First Year Writing
Faculty Handbook
Chapter 1:Personnel
Part One: Procedures
The procedures associated with appointment at UNC Charlotte can sometimes seem confusing. In an effort to make the entire procedure more understandable, we have published these guidelines to inform you on procedures and policies in this department. Your teaching is a valuable asset to the writing program, and we hope that you will feel part of a very dynamic and dedicated team of teachers.
The following information will acquaint new faculty members with important procedures and policies regarding employment within the English Department at UNC Charlotte. It will serve as a reminder for seasoned faculty members, as well.
Hiring
A prospective instructor is interviewed by Dr.
Meg Morgan, the Director of Rhetoric and Writing and/or
Kim Stallings, the Assistant Director of Rhetoric and Writing.
In order to be considered for employment, you must provide the
English Department with the following materials:
- An original transcript of your graduate work (even if you are a UNC Charlotte graduate)
- a current resume or vitae
- three original letters of recommendation.
Once the English Department has all of the necessary
information and your employment has been approved,
there are several forms to fill out at the Personnel
Services Office (Human Resources Department, Second Floor,
King Building). The I-9 form is proof of citizenship and
must be completed within three days of employment or your
check will be withheld. You'll need to show your
driver's license and social security card or passport.
You will also need to complete tax forms and emergency
contact information. Personnel will give you an employment
information sheet which will be needed to get your faculty
identification card.
Paychecks
Paychecks are issued on the last business day of each month, and are held in t
he English Department by the departmental secretary. You will have to sign and
date a form indicating that you have picked up your check before it can be
released to you.
ID Cards
Faculty identification cards are required for members
of the campus community to check out books from the Library,
to secure use of the gymnasium and Student Activities Center
facilities, to obtain a parking permit, and to cash checks.
To obtain an ID card take the employment information sheet
you received from Human Resources to the ID Card Office
outside the entrance to the Cone Center Cafeteria. Cards
are issued for a particular amount of time based on your
period of employment (per semester, per year, etc.).
Parking
Parking permits and gate cards are available for purchase
through the Traffic Office in the Auxiliary Service Building
(behind the McEniry building). Adjunct faculty can purchase
parking stickers on a semester-to-semester basis (the price is
prorated). Bring proof of employment, vehicle registration,
and driver's license. If you do not wish to purchase a parking
permit, you may park in the Visitor's lot. Throughout the day,
Charlotte Transit buses make stops on campus from around the city.
Office and Desk Assignments
The majority of our adjunct faculty shares the office space
in Fretwell 290-B, a large room divided into smaller work areas
by partitions. Additionally, most faculty members share a desk
with at least one other faculty member. Because you are sharing,
please clear the surface of the desk for your deskmates.
Though space is limited, there are shelves and file drawers
in the adjunct office. There are also lockers where you may
store personal items.
Please be sure to lock the door to the adjunct office,
even if you are only away for a moment. There have been numerous
thefts in this department/building.
Office Hours
All faculty members are expected to keep regular
office hours. You should be available to your students
for at least two hours during the week, and you have
been assigned tentative office times. Feel free to
negotiate with your officemates, but please notify the
front desk of any changes. Post your hours on the adjunct
office door and on your syllabus. If you plan to have
conferences with your students, special rooms are set
up for this purpose (across from 290-M). At the beginning
of the semester, a sign-up sheet will be posted to reserve
space for your conferences.
Department Keys
See the front desk personnel for a key to your adjunct
faculty office. If you are teaching an early morning class,
you will receive a key to the outer office side doors.
At the end of your contract, please turn your key in
before picking up your final check.
Office Phones and Voicemail
The main adjunct faculty office has several phones and
two phone line (ext. 4201 and 2135). Each adjunct
faculty member has a voicemail box. You will be
provided with instructions for setting up your
personal greeting and for retrieving messages
(see Attachment "Voicemail").
Computers
Computers for part-time faculty are located in room 248F.
Email Accounts
As a faculty member, you are entitled to a personal email
account. To set up your account, contact Computing Services
(ext. 4341). If you already have an email account through
another service, please notify Dr. Meg Morgan or Kim
Stallings. You will be placed on a composition program
email list through which, periodically, important
announcements are made.
