Writing and Science
Megan Bush Moody  (UX3)
mbush11@alaska.edu

Course Description:

Writing 213x, Writing and Science is “an introduction to what writing is and does and how people learn to do it in the social and natural sciences, with a focus on the disciplinary questions, methods and reasoning that shape the genres and writing practices in the field” (according to the UAF course description). The subject through which we’ll be exploring writing this semester is food: food politics, food culture, food and health, food and the environment, food industry, food security and more.

The reading and writing assignments work fairly closely together. The instruction you receive from the textbooks often replaces the course lectures you would normally receive in the face-to-face classroom.   Therefore, it’s extremely important that you read what is assigned to you. You will be responsible for understanding the concepts in the book by demonstrating your mastery of the knowledge in your formal paper assignments.

213x, a core requirement, is a “W’ course, meaning that it is Writing Intensive. You should expect to spend no less than 9 hours of reading/writing time for each lesson and perhaps significantly more if you are a slow reader or a reluctant writer. These hours reflect the 3 hours of class time and 3 hours per hour of class time as homework required of any college course. Make sure you have read ALL of the the lesson and its content well before it is due.

 

Textbooks & Materials:

You should have (or be able to access) the following texts:
– Hacker, Diana.  A Writer’s Reference, 8th Edition.  Boston: Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2014.

– Pollan, Michael.  The Omnivore’s Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals.  New York: Penguin, 2007. Print.- Hacker, Diana. A Writer’s Reference, 8th Edition. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2014. Print. (available for free online, and for sale via hard copy)
– Writing Spaces: Readings on Writing, Vols. 1 & 2. Eds. Charles Lowe and Pavel Zemliansky. West Lafayette: Parlor: 2010. (available for free online and for sale via hard copy)

Web readings are mentioned and sometimes linked where appropriate in the Assignments section.

 

Course Goals & Student Outcomes:

By the end of the semester you should be able to write a properly formatted 7-9 page research paper that displays a comprehensive understanding of solid academic research, standardized citation styles, and logical argumentation with support from authoritative sources.

 

Instructional Methods:

This is an online course and therefore the instructional methods vary from Blackboard instruction, to email, to online group discussions and conferencing methods.   Your course is located at https://eatingenglish.community.uaf.edu.

A note on Blackboard:  While our class website is public, we still need a space where the more private exchanges can happen. This is where Blackboard comes in. Blackboard is where you’ll submit your work as well as  find resources that I don’t have copyright permission to post online.

A note on Slack: Slack is the discussion platform we’ll be using this semester. To join Slack, go into your UA email account and find the invitation I sent all of you. Here’re the steps Slack gives on their “Join a Slack Team‘ page:

Once you’ve been invited to join a Slack team, the first step is setting up your account. Just click the link in your email invitation to get started:

1. Check your inbox for an invitation to join a Slack team.
2. Click the Join button.
3. On the signup page, enter your first and last name and choose a  username.
4. When you’re ready, click Next.
5. Choose a password, then click Join team.

Join  our slack team at eatenglishux3. Once you’ve done so, you’ll notice there are discussions on the left side labeled #discussion1, #discussion2, and so on. Click on each discussion to join the week’s conversation. Sometimes there are more than one discussion per week. The second discussion will be marked with a “-5’ for example #discussion2-5.  Remember, the thorough discussion question is located in the dropdown menu of our course. For example, discussion #1 set-up is located here.

 

Course Schedule:

Make sure you are adhering to the schedule of assignments’ due dates, and recommendations located on the course website.

 

Classroom Policies, Participation, and Late Work:

Due dates are due dates. Even online. This course is divided into fifteen lessons. Your lessons will be graded and commented upon to give specific suggestions for improving your work, so turning in lessons regularly is required. Turning in one or two lesson per week will help you earn enough points to pass the course within a semester. Students who work ahead can finish the coursework before the end of the semester, however discussions depend on your fellow classmates, so in this area you will not be able to work very far ahead. Note that it is entirely possible to turn in Lessons 1 & 2 within seven days of starting the course.

I  will make every effort to grade your lesson quickly. If a lesson has been submitted in Blackboard for more than a week, please send me an email.

 

Plagiarism and Academic Integrity:

Honesty is a primary responsibility of you and every other UAF student. The following are common guidelines regarding academic integrity:

1. Students will not collaborate on any quizzes, in-class exams, or take-home exams that contribute to their grade in a course, unless the course instructor grants permission. Only those materials permitted by the instructor may be used to assist in quizzes and examinations.

2. Students will not represent the work of others as their own. A student will attribute the source of information not original with himself or herself (direct quotes or paraphrases) in compositions, theses, and other reports.

3. No work submitted for one course may be submitted for credit in another course without the explicit approval of both instructors.

