Spring 2026
Advanced Integrated Reading & Writing
Sands – INRW 0301-3C1 Syllabus, 1 INTEGRATED READING AND WRITING INRW 0301, section 3C1 COURSE INFORMATION Class Location: Technology Center, Room 100 Days/Times: Mon, Wed, 12:40 p.m. - 1:55 p.m. INSTRUCTOR INFORMATION Instructor: Dr. Scott Sands Email: ssands@lit.edu Office Phone: (409) 245-8749 Office Location: TC 206 Office Hours: Mon, Wed, 8:00 – 11:00 a.m. Tues, Thurs, 8:00 a.m. - 10:00 a.m. PREREQUISITE/CO-REQUISITE: 1. CRC score of 910 or higher AND 2. Diagnostic level of 4 to 6 AND 3. Essay score of 4 to 8 OR other State accepted testing scores 4. Must be co-enrolled in ENGL 1301 (Composition I) CREDIT 3 Semester Credit Hours (3 hours lecture, 0 hours lab) MODE OF INSTRUCTION Face to Face. COURSE DESCRIPTION Integration of critical reading and academic writing skills. This intervention is designed specifically for students assessed at BASE levels 3-4 and must be part of a student’s co-enrollment (co-requisite) enrollment: • as a mainstreamed intensifier providing contact hours for additional, just-in-time instructional support for the student’s success in the developmental IRW course, or • as a contextualized and/or integrated basic skills instructional support for a Career/Technical Education course. Sands – INRW 0301-3C1 Syllabus, 2 COURSE OBJECTIVES Upon completion of this course, the student will be able to: 1. Locate explicit textual information, draw complex inferences, and describe, analyze, and evaluate the information within and across multiple texts of varying lengths. 2. Comprehend and use vocabulary effectively in oral communication, reading, and writing. 3. Identify and analyze the audience, purpose, and message across a variety of texts. 4. Describe and apply insights gained from reading and writing a variety of texts. 5. Compose a variety of texts that demonstrate reading comprehension, clear focus, logical development of ideas, and use of appropriate language that advances the writer’s purpose. 6. Determine and use effective approaches and rhetorical strategies for given reading and writing situations. 7. Generate ideas and gather information relevant to the topic and purpose, incorporating the ideas and words of other writers in student writing using established strategies. 8. Evaluate the relevance and quality of ideas and information in recognizing, formulating, and developing a claim. 9. Develop and use effective reading and revision strategies to strengthen the writer’s ability to compose college-level writing assignments. 10. Recognize and apply the conventions of standard English in reading and writing. REQUIRED TEXTBOOK AND MATERIALS An electronic device with access to the Internet. All other materials will be provided by the instructor. ATTENDANCE POLICY This is an online class. Attendance and engagement are crucial to success in any course, including this one. In this class, students are expected to log in to Blackboard and interact with the course at least once per week, with one week allowed as a grace period (i.e., students will not be penalized for not logging in during one week). After that first week, each week students do not log in to Blackboard and interact with the course will reduce the student’s final grade by half a letter, or 5 percent. Additionally, students are required to engage in class and participate in regular discussions and assignments to receive full credit. Students who do not engage with the class regularly will fall behind. Students are expected to check their LIT e-mail at least twice a week. DROP POLICY If you wish to drop a course, you are responsible for starting and completing the drop process by the specified drop date as listed on the Academic Calendar. If you stop coming to class and fail to drop the course, you will earn an “F” in the course. STUDENT EXPECTED TIME REQUIREMENT For every hour in class (or unit of credit), students should expect to spend at least two to three hours per week studying and completing assignments. For a 3-credit-hour class, students should prepare to allocate approximately six to nine hours per week outside of class in a 16- week session OR approximately twelve to eighteen hours in an 8-week session. Online/Hybrid students should expect to spend at least as much time on this course as on a traditional, face-to-face class. Sands – INRW 0301-3C1 Syllabus, 3 Sands – INRW 0301-3C1 Syllabus, 