Required Materials
Required

• At least two pre-formatted (IBM) 3½" high-density computer disks or one USB ("key") drive, preferred.

Recommended

• College-level dictionary
• Handbook/style guide 

Course Description
English 365 is a technical writing workshop with most of the time devoted to in-class, hands-on work on computers, using an array of word-processing, desktop publishing, and ancillary software. I will give some class time over to a presentation and discussion of the fundamentals of technical writing, the online manual, and required course projects; however, the concentration will be on workshop approaches. In class I will more often than not serve as a facilitator or consultant than as a conventional lectuerer.

The goal of this course is to prepare students for future technical writing situations with an emphasis on designing and producing practical documents of a professional quality, two of which you will write collaboratively. In conjunction with these aims, you will prepare a course portfolio that will include most of the class projects plus a cover page, a table of contents, and an introduction.

UCS Account
If you do not yet have a UCS account, you must get one immediately by making a request through the Help Desk in Stephens Hall (the main computer facility).  Guidelines for setting up your account are available online at http://helpdesk.louisiana.edu.

Course Policies and Requirements

Attendance
Excessive absences are any absences above 10% of the total number of class meetings. Except for University-sanctioned activities, I make no distinction between "excused" and "unexcused" absences. University policy requires that instructors keep an accurate attendance record for each class. Accordingly, I will take the roll at the start of each class meeting. If you arrive late, you are responsible for seeing to it that I do not credit you with an absence.

Note: Because of the workshop format of English 365, it is very important that you come to class on time and on a regular basis. The informal nature of the course does not mean that attendance is optional. Be warned that excessive absences can and will adversely affect your final course grade. 

E-mail
Be sure to check your e-mail on a regular basis, at the very least once every two days. Much of our class communication, back and forth, from you to me and vice versa, uses e-mail. You will also need to contact other students in class using the same method, especially when you work in groups on collaborative projects.

When you send e-mail, be careful not to offend. Keep your tone neutral and respectful. Read over and think carefully about what you have written before you send it.

Assignments
At scheduled check points throughout the semester you must submit work for evaluation and grading. Most of this work will be your initial drafts of documents that, after revision, will make up your course portfolio. You will submit that portfolio, described below, and a final examination at the end of the semester. I will accept neither the portfolio nor the final examination after the last day of class. Nor will I exempt anyone from preparing the final examination.

General rules for all work submitted are as follows: 

• All required work must be completed.
• Incomplete portfolios and final examinations will automatically earn a grade of F.
• Plagiarism will result in an automatic grade of F. It may also result in further disciplinary action.
• All written submissions must meet nominal standards with regard to the mechanics of writing.  Slipshod writing will result in a much lower grade than its content may otherwise warrant.
• Documents submitted at checkpoints must be word-processed in both "manuscript" (ms.) and "camera ready" (c-r) form (unless otherwise indicated) and must be stapled together with a cover sheet (title page). See Appendix I of the online manual and this linked Adobe PDF file, which you can download and print out.
• All c-r (camera ready) work should be of professional caliber and aesthetically enhanced.

Final Portfolio
The final portfolio will contain the following: 

• A cover page
• A table of contents and pagination of some kind throughout the portfolio
• An Introduction in which you reflect and evaluate your writing and the course assignments for the semester.
• All of the following written work for the semester in finalized form
• Letter of Application and Résumé
• Instructions
• Process Analysis
• Table and Chart
• Proposal
• Progress Report
• Collaborative Brochure
• Collaborative Critical Report

In addition, before or on the last day of class, you must submit all your checkpoint (first draft) documents with (but not in) your portfolio. You will place these in a manila envelope, which, with your name on the outside, should be clasped shut but not sealed. Forewarned is forearmed: I will not grade your portfolio without the graded checkpoints.

To fare well in this course, your final portfolio must be attractive, appropriate, and well-written.  Keep in mind that the presentational quality of your portfolio is almost as important as the quality of its content. For English 365, the medium is at least part of the message. If you turn in sloppy work, it will argue that you did not care enough to do your best.

Final Examination
Your final examination is a take-home exam, and it is already available online. You can begin it at any point in the semester. You may submit it to me at any time up to the last class meeting, which is its final due date. The final exam is submitted separately from your portfolio, however.

Grading
Your grade in this course will be based on a total point value of 1000. Dividing your final point total by 10 will generate your final average that I will judge on a 10-point scale (90-100% =A; 80-89%=B and so on). The breakdown of the total point value is as follows: 
 

Important Advice
You should look at what I require for each project and begin thinking about what you might do just as soon as you can. Take notes on each one so that you will be ready to get my approval for your project in a timely fashion. Feel free to talk to me about your ideas at any time, no matter how far in advance of the relevant checkpoint.

Remember that English 365 is a multi-tasking course that will require you to have more than one work in progress throughout the entire term, including your final examination, which you should make a work in progress from day one.

Emergency Evacuation Procedures
A map of this floor is posted near the elevator marking the evacuation route and the Designated Rescue Area.  The DRA is an area where emergency service personnel will go first to look for individuals who need assistance in exiting the building.  Students who may need assistance should identify themselves to the teaching faculty.