Course Syllabus

Kettering College

Medicine in Literature ENGL-345, Winter 2016

Instructor: Laura Edwards                                                     

Office Phone:  ext. 54916

E-mail: Laura.Edwards@kc.edu (I do not check the my.kc.edu email address as often, so please use the one listed here)

Office Hours

By appointment

Text

The Autobiography of a Face by Lucy Grealy
Various other texts and forms of media on the Canvas website

Objectives

In this class, we will explore the theme of medicine, illness, and disability in literature and media. Each week, you will have chapters from The Autobiogrraphy of a Face to read and respond to through discussion with your classmates. The course will also consider a different form of media that deals with our theme each week, and various assignments (short essays, discussions, media) that respond based on that media will be required, culminating in a final project that incorporates both text and multimedia. 

By the end of the course, students will be able to

• Analyze a text and respond with other materials as well as their own ideas and beliefs
• Discuss complex ideas from the text with classmates, contributing to and responding to others' ideas.
• Consider various tropes and themes as related to medicine, illness, and disability and evaluate pop culture's attempt to understand and interpret those themes.

Course Requirements

1. Reading.This is a 300 level college literature course, which means there is going to be a lot of reading each week. It's not a bad idea to consider reading ahead. Check into Canvas several times a week and read ALL of the materials posted. You are responsible for all of the material on Canvas and in my emails. 
2. Discussionsare a large part of your grade and you will have two discussion posts to post and reply to every week. In order to receive full points, each student must carefully and completely respond to the prompts by Thursday night of that week. I am not looking for a summary with some commentary; I am looking for new ideas that contribute to our class' understanding of the text and media in the course, and I will not be giving full points just for participation. Each post must be 200-500 words in length and address all parts of the prompt. Your post is worth 20 pts of the total 30 pts possible for each discussion.

You must also reply to at least two students by Sunday night of each week for the remaining 10 pts (each response is worth 5 pts, depending on its content). Each reply should be a short paragraph in length. Try to spread the love around and reply to posts not previously replied to, if there are any. 

This is not a "did it" or "didn't do it" kind of grade; your discussion must be thoughtful and thorough to receive the full 20 pts and your replies must add to the discussion, not just "I agree." Consider using a short quote from the text to support your position. Or, if you do agree/disagree, explain why. If, however, the majority of your post and/or replies is quoted, you will not receive points for discussion.

Late posts and/or replies will not be accepted for a grade, as late work will not contribute to discussion, which is the point of the assignment.

3.  A very short 1-2 page response to the movie of your choice from the options listed (under the pages tab). 
4. A final project that includes an essay which compares and contrasts The Autobiography of a Faceto one article found in the library's database, as well as one form of “other” media (blog, comic, movie, song) of the student’s own finding. The second component will be a multimodal presentation of the information found in the essay.

Course Policies

--Please note that although this is not a writing class, it is a college level class with a writing component. There is therefore an assumption that students in this class are capable of writing effectively on a college level. There will NOT be an opportunity for rewrites, so please be sure to get help from the Writing Center before you submit your final draft. I reserve the right to require students to visit the WC.

Go here to register with the writing center appointment site and to see what times are available. Be sure to check the option for an online appointment if you're not able to come on campus and follow the instructions emailed to your school-assigned gmail account on the day of your appointment.

***Late work will NOT be accepted*** If you feel you have a legitimate reason such as an unexpected hospital stay, please email me with the details right away. 

Plagiarism

Plagiarism of any kind will not be tolerated. If you're worried that you're not citing properly, which results in plagiarism, please visit the writing center either in person or online. 

• Having someone else write a paper (this is not the same as having someone else read a paper that you’ve written and getting some feedback)
• Downloading a paper from the internet
• Copying sentences or phrases verbatim from another text, including unpublished texts, without appropriate punctuation and documentation.

You are not exempt from plagiarizing simply by claiming ignorance.  If you have any questions about whether something you are doing comprises an act of plagiarism, email me or consult the writing center.  If I have any reason to suspect that you committed plagiarism, I will ask you about it, and if I catch you in the act, you will receive a “zero” for that assignment.  If you plagiarize more than once you will receive an “F” for the course.  Any cheating will be reported to Administration via the channels detailed in the college’s honor code.

Academic Difficulty/Special Needs/Disability Policy

Any special needs or disability (e.g. dyslexia or ADD) should be reported to the instructor, accompanied by appropriate documentation, as soon as possible.  In addition, college policy requires that the student should register his/her special needs or disability with the Dean of Student Services.  If special accommodations are required, the student should register any special needs/disability prior to two months to the beginning of the semester.  Details regarding disability assistance can be found in the Student Handbook.

Students can also receive academic assistance through the Academic Support Center in the Learning Commons.

Grading

Your final grade will be determined as follows:

• Quizzes                       5%                    
• Discussions               30%
• Other Assignments     10%   
• Final Project     35%
• Movie Response          20%   

Final Grades will be determined according to the following percentages:

             100-94             A                         79-76               C+

              93-90             A-                         75-72               C

              89-86             B+                         70-71               C-

              85-83             B                          <70               D

              82-80             B-                          <60               F

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Additional Information

Copyright Policy Kettering College  values and respects the laws that govern the creation and distribution of intellectual property (copyright) and the rights of members of the academic community to use such intellectual property (fair use). It is the expectation of the administration of Kettering College of Medical Arts that students will be familiar with these laws and use copyright protected works in accordance with the law.

Policy on Standards of Professional Conduct for Undergraduate and Graduate StudentsKettering College of Medical Arts subscribes to Christian and professional standards of conduct. An atmosphere of professional integrity can be successfully preserved only when students, staff, and faculty unite in mutually supportive acts of trust and assistance. These individuals share equally the obligation to create a community united in promoting and maintaining an honorable learning environment in both the classroom and clinical setting including the online environment. Maintenance of the standards of professional conduct and the successful administration of this policy depend on the mutual cooperation of the entire College community. Dissemination of the policy and standards of professional conduct to all parties will ensure that all members of the community are informed. It is the responsibility of each member of the College community to model ethical and professional conduct at all times and to hold others accountable to these policies for the greater good of the community. (See pages 154-160 of Handbook.)