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Overview

This Departmental Syllabus, which applies to all sections of INRW 0430 across Austin Community College, supplements any section specific syllabus that the instructor may provide. The instructor’s syllabus will include a specific class structure for your section, along with the instructor’s contact information, office hours, the location and time of the course, required books and materials, reading and writing assignments, grading and other policies (such as lateness and attendance), a course schedule of assignments and deadlines for the semester, and the instructor’s description of the course.

The following headings and information may be used in any order to align with the professor’s design, and may include information regarding the prerequisite, INRW 0420. Following the heading and information explanations, a sample INRW 0430 syllabus is provided.

Course Description (4 Credit Hours)

Integrated Reading and Writing Strategies is an eight week four credit hour exit-level course with a required lab that has a prerequisite eight week INRW 0420 course. In this course, students will have the opportunity to become a better reader through writing and become a better writer through reading. Students will read a variety of texts including articles, essays, websites, videos, and visuals.

Course Rationale

The INRW 0430 is redesigned to support students interested in achieving a reading and writing TSI complete status in one semester. Often referred to as an 8×8 or 5×5 during the summer, students must enroll in the prerequisite INRW 0420 eight week course and INRW 0430. Students take the INRW 0420 during the first part of the semester and take the INRW 0430 during the last half of the semester.

Delivery Options

F2F, ONL, DLS, HYC — Distance Learning gives ACC students the opportunity to earn credit through non-traditional courses that are taught fully or partially online. Course content and transferability are identical to classes offered on campus.

Prerequisites

A grade of C or better in the prerequisite INRW 0420 course.

Course Learning Outcomes

After completing this course, students will:

  • Locate explicit textual information, draw complex inferences, and describe, analyze, and evaluate the information within and across multiple texts of varying lengths.
  • Comprehend and use vocabulary effectively in oral communication, reading, and writing.
  • Identify and analyze the audience, purpose, and message across a variety of texts.
  • Describe and apply insights gained from reading and writing a variety of texts.
  • Compose a variety of texts that demonstrate reading comprehension, clear focus, logical development of ideas,and use of appropriate language that advance the writer’s purpose.
  • Determine and use effective approaches and rhetorical strategies for given reading and writing situations.
  • Generate ideas and gather information relevant to the topic and purpose, incorporating the ideas and words of other writers in student writing using established strategies.
  • Evaluate relevance and quality of ideas and information in recognizing, formulating, and developing a claim.
  • Develop and use effective reading and revision strategies to strengthen the writer’s ability to compose college-level writing assignments.
  • Recognize and apply the conventions of standard English in reading and writing.
  • Consider arguments and conclusions of self and others
  • Construct well-reasoned arguments to explain phenomena, validate conjectures, or support positions
  • Gather evidence to support arguments, findings or lines of reasoning
  • Support or modify claims based on the results of an inquiry
  • Use effective pre-reading strategies
  • Use a variety of strategies to understand the meanings of new words
  • Identify the intended purpose and audience of the text
  • Identify the key information and supporting details
  • Analyze textual information critically
  • Annotate, summarize, paraphrase, and outline texts when appropriate
  • Adapt reading strategies according to structure of texts
  • Connect reading to historical and current events and personal interest
  • Write clearly and coherently using standard writing conventions
  • Write in a variety of forms for various audiences and purposes
  • Compose and revise drafts
  • Understand which topics or questions are to be investigated
  • Explore a research topic
  • Refine research topic based on preliminary research and devise a timeline for completing work
  • Evaluate the validity and reliability of sources
  • Synthesize and organize information effectively
  • Design and present an effective product
  • Integrate source material

Student Technology Support

Students who do not have the necessary technology to complete their ACC courses can request to borrow devices from Student Technology Services. Available devices include iPads, webcams, headsets, calculators, etc. Students must be registered for a credit course, Adult Education, or Continuing Education course to be eligible. For more information, including how to request a device, visit students.austincc.edu/student-technology-access (opens in new tab) . Student Technology Services offers phone, live-chat, and email-based technical support for students and can provide support on topics such as password resets, accessing or using Blackboard, access to technology, etc. To view hours of operation and ways to request support, visit austincc.edu/sts (opens in new tab) .

