UWG 1101: First-Year Experience
Fall, 2006
Dr. Angela S. Insenga
Website: http://www.westga.edu/~ainsenga/
Office: 315
Pafford
Office phone:
678-839-4864
Office hours: 7-8, TR;
Thrown To the Wolves: Creating Campus Culture, Coping with College
Life
“Education is not a
spectator sport.”
Course Description:
UWG
1101 is designed to teach a variety of skills
to help students succeed at
Course Objectives:
ü
To promote a
positive adjustment and assimilation into the university for first year
students
ü
To help students
learn to balance their freedom with a sense of responsibility as part of the
process of enhancing self-knowledge and self-confidence
ü
To develop a network
of colleagues
ü
To involve students
in the total life of the university
ü
To reduce student
anxiety about written and oral communication
ü
To enhance
college-level analytical skills and provide practice in applying the knowledge
students gain in other first-year courses
ü
To increase student
awareness of particular majors and academic departments and assist them in
career decision making, or to help them recognize that their most appropriate
current choice is to remain undecided
ü
To introduce
students to American higher education with an emphasis on its history and
current structure
ü
To provide students
additional training, practice, experience, and knowledge in the following
skills: decision making, goal setting, planning, time management, stress
management, note-taking, test-taking, study skills, communication skills,
conflict management skills, research skills, and group/teamwork.
Learning Outcomes:
ü
Students will
identify and utilize a set of adaptive study, coping, critical thinking,
logical problem-solving, and other academic/personal/social success
Skills
ü
Students will
demonstrate an understanding of some of the most typical teaching strategies of
their professors' teaching and presentation styles;
ü
Students will
identify and understand their own personal learning style and how to best adapt
to different instructional strategies in the classroom
ü
Students will
demonstrate their understanding of the function of a mentor and how to go about
finding one
ü
Students will
summarize basic information about UWG: its history, purposes, organization,
rules and regulations, people, services, resources, and
opportunities
for student development
ü
Students will
utilize the following resources available to them at UWG: the Library, the
identify
the location and function of other important offices on campus, such as
Tutoring
Center, and the Career Services Office
ü
Students will
identify some of the major health and wellness issues for students
ü
Students will
document their personal goals for careers and academic majors and their plans
for achieving these goals
ü
Students will
demonstrate basic skills in computer literacy through activities involving the
use of e-mail and the Internet
ü
Students will demonstrate
personal responsibility and self-direction regarding their education
ü
Students will
identify the benefits of a college degree
ü
Students will
identify and demonstrate an appreciation of the value of diversity and of a
liberal arts perspective in their education
ü
Students will
identify elements of democratic structures within which they will be civically
engaged on the UWG campus, in the larger community and in the State of
ü
Students will
examine and discuss ways in which UWG students, faculty, and staff identify,
prioritize and debate issues in ways that allow and support the principles of
civic engagement and democracy.
Required Texts:
ü
Bishop, Joyce, Carol
Carter, and Sarah Lyman-Kravits. Keys to Success: Building Successful Intelligence for College,
Career, and Life.
ü
Forni, P.M. Choosing
Civility (you received a free copy of this text at orientation)
Required Supplies:
ü
Composition notebook
for First-Year Experience Journal and one-page, reflective summaries of campus
events (see example I have in class)
ü
Internet access and
ability
ü
Note-taking supplies
ü
Monies for printing
out handouts on campus or a personal printer
ü
A good attitude and
an open mind
Major Assignments/Percentage Breakdown:
ü
Writing Assignments:
-First-Year
Experience Journal: two pages (a page is
250 words long) a week of personal, “anything goes” writing (28 pages in all,
due at the end of
the
semester)—20%
-Several
in-class free writes, reading quizzes, and group work activities—15%
-Your
attendance at several university-sponsored events (at least 20 UWG 40
activities with signed or stamped passport as proof and 5 other
campus-sponsored events over the course of the semester with one-page
reflective summaries of each--5 pages of writing in all)—20%
ü
Class Participation
(talking in class, working diligently in groups, asking pertinent questions
after presentations, showing that you’ve read material when called upon,
etc.)—15%
ü
Mid-term personal inventory and optional conference—15%
ü
Final-exam personal inventory and assessment—15%
Attendance:
Because this course is
discussion-based and occurs only once a week, it is imperative you attend. If you miss more than two days, you will be
unable to pass the course. Leaving or
arriving at the break will count as an absence. Please arrive on time,
especially since we’ll have numerous speakers who will be here solely for your
benefit. Repeated tardiness will affect your grade negatively. Three tardies equal one absence, and you’re
tardy if I’ve closed the door. You may
not make up quizzes or free writes due to absence or tardiness.
Academic Honesty:
The English department’s
website, which reflects the university’s policies on cheating, states, “The
Department of English and Philosophy defines plagiarism as taking personal
credit for the words and ideas of others as they are presented in electronic,
print, and verbal sources. The Department expects that students will accurately
credit sources in all assignments. An equally dishonest practice is fabricating
sources or facts; it is another form of misrepresenting the truth. Plagiarism
is grounds for failing the course. The University policies for handling
Academic Dishonesty are found at the following internet URLs: The Faculty Handbook and Student Uncatalogue: "Rights and
Responsibilities"
Please note: “excessive collaboration”
includes having family members, friends, or significant others edit or
proofread your work. This sort of behavior is cheating and will be
treated as such. We’ll participate in Peer Review and will collaborate in
class, and you have the
Print Out Policy
You are wholly responsible for accessing and printing out materials on the days indicated on the syllabus below. You must bring print outs to class on the days indicated.
