Valencia College
Twentieth Century Humanities
Fall 2017
HUM 2250 – CRN 15435
ONLINE FORMAT
Tests are online. Final Exam is a Manifesto-style paper that
MUST BE SUBMITTED BY 11:59 PM on December 10, 2017
Dr. Keefe
Contact Information / Course Access / Textbooks /Blackboard email is preferred. In our class, click the Messages tab. Create a new message and select “Jennifer Keefe (Instructor)” as the “To.” In an emergency you may email me at but Blackboard mail is preferred.
Office Hours: I answer emails within 24-36 hours (Monday-Friday). My office is at Osceola Campus, building 3, 3-19F. Please call or email before coming.
If you send me a phone number and time to call you via Blackboard messages we can also talk by phone. You can also call my office at (407) 582-4823. / Prerequisites: Minimum grade of C in ENC 1101 or ENC 1101H or IDH 1110
Course Access: at learn.valenciacollege.edu. Make sure you are using Mozilla Firefox for your web browser and not Safari or Internet Explorer. Firefox can be found by doing a google search for “Mozilla Firefox download.” You will not see all the elements of the class in any other web browser.
Once you are in Firefox, find the Blackboard online course system at learn.valenciacollege.edu you will log in with your Atlas username and password. / Fiero, Gloria The Humanistic Tradition Book 5, Seventh Edition
You MUST have the Valencia version of the book
Fitzgerald, F. Scott The Great Gatsby
THE REQUIRED TEXTS ARE AVAILABLE AT THE CAMPUS BOOKSTORE
Other Readings: will be posted to the learning modules on our Online Courses page.
***IMPORTANT NOTE: Think of this syllabus as a contract. You are agreeing to complete the planned assignments and tests online. I am agreeing to provide you with a positive learning environment and the tools you need to understand the lessons we are covering. REFER BACK to this syllabus throughout the semester to know what you should be working on and what my expectations are***
This course is an integrated examination of dominant ideas in Western culture expressed in art, literature, music, philosophy and religion. It covers the time period from the turn of the Twentieth Century to the present. We will focus on creative forces that have shaped contemporary consciousness from the pioneering work of Einstein, Picasso, Stravinsky and Wright through the dominance of objective consciousness to the newly emerging guiding myths of today.
This is a Gordon Rule course; therefore you will be required to demonstrate college-level writing skills through multiple writing assignments. You must get a C in this class, or better, to satisfy your Gordon Rule requirement.
Through this course, you will also strengthen your reading, English language, note taking, essay writing, and time management skills. It is my hope you will also have a clearer view of the difference between fact and opinion.
Valencia Student Core Competencies:Valencia's Student Core Competencies are complex abilities that are essential to lifelong success. These general competencies can be applied in many contexts and must be developed over a lifetime. They specify how learning can be expressed and assessed in practice. They enable students and faculty to set learning goals and assess learning within and across the many disciplines of human inquiry. For more information, go to www.valenciacollege.edu.
The core competencies include: /
Think – Think clearly, critically, and creatively. Analyze, synthesize, integrate and evaluate in many domains of human inquiry.
Value - Make reasonable value judgments and responsible commitments.
Communicate - Communicate with different audiences using varied means.
Act - Act purposefully, respectfully, and responsibly.
My Philosophy: Some of us learn by reading. Others learn by listening. Most of us learn by doing. My philosophy is that the best way for me to reach the greatest number of you is to combine online lectures with discussion groups, projects, individual “field trips” (online), and textbook readings to make the class both informative and interesting. Like all things, if you come into the class with a positive attitude, you will come out of it with more than if you come into it believing you “have” to do this.
Attendance Policy: You are expected to do the online work because you do not have to come to class. You are expected to complete assignments on time, or by the end of the late grace period (24 hours past the due date listed on the syllabus). Please do not email me missed assignments.
