I am Professor Gottlieb Welcome to English 201

I am Professor Gottlieb Welcome to English 201! This is the 201 orientation.

Please put away your phones and all other electronic devices.

The purpose of the 201 orientation is to acquaint you with the rules and requirements of the course.

English 201 is a literature and composition course.

There are four genres (or types) of literature: short stories, novels, poems, and plays.

We will be read, discuss, and write about a short story, a variety of poems, and one play.

To access course materials, go to the class website at andrewd 222. wordpress. c om

The due dates for all of the writing assignments are on the class website at andrewd 222. wordpress. c

CLASS RULES:

The guiding principle for the rules is respect. Disrespecting the rules means disrespecting the professor, other students, and the school.

1. No Coming Late or Leaving Early: Students who come more than ten minutes late or leave early will be marked absent.

2. No Talking Out of Turn: Only one person can talk at one time. This means that private conversations are not allowed.

3. No Rude or Insulting Behavior.

4. No Electronic Devices: Students are not allowed to keep any electronic devices on their desks during class. This includes lap tops, IPads, and cell phones. All notes and writing in class must be done on paper. There is no penalty for leaving class when the need to use devices arises.

5. No Plagiarism: See BMCC policy on plagiarism on page 3 of the syllabus.

6. No Sleeping in Class: Sleeping in class is not permitted. If you are sick or too tired to stay awake, tell your teacher and politely ask to be excused.

7. No Eating in Class: It is against school rules to eat in class.

Unwillingness to follow the rules may result in grade reduction. The professor will keep track of the number of times students break rules and deduct grade points accordingly. Note: This policy will be applied with special care in regard to rule #4 (no electronic devices in the classroom).

WRITING REQUIREMENTS Students in English 201 are required to write a TOTAL of project. 4 papers including a research

4 doublespace pages. The research project is 6 The three shorter papers are double-space pages.

WRITING ASSIGNMENTS THE SHORT STORY Write 4 double-space pages about All Over by Guy de Maupassant. THE RESEARCH PROJECT: Write 6 double-space pages about the life and work of Guy de Maupassant. POETRY: Write 4 double-space pages about poems or songs. Use any number of poems from the handout or ones of your own choosing. DRAMA: Write 4 pages about Oedipus the King by Sophocles. Focus on one or several of the key concepts and questions on pages 3 to 7 of the online handout.

The only required writing is the 4 essays. There are NO quizzes or exams.

Online Handouts: Students required to print out the following handouts in which are the reading and writing assignments. These can be accessed at andrewd 222. wordpress. com THE SHORT STORY (pages 1 -13 & 23 -28) 201 RESEARCH PROJECT (printing optional) POETRY (pages 1 -16 & 23 -40) DRAMA (pages 1 -52)

You can print out the handouts in the computer labs located in the following places: Main Building: Learning Resource Center S 510 F, S 510 G, S 510 H, and N 261 Fitterman Hall: Lower Lobby: LL 03 Murray Hall: M 1109

THE REQUIRED TEXT: Sophocles – The Three Theban Plays – Antigone, Oedipus the King, Oedipus at Colonus. Translated by Robert Fagles. Introduction and Notes by Bernard Knox. Penguin Books.

To order the book online copy and paste the title into the Google search bar. Make sure to get the translation by Robert Fagles.

Grading: The final grade will be based on the following: The average grade for the first three essays will count for 70% of the final grade. The research project will count for 30% of the final grade. The final grade may be reduced due to failure to follow the class rules or submit essays by the due dates provided on the class website at andrewd 222. wordpress. com

Essays are graded according to the following criteria:

Clarity: A good essay is clear. Unity: A good essay is one that has a central or main idea or question. Arguments are thesis-centered. Coherence: A good essay is one in which the thoughts flow logically from one to the next.

Spelling: A good essay has no spelling errors. Punctuation: A good essay includes a correct use of punctuation. Grammatical Correctness: A good essay is grammatically correct.

Specifications (Outlined in the syllabus and on the class website at andrewd 222. wordpress. com): A good essay follows all of the specification provided by the professor, including MLA formats. Length: Quality is a priority, but length counts as well. Essays that fall short of the length requirements will lose points. Essays that fall far short of length requirements will not receive credit. Writing assignments requiring 4 pages must be at least 3 pages to receive credit. The 6 page research project must be at least 5 pages to receive credit.

Style: Good writing has a certain style and flavor involving varied uses of language. Redundancy: Good essays do not make use of the same words in a repetitive manner. The language is varied.

Interest: A good essay is interesting. The degree to which an essay is interesting depends both on the quality of the ideas and on the way in which they are expressed. Originality: A good essay is one that stands out from other essays.

Other Materials:

Your papers will not be accepted unless they are stapled, so make sure to buy a stapler.

