English 111 S: Composition—Literature

Skinwalker, 2000. John Feodorov. University of Washington Gallagher Law Library. https://www.arts.wa.gov/artwork/?request=record;id=11616;type=101

Literary Shapeshifters

INSTRUCTOR | Dr. Emily George

LOCATION / TIME | T/TH, 1:30-3:20, Dempsey 002

OFFICE | Zoom: https://washington.zoom.us/j/99625371204

OFFICE HOURS | M/W 2-3 & by appointment—please email and/or sign up on Canvas

EMAIL | ecg136@uw.edu

Course Description

Literary Shapeshifters

English 111 is a literature-oriented composition course focused on building your reading, writing, and research skills, with a particular emphasis on developing lines of inquiry, assessing primary and scholarly sources, and viewing research and writing as a process of discovery, drafting, feedback, and revision. Our thematic entry point for this work is shapeshifters—stories about shapeshifters and stories that are shapeshifters. Our readings, discussions, and written assignments will ask you to consider ‘texts’ as material creations, with meanings that are shaped by their forms, contexts, languages, and content. Over the next ten weeks, we will explore questions such as:

• When and how do people imagine shapeshifters in the stories we tell? What is the relationship between authenticity and transformation, truth and fiction, self and disguise?
• When is difference perceived as dangerous or monstrous, as assimilable and erasable, or as a source of curiosity and empathy? When can it foster connections, and when is it used to condemn? When and how is it treated as human, and when and how is it not?
• How do narratives transform as they shift into new forms, genres, languages, and contexts?
• How do forms and genres travel across time, cultures, and literary traditions? How does this travel transform characters, themes, imagery, social dynamics, and/or broader cultural concerns?

Materials

• The Witch of Edmonton, by Thomas Dekker, William Rowley, and John Ford. Arden Edition paperback is $15.36.
  You can also read an eBook edition through the UW library: https://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/washington/detail.action?docID=6159067
  Note: there are some weird copies floating around on Amazon, which I do not recommend buying. When it comes to historical texts like this, editions really do matter. You’re welcome to get the play through the library, or to share a copy with a friend in the class. The best/easiest-to-read version will be the print Arden edition, but you are not obligated to purchase it. You will need a copy by Week 4.
• All other materials are free on Canvas

Course Goals

Outcome One

To compose strategically for a variety of audiences and contexts, both within and outside the university, by

• recognizing how different elements of a rhetorical situation matter for the task at hand and affect the options for composing and distributing texts;
• coordinating, negotiating, and experimenting with various aspects of composing—such as genre, content, conventions, style, language, organization, appeals, media, timing, and design—for diverse rhetorical effects tailored to the given audience, purpose, and situation; and
• assessing and articulating the rationale for and effects of composition choices.

Outcome Two

To work strategically with complex information in order to generate and support inquiry by

• reading, analyzing, and synthesizing a diverse range of texts and understanding the situations in which those texts are participating;
• using reading and writing strategies to craft research questions that explore and respond to complex ideas and situations;
• gathering, evaluating, and making purposeful use of primary and secondary materials appropriate for the writing goals, audience, genre, and context;
• creating a “conversation”—identifying and engaging with meaningful patterns across ideas, texts, experiences, and situations; and
• using citation styles appropriate for the genre and context.

Outcome Three

To craft persuasive, complex, inquiry-driven arguments that matter by

• considering, incorporating, and responding to different points of view while developing one’s own position;
• engaging in analysis—the close scrutiny and examination of evidence, claims, and assumptions—to explore and support a line of inquiry;
• understanding and accounting for the stakes and consequences of various arguments for diverse audiences and within ongoing conversations and contexts; and
• designing/organizing with respect to the demands of the genre, situation, audience, and purpose.

Outcome Four

To practice composing as a recursive, collaborative process and to develop flexible strategies for revising throughout the composition process by

• engaging in a variety of (re)visioning techniques, including (re)brainstorming, (re)drafting, (re)reading, (re)writing, (re)thinking, and editing;
• giving, receiving, interpreting, and incorporating constructive feedback; and
• refining and nuancing composition choices for delivery to intended audience(s) in a manner consonant with the genre, situation, and desired rhetorical effects and meanings.

