(C1007.54, TTR 2:40-3:55, 307 Pupin)

Instructor: Ms. Margo Orlando
mo264@columbia.edu
Office Hours: T 1:30-2:30, W 10:00-10:50 and by appointment
Composition Office: 310 Philosophy Hall, 854-3886. If you leave messages for me here, there is no guarantee that I will get them in time. E-mail is the best way to reach me.
Website: www.columbia.edu/itc/composition/orlando

Course Description:

Logic and Rhetoric is an introductory seminar in composition. In this course you will learn how to write expository prose that is well-organized, logically sound, rhetorically effective, and grammatically correct. You will also be introduced to research techniques, including the use of the library, the conventions and principles of documentation, the art of synthesis, and analysis of sources. This course focuses on the skills and processes of writing, and the focus of class will be your writing. Throughout the semester you will receive individual guidance in discovering the ways in which your writing affects your thinking, and the ways in which your thinking affects your writing.

Required Texts:
  • Hacker, Diane. The Bedford Handbook, Fifth Edition. Boston: Bedford Books, 1998. (Please bring to each class. Workbook not required.)
  • Portfolio of your written work. Keep ALL work you do for this class in a folder or binder. Bring your portfolio to every class and conference.
Course Requirements:
  • 15 essays (13 take-home essays, in-class midterm and final)
  • 4 revisions of previously written essays (1 short essay revision, 3 long essay revisions)
  • Grammar quizzes and other assignments
  • At least 2 individual conferences with me
  • Regular attendance and active class participation
Grading:

Essays, midterm, and final: 85%
Quizzes, homework, class participation: 15%

Attendance Policy:

This is a required course, and you are expected to attend all classes. Attendance is required in all Composition courses. You are encouraged to attend all classes, but you are allowed to miss three classes without penalty. I urge you to save these absences for religious observances, illness, etc., since there is no difference between excused and unexcused absences. If you exceed these three allowed absences, you will suffer increasingly severe grade penalties for each absence. Being 5+ minutes late for class 3 times will count as one absence. If you are 30+ minutes late, I will mark you as absent.

If you miss class, you are responsible for the work covered and assigned. All assignments must be turned in on time-at the beginning of class. No exceptions. In-class quizzes or exercises missed during an absence can be made up only if you talk to me before the absence-otherwise they will count as a zero. Quizzes are always given at the beginning of class. If you are late and the quiz has been passed out, you will receive a zero for the quiz.

Essays:

You must turn in 2 copies of every paper you write. All papers must be one-sided, double-spaced, typed in a legible 12-pt. font, and stapled. Provide a title for each essay, number the pages, and include a word count at the end. In the upper-left-hand corner of the first page, type your name, Essay #__, and the due date.

Papers are always due at the beginning of class. Late papers will be penalized a full letter grade for each calendar day after the due date, including weekends. Papers more than 7 days late will not be accepted, and they will receive a zero. The first day considered "late" is the same day as the day the essay is due-which means that if you skip class and put the paper in my mailbox, it is late. Arrangements can always be made with me if you know you'll be absent when an essay is due.

We will be using your writing for in-class discussion at almost all class meetings. Keep this in mind when choosing your topics-do not write anything you would not want the entire class to read and discuss.

Plagiarism:

Columbia University is dedicated to the highest ideals of academic integrity. Any instance of academic dishonesty, attempted or actual, will not be tolerated. Academic dishonesty includes but is not limited to:
  1. Submitting essays or portions of essays written by other people as one's own.
  2. Failing to acknowledge, through proper citation, the source of ideas not essentially one's own.
  3. Failing to document paraphrases, ideas, or verbatim expressions not one's own.
  4. Collaborating on an assignment or examination without specific permission from the instructor.
  5. Submitting an essay written for one course to a second course without the explicit permission of both instructors.
  6. Submitting work as one's own which has been prepared by or purchased by another.
Please see Columbia's official statement on plagiarism for a full description. If you plagiarize, intentionally or unintentionally, the work in question will receive a zero. You will be reported to the Deans, and you will risk failing the course. If you are ever in doubt about what constitutes plagiarism, please ask me.