Do-It-Yourself Syllabus Kit

Course description

Here are some sample descriptions that you can use and/or adapt:

ENGL 120
ENGL 120 is an elective course that will prepare you for ENGL 121, a general education requirement. The overall goal of this course is to empower you as writers, readers, and critical thinkers. We will accomplish this broad goal by exploring together the ideas of writing as a process and how that process relates to our lives in the world of education. We will look at many topics such as writing, education, and language and come to a new understanding about these topics. This course is structured so that you can pull from your own experiences to help you come to new conclusions, but we will be using other sources as well. These sources include readings from the assigned texts and research conducted by you. Writing for the class will involve short in-class exercises, thoughtful journal work, and longer, out-of-class assignments. Since we will be working on these assignments together, discussion, movement, and reflection are inevitable. 

Course writing

A brief description of the major assignment sequences in the course (even if it's "all of the assignments in this course will revolve around the theme of X") and of the kind of writing in the course (e.g., long essays, short essays, in-class writing, and reflective writing).

Course grading
You should also include a description of grading in the course in this section. Here's where you need to broadly define the criteria for assessing students' writing, as well. Finally, you should also let students know what part of the work on the course will count for what percentage of their grades here.

Click here for an example of Linda's syllabus statement about portfolio grading.

A Statement about the Writing Center (You can use this one, or adapt it in your own words.)
The Writing Center (209 Pray-Harrold; 487-0694) is a terrific resource for writing at any point in the process. If you'd like help developing ideas, focusing your essay, thinking about other directions for your writing, with editing, or with other parts of the writing process they are happy to work with you. The Writing Center is staffed by TAs and other graduate assistants. It works best for them if you can make an appointment (but you can also try dropping in). When you do go to the Writing Center, be sure to bring a draft of what you're working on and your assignment sheet with you. If I think that your writing might benefit from working with a writing center instructor I'll let you know. Additionally, if you're in 120, you'll need to visit the Writing Center at least once before the sixth week of the term.

A statement on accommodating students with disabilities. You can include this one or adapt it in your own words.

If you have a documented disability that affects your work in this (or any other) class, Access Services can provide support for you. Call them, or let me know and I can help you to call them, at 734-487-2470 to make necessary arrangements to ensure you success in this course.

Course Policies
(Note: The policies that you write in your syllabus are important! If a problem arises in your course (related to attendance, grading, peer work, or anything else), these policies are your "contract." Additionally, if students appeal anything related to your course, the people to whom they appeal will happily back you up on policies, but can't go beyond these.

Late drafts (peer review drafts and/or drafts due to you)
What kinds of drafts you have students submit depends on the approach to writing that you use for the course. However, you will definitely need to include some kind of peer review activity for drafts (that is, you'll need to have students read and comment on one another's drafts) and you'll probably receive and comment on drafts. Make sure that you have clear policies regarding lateness for each -- late peer review drafts may be more serious than late drafts due to you (although since you're all taking classes, as well, this may be equally serious).

Participation
There are elements to a writing course other than writing, of course. You’ll need to include descriptions of how you’re going to handle things like discussions, peer review, feedback, and so on, and describe those here (with separate headings for each one). Be sure to establish consistent definitions for each of these (i.e., what does it look like to "participate?").

For the sake of consistency, many instructors have adapted their participation policies from the Department's participation policy. Note that the department does not have, and cannot support, an attendance policy alone; instead, attendance must be included as one element of participation. The Department policy states:

Students enrolled in English Department classes are expected to participate in daily interactive activities. They will, for example, routinely discuss reading assignments, write in class on impromptu topics, participate in collaborative activities, or engage in peer review of drafts. Students who miss these activities regularly cannot reasonably make them up. As a result, students who do not participate regularly should expect to receive lower grades in the course, and students who miss more than the equivalent of two weeks of class should consider withdrawing and taking the class in a future semester. Students who know that other commitments will make it impossible to attend at certain times (early mornings, nights, Fridays) should enroll on classes that do not meet at these times.

Typically, 120/121 instructors have said that students can miss no more than six classes (on a MWF schedule) or four classes (on a T/Th schedule). The language that instructors use MUST be included in a participation policy (since the department doesn't have an attendance policy); it typically looks something like this:

As you'll see in the attached schedule, we'll do things that require you to be here, present in mind and body, every day. As you've also seen, your participation grade comprises a substantial portion of your final course grade. If you're not here, you won't earn this full credit; your grade in the course will thus decline.
Of course, attendance is part of participation - you have to be here to participate. Sometimes, I understand that life interferes with one's best intentions. Therefore, you may have three absences from this class during the term. However, these should not take place on days when reader review is scheduled (or the penalty for the absence is significantly more serious - more on this below). If you miss four or five classes, your participation grade will drop by one full letter (from an A to a B, and so on) for each class that you miss. After five absences, you will be unable to pass the class. 

Plagiarism
The Writing Program's plagiarism policy is based on a policy developed by the Council of Writing Program Administrators (WPA), a national body representing writing programs and writing instructors. That policy very clearly delineates between plagiarism, intentional, deliberate attempts to pass off another's words or ideas as one's own, and misuse of sources, occasions when a writer does not properly cite a source, misuses a quotation, includes too much of an original source in a summary or paraphrase, or other unintentional violation of academic protocol. The Writing Program's recommended plagiarism policy reflects these definitions and the WPA Statement on Plagiarism:

Plagiarism occurs when a writer deliberately passes off another's words or ideas without acknowledging their source. For example, turning another's work as your own is plagiarism. If you plagiarize in this class, you will likely fail the assignment on which you are working and your case may be passed to the university for additional disciplinary action. Because of the design and nature of this course, it will take as much (or more) work for you to plagiarize in it than it will to actually complete the work of the class.

Plagiarism is different from misuse of sources, occasions when a writer does not properly cite a source, misuses quotations, includes too much of an original source in a paraphrase or summary, or commits similar unintentional violations of academic protocol. If you misuse sources, we will work together on appropriately incorporating and/or citing the sources. Note that some audiences/instructors will consider misuse of sources to be plagiarism; for this reason, it is extreme important for you to identify the conventions associated with source use and citations in any class (or writing situation).

Public nature of writing
If you plan on using examples of student writing for any purpose during your class it's a good idea to let students know that up front. That way, students can let you know if they don't want you to share their work, and they can know that this class is a public forum. Here's an example of one such statement:

Since academic writing is writing directed toward an audience, you should consider the writing that you do in this course "public," that is, writing that others will read. For example, I like to use stellar examples of student writing in class. I will use your writing ONLY to demonstrate fantastic examples of what we’re doing, however. If there is writing that you would rather be of a less public nature, you can note it on the paper and/or send me an e-mail.

Respect
It's a good idea to let students know that as a class community, they're going to be hearing a lot about one another's ideas, beliefs, and values and will need to respect same. A statement to this extent also helps to lay the groundwork for this atmosphere.

Tentative Schedule
You should also include a schedule for the term. If you're not comfortable doing a full schedule, you can write schedules for each assignment -- but you'll need to make sure that students have them on time for them to be useful. You can include more in your schedule, but you'll at least need to have the day and any reading/writing due. (You might also include class activities, themes for discussion, or other details of class.)