Course Syllabus

Galveston College/Spring 2016                                                                                                               Introduction to the Humanities I: section 1600.                                                                                     Instructor: Michael Berberich/N-317                                                                                                       Office Ph: 944-1323/Email: use Canvas email*

*It is actually against federal regulations for an instructor to reply to a student about course content via anything other than an internally secure system.

Course Description, Requirements, Policies & Objectives: a Detailed Syllabus

Required Text: The Humanities through the Arts by Martin and Jacobus, 9th ed. There are also a handful of important supplemental handouts and online sources that are required and will be covered in graded work for the course. These supplemental handouts clarify material the nuances of which students have sometimes struggled with; the handouts can be found on the Pages icon link on the course menu bar at the upper left hand side of the page..

Course Description from Catalog: An interdisciplinary, multi-perspective assessment of cultural, political, philosophical, and aesthetic factors critical to the formulation of values and the historical development of the individual and of society.

Instructor’s Mission Statement: This semester this course is designated as a QEP (Quality Enhancement Program) core course for the purpose of fulfilling Galveston College's current accreditation study.  Special "Deep Reading" techniques will be implemented in the course to develop students' reading skills with college level texts.  As an introductory course, the general mission is as follows: to provide a broad overview of what the humanities encompass, how they "work," and who some of the major practitioners and critics are within each area of the humanities. Students will learn about important artists in each discipline and the names of their major works, about the specialized uses of language (concepts) within the humanistic disciplines, and some basic methods of criticism and the roles of criticism within culture. The goals for the course are limited and focused. They are as noted below.

Three Overarching Goals: An overarching goal is to introduce students to ways of informed response when encountering major disciplines of study within the humanities. To that end we will provide:

1) a broad overview of the general history, major artists, and important works in each of the following areas: film, photography, drama, literature, painting, music, dance, sculpture, and architecture;

2) an introduction to some of the vocabulary as used within each field or academic discipline;

3) an awareness of basic theory in each discipline as well as to present some of the approaches used by critics commenting upon works and artists in each of the above areas in the humanities.

Attendance: Students are expected to attend all lectures and laboratory periods, and an accurate record of each student's class attendance is kept by each instructor for the duration of the course. Moreover, students learn from one another in the course; it is not solely a matter of what the student takes from a course. Any student who misses 10% of the total clock hours of instruction, i.e., 2 class days in a one-meeting-per-week class without excused clearance or make-up meeting with the instructor may be withdrawn from class by the instructor with a grade of "AWN." Students and the instructor are expected to report to class on time. At the discretion of the instructor, tardiness may be treated the same as an absence and the AWN policy may be applied. If an AWN is processed before a student completes the drop procedures, the "AWN" will become the grade of record. The student, instructor, and financial aid office will receive copies of the AWN form. Programs with special attendance requirements mandated by local, state, or national accrediting or professional agencies will observe the agency attendance requirements which affect student certification, registry, or licensure, as well as those of the College. All special attendance requirements must be approved in writing by the Vice President of Instruction. Absences that are part of special services to the college such as when a student represents the college in some way are automatically excused, though students are responsible for learning what they missed on that day.

Workload: the course is loosely organized in thirds, culminating with an online test at the end of each third. This course is front end loaded, which is an accounting term that means you pay for things up front. Unlike many courses where the hardest part comes at the end as you go into final exams, in this course the hardest part is that first part leading into the first test. It is hard because not only will you have to learn general information and specialized nomenclature, you will at the same time be exposed to what for many of you will be new ways of thinking and seeing. And you will have to learn it fast. Once the proverbial light bulb clicks on, however, everything else in the course comes relatively easily: from there on mostly you just apply what you have learned to new situations in the arts.

In addition to the three tests there will be a short personal reflection or personal experience paper; there will Perception Key homework assignments; there will also be an exploration and listing of humanities resources that you will find and post in Angel drop boxes via Hot Tips/Hot Links Drop Box that will be tallied as points with the accumulated points counting as a grade with the weight of one paper or test. So there will basically be five equally graded areas.