4 COURSE CALENDAR DATE TOPICS READINGS ASSIGNMENTS Week 1: 1/19 - 1/23 Intro to INRW 0301 Intro to writing conventions Syllabus Vuong, “Surrendering” Sample literacy narratives Create your Khan Academy account and join the Khan Academy class for this course. Week 2: 1/26 - 1/30 Intro to rubrics How to turn in assignments Sommers, J, “Writer’s Memo” Sommers, N, “Responding” Elbow, “Ranking, Evaluating, Liking” NC State, “Rubric Best Practices and Examples” Writing Project #1 Rubric Meta Memo #1 Rubric Week 3: 2/2 - 2/6 Providing feedback Harris, “Ecology of Magic” Bruffee, “Conversation” Khan Academy: The Noun Week 4: 2/9 - 2/13 Early Term 1-on-1 Conferences Week 5: 2/16 - 2/20 Research writing conventions Purdue OWL, “Writing a Research Paper” Carpenter-Shulman, “Scoundrel’s Journey” Daly, “A Call to Action” Writing Project #2 Rubric Meta Memo #2 Rubric Khan Academy: The Verb Week 6: 2/23 - 2/27 Persuasive writing conventions St. Louis CC, “Pathos, Logos, and Ethos” Stout, “When I Woke Up” Walton COB, “The Rhetorical Situation” Nafisi, “Reading Lolita in Tehran” Week 7: 3/2 - 3/6 Academic Format and Citation Workshop Wilkins, “Defining Evolution” Armstrong, “God is Hard to Get to Know” Bruffee, “Conversation” Khan Academy: The Pronoun SPRING BREAK 3/9 - 3/13 NO CLASS Week 8: 3/16 - 3/20 Midterm Check-In Khan Academy: The Modifier Week 9: 3/23 - 3/27 The Writing Process, Part 2 Sommers, N, “Revision Strategies” Writing Project #3 Rubric Meta Memo #3 Rubric Week 10: 3/30 - 4/3 Reading and Re-Reading Prior and Shipka, “Chronotropic Laminations” Khan Academy: Punctuation 1 Week 11: 4/6 - 4/10 What is Evidence of Learning? Bloom’s Taxonomy Course Objectives Week 12: 4/13 - 4/17 Late Term 1-on-1 Conferences Khan Academy: Punctuation 2 Week 13: 4/20 - 4/24 Practicing Reflection John S. Knight Institute, “Reflective Writing” Elbow, Ranking, Evaluating, Liking Elbow, “Believing/Doubting Game” RMIT Learning Lab, “How to Use DIEP” Late and Make-Up Work Plan Reflective Synthesis Rubric Meta Memo #4 Rubric Week 14: 4/27 - 5/1 Citing Yourself Workshop SNHU Library, “How Should I Cite My Own Work?” Khan Academy: Syntax Week 15: 5/4 - 5/6 Optimism and Hope Elbow, “Believing/Doubting” FINALS: 5/7 - 5/13 NO CLASS Sands – INRW 0301-3C1 Syllabus, 5 COURSE EVALUATION Final grades will be calculated according to the following criteria: ● Attendance and Participation / Daily Assignments .................... 20% ● Khan Academy Assignments .......................................................... 20% ● ENGL 1301 Short Writing Assignments ....................................... 20% ● ENGL 1301 Final Drafts ................................................................. 20% ● Co-Creation of Course Rubrics ....................................................... 20% ● Total ................................................................................................. 100% GRADING SCALE 90-100 ............................................................................................................. DA 80-89 ................................................................................................................ DB 70-79 ................................................................................................................ DC 60-69 ................................................................................................................ DF 0 – 59 .............................................................................................................. DF LIT does not use +/- grading scales TECHNICAL REQUIREMENTS The latest technical requirements, including hardware, compatible browsers, operating systems, etc. can be online at https://lit.edu/online-learning/online-learning-minimum-computer-requirements. A functional broadband internet connection, such as DSL, cable, or WiFi is necessary to maximize the use of online technology and resources. DISABILITIES STATEMENT The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 are federal anti-discrimination statutes that provide comprehensive civil rights for persons with disabilities. LIT provides reasonable accommodations as defined in the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, Section 504 and the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, to students with a diagnosed disability. The Special Populations Office is located in the Eagles’ Nest Room 129 and