Mailboxes
All faculty members have a mailbox in the English Department.
Messages and student papers are safest if they are left in
your box. Check your box at the beginning and end of the
day. Also, check posted announcements around the mailbox area.
Copy Cards
The English Department will give you a copy card. Expect
approximately 25 copies per student. At the end of the
semester, turn in your copy card to the front desk personnel.
If you are scheduled to teach the following semester,
additional copies will be added to your card, and you will
pick it up at the beginning of the next semester.
If you need more copies than the budget allows, you may
purchase them at the copy service center in the Library,
on the Second Floor.
Class Assignments
You will usually be assigned to teach one-to-three
sections of English 1101, 1102, and/or 1103 per semester.
Except for extreme circumstances, adjunct faculty may
not teach more than three sections.
Several weeks prior to the end of the semester, Dr. Meg Morgan will
send out a notice regarding scheduling for the following semester.
At that time, you may indicate whether or not you wish to teach, your
preferences for the number of sections and meeting days and times.
This does not guarantee you a particular schedule, but we will try
to accommodate your wishes based on our staffing needs.
As for classroom assignments, most of our classes meet in the Fretwell building,
but depending on classroom availability, some sections may be assigned to
Winningham, Garringer, Denny, Friday, or Smith buildings
Ordering Textbooks
For each of the courses in our composition program,
the Rhetoric and Writing committee has compiled a list
of textbooks from which faculty may choose (please see
Attachment "Textbooks"). Textbook orders may be placed
online at www.uncc.edu/bookstore/adoptionform.html,
or with a form available in the English department.
The departmental secretaries typically place a notice
in the mailroom as a reminder when textbook orders
are due. In any case, orders should be placed as soon
as class assignments have been made.
ESL Students
We offer special sections of English 1101 for all non-native
speakers of English. We schedule all ESL students into these
special sections during pre-registration or registration.
However, sometimes an ESL student may enroll in your English
1101 classes. When this occurs, send them to see Kim Stallings,
the Assistant Director of Rhetoric and Writing.
At this time, there are no special sections of English 1102
or English 1103 for ESL students.
Drop/Add
The Registrar's Office is responsible for the management of
the registration process by which students enroll for classes.
Registration policies and procedures for each term are
described in the Schedule of Classes for that term. University
policies determine when students may drop or add a course.
All students who drop and add must use our web-based
registration system.
Please note: If a student enrolls in your class
after the first official day of classes, s/he is
responsible for all assignments given prior to enrollment.
Faculty Attendance/Sickness/Lateness
Faculty members are expected to attend all classes.
If you should have to miss a class, please do not ask
the front desk personnel to notify students that your
class has been canceled. Instead, ask a fellow faculty
member to help with emergency absences.
You may ask that faculty member to cover your class
for you, or you may ask that s/he post a sign in your
classroom that class has been canceled.
You are expected to be on time for your classes
and to meet all scheduled classes unless you are
too sick to attend or a family emergency arises.
It is also a good idea to let students know in
advance your late policy (dispel the "10 minute/20
minute rule" myth immediately).
Extreme Weather
Not often, but occasionally, extreme weather
conditions find their way to the Carolinas, and road
conditions make it difficult to travel to and from
campus. Very rarely does the University officially
close, but in the event of hazardous weather (usually
snow or ice), there will be a public announcement from
the Chancellor's office. Local radio and television
stations will announce closings. In addition, the
Information Desk at Cone Center will be notified
and a campus telephone number (ext. 2877) has been
established to answer inquiries regarding closing and delays.
Harassment
UNC Charlotte is committed to maintaining a fair, humane,
and respectful environment for all students and faculty.
Listed below are the University's policies regarding various
issues of harassment and respect within the classroom.
Racial Harassment
Behaviors which inappropriately assert a person's race,
ethnicity or ancestry as relevant to student or employee
performance are damaging to the desired environment. Racial
harassment by any member of the University community
is a violation of both law and University policy and
will not be tolerated in the University community.
(Please see the enclosed pamphlet, "Racial Harassment," for more information.)
Sexual Harassment
Sexual harassment by any member of the University
community is a violation of both law and University
policy and will not be tolerated in the University
community. Sexual harassment of students or employees
is a particularly sensitive issue and as such will be
dealt with promptly by the University administration.
