Attendance, participation, and short exercises = 10%
Essays, exams, and presentation = 90%
10% Attendance, Participation, and Short Exercises: This grade is determined by your performance on in-class assignments, and homework, productive participation in in-class and online discussions, and regular attendance. I will drop the lowest two of these grades. You cannot make up these grades, so choose your absences wisely.
I expect you to attend all class meetings because success in this course depends on your attendance and participation. The College of Arts and Sciences policy states that if you miss more than six classes, for any reason, you must either withdraw from the course or receive an F as your final grade. I do not distinguish between excused and unexcused absences, so use discretion in choosing whether or not to miss any particular class meeting. If you miss class, I assume you have a good reason to do so. Nevertheless, you will receive a zero on in-class work for any missed day. You are responsible for all material covered and assignment deadlines regardless of the reason for an absence. You should trade contact information with at least two other classmates for the purpose of sharing missed handouts, announcements, and class notes. If you expect to be away from campus or otherwise miss a deadline, notify me beforehand and arrange to submit work early.
Productive participation in this class counts substantially toward your grade. Read all assigned material prior to the assigned class meeting so that you are prepared to ask questions and contribute voluntarily to class discussions. Further, an important component of productive class participation is active listening and respectful engagement with the ideas and questions of your classmates. I will evaluate your participation in class discussions based on the relevance of your questions, the level of intellectual engagement with the material in your comments, and your ability to discuss course topics—even controversial ones—with respect for your classmates. In short, I am looking for you to demonstrate that you have read, thought about, and can intellectually discuss the assigned material.
30% (2 x 15%) Two Exams: Essay format. Each exam will focus on familiarity with themes and materials studied during the previous unit. Because this course continually builds on previously acquired understandings, each exam will also require familiarity with themes and materials studied earlier in the semester. In this way, exams will ask you to think critically, applying previously learned concepts to new questions.
30% (2 x 15%) Two Short Critical Essays (4-5 pages each): Each critical essay will demonstrate the student’s in-depth understanding of a particular text from the previous unit while also engaging in a sophisticated manner with course themes.
20% Seminar Paper and Conference Presentation (10 pages): This longer essay is the culmination of your research and writing in the course. It demonstrates your synthesis of course themes across the semester in a focused critical analysis of one or two primary course texts. During our final exam period, you will present your paper to the class as part of our formal paper conference. Your professional conference presentation of your finished paper is worth 10% (or about one letter grade) of your seminar paper grade. Students may not make up missed conference presentations.
10% Introductory Presentation and Discussion Lead: During the semester, each student will be responsible for preparing a short presentation and leading the class in discussion during one class session. Students will work in groups (group sizes will be determined by class size) and will sign up for presentation dates early in the semester. Students may not make up missed presentations.
I will provide detailed assignments and grading rubrics here and on Blackboard.
