Pacing Guide

Note: You can go at your own pace in this course. Starting on September 5, 2023, you may finish the course as soon as you are able. This means there are no weekly due dates within the course. However, there is a final completion date requirement. You must finish this course no later than 11:58 PM on December 20, 2023 — and you must finish the first seven units the week before (no later than 11:59 PM on December 13, 2023), leaving one final week to complete the final unit. You cannot submit anything after Dec. 20. Your grade for this course will be submitted at the end of the semester.

Because your instructor will typically take several days to closely review and grade your assignments, it is strongly recommended to submit assignments following the pacing guide — or earlier! — to avoid waiting to submit multiple assignments with either deadline looming.

The following is an example of a pacing guide to help you through this course. A typical semester is 16 weeks in length (4 months). Note, that this is a sample pacing guide. You are not required to follow it. You may choose to go at a faster pace. Make sure to talk to your mentor about your pacing plans for assistance.
Semester Deadlines

The Fall 2023 semester runs from September 5, 2023 through December 20, 2023.

UNITS 1-6 HAVE A FINAL DUE DATE OF DECEMBER 13, 2023, AT 11:58 PM.

UNIT 7 HAS A FINAL DUE DATE OF DECEMBER 20, 2023, AT 11:58 PM.

Assignments

Below is a listing of all of the assignments in the course, in order, followed by the total points possible for each.

  • UNIT ONE: September 5 – September 20
    • Unit One Quiz (10)
    • Introduce Your Uniqueness (10)
    • Syllabus Quiz (2)
  • UNIT TWO: September 21 – October 6
    • Unit Two Quiz (10)
    • Draft Personal Narrative Essay (2)
    • Peer Response (Personal Narrative Essay) (5)
    • Revision Plan (Personal Narrative Essay) (5)
    • Personal Narrative Essay (150)
  • UNIT THREE: October 7 – October 22
    • Published Restaurant Review Essay (10)
    • Unit Three Quiz (10)
    • Draft Restaurant Review Essay (2)
    • Peer Response (Restaurant Review Essay) (5)
    • Revision Plan (Restaurant Review Essay) (5)
    • Restaurant Review Essay (150)
  • UNIT FOUR: October 23 – November 7
    • Comma Quiz (24)
    • Unit Four Quiz (10)
    • Draft Print Ad Analysis Essay (2)
    • Peer Response (Print Ad Analysis Essay) (5)
    • Revision Plan (Print Ad Analysis Essay) (5)
    • Print Ad Analysis Essay (200)
  • UNIT FIVE: November 8 – November 23
    • IEE Idea Guide Quiz (10)
    • Unit Five Quiz (10)
    • Evaluating Sources Assignment (10)
    • Source Integration Assignment (10)
  • UNIT SIX: November 24 – December 12
    • Unit Quiz Six (10)
    • Annotated Bibliography Assignment (50)
    • Draft Issue Exploration Essay (2)
    • Peer Response (Issue Exploration Essay) (5)
    • Revision Plan (Issue Exploration Essay) (5)
  • UNIT SEVEN: December 13 – December 20
    • Issue Exploration Essay (200)
    • Reflection Paper (50)
    • Closing Remarks (15)
    • Ready to Submit (1)

The total points possible in the course is 1,000.
DUE DATES

The assignments in the final unit are due on the final day of the semester, with no exceptions. All assignments in previous units are due one week before the final day of the semester. No late submissions will be accepted for credit so please plan ahead and avoid waiting until the last minute (when a technical issue, power outage, emergency, etc. can occur).

  • Unit One: September 5 – September 20: 16 days
  • Unit Two: September 21 – October 6: 16 days
  • Unit Three: October 7 – October 22: 16 days
  • Unit Four: October 23 – November 7: 16 days
  • Unit Five: November 8 – November 23: 16 days
  • Unit Six: November 24 – December 12: 19 days
  • Unit Seven: December 13 – December 20: 8 days

Scheduling Your Studies

What may also work best for you is to set a daily schedule that is based on your normal daily events, with studying for this course set after a specific daily event. For instance, you might work on this course every day after breakfast or after a morning shower. Or, you might set a schedule where you work on the course on weekdays after getting home from school or work. Or it could be after an afternoon nap, after watching Jeopardy, or anything else.

The key, for me, has been to do it after I finish something else, which I do every day. After a few days, my mind is automatically preparing for that work at that time — whether it’s after a meal, some daily ritual, or whatever else I’m in the habit of doing.

If you can get on a daily schedule, and work as quickly as you can, without skimping on learning what you’d like/need to, I suspect you’ll be done with the coursework well before the end of the semester. That would generally mean more individualized feedback and, thus, a higher grade, too. Plus, you have the rest of the semester to yourself!

Writing well, fortunately, is a skill, so anyone could do it. However, it takes preparation/study, and practice/hard work, to improve and do well.

So, please get to work without delay. The coursework is unforgiving for those who delay beginning.

If you have any questions, about any of this, please ask! I am happy to help you!