Anyone who does not log into the class for 8 consecutive days to check messages and announcements and submit assignments will be contacted by the professor. If you fail to reply in the time designated in the email you may be withdrawn from the class at the Professor’s discretion.
Time Commitment: You should expect to spend an “average” of six to eight hours a week on course-related activities. I strongly recommend that during the first week of a two-week Module you open each of the assignments due the second week and get a sense of what I am looking for from them before you read. This will help you in formulating your answers to those questions.
MISSED ASSIGNMENTS DO HAVE A NEGATIVE IMPACT ON YOUR GRADE, SO PLEASE WITHDRAW YOURSELF IF YOU DO NOT PLAN TO CONTINUE WITH THE CLASS.
IF YOU HAVE A PROBLEM THAT PREVENTS YOU FROM ACCESSING THE CLASS, TALK TO ME FIRST – DO NOT JUST DISAPPEAR. IF YOU HAVE AN ISSUE WITH THE ONLINE COURSE SYSTEM, CONTACT THE SYSTEM TECH SUPPORT AT or (407) 582-5600. You must get a trouble ticket number in order to be allowed to make up assignments. Contact Blackboard Help with any technical issue, including Lockdown Browser issues. You may want to cc me on any emails you exchange with them.
There are deadlines for each of the Learning Modules in the class, and if you don’t complete a module/assignment I will not reopen it unless there is a documented problem with the Valencia Online Course system (i.e. a system failure or a problem for which you called the Help Desk on your own and got a Trouble Ticket number, which you need to provide to me.) I encourage you to set aside a specific day and time each week to concentrate on this class. All deadlines are outlined in the Course Schedule, which is part of the syllabus. There is no makeup for the papers in this class, including the final paper.
Course Requirements:
Papers: You will write TWO assigned papers for this class in order to comply with the class’s Gordon Rule status, in addition to the final paper, which is more free-format. Topics are discussed on the page of the syllabus after the course schedule and will be detailed in the assignments online where you will submit them. These are thinking papers, not regurgitating papers. Papers are to be typed, double spaced, MLA or APA format, and uploaded as to the appropriate assignment as .DOC or .DOCX files. I cannot open Open Office or Works files. Please do not send me them.
Do not use www.wikipedia.com or about.com or similar sources, including Cliff’s Notes or Sparknotes, as a source for information as I do not consider them to be reliable. Each paper requires a Works Cited page but outside research is discouraged. Your readings, discussions, and your own knowledge should be enough to write these papers.
Do not plagiarize in this class. Do not use contractions or “I” in your paper; state your opinions declaratively. Do not simply look things up on the Internet and write a paper from them.
Tests: You will take two non-cumulative online tests for this course. Specifics on areas to review, as well as test formats, will be addressed in the online study guides in the learning modules. Test formats may include, but are not limited to: multiple choice, matching, and short answer. All tests are timed by the online course system but you will have to keep track of your own test time and make sure you submit the test on time. Tests submitted more than five minutes past the limit will receive a minimum 10 point score deduction.
The Online Assignments- Each Module corresponds to a particular chapter, or part of a chapter, in the textbook, with the exception of the Start Here Module and the 19th Century Module. For each chapter-related Module, there will be an exercise for you to complete BEFORE you read the textbook. I would recommend completing that one the day the Module opens and then doing the reading before completing the rest of the work. Each assignment has a specific due date and Modules do close on time. All assignments open on Mondays at 9:00 a.m. EST. The Explore Before Reading closes the following Monday. The rest of the assignments close the second Monday after they open. The last module closes at 9: 00 am on Monday, December 4th.
All assignments should be answered in complete sentences, unless otherwise specified. Most can be answered in a short paragraph. The only assignments I require to be uploaded as “attachments” are the major papers for the class. I recommend you keep a copy of all assignment responses for the class. That said, please do not upload every assignment as a Word document. Reserve document uploads for the three major papers.