Use and Retention of Student Work

Written artifacts from this course may be used for research and publicity purposes after the course has ended. Papers and anything used will have student names removed to maintain student confidentiality. If you do not want your written work used for these purposes, please send an email to your instructor that states you would like to opt-out. Opting out will have no effect on your grade. Professors will retain either electronic or physical copies of coursework for one semester following enrollment. Students are responsible for making copies of any papers they want to keep for their files.

Section-Specific Policies

Required Texts & Materials

Individual professors will assign required texts and materials for their sections. Students are responsible for acquiring those texts and materials in a timely manner. The section syllabus will indicate if no textbook purchase is required (ZTC) or if open educational resources (OER) are used.

Instructional Methodology

Individual professors will indicate their most common methods for instructing students, including (but not limited to) lecture, discussion, small group activities, writing workshops, and service learning.

Distance Education Information (if applicable)

Sections with any distance education component will specify whether they are fully online, hybrid, or hy-flex and whether they are synchronous or asynchronous. They will also specify any technology requirements for students. This is only required for distance education sections.

Assignment Information

The following are required components of this course. However, individual professors will provide their own information regarding them.

Personal/Autobiographical Essay; sentence construction assignment; response paragraph (ex. Responding to blogs); summary of informational text (3 paragraphs); paraphrase assignment; textbook chapter assignment: (demonstrate reading strategies such as 2 column notes, annotations, concept map, and answer essay question—to simulate test essay question— over material); final Essay: (Include in Portfolio grade)

Grading Policy

Individual professors will provide grading criteria and explain their grading system in detail. Professors may use a range of methodologies to assign grades for individual assignments and for the course, but all assignments (such as essays, in-class writing, quizzes, journals, homework, group work, presentations, etc.) will align with course goals and learning outcomes.

Course Outline / Calendar

Individual professors will provide a course outline/calendar of important due dates for their sections. This outline may include any special themes, units, or guiding principles unique to certain sections.

Attendance / Participation

Individual professors will enforce their own policies for attendance and participation, including whether and how attendance is taken and whether and how participation is assessed. However, early in the semester, all professors are required to certify attendance by a deadline set by ACC. Students who have not attended class by that date will be withdrawn. In online sections, logging into the class learning system (i.e. Blackboard) or completing work may count as attendance.

Withdrawals

Individual professors will enforce their own withdrawal policies based on progress and attendance. However, it is important to know that The Texas State Legislature passed a bill stating that students who first enroll in public colleges and universities beginning in fall 2007 and thereafter may not withdraw from more than six classes during their undergraduate college career. See ACC Student Handbook for further information. The instructor may establish deadlines by which students must complete a specific number of assignments, amount of progress, or level of attendance in order to remain in a class. If students do not meet the instructor’s requirements, they may be subject to WITHDRAWAL from the course. It is the student’s responsibility to know an instructor’s withdrawal policies.

Missed Exams or Late Work

Individual professors will enforce their own policies for missing and late work. This may include whether or not late work is accepted, when it is accepted, and what penalty may be assessed.

Incompletes

Individual professors will have their own policies as to Incompletes as a final grade. Students should be certain that they know what their professor’s policy is.

Academic Misconduct & Plagiarism

Austin Community College values academic integrity in the educational process. Acts of academic dishonesty/misconduct undermine the learning process, present a disadvantage to students who earn credit honestly, and subvert the academic mission of the institution. The potential consequences of fraudulent credentials raise additional concerns for individuals and communities beyond campus who rely on institutions of higher learning to certify students’ academic achievements and expect to benefit from the claimed knowledge and skills of their graduates. Students must follow all instructions given by faculty or designated college representatives when taking examinations, placement assessments, tests, quizzes, and evaluations. Actions constituting scholastic dishonesty include, but are not limited to, plagiarism, cheating, fabrication, collusion, falsifying documents, or the inappropriate use of the college’s information technology resources. Further information is available at austincc.edu/about-acc/academic-integrity-and-disciplinary-process (opens in new tab)

Plagiarism can be defined as using the words and ideas of another writer without acknowledging the debt. Plagiarism takes many forms, including the omission of parenthetical citations, the failure to place quotation marks around direct or modified content taken from another source, and another person writing the essay for the student. It is of utmost importance for students to understand that in academic and professional life, plagiarism of any kind is absolutely unacceptable. Therefore, acts of plagiarism, major or minor, may have serious repercussions, which could include a failing grade, expulsion from the class, and/or disciplinary action on the part of the College. Specific policies can be found in individual faculty syllabi. College policies can be found in the ACC Student Handbook. Plagiarism also includes collusion, a problem that happens when someone other than the student contributes a substantial portion of the essay for the student. Please note that having a friend or paid tutor contribute to a paper in the form of adding content or extensive revising or editing will be considered collusion, a form of plagiarism.

