General Information
My office is in the Administration Building, Room 212-9. Phone is 520-5274.Office hours are as follows:
- Monday: 7:10 - 7:45 AM, 10 AM - 11:30 AM
- Wednesday: 7:10 - 7:45 AM, 10 AM - Noon
- Friday: 7:10 - 7:45 AM, 10 AM - Noon
They are also by appointment (on MWF) as needed. Remember: I check e-mail ([email protected]) daily. Texts Required and/or recommended:
John McKay, et al. A History of World Societies to 1715. 6th ed. (ISBN 0618301968)
(Strongly Recommended) Webster�s New World College Dictionary, 4th ed. (ISBN 0028634748)
Reminders and General Policies
Students are expected to attend class regularly and arrive promptly. Late arrivals are a distraction to others in the class and a form of disrespect. The first three lates will count as one absence. After that, two lates will equal an absence. More than six (6) absences will result in a grade of FE--failed for excessive absence. It is the responsibility of the student to ask for, and sign, the late book in order to be counted present.
Make-up exams or in-class assignments will be given only to students with excused absences. Make-up exams will be a time convenient to the instructor. I find 7:30 or 8 AM a convenient time. I shall probably have one 6:45 AM make-up session for all missed exams late in the semester.
Cheating may result in a grade of F, as set out in the Faculty Handbook, section IV. Cheating is the attempt to get credit for work that is not completely one's own, and/or giving unauthorized "help" to another student. Communicating during a test, whether verbally or by trying to read another student's work, is cause for dismissal from the room and a grade of F for the exam.
Cell phones and beepers MUST be turned off and put away before entering the classroom. The owner of a ringing phone or beeper will be excused from class and counted absent. Xavier also has a rule stating that there is to be no eating or drinking in classrooms.
How to Study
You are responsible for keeping up to date on the reading. The ideal way to prepare is to read the assigned chapter quickly (without underlining or highlighting) before the first lecture of the chapter; listen to the lecture, taking outline-type notes on unfamiliar information during the lecture; then writing up your notes in narrative form, within a day of hearing them, referring to the text for clarification. I will tell you in advance which sections of the reading are particularly relevant to the lectures. Pay attention to the chronologies and special sections. (If you choose to tape lectures, your recorder must be where you are sitting. )
Lectures supplement the text, provide background and information from other sources, and are an attempt to tie things together and note relationships between the period under discussion and other times, places, and cultures. They are not "giving notes." You should develop the skill of making outline notes from lectures. Any additional material that I think you might need will be placed on reserve at the library, and it will be your responsibility to read it and make a personal copy of it if you wish.
Exams and Quizzes
Most exam questions will call for answers that are brief essays and short paragraphs. There will be brief general vocabulary quizzes and I may give unannounced very short quizzes at the start of classes as a check on your reading and comprehension of the previous lecture. I may also give occasional short writing assignments as homework. You must use complete sentences for all types of written answers. Numerous spelling and grammatical errors put me in a negative mood for judging your ability to communicate the answer.
Vocabulary Review quizzes are based on words found in the texts. They are designed to enhance your comprehension of text materials. You should use a dictionary to check the definitions, pronunciation, and etymology. If you miss a vocabulary quiz, you must make it up before the next one if you want it to count in your grade.
Short Papers
There will be several short papers (150 - 300 words.) These will be summaries of relevant material. They should be typed and well-written grammatically, with no typos. They must not have any quotations and care must be taken to avoid having phrases from source material creep into the writing. I will give plenty of advance notice about the topics. Papers turned in after the start of class will be penalized for lateness.
Grading
Grading is as follows for both the midterm and final grades:
- 70% exams (total points scored divided by total points possible)
- 10% short papers
- 15% quizzes, homework, etc. (total points scored divided by total possible)
- 5% classwork, participation, attitude, etc.
Letter grades are on a ten-point scale, with 60 being the lowest passing grade.
Please note that there is no "mid-term exam." Your midterm grade will be based on the work you have done to date.
There is ample opportunity throughout the semester to do additional outside reading for bonus points on exams.
The unit exams will usually be less a class hour long. The final exam is scheduled for 120 minutes. It will be comprehensive and will test your ability to organize and categorize a large body of information and your ability to see cross-cultural patterns. It usually includes the exam on the last unit.
Final exams are scheduled as follows:
- Section 2 (MWF 8) will be at 10:30 AM on Thursday, December 8.
- Section 4 (MWF 9) will be at 1:30 PM on Wednesday, December 7.
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