Speed Reading RDG163, Section B
Course Syllabus Spring 2008
Tu-Th 12:50 – 2:15
Building 6, Room 12

Instructor: Sue Wickham

Academic Achievement Center Hours (Building 6, Room 19)

Monday-Wednesday 12:00 – 3:00
Tuesday - Thursday 8:00 – 12:00

Office Hours (Building 6, Room 25 B)

Monday – Wednesday – Friday 8:00 – 9:00
Tuesday 2:30 – 3:30

Please feel free to come in during my AAC hours or office hours for a conference or for extra help.

Phone: 965-7000 (my office) or 964-6558 (Academic Achievement Center)

E-mail: smwickham@dmacc.edu

Web Site: http://www.dmacc.edu/instructors/smwickham/welcome.htm

Texts: W. Royce Adams and Becky Patterson, Developing Reading Versatility, Tenth Edition
Any good collegiate dictionary, such as the American Heritage Dictionary
A novel or light nonfiction book of your choice.

Course Purposes:

Speed Reading is a course designed to help you develop speed, flexibility, and good comprehension. The following topics will form the framework of the course:

1. Improving speed and flexibility

2. Improving literal comprehension by

1. Building vocabulary
2. Recognizing patterns of organization
3. Recognizing and summarizing main ideas
4. Skimming/scanning
5. Using efficient textbook study techniques

3. Improving critical comprehension through

• Distinguishing between fact and opinion
• Identifying intent, attitude, tone, and bias
• Making valid inferences
• Making critical judgments

Class Activities and Assignments:

Class activities will include individual and group work, class discussion and lectures. There will be regular in-class timed readings and group exercises for which no make-up is possible. Assignments will require an average of two hours out of class per hour in class.

Grades:

In-class work and homework assignments--approximately 80 points

Major Assignments--approximately 350 points

These assignments are semester-long projects which allow you to tailor reading activities to your interests and needs. Each assignment will be explained fully during the first week of class.

1. Vocabulary lists - 120 points

2. Controlled reading exercises - 70 points

3. Ten-minute readings and dialogues-approximately 60 points

4. Book review - 100 points

Tests--500 points

There will be four tests including a comprehensive final, which counts as two test grades. If you must miss a test, contact me on or before the date of the test so that we can reschedule it. If you do not meet this requirement, a make-up test will be given only at my discretion. (Translation: have an airtight excuse, with written proof!)

Grading Policy:

93%-100% = A	83%-86.9% = B	73%-76.9% = C	63%-66.9% = D
90%-92.9% = A-	80%-82.9% = B-	70%-72.9% = C-	60%-62.9% = D-
87%-89.9% = B+	77%-79.9% = C+	67%-69.9% = D+	0% - 59.9% = F

Attendance and Late Work: 

Because your work will often require the use of materials available only in class, because much of your daily work will be done in class, and because you and your classmates learn best from one another, it is essential that you attend class regularly and arrive on time. Reading is a skill which requires regular, frequent practice for improvement; therefore, completing daily homework assignments is also essential. There is no make-up for in-class work, including 10-minute readings and logs. With two exceptions, all homework, including word lists, is due at the beginning of class on the date assigned. If you are ill or otherwise unable to attend class, you may send your assignment with a friend, e-mail it, or send it by regular mail. I will accept it as long as it is postmarked by the due date.

Accommodations:

It is the policy of DMACC to accommodate students with disabilities. Any student with a documented disability who requires reasonable accommodation should contact the special needs coordinator at (515) 964-6850 voice or (515) 864-6810 TTY.

Class Policies:

Respect for the learning process and for the people engaged in teaching and learning is central to this class.

1. Please be considerate of both your instructor and your classmates. Arrive early and have reading materials ready when class begins. If you must walk in late, do so quietly. Your classmates will appreciate not being disturbed when doing timed readings.