You will also need an 8/12 x 11 inch notebook and a pen.

SPECIFICATIONS: Papers must satisfy all of the specifications to receive credit. These specifications are in the syllabus which is on the website mentioned earlier and are included along with each of the writing assignments.

Paper Submission Protocols: Papers must be handed into the teacher in the classroom. Students are NOT permitted to leave papers in the teacher’s mail box. In the event students are absent on the day papers are due, they can send the teacher a copy of their paper via EMAIL to gottlieba 587@gmail. com. They must, however, print out and submit a hard copy when they return to class. Students who have sent papers via email are responsible for confirming that they have been received.

Due Dates: To receive full credit for papers, students must fulfill the requirements outlined for each assignment and hand them in by the due dates provided on the class website: andrewd 222. wordpress. com

Late Paper Penalties: Later paper penalties are as follows:

Papers handed in one week late will incur a 3 point penalty. A 3 point penalty is equivalent to one half grade. Papers handed in two weeks late will incur a 6 point penalty. A 6 point penalty is equivalent a full grade.

Papers handed in three weeks late will incur a 9 point penalty. A 9 point penalty is equivalent to a grade and a half. Papers handed in four weeks late will incur a 12 point penalty. A 12 point penalty is equivalent to two grades. Papers handed in more than four weeks late will not be accepted and will be calculated into the final grade as zero.

Final Papers: Late paper penalties for final papers are greater than for the first three papers. Final papers that are one week late will incur a 6 point penalty. Final papers that are two weeks late will not be accepted and will calculated into the final grade as zero.

Penalty-free Extensions: Penalty-free extensions can be requested based on special needs and problems such as illness, disabilities, and other personal problems. Granting penalty-free extensions is entirely up to the discretion of the professor.

It is better to hand in any paper however insufficient than no paper at all. Even a C+ is far better than a zero. A student who has three A’s and a C+ will still receive an A. Students who, by the end of the semester, have handed in only three of the four assigned papers will receive a significantly lower grade. The final grade is calculated according to the provisions laid out in the syllabus. Even a student who has three A’s and has handed in only three papers cannot receive a grade higher than a C-. Those who have three A’s but who do not hand in the Research Paper by the due date will receive a final grade of D. This is why handing in any paper is better than handing no paper at all.

Students who have not handed in less than three papers will receive a grade of F. Even if the two papers handed in have received A’s, the student will still fail the course.

INC The requirement for an INC (incomplete) are as follows:

1. To receive an INC, students must have a compelling reason. This can be a serious medical or family problem that prevents them from coming to class. In the case of a medical problem, a doctor’s note is required for verification.

2. To receive an INC, students must have received three passing grades on at least three of four assignments.

3. Students must request an INC no later than one week prior to the last day of class to receive one. Requests for an INC made later than this time will be denied.

4. If the teacher has not received a request for an INC, he will determine the final grade by averaging the grades of whatever papers the student has handed in.

5. There is no obligation on the part of a teacher to give an INC. This matter is entirely up to his discretion

Failure (F): Students who have handed in less than three papers will receive a grade of F. Even if the two papers handed in have received A’s, the student will still fail the course. Failure can also result from excessive absence or failure to follow class rules.

Unofficial Withdrawal (WU): WU signifies UNOFFICIAL WITHDRAWAL and is calculated in the GPA as an F. Students who withdraw from class can avoid getting a WU by contacting the registrar’s office. There is, however, a last day to request a W.

Official withdrawal (W): The W grade signifies OFFICIAL WITHDRAWAL. Students who want to withdraw from the class should do so prior to the date specified in the Academic Calendar posted on the BMCC website. It is advisable for student to withdraw who have been excessively absent or have failed to hand in two assignments. It is better to drop a class than to receive a failing grade. Remember to withdraw before the withdrawal date specified in the academic calendar. Students who fail to withdraw before this date will receive a WU. In the event that a student has a valid excuse for not contacting the registrar prior to the deadline, they can contact administration (the “Appeals Committee) and request a W. There is no guarantee, however, this will be granted.

It is advisable for student to withdraw who have been excessively absent OR who have failed to hand in two assignments by the due dates. A final grade of W will have NO effect on your GPA; an F will.

If you decide to withdraw, remember to do so before the withdrawal date specified in the Academic Calendar. Students who stop attending class without officially withdrawing with the Registrar will receive a WU which is numerically equivalent to an F.

Students who get a C- or lower can take the course over. Once the new grade is recorded, the old grade is no longer in effect, but ONLY if the grade is C- or lower. Students who take the course a second time are obligated to pay the full tuition. Students on financial aid who want to take a course over are advised to ask the Registrar for further details.

We will now go to the fiction section on the class website and look at the first assignment. If you have not already copied the website address down, please do so now. andrewd 222. wordpress. com