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Taft College Home >Distance Learning Home > Class Schedule > Distance Learning Fall Course Schedule > Offline Orientation

ENGL 1000-30 English Fundamentals

This is a basic course in college-level writing which fulfills a Taft College graduation requirement. The emphasis is on improvement in spelling, punctuation, grammar and usage. Students also learn to exhibit higher-level writing skills including an expanded vocabulary and a variety of sentence structures. Compositions include descriptive, expository, narrative and persuasive paragraphs and essays. Writing about literature and comparison and contrast are also covered. The development of proofreading skills in order that students be able to edit their own writing is particularly stressed.

• Advisory: Qualify by assessment process or pass English 0900 with a grade of "C" or better.

Course Details

• Instructor: Dr. Curt Dubost
  • E-Mail: cdubost@taftcollege.edu
  • Telephone: (661) 745-4650 (Wed/Thurs) and (805) 237-0741 (Fri-Tues)
  • Available Student Contact Hours: The instructor will be available on campus Wednesday and Thursday 6:00 pm – 6:40 pm in person in Room G-3 (Wed) and G-5 (Thurs) or by telephone. Messages will be answered daily. Phone calls will be taken during office hours or at other times agreed upon between the student and instructor. The instructor is also available by e-mail most times most days.
• Units: 3
• Class Meets: August 24 - December 17, 2009
• Textbook & Estimated Costs:
  • Purchased Textbooks: Brandon, Lee. Sentences, Paragraphs, and Beyond. Fifth Edition. New York: Houghton Mifflin Company.  Hemingway, Ernest. The Old Man and the Sea. (Contact TC bookstore for prices.)
• Estimated Time Per Week: Students can expect to spend approximately 10 to 12 hours per week reading, writing, taking quizzes and participating in class discussions.
• Special Requirements: This is an “off-line” course which will be conducted primarily online and by mail. Students may use Internet access, an active email account, word processing, internet searches, and emails with attachments or they may deliver hard copies of their work to campus staff personally or by US Mail. Students must be able to work independently.
• Assignments & Tests: Students will complete weekly writing assignments, weekly quizzes, two midterms, a final and a final essay.
• Proctored Exams: No.
• Additional Comments: Because this is a distance learning course, attendance is not an issue; however, turning assignments in on time is. If you do not meet the first assignment deadline, I will assume you do not wish to stay in the class and drop you unless you contact me. After that, it is your responsibility to drop the course. Drops will not be backdated. Contact the counseling center or the distance learning help desk to drop the course. I do guarantee you I will do all I can to help you learn to write at a college level.
• Course Syllabus (PDF format, opens in a new window)

Disclaimer: The book prices are an approximation only and are subject to change.