2. Turn off cell phones, pagers, I-Pods, laptops, etc., before entering the classroom and put them away.

3. During class activities, avoid side conversations and other distracting behaviors.

Academic honesty is a fundamental value of this class. Cheating of any kind, whether it involves using crib notes on a test, plagiarizing from a published source, submitting someone else’s work as your own, or allowing someone else to copy yours, will not be tolerated. Academic sanctions will include, but are not limited to, a 0 on the assignment in question. A record of your violation will be placed on file with the Judicial Affairs officer.

Incomplete and Course Withdrawal Policy

I want to help you succeed in this class. If you have a legitimate reason to be absent for an extended time, such as illness requiring hospitalization or a family emergency, please contact me in order to arrange to make up missed work. I’ll be happy to assign an "Incomplete" grade if you request it and if, in my opinion, there is a reasonable probability that you will complete the missing assignments.

If you choose to drop the class, you must withdraw by using DMACC’s Web Info System or by completing an official drop slip and returning it to Student Records in Building 1. Without this drop slip, you will receive an F for the course. The last day to drop a class this semester is March 25, 2008.

TENTATIVE COURSE SCHEDULE

January 8	Stanford Reading Test; discuss syllabus.
January 10	Due: "Literal Comprehension Inventory"; read pp. vii-viii, 1-4 in your text. Explanation of major assignments. Timed reading.
January 15	Due: Self-evaluation; bring book for 10-minute reads; text, pp. 5-13. First timed session. Differences in reading rate; techniques to improve concentration.
January 17	Due: Word List 1. Chapter 1, "Developing Vocabulary Skills," context and word parts, pp. 14-19, 24-25. Demonstration of Quantum reading exercises.
January 22	Due: pp. 19-21, 26-27, 50-54. Word parts, pp. 29-32. Quiz.
January 24	Due: pp. 42-50; Word List 2. Quiz. Dictionary skills review, pp. 34-41; types of dictionaries.
January 29	Due: library exercise. Figurative language, pp. 297-300 and hand-outs. Review for Test 1.
January 31	Due: Word List 3. TEST 1
February 5	Due: Logs and Quantum readings1-3; pp. 59-67. Chapter 2, "Developing Literal Recall." Main ideas and supporting details, pp. 68-79.
February 7	Due: pp. 79-81, 81-87; Word List 4. Paragraph patterns, pp. 87-91.
February 12	Due: pp. 91-95. Quiz. Finding the thesis, pp. 95-100.
February 14	Due: Word List 5. Writing a summary, pp. 100-102. In-class summary.
February 19	Due: Article summary. In-class summary, pp. 106-7. Review for Test 2.
February 21	Due: Word List 6; Logs and Quantum readings 4-6. TEST 2
February 26	Due: pp. 355-359; Study reading, 360-362.
February 28	Due: Word List 7. Annotating, pp. 362-369, 379-80.
March 4	Due: Note-taking assignment, including text marking and separate notes. Scanning, pp. 386-394. Skimming.
March 6	Due: Word List 8. Bring a magazine to use in class. Skim a magazine exercise.
March 11	Due: pp. 102-106. Rapid reading, pp. 54-58, 110-112. Progress Check. Review for Test 3.
March 13	Due: Word List 9. Completed Progress Check. TEST 3
March 25	Due Critical Comprehension Introduction, pp. 141-146; logs and Quantum readings 7-10. Questions for critical analysis. Fact and opinion, pp. 147-149.
March 27	Due: Word List 10; pp. 150-154, 154-157. Kinds of evidence.
April 1	Due: pp. 159-165. Quiz, pp. 165-167.
April 3	Due: Word List 11; Propaganda, pp. 176-170. Detecting Propaganda, pp. 170-171.
April 8	Due: pp. 167-178, including example of propaganda. Intent, attitude, and tone, pp. 190-191.
April 10	Due: Word List 12; Intent, attitude, and tone, pp. 191-196.
April 15	Tone: Humor, sarcasm, and irony. In-class readings.
April 17	Due:. Rough draft of book review. In-class group work: Inference, pp. 234-246.
April 22	Due: Quantum readings 11-12, book review, logs. Underlying social values, induction and deduction; fallacies, pp. 248-258.
April 24	Review for final exam.
April 29	FINAL EXAM 11:30 AM – 1:45 PM