Newspaper
Course Syllabus
Mr. Glover
Fall 2007
Room 252
Phone: (720) 423-6251
Planning: 1:26pm-2:51pm Purple and White Days
joe_glover@dpsk12.org
Course description
The newspaper production course is one
of the few classes where there is a final product that
reflects the students' hard work and effort. That final project is The Gargoyle, South High School’s student newspaper. The Gargoyle is a 16 page
student newspaper published eight times each year. The course follows objectives and standards
outlined by Denver Public Schools, with emphasis on practical
experience. The course will require
some after-school work, especially during deadline week. This course will cover the Colorado Model Content
Standards for reading and writing. For
a complete description of these standards you can visit the following
website: http://www.cde.state.co.us/cdeassess/documents/standards/read.htm#standards
Responsibilities
Students will come to class prepared to work every day
with no exceptions. Cell phones,
pagers, CD players, and other similar electronic devices will
not be permitted in class. If a
device is visible or audible, it will be confiscated and turned over to a
dean. Soda and candy will not be permitted in class; however, bottled water
will be allowed in areas away from the computers. All South
High School polices will be
followed in class, and each student will be respectful to his or her self and
others in the classroom.
Attendance and Tardy policy
Regular
classroom attendance is required to be successful in this course. On the
third unexcused absence a parent/guardian conference
will be required with the Counselor and the Academic Dean. Students may be assigned
to the Academic Success Room to complete missing course work and obtain
tutoring assistance. Students with habitual attendance issues may be placed
on an attendance contract, face legal intervention
through State attendance laws or may be referred to an alternative school.
Students who fail courses and do not obtain credits will be required to
attend after-school credit recovery courses. Habitually truant students over the age of
16 may be withdrawn from school by an administrator. The Assistant Principal
of Teaching and Learning will notify the parent/guardian by phone and mail.
(An appeals process will be developed during the
fall of 2007.)
All students will be granted three tardies in
each class per grading period. On the
second tardy, I will inform parents of the current tardy status and the next
consequence. On the fourth tardy, a
referral will be given to the Dean of Students
listing the dates of the tardies and the date of
parent contact. The student will then
receive an assignment to Saturday School. On
the fifth tardy, the student will receive an in-school suspension and a
parent conference for re-entry into school.
Course Requirements and Grading
Grades are based on the quality
of the issue produced for that month.
Class participation, teamwork, and enthusiasm are
also considered when assigning grades.
If a deadline is missed for stories,
corrections, or ads, the student’s score will drop one letter grade. If all deadlines are met
then the quality of the writing, layout, etc. will be taken into
account. Each student will be
responsible for the following outcomes:
·
Writing news, features,
investigative, and editorial articles.
·
Advertising sales (each student is responsible for $80 in ad sales each semester)
·
Some technical aspect of
production using Microsoft Word, Adobe Photoshop and InDesign
programs on Macintosh computers in the classroom.
·
Editing copy using
Associated Press style.
·
Photography
The following is the grading scale adopted by the
English department for the 2007-2008 school year:
A
– 90-100%
B
– 80-89%
C
– 70-79%
D
– 60-69%
F
– 59% and below
________________________________ _________________________________
Student Signature Parent/Guardian
Signature
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