Moorpark: Academic Classroom and Campus Policies

Attendance, Participation and Drop Policies

Due to the workshop nature of the class, your active participation each week is essential to the good health of your grade. Excessive lateness will also affect your final grade. No active participation for two weeks constitutes non-participation. Simply viewing work in modules is not considered active participation. Students will also be evaluated on weekly class performance in discussion forums and workshops. It naturally follows that your classroom participation hinges on the fact that you have all reading and writing assignments completed by the due date. Paper workshops are mandatory. Missed paper workshops will reduce the final paper grade by one point for each missed workshop.

Moorpark College policy states that students may be dropped from class when they have exceeded 9% absence rate. For our class, that is seven hours. In most cases I adhere to this policy. Each week is counted as four hours. Students are not required to email notification of any single absence. Please do not email images of accidents or medical issues. However, if attendance or participation challenges arise, contact me so we can devise a plan for completing requirements. My drop policy is not intended to be punitive; rather, in most cases, missing too many classes (weeks) usually means the student.s grade will be significantly lowered because of non-participation. Clear communication and negotiating a plan for completion are key to success.

Technology and Privacy Issues

No individual recordings of class or office Zoom sessions are permitted. Zoom sessions will be recorded by the instructor and posted after the meeting. Office hours are private conferences with an individual or a small group and will not be recorded. Individuals who need assistance with note taking should register with ACCESS then conference with the instructor so arrangements can be made. Phones should not be used to access class web sites. I do not accept papers or answer questions through campus email because they can get lost in the volume of daily email. FAQ forums are set up in canvas and Mahara for questions pertaining to assignments. Personal messages should be sent through the Canvas or mahara system.

Phones should not be used to access class web sites. I do not accept papers or answer questions through email. Please use the FAQ forum set up for the class for questions pertaining to assignments. Personal messages should be sent through the Canvas or mahara system. Students who do not have reliable, personal access to a computer or adequate bandwidth should review campus technology requirements and assistance. NEED LINK TO ASSISTANCE

Grading Policy

You cannot pass the course unless you complete all the course requirements: readings, timed writing, discussions, journals, and all papers and projects in good faith. Most of the class is competency based. Paper collections, however, receive a grade and may be revised in most cases. All work must be submitted on time for evaluation. Late work will be penalized and may be refused. All submitted work should also be saved on reliable backup devices or a cloud server until the end of the semester. Do not email papers unless invited to do so.

Paper Collections: Must be published and readable on Mahara: The Writing Study. Refer to class syllabus for specific paper collection requirements.
Timed essays must be written by the date specified unless otherwise arranged in advance.
Journal: Summaries and Responses of all assigned readings for discussion. Refer to syllabus for more detail.
Participation/group presentations: may include presentation of final project where applicable.
Mid-term and final will consist of timed essays.

Grades for Moorpark will be calculated as follows:

      100-90.....A          69 - 60.........D
      89-80......B          59 and below..Fail
      79-70......C

Please refer to your syllabus for the numerical value of assignments.

Plagiarism

"Plagiarism is the act of using another person's ideas or expressions in your writing without acknowledging the source. The word comes from the Latin word plagiarius ("kidnapper")..." from the MLA Handbook, p.21. This is a serious academic offense. Do not kidnap or hold for ransom anyone else's words or ideas without giving credit where credit is due. Students may be required to submit papers to TurnItIn for evaluation.

Journals (including summary and responses)

The journals serve a variety of purposes, both as a writing journal and a reading log. Paper journal and online journals will be your places to respond to reading, writing and discussions inside and outside of class. You will be required to write a summary and response for assigned readings and digital texts. These S&Rs are posted to a discussion forum. You will often be asked to freewrite about a topic before composing the more formal discussion post which is submitted for the class to read.

In general, a personal composition book is used for taking notes, brainstorming, as a reading log for articles and the novel, some homework assignments, and class exercises. In addition to class work, a journal is a handy place to jot down ideas as they occur. Personal journals also help with keeping work for this class organized and accessible. Since many of the writing tasks will require brainstorming and drafts, the journal is a good place to jot down your questions as they occur and provides a safe place to write early ideas without fear of judgement. Personal journaling is a proven way to negotiate new ideas and, as such, is highly recommended. The"Journal grade" consists mainly of typed, formal summaries and responses of assigned texts and five Progress Reports.

Library and Writing Center

NEED LINKs TO SOURCES

ACCESS

Students with a disability, whether physical, learning, or psychological, who believe they will need accommodations in this class, are encouraged to contact ACCESS as soon as possible so accommodations can be set up in a timely fashion. Accommodations are based on eligibility and can only be provided if you have submitted a verification from ACCESS in the form of a Confidential Memo.

Smoking

Since we will not be on campus, the no-nicotine policy does not affect us.

The Moorpark College Smoking Policy states: "Moorpark College is 100% TOBACCO FREE. No smoking, vaping, chewing. No tobacco is permitted on or in buildings, campus grounds or parking lots at all times. Violators shall be subject to appropriate disciplinary action. AP 6800, BP 6810, AB 846."

Last Revised Aug 2018.