I will assign homework questions you provide paragraph-long answers to. They will be taken from little shaded box areas in the textbook referred to as Perception Keys. These assignments can be found in the Discussion Board/Drop Box components of the course. The discussion board postings are required through the first test, with test bonus points awarded for their completion prior to the test. After that you can post them as you wish. I think of them as a primary form of test preparation, however, so I encourage you to complete them so I can offer help and feedback. After you have posted your own work, feel free to read the answers that others have posted and the feedback others in the class have received.

Assignments: Timeframe for Covering the Reading and Writing Content of the Course

Note: There are Perception Key, Discussion Board, and Hot Links writing assignments for nearly every chapter of the course. Look for these icons under Discussion Board and Hot Links on the menu icon for the course.

A Note on Due Dates: I know that many of you work jobs and have family life to attend to and thus will create a timeframe that matches your schedules and available hours. This course seeks to accommodate that need. The timeframe for the readings, therefore, is malleable and can be adjusted to your own needs. You can complete the readings before the class period (recommended) or after the class period.  Just don't let yourself fall way behind. The reading due dates are there to evenly distribute the work in the course in such a way that we will complete the course on time. I won't be penalizing you if discussion work is not completed on the exact date listed in the timeframe. However, test dates are firm, and if you are not current with the reading you will likely penalize yourself on the test results.

Week I (January 19-24, 2016): Under the Lessons icon for the course read "Meet the Instructor" (optional); “Mission Statement” and "What Are the Humanities?"; and in our textbook by Martin and Jacobus read Chapter 1: An Introduction (1-17); for the required online visit to the French Cave Paintings in Chauvet, France read “The Cave Today” and view all images in “Visit the Cave”  http://www.culture.gouv.fr/culture/arcnat/chauvet/en/; lastly a required web visit: http://africa.si.edu/exhibitions/past-exhibitions/visions-from-the-forests-the-art-of-liberia-and-sierra-leone/ (compare the key concepts that seem to be the focus of this exhibit to any words that seem to denote key concepts you learn in the first three weeks of this course).

Week II (January 25-31, 2016): Read Martin and Jacobus Chapter 2: What Is a Work of Art? (18-46); under the Angel course home page under Lessons Required Handouts read Essential Concepts (Form-Subject-Content-Participation {this handout, which supplements the material in the book, is the most important handout in the course}); there is a separate handout on Participation that can be extremely helpful, I believe, but it is an optional reading. Deep Reading skills will be introduced.

Week III (February 1-7, 2016): Read Martin and Jacobus Chapter 3: Being a Critic of the Arts (47-62); under Lessons/Required Handouts icons read Romanticism & Classicism {this handout is probably the second to the most important handout of the course}; read Required handout on Ray Carney's theory of art and the role of criticism. Under the course Lessons file, under the Public Portfolio icon check the drop box and discussion board for recommended Perception Key writing assignments for each chapter; also under Lessons/Required Handouts read the Handout about Provenance.

Week IV (February 8-14, 2016): Read Chapter 4: Art (63-94). Under Lessons/Required Handouts icons read Understanding Archetypes; visit Required Website: (Mark Harden’s excellent art site) at http://www.artchive.com/artchive/R/rembrandt/aristotl.jpg.html

Week V (February 15-21, 2016): Read Martin and Jacobus Chapter 14: Is It Art? (352-378); and under the Lessons/ Required Handouts icons read Ray Carney & Quotes on criticism. Again under the course Lessons file, under the Public Portfolio icon see the drop box and discussion board for recommended Perception Key writing assignments for each chapter.

Week VI (February 22-28, 2016): Review of material; preparation for first test.

Test #1: March 2, 2016.  Test covers chapters 1, 2, 3, 4 and 14, plus any assigned Perception Key responses, links, and handouts.  There will be an online overview of the test posted under the Lessons/Tests/Study Guides icon on Canvas. However, because the material in the first test is so challenging, we will do some review the week before the test and then I will review and handle questions prior to the test on the day of the test. Since the test will not be three hours long, we will continue our progression of chapters as noted below.

Week VII (February 29-March 6, 2016): Read Martin and Jacobus Chapter 5: Sculpture (95-125); visit Required Weblink to Rosen Outdoor Sculpture Gardens at Appalachian State University; http://www.rosensculpture.org/ (see Discussion Board for related writing assignments).

