ENGL 313: Grammar of Current English

Course Home Page	Blackboard	Instructor's E-mail
Introduction	Resources	Objectives
Supplies	Strategies	Assignments
Grades	Course Mechanics	Schedule

Introduction

If you think semicolons, subordinate clauses, and subject complements are exciting, you are in the right place. If you have always found such things dull or even nightmarish, you also are in the right place. The truth, as I hope you will come to see over the next several weeks, is that English grammar is fascinating—and important. Like the basic physical items that make up spectacular architecture, grammar is the building material for our language, and language is at the heart of practically every human endeavor. You may never have realized it, but when you were making friends, buying a car, and falling in love, grammar was right there with you. Indeed, understanding grammar can help you to understand—and improve—your world.

In this course, we will look behind the spectacular architecture that is our language and seek to understand the basic principles that keep all those beams and bolts in place. At the same time, we will use our grammatical knowledge to increase our understanding of rhetoric.

[top of page]

Objectives

Language: Above all, I hope you will learn to recognize and appreciate the structure of English, seeing how individual sounds and words function together to create meaning in sentences.

Ideas: We will look, too, at the ramifications for the ideas expressed through various grammatical concepts. For example, we will study the rhetorical effects of appositives, vocatives, and the passive voice.

Research: One of the most valuable skills you will learn in college is the ability to gather detailed, reliable information so that you can make informed decisions. In this course, you will become familiar with some standard reference works on the English language and practice finding, evaluating, and incorporating sources.

Communication: Knowledge confined to a single person's brain has limited use. It is through sharing this knowledge that humans make progress in medicine, science, politics, and every other human endeavor. In this course, you will have the opportunity to stretch and to improve your communication skills as you explore the basic components of language. At the same time, you will begin to master the rules that underlie Standard English and thus polish your usage.

[top of page]

Supplies

Understanding English Grammar, 7th edition, by Martha Kolln and Robert Funk.
A hardback college dictionary, such as the American Heritage Dictionary.

The Kolln and Funk text, as well as the American Heritage Dictionary, can be obtained from Friday Center Books & Gifts e at the Friday Center either by ordering online or by printing and mailing the book order form.

[top of page]

Resources

For further assistance learning the material and writing your essays, you may want to investigate some of the resources identified in the list below and on the various individual lessons. In particular, I suggest you read the appropriate section of the Grammar Hardware Store, which features charts, definitions, and explanations designed to help you understand the various concepts we are covering. Except for this hardware store, however, all of the resources have been created by people other than me. Although I have tried to choose credible resources, you should not assume that everything you find is accurate. If you doubt something you see, please let me know, and I will try to clear up any confusion or correct any inaccuracies.

Allen, Geoffrey, and Carol Percy, eds. History of the English Language. 8 February 2003. University of Toronto. 8 November 2004.
The American Heritage College Dictionary
Baugh, Albert C., and Thomas Cable. A History of the English Language. 4th ed. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall, 1993.
Canada, Mark. The Grammar Hardware Store. 20 May 2001. 17 June 2002.
Canada, Mark. Be Your Best. 17 August 2001. 23 June 2003.
Cleary, Linda Miller, and Michael D. Linn. Linguistics for Teachers. New York: McGraw-Hill, 1993.
Crystal, David. The Cambridge Encyclopedia of the English Language. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1995.
Curzan, Anne, and Michael Adams. How English Works: A Linguistic Introduction. New York: Longman, 2006.
Dodds, Jack. The Ready Reference Handbook: Writing, Revising, Editing. 2nd ed. Boston: Allyn and Bacon, 2000.
Fromkin, Victoria. An Introduction to Language. 6th ed. Fort Worth: Harcourt Brace, 1998.
Hogg, Richard M., ed. The Cambridge History of the English Language. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1992-2001.
McArthur, Tom, ed. The Oxford Companion to the English Language. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1992.
Merriam-Webster. Merriam-Webster OnLine, 2002. 8 November 2004.
Millward, C.M. A Biography of the English Language. 2nd ed. Boston: Heinle, 1996.
Parkes, M.B. Pause and Effect: An Introduction to the History of Punctuation in the West. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1993.
Pyles, Thomas, and John Algeo. The Origins and Development of the English Language. 4th ed. Fort Worth: Harcourt Brace, 1993.
Quirk, Randolph, et al. A Comprehensive Grammar of the English Language. New York: Longman, 1985.
Strunk, William, Jr. The Elements of Style. Ithaca, NY: Priv. print. [Geneva, NY: Press of W.P. Humphrey], 1918. 17 June 2002.
Williams, Joseph. Style: Ten Lessons in Clarity and Grace. Glenview, IL: Scott, Foresman, 1981.

