Syllabus for English 203
Spring 2008
Peru State College's Teacher Education Unit
Conceptual Framework
Creating Exemplary Educators: Reflective Decision-makers
Class: Literature for Children Through Adolescence
Time: 8:00-9:15 TH, TJM 236
Professor: Bill Clemente
Office: Fine Arts 201
Office Telephone Number: (402-) 872-2233
Office Hours: 5:00-6:30 p.m. M; 9:30-11:45 a.m. MW; 1:00-3:00 p.m.; 10:00-11:45 a.m. F
Teaching Schedule:
8:00-9:15 TH (TJM 326): Literature for Children Through Adolescence
9:30-10:45 TH (FA 104): World Literature to 1500
6:30-9:15 Monday, Film Studies (FA 205)
8:00-9:15 Monday, Shakespeare (Hoyt 104)
E-Mail: bclemente@oakmail.com
Homepage: Click here.
Home Telephone Number: 872-3073 (You can leave a message here as well)
Required Texts:
The Norton Anthology of Children’s Literature by Zipes, Paul, Vallone, etc.
Sleleton Man by Joseph Bruchac
Lily's Crossing by Patricia Reilly Giff
Feed by M. T. Anderson
Please pay close attention to class announcements, for the information collected here is subject to change over the course of the term.
Course Description and Objectives: As a quick glance at your major anthology's table of contents emphasizes, you will read a rich variety of material this term. In addition to fairy tales, folk tales, and myths, the course investigates some of the following material: picture books, poetry, science fiction, modern fiction, fantasy, non-fiction, and drama.
This course focuses on literature for children from preschool through adolescence; and the course seeks to give you both an appreciation of the literature's worth and the confidence necessary for you to present the material in a classroom setting.
To that end, we will read a wide variety of literature from various genres and discuss how children respond to the stories and how you can meet their specific needs. You will find, among other things, that the literature is far from simple and, properly presented, can play a major role in a young person's education. And you might have a chance to do some creative writing, both poetry and fiction, including haiku and nanofiction, even fables and fractured fairy tales.
In class, therefore, we will not only talk about stories, but each of you will also have opportunities to present stories to your classmates. And from time to time, I hope to hold class in the library's section devoted to the literature we will cover this term.
In addition to reading assignments in our texts, you will read and comment on six children's books of your choice. I encourage you to bring material to class to read and discuss with everyone. As your anthology of fairy tales indicates, our modern stores often find their roots in classic fairy tales, narratives that continue to engage readers of all ages.
Children's Literature identifies a significant field of study and, if properly presented to youngsters, teaches them a great deal about themselves, their culture, and the world around them.
This year, we also read a novel by Patricia Reilly Giff, an award-winning author of fiction for adolescents, and a dystopian novel by M. T. Anderson, a book that won a Los Angeles Times Book Prize and was a finalist for a National Book Award. In addition, the reading includes Skeleton Man, a wonderful American Indian myth turned into a novel by Joseph Bruchac. As you will come to realize through class discussion and by reading essays about the literature included in your anthologies, this literature addresses concerns that affect youngsters on a daily basis, both personal and social.
The class also features on-line discussions utilizing the Blackboard template and a class weblog (or "blog"), Serious Fun with Children's Literature, on which I will post audio/visual and other messages about class material and schedules..
Other Goals and Objectives: Literature for Children Through Adolescence seeks, of course, to make you a better teacher of literature after you graduate from Peru State and begin your professional careers.
The course will also make you a better reader of all literature; for while what is often called "Kiddie Literature" does focus on readings for youngsters, you will find that this literature is very sophisticated and comes in many forms, most of which appeal likewise to adults.
The literature also connects with issues at the center of social change and conflict, from questions about single-parent families to the need for our children to become better aware of the different cultures that make up the world around them. Thus, while the course seeks to fulfill the English Department's goal to produce knowledgeable and effective teachers, Literature for Children Through Adolescence also reinforces the college's mission to graduate informed citizens.
Turnitin: To promote academic integrity, Peru State College subscribes to an electronic service to review papers for the appropriate citations and originality. Key elements of submitted papers are stored electronically in a limited access database and thus become a permanent part of the material to which future submissions are compared.
Continued enrollment in a course signifies your permission for this use of your written work.
Should you not wish to agree to this procedure, you may drop the course during the add/drop period before any works are completed and submitted.
Assessment Methods and Student Requirements
Grades: Your grade will be based upon the following (subject-to-change) percentages and descriptions:
Attendance 10%
Quizzes: 16
Book Reviews: 24
Essay One—Alphabet Book: 14
Essay Two—Fairy Tale: 14
Essay Three--Fiction: 14
Final Exam: 8
Grading Policy:
A 90-100
B+ 85-89
B 80-84
C+ 75-79
C 70-74
D+ 65-69
D 60-64
F Below 60
Attendance: Come to class prepared to take part in discussions, for they will help you generate ideas for your essays on the exams and for short writing assignments. Failing to attend class on a regular basis will hinder your progress.
If you must miss class, contact me or a member of the class to get the assignment; all assignments will be posted on the class web page and on Blackboard
Attendance counts for 10% of the final grade, and each of you begins the semester with a grade of A, 100%, for attendance. Not attending class lowers this grade at the rate of 5% for the first two absences and 10% for each subsequent non-attendance.
Children's Literature is a discussion class, so come to class prepared to talk about the matter at hand and to enjoy interacting with your fellow readers.
Quizzes: Every two weeks, you will take a quiz over the assigned readings. These tests include true/false and multiple-choice questions. The quizzes will be posted on Blackboard, and I will cover the material in class and in an audio/visual message on the class blog that addresses the material.