English 111 Fall 2024 Grading System

Participation (30%)

Throughout the quarter, the majority of your work for the class will be in the category of “participation.” Every scheduled class day will include a graded participation assignment. This may take the form of in-class free write activities, small group discussions and written notes, responses to lecture questions, paired activities, or other in-class work. If you must miss class, you may request alternative participation assignments up to 2 times throughout the quarter as long as you request them ahead of our class meeting. For longer absences due to extenuating circumstances, you’ll need to set up a meeting with me so that we can make more specialized arrangements and discuss your options. All participation assignments are graded “Complete/Incomplete”—in other words, full credit or no credit. To receive a “Complete” grade, make sure you are fulfilling all requirements and submitting assignments complete and on time.

Active participation is crucial in a composition class. This includes, but is not limited to, full-group discussion, small group work, fulfilling homework assignments, discussion on our Canvas website, working in pairs, writing conferences with me, journaling, writing workshops/peer review, meeting with me individually during our scheduled writing conferences, and sharing written questions and comments about our readings. However, there are many different ways to show participation. For some people, it's easy to talk in class, and for others, it's harder. While I expect all of you to push yourselves to share your thoughts in small groups and within the whole group discussions, I will also provide spaces for you to share your thoughts and class takeaways in other outlets, such as shared class notes, submitted free writes, and collaborative annotations and discussion board posts.

Portfolio (70%)

In all English 100-level composition classes, 70% of a student’s final grade is determined by a final portfolio. You are empowered to select which assignments will be revised and evaluated and explain your choices in a “critical reflection” you write at the end of the quarter. The use of portfolios in the writing classroom is consistent with the UW Program for Rhetoric and Writing’s belief that revision and reflection are key elements of developing a mindful and effective writing practice. Throughout the quarter, we will practice planning, researching, drafting, reflecting, and revising. You will receive responses from me and from your peers on the major writing assignments you submit. In your final portfolio, you will select the assignments you wish to include that you think best demonstrate your abilities related to the 111 course outcomes, revise them, and submit them as “showcase” pieces alongside a metacognitive reflection essay on your understanding of the course goals and how your showcase assignments in the portfolio reflect those course goals. When we get closer to the portfolio, we will go over the full checklist for completion and develop a grading rubric together as a class.

Policies

Late Policy

If you submit your assignments on time, it is easier for me to get them back to you in a timely manner, and it is also easier for you to move on to the next assignment having gained skills and experience from the previous assignment. Assignments are sequenced purposefully so that they build on each other, and completing them in the correct order is the best way to make sure that you’re learning as much as possible from them. Therefore, I hope you will make your best effort to submit all assignments on time. However, I also understand that this isn’t always possible for a variety of reasons. Therefore:

• You may use a 48-hour extension for any assignments (see exceptions in the next bullet) that you are not able to complete on time, up to 3 times. To use this extension and ensure your assignment will not be marked incomplete, you can email me any time before the assignment is due to let me know you are using an extension. As long as you’ve done this, your assignment will not be marked late. You do not need to offer any excuse or documentation.
• Exceptions: Because our course includes opportunities for peer review, and students receive credit for performing peer reviews for each other, your classmates will be relying on you to complete assignments that will be submitted for peer review on time, and they will also be relying on you to give them your own peer reviews on time. Therefore, the 48-hour extension does not apply to peer reviews you are giving to others or to drafts of your work that will be receiving peer review. You will always know well ahead of time if a draft is receiving peer review. If you have extenuating circumstances that make this impossible, please contact me before the due date so we can find a solution together.
• If you are unable to complete an assignment within the 48-hour extension window, please email me to set up a Zoom meeting to meet with me so we can work together on a plan to help you catch up on your coursework. This meeting is required for extensions beyond 48 hours.
• Late work submitted outside of an arranged extension will receive half credit (see peer review exceptions above). I accept late work for one week after grading it incomplete.

Ignored Work

Ignored work is work that is 1) never submitted and, thus, remains ungraded; or 2) an assignment is marked “incomplete” (an X on the grade page, 0 points) and which is not revised accordingly within 1 week of receiving the “incomplete” grade. An assignment is “incomplete” if it does not meet ALL expectations outlined on the assignment sheet or prompt. If an assignment is submitted on time but marked incomplete, I will note the reason why it is incomplete in my comments, and you will be given 1 week to complete it. If you have questions or concerns about the “incomplete” designation, reach out to me as soon as possible. Incomplete work that is not completed in this time frame will be considered “ignored.” Late work that is not submitted within this time frame will be considered “ignored.” Peer reviews that are not submitted will be marked “Incomplete” without the possibility of correction.