Week VIII (March 7-13, 2016): wrap up chapter 5 sculpture; in class lecture on architect David Wright, creator of the term  "passive solar architecture." Read Pages handout on Passive Solar Energy.

March 14-18, 2016: Spring break, college closed.

Week IX (March 19-24, 2016): read Martin and Jacobus Chapter 6: Architecture (126-170); visit Required Weblinks on architects Antoni Gaudí and Julia Morgan (Pages icon, handout on architects); also see Pages handout on architectural terms (Architectural Galveston); see Discussion Board for related writing assignments.  There will be an optional tour of my post-Hurricane Ike new house designed by architects with the architects present.

Easter Break" March 25-27, 2016.

Note: Graded Reaction Paper Coming Due April 8, 2016: Since you have just completed the photography chapter, one of the options under the Test/Reaction Papers icon is a fun photography option wherein you go out and take your own sequence of photos, trying to apply what you have learned in the photography chapter to your own new photos and then writing about the experience.  These must be new photos, not a re-purposing of past photos you took before reading this chapter. 

Week X (March 28-April 3, 2016): Read Martin and Jacobus Chapter 11 Photography (278-303); visit Required Website: Duane Michals "Things Are Queer" sequence at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8zFI_j3E2nk

Week XI (April 4-10, 2016): Read Martin and Jacobus Chapter 12: Cinema (304-352); Under Lessons/Required Handouts icons read "Robert Bolt: Dramas of the Threatened Self"; visit required websites: American Film Institute (http://www.afi.com) checkout their—The Top 10 lists of movie genres; Under Lessons/A Night at the Movies icon view selected excerpts of filmic concepts; read Martin and Jacobus Chapter 13: Television and Video Arts (read only pages 333-336 & 348-351).

Week XI (April 6, 2016): Test review in class

Due Date Coming Up April 8, 2016: Reaction paper due online by 11:59 pm using the Canvas Assignments page or under my door by 9:30 pm. Friday, April 8, 2016.  Reaction paper proposals and feedback from instructor and class will take place in class the two class periods before the paper is due.

Test #2 (objective online component due April 14, 2016): Multiple choice component of the test must be completed online by 2:00 pm, Thursday, April 14, 2016.  Test essays can be turned in through Friday. April 15, 2016.  Arrangements can be made with instructor to take hard copy of the multiple choice part of the test.  There will again be an online overview of the test posted under the Lessons/Tests/Study Guides icon on Canvas.  The test covers chapters 5, 6, 11, 12, and 13 as well as any assigned links or Required Handouts. 

Week XII (April 11-17, 2016): Read Martin and Jacobus Chapter 9: Music (excerpts, read 225-235 [skip 230]; 238 {Sonata/Symphony} - 242; plus read and listen to material on the Musical Magical Mystery Tour icon on the Lessons page.  Read excerpts from Chapter 10: Dance (256-259; 267-272). Read short selections from Chapter 15: Interrelationships between the Arts (379-380; 395); Read Chapter 16: Interrelationships of the Humanities (402-404).

Week XIII (April 18-24, 2016): Read Martin and Jacobus Chapter 7: Literature (171-178; 188 {Dickinson}-196; plus Literature icon on Required Handouts); visit Required Website: Academy of American Poets and browse until you find any three poems that you like. 

Due Date coming up for online work, May 2, 2016: All hot links and discussion board writing must be completed (they can be turned in earlier in the course, if you wish).

Week XIV (April 25-May 1, 2016): Read Martin and Jacobus Chapter 8: Theater (excerpts 199-204; 212-24);  Plus review Edward Albee link "How to Read a Play"; discussion of Albee's theory of art; final exam preparation.

Week XV (May 2-4, 2016): Test #3 Review; wrapping up: Test #3 covers Chapters 9, 10, 15, 16, 7, and 8 plus all required links and handouts.

Final Exam: 7:30-9:30 pm, May 11, 2016.