helps foster a supportive and inclusive educational environment by maintaining partnerships with faculty and staff, as well as promoting awareness among all members of the Lamar Institute of Technology community. If you believe you have a disability requiring an accommodation, please contact the Special Populations Coordinator at (409) 951-5708 or email specialpopulations@lit.edu. You may also visit the online resource at Special Populations - Lamar Institute of Technology (lit.edu). Sands – INRW 0301-3C1 Syllabus, 6 STUDENT CODE OF CONDUCT STATEMENT It is the responsibility of all registered Lamar Institute of Technology students to access, read, understand and abide by all published policies, regulations, and procedures listed in the LIT Catalog and Student Handbook. The LIT Catalog and Student Handbook may be accessed at www.lit.edu. Please note that the online version of the LIT Catalog and Student Handbook supersedes all other versions of the same document. ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE STATEMENT Lamar Institute of Technology (LIT) recognizes the recent advances in Artificial Intelligence (AI), such as ChatGPT, have changed the landscape of many career disciplines and will impact many students in and out of the classroom. To prepare students for their selected careers, LIT desires to guide students in the ethical use of these technologies and incorporate AI into classroom instruction and assignments appropriately. Appropriate use of these technologies is at the discretion of the instructor. Students are reminded that all submitted work must be their own original work unless otherwise specified. Students should contact their instructor with any questions as to the acceptable use of AI/ChatGPT in their courses. STARFISH LIT utilizes an early alert system called Starfish. Throughout the semester, you may receive emails from Starfish regarding your course grades, attendance, or academic performance. Faculty members record student attendance, raise flags and kudos to express concern or give praise, and you can make an appointment with faculty and staff all through the Starfish home page. You can also login to Blackboard or MyLIT and click on the Starfish link to view academic alerts and detailed information. It is the responsibility of the student to pay attention to these emails and information in Starfish and consider taking the recommended actions. Starfish is used to help you be a successful student at LIT. Sands – INRW 0301-3C1 Syllabus, 7 ADDITIONAL COURSE POLICIES/INFORMATION Absences. Showing up is an important part of life, and thus, an important part of this course. You may be absent for one week’s worth of course sessions (in this course, 2 sessions) before your grade is affected. Each additional week of absence will lower your grade by 10%, or one letter grade. Individual absences beyond one week’s worth will lower your grade proportionately (i.e., in this class, by 5% per absence). Tardiness always counts as an absence, and in-class activities (e.g. peer reviews) cannot be made up. Due dates. I make every effort to inform students when assignments are due. However, due dates are subject to change. The Assignment Instructions in our course’s Blackboard shell will serve as the official place where due dates will be published and modified. Communication. I will respond to e-mails within 48 hours, except when an email occurs just prior to a weekend or to a holiday during which LIT is scheduled to be closed. Typically, I will only respond to e-mails during my office hours. Late Work and Make-Up Work. Students are permitted to... • submit up to 1 assignment late for no penalty, and • re-submit up to 1 assignment originally submitted on-time for a new grade... ...through Friday, April 24. To receive credit for the re-submitted assignment, the student must submit a completely new Meta Memo along with the re-submitted iteration of the assignment. Use of Artificial Intelligence / Large Language Models. In this class, we will explore the use of AI tools (e.g. ChatGPT, Perplexity, CoPilot, etc.) during specific assignments for specific purposes. Any use of AI will require submission of and grading of the prompt (the language provided by the user to the AI tool). No AI tool response language may be used in the draft or final versions of any assignments except where explicitly indicated by the instructor.