[top of page]

Course Components

If grammar is the subject of this course, then you and your classmates are the verbs. In this online course, just as you would in any of my traditional classes, you will be practicing active learning. In short, what you get out of this course depends on what you put into it.

Of course, I am here to help you get the most out of your abilities. Since we will not meet in a classroom, I will provide assistance largely through lessons, where you will find reading assignments, lesson objectives and terms, lists of resources, a discussion of material covered in the lesson, and exercises to help you review and apply the material. Furthermore, we will use our companion Blackboard site to interact with one another through announcements, online discussions, and optional quizzes. Finally, I will respond to your work by sending you progress reports featuring your scores and my comments on your work. Let’s take a closer look at each of these course components.

Lessons: At the beginning of each week, look at the lesson page for the week. Read the objectives and terms carefully. Next, read the textbook chapter listed in the "Assignments" section and do the exercises there. Jot notes in your book when you come across terms or concepts mentioned in the lesson plan. After you have finished reading the chapter, read the discussion section in the lesson plan, again noting important terms and concepts. Try your hand at the exercises at the bottom of the lesson. Finally, read the objectives and terms again. If you have met those objectives and learned those terms, you are ready to move on to the next lesson. If not, review the material and share your questions or concerns with me by calling me or dropping me an e-mail message.

Blackboard: Several times each week, you will want click on the “Blackboard” link at the top of any course page and log onto this companion site for our course. Please take a moment to read any recent announcements I have posted there. I encourage you to take the optional “Think Fast” quiz, which will help you check your understanding of the material we have covered thus far in the course. You also should visit our asynchronous discussion forum and read your classmates' “Think Again” essays, as well as my summaries. Feel free to join the discussion by posting your own observations and questions. Finally, I invite you to share your ideas and questions with me and your classmates via the chat feature on Blackboard. I will be available to moderate an optional online chat from 7 to 8 p.m. on most Wednesdays.

Progress Reports: I will respond to each of your essays by posting brief comments on our discussion forum. I also will send each of you periodic progress reports containing detailed comments on your work. I encourage you to read all of my comments carefully and to use them to improve your future work.

Finally, whenever you have a question about anything related to the course or English grammar, get in touch with me, either by calling me or by e-mailing me. If you send or leave a message on a weekday, I will usually respond within 24 hours.

[top of page]

Assignments

“Think Fast” Quizzes: Each week, you will be able to log on to our Blackboard site and take a quiz over the material we have covered thus far in the course. Although your scores on these optional quizzes will not be part of your total points in the course, I encourage you to use them to review the material and identify concepts that you need to review. (Due: Any time. Value: 0 points.)

“Think Again” Essays: Over the course of the semester, you will write three essays, one for each of the three units in the course. In each essay, you will apply what you have learned in that unit. In writing this essay, you should quote or a paraphrase the primary source you are analyzing, as well as at least one secondary source, such as one from the resources listed above. A prompt for each unit appears on the discussion forum on our Blackboard site, where you should post your essays. Like any academic essay, this project should contain abundant details, a logical organizational scheme, unified and coherent paragraphs, and clear sentences that are free from distracting lapses in grammar, spelling, punctuation, and mechanics. (Length: 250 words. Sources: 2. See Schedule for due dates. Value: 3 essays x 10 points each = 30 points.)

Unit 1 Exam: This oral exam will cover material from the first unit of the course. I will provide you with a link to an online language sample, such as a poem, a speech, or a chapter from a book. When you call me for your oral exam, I will ask you questions about morphemes and words in this language sample. You will schedule a time for your exam the first week of class. You can find more details about the exam and a practice exam on the Unit 1 Exam page. (Value: 10 points.)

Unit 2 Exam: This oral exam will cover material from the first and second units of the course. I will provide you with a link to an online language sample, such as a poem, a speech, or a chapter from a book. When you call me for your oral exam, I will ask you questions about morphemes, words, phrases, and sentences in this language sample. You will schedule a time for your exam the first week of class. You can find more details about the exam and a practice exam on the Unit 2 Exam page. (Value: 10 points.)

Final Exam: This cumulative oral exam will cover material from the first, second, and third units of the course. I will provide you with a link to an online language sample, such as a poem, a speech, or a chapter from a book. When you call me for your oral exam, I will ask you questions about morphemes, words, phrases, and sentences in this language sample. You will schedule a time for your exam the first week of class. You can find more details about the exam and a practice exam on the Final Exam page. (Value: 50 points.)

Please note that I generally do not accept late assignments. I strongly recommend that you plan to post your assignments a few days in advance of the deadline to preclude late assignments resulting from faulty technology or other problems.

