ENGL 1020 C | CRN 2021 | W 10:50am–12:05pm | Liberal Arts 111TW | Fall 2021

Nature/Food/
Animals
Professor Seth T. Reno
Distinguished Research Associate Professor
Department of English and Philosophy
College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences

In-person O ce Hours: Tuesdays 2–5pm; Wednesdays 7–8am

Zoom O ce Hours: Thursdays 7:30–9:30am
O ce: Liberal Arts 359A
O ce Phone: 334-244-3384 COVID-19 Statement
e-mail: sreno@aum.edu Under AUM’s COVID-19 Campus Health Policy, all
students must wear face masks during most campus
activities, including during in-person class sessions,
unless an exemption has been approve by the Dean
of Students or the Center for Disability Services. If
you feel ill at all or have been exposed to anyone
with COVID-19 DO NOT COME TO CLASS. You do
not need to provide me with a doctor’s note. If you
feel like you have a cold, sore throat, slight cough, or
fever, stay at home and self quarantine. This will not
count against you in any way. It’s inevitable that
many of us will catch a cold during the semester, and
the safest thing to do is stay at home.


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 Course Description
ENGL 1020 is a writing course that focuses on developing academic
research writing skills that students will utilize in their academic and
professional contexts. The course introduces students to the methods,
strategies, and skills required to conduct an informed inquiry: critical
reading, critical analysis, synthesis, constructing a research-based
argument, and re ection. The course is themed, and students formulate
their research questions around that theme. Students also learn how to
evaluate academic and non-academic sources and proper citation and
documentation of sources. The course also focuses on improving oral
communication skills to prepare students to share their research with
various audiences. The theme for this section is “Nature/Food/Culture.”
All required readings for this course are available as free PDFs. 

Course Objectives
After completing this course, students should be able to:
(1) critical thinking: explore and evaluate diverse perspectives in order
to advance a speci c thesis and pursue research as process of inquiry;
form a sound argument using evidence and examples from a variety of
sources; locate and evaluate primary and secondary research
materials; and critique own and others’ writing
(2) the writing process: develop a writing project through multiple
drafts, and use composing processes and tools as a means to discover
& reconsider ideas; revise a draft according to feedback; adapt
composing processes for a variety of technologies and modalities; and
manage and sustain an inquiry-based research project
(3) rhetorical knowledge: write for a variety of rhetorical contexts and
vary voice, tone, formality, genre, and medium accordingly; organize
ideas rhetorically and logically; and develop rhetorical tools of inquiry
and analysis to create new arguments based on careful consideration
and research of multiple and diverse perspectives
(4) knowledge of conventions: use citation conventions of the style guide
of their discipline; use appropriate linguistic structures, including
grammar, punctuation, and spelling to meet the reader’s expectations;
compose texts in digital and print media to address various audiences;
and apply appropriate design conventions to create a multimedia
research presentation
(5) re ection and transfer: re ect on how learning composition
concepts is shaping their own theory of writing; demonstrate
understanding of composition key terms; and articulate future
applications of writing knowledge and practices
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 Course Requirements
Course prerequisites: C or better in ENGL 1010

Required Texts
All required readings for this course, including a custom course textbook,
are available for free as PDFs on Blackboard.

Expectations and Tips for Success

• You will do a lot of reading and writing for this class—it’s an English
course! You should keep up with the readings and assignments each
week, and you should submit everything on time. However, if something
is not working for you, please let me know—I’m exible and will consider
changing my approach if you are struggling.
• Make sure you have a strong and reliable Internet connection. This is a
hybrid course, so it’s vital that you have consistent access to the
Internet.
• Check your AUM email at least once each day.
• Spend at least one hour each day on course readings and assignments.
• Take notes on every reading and lecture.
• Organize your time so that you can complete the work throughout the
week rather than trying to cram everything in on one day.
• Begin working on major assignments well in advance of the deadline.
• Go through multiple rounds of revisions on your papers before
submitting the nal version to me.

Email Etiquette
The primary form of communication for this class is email. I will do my
best to respond to your emails within 24 hours during the week and
within 48 hours over the weekend.