(Please see the enclosed pamphlet, "Sexual Harassment," for more information.)
Relationships with Students
While a student is enrolled in the University, relationships
between students and faculty members outside of the classroom
are strongly discouraged. As a teacher, however, you must be
careful to avoid becoming too close with students; be
careful to avoid crossing the boundary that separates
teachers from students.
Respect in the Classroom
All students who enter our classes deserve to be
treated with respect. Likewise, we, as instructors,
deserve the respect of our students. Set your expectations
for class conduct early in the semester by your example.
If a problem arises, consider having individual conferences
with offending students. Some students, unfortunately,
simply need to be taught how to behave in class. You may
also seek support from Dr. Meg Morgan and/or Kim Stallings.
If a student's behavior severely interferes with the learning environment of your
class, charges can be brought against the student to the Dean of Students. The UNC
Charlotte Code of Student Academic Integrity explains in greater detail the
expectations we have of our students. The full text of the Code can be found
online www.uncc.edu.
Part Two: Professional Development and Professionalism
Sustaining growth in teaching and avoiding burnout involves continued
learning, feedback from peers, and constructive reflection. The Rhetoric
and Writing Program at UNC Charlotte offers many opportunities for
professional development. All faculty members are encouraged to attend
workshops, to seek peer support, and to build a community within the
department that offers support for all that we do as teachers.
Faculty Development Workshops
The Director and Assistant Director of Rhetoric and Writing,
Dr. Meg Morgan and Kim Stallings, conduct a series of workshops throughout
the year for faculty enrichment. The mandatory orientation workshops are
held before each semester begins. Many of the workshops offered throughout
the semester are optional; however, if you plan to teach English 1102
in the Spring, you must attend the 1102 workshops.
If there are particular issues you would like
to see addressed that we have not planned to
cover, please drop a note in either Meg's or
Kim's mailbox. Otherwise, the following is
a typical list and brief description of the
workshops normally offered during the academic year.
Fall Orientation
This day long workshop is to welcome new faculty members
to the English Department, to update seasoned faculty members
as to any changes in policy or procedure that have taken
place over the summer months.
Designing Assignments The focus of this workshop is the development of effective
assignments for our composition classes. We will look at ways to create assignments that
meet the departmental goals for each class, and the means of evaluating assignments fairly.
Mining the Treasure Trove: Student Research and the Internet To help us
understand the sources available to our students through the Library Information
Services, we will meet for a workshop in the library. These workshops will be specifically
geared to faculty to help us learn how to help our students develop strategies for
smart Internet research.
Teaching Our Students Re-Vision This workshop will focus on effective revision
strategies and techniques. Taken largely from the works of Donald Murray, we will look
at the entire process as one of revision. We will explore strategies and exercises for
revising at all stages of the writing process.
Portfolios in the Writing Classroom: To Collect or Not to Collect, That Is
the Question Drawing on the works of portfolio guru (and former faculty member),
Dr. Kathleen Yancey, we will look at different portfolio methods, their strengths,
and their weaknesses. We will also take a look at some model portfolios and
discuss what we see and how we would go about evaluating these portfolios.
Teaching Argumentation: Theory The first in a series of three
argumentation workshops, this one will focus on various theories of
argumentation, particularly Toulmin. If you are planning on teaching
English 1102 in the Spring, you must attend this workshop, usually held
in early November.
Teaching Argumentation: Practice The second in a series of three
argumentation workshops, this one will focus on curriculum issues and the
pedagogy of teaching argumentation. If you are planning on teaching English
1102 in the Spring, you must attend this workshop, usually held in mid-November.
Teaching Argumentation: Assessment The last in a series of three
argumentation workshops, this session will center around a discussion of
assessment. We will take a look at a selection of argument essays written by
former English 1102 students. If you are planning on teaching English 1102
in the Spring, you must attend this workshop, usually held in late November.
January Orientation Similar to the Fall orientation workshop, a
Spring orientation workshop will be held before the beginning of the semester
for all first-year composition faculty. This workshop will cover the basics
of English 1102 and argumentation.
