Its impact continues to be widespread and profound, raising a number of important questions at various levels of analysis. As such, the class offers a forum for developing critical thinking and problem solving skills through the reading material, class discussions, numerous short writing assignments, workshops, and role-playing exercises. Lectures will actually be constituted largely by class discussion of reading materials and writing assignments, and the workshops will offer a variety of exercises geared toward group problem solving, critical analysis, and the discussion of issues extending from those addressed in the Monday and Wednesday reading materials. This course is set up to elicit as much student participation as possible. The degree to which it works depends on how much you work.
Attendance is obviously a key element of being able to participate actively, and is required.
More than three unexplained absences will result in a ten percent reduction of your grade. Three of the five writing assignments and the first midterm occur in the first half of the course. These will allow you to have a good assessment of your progress in the course before the drop deadline. The midterms and final exam will consist primarily of short answer questions and one to two longer essay questions requiring synthesis of reading materials and your own critical analysis of the topics under review. Thus not only content but writing style and cohesiveness will be assessed.