Welcome to ENC2135
Congratulations! You found our Online Lectures page. Every Monday and Wednesday, you will find that day's online lecture. Now that you know where it is, you can bookmark it and be sure to read the lecture EVERY MONDAY AND WEDNESDAY. As a way to introduce you to this class, I am providing here a rundown of the major class policies and requirements. In this post, you are required to complete a few major tasks, so be on the lookout. In our section of ENC2135, we will focus on the narrative. The act of storytelling is how humans connect to one another and used in all careers as a way to convey an idea, product, fund a project, or to give a testimonial. Also, we will dissect the compositions we encounter every day to understand how they are assembled, discuss the genre conventions of certain narratives, and, by the end of the semester, you will be asked to write your own narrative based on the research you completed for Project #1.
Writing is communicating, and, in the end, you will be a stronger communicator of your ideas.
But first, I want you to consider that as a student you are already communicating a message. You have a brand: whether it is outdoorsy, energetic, morning person, night owl, party monster, or bookworm. You communicate this brand in your every action, motion, turn of phrase, article of clothing, or hairstyle. This is an online class, so my exposure to you will be through your writing, your ability to meet a deadline, and your ability to follow instructions. Therefore, in this class, you will learn to navigate how to communicate your brand as a student through the words and images you use in digital spaces. This will be my impression of you. To begin, I need you to complete the Getting to Know You Form. Through it, I will be able to determine what kind of writer you are now, so we will be able to make a plan to improve your writing by the end of the semester. In week 3, you and I will meet via Google Hangout video conference to discuss the form and the assignments you will have completed at that point. Students in the past have had better success calling in using the Google Hangouts app on their phone rather than their laptop. Also, because this is an online class, you are expected to know how to navigate digital spaces. You need to know how to access Canvas, post assignments on a Wix website, send a professional email, schedule and attend a video conference, and provide constructive criticism to your classmates in digital workshop. Luckily, you will get lots of practice over the course of the semester. If you are not comfortable navigating digital spaces or managing your own time, you should consider dropping this class and enroll in a face-to-face section of ENC2135.
All of the deadlines for all of your projects and assignments are on our Class Google Calendar. You can add any of these deadlines to your personal calendar. If I make a change to a deadline, this is the calendar I will update first. You will mold your brand as a student by building a webpage through Wix.com (you will see me reference this website as your Wix/ePortfolio). Wix is a free and easy to navigate web design program. You are using Wix to publish all of your major projects and at the end of the semester, you will have a portfolio of your work. After this class is complete, you will be able to use your Wix/ePortfolio to apply for scholarships, internships, or jobs because it will represent who you are, but also provide writing samples and show your ability to design a website. Almost all organizations and employers are looking for people who can professionally and authentically represent themselves in digital spaces. Your Wix/ePortfolio will determine most of your final grade, which means almost assignments will be posted on that page. Check out the Wix for Beginners page for instructions on how to set up a Wix page. Each project will be completed though a series of drafts. This means when you finish a draft, I expect you to review the feedback and make substantial revision in response to that feedback. All projects will have more than one draft. The writing process is writing, revising, writing again and this course puts that in action. Each project has a minimum word count. If your draft does not meet the minimum word count, you will get an automatic F on the Project and you will not be allowed to revise it. Word counts are different in Microsoft Word, Wix, and Google Docs, so be mindful of that. Make sure you are going OVER your word count. This class is structured where one project leads to the next, which leads to the next. This means that deadlines are a big freaking deal. Miss a deadline, your grade is drastically affected. You cannot make up points lost from missing the deadline. You cannot revise short assignment for a new grade, so make sure you understand the prompt BEFORE the deadline. Know that one minute late is still late. Don’t wait until the last minute to upload your assignments because Wix and Canvas will crash if too many people are trying to upload at the last minute. If you upload a major project late, it is one letter grade for every day the paper is late. By the end of the semester, your Wix/e-Portfolio will include a minimum of 6,000 words. This class is Interactive. You are expected to provide your services as an editor, a collaborator, and a member of a small support team. Of your final grade, 6% is based on Participation, which means providing feedback, interacting in small online groups and interacting in group assignments. Additionally, this class is