Note: in order to know when you have received an “Incomplete,” it is important that you regularly check your grades on Canvas. You should also set up Notification Settings on Canvas to alert you whenever you receive a grade. You can find instructions here: https://community.canvaslms.com/t5/Video-Guide/Notification-Settings-All-Users/ta-p/383690

Missing Class

If you must miss class, you may request alternative participation assignments twice throughout the quarter, as long as you request them ahead of our class meeting. For longer absences due to extenuating circumstances, you’ll need to set up a meeting with me so that we can make more specialized arrangements and discuss your options.

Class Expectations and Guidelines for Discussion

Please see and respond to our Community Agreement on Canvas.

Academic Integrity

Plagiarism, or academic dishonesty, is presenting someone else's ideas or writing as your own. In your writing for this class, you are encouraged to refer to other people's thoughts and writing--as long as you cite them. As a matter of policy, any student found to have plagiarized any piece of writing in this class will be immediately reported to the College of Arts and Sciences for review. If you are struggling with an assignment, please contact me so we can avoid plagiarism issues.

If you are confused or unsure about whether or not something you want to do would be considered plagiarism, please talk to me about it! I won’t penalize you for not knowing. Sometimes plagiarism is something obvious, like copying someone else’s essay, but sometimes it can get trickier, like incorrectly paraphrasing, forgetting to cite information/ideas and not just quotes, etc. Likewise, if you are feeling so much pressure or confusion that you’re thinking about plagiarizing, talk to me. Plagiarizing can have huge consequences for your grade and your academic future, and we can come up with a solution that’s better than taking that risk.

Academic Integrity: On the use of “Artificial Intelligence,” ChatGPT, and other AI writing programs

Artificial intelligence is a subject with tons of branches, and sometimes, the results of AI research and projects are useful, creative, and ethically well-thought-out. However, this is not true in many instances. ChatGPT and other forms of “AI” have repeatedly been shown to provide you with misleading or outright false information; to unethically scrape the labor of creators (artists, writers, researchers, programmers, engineers, and other workers) and use it without proper compensation or permission; and even, on occasion, to “hallucinate,” providing nonsensical responses to questions or tasks. All of these are important reasons for being wary of using AI for research, writing, or fact-checking. (In fact, you should never use AI for fact-checking.) Whenever you use AI, remember that the results are not created out of nothing; they are created out of someone’s labor, and we should all consider, each time, how that labor was obtained and valued. But in the case of this class, the most important thing to remember is that English 111 is a class designed to guide you through a particular process of writing and thinking, making judgments, coming to conclusions, learning about and reflecting on your own learning process, and revising your work. AI might be able to produce an essay that is coherent, follows “standard English grammar,” and addresses a given topic. It cannot, however, demonstrate how your ideas have changed over the course of reading and discussing a topic, or how your argument has been revised to accommodate new information, or how you have read and researched different sources and made your own judgments about their reliability, their usefulness, their connections to one another and to your own thinking. Therefore, because those are habits and skills we are practicing and evaluating in English 111, submitting work produced by AI instead of written by you is a form of academic dishonesty and falls under the plagiarism clause described above.

If you have any questions, or if you have a specific use of AI in mind that you would like to propose, please get in touch with me. I will consider proposals that are well-thought-out, interesting, and account for the ethics of how specific AI programs work.

Resources

DACA: The University of Washington strives to provide a safe, secure and welcoming environment that protects the privacy and human rights of everyone in our community. Our long-standing policies do not permit immigration officials to enter UW classrooms or residence halls without a court order. Any students seeking guidance regarding immigration status can find resources at UW Leadership Without Boarders: http://depts.washington.edu/ecc/lwb/. You can also email undocu@uw.edu. 