Use of Artificial Intelligence

While the firm expectation for all courses is that student work will reflect authentic (student-generated) effort and original critical thinking, the use of AI tools may support student learning and equip them to engage critically with artificial intelligence academically, professionally, and personally.

Introduction

The Composition and Literary Studies department recognizes that AI technology offers both risks and opportunities for writers. Individual CLS faculty have the freedom to set their own specific policies on whether and how students can use both types of AI in their classes. They may opt to disallow all AI or allow certain types within certain parameters. Please consult individual instructors’ syllabi for policies and information about the seven sections below that are specific to your course or section.

Definition

In setting policies, we think about two types of AI:

  • Instructive AI (Grammarly, Packback, etc.), which can help check existing writing
  • Generative AI (ChatGPT, Gemini, etc.), which can generate writing and images from scratch

Rationale

CLS expects students to put their own effort into each step of the writing process, including generating ideas, drafting, and revising. Even when AI is allowed, it should not substitute for a student’s critical thinking. Instructors may check for individual effort and originality in various ways, including in-class writing, conferences, and peer review.

CLS requires that all final assignments reflect a student’s unique ideas stated in their original words and sentences. Any ideas or phrasing that are not directly from a student must be properly attributed to their sources. Even when AI is allowed, it should not be used to generate content that will be graded as if it were a student’s own.

CLS requires that any use of Generative or Instructional AI, even as part of prewriting, must be documented. Individual instructors will explain their standards and methods for this documentation.

CLS requires that instructors’ individual policies discuss the data privacy, bias, accuracy, and plagiarism risks of Generative AI. Students must be able to make an informed decision before using this technology.

While the firm expectation for all courses is that student work will reflect authentic (student-generated) effort and original critical thinking, individual professors will enforce their own policies on the use and documentation of generative AI technology. Where generative AI technology is allowed, its use must be documented. Instructional AI tools (such as spelling and grammar checking tools, Grammarly, Quillbot, and Packback) are generally considered acceptable aids to writing. However, individual instructors may provide specific guidelines or place certain restrictions on the use of these tools.

Sample Syllabus Structure

The following is an example syllabus showing how an individual instructor might build a section-specific syllabus for INRW 0430. It is reproduced verbatim from the source departmental syllabus document and is intended as a reference for instructors.

Course Header

Integrated College Reading and Writing Strategies — XXXXX INRW 0430 – XXX

2nd 8-week session In Person Class

Mon – Thurs Time to Time

  • Instructor: Professor
  • Office Hours: Days and times
  • Office Location:
  • Phone:
  • Email:

How to Reach Me

  • In person: Visit or call office during office hours, or
  • Conferences: Conferences may be scheduled to accommodate students who are unable to meet with the instructor during posted office hours.

Required Texts

 

Suggested Materials

A two-pocket folder, highlighters, pens, pencils, and other materials will be found on the Internet or provided by the instructor.

Course Methodology

This course is an in-person course that contains lectures, group discussions, group work, to investigate critical thinking topics such as argumentation, deductive reasoning and inductive reasoning. You will have essays and minor homework assignments that will bridge the gap between lecture and praxis.

Course Requirements and Exams

Course Requirements and exams will determine the following percentages of the course grade:

  • Essays – students will write directed essays based on readings given in class.
  • MLA Formatting – students will learn MLA formatting through exercises
  • MLA Citations – students will learn proper Works Cited techniques through exercises

Grading Policy

Grades will be earned on the following basis:

  • A – (90 – 100)
  • B – (80 – 89)
  • C – (70 – 79)
  • D or F – (0 – 69) (Students must repeat the course.)

Attendance and Class Participation

Regular and punctual class attendance is expected of all students. If attendance or compliance with other course policies are unsatisfactory, the instructor may withdraw students from the class. Students who miss more than 2 classes will be at risk of being withdrawn.

Arriving more than 10 minutes late or leaving 10+ minutes early will be counted as part of the two absences. Doctor’s appointments, court dates, college instructor appointments, work for other classes, make-up exams, changes in work schedules, and transportation or child care issues are not acceptable reasons to be absent.

When you are absent, it is your responsibility to ask about what was covered in class(es) you missed.

