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Friday, January 2, 2015

MJC English 49, Section 4331

Welcome students! I know that you're probably looking for the syllabus for our course, but I am still working on it. I will post it soon, both on this site and on my MJC profile page. I have had a few emails so let me answer some questions here:

How Much Work Will I Have To Do? 
There are 8 in-class essays planned this semester, including the midterm and the final--which are common, meaning that all 49 classes in the Spring will have the same prompt. The final is graded by a committee, not me, so that means I have no say as to whether your final will pass or not. And you MUST pass the final and have a passing grade in the coursework, to pass 49.

Be prepared to work hard and be prepared to do work beyond what I assign. You are ultimately responsible for your own learning and if you're struggling with grammar or sentence structure, then you're going to have to put in extra time to accomplish your goals. I am here to help you, but I can't do the work for you. That is up to you.

What's Going On With This Blog Page? 
I plan to use this blog as a place to keep documents and assignments. You will be able to refer to the tab at the top labeled Modesto Junior College, English 49. When you go to that page, you will find information and handouts (which will eventually include the syllabus).

What Text/Supplies Do We Need? 
You will need a 1" binder and a spiral notebook. We will be using the notebook for notes and in-class writings that will help us practice becoming better writers. You can designate a section of your binder as your "notebook" if you don't want to use a spiral. I won't be collecting them, so it's up to you.

As for the text, you will need to get They Say/I Say: The Moves that Matter in Academic Writing by Gerald Graff and Cathy Birkenstein, Third Edition.  It will be available in the bookstore and you'll probably be able to find it in MJC's library. I do recommend your own copy. This is a useful book that you can use in other courses as well. Try to get the Third Edition (the newest). I'm fine with electronic copies on tablets or laptops, just know that my English 49 class will be a written paper only class (welllll, maybe there might be one typed paper, but I haven't decided yet). You will need the book by the second night of class.

I'm On The Waitlist, So What Are My Chances Of Getting Into This Class?
There is a long waitlist this time, so how I plan to handle this is to first see if anyone is a no-show for the first night. If that is the case, then they will be dropped immediately and someone from the waitlist will take their place. I can take 5 additional students from the waitlist.

If you are waitlisted, definitely come to class. You will know after we take attendance if you get in or not. You may want to show for the second class as well, just in case someone decides to drop--some people may be intimidated by the amount of work required for this class. Somehow I come off as scary when you first meet me, but as you get to know me, you'll see that I like to joke around a bit while we work. I find that a little bit of fun can make hard work seem not so bad.

Looking forward to seeing all of you next Tuesday night. If you have additional questions, you can email me at silvak@yosemite.edu or katrina.silva@gmail.com.

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