Let's do this a different way

Because Blackboard has been unreliable and unstable, I have moved all the course materials to the class web page and the course blog home page. Right-click on these links to add them directly to your Favorites or Bookmarks. See the links to the far right for frequently-used pages (to the assignments, the archives, and the discussions). Do not access this course through Blackboard. I have stopped updating materials there.

I have created a grading rubric for this Short Take on Bartering. If you have already submitted your paragraph, you can still make changes and revisions right up to the deadline and afterwards too. Just open your paragraph to edit it in the Zine and paste in your revised version, replacing your earlier version. If you have any questions about elements of the rubric, ask them in this special area in the the discussions

If you're a little behind, don't worry. You will not be penalized for Blackboard's technical problems. I'll work with you to get caught up and to get all your work submitted properly. There's a lot of help in the discussion groups -- everyone has been wonderfully generous with advice and encouragement! If you need one-on-one help, contact me by email and we will arrange an appointment by phone or on campus.

You're published!

The first paragraphs have been published in the Zine. Hooray!

Read (and listen to) the ones from your section and maybe some of the others too. Read my comments about this assignment, and then comment in the discussion group about these -- your first "publications" in this class.

Did you know that I list all the files (well, almost all the files) for this in the archives? If you can't find something, check the archives. Most likely it's listed there. If you can't find something, ask me!

Don't forget to check this assignment off your task list in Blackboard.

Writing as problem-solving

Please check your student email for a message from me that contains alternative access to all of the materials for this class (except for the gradebook). I'm prepared for technology tribulations, and you can be too. It's much less stressful if you have a backup plan, believe me!

This class presents you with a series of writing problems, and the only way to solve them is by writing. Listening to someone lecturing or talking about writing or even reading the best books about writing might help you solve these writing problems, so that's why I provide fairly detailed assignment documents and why you have a handbook. But your own efforts at writing teach most effectively. Start the assignments early so you can identify the problem and have enough time to solve it.

The note-taking assignment presented two problems. Here's some follow-up information about the problems presented in that assignment and some examples of how various students tried to solve them. Look at the paragraph you submitted (you saved it, didn't you?) Did you recognize the organizational problem? How did you solve it?

And away we go!

When you submit an exercise using a form that asks for your eGCC username, I can respond with comments easily. But those comments go back to your GCC student email account. You wouldn't want to miss out on advice from me or an opportunity to correct something, right?

So check your student email frequently or forward it to an account you do read regularly. Instructions are in the Orientation activities.

GCC has a pretty ferocious spam filter, and I don't want to miss questions from you. Please write to me from your student email account or ask your questions in the discussion group.

The discussions are going great guns! This is my favorite part of this course, but I get a little cranky when people write less than full, well-developed paragraphs. If you haven't got 100 words or more to write on a topic, wait until you do. And don't forget to read what everyone else has written. Our goal is a conversation. Reading is as important as writing.

Welcome to my blog for English 101!

Whether you are in a section that meets online or on ground, think of this as the front door to our class -- except this door is always open and there is always something interesting to explore. For the first week or two of the semester, I suggest you peek in at least once each day. After that, you'll have a sense of where things are, how often things change, and how to find your way around quickly and efficiently.

To get started with this course in Blackboard, click on the red button to the left that says "Getting Started." If you began the orientation activities outside of Blackboard, now you can pick up at Step 3.

So away we go. It's going to be a great semester!