, electronics are not permitted. You
may bring them to class, but they must be turned off, silenced and put away in your
backpack. If I see you using them during class, I will ask you to leave and you will
take an absence for the day.

Communication
Email etiquette is also important. Do not send emails using text slang or without
identifying yourself. The standard format is :
Hello Professor Goodman,
This is Hermione Granger from your English 106 class section#9 . I am
having issues with my rhetorical analysis. I have decided to to pursue the topic of the
mistreatment of witches in the Wizengamot however, I am having difficulty finding
credible sources and wondered if you could assist me in locating some? Thanks for
your time,
Hermione Granger (SEE EMAIL ETIQUETTE
DOCUMENT ON BLACKBOARD).
Email is the best way to contact me. All emails will receive a response within 24
hours if sent on a weekday and within 48 hours if sent on a weekend day. If youd like
to make an appointment to meet in my office, emailing at least 24 hours in advance
to schedule a time is best.

NON-DISCRIMINATION

Purdue University is committed to maintaining a community which recognizes and

values the inherent worth and dignity of every person; fosters tolerance, sensitivity,
understanding, and mutual respect among its members; and encourages each
individual to strive to reach his or her own potential. In pursuit of its goal of academic
excellence, the University seeks to develop and nurture diversity. The University
believes that diversity among its many members strengthens the institution,
stimulates creativity, promotes the exchange of ideas, and enriches campus life.

Purdue University views, evaluates, and treats all persons in any University related
activity or circumstance in which they may be involved, solely as individuals on the
basis of their own personal abilities, qualifications, and other relevant characteristics.

Purdue University prohibits discrimination against any member of the University

community on the basis of race, religion, color, sex, age, national origin or ancestry,
genetic information, marital status, parental status, sexual orientation, gender
identity and expression, disability, or status as a veteran. The University will conduct
its programs, services and activities consistent with applicable federal, state and
local laws, regulations and orders and in conformance with the procedures and
limitations as set forth in Purdues Equal Opportunity, Equal Access and Affirmative
Action policy which provides specific contractual rights and remedies. Additionally,

the University promotes the full realization of equal employment opportunity for
women, minorities, persons with disabilities and veterans through its affirmative
action program.

DISABILITIES

Students with disabilities must be registered with Adaptive Programs in the Office of
the Dean of Students before classroom accommodations can be provided. If you are
eligible for academic accommodations because you have a documented disability
that will impact your work in this class, please schedule an appointment with me as
soon as possible to discuss your needs (within the first two weeks of class).

CAMPUS EMERGENCIES

In the event of a major campus emergency, course requirements, deadlines and

grading percentages are subject to changes that may be necessitated by a revised
semester calendar or other circumstances beyond the instructors control. Relevant
changes to this course will be posted onto the course website or can be obtained by
contacting the instructors or TAs via email or phone. You are expected to read
your @purdue.edu email on a frequent basis.

ADDITIONAL POLICIES & PROCEDURES

In addition to this syllabus, you are expected to read and familiarize yourself with the
policies and classroom procedures outlined in Composing Yourself. We will discuss
these during the first week of course so that I may answer any questions you have
about what is expected of you as a student. You are required to sign and return
the policy agreement in Composing Yourself to me by the second week of
the course.