When you email me (and any other professor):

• Use your AUM email address
• Add a subject line so I know what you’re writing about and so I can keep
track of our email conversation
• Address me as Professor Reno or Dr. Reno (pronouns he/him/his)
• Sign o your email with your full name
• In general, follow professional email etiquette and structure—if you’re
not sure what this means, Google it for some examples
• NOTE: I may not respond to your email if you don’t follow etiquette,
especially if there’s no subject line, no salutation, and no name
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 Assignments
Note: You will receive individual assignment sheets and grading rubrics for
these assignments.

Writing Exercises: You will complete eight short writing exercises

throughout the semester (one paragraph, maybe two). Most of these
exercises are due during the rst half of the course. Their purpose is to
reinforce the writing skills you learned in ENGL 1010 and to provide space
to re ect on course readings. You will include three of these writing
exercises in your e-portfolio assignment (described below). 25% total

Topic Exploration and Proposal: This assignment is the rst step in

building your nal research paper. It involves a list of potential topics, key
words, initial research, and a formal project proposal. 10% total

Annotated Bibliography: This assignment is a list of ve sources you’ve

found for your research project, with summaries (or annotations) of each
source. 15% total

Research Paper: Your nal paper will be an original research paper of

Paper Proposal Exercises Participation Portfolio
Annotated Bib around 1500 words on your selected topic. Your ability to “juggle
sources” from your bibliography will play an important role in your grade,
as well as the quality of your writing more generally. You will submit a
rough draft and a nal draft of the paper, and we will meet at least once
to discuss your paper during weeks 11–13 (either in person or on Zoom).
15% 20% total
20%

Portfolio: This assignment will consist of the draft and nal version of
10% your research paper; three revised writing exercises for this class; the
nal draft of a writing assignment from another course; and a re ective
10% cover letter. 10% total

Participation: Active participation in our weekly class sessions means

20% arriving on time, completing assignments/readings in advance, taking
notes, taking part in class discussions, and asking questions. I don’t have
25% an attendance policy—you’re all adults, you’re paying for your education,
so it’s up to you how much work you put in and what you want to get out
of your experience. But discussion and engagement with the course
materials is essential for a rigorous and intellectual course. 20% total
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 Course Policies
more informed citizen of the world is more important than a grade. So,
Assignment Deadlines and Make-up Policy
don’g get hung up on the grade. What you put into the class—what you
All assignments are due when they are due. If something comes up and you need an
put into your education—is what really matters. You may get an A in a
extension, please talk to me in advance of the due date. In general, I don’t grant
class, and then forget everything about that class within a month. You
extensions except for university-approved reasons (o cial excused absences) or
may get a C in a class, but what you learned changes your life forever. In
extenuating circumstances, which we can discuss on a case-by-case basis. There is
the end, grades don’t matter that much.
a 10% grade deduction for every day an assignment is late.
You may talk to me at any point in the semester about your standing in
Plagiarism and Academic Dishonesty
the class.
Plagiarism is the unauthorized use of the words or ideas of another person. All
writing for this class must be your own and must be written exclusively for this
Academic Support
class. Any use of quotation, paraphrases, or ideas from outside sources, including
All students have the opportunity to receive free academic support at
Internet sources, must be properly documented. You may not reuse or recycle
AUM. Visit the Learning Center in the WASC on the second oor of the
papers you’ve written for other classes. You may not copy a sentence or paragraph
Library or the Instructional Support Lab in 203 Goodwyn Hall. They
from a paper someone else wrote. In cases where you have clearly plagiarized, or
o er writing consulting as well as tutoring in almost every class through
committed some other act of academic dishonesty, you will automatically fail the
graduate school. You can reach the Learning Center at 334-244-3470
assignment. In other words: don’t cheat. If you are confused or struggling with an
and the Support Lab at 334-244-3265.
assignment, talk to me about it. If you are unsure of whether you’ve quoted a
source properly, talk to me about it. If you put o writing a paper until the night
IT Support
before it’s due and you’re feeling stressed out and tempted to copy something
Students may seek technology assistance from the ITS Help Desk
online, talk to me about it. A big note here: plagiarism will result in automatic
located in the computer lab on the rst oor of the Taylor Center. You
failure of the assignment. See the nal page of the syllabus for details on the
may also call 334-244-3500 or email helpdesk@aum.edu.
Composition program’s academic honesty policies.
Accommodations
Grading
Students who need accommodations should contact me by email to
For any assignment, and for the course overall, I consider A-work as exceptional.
discuss speci cs. If you have not registered for accommodation services
Such work goes above and beyond the requirements. B-work is good, quality work.
through the Center for Disability Services but need accommodations,
Such work pushes beyond the requirements. C-work satis es the minimum
please give them a call at 334-244-3631 or email cds@aum.edu.
requirements of the assignment/course. C is an average grade; most work falls
near this range. D or F means you submitted nothing or completely disregarded
Evaluations
this syllabus and the assignment prompts. For major assignments, please see the
You will receive a link through your AUM email to complete a voluntary,
prompts and rubrics. I will ask you to grade some of your own assignments as a way
anonymous course evaluation during the last few weeks of the semester.
to re ect on your writing skills (but no guarantee I will agree with your grade!).
Evaluations will be due by December 2.
A = 90–100 B+ = 87–89 B = 80–86 C+ = 77–79
Important Dates
C = 70-76 D+ = 67–69 D = 60–66 F = 59 or lower
The last day to add classes is August 22. The registration cancellation
date is August 24. The last day to drop is October 31.
I also want to stress: learning is more important than grades. Discovering
something new about the world or about yourself is more important than a grade.
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Class Format
Hybrid Class Format
This is a hybrid class that meets in-person on Wednesdays. The second
class session is asynchronous (that means it’s not happening live at a
certain time), so you can complete the work on your own time, though I’ve
set a Monday deadline each week for certain readings/assignments—so you
can think of this as a typical MW class, but we only meet in the classroom
on Wednesdays. The online/asynchronous component of the class will
mostly comprise time for you to read, write, and submit assignments. This
means you’ll need to create a schedule to stay on track for this course—
I’ve given you a suggested weekly timeline on the next page of this syllabus.