Counseling Center: UW Counseling Center workshops include a wide range of issues including study skills, thinking about coming out, international students and culture shock, and much more. Check out available resources and workshops at: http://depts.washington.edu/counsels/

Career Center:

UW Career Center offers career counseling and planning, workshops and career fairs, a listing of part-time jobs on and off campus, and much more: http://careers.washington.edu/students.

wǝɫǝbʔaltxʷ – Intellectual House is a longhouse-style facility on the UW Seattle campus. It provides a multi-service learning and gathering space for American Indian and Alaska Native students, faculty and staff, as well as others from various cultures and communities to come together in a welcoming environment to share knowledge. It is located at 4249 Whitman Court. http://www.washington.edu/diversity/tribal-relations/intellectual-house/

Q Center: The University of Washington Q Center builds and facilitates queer (gay, lesbian, bisexual, two-spirit, trans, intersex, questioning, same-gender-loving, allies) academic and social community through education, advocacy, and support services to achieve a socially-just campus in which all people are valued. For more information, visit http://depts.washington.edu/qcenter/.

FIUTS: Foundation for International Understanding through Students: FIUTS is an example of a campus organization that can bring together your social and academic learning. "FIUTS is an independent non-profit organization which provides cross-cultural leadership and social programming for UW's international and globally minded domestic students. FIUTS is local connections and global community!" FIUTS also offers a free international lunch on the last Wednesday of every month beginning with a lunch on September 28 from 11:30-1:30 in the Kane Hall Walker-Ames room. Consult FIUTS' web site for a detailed calendar of events and links to many resources http://www.fiuts.washington.edu.

Any Hungry Husky: This program helps mitigate the social and academic effects of campus food insecurity. By providing students, staff, and faculty with access to shelf-stable, non-perishable goods and community resources at no cost, this initiative aims to lessen the financial burden of purchasing food and supplement nutritional needs. This resource is for everyone in the UW community. Learn more here: http://www.washington.edu/anyhungryhusky

Health & Wellness: provides support, advocacy, consultation, and education to the University of Washington campus community. Services are free for UW students, faculty, and staff. You can work with advocates on your behalf or on behalf of someone you know. Programs include Alcohol & Drug Consultation and Education, Suicide Intervention, Sexual Assault, Relationship Violence, Stalking and Harassment Advocacy, and Student Care Program. For more information: http://depts.washington.edu/livewell/

University Land Acknowledgment

The University of Washington acknowledges the Coast Salish peoples of this land, the land which touches the shared waters of all tribes and bands within the Suquamish, Tulalip and Muckleshoot nations. Our acknowledgment of the tribes and bands within the Suquamish, Tulalip, and Muckleshoot nations comes from consultation and guidance by the Governor’s Office of Indian Affairs and Federal regulations and policies. In this phrasing we are adhering to tribal sovereignty.

English Department Statement of Values

The UW English Department aims to help students become more incisive thinkers, effective communicators, and imaginative writers by acknowledging that language and its use is powerful and holds the potential to empower individuals and communities; to provide the means to engage in meaningful conversation and collaboration across differences and with those with whom we disagree; and to offer methods for exploring, understanding, problem solving, and responding to the many pressing collective issues we face in our world—skills that align with and support the University of Washington’s mission to educate “a diverse student body to become responsible global citizens and future leaders through a challenging learning environment informed by cutting-edge scholarship.

As a department, we begin with the conviction that language and texts play crucial roles in the constitution of cultures and communities. Our disciplinary commitments to the study of language, literature, and culture require of us a willingness to engage openly and critically with questions of power and difference. As such, in our teaching, service, and scholarship we frequently initiate and encourage conversations about topics such as race, immigration, gender, sexuality, and class. These topics are fundamental to the inquiry we pursue. We are proud of this fact, and we are committed to creating an environment in which our faculty and students can do so confidently and securely, knowing that they have the backing of the department.

Towards that aim, we value the inherent dignity and uniqueness of individuals and communities. We aspire to be a place where human rights are respected and where any of us can seek support. This includes people of all ethnicities, faiths, genders, national origins, political views, and citizenship status; nontheists; LGBTQIA+; those with disabilities; veterans; and anyone who has been targeted, abused, or disenfranchised.

Reaching Out

If you have any concerns about the course or your instructor, please see the instructor about these concerns as soon as possible. If you are not comfortable talking with the instructor or not satisfied with the response that you receive, you may contact the following Program in Writing and Rhetoric staff: Director Stephanie Kerschbaum, kersch@uw.edu or Associate Director of Writing Programs, Carrie Matthews, crmatthe@uw.edu. If, after speaking with the PWR Director or Associate Director, you are still not satisfied with the response you receive, you may contact English Department Chair, Habiba Ibrahim, hibrahim@uw.edu, (206) 543-2690.