Faculty Dialogs Throughout the Spring semester, biweekly faculty
discussions will be held in the lounge. These discussions are informal,
and are designed to bring writing faculty together to talk about any aspect
of teaching with their colleagues
Faculty Observations
Once a year a member of the Rhetoric and Writing Committee will observe your teaching
and review course objectives and needs with you. The purpose of these observations
is to provide you with feedback so that you are able to continue to grow and
develop as a teacher within this program.
Early in the semester, a faculty member will contact you and request a list
of days and times when you would like to be observed. Once an observation
has been arranged, you will meet with the committee member prior to the class
to discuss your goals and objectives for that class session. Soon after the
observation, you will meet for a second time with the committee member to
discuss her/his observations and your own thoughts and feelings about the
class. The committee member will then write a review and submit it to the
Director of Rhetoric and Writing. Copies of this review will be placed in
your employment file for future reference, and you will receive a copy
in your mailbox for your records as well.
Professional Teaching Portfolios
The Rhetoric and Writing Program does not require you to submit a professional
teaching portfolio except when you are applying for a full time position. The
main characteristic of any effective documentation system is that it draws
upon multiple sources of information. Therefore, it is a good idea to include
the following materials in your teaching portfolio:
- A graduate transcript
- A current and detailed curriculum vitae
- A teaching philosophy statement
- Sample syllabi, assignments, student papers with your comments
- Peer Reviews
- Student Evaluations
Additional Resources for Professional development
Aside from the workshops and assessment tools that we offer within our department,
there are additional resources available to you for personal and professional
growth-as well as for your use in the classroom:
The Library
The Library's resources include books, government documents, extensive journal
collections, and audiovisual materials. Faculty members may borrow books for up
to 120 days. A validated UNC Charlotte ID card is required. Other materials
circulate subject to established regulations and restrictions.
Media Services
Media Services offers a wide range of audiovisual equipment and services to the
University faculty. The areas of Media Services are: Equipment distribution,
graphics, media production, and equipment repair. Services include: The loaning
of audiovisual equipment such as video cassette recorders, television/VCR
combinations, and audio equipment, videotaping, and editing.
Computing Services
Faculty interested in using the Computing Services should contact the Academic
Computing Services Office (ext. 2717). This office consults with faculty on
computing programs and offers seminars and videotaped instruction on the use
of the system.
The Counseling Center
The Counseling Center, located in Atkins, room 158, is staffed by psychologists
and counselors who offer a variety of individual and group services to students
and faculty members who would like some assistance in responding to student needs.
Ethos: Appearances, Professionalism, and Student Perceptions
As difficult as this is to admit, our appearance often has a great deal to do
with the way that our students perceive the quality of our teaching. Judgments
based on appearance-the clothes we wear, our personal grooming-show up in our
student's evaluations often in a negative way. Although we know that there is no
relationship between appearance and effective teaching, we must be aware of how
our students perceive us.
Chapter 2: Students
Part 1: Who is the UNC Charlotte Student?
In order to be an effective teacher, like an effective writer, it is important
to understand our audience. Who are our students? Where do they
come from? What kind of educational background do they have? Why
have they chosen to attend UNC Charlotte? What kind of support
will they need from us? These are questions we must consider
as we enter the classroom.
UNC Charlotte is an institution committed to diversity and our student body
reflects that commitment.
This diversity makes the learning experience (and teaching experience) at UNC
Charlotte quite rich and fulfilling; it also makes our job as teachers that
much more challenging. We have to be ready to recognize and respond to the
needs of each of these unique individuals and provide everyone with the
most beneficial learning experience possible.
Our Students as Writers
As you might expect, our students come to us with diverse strengths
and problems as writers. It is always surprising (and disheartening)-
the number of students who enter our classes without ever having written
a single essay in high school.
So part of our job as teachers is to help students understand that writing
is a personal, a rhetorical, and a social act. We help them find and use
their voices, and to realize that they have something to write that is worth
reading. They must come to believe that writing is a vital tool for communicating
ideas, thoughts, feelings, it is a tool for change, growth, and understanding.
Everyone can learn to write.
In Their Own Words
Writing is not easy for our students, yet they often change in ways
we never expect. Here are some excerpts from end-of-semester
portfolio reflections written by students who have just completed
English 1101:
"When I first began English 1101, I came in with very mixed
emotions. I really had no idea what to expect. . .my goals
for English 1101 were fairly simple. I knew that I wanted
to pass. . .through taking English 1101, I can say that I
now feel confident about writing papers."
