Reading for Success

DRDG-0V92 - 001
Fall 2007

Instructor: Thomasina Hickmann

Email: hickmann@utdallas.edu
Phone: (972)883-6707
Office: MC2.406

Class Times and Location: Tuesday and Thursday from 11:30-12:45 in MC2.408

Office Hours: Mondays from 9:00-10:00 and Thursdays from 4:00-5:00 in MC2.406

Required Textbooks: College Reading: Book 2 by Janet Maker and Minnette Lenier, 6th
edition. Thomson/Wadsworth, 2000.

The Official THEA Test Study Guide developed by National Evaluation Systems. Amherst,
2004.

Course Description: ( 2 semester hours) A reading course that offers students the opportunity
to develop proficiency in reading comprehension, vocabulary development, critical reasoning,
study skills, and other reading skills necessary for success in academic and career advancement.
The course emphasizes learning how to learn and includes reading/learning experiences designed
to strengthen the total educational background of each student. This developmental course
cannot be used for degree credit.

Student Learning Objectives: Students will:

1. Expand vocabulary skills

2. Understand the main idea and supporting details in written material
3. Identify a writer’s purpose, point of view, and intended meaning
4. Analyze the relationship among ideas in written material
5. Use critical reasoning skills to evaluate written material
6. Apply study skills to reading assignments
7. Develop the relevant skills necessary to perform satisfactorily on the Texas Higher
Education Assessment (THEA)

NOTE: Please be advised that this syllabus is subject to change.

Attendance and Participation Policy

Prompt and regular attendance is expected of every student. If your enrollment at the
University of Texas at Dallas depends upon your attendance in this class, your attendance is
mandatory, as stated in the contract you have signed. There are no excused absences. In case
of an emergency absence, you must make up any missed work within one week. This
arrangement is subject to your providing official documentation that explains the nature of the
emergency, such as a letter from a doctor in the case of a medical issue or a funeral
program/announcement in the case of a family death. Without the proper documentation, your
absence will jeopardize your enrollment at the university.

If you are consistently late to class, this will negatively affect your attendance record and
also jeopardize your enrollment at the university.

If you pass the THEA and no longer choose to attend the class, you must consult with me
immediately to find out what your options are. For example, you may be obliged to continue
attending the class in order to maintain your enrollment status at the university.

For those students who are NOT subject to the university’s THEA policy: You are
responsible for all work missed due to an absence from class. Your final grade, however, may be
lowered after three unexcused absences. If you choose not to attend class once you are enrolled,
you must withdraw from the course to avoid receiving a final grade of “F.” The deadlines for
withdrawal are published in each semester's course catalog.

NOTE: Depending on your skill level, you may need more than one semester of developmental
coursework to pass the relevant portion of the THEA.

Course Requirements and Grade Evaluation

Your final grade for the course will be based on the following:

Assigned Exercises = 10%

Group Presentation = 15%

Exam 1 = 20%

Exam 2 = 20%

Reading Journal = 35%

 Grading Scale

A+ 97-100 C 73-76

A 93-96 C- 70-72

A- 90-92 D+ 67-69

B+ 87-89 D 63-66

B 83-86 D- 60-62

B- 80-82 F 0-59

C+ 77-79

Assignments

To prepare for class, complete the readings and the relevant exercises before the date on which
the material has been assigned for class discussion. Written exercises will be assigned
throughout the semester.

Group Presentations

Working in pairs, each group of students will write a dialogue to be presented in class. Each
dialogue will incorporate an assigned set of words related to a specific academic discipline.

Reading Journals

Your journal will be made up of written responses to the readings that I have assigned for the
second half of the semester. Your responses should be typed, double spaced, have one inch
margins, and use 12 point Times New Roman font. Although your journal is due at the end of
the semester, each response should be completed before we discuss the relevant text in class.

Tests and Exams

The exams will serve as useful preparation for the reading portion of the THEA test and for the
kind of academic assignments that you will be given in college.

You cannot make up a missed exam except in the case of an emergency absence that is
officially documented. See the attendance policy on the previous page.
Helpful Online Resources: For information about writing assignments, grammar, and
mechanics, go to

owl.english.purdue.edu/handouts/index2.html or www.unc.edu/depts/wcweb/handouts

For information about specific words, see the Merriman-Webster Dictionary at

www.m-w.com or go to www.wordsmyth.com

Student Conduct and Discipline: The University of Texas System and The University of
Texas at Dallas have rules and regulations for the orderly and efficient conduct of their business.
It is the responsibility of each student and each student organization to be knowledgeable about
the rules and regulations which govern student conduct and activities. General information on
student conduct and discipline is contained in the UTD publication, A to Z Guide, which is
provided to all registered students each academic year. The University of Texas at Dallas
administers student discipline within the procedures of recognized and established due process.
Procedures are defined and described in the Rules and Regulations, Board of Regents, The
University of Texas System, Part 1, Chapter VI, Section 3, and in Title V, Rules on Student
Services and Activities of the university's Handbook of Operating Procedures. Copies of these
rules and regulations are available to students in the Office of the Dean of Students, where staff
members are available to assist students in interpreting the rules and regulations (SU 1.602,
972/883-6391).

Email Use: The University of Texas at Dallas recognizes the value and efficiency of
communication between faculty/staff and students through electronic mail. At the same time,
email raises some issues concerning security and the identity of each individual in an email
exchange. The university encourages all official student email correspondence be sent only to a
student's U.T. Dallas email address and that faculty and staff consider email from students
official only if it originates from a UTD student account. This allows the university to maintain a
high degree of confidence in the identity of each individual corresponding and the security of the
transmitted information. UTD furnishes each student with a free email account that is to be used
in all communication with
university personnel. The Department of Information Resources at U.T. Dallas provides a
method for students to have their U.T. Dallas mail forwarded to other accounts.