Submitting Assignments

Be thoughtful and careful as you submit assignments. You only have one chance to submit. If you submit the wrong assignment, you can send it to my email; however, you will incur a 10% penalty.

ALL assignments must be typed and submitted in MLA format that we will learn in this class.

Returning Graded Assignments

Your graded assignments may take anywhere from 24 hours to a week to be returned to you. Please be patient. Remember, this is not the only class I teach.

Withdrawal Policy

It is the responsibility of each student to ensure that his or her name is removed from the roll should he or she decide to withdraw from the class. The withdrawal must be submitted before the Final Withdrawal Date of Month, Date, Year. The student is also strongly encouraged to retain their copy of the withdrawal form for their records. At the halfway point of this class, you will need to be at a 70% passing rate (GPA) or you may not pass the course.

Late Work

You are expected to submit work on the date assignments are due. I will accept your work up to five days late, however I will deduct 5% for each day your work is late. After five days, I will not accept your work. You have my email and you can notify me if your work will be late before the due date. If you contact me after the due date to say your work will be late, that is too late to notify me.

Statement on Scholastic Dishonesty / Plagiarism / Misconduct

A student attending ACC assumes responsibility for conduct compatible with the mission of the college as an educational institution. Students have the responsibility to submit coursework that is the result of their own thought, research, or self-expression. Students must follow all instructions given by faculty or designated college representatives when taking examinations, placement assessments, tests, quizzes, and evaluations. Actions constituting scholastic dishonesty include, but are not limited to, plagiarism, cheating, fabrication, collusion, and falsifying documents. Penalties for scholastic dishonesty will depend upon the nature of the violation and may range from lowering a grade on one assignment to an “F” in the course and/or expulsion from the college. See the Student Standards of Conduct and Disciplinary Process and other policies at Student Standards of Conduct Disciplinary Process Guideline/Procedure

AI, Cheating and Plagiarism Policy

Recently, many faculty members have noticed a rise in cheating and plagiarizing. ACC has a new strict policy in regards to these matters. Because of this, I cannot allow any forms of cheating or plagiarizing. If you are caught cheating or plagiarizing, you will receive a zero on the assignment and be involved in discussions that may involve the department chair, department dean, and dean of student affairs. If you cheat or plagiarize a second time, you will be formally reprimanded and fail the course no matter what your grade in the course. Again, this is a serious offense. Don’t risk damaging your educational career.

Use of Generative Artificial Intelligence

Generative AI is not permitted in this course. GAI is a type of artificial intelligence that can learn from and mimic large amounts of data to create content such as text, images, music, videos, code and more, based on inputs or prompts (Harvard University Information Technology). GAI is prohibited in this course because the course objectives include practicing reading, writing and thinking skills that are foundational to understanding future college level materials, composing original written assignments and thinking for oneself. Generative Artificial Intelligence may not be used to complete the pre or post assessments, daily homework assignments, Discussion Posts or Daily Question Cards, practice essays for the Content Tests, or any item included in the portfolio. Students suspected of using AI to complete assignments may receive a zero for the AI produced work.

Statement about this Department Syllabus

While you are an ACC student, a copy of this syllabus is available on Blackboard in the START HERE menu tab. I am giving you this copy, and if you misplaced it, you can get another copy by printing it from Blackboard. This is a fluid document, which means it is subject to change. If any changes occur, you will be notified when they happen.

Incomplete Grades

An incomplete (grade of “I”) will only be given due to extenuating circumstances. What constitutes “extenuating circumstances” is left to the instructor’s discretion. If a grade of I is given, the remaining course work must be completed by a date set by the student and professor. This date may not be later than two weeks prior to the end of the next semester. A grade of I also requires completion and submission of the Incomplete Grade form, to be signed by the faculty member (and student if possible) and submitted to the department chair. Students may request an Incomplete from their faculty member if they believe circumstances warrant. The faculty member will determine whether the Incomplete is appropriate to award or not. The following processes must be followed when awarding a student an I grade.

IP Grades

The IP (In Progress) Grade is used for students in developmental courses. An IP may be awarded to students who remain in the class, are attending, are progressing, but are not achieving the standards for earning a C or better in the course. The IP grade is a final grade for the term and counts toward the student’s term load but carries no grade points or credit toward graduation. An IP grade does not mean successful fulfillment of the objectives of the course or completion of remediation.

Key Resources

Last updated August 18, 2026

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