"The hardest thing about writing? EVERYTHING."
"When enrolling in English 1101, my goals were to improve my writing.
I wanted to identify my strengths and weaknesses. In the past, I have
always been a great English student. English always fascinated me
and at the same time challenge me. But this semester I have been
challenged as a writer in ways I could not have imagined. I have
been challenged far beyond just putting a decent paper together.
Your class, in many ways, has magnified my imperfections as a writer.
Before this class, I thought it was fine to just sit down at the
computer and write an essay without revising. But no-it's not that
easy. Writing takes time and patience (and I stress patience) and
practice."
"When I first arrived in your English 1101 class, I knew it would be a big
challenge for me. Everything around me was overwhelming-whether it was the
size of the school or the huge numbers of students in each class, or whether
it was facing for the first time the difficulties of a college class and the
long, complicated assignments given to me by professors."
"Writing as a process? I had never heard of it. Now I can't imagine facing
an assignment without it. I hope I can remember to feel this way next semester."
"When this class started, I was all in a muddle. I didn't know what homework
was or what everyone was talking about in the group discussions. I visited
your office because I was so worried about this class. But I got confidence
from this class this semester. The anxieties that I had before this class
have gone to the reverse side of the earth where I can never find them."
Part 2: How Students Learn
Cognitive Development and Learning
There are many ways to conceptualize cognitive development. One theory,
created by psychologist William Perry, is widely used to characterize
college-age students. According to Perry, students pass through four major
stages of development as they mature (his model actually includes nine stages,
but it has been simplified here into four basic, overall phases). The quality
of instruction that they receive while in college can help them to move
smoothly through these stages, so it is important to be familiar with each one.
The first stage in Perry's theory is "Dualism." At this point in their cognitive
development, students typically see the world in either/or terms, black and white
with no in between. Students in this position are able to learn basic facts
and definitions of words and concepts (they're quite adept at memorization).
They can compare and contrast and explain their answers.
We can help challenge our students to move beyond dualistic thinking by:
- Adding diversity to the content of our classes-exposing our students to multiple perspectives.
- Assigning different types of activities, such as whole class discussions, small
group experiences, and role-playing that allow students to hear the ideas of others.
- Having our students process their experiences in multiple ways (informally and
formally)-emphasizing the use of evidence to support views.
- Utilizing a variety of media (essays, movies, music, and literature).
The second stage moves students out of dualism and into the cognitive stage
of multiplicity. Here students realize that there are, multiple ways of
understanding, but they believe that all avenues of thinking lead to the one
true answer. At this point, students can compare and contrast ideas, identify
multiple perspectives, and complete basic analytical tasks. It is still
difficult for students to understand that they must support their ideas with evidence.
We can support our students at this stage of their development by: -
Responding to their need for structure (using syllabi and assignment
sheets with clear policies and due dates).
- Using structured activities like outlining.
- Preparing handouts for students that give clear instructions on how
to achieve particular goals-how to do MLA, how to write a summary, etc.
- Personalize interaction with students-utilize conferences, techniques
to provide feedback.
The third level of development is a move towards relativistic thinking.
During this phase, a student's perception of right and wrong shifts.
Students begin to understand that most questions cannot be answered
with any degree of certainty; at this point, they tend to believe that all
ideas are equally legitimate.
We can encourage students at the relativistic stage by:
- Providing them with opportunities to choose positions and support their choices.
- Asking them to explore and explain multiple perspectives.
- Asking them to relate course materials to real life situations.
- Creating learning situations that require students to perform multiple
tasks, such as summary, analysis, synthesis, and evaluation.
The fourth major stage of cognitive development is commitment. Here, students
form an allegiance with a particular point of view. They become
reflective and are able to experience and explore the impact of their ideas
in relationship to other ideas. They are also able to modify their commitments
based on the hindsight of experience.
This development is a long process, and we cannot hope to move our students into
and through all of these stages in fifteen weeks-or even four years. But being able
to identify where our students are on this path of development, and understanding
what is involved in navigating this journey, may help us to be more effective teachers.
