Course Policies

 

CCNY’s Statement on Community Standards

https://www.ccny.cuny.edu/studentaffairs/community-standards

Late Policy on Major Assignments: Assignments are due on stated dates by midnight.  I will still accept your paper and only 10% will be deducted from your grade as long as you submit it within 1 week of the due date. If you miss this deadline you will be deducted 20%, during the second and final week after submission. No papers will be accepted after 2 weeks. This policy applies regardless of you being absent or not, so you should still attend class even if you have not completed an assignment! And, again, if there are extenuating circumstances, please contact me immediately.

Note: No late policy on homework assignments.

Contacting Your Instructor

I encourage you to contact me online and if necessary, schedule an in-person meeting (I am not always on campus, but will return on Tuesdays at 1PM for an appointment). You may contact me via email with questions. I will try to respond within 24 hours of receiving your email, but not more than 72 hours.

 

CLASSROOM RULES

 

1. Attendance: It is MANDATORY to attend all sessions. You are allowed 4 absences for any reason, but you must email me to inform me of your absence. If you miss 5 classes your final grade will be deducted a half point. If you miss 6 classes, your grade will be deducted a full point. If you miss 7 or more classes, you run the risk of failing the course. Absences are not accepted for the online portion of the class since you are given 3 days to access the class. The only exception to this rule is an emergency which will require a formal excuse such as a doctor’s note.

 

2. Punctuality: All students are expected to be on time and seated in the room when the class starts. Actually, it is better to be in time than on time. Give yourself five minutes to relax and socialize with your classmates and the professor before the class starts. In addition, 3 late arrivals equal one absence. Arriving to class more than 30 minutes late, leaving more than 30 minutes early, or leaving the classroom for a total of 30 minutes or more during a given session will result in a marked absence. If you foresee difficulty in arriving on time (for ANY reason), see me about withdrawing from class. If you are absent, you are still required to submit an assignment on time.

 

3. Early Departures: Any students leaving the class without permission is absent for the day. Stay for the whole class unless you have notified the instructor earlier, or in case of an emergency.

 

4. Participation: Class participation is MANDATORY, and necessary for your own learning. It includes writing in class, working in pairs and groups, reviewing peers’ papers, speaking up in class discussions, asking interesting questions. To participate:

• Presence: You should be present physically in all classes for the whole session and arrive and leave on time. “Showing up is eighty percent of life,” said Woody Allen. I agree with him because you learn a lot from just being present and listening in the class.
• Mindfulness and Engagement: You should be present mindfully. That means you want to be awake, attentive, and responsive. Follow the lectures, be engaged in class activities such as writings, readings, discussions, cooperate in group works and be a team player by being both a leader and a follower. Ask and answer questions, and speak up in class. Come to class equipped with a pen, notebook, and the course texts. My classroom is a forum for the free exchange of ideas. Therefore, students are encouraged to challenge one another’s ideas with respect.

 

5. Cellphones and Electronic Devices: All cell phones must be off or silent. If you are in the midst of a potential family emergency (such as illness of a child or other loved ones), you may ask the professor at the beginning of a particular class to adapt the cell phone policy and make an exception that day. However, no student is ever to answer a cell phone or leave the classroom without explicit permission. You are allowed to use laptops or tablets for classroom purposes such as taking notes, reading the course texts, or research.

 

6. Avoiding Disruption: Know that disrespectful or childish behavior will not be tolerated. Students demonstrating consistent disruptive behavior will be dropped from class. Remember that your instructor has the right to take classroom behavior into consideration when determining final grades and, if necessary, refer students to the Dean of Students for disciplinary action.

• Avoid side-talks and personal conversations during class. We can discuss personal matters outside class.
• Avoid doing another class work, reading newspapers or magazines, or attending online spaces: facebooking, chatting, shopping, texting, etc .
• Avoid boredom: falling asleep, placing heads on desks, leaning on the wall, looking at the clock, or cellphones. What is worse is that boredom is contagious. Sit up, be alert and mindful during the class.
• Avoid setting a “dining table” in the class. Have a quick snack, non-aromatic and non-noisy. Drinking is permitted (warm or cold) and non-alcoholic.
• Avoid bringing visitors and children in class at any time.
• Avoid packing up and preparing to leave before the instructor has dismissed the class.

 

ONLINE PORTION OF THE CLASS

• Our class is an asynchronous hybrid class, so when we are out of the classroom, we can post at any time up until the due date. For the month of September, we will meet at the regular class time on Tuesday and Thursday for the first two weeks. Beginning the month of October, we will meet once a week in class on Tuesdays and classes on Thursday will meet online. What this means is that the due dates on your assignments are important. Failure to submit online assignments on time will be considered as an absence. Absences from the online classes can affect your grade because you are given 3 days to access and complete the assignments for that class. Online assignments are due by 4pm on the Saturday following the online class, however, discussions may require initial posts by 12pm on Saturday to allow for responses before the deadline. There are no late submissions for online assignments. The online discussion forum will also be an essential part of this face to face class as discussion from the classroom will continue on the discussion board. There will be weekly discussions and posts that are due online as well as the discussions that we have in the classroom. Students are encouraged to engage and challenge each other’s ideas with respect.
• I will generally log in Sunday through Thursday and check the Q&A forum (Discussion board) for questions about the class as well as interact with the participants in the ongoing discussion. Questions that are not relevant to the rest of the class can be directed at me through email. When you send an email please make sure to include the class information in the subject line as Writing for Engineering Hybrid.

 

• Note: Your email contact address is the email address you use for Blackboard. Be sure to check your email at your Blackboard address and Notifications in Bb every day to avoid missing important communications.

 

 

Resources for Student Writers:

 

The Writing Center

The CCNY Writing Center provides a supportive learning environment where students can have one-on-one tutoring sessions with experienced writing consultants. The Writing Center is located on the third floor of the North Academic Center (NAC). Students can schedule and appointment either by going to the Center in person, or by calling (212) 650-8104. This is a free resource available to all students and recommended for all writing assigned in this class. The Center also has a computer lab open to students where students can use computers and printers during operating hours (up to 15 pages a day). For more information on hours, location and services, please visit the official website of the CCNY Writing Center: http://www.ccny.cuny.edu/writing/

 

Free Access to Microsoft Word: https://citymail.ccny.cuny.edu/pdf/About-Office-365.pdf

 

Free Access to The New York Times: https://myaccount.nytimes.com/verification/edupass

 

Computer Labs: Several computer labs are available to students at CCNY. For a full list of these labs, go to http://www.ccny.cuny.edu/it/hours.cfm

 

 

 

Student Support Services:

 

Gateway Advising Center, NAC 1/220

http://www.ccny.cuny.edu/gateway/

Students without a declared major can receive academic advising, especially if you have questions about your course of study, core requirements, etc.

 

AccessAbility Center Tutoring Services, NAC 1/218

http://www.ccny.cuny.edu/accessability/

Provides one-on-one tutoring and workshops to all registered students with learning or physical disabilities.

 

SEEK Peer Academic Learning Center, NAC 4/224

Phone: 212-650-5786; email: seekpals@ccny.cuny.edu

Offers counseling and peer tutoring for students in need of academic and financial support who have registered for the SEEK Program.

 

Special Needs and Accommodations

For a complete list of Student Support Services please check the college website at http//www.ccny.cuny.edu/sssp