Within the online assignment modules, you will also encounter Discussions with your peers. These Discussions are mandatory for the class. Please post an appropriate number of posts and replies (usually one of each, except the Great Gatsby discussion) by the due date. I do take points off for late discussion posts. Your “parent” post should offer a meaningful reply to the question, explaining your response in a minimum of 200 words. Your “reply” to a classmate should offer insight into why you agree or disagree with their ideas. Do not simply state “I agree.” Your reply should explain your agreement/disagreement in detail and be at least 100 words. Instructions on how to create a post and reply are in the first discussion in the Start Here module.
Assignment Policy: **If you are unable to complete a Module during the allotted time, and you notify me before the Module closes of a valid emergency situation, an exception may be possible.
This is a Gordon Rule class. Failure to complete any of the THREE REQUIRED MAJOR writing assignments will result in the student receiving an “F” for a final course grade.
Special Dates /Keep track of important dates for the College, including exam sessions and vacations at http://www.valenciacollege.edu/calendar/ or on the Valencia College website at www.valenciacollege.edu.
Classes begin - August 28, 2017
College Closed – September 4th, October 10th, November 22-26
Drop Deadline – September 5th, 11:59pm
No Show Reporting Period – September 6-15. - If you have not completed the Start Here module or posted anything to the first learning module, on The 19th Century, by September 15th, I will drop you from the class. If you post something and decide not to stay, IT IS YOUR RESPONSIBILITY TO CONTACT ME AND TO WITHDRAW.
Withdrawal Deadline for "W" grade – November 10th
Final Module Due – December 4th at 9:00 am
Grading Scale / Grade Composition /
A 1830-1647 / Papers 10/2, 10/30) = 180 points EACH - you write 2, for 360 points
Manifesto Project (12/10) = 180 points
B 1646-1464 / Tests (these are the due dates) (10/16, 12/8) = 100 points EACH — total 200 points
C 1463-1281 / Online Activities =1,090 points
D 1280-1098
1097 and below F
Academic Honesty: This course is designed to make you a more educated consumer of the arts. Becoming more educated means presenting your own thoughts and ideas, and not the work of others, even if your thoughts are not popular or even if you do not believe they are the right ideas. For many questions, there are no wrong answers. If you are caught cheating on an assignment or test, you will receive a zero, which cannot be made up. Plagiarism, and any other form of academic dishonesty on one of the three major writing assignments, will earn you a failing grade for the class. The punishment will be based on the severity of the offense.
Sample Paper Grading Rubric:(5 = outstanding, 4= very good, 3=average, 2=fair, 1-0=poor or not present)
Intro Paragraph (organization, content, thesis statement) / 5 4 3 2 1 0Depth of discussion of thesis in supporting paragraph #1 / 5 4 3 2 1 0
Depth of discussion of thesis in supporting paragraph #2 / 5 4 3 2 1 0
Depth of discussion of thesis in supporting paragraph #3 / 5 4 3 2 1 0
Thoughtfulness of concluding paragraph (restate thesis and conclude thoughts) / 5 4 3 2 1 0
Demonstration of spelling, grammar, sentence structure and punctuation skills / 5 4 3 2 1 0
Other Points Of Interest:
• We are an online class and there will be a lot of online discussions with people you don’t really know and don’t get to meet face to face; therefore, in this class you must be respectful of others’ opinions. Feel free to disagree, but do it in an appropriate way.
If you have a disability or other issue that requires special dispensation, notify me before the second week of class. THIS INCLUDES THE NEED FOR EXTRA TIME TAKING TIMED TESTS. DO NOT ASK ME TO GIVE YOU EXTRA TIME FOR A TEST UNTIL YOU HAVE PROVIDED ME WITH OSD DOCUMENTATION. All requests will be kept in confidence. Students with disabilities who qualify for academic accommodations must provide a letter from the Office for Students with Disabilities (OSD) and discuss specific needs with me before expecting accommodations. OSD determines accommodations based on appropriate documentation of disabilities. Contact them on the Lake Nona Campus or any campus. They can email me your paperwork at .