[top of page]

Grades

When I evaluate your work, I will use the following criteria:

Content: All work should have an attractive, professional appearance and should satisfy all of the requirements of the assignment. The work should thoroughly and insightfully address its subject with accurate, credible, timely, and relevant information.
Clarity: Sentences should convey information clearly and directly. Essays should present paragraphs in a logical order, and each of these paragraphs generally should begin with a precise topic sentence, followed by well-organized sentences that support the topic sentence. The writer should use transitional words and phrases effectively to guide the reader through the information.
Style: Essays should engage the audience with lively, concise writing that is free of typographical errors, as well as lapses in tone, register, punctuation, mechanics, spelling, word choice, and grammar. Source material should be incorporated smoothly and accurately into paragraphs with the aid of attributive phrases, and both parenthetical citations and lists of works cited should conform to MLA style. Essays should begin with engaging introductions and include satisfying conclusions.
Integrity: Each project must be your own work. That is, except for properly cited quotations, every sentence and phrase must be in your own words. All interpretations, except for those properly cited, also must be your own. If you turn in someone else's work, use a source's exact words without placing these words in quotation marks, or use an interpretation you found in a source without giving credit to the source, you are guilty of plagiarism and may fail this course. You must be prepared to prove that you have done all your own work by showing me your sources and discussing the details of your project with me.

After evaluating your work, I will decide which of the letter grades below best matches your mastery of the material.

A (91-100 percent); A- (90 percent)

A student who earns an A has excelled in both skills and knowledge. In content, clarity, readability, and format, the student's work fully or almost fully meets my criteria. In short, the student has mastered the material and is likely to succeed in future challenges.

B+ (89 percent); B (81-88 percent); B- (80 percent)

A student who earns a B has demonstrated many of the same qualities shown by the student who earns an A, but is deficient in a few minor areas. The student has generally mastered the material and is likely to succeed in future challenges.

C+ (79 percent); C (71-78 percent); C- (70 percent)

A student who earns a C has demonstrated some of the same qualities shown by the student who earns an A or a B. Although the work is adequate, it suffers from several minor deficiencies. Nevertheless, the work suggests that the student is competent and is ready to take on future challenges, though he or she may need to shore up some of these deficiencies to succeed.

D+ (69 percent); D (61-68 percent); D- (60 percent)

A student who earns a D is deficient in at least one major area or many minor areas, but has demonstrated adequate knowledge and skills to merit a passing grade. The student who earns a D probably will struggle when confronting future challenges.

F (below 60 percent)

A student will earn an F for one of the following reasons:

The student's work contains a glaring example of plagiarism.
The student's work does not meet the requirements of the assignment, such as number of sources or deadline.
The student's work contains glaring deficiencies, indicating that the student is unprepared to meet future challenges.

For the purposes of calculating your final course grade, I then will assign the work a number of points corresponding to the appropriate letter grade. Let's take a look at how this system might work for a hypothetical student:

“Think Again” Essays: Let's say Jane submits one essay late and thus earns 0 points for it. Her next essay is clear and insightful, but it contains some inaccurate analysis, along with several careless typographical errors; she earns 6 points for it. Her final essay arrives on time, meets the requirements of the assignment, contains accurate and thorough analysis, conveys information clearly, and lacks distracting errors in readability; she earns 10 points for it. Thus, Jane earns 16 out of 30 points for her essays.
Unit 1 Exam: Jane has an adequate grasp of several concepts covered in the first unit, but she never gets around to reading one of the lessons and uses an inadequate paperback dictionary instead of a good hardback one when taking the first oral exam. She earns 6 out of 10 points.
Unit 2 Exam: Jane studies diligently for this exam, knows the material, and earns 10 out of 10 points on this second exam.
Final Exam: Jane continues studying regularly throughout the remainder of the semester, spends a lot of time and energy preparing for the final exam, and does well on this exam, earning 46 out of the possible 50 points.
Final Course Grade: Jane earns 78 out of 100 points and thus earns a C in the course. She wishes that she had turned in her first essay on time and spent more time checking and proofreading her second essay. She regrets not being better prepared for the first exam. Nevertheless, she takes responsibility for her own performance. She never even considers complaining to Dr. Canada or begging for extra credit. Instead, she thanks him for challenging her and maintaining high standards.

You are expected to adhere to the Honor Code in all of your work.

[top of page]

Course Mechanics

Blackboard

Some of your class components (announcements, discussion forums, quizzes, chat, and the class listserv) are accessed through a software package called Blackboard, and you will need to log into Blackboard using a unique identifier known as your UNC Onyen (Only Name You'll Ever Need) and Onyen password.