 

Plagiarism/Cheating: Throughout college you will be encouraged to work with one another, to collaborate on projects, and to give feedback on the work of others. These are all desirable activities. You cross over a line, however, when the work you submit is essentially the work, the ideas, the research, or the writing of someone else. That “someone else” might be someone you know or it might be uncredited work taken or paraphrased from the internet. Using cut and paste from a website can also constitute academic fraud, and it would behoove you to know that there are some pretty sophisticated ways teachers have for finding the original sources of cut and paste work. Academic dishonesty is a serious transgression which undercuts one of the fundamental premises of higher education. Therefore, any form of plagiarism or cheating can result in disciplinary action ranging up to automatic failure of the course and even expulsion from college. If you have any doubts about what is or is not acceptable, always consult your instructor. Always err on the side of caution. Your reputation for integrity and your classroom and professional future depends on your honesty and accuracy.

Assigned Work and Calculation of Final Grade: There will be three tests, one short “reaction” paper, and an aggregate score for finding and listing in an identifying sentence or two humanities events of note and links to interesting websites related to the various work in each of the three parts of the course. An extra credit paper can be completed to make up for any low grade in another area of the course. These grades will be weighted equally.

Late Work: Homework dates are malleable, according to the needs of your own busy schedules. If you must miss a test, however, inform the instructor prior to the absence or as soon after the emergency as possible. In college you should never just assume that if you miss a test you can just waltz on in and be assured of taking the test at some later time. Missed tests must be made up expeditiously and can only be made up with permission of the instructor. Extensions for appropriate reasons may be granted by the instructor. Late tests may be penalized by having a maximum grade of C.

Grading Philosophy Statement: Each grade in this course measures a standard of accomplishment. Grades are not awarded for showing up or for effort; they measure accomplishment. Graded assignments will be accompanied by a grading rubric that will inform students of the targeted knowledge, skills, or the application of skills that are measured along a continuum of accomplishment

Grades: Each essay, test, or exam will be assigned an A through F letter grade using a 4 point scale where A=4.0; B+=3.5; B=3.0; C+=2.5; C=2.0; D=1.0; and F=0. All of the above assignments will be weighted equally. There will be a grading rubric for the letter grade evaluation of each essay assignment. For mathematically scored tests, the translation of mathematical grades into letter grades will be as follows: 100-93=A; 92-88=B+; 87-83=B; 82-78=C+; 77-70=C; 69-63=D; <63=F.

(As a point of merit, the Fall 2006 edition of the National Education Association journal Thought & Action contains a well-supported discussion of grading theories titled “Common Errors in Calculating Final Grades” by Richard W. Francis {15}. My system as delineated above is consistent with best practices.)

At the end of the semester an average of 4.0-3.6 will garner a final semester grade of A. It is not the policy of Galveston College to recognize (+) and (-) grades, which is also why a 92 or a 91, which means A- (less than A) is assigned the grade of B+. The good news there is that the mathematical weight of a B+ in the final averaging is 3.5. An average of 3.0-3.5 will earn a final semester grade of B. A grade average of 2.0-2.9 will earn a grade of C. A grade average of 1.4-1.9 will earn a grade of D, provided all graded work has been completed. If all three tests are failed, the earned grade will be F, regardless of other work.

Bibliography/Sources of Research Related to Grading:

Elbow, Peter. Writing with Power: Techniques for Mastering the Writing Process. New York: Oxford University Press, 1981.

Francis, Richard W. “Common Errors in Calculating Final Grades.” Thought and Action 22 (2006) 15-22.

"A Conversation with Kathleen Blake Yancey, Kellogg W. Hunt Professor of English at Florida State University." Lee College English Department Fall 2014 Colloquium. 21 Aug. 2014. Interview.

Specific Details on Learning Outcomes: As part of the college’s accreditation and review, the college is required to gather data that documents learning. The educational nomenclature for this measuring of learning is “institutional effectiveness.” The ideal learning outcome, we have been told, should have zero subjectivity, i.e., it should be as objective as possible, and it needs to be measurable. To this end, the Humanities instructors have agreed upon three measurable, objective criteria which successful students in a college composition course should be able to perform. The degree to which these objective criteria have been learned during the semester will be tested during the semester prior to the final exam. These outcomes are by no means the entirety of what will be learned in the course; they are simply five objective measures that can be looked at in data form to demonstrate to a degree that learning is or is not taking place in the class.

For Humanities 1301: the formal learning outcomes are as follows:

#1) Outcome 1.4 Read, reflect, and respond critically to a variety of texts.