My UWG Policy
As the result of a new university
policy, the only e-mail addresses students and faculty can use to communicate
with one another are
Daily Syllabus:
Below is the schedule of
speakers, assignments, due dates, and class activities for the entire
semester. Check this syllabus every week
so that you know where you need to be, what you need to complete, and what is
due for any particular class period.
ü
August 16
Course Introduction: “Feeling ‘Thrown to the Wolves?’ Bite back!”
UWG 1101 Pre-test
For next class:
-Begin your Experience Journal—remember, this part of your work for our
class includes two pages per week of “anything goes” writing. Write about your new college life, your old
high school life, your current or past experiences, what’s going on in the
dorms or at home, etc. You may also
write about speakers who come to class or reading you do for this class if you
do not wish to write about personal topics.
-Read Dr. Mom’s Guide to College
-Read chapters one and two in Keys to Success
-Review Choosing Civility, the text you received for free at orientation—choose two sections for discussion—one that you already are familiar with and practice, and one on which you know you’ll have to work.
-Go to and write about campus events (check out the growing list of campus events on the main page of my website to see what’s going on and where)
-Continue to complete your UWG 40 requirements for this
class (bring your passport with you in your bag everywhere you go)
ü August 23
“Practicing Civility in a College Setting”
Goals for the Semester (pgs. 39 and 46 in Keys)
For next class:
-Print out the policy statement and syllabus, reread it, and formulate questions about it
-Continue your Experience Journal
-Read chapter three in Keys to Success
-Go to and write about campus events/complete your UWG 40 requirements
ü August 30
Speaker: Dr. Micheal Crafton—“What College Professors
Expect You to Know”
For next class:
-Continue your Experience Journal (it would be a great idea for you to write about Dr. Crafton’s visit, perhaps even writing on the topic “What College Professors Need to Know About Me”)
-Read chapters five and six in Keys to Success (pay close attention to pgs. 131, 136, and 140-148)
-Go to and write about campus events/complete your UWG 40 requirements
ü September 6
“Learner, Know Thyself” and “Wrangling your Resources: The University Writing Center, the
For next class:
-Continue your Experience Journal
-Read chapter eight in Keys to Success
-Go to and write about campus events/complete your UWG 40 requirements
-Remember, for next class we meet at the main entrance inside RBD library
ü September 13
Activity: Library session with Ms. Shirley Lankford.
Meet inside Irvine Sullivan Library on the main floor for library instruction
session
For next class:
-Library scavenger hunt handout due
-Continue your Experience Journal
-Read chapter nine in Keys to Success and complete the exercise on pg. 267 before class
-Go to and write about campus events/complete your UWG 40 requirements
ü September 20
Turn in library scavenger hunt and discussion of your library experience
Speaker: Sylvia Short, student development—“Diversity”
Mid-term inventory assigned
For next class:
-Continue your Experience Journal
-Go to and write about campus events/complete your UWG 40 requirements
-Work on your mid-term inventory
ü September 27
Speaker: Professor John Sturgis—“Self-Staging”
For next class:
-Continue your Experience Journal
-Mid-term inventory is due
- Go to and write about campus events/complete your UWG 40 requirements
ü October 4
Speakers: student panel—“The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly: How to Make it at UWG”
Turn in mid-term inventory
For next class:
-Continue your Experience Journal
-Read chapter four in Keys to Success, and focus on pg. 103 in particular
- Go to and write about campus events/complete your UWG 40 requirements
ü October 11
“Critical: Your Thinking Has to Be”
Moral Dilemma group work
For next class:
-Continue your Experience Journal
-Read chapter ten in Keys to Success, focusing particularly on pgs. 304-310
-Go to and write about campus events/complete your UWG 40 requirements
ü October 18
Speaker: Debra Dugan—“Wellness in a Campus
Culture: From ‘Just Say No’ to ‘Just Say
Whoa’ and Everything in Between”
For next class:
-Continue your Experience Journal
-Go to and write about campus events
ü October 25
Speaker: John Olle,
For next class:
-Continue Experience Journal
-Go to and write about campus events
ü
November 2
TBA
For next class:
-Continue Experience Journal
-Read chapter 11 in Keys to Success (pay attention to pg. 342)
-Go to and write about campus events
ü November 9
“Money Matters: Where’s Your Dough Coming From, and Where’s it Going?”
Group Work (pg. 342 of Keys to Success)
For next class:
-Continue Experience Journal
-Go to and write about campus events
ü November 16
“I Can’t Take It Anymore!: Winding Down and then Gearing Up”
For next class (November 29th):
-Completed Experience Journals Due along with complete campus-event write ups—all will need to be in your composition booklet
-Read chapter seven in twelve in Keys to Success, paying close attention to pg. 358’s exercise (start thinking about how you’d complete such a list)
ü November 22
No Regular Class:
Have a Happy
ü November 29: last day of classes
Course Evaluations
Final inventory/assessment assigned
Completed Experience Journals Due
“Keeping it Together: Surviving College Whole”
Final Exam Period: TBA (your final inventory/assessment will be due at my office at the end of the exam period)