Professor Blackmon
HEAV 302B
Tel: 49-43742
Office hrs: T&TH 10:30 a.m.-12:00 p.m. and by appointment
Email: sblackmon@sla.purdue.edu
Web: http://www.sla.purdue.edu/blackmon/605f03

COURSE DESCRIPTION:

This seminar investigates how computers figure in contemporary theories of text and text-making. Readings and discussion topics will cover pedagogy, cyberspace, and a critical analysis of both technology and specific technologies used in the computer-mediated classroom (i.e. synchronous/asynchronous discussions and electronic writing and publication). Assignments for this course will include weekly response assignments, E-Presentation/Productions, and a seminar project.

REQUIRED TEXTS (Available at Von’s Books)

• Course Pack (Available at CopyMat in Chauncey Hill Mall)

• Jean Baudrillard; Simulacra and Simulation ISBN #0472065211

• N. Katherine Hayles: How We Became Posthuman: Virtual Bodies in Cybernetics, Literature, and Informatics ISBN #0226321460

• Lisa Nakamura: Cybertypes: Race, Ethnicity, and Identity on the Internet ISBN #0415938376

• Howard Rheingold: Smart Mobs ISBN #0738206083

• Howard Rheingold: The Virtual Community: Homesteading on the Electronic Frontier ISBN #0262681218 (Make sure you get the 2nd edition-2000)

• Cynthia Selfe: Technology and Literacy in the Twenty-First Century: The Importance of Paying Attention ISBN #0809322692

• Neal Stephenson: The Diamond Age ISBN #0553380966

SUPPLEMENTAL TEXTS (Available at Von’s Books)

• Andy Clark: Being There: Putting Brain, Body, and World Together Again ISBN #0262531569

• Andy Clark: Natural Born Cyborg ISBN #0195148665

• Stephen Doheny-Farina: The Wired Neighborhood ISBN #0300074344

• Donna J. Haraway: Modest_Witness@ Second_Millennium.FemaleMan_Meets_OncoMouse ISBN #0415912458

COURSE EXPECTATIONS/PARTICIPATION

In order to accomplish the course goals, you must come to each class prepared. This means coming to class on time, as well as completing your readings and outside assignments. Active and informed participation in class discussions and collaborative work is also crucial. In terms of writing assignments, you will be required to complete one annotated bibliography (ten points), one seminar paper proposal (ten points each), regular journal entries (fifteen points), one group pedagogy project (twenty-five points), and one semester project (forty points). Late assignments will only be accepted with the prior specific permission of the instructor and will be penalized 10% for every calendar day late.

GRADING SCALE

Your points will be translated into percentages; your final grade will be calculated according to the following percentage scale:
100-90 A
89-80 B
79-70 C
69-60 D
59-below F
Although such instances are rare, I reserve the right to reward students who have shown dramatic progress with higher grades than the scale suggests.
Note about Incompletes: The mark of ‘I’ is inappropriate if, in the instructor’s judgment, it will be necessary for the student regularly to attend subsequent sessions of the class. I will give an Incomplete only in cases of extreme emergency.

JOURNALS

It is expected that you will read carefully and critically, take notes in your journal, jot down questions, and bring all required materials to class each day. Your journal will be a place for your observations and growth as an analytical reader and writer. Summaries of the novels and/or essays do not constitute acceptable journal entries. Your bi-weekly (twice a week) journal entries should be of a length sufficient to thoroughly express your point and/or respond to a classmate's journal entry. Feel free to use your journal entries to take share interesting information or websites, ask questions, rage against an idea, etc. Journals will be read regularly by the instructor.

CLASS PARTICIPATION & ASSIGNMENTS

This is one of the most important components to the success of the course. All reading and outside assignments are to be completed prior to class. This means reading carefully and critically, bringing materials to class, and coming prepared to engage with the ideas and your class. Class investigations are participatory assignments that may include critical and active discussions as well as in-class collaborative work.

ATTENDANCE

Attendance is welcomed, expected, and mandatory. To best utilize our time, come to class on time. You are considered absent if 1) you are more than 15 minutes late, 2) you are unprepared for class, and/or 3) you are websurfing, IMing, or doing something otherwise unrelated to classroom activities. There will be regular in-class work to record your attendance and preparation for class. You may miss two sessions without penalty. For every class after the first two, I will lower your final grade by five percent per absence. After two absences you must attend a conference with me to discuss whether you should continue in this course. Five absences constitute automatic failure of the course.

WRITING DEADLINES & SUBMISSIONS

You are expected to submit assignments by the deadlines listed. All written work is due at the beginning of class unless otherwise noted. In order to be considered for a grade, all assignments are to be complete, of the minimum word count, and must conform to MLA documentation and format (word-processed, 12 point legible font, double-spacing, with one inch margins). No out of class papers will be accepted if they are handwritten and all assignments must be accompanied by your computer diskette. Late assignments will only be accepted with the specific, prior agreement of the instructor. No exceptions!!!

CONFERENCES & CONTACT

I am open to discussing matters pertaining to the course, readings, and your writing; please feel free to contact me via email or phone as well as in person. I hope you will also take advantage of my office hours and email.

PLAGIARISM

Cheating: All written work submitted for a grade in this course must be the product of your own composition. Ideas generated due to reading and group discussion may provide the inspiration for your work, but should not be the sole ideas represented. With collaborative projects, of course, ideas should be representative of the group’s work.
Plagiarism is the act of presenting as your own work another individual’s ideas, words, data, or research material. The concept applies equally to written, spoken, or electronic texts, published or unpublished. All ideas and quotations that you borrow from any source must be acknowledged: at a minimum, you should give the name of your author, the title of the text cited, and the page number(s) of the citation. The only exceptions to this requirement would involve what is familiar and commonly held (e.g. the fact that the earth is round). You should know that penalties for plagiarism are severe and can entail suspension from the University. Students are responsible for reading and understanding the University policy on Cheating and Plagiarism set forth in Purdue University’s Academic Integrity: A Guide for Students available at http://www.purdue.edu/odos/admin/bacinteg.htm.

CLASSROOM BEHAVIOR

Insults, slurs, or attacks of any kind will not be allowed in my class. Any student who engages in this type of behavior in the classroom will be permanently removed from the class. In other words, forced to drop the course, in addition to other possible punishment given by Purdue University (See the Purdue University Student Code of Conduct (Available at http://www.purdue.edu/odos/admin/ccode.htm). In order to have an effective teaching and learning environment we must practice both respect and tolerance, without question.
As we will be discussing subjects that will be controversial, to some students, all remarks made in class must be based solely on fact. Personal opinion and theological beliefs should not be brought into class discussions unless they are specifically requested. Please be advised that we will be reading about, discussing, and writing about issues of class, gender, sexual orientation, etc. if you have personal or theological beliefs that may hinder your discussion and/or participation please let me know ASAP so that we can discuss your options.

THE WRITING LAB

The Writing Lab (Heavilon 226) is a superb resource. The staff is willing to help no matter what stage you're at in your paper, from brainstorming to putting on the final touches. Since writing a good paper entails having other people looking at it and giving you feedback, visits to the Writing Lab are highly recommended.