Exploratory. You are asked to compose projects from an objective viewpoint, which means you are not taken a side on an issue. We don’t write opinion essays in this course. You will determine your findings AFTER you complete the research you do in this class. This is a composition class, but we do much more than write essays. You are composing things in many different forms. For project #3, you will take the research from Project #1 and analysis from Project #2 and write your own original narrative directed toward a specific audience. This means to reach that audience, your narrative may need to take the form of an audio, visual, or text based mode like a video or a podcast instead of a short story. You will decide which composition to create by analyzing which mode and genre would be most appropriate for your audience. You will also publish this narrative online through your Wix page and create multiple advertisements and a social media campaign to distribute that narrative in digital spaces. Then you will write a report on why you chose that narrative, what it was like to create that composition, where you distributed it, how you promoted it, and how people responded or reacted to it. Project #3 is hard and has many, many requirements in order to complete it. You will not be asked to write any personal essays in this class, which means, you will be required to write in 3rd person for major projects. No me, no I, no we, no you. Third person means he, she, it or they. First person writing will only be used for short assignments, reflections, and Twitter. Because this is an online class, digital communication is important. Twitter is how we communicate in this course. If you are looking for an answer to a question about the class, Twitter is the best place to ask. Everyone in the class will set up a CLASS SPECIFIC Twitter account. Do not use an old account or an existing account. You must follow the class account and also all accounts which the class account follows (this should be around 50 students). Make sure you have disabled all security features. Because your classmates need to find you and follow you. Do no limit who can see your tweets. You must tweet 10 times every week. Conversations with me and classmates count as part of your 10, because you are encouraged to ask questions. Retweets do not count. I DO NOT give half credit for half of the tweets. I do not allow “make up” tweets. Tweets are observations and commentary in the moment. It is practice in concise language because 280 characters is not much space. Some people struggle about what to tweet about. So, on Mondays. I will post a Twitter prompt in the lecture. If you have a question about the class, do not DM me on Twitter -- Tweet it! If you have a question, others might also have the same questions. Also, Tweets and all digital writing is up to the same standards as an in-class writing assignment. I do not tolerate trolls. Digital writing, retweets, comments, etc which would be considered racist, sexist, xenophobic, and other general thoughtless cruelty will result in a loss of credit for all the work. Basically, as Spongebob says, “Don’t be a jerk”. Also, remember that when you click the little heart liking someone’s tweet, all your classmates can see that as well. Your likes are NOT private. Twitter must have: Profile Photo, Your Name, Description: Student, Location: Florida State University, website: Your Wix site link. [You are not obligated to list your birthday]. As soon as your account is set up, follow @BBradley2135. Send a tweet to me that says, “Hello @BBradley2135.” When I am tagged in that tweet, I will follow you back.
This is an online class, which means you will not see my face regularly. This means that checking in is important. If you do not complete assignments, that is the same as missing a class. Attendance will be determined on completing assignments before the deadline. There is not “catching up” on work in this class. Missing a deadline results in penalizing your grade and your status in the course. If your miss 4 assignment deadlines, you run the risk of failing the course. See the Syllabus for more information.
You are responsible for your grade. I provide the information. You complete the work. At the end of the semester you will have honed a number of skills which will help you in your future courses and careers. But that’s on you. Read the Accountability Agreement and sign the form citing that you understand and agree to these terms.
Know that we will not hide behind the anonymity of the internet to spread ignorance and hate. Basically, we operate on the guidelines of “Don’t be a Jerk”. Review the Class Civility Clause and sign the form indicating that you understand and agree to these terms. Now that you have an idea of the major policies of this course, please review the Syllabus, and familiarize yourself with what is coming up. If you need to reach me, I am available via email, Twitter, or you can Make An Appointment to talk over video chat in Google Hangout.
BEFORE 11:59 on FRIDAY 8/30, you MUST:
Sign up for a free Wix website. Go to Wix for Beginners and follow the instructions to set up the site you will use for the entire semester. Make sure you are NOT setting up an ADI account.
Set up Twitter Account. Provide profile photo, your name, Description: Student, Location: Florida State University. Then follow @BBradley2135. If you have a smart phone, I suggest downloading the app because navigating Twitter on the app is easier than desktop.
Complete your Getting to Know You form
Sign Civility Clause