Alleged violations of the Code of Conduct will be reviewed in accordance with procedures specified in regents’ policy, university regulations and UAF rules and procedures.

 

Grading Policies:

You will be graded on a 1000 point system.

(20%) 10 (20-point) writing exercises

(30%) 10 (30-point) discussion board entries

(30%) 3 Short Papers (100 points each)

(20%) 1 Longer Research Paper: 2 (50 point) drafts and 1 (100 point) final draft

This is a graded course using a +/- grading scale as follows:

• A       93-100%
• A-     90-92%
• B+   87-89%
• B       83-86%
• B-     80-82%
• C+   77-79%
• C       73-76%
• C-     70-72%
• D+   67-69%
• D       63-66%
• D-     60-62%
• F         0-59%

A note on plagiarism: Remember that all work for this class must be your own, original writing. Plagiarism will result in a failing grade for the entire course.

I will be using this rubric for all major essays.

Instructor Feedback and Checking Your Grades:

Inquiries from students will be acknowledged promptly – often within the same day. Lessons will be graded within one week after the due date.   To check your grades for assignments and find comments from me, you should see Blackboard: to check your grade average overall, click on the My Grades link in the sidebar menu of the course shell in Blackboard.

 

The UAF Writing Center:

The Writing Center is a student-staffed, student-oriented service of the English Department. Tutors can assist you in all phases of the writing process, including the following: brainstorming and generating topics, organizing ideas, developing research strategies, use of citation styles (MLA, APA, and Chicago), and editing for clarity and correctness. Tutors collaborate with each student on a one-to-one basis in any phase of the writing process: planning, drafting, or revising. They also help writers discover ways of improving grammar, mechanics, and punctuation.

Appointments at the Writing Center are thirty minutes long. Call or stop by to make an appointment. Walk-in sessions are often available, but in the last half of the semester they are often booked.

The Writing Center also features a computer lab with eighteen computers and free printing for up to twenty-five pages. Technicians and tutors are on hand to assist with computer-related questions.

Located on the 8^th floor of the Gruening Building (Office hours may vary in summer — call to confirm)

Phone: (907) 474-5314

MON	TUE	WED	THUR	FRI	SUN
10 a.m. — 4 p.m.	10 a.m. — 4 p.m.	10 a.m. — 4 p.m.	10 a.m. — 4 p.m.	10 a.m. — 1 p.m.	1 p.m. — 6 p.m.
7 p.m. — 10 p.m.	7 p.m. — 10 p.m.	7 p.m. — 10 p.m.	7 p.m. — 10 p.m.

 

 

 

 

No Basis (NB), Incomplete (I) and Instructor Withdrawal (W):

This course adheres to the Center for Distance Education Procedure regarding the granting of NB Grades. The NB grade is for use only in situations in which the instructor has No Basis upon which to assign a grade. In general, the NB grade will not be granted.

Your instructor follows the University of Alaska Fairbanks Incomplete Grade Policy:
“The letter “I’ (Incomplete) is a temporary grade used to indicate that the student has satisfactorily completed (C or better) the majority of work in a course but for personal reasons beyond the student’s control, such as sickness, he has not been able to complete the course during the regular semester. Negligence or indifference are not acceptable reasons for an “I’ grade.’

Successful, Timely Completion of this Course Starting and establishing your progress through this course early can help to encourage your successful completion of the course. Toward this end, this course adheres to the following eCampus Procedures:

1. The first contact assignment five days after the first day of instruction. Failure to submit this assignment within the first two weeks of the course could result in withdrawal from the course.
2. Failure to submit the first content assignments (Assignments 1, 2 and 3) by the deadline for faculty-initiated withdrawals (the ninth Friday after the first day of classes) could result in instructor initiated withdrawal from the course (W).

 

 

Student Support Services:

UAF eCampus’s Student Services helps students with registration and course schedules, provides information about lessons and student records, assists with the examination process, and answers general questions. Our Academic Advisor can help students communicate with instructors, locate helpful resources, and maximize their distance learning experience.   Contact the eCampus Student Services staff at 907- 479-3444 or toll free 1-800-277-8060 or contact staff directly — for directory listing see: https://ecampus.uaf.edu/online/contact/  .

 

Disability Services:

The UAF Office of Disability Services operates in conjunction with UAF eCampus. Disability Services, a part of UAF’s Center for Health and Counseling, provides academic accommodations to enrolled students who are identified as being eligible for these services.

If you believe you are eligible, please visit their web site (https://www.uaf.edu/disability/) or contact a student affairs staff person at your nearest local campus. You can also contact Disability Services on the Fairbanks Campus by phone, 907-474-7043, or by e-mail (uaf-disabilityservices@alaska.edu).

 Nondiscrimination Notice:  

UA is an  AA/EO  employer and educational institution and prohibits illegal discrimination against any individual:  www.alaska.edu/nondiscrimination.