Measurement = 1.4.1 Students will be assigned a composition requires them to synthesize and respond critically to

#2) Outcome 4.1: Identify works from major historical eras, movements, and cultures (such as world, colonial and indigenous cultures).

Measurement = 4.1.1: Learners will be able to articulate key components of 5 major eras, movements, or cultures and demonstrate application of key components by naming/describing works in 5 one-page (150 words) written entries in a humanities portfolio.

Instructor’s note: Various assignments within the regular workload of the course, such as the Reaction Paper requirement and writing topics posted on the Public Portfolio, can also be used to fulfill this requirement of the course.

 

Use of Outcomes: Although outcomes scores may come from graded material such as tests, the reported scores are gathered and recorded for the purpose of internal institutional research and improvement of instruction and student learning.  The State of Texas or any accrediting agency may also ask for additional information based on this research.

Students Rights and Responsibilities: The college’s statement about student rights and responsibilities can be read in the “Rights and Responsibilities” section of the Student Handbook; also pages xx-yy of the 2015-2016 Academic Planner distributed to students during registration cover student rights and responsibilities.

Cell Phones/Smart Phones: Cell phones and ipads need to be turned off. If you anticipate the need to take an important call, inform your instructor prior to class and find a seat near the front door of the class.  Restricted use of phones and pads that access online resources will be allowed such as specific occasions warrant.

Tutoring: I will personally set an appointment at a time convenient to the both of us to get together and work on anything you might need help with via phone all or in a public place. I also hope you will embrace the learning college/emotional intelligence concepts adopted by the college by perhaps finding a partner or group of partners to study and review your writing and questions with.

Keys to Student Success Initiative: As part of Galveston College’s re-accreditation process, the college is required to create a Quality Enhancement Plan (QEP) to improve a specific key area of college life. Our last ten year-long QEP project looked into contemporary research about student learning and success. From that the college embedded key principles of emotional intelligence into courses such as this one.  Our new ten year QEP works on helping students become better readers of college-level textbooks.  To that end vocabulary is essential and will be emphasized within the course and on tests. QEP initiatives may include developing emotional intelligence but also collaborative workshops, peer study groups, and student needs surveys. This course may include assignments that reinforce some of these stated values.

Office Hours: see syllabus posted on Whitecaps portal.

Student Conferencing: You can always email me on e-Learning/Angel or call for an appointment by email or by phone. I really am amenable to meeting in whatever ways will help you ith the course.

Problems: If you should have problems or complaints abut the course that you cannot resolve by talking with your instructor, your next step would be to visit the Division Chair, Mr. Theron Waddell in N-345 or by phone at 944-1333 (x333 from on campus).

Syllabus Disclaimers: It is the policy of Galveston College to provide equal opportunities without regard to age, race, color, religion, national origin, gender, disability or veteran status, Galveston College coordinates compliance activities for Title IX/Sex Equity and Section 504/ADA-Disability through the Vice President of Academic Affairs, Dr. Cissy Matthews at (409) 944-1204. Galveston College is an ADA 504 compliant institution and does have a special needs counselor available. Please contact Ms. Jayne Withers in counseling at (409) 944-1221 to address any difficulties in this area. Students should inform the instructor of any special need(s) as soon as possible to ensure that such need(s) is/are met in a timely manner.

 

Review of College-Wide Important Dates:

February 3rd = Last day to apply for Spring graduation                                                                             March 25-27 College closed for Good Friday break                                                                                      April 14th = last day for student to withdraw and receive a W.                                                                     April 14th = last day instructors may submit a student withdrawal for AWN                                               

*Note: grades turned in as Incomplete will be for exigency situations where approximately ¾ of the work of the course has already been completed. An Incomplete must have the student’s signature, the instructor’s signature, and the dean’s signature, plus a written plan and timeline for completing the required work, papers, and testing.

Congratulations! By the end of the semester you will have completed for grades 3 tests, 1 short paper, plus discussion topics and sets of research links. There is also an extra credit paper (see icon on home page) that can replace your lowest score in any other area except for the Outcomes, which are mandated for re-accreditation purposes. Thus you will have five grades, so to figure your grade just add up the gpa points and divide by 5; you can check the grading policy above in this syllabus.

 

This fully updated detailed Humanities 1301 syllabus was uploaded on Canvas on January 19, 2016 early am.