Attendance
I don’t take attendance as part of your grade, but participation is 20% of
your grade, and if you aren’t in class, you can’t participate. So, attendance
does count for a lot, I suppose! It’s very important that you attend our
class sessions, that you arrive on time, that you’re prepared, and that you
keep an open mind and give everything and everyone a chance. Since this is
a hybrid class, we only meet 14 times, so make them all count!

Participation and Classroom Etiquette: E.L.E.

I want you to talk in class, and ask questions, and o er your perspectives,
and try out ideas, and engage with your fellow classmates, and have
meaningful conversations, and agree and disagree respectfully with the
readings and with each other and with me, and overall just have a good
time. I like to keep things open and fairly casual, though intellectually
rigorous—so I may express some frustration if you come unprepared and/
or not having done the reading and writing for the week. To make the class
work, and to have good conversations, we all need to be in it together.

I will strive to keep an open and inclusive classroom, and I hope you will too.
That means being accepting of others’ beliefs, backgrounds, and
experiences—though I will not allow any kind of discriminatory or violent
language. Salty language is not encouraged but acceptable when relevant
and necessary (I am from Ohio, after all, the state that regularly leads the
nation in those “most likely to curse” studies). Basically, classroom
etiquette can be summed up by the famous acronym “E.L.E.” Everybody
love everybody. Let me know if you know what movie that’s from.

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 Suggested Weekly Timeline

This sample timeline is meant to give you a suggested structure to
complete the readings and assignments successfully each week. We
meet on Wednesdays, and we also have Monday deadlines for
asynchronous work. But you won’t be able to cram in the entire
week’s worth of reading and writing in one or two days. So, you
must manage your time to ensure that you can meet the weekly
deadlines. As a general guideline, you should spend at least 7 hrs/
week on work for this class in addition to our 1.25-hr class

Thurs–Fri: Sat–Mon: Tues-Weds:

Class Preparation Finish Readings and Prepare for and
and Reading Assignments Attend Class

Think of Thurs–Fri as an opportunity to
prepare for the coming week. You should
consult the syllabus, weekly checklist, and
Blackboard to see what’s due, make a plan
for the week, and begin on the readings and
assignments. Take lots of notes as you read
and work your way through the week’s
assignments.
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Maybe you do school work on the weekend,
maybe you don’t. If you don’t nish the
readings over the weekend, you should
complete them on Monday. Once you’ve
nished the readings, start working on
assignments. Consult the syllabus to see
what’s due on Monday and what’s due on
Wednesday. You’ll need to nish the
readings and assignments before coming to
class on Wednesday.
You’ll attend class on Wednesdays from
10:50am to 12:05pm. Take some time on
Tuesday or early Wednesday to prepare for
class: go over your notes, write down
questions, look back over the readings and
assignments—and, ahem, if you didn’t nish
the readings and assignments yet, you’ll
need to do so before coming to class on
Wednesday! Consult the syllabus to see
what’s due on Wednesday each week.

