Research Writing : Laura Hoebing

Welcome to Research Writing!

Course Description: This course will focus on research-based writing in the form of traditional research papers, persuasive research-based writing, and non-traditional research projects and presentations. Students will learn research skills, documentation procedures, argumentation, MLA format, grammar, and traits of good writing, using various non-fiction texts as writing models. This course will be especially useful for college-bound students to develop skills for writing at a college level.

Expectations:

I expect students to:

Behave respectfully and responsibly
Do their best work in class and on assignments
Follow directions and school policies
Be on time for class and due dates
Communicate concerns and problems to me

Students can expect me to:

Treat them with dignity and respect
Grade and return assignments in a timely manner
Enforce established rules with appropriate consequences
Help students successfully cultivate reading, writing, and analytical skills they will use in the future
Communicate with students and parents regarding their performance in this class.

If a student or parent has a concern that these expectations are not being met, arrangements will be made to meet outside of class time to discuss strategies and solutions. If students and I cannot agree on a successful strategy, parents and/or administration will be involved.

Classroom procedures:

You should use the bathroom before or after class. If you need to use the bathroom during class, let me know without disrupting the class and return as quickly as possible. I reserve the right to suspend this privilege if it is being abused.
Come to class prepared with a pen/pencil, book, notebook, assignment, iPad, and any other material needed for that day. If you do not have your assignment when I collect it, it will be counted late.
Books being borrowed from the classroom library must be checked out in the check-out log and returned upon completion.
If you know you are going to be gone for a school activity or family trip, you must pick up your make-up work in advance. Depending on the assignment and length of absence, you may be asked to complete the work before your trip or turn it in the next class period. For other absences, you will be given two class days to complete the work you missed. It is your responsibility to pick up make-up work and turn it in.
Cell phones should not be seen or heard in my classroom. If they are, they will be confiscated and held in the principal’s office according to the district policy.
Bring your independent reading book to class to read if you have completed all other class work with time left over.
Don’t procrastinate. You are already busy; don’t make it worse for yourself. Use time wisely.

Grading:

Course grades will be calculated according to the school’s uniform grading scale:

100-94% A 89-87% B+ 79-77% C+ 69-67% D+ 59-0% F

93-90% A- 86-84% B 76-74% C 66-64% D

83-80% B- 73-70% C- 63-60% D-

Academic Honesty:

Cheating will absolutely not be tolerated in my classroom. This includes copying from another student, the internet, or a published source without giving proper credit. As stated in the HHS student handbook, “Academic dishonesty will be handled in accordance with ISD#203 Policy 506 (Student Discipline). Students in violation of this policy will have five school (5) days from the incident to complete an alternate assessment. If a student fails to complete the alternate assessment a grade of zero will be recorded. The time and location of the alternate assessment will be set by the classroom teacher. Any student with a documented incident of academic dishonesty during the quarter will be ineligible for the honor roll. All documented incidents of academic dishonesty will be considered a violation of ISD#203 Policy 534 (Student

Code of Responsibilities).”

Major Assignments:

Research Basics/Consipiracy Theory Presentation

Annotated Bibliography

Informative Essay

Argumentative Essay

Rhetorical/Logical Fallacies

Writing to Various Audiences

Persuasive Letter

NoRedInk Assignments and tests

Students will be producing at least 10 pages of polished writing throughout the course of the semester. This is a universal expectation for all high school writing classes at HHS.