This final stage of development can be supported by:
- Providing less structured assignments with minimal guidance.
- Allowing more flexibility in response to assignments-encouraging creativity
-
Continuing to interact on a personal level with a variety of group assignments
and one-on-one conferences.
For a more complete discussion of Perry's work, please see Forms of Intellectual
and Ethical Development in the College Years (1970). Also see Widick, Knefelkamp,
and Parker (1975) for ideas on how to apply Perry's theory in practical ways to
situations in the classroom.
Part 3: Special Needs Populations
ESL Students and Students with Dialect Interference
At UNC Charlotte, we have a population of students from all over the state,
the country and the world. Teaching the English language to students whom English is
not their first language-is difficult, to say the least.
Fortunately, we do have a special program for ESL students entering our writing
program. If a student's first language is not English, s/he must enroll in both
English 1101 and English 1100. The special sections of English 1101 are made up
of 50% native speakers of English and 50% non-native speakers of English. At the
same time that non-native speakers-ESL or L2 students-are enrolled in these
special sections of English 1101, they are also enrolled in English 1100, a shelter
class that supports the work done in English 1101. Beyond English 1101, however,
we do not offer special programs for ESL students, and these students will be
enrolled in your English 1102 classes. Therefore, it is important how you deal
with the special needs of an ESL student .
The key to working with ESL students is in knowing how to support them. The Writing
Resources Center is one invaluable source for support. The WRC is staffed with
professionals who will work with your ESL students weekly at any activity of the
writing process. Identify students with needs and place them on referral as soon as possible.
Students with Disabilities
Occasionally you will have a student enroll in your class who has a disability-a
learning disability or a physical disability. You will receive, either from Disability
Services or the student, a form that briefly details any special arrangements that
need to be made for this student. You will not be told the exact nature of your
student's disability. Should you need any additional support in meeting the special
needs of person's with disabilities, call ext. 4355 or speak with someone in
Disability Services, 230 Fretwell.
Where You Can Go For Help
The Learning Center
The Learning Center, 330 Fretwell (ext. 2162), assists students removing obstacles to
academic success in areas related to reading, study skills, and time management.
Referrals from faculty members are welcome.
Tutorial Services
This program, also located in the Learning Center, provides tutorial assistance to
improve the learning efficiency of students. These resources supplement, reinforce,
and support the curriculum while fostering the independence of students as learners.
Tutorial Services employs a staff of paraprofessional peer tutors who are upper
class students selected because of their competence in the content area and their
interpersonal skills.
Non-Traditional Student Services (OASES)
This organization provides academic support to older students who are returning to
college or graduate school. It assists nontraditional students with class scheduling
and access to faculty advisors as well as assistance with registration, financial
aid, and career counseling.
Dean of Students Office
The Dean of Students Office is located in 217 King. Staff members are available to
advise students about the various campus grievance procedures and their rights.
Student disciplinary records, including those related to academic integrity, are
maintained in this office. Staff members are available to consult with faculty members r
egarding the UNC Charlotte Code of Student Academic Integrity.
Handling Injury or Accident
In the event of accident, injury or illness that occurs in the classroom, call the
police at 911. Qualified personnel will arrive to assist you.
Chapter 3: Curriculum
Part 1: Goals
The first-year writing program at UNC Charlotte is a theoretically- based, process-based
curriculum that endorses the belief that writing is a learned activity and thus one
in which the teaching of writing strategies can enhance student writing performance
Part 2: Course Syllabus
The course syllabus must be handed out to students on the first or second day
of class. In many ways, the course syllabus acts as a contract between you
and your students. Because of the implied contractual nature of the syllabus,
it's important to explain and describe the policies and procedures that
affect performance and grades in the course. This will help students
know what is expected from the beginning of the course and will
assist in planning their semester efficiently.
See Sample Syllabi for examples.
Student Attendance Policy
At the present time, the University does not have a student attendance
policy, so the Rhetoric and Writing Program has adopted general guidelines
for attendance.
Attendance is necessary because our pedagogical practices require
that our classes be interactive and collaborative.
Generally speaking, we give each student three or four absences,
without question. These are neither excused nor unexcused, and we
should make it clear to students that while these are given away
to them, we believe that attendance in each class is important.