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 Daily Schedule
AS THIS IS A HYBRID COURSE, THERE IS A MIX OF ONLINE AND IN-PERSON CLASS SESSIONS. MONDAY CLASS
SESSIONS ARE ONLINE/ASYNCHRONOUS. WEDNESDAY CLASS SESSIONS ARE IN PERSON.

Unit One: Nature Unit Two: Food

Week 1: M August 16: Getting Started Week 6: M September 20: Food is Good
Review all course materials on Blackboard DUE: WRITING EXERCISE #5
Read: textbook chapters 1 and 2 Read: textbook chapters 6 and 7
Week 1: W August 18: Intro to the Course Read: Anthony Bourdain, “Food is Good”
DUE: WRITING EXERCISE #1 Week 6: W September 22: Food is Culture
Introduction to the course Read: Massimo Montanari, “Food is Culture”

Week 2: M August 23: What is Nature? Week 7: M September 27: Fast Food Culture
Read: textbook chapter 3 Read: Eric Schlosser, Fast Food Nation
Read: Kate Soper, “The Discourses of Nature” Week 7: W September 29: Fast Food Culture
Week 2: W August 25: What is Nature? Read: Rachel Laudan, “A Plea for Culinary Modernism”
DUE: WRITING EXERCISE #2
***Movie Night: September 28 at 6pm: Fast Food Nation/Food, Inc.

Week 3: M August 30: Ethics and Environmentalism Week 8: M October 4: Food History
Read: textbook chapters 4 and 5
Watch: video lectures on academic research
Read: Aldo Leopold, “The Land Ethic”
Week 8: W October 6: Food Day
Week 3: W September 1: Ethics and Environmentalism
DUE: WRITING EXERCISE #6
DUE: WRITING EXERCISE #3

Week 4: M September 6: No Class, Student Holiday Unit Three: Animals

Week 4: W September 8: Environmental Justice
Read: Lauret Savoy, “The Alien Land Ethic” Week 9: M October 11: Humanimals
Read: Erica Fudge, Animal
Week 5: M September 13: Environmental Justice Week 9: W October 13: Humanimals
DUE: WRITING EXERCISE #4 DUE: WRITING EXERCISE #7
Week 5: W September 15: Religion and Environmentalism
Read: Al Gore, “Environmentalism of the Spirit”

Week 10: M October 18: Project Proposal DUE: FINAL CLASS SESSION PARTY
DUE: PROJECT PROPOSAL DUE: SMILES AND CELEBRATION
Read: John Berger, “Why Look at Animals?”
Week 10: W October 20: Zoo Day
Trip to the Montgomery Zoo

Week 11: M October 25: Virtual Meetings

Individual meetings to discuss your project
Week 11: W October 27: In-person Meetings
Individual meetings to discuss your project

Unit Four: Workshops

Week 12: M November 1: Virtual Meetings
DUE: WRITING EXERCISE #8 (Zoo Trip Assignment)
Individual meetings to discuss your project
Week 12: W November 3: Workshop
DUE: ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY
In-class writing workshop

Week 13: M November 8: Virtual Meetings

Individual meetings to discuss your project
Week 13: W November 10: Workshop
In-class writing workshop

Week 14: M November 15: Virtual Meetings

Individual meetings to discuss your project
Week 14: W November 17: Workshop
DUE: RESEARCH PAPER ROUGH DRAFT
In-class writing workshop

THANKSGIVING BREAK: NOVEMBER 19–28

Finals Week: M December 6: Everything is Due

DUE: RESEARCH PAPER (DUE ON BB BY 11:59PM)
DUE: E-PORTFOLIO (DUE ON BB BY 11:59PM)

