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English 153 is made up of fifteen Learning Modules corresponding to the number of weeks in the semester. All of the course content is located on the class Blackboard website, so you do NOT need to purchase a lab book at the bookstore.
To receive credit in English 153, you must
- Complete all 15 Learning Modules and the final exam, AND
- Earn a minimum of 280 points out of 400 possible assessment (quiz and final) points.
To make normal progress in this lab, each week, you will complete a Learning Module by reading about words that share spelling patterns or challenges and taking "assessments," or quizzes, on the material. The assessments may come in two or three parts and have varying point values; the ideal is to score at least 70% on each quiz to earn enough points for credit. The reality often is that students will excel on some lessons and may be frustrated by others.
If you are not performing well on the assessments, you should seek help from the instructor or from a tutor at the Writing Center or Watsonville ILC.
Course Tools
You will communicate with the class entirely through your Blackboard account. To the left of our class homepage, you will find an ever-present navigational bar with links to course "assessments" (quizzes), assignments, calendar, discussions, learning modules, mail, and web links helpful to the study of spelling. Below these valuable tools, you can also access your current grades, progress, and take notes. You can learn more about accessing and using each of these tools by clicking on "Help" in the upper right corner of the Blackboard screen while using any function.
Here are some more detailed explanations of these tools for completing and navigating the class material and your own progress.
 Calendar:All suggested due dates are here for Learning Modules and Assessments, as well as holidays and registration deadlines. Your weekly modules are due by noon on Mondays. Calendar reminders may pop up when you log in or they may be announced via class emails. A list of due dates also follows below.You are invited to work ahead in the lab
 Learning Modules: This is the "meat" of the course, and where you'll find all the lessons and assessments (quizzes) that go with them. There are fifteen Modules. You will get the most out of the spelling lab if you spread the work out over the semester and periodically review the material. We recommend that you complete at least one Learning Module each week. You may complete more than one module a week.
 Assessments: Complete these only after reading the corresponding lesson in each learning module. Most assessments can be attempted twice for a higher score, and you will have 45 minutes per assessment. Assessment questions may come in the following forms: fill-in-the-blank, matching, multiple choice, short answer, true/false, and combinations of possible correct answers. With the exception of true/false questions or others where only two choices exist, you may attempt most answers twice. Quizzes are worth 20 points each. The final is worth 100 points. In general, you want to receive at last 70% to earn credit. This means you want to receive at least 16 out of 20 for quizzes and at least 70 out of 100 for the final.
 Announcements: from time-to-time, one of these will pop up when you open Blackboard, to alert you of changes, new materials, deadlines, etc.
 Mail: all students have Blackboard email for communicating questions to the instructor and to each other. You should check email a least once/week for reminders about course deadlines and other announcements.
 Syllabus: you're reading it now! Course policies and information.
 Web Links: useful links designed to help you improve your spelling, writing, editing skills.
 My Grades: this is where you can check your points on various assignments. A running total of your class points appears at the top of this page next to "Final."
 My Progress: displays your activity in accessing the lab in general.
 Notes: just a place for you to save your own notes
Calendar
The class calendar, including all suggested due dates, may be accessed at any time from your Blackboard homepage.
Beginning the first week of classes, your work is due by midnight every Sunday. Allow three hours and 10 minutes per week to read the lesson(s) and complete the accompanying exercises. Students may work ahead.
RECOMMENDED PROGRESS & DUE DATES
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Week 1
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Orientation
ie and ei words Part 1
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Week 2
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ie and ei words Part 2
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Week 3
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Introduction to Prefixes and Suffixes
Vowel Suffixes Part 1
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Week 4
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Vowel Suffixes Part 2
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Week 5
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Prefixes, Consonant Suffixes
Compound Words and Final -y Words
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Exceptions to the Rules
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Week 7
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Plurals
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Week 8
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Frequently Confused Words 1
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Week 9
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Frequently Confused Words 2
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Week 10
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Frequently Confused Words 3
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Week 11
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Apostrophes
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Week 12
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Capital Letters
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Week 13
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Using Pronunciation
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Week 14
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Troublesome Words
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Week 15
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Academic Words
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Week 16: due Wed of Finals Wk
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Final Exam
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Grading & Cheating
To receive credit in English 153, you must:
- Complete all 15 Learning Modules and the Final, and
- Earn a minimum of 280 out of a possible 400 points by successfully completing assessments.
As a goal, you should try to get at least 70% on each assessment and the final, but you can make up for a poor performance on one quiz by doing well on another because it's your overall total that matters at the end of the term. When you view "My Grades," you will see your running total in italics in the row labeled "Final" at top of the page.
100L is a Credit/No Credit class. If you are not performing well on the quizzes, it is recommended that you seek help from the instructor or from a tutor in-person at the Writing Center or Watsonville ILC.
You must complete all your work on your own or under the guidance of the instructor or a writing tutor. Students caught intentionally cheating may be dropped or earn a "No Credit" grade.
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Writing Center & Watsonville ILC Contact Information
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Writing Center Phone: 831.479-6319, Fax 831.477.5251
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Writing Center Director (Diane Putnam): 479-6184, diputnam@cabrillo.edu
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Writing Center Hours (Aptos Campus) Monday through Thursday: 8 AM to 9 PM; Friday 8 AM to 2:30 PM
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Writing Center Website: http://www.cabrillo.cc.ca.us/divisions/english/writcenter/
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Watsonville Integrated Learning Center Phone: 831.477-5155
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Watsonville ILC Coordinator (Tera Martin): 831.477-5152
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Watsonville ILC Hours: Monday through Thursday 9 AM to 8 PM; Friday 9 AM to 4 PM.
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Watsonville ILC Website: http://www.cabrillo.cc.ca.us/affiliate/watsonville/
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You are now ready to proceed to Learning Module 1.
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