ENG 5 is designed to give you the reading skills you need to be successful in college-level courses and in life.  In it you will learn a variety of skills to help you better understand, remember, and communicate what you read.  You may not choose to use them in every class, but you will have them when you need them and want them.

To learn these skills, you'll work with three major units related to the Great Depression and the New Deal, and one unit on a topic of your choice.

• Unit 1: Literature. You'll read fiction related to the New Deal and the depression.  You'll become familiar with some of the terms of literary analysis used in later college courses, will apply them in analyzing the short stories we read, and will consider how the information you acquire from fiction differs from the information you derive fom other kinds of written material.
• Unit 2: History.  You'll study "The New Deal, 1933-1940," a chapter from Making America, the textbook used in History 121.  You'll try on and try out a variety of study skills designed to help you master the material.
• Unit 3: Research Skills. You'll examine some documents related to the New Deal and the Depression. You'll learn to read argumentative pieces critically by (a) analyzing the arguments and support they contain and (b) evaluating the credibility of the sources.
• Unit 4: Research Project.  You'll research a topic of your choice using the skills you've just acquired.

If you do well in this course, you will be able to:

• Goal 1:  You will acquire the reading, writing, speaking and listening skills necessary to succeed in the reading-related requirements of entry-level college credit courses.

  Using entry-level college reading materials, you will learn to:

  1. relate new information to prior knowledge.
  2. make some predictions about the content of materials you are given to read.
  3. skim and scan for general reading purposes.
  4. differentiate main ideas from major and minor supporting details in written materials.
  5. recognize text patterns.
  6. draw valid conclusions from a variety of basic graphic aids - maps, charts, graphs, diagrams.
  7. develop increased word power on a continuous basis by successfully using context clues, the dictionary, and your knowledge of a word parts on vocabulary presented in context in reading and listening material.
  8. make valid inferences.
     
     
• Goal 2:  You will integrate your reading, writing, speaking, and listening skills to promote thinking and learning.

Using entry-level college materials, you will learn to:

1. define your reading processes.
2. comprehend the literal meaning in different types of readings for different purposes.
3. paraphrase and summarize basic text material without plagiarizing or changing the substantive meanings.
4. use a study method to improve your comprehension and master information in a textbook.
5. take notes from different types of writing and from lectures.
6. use effective test-taking strategies.

• Goal 3:  You will be an active, independent learner able to apply integrated learning strategies appropriate to the reading-related task.

  Using entry-level college materials, you will learn to:

  1. differentiate among most facts, opinions, assumptions, and inferences in reading, writing and speaking.
  2. identify the basic kind of information you need, locate the resources that have it, and retrieve it from them so that you can share it with others in an organized way when given a particular topic.
  3. draw valid conclusions from a variety of basic reading tasks.

• Goal 4:  You will increase your self-confidence in your ability to be an effective reader.

  Using entry-level college materials, you will learn to:

  1. contribute successfully as a member of an academic learning-study group.
  2. develop goal-setting strategies for academic success.
  3. identify individual strengths in reading.

• Goal 5:  You will understand the role of reading in your academic, professional, and personal life.

  Using entry-level college materials, you will learn to:

  1. comprehend and appreciate a variety of written materials for various purposes.

There is no required textbook for this course. All materials will be available online and the links will be provided in Blackboard.

Your course grade will be determined by the activities, quizzes, research project, and exams, according to the following points:

There are 4 proctored quizzes and 1 proctored exam in this course. You are expected to take your examinations at one of the NVCC campus Testing Centers. Be sure to allow enough time to complete your exam before the Testing Center closes; Testing Centers have specific policies relating to the administration of ELI exams. You will need to take a photo ID, your NovaConnect empl ID number, and the appropriate Exam Pass when you go to the Testing Center.  

For Testing Center locations, hours of operation and policies, click here.

For information on taking exams outside of the metropolitan area, click here.

We are here to help you succeed in this course. Occasionally questions or problems may arise. Here is how to contact us when they do:

E-mail : nmctaggart@nvcc.edu, Telephone : (703) 878-5799
ELI : (703) 323-3347 during my ELI office hours
You may also call me to schedule a meeting in person, either at ELI or my campus office in Woodbridge. 

E-mail: pdeguzman@nvcc.edu, Telephone : (703) 450-2505

1. Use your web browser to connect to http://www.nvcc.edu/bbstart. Follow the directions to determine your email, Blackboard and VIVA account user names and passwords.
2. Access your email account and make sure you know how to use it; you will be required to use this account for all course-related email.
3. Log on to Blackboard at http://nvcc.my.vccs.edu.
4. Click on this course under "My Courses." Review the entire course to make sure you understand what will be required of you. Then start completing the assignments.

Please note that account generation takes approximately one week from the time of your paid registration. If you cannot log on after one week, contact the IT Help Desk. If you can log on to Blackboard, but your course isn't listed, please contact ELI or your instructor.