ENGL 1613 English I Syllabus 040 Spring 2026

Credit Hours 3.00 Lecture Hours 3 Clinical/Lab Hours 0
Type of Credit
CIP Code
23.1301
Course Meeting Time

Tuesday/Thursday 11:00 a.m.-12:15 p.m 

D330

Course Description

The student will master the writing process, including strategies for invention, organization, revision, and editing. The student will develop critical skills in reading, thinking and writing. Writing assignments will emphasize analysis and argument and the student will master research writing and documentation. All formal essays will require research. AAS: Communications elective. IAI: C1 900.

Prerequisites

Appropriate assessment score or ENGL 1422 with a grade of C or better - Must be taken either prior to or at the same time as this course.

Course Alignment

IAI Number
C1-900
IAI Title
Writing Course Sequence 1
General Education Outcomes

General Education Outcomes are the knowledge, skills, abilities, attitudes, and behaviors that students are expected to develop as a result of their overall experiences with any aspect of the college, including courses, programs, and student services, both inside and outside of the classroom. The General Education Outcomes specifically learned in this course are:

  1. Communication
  2. Critical Thinking
  3. Responsibility
Explanation of Course Alignment

“English I was designed to meet specific student needs either individually or within a program and is designed to transfer to other colleges and universities. KCC participates in the Illinois Articulation Initiative (IAI), a statewide transfer agreement for general education courses. All colleges and universities participating in the IAI agree to accept a collective “package” of IAI general education courses; transfer of courses separately is not guaranteed. For more information about IAI and the transferability of courses to specific four-year institutions, go to www.itransfer.org (Links to an external site.) and MyCreditsTransfer/Transferology.

Faculty Contact Information

Faculty Name
Dana Corlett Bryant
Faculty Email
Faculty Phone
815-802-8728
Faculty Office Number
L334
Faculty Student Support Hours

Monday/Wednesday 11:00 a.m.-12:30 p.m. 

Faculty Information

Dana Corlett Bryant 

dcorlett-bryant@kcc.edu

Course Information

Course Outcomes

At the end of this course, students will be able to:

  1. Use invention, drafting, revising, and editing strategies to write academic papers
  2. Write claims that are appropriate for assignment requirements
  3. Effectively organize paragraphs to suit the rhetorical situation
  4. Support claims and generalizations with adequate and relevant details, examples, explanation, and evidence
  5. Analyze and evaluate the use of rhetorical appeals in a variety of nonfiction texts
  6. Apply the principles of rhetoric in student writing assignments
  7. Correctly integrate and document outside sources through signal phrases, parenthetical citations, and a works cited page
  8. Apply self- and peer- review strategies for revision and improvement
  9. Create and share a multimodal project
  10. Utilize standard grammar, spelling, and mechanics for clarity, tone, and style
Topical Outline
  1. Rhetoric: Style, strategies, devices, tools, and appeals; relationship to audience
  2. Research: Credibility, integration, citation and documentation, research as inquiry, types of sources, role of research librarian
  3. Composition: Focus, coherence, development, grammar, spelling, and punctuation, introductions, body paragraphs, and conclusions
  4. Reading: Engagement with texts: annotation, outlining, vocabulary; critical analysis of texts including non-fiction, academic writing
  5. Criticality: Intellectual empathy, originality in thought, context of social and cultural contexts, diverse viewpoints
  6. Multimodality: Integration of visual, textual, and oral elements; methods of engaging audience; rhetorical awareness
Textbook/s and Course Materials

No textbooks required. 

Methods of Evaluation

Evaluation

Assignment 
Rhetorical Analysis20%
Annotated Bibliography20%
  
Multimodal Presentation15%
Academic Argument25%
Homework/Online work/In-class work20%
 100%
PercentLetter 
90-100%AOutstanding mastery of course material
80-89%BAbove average mastery of course material
70-79%CAverage and acceptable mastery of course material
60-69%DMinimal mastery of course material
Less than 60%FDoes not demonstrate mastery of material

Rounding of grades will be determined by attendance and in-class participation.

Common Course Assignments

Course Writing Assignments for English I: ENGL 1613

Students will complete, at minimum, 3 major writing assignments and a multimodal project. This will help hone skills of observing, reflecting, making and supporting claims, and finding research for evidence/support. Source material should not overwhelm the student’s own voice.

  • Rhetorical Analysis: 2-4 sources, 4+ pages
  • Argument: 4-6 sources, 6+ pages
  • Synthesis-based Annotated Bibliography: 6-8 sources, 5+ pages
  • A multimodal project

Assignments may be given in any order.

Academic Division

Liberal Arts & Sciences

Dean, Jennifer Huggins; 815-802-8484; R310; jhuggins@kcc.edu; Division Office- W102; 815-802-8700

Course Policies

Course Policies

Cheating and Academic Dishonesty

Any academic dishonesty, including plagiarism and cheating, is unacceptable. Academic dishonesty may refer to using the work of others (in part or in whole), sharing work with other students, adjusting the format of papers to appear longer, and using any source that a student has not been given permission to use on an assignment or test. All and any academic dishonesty will result in failure of the assignment and possibly of the course.

