American literature essay - Strictly Writing

o Objectives:
 Identify and explicate the use of symbols, imagery and language in a short story.
 Compare and contrast two main characters within Hawthorne’s short stories.
 Develop a thesis and a basic outline for a research paper.
 Demonstrate cumulative knowledge of course concepts through a midterm exam.
o Reading preparation:
o Hawthorne’s Twice-Told Tales URL
 Read “The Minister’s Black Veil”
o Hawthorne’s Little Masterpieces URL
 Read “The Birthmark”
o Research Topic Proposal – Instructions Page
o Research Paper – Instructions (due at the end of week 7) Page
o View the online learning resources:
o Hawthorne, Nathaniel – Bloom’s Literature URL
o Writing about Language, Symbols, and Imagery – Bloom’s Literature URL
o Guidelines for Reading and Analyzing Literature URL
o Thesis Examples URL
o Complete the activities:
o Nathaniel Hawthorne Discussion Forum Open Forum1 unread post
o Midterm Exam Quiz
o Research Topic Proposal Turnitin Assignment 2
Discussion Forum Rubric
Consistent participation in discussion forums is an important factor in the successful completion of this course. Please keep the following guidelines in mind to help you develop and formulate engaged, thought-provoking responses in your weekly discussions.
General Guidelines
• Organize your thoughts prior to composing your responses, and proofread your responses prior to submission.
• Use polite, professional language in all posts.
• Contribute meaningful, relevant, substantive replies to peers. Your professor can deduct points if replies to peers supply only the following types of content: reflection (simply repeating or rewording what someone else has already said); deflection (asking mundane or trivial questions of others rather than supplying your own thoughts or ideas); affirmation and/or adulation (agreeing with someone, or offering praise or encouragement alone, while making no clear effort to meaningfully further the academic discussion with ideas or opinions of your own). All substantive replies count, whether it be replies to several different classmates, or multiple replies (as part of an ongoing conversation) within a single discussion thread.
• Use proper MLA-style formatting and citations if quoting/paraphrasing ideas or information from other sources. Proper sources include the literature itself, online learning resources provided to you in class, and relevant sources from GMC Library; please avoid the use of any and all other outside sources in discussion forums (unless directed otherwise by your professor). Plagiarism or any other form of academic dishonesty, on any post, will result in no credit for the forum assignment, as well as potential referral to the school’s Honor Council. For more information on MLA style, please visit the “How-To Guide: MLA Formatting and Citations” page linked in class.
Grading Rubric Guidelines
• Timeliness assesses the timeliness of your first post (main response) to the discussion forum prompt. To earn full credit, you must post your response to the prompt on or before the first-post due date for each forum:
o The Discussion Forum first-post due date is typically Wednesday, by 11:55 p.m. EST. This is the due date for your FIRST post (your main response), not all posts. The first post replying to forum instructions can be submitted late, but receives a points penalty after Wednesday (see grading rubric below).
o Some course weeks feature two discussion forum activities; in those weeks, the first-post due date for the second (lower) forum activity (entitled ‘Discussion Forum #2’) is typically Friday night by 11:55 pm EST.
o All discussion forum posts (main responses, and replies to peers) for all weekly discussion forum activities must be posted by Sunday night at 11:55 p.m. each week. No posts made after that weekly deadline will receive credit.
o The specific due dates for your first posts in the discussion forums can be found on the course calendar, course schedule, the News and Announcement forums, or in the actual discussion forum post directions themselves. If you have any questions, contact your instructor at the appropriate email address found in the syllabus.
• Engagement assesses the number of days you were active in each of the weekly discussion forums. To earn full credit, you must contribute to EACH weekly discussion forum over the course of at least two or more days (consecutive, or non-consecutive) during an active course week.
• Interaction assesses the quality and quantity of your replies to peers. To earn full credit, you must supply at least two meaningful, relevant, substantive replies to peers in addition to the main post responding directly to prompt instructions (3 or more posts total).
• Content measures your ability to effectively address content requirements for your main response. To earn full credit, your main response must be at least 150 words or more, and the content of your first post needs to accurately and completely address all stated content requirements.
• Mechanics, Tone, and Style measures your ability to communicate effectively and professionally. To earn full credit your contributions must be written in a polite, professional manner and avoid major or pervasive grammatical, spelling, or punctuation errors. In addition, any necessary MLA documentation (quotations, in-text citations, works cited) should be used effectively.

Timeliness No participation Main response posted after stated first-post deadline N/A – no points are available for this criterion Main response posted on or before stated first-post deadline
Engagement No participation Posted on one day during active course week N/A- no points are available for this criterion Posted on two or more separate days during active course week
Interaction No participation, or no substantive replies to peers One substantive reply to peer N/A- no points are available for this criterion Two or more substantive replies to peers (in addition to main response)
Content No participation Main response content is not substantive or relevant, or fails to meet/exceed 150 words in length Main response content is substantive, but fails to specifically or correctly address some aspect of content instructions. Main response content is substantive, relevant, organized, and meets or exceeds 150 words in length
Mechanics, Tone, and Style No participation Posts contain major or frequent errors in tone, grammar/ mechanics, or MLA-style documentation Posts contain minor or infrequent errors in tone, grammar/mechanics, or MLA-style documentation Posts are written in a polite, professional tone and are essentially free of errors in grammar/mechanics. Any necessary documentation is proficient in MLA style.

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