Academic Integrity: The university expects all students to maintain a high level of
responsibility with respect to academic honesty. Because the value of an academic degree
depends upon the absolute integrity of the work done by the student for that degree, it is
imperative that a student demonstrate a high standard of individual honor in his or her scholastic
work.

Scholastic dishonesty includes, but is not limited to, statements, acts or omissions related to
applications for enrollment or the award of a degree, and/or the submission as one's own work or
material that is not one's own. As a general rule, scholastic dishonesty involves one of the
following acts: cheating, plagiarism, collusion and/or falsifying academic records. Students
suspected of academic dishonesty are subject to disciplinary proceedings.

SECTION 49.36 SCHOLASTIC DISHONESTY

(d) Cheating includes, but is not limited to
(1) copying from another student's test paper, laboratory report, other report, or
computer files, data listings, and/or programs or engaging in conduct that
facilitates such conduct by another student.
(2) using during a test, materials not authorized by the person giving the test;
(3) failing to comply with instructions given by the person administering the test
which would include, but not be limited to, time restrictions, use of blue book,
seating arrangements;
(4) collaborating with or seeking aid from or giving aid to another student during a
test;
(5) knowingly using, buying, selling, stealing, transporting, or soliciting in whole or
in part the contents of an unadministered test, test key, homework solutions, or
computer program;
(6) substituting for another student, or permitting another person to substitute for
oneself, to take a test;
(7) soliciting another person to obtain an unadministered test or information about
an unadministered test;
(8) discussing the contents of an examination with another student who will take
the examination;
(9) possession during a test of materials that are not authorized by the person giving
the test, such as class notes or specifically designed "crib notes." The presence
of textbooks constitutes a violation only if they have been specifically
prohibited by the person administering the test.
(10) submission of substantial portions of the same academic work for credit
(including oral reports) more than once without written authorization from the
instructor.
(e) Plagiarism means the appropriation, buying, receiving as a gift, or obtaining by any
means another's work and the submission or incorporation of that work in one's own written
work offered for credit without appropriate attribution.
(f) Collusion means the unauthorized collaboration with another person in preparing
academic assignments offered for credit.
(g) Falsifying academic records means the altering of grades or other falsification
(statements, acts or omissions) of academic records including but not limited to the application
for admission, grade reports, test papers, registration materials, and reporting forms used by the
registrar's office or other university offices.
(h) Falsifying data or experiments includes, but is not limited to, the submission of false
findings and/or the citation of false references in research or other assignments submitted for
credit and/or for the awarding of a degree.
Disability Services: The University of Texas at Dallas is on record as being committed to both
the spirit and letter of federal equal opportunity legislation; reference Public Law 92-112 - The
Rehabilitation Act of 1973 as amended. With the passage of new federal legislation entitled
Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), pursuant to section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, there is
renewed focus on providing this population with the same opportunities enjoyed by all citizens.

As a faculty member, I am required by law to provide "reasonable accommodations" to students

with disabilities, so as not to discriminate on the basis of that disability. Student responsibility
primarily rests with informing faculty of their need for accommodation and in providing
authorized documentation through designated administrative channels. Information regarding
specific diagnostic criteria and policies for obtaining academic accommodations can be found at:
www.utdallas.edu/student/slife/hcsvc.html. Please visit the office of Disability Services in
Student Union (1.610) or call at 972.883.2098 to obtain proper paperwork for this class.

Religious Holy Days: The University of Texas at Dallas will excuse a student from class or
other required activities for the travel to and observance of a religious holy day for a religion
whose places of worship are exempt from property tax under Section 11.20, Tax Code, Texas
Code Annotated. The student is encouraged to notify the instructor or activity sponsor
as soon as possible regarding the absence, preferably in advance of the assignment. The student,
so excused, will be allowed to take the exam or complete the assignment within a reasonable
time after the absence: a period equal to the length of the absence, up to a
maximum of one week. A student who notifies the instructor and completes any missed exam or
assignment may not be penalized for the absence. A student who fails to complete the exam or
assignment within the prescribed period may receive a failing grade for that exam or assignment.

Class Schedule
Week 1 – 8/16 Introduction to the course

Week 2 – 8/21-8/23 Discussion of Chapters 4, 5 and 6 in the THEA Guide

Week 3 – 8/28-8/30 Discussion of Chapter 7 in the THEA Guide

Discussion of Reading 14 in College Reading

Week 4 – 9/04-9/06 Discussion of Readings 16 and 17 in College Reading

Week 5 – 9/11-9/13 Discussion of Chapters 8 and 9 in the THEA Guide

Week 6 – 9/18-9/20 Discussion of Readings 21 and 22 in College Reading

Week 7 – 9/25-9/27 Discussion of Readings 29 and 30 in College Reading

Exam 1 – Thursday, September 27th

Week 8 – 10/02-10/04 Oral Presentations

Week 9 – 10/09-10/11 Discussion of Zigli’s “Are We Tolerating More

Dishonesty?”

Week 10 – 10/16-10/18 Discussion of Vogel’s “In the Blink of an Eye” and the
AP’s “Cell Phones Destroy Solitude of Wilderness”

Week 11 – 10/23-10/25 Discussion of Burt’s and Kranich’s essays on censorship

of public library internet sites

Week 12 – 10/30-1101 Exam Review

Exam 2 – Thursday, November 3rd

Week 13 – 11/06-11/08 Discussion of Welty’s “A Worn Path”

Week 14 – 11/13-11/ Discussion of Baldwin’s “The Last Visit” and Thomas’s

“The Attic of the Brain”

Week 15 – 11/20 Discussion of Bradbury’s “The Pedestrian”

Final Exam Week Reading Journal Due – Tuesday, November 27th