Caption

General University Policies

Attendance Reporting Policy conform to this Code. The regulations are designed to support the interests
An attendance veri cation is in place for students accepting federal grants of AUM and its students and faculty, in maintaining the honesty and integrity
and loans. Absences from class may a ect a student’s eligibility for these essential to and inherent in an academic institutions. Full policy, including
funds. For regularly scheduled classes, attendance is monitored for the rst potential penalties for violation, can be found int he Student Handbook
three class sessions; for classes that meet on weekends, or once per week (like beginning on page 65. Full text at: https://www.aum.edu/aum-student-
ours), attendance is monitored for the rst two class meetings; for classes handbook/.
that meet for “half term,” attendance is monitored for the rst two class
meetings. Students who have not attended/participated in any session by the Technology Assistance
report date are reported as no shows and their nancial aid may be reduced Students may seek technology assistance from the ITS Help Desk, located in
or cancelled as a result. the computer lab on the rst oor of the Taylor Center. You may also call
334-244-3500 or email helpdesk@aum.edu.
Withdrawal
A student who wishes to withdraw from the course or has missed too many Curtiss Course Critiques
classes must complete the standard process for dropping a class by the AUM is committed to e ective teaching, Students assist in maintaining and
withdrawal date for the term (Sunday, October 31, 2021). enhancing this e ectiveness by completing teaching evaluations in a thoughtful
and honest manner. We ask that you take time to respond to all questions and
Disability Accommodations write comments. I can use your feedback to know what is working in the
Students in face-to-face classes who need accommodations are asked to course and what is not working and improve the learning experience. The
arrange a meeting during o ce hours to discuss your accommodations. If you instructor will not be given student comments nor informed of the aggregate
have a con ict with o ce hours, an alternate time can be arranged. To set up results of evaluations until after nal grades have been submitted. All
this meeting, please contact me by email. If you have not registered for individual student responses will be con dential. The evaluations will be
accommodation services through the Center for Disability Services (CDS), but available on the following schedule for our class: evaluations open on
need accommodations, make an appointment with CDS, 147 Taylor Center, or November 10 and close on December 2. See https://www.aum.edu/curtiss-
call 334-244-3631, or email CDS at cds@aum.edu course-critiques/.

Free Academic Support Key Dates for Full Term Fall Classes
All students have the opportunity to receive free academic support at AUM. Last Day to Add Classes August 22
Visit the Learning Center (LC) in the WASC on second oor Library or the Last Day for 100% Refund August 24
Instructional Support Lab (ISL) in 203 Goodwyn Hall. The LC/ISL o ers writing Labor Day Holiday September 6–7
consulting as well as tutoring in almost every class through graduate school. Last Day for 50% Refund September 12
The LC may be reached at 334-244-3470 (call or walk-in for a session), and the Mid-Semester Grades Due October 10
ISL may be reached at 344-244-3265. ISL tutoring is rst-come, rst-served. Last Day to Drop October 31
Current operating hours can by found at https://www.aum.edu/academics/ Thanksgiving Holiday November 20–28
academic-support/warhawk-academic-success-center/learning-center-isl/. Classes End November 30

Academic Honesty Final Exam for Our Class December 6 (Blackboard only)
The Student Academic Honesty Code applied to all student taking Auburn
University at Montgomery classes, By act of registration, all students agree to
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 Academic Honesty Statement for Composition

All work submitted to this class musts be your own and
must be written exclusively for this class. Any use of
quotations, paraphrases, or ideas from outside sources,
including Internet sources, must be properly documented
(in this case, an “outside source” means anything other
than your own unique creation).
You may not recycle or reuse writing that you wrote for
another class, including any other English course at AUM,
another university, or high school. While re-using one’s own
text is not improperly using outside sources, it is academic
dishonesty because it does not require new work
speci cally for this class, and it is subject to the penalties
described below.
For second-time plagiarism incident in this class:
If a student plagiarizes a second time in the same class,
they will receive a grade of “F” in the course regardless of
the assignment ( rst or nal draft). There won’t be an
opportunity for revision of the assignment.
Students who have plagiarized will also be reported to he
AUM’s O ce of the Provost.
If you have any questions about the policies or procedures
regarding academic dishonesty, please ask me, the
Director of the Composition Program, or refer to page 65
in the Student Handbook: http://online. iphtml5.com/qgze/
lmpu/#p-1.

In cases where plagiarism or other academic dishonesty is

clearly established, the penalty will be as follows:

For rst-time plagiarism incident in this class:

* If plagiarism occurs in an assignment rst draft, the
student will receive a grade of “F” on the assignment and
will be expected to remedy that problem in the nal draft
of the assignment.
* If plagiarism occurs in an assignment nal draft, the
student will receive a grade of “F” on the assignment. You
will have an opportunity to revise the assignment and
remedy that problem after meeting and discussing it
with the instructor.
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