After that point, absences after the fourth might result in a 5% deduction
in a final grade, but absences after the 8th might result in a 15% deduction.
While the exact calculation is a matter of teacher judgment, it must be
clearly written in the course guidelines.
Students often think that presenting an excuse--oral or written--negates
the absence policy. Because we do not want to get into the business of
making judgments about which are legitimate excuses and therefore "excused"
and which are illegitimate, all absences after the first "free" three or
four should work against the student.
Late Policy
The Rhetoric and Writing Program has no stated late policy. We do, however,
expect students to arrive to class on time.
Like absences, chronic lateness should affect a student's grade, because
chronic lateness affects a student's performance which may then affect the grade.
Part 3: The Writing Process
Our students have many different kinds of writing processes, even some
we might call "writing non-processes." In general, many of our students
have never been taught to perform planning activities; many think that
revising is "fixing" the errors that you have identified in their drafts.
Thus, you will have to teach them how to plan, how to draft, and how to revise.
Planning
Before drafting any essay, students spend several days planning. Teaching such
activities as free-writing, clustering, and cubing, pay off for the students
because often they have a richer, more complete first version. In addition,
once they have thoroughly explored their subjects, they are often ready to
come to a thesis or focus based on something they learned in the process
of planning.
Drafting
The drafting process asks the student to organize the chaos of planning into
a coherent discourse. Some students believe that this process is automatic,
that everything that they generated in planning becomes part of the discourse.
Choosing an organizational pattern, a style, an introduction and conclusion
are all drafting processes that can be taught.
Organizational patterns
They develop out of purpose and audience that includes narration /
chronology / process; description / part-to whole / exemplification;
definition/classification/comparison & contrast; evaluation.
Style
Style is thought to be the "natural" rhetorical choice of vocabulary and
sentence structure. A rhetorical approach may help students to practice a
variety of styles or at least to understand that even academic discourse
can use a range of styles.
Revision
Like planning and drafting, the process of revision must be taught.
Your students should be given the opportunity to change the audience
and purpose of the essay, to rewrite sentences and rearrange paragraphs.
Your students should be taught how to highlight the changes they have
made from version to version, so you know the changes they have made.
You might ask them to write a letter to you analyzing and evaluating
the changes they have made.
Part 4: Grades and Grading
Students expect grades for the work they do. We have an obligation to assess
their performance in a timely manner. The more immediate the feedback,
the better. In our program, we expect that students will receive feedback
within one week of the day they turn in a written first version of an
essay; we expect that they will get more immediate feedback with planning
work that does not have to be commented on in such an extensive manner; we
expect that they will receive at least one, and if possible more than one,
grade by mid-semester.
The most important thing is to give the students the criteria against
which they will be evaluated, so that they can try to improve in those
specific areas. More than anything, we must be fair and consistent in our grading.
Ways to Assess Student Essays
There are several ways you can give feedback on student essays:
Holistic grading with marginal and end comments. Make
positive and constructive comments in the margins about specific features
of the text. At the end, make more global comments about one or two
pressing issues that the student must address in the revision. At the
final revision, teachers assign a grade to the text.
Analytic scoring on a separate sheet. With this method, the analytic
scoring sheet accompanies the first and final versions of the student
text and directs the teacher to address in a systematic way specific features of a text.>
See Attachment "Analytic Scoring" for an example of an Analytic Scoring Sheet.
Portfolios. Portfolios are based upon five features, they are: collection,
selection, reflection, communication, and evaluation. Students save or collect
the work of the semester and continue to work on it, revising and improving
as their skills improve. At the end of the semester, they select their best
work to present to the teacher as evidence of competence.
Grade Distribution
Consistent and fair: both. Intellectually challenging. Achievable goals, clear criteria.
In a class of 22 ENGL 1101 students (given that the best are in ENGL 1103)
you should probably have about 10-15% of your students capable of reaching
the program goals at a high enough level to earn an "A"; another 20-25%
should be able to earn a "B" and the rest should be able to achieve at the
"C"or under level. We often award more "F's" that "D's" because students
disappear and do not withdraw (W).