If you do not already have a UNC Onyen, go to the Onyen Web site and follow the instructions for creating an Onyen. If you have an Onyen but have forgotten it (or the password), you will find help on the Onyen Web site.

Use your Onyen to log into Blackboard, then click on the “ENGL 313 CCO” link. You will see navigation buttons on the left taking you to the quizzes, discussion forums, chat room, exam schedules, and more.

If you experience problems accessing Blackboard, this is what you should do:

If you do not already have a UNC Onyen, go to the Onyen Web site and follow the instructions for creating an Onyen.
If you have an Onyen but have forgotten it (or the password), go to the Onyen Web site.
If you have your Onyen but can't log in to Blackboard, contact Janice Durham at the Friday Center.
If you can log in to Blackboard but can't find this course listed, contact Janice Durham at the Friday Center.
If you can't locate a forum in Blackboard, contact the Instructional Designer at the Friday Center.
If you have technical problems while using Blackboard, contact Blackboard Help (use the Help button in Blackboard, or call 919-962-HELP).

Library Services

Students enrolled in Carolina Courses Online can access online library resources from the UNC Library System by linking to Library Services for Distance Education Students. This site includes information on using general online reference works as well as accessing e-reserves. If you are using an off-campus computer, you will need to enter your Onyen to access restricted online library resources. If you encounter difficulties, please report your problem by visiting this Web page for reporting a problem.

E-mail

All communication from your instructor will go to your UNC Onyen e-mail address (the one that appears when you post to the discussion forum). Off-campus users can access their UNC e-mail using Webmail. You can have your e-mail forwarded to a different e-mail address by clicking “Forward e-mail” at the Onyen Web site.

If you use a filter on your e-mail account, you are responsible for ensuring that it does not prevent you from receiving messages from me, the course listserv, or Friday Center staff. Hotmail users should be aware that Hotmail will block messages sent from within Blackboard because Blackboard uses “blind carbon copy” to protect privacy. We recommend that you use your UNC Onyen e-mail account rather than forwarding to Hotmail for this course.

It is extremely important for you to save copies of any work you send to your instructor via e-mail. If your instructor doesn't receive your work, you must have a copy of the e-mail with the attached file, indicating the date sent, to prove that you submitted the assignment on time. It is your responsibility to maintain copies of your sent e-mails, as there is no way to guarantee that any e-mail message will be delivered.

Please check your e-mail software to see how it manages sent and saved messages. Some software automatically deletes messages one month after they have been sent; others only save messages if they are filed in folders; others save messages received but not those sent. You may need to send yourself a copy of your e-mailed assignment at the same time you send it to your instructor, or you may need to print a copy of the e-mail message and any attachments to keep in your paper files. No matter how your system works, make sure you know how to save a copy of all work that you submit to your instructor and that you save the copy for several months beyond the end of the course.

Schedule

Our schedule appears below. To reach each lesson, click on the appropriate link. The lesson plans include reading and writing assignments, as well as other important information. Before each lesson begins, you should refer to the appropriate lesson plan and read the assigned chapter or chapters in the textbook.

It is vital that you check our Blackboard site frequently. The course moves swiftly, and announcements, including scheduling reminders and instructions for oral exams, will be posted there.

Unit 1: Words
Lesson 1	Foundations Post your introduction in Blackboard and schedule your exams.
Lesson 2	Morphemes
Lesson 3	Form Classes
Lesson 4	Structure Classes Your Unit 1 “Think Again” essay is due.
Unit 1 Exam
Unit 2: Basic Sentence Elements
Lesson 5	Syntax
Lesson 6	Verbs
Lesson 7	Nominals
Lesson 8	Transformations Your Unit 2 “Think Again” essay is due.
Unit 2 Exam
Unit 3: Modification and Coordination
Lesson 9	Adverbials
Lesson 10	Adjectivals
Lesson 11	Sentence Modifiers
Lesson 12	Coordination Your Unit 3 “Think Again” essay is due.
Review	Prepare for the final exam.
Final Exam
Please complete the brief online course evaluation. We welcome your comments and want to know if the course met your needs and expectations.

[top of page]

ENGL 313: Grammar of Current English

Introduction

Objectives

Supplies

Resources

Course Components

Assignments

Grades

A (91-100 percent); A- (90 percent)

B+ (89 percent); B (81-88 percent); B- (80 percent)

C+ (79 percent); C (71-78 percent); C- (70 percent)

D+ (69 percent); D (61-68 percent); D- (60 percent)

F (below 60 percent)

Course Mechanics

Blackboard

Library Services

E-mail

Other Questions

Schedule

Lesson 1