 

Plagiarism

Plagiarism is defined in the Code of Conduct: “Representing the words or ideas of another as one’s own. Plagiarism includes claiming credit for assignments completed by someone else.” Any instance of plagiarism will be reported to the Dean of Student Development. If the student has a second instance of plagiarism reported to the Dean of Student Development, the student may be suspended from the institution. All instances of intentional plagiarism, as determined by the instructor, on any major assignment for this course may lead to the immediate failure of the course with no opportunity for the student to withdraw.

 

Plagiarism includes but is not limited to:

  • using artificial intelligence, like ChatGPT, to write your papers
  • submitting someone else’s paper
  • using published material, including materials published online, without proper attribution
  • paraphrasing or quoting someone without attributing the quote in your paper (including and in-text or parenthetical citation) even if the source is included on the works cited page
  • working with someone (without my permission) to write your paper and presenting it as your own
  • submitting a paper you have previously submitted for another class

Required Format

All papers in this course will be typed in 12-point Times New Roman font, double-spaced, with 1-inch margins. Papers must also adhere to current MLA (Modern Language Association) style guidelines. All essays must be submitted as a .doc or .docx file. Reminder: changing the font or margins to make a paper appear longer may be considered academic dishonesty.

Attendance and Participation

Attendance and participation are very important to your success in this class. Students are expected to attend all classes and arrive to class prepared. Advance notice of any absences will be appreciated and will result in better communication about what students have missed out on. Makeup work may not be an option for in-class graded activities. Review Comments cannot be made up.

 

Late Work

Each day an assignment is overdue, the final grade will be reduced by 10%. Assignments may not be accepted after seven days past the due date.

 

Technology

Lost or accidentally deleted files will not be an acceptable excuse for not turning in something. Students need to back up their work and most word-processing software will auto-save. This class will require students to type paper drafts and submit most work electronically (Canvas). Facing technical problems? Contact KCC’s ITS Helpdesk at 815.802.8900 or helpdesk@kcc.edu.

 

Students are expected to have sufficient technological skills to complete the requirements of the course, which include using Canvas features, formatting and typing papers (and saving them as .doc or .docx files. PDF files will not be accepted. Students must also have access to a computer with the internet on a regular basis, of course. All assignments must be submitted via Canvas. No work will be accepted via email.

Email

The preferred method of contact is via Canvas. I usually respond within 24 hours Monday-Friday. It may take me slightly longer to respond after business hours and on the weekends, but I’m usually still pretty quick.

Expectations for Classroom and Online Behavior

Expectations for Behavior

Be respectful of everyone in the classroom.

This may include

  • Silencing all cell phones and electronic devices before class begins.
  • Refraining from texting or scrolling on phone during class.
  • Any other disruptive behavior.

Students who are unable to adhere to behavior guidelines will be asked to leave the classroom.

Course Calendar

Course Calendar

Rhetorical Analysis

 

Week 1

 Course overview. Review syllabus. Introductions. Canvas.

 AI

Week 2

Rhetoric and appeals, Rhetorical Analysis. Introduce RA Paper.

In-class RA activities.

Week 3

 MLA: Formatting, in-text citations, and Works Cited

 Evaluating Sources: CRAAP Test

Week 4

 Discuss Peer Review and Revision.

 Draft for Paper 1 is due. Peer Review Workshop.

Annotated Bibliography

Week 5

 Introduce Annotated Bibliography Assignment. Show examples.

 Scholarly vs. Popular Sources. Research: Library Databases.

Week 6

 Conferences

 Conferences

Week 7

 In-Class Research Day

Annotated Bibliography example evaluations.

Week 8

Synthesis activity.

 Work Day (optional).

Academic Argument 

 

Week 9

 Introduce Academic Argument Paper. What is an academic argument?

Claims, reasons, and assumptions. Developing a thesis.

 

Week 10

NO CLASS- Professor is at a conference.

Week 11

 Critical Thinking

 Logical Fallacies

Week 12

Debunking Myths

 Style in Academic Papers

 

Week 13

 Introductions/Conclusions

Multimodal Presentation

 

Week 14

 Introduce Multimodal Presentation

 Discuss Presentation Strategies

Week 15:

 Multimodal Presentations

Week 16

 Revision Week

 

Week 17-FINALS WEEK Final Reflection

College Policies, Resources and Supports

College Policies

For information related to the Student Code of Conduct Policy, Withdrawal Policy, Email Policy, and Non- Attendance/Non-Participation Policy, please review the college’s Code of Campus Affairs and Regulations webpage, which can be found at catalog.kcc.edu under the Academic Regulations & Conduct Guide. 

Resources

KCC offers various academic and personal resources for all students. Many services are offered virtually, as well as in person. Please visit Student Resources - Kankakee Community College to access student resources services such as:

  • Clubs and organizations
  • Counseling and referral services
  • Office of disability services
  • Student complaint policy
  • Transfer services
  • Tutoring services, etc.