Grade of "I"
Under certain circumstances, students can earn an "Incomplete" grade. These
circumstances include all of the below:
- Student has completed over 75% of the course work and is a student in
good standing (comes to class and participates); an emergency occurs and
he/she cannot complete the course.
- Student signs a contract agreeing to the conditions that you impose for
the completion of the course. Technically, the student has a semester
to finish the course work, you should give the student no more than a
few weeks into the next semester to complete it. A copy of this
contract must be given to the student and Dr. Meg Morgan. Keep the
original for your records.
-
You have agreed to teach the semester during which the student must
complete the work.
Record-keeping
It goes without saying that you must keep accurate and clear records of
student performance. Dates of attendance/absence, due dates of papers,
grades for both formal and informal writing must be clearly indicated.
These records function as evidence when students question their grades and in grade appeals.
The Registrar requires you to submit grades twice during the semester:
at mid-semester when you submit the names of students who are performing
in an unsatisfactory manner and
at the end of the semester when grades are assigned and submitted through
the English Department secretary. Once you submit the grades, they are
posted to the student's account and the student has access to that grade.
Grade Appeals
Every student has the right to appeal a final course grade. The clearer
your grading standards and practices, the fewer grade appeals you will
have. However, if a student does decide to officially appeal a grade,
there are procedures the student must follow, including a conference
with the teacher and a written formal request submitted to the program
director or department chair. This must be submitted within the first
four weeks of the next academic semester.
Please see the UNC Charlotte website for more details about the grade
appeal process.
Chapter 4: Pedagogy
Part 1: Classroom Teaching Methods
While discussions of curriculum concern what we teach, discussions of pedagogy concern how we teach it. It is common knowledge that the teaching of writing is most successful when we use workshops, discussion, small groups, and demonstration/modeling. Lecture is not the preferred method to teach writing, and, in fact, in the 1980's, George Hillocks researched the effects of various pedagogies and found lecturing to be the least effective method. Thus, we try to limit the use of lecturing to our students and use the other methods available to us.
Workshopping Papers
The basic point of the workshop is for the student to receive feedback in the process of writing, during either the planning or drafting activities.
Whole-Group Discussions
Whole-group discussions are best used in the writing classroom when you want your students to solve writing problems, and the discussion will be most successful when the issue under discussion is presented as a problem. You also may increase discussion by assigning tasks to students dealing with the reading, tasks such as creating scenarios in connection with the reading, creating questions or posing problems they see, or listing their objections to points made in the reading.
Small Groups
Using small groups in the writing classroom can be the most effective way to teach students how to write. Small groups can be used as a short-term teaching strategy, similar to workshopping and discussion, or they can be used in a specific long-term writing project. Using groups requires teaching about group dynamics, the constraints to using groups, and knowledge about assessment.
Students may have negative feelings about groups, especially bright students who often see working
in groups as a threat to their grades. However, by placing the responsibility for the group work
on all the group members you can work against these negative attitudes. Several ways to create
responsibility are:
- assign a group grade for the group product; assign an individual grade for the group process;
- make the group members assess their progress throughout the group process by writing, either
as a group or individually, a group log;
- provide an opportunity for group members to assess each other's performance;
- assign or have group members assign roles that they must perform;
- distribute essential materials to the group, not to individual members.
Demonstration/Modeling
Using demonstration/modeling is an implied comparison. There are several ways to demonstrate/model, some more active/interactive than others. One way is to assign models of writing to our students. Often the writing is professional; sometimes it is a model of a good student essay, either from the textbook or from student samples.
The second way to model is physically to demonstrate in class the way to do something.
The problem with modeling is the assumption of transferability. When you use modeling, make sure that the student models your modeling, demonstrates for you what you have demonstrated for him/her. Modeling only works if there is some practice on the part of the student.
Lecturing
Lecturing can be an effective method of presenting new material; if poorly used, it is an ineffective way of receiving learning material. A good lecture is short and animated.
If you wish to lecture for longer than 20 minutes, you must employ other
teaching strategies if you want your students to learn. Here are some things you can do:
- Interrupt yourself by putting students in pairs to recap what
you have just said or to ask a question from your lecture.
-
Give them a one-two question quiz every 15 minutes about the previous segment.
- Give them two-three minutes to draw what you just said and share that with a neighbor
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