If you listen in class, take notes, read the class notes, listen to the audio/visual message, and complete the assigned readings, the quizzes will pose no problems.
Essays: Over the course of the semester, you will also write three short--2.5 to 3 double-spaced--critical essays over class material. These assignments will offer you choices, and you will have an opportunity to revise two of these efforts.
Book Reviews: You will also read six (6) children's books from the campus library and other sources; for each book, you will write a short review (2 +, double-spaced pages) in which you relate the material to issues and subjects discussed in class and in the texts--especially the chapter introductions. In other words, you will emphasize analysis over plot summary.
You should try to complete three by the eighth week to avoid end-of-the-semester panic. In addition, you must cover the following material discussed in greater detail on the class web page:
An adolescent novel
A picture book or a comic book
A modern rendering of a classic fairy tale
A fable
Myth and/or Legend
Mother Goose and/or Nonsense Poetry
In addition to covering the preceding types and genres, two works must come from a non-western culture. You will discover plenty of material in the college library, in your local libraries, and at book stores.
Final Exam: You will take this examination in class.
Revisions: For some written assignments (exceptions include the final examination), you will have an opportunity to revise work and to elevate the grade.
Bear in mind, however, that a rewrite does not automatically raise the essay's grade. If the revised essay receives a higher mark than the original, the better grade goes into the book, replacing the earlier effort. A revision never lowers your grade.
ATTENTION: In general, revisions are due a week after the assignment is returned.
Peer Evaluation: I might post some class work on the class web page to help all of you compose effective revisions.
Due Dates and Late Material: Turn in all work on assigned dates. If you must turn in something after the due date, let me know in advance.
Turn in all written work using the appropriate links on Blackboard located in the "Assignments" link.
Grades for unexcused late work will be lowered at the rate of one-half a grade for each day after the initial due date. Pleases turn in all work on time.
Tentative Course Schedule: We will study the following areas, in the following order, and for the approximate (subject-to-change) time periods indicated:
Alphabets (Two Weeks)
Chapbooks, Primers and Readers (One Week)
Fairy Tales (Three Weeks)
Animal Fables (One Week)
Myths (One Week)
Legends (One Week)
Fantasy and SF (Two Weeks)
Picture Books And Comics (Two Weeks)
Verse (Two Weeks)
Fiction (One Week)
A more comprehensive schedule is available on the class web page.
And Finally:
You grades will be posted on Blackboard, where you will also send, unless otherwise indicated, all written assignments, from essays to book reviews.
Warning:
If you utilize Microsoft Works, please save your documents in Rich Text Format (RTF), for this software does not work on Blackboard or on my computer.
For best results, send your documents in Word, using the appropriate link located on Blackboard in the “Assignments” link.
Incomplete Coursework:
To designate a student's work in a course as incomplete at the end of a term, instructors record the incomplete grade (I). Students may receive this grade only when serious illness, hardship, death in the immediate family, or military service during the semester in which they are registered prevents them from completing course requirements. In addition, to receive an incomplete, a student must have completed a majority of the course's major requirements. Unless extenuating circumstances dictate otherwise, students must initiate requests for an incomplete by filing out an Incomplete Grade Completion Contract, which requires the student and faculty signature.
The Incomplete Grade Completion Contract cites the reason(s) for the incomplete and details the specific obligations the student must meet to change the incomplete to a letter grade. If students agree to complete required work prior to the normal deadline for making up an incomplete the end of the subsequent semester this date must appear in the contract. The division chair, the instructor, and the student receive signed copies of the incomplete Grade Completion Contract.
Even if the student does not attend Peru State College, all incomplete course work must be finished by the end of the subsequent semester. Unless Faculty Senate approves an extension, if the student does not fulfill contract obligations in the allotted time, the incomplete grade automatically becomes an F.
Students who have filed an application for graduation are not eligible for a grade of Incomplete.
Accommodation Statement:
The Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (public law 93-112) section 504, provides that "no otherwise qualified disabled individual in the United States shall solely by reason disabled, be excluded from the participation in, be denied the benefits of, or by subjected to discrimination under any program or activity receiving federal financial assistance.
1. It is the student's responsibility to notify the institution of any special circumstances that would affect his/her ability to complete equally in the college environment. Learning disabilities must be appropriately documented.
2. While students are encouraged to self-identify at the earliest possible time, students may not know or choose to self-identify, but can still receive services at any time once they self-disclose and document.
3. Students should contact the office of Student Support Services, Vice President for Student Affairs or the Director of Admissions for further advisement.
Academic Dishonesty: Academic integrity is a basic principle that requires the student to take credit only for ideas and efforts that are his/her own. Cheating is defined as the submission of materials in assignments, exams, or other academic work that is based on sources prohibited by the faculty member. Cheating shall include, but is not limited to, situations in which a student:
1. Refers during an academic evaluation to material sources not authorized by the faculty member.
2. Utilizes devices during an academic evaluation that are not authorized by the faculty member.
3. Provides assistance to another student or receives assistance from another student during an academic evaluation in a manner not authorized by the faculty member.
4. Presents as his/her own the ideas or words of another person without customary and proper acknowledgment of sources.
5. Knowingly permits his/her words to be submitted by another person without the faculty member's permission.
6. Acts as a substitute or utilizes a substitute in any academic evaluation.
7. Fabricates data in support of laboratory or field work.
8. Possesses, buys, sells, obtains, or uses a copy of any materials intended to be used as an instrument of academic evaluation in advance of its administration.
9. Alters grade records of his/her own or another student work in a course or a component of a course.
Aim to have a “puddle-wonderful” time this term.
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