Syllabus for RSK 420: Religious Terrorism 1
Texas A&M
University
Central Texas
Class Location:FH 313
Class Hours:M 6:00 - 9:00
Instructor:Floyd Berry, PhD
Office:FH 217G
Office Hours:MWR 1:00 – 5:00
Phone:254.519.5705 (prefer Bb message)
Email: (prefer Bb message)
1.0Course Description
Examines the religious motivations, support, and tactics behind the phenomena of domestic and foreign terrorism.This course may be used to satisfy a minor in Religious Studies. Religious Studies is the study of religions and religious phenomena from an academic perspective, drawing on a number of disciplines, such as anthropology, sociology, psychology, philosophy, political science, and history.
2.0Accessing Blackboard (Bb)
This is a lecture course with online components in Blackboard (Bb). The student accesses Bb on the TAMUCT website (“Quick Links”). The student may get assistance 24/7 by phone.
3.0Course Objectives
1. Students will be able to relate the phenomena of religious terrorism.
2. Students will be able to describe the religious motivations for terrorism.
3. Students will be able to define terrorism as a distinct form of violence.
4. Students will be able to describe the organizational and resource prerequisites for terroristic campaigns.
5. Students will be able to relate the consequences of terrorism in both general and specific ways.
4.0Required Textbook
Juergensmeyer, M. (2003).Terror in the mind of God: The global rise of religious violence
(3rded.). Berkeley: UC Press. ISBN: 9780520240117
5.0Course Requirements
5.1Exams (400 pts)
The student will take two exams, a mid-term and a final. Each exam is valued at 200 points. The student has a maximum of 90 minutes to take the exam, given immediately after roll call. The exam window closes, however, when 90 minutes has elapsed. Exams will take aboutan hour to complete, on average. The mid-term exam is reviewed during the subsequent class period. The exams are essay in nature, and the student must use a blue book. The student is advised to review his work before submission.
5.2Class Participation (100 pts)
The student is expected to participate in class discussions. The student earns a point for full attendance on a specific day (appears on time and does not leave early). He earns another point for participating in class discussion. (No points are awarded on exam days, however.) Thus, the student earns 0-2 points on each class day (total of 13 days), which translates into the following grade for class participation in the course:
Points / Grade / Points / Grade26 / 100 / 16-17 / 75
24-25 / 95 / 14-15 / 70
22-23 / 90 / 12-13 / 65
20-21 / 85 / 10-11 / 60
18-19 / 80 / 0-9 / 0
5.3Reaction Comments (100 pts)
At the conclusion of each class (except the Final Exam), the student will submit a Reaction Comment (RC), due before midnight. In Bb, the student will send an email to the instructor, reacting to material discussed or experienced in class. A few sentences are sufficient. The student expresses his reaction to something discussed or experienced (such as the mid-term exam) in class. The reaction may be emotional, cognitive, insightful, positive, negative, or neutral. A mere summary of material discussed in class, however, is insufficient for credit. The student shall identify his email with the heading of RC1, RC2, etc., as indicated in the Course Calendar. Please use only RC1, RC2, etc. for credit. An inaccurate heading may result in no credit.
# of RC’s / Grade / # of RC’s / Grade14 / 100 / 7 / 50
13 / 93 / 6 / 43
12 / 86 / 5 / 36
11 / 79 / 4 / 28
10 / 72 / 3 / 21
9 / 65 / 2 / 14
8 / 57 / 1 / 7
5.4Academic Honesty
During the first week of class, the student is to read the section in the syllabus on Academic Honesty and the material at the Purdue University OWL website regarding plagiarism. The student must sign the document on Academic Honesty and return it to the instructor. NOTE: The student will not be allowed to continue in the course without notifying the instructor of his comprehension of this material (by signing the document and submitting it to the instructor).
5.5Monitoring Bb for Announcements
It is the student’s responsibility to monitor Bb daily for Announcements and revised Course Calendars. Failure to do so may result in poor scores.
5.6Term Paper Topic (50 pts)
On 10/3/16, the student shall present to the class (orally) the topic of his term paper. This should take about 2-5 minutes.
5.7Term Paper Presentation (150 pts)
On 11/28/16 or 12/5/16, the student shall give an oral presentation of his term paper to the class and field questions. This should take about 10-15 minutes.
5.8Term Paper (200 pts)
On 11/28/16, the student shall submit a term paper, using APA guidelines. The paper shall compare the religious justifications given by two separate terrorist groups for their violent agendas. The two groups may belong to the same or different religious traditions. The student may cite portions of the textbook as a source or sources of information. In addition, however, the student must cite at least four articles from peer-reviewed academic journals from the TAMUCT library website. The student must cite a minimum offive sources, therefore, four of which must be peer-reviewed. It is strongly advised that Juergensmeyer’s book be used as a source as well. These must be legitimate sources, however, contributing unique information to the term paper.
The paper shall conform to the APA (American Psychological Association) Manual (6th ed.), having a cover page, an abstract page, and a references page. The body of the paper shall have section headings and be at least 6 pages in length, double-spaced. Thus the complete term paper shall consist of at least 9 pages of a Microsoft Word document, including a cover page, abstract page, body of paper, and references page. The typeface shall be either Calibri or Times New Roman, size 12. The paper shall have a header with page number.(Choose Insert, Page Number, Top of Page, Plain Number 3.) The student shall use
normal margins (1”).
The student should avoid the use of second-person pronouns and “etc.” Under no circumstances shall the student quote any portion of any source. Instead, the student shall usehis own words in conveying the meaning of cited source material. Points will be deducted for using these forbidden items or for the use of sentence fragments (incomplete sentences). At least a sixth-grade level of grammar must be used in your paper. The student should review his paper before submission and make needed changes.
The cover page shall include the following information, centered on the page:
An Examination of (the topic)
John Smith (student’s name)
RSK 420-Religious Terrorism
Texas A&M University-Central Texas
The words “An Examination of” may be omitted, in accordance with APA guidelines. The student shall use the “running head” feature of APA.
NOTE: Do not submit the term paper to turnitin.com. The instructor will do that.
Qualities & Criteria / Poor / Good / ExcellentFormat/Layout
- Presentation of the text
- Structuring of text
- Requirements of length, font, and style
- APA style
(0-30 pts) / Mostly follows the requirements related to format and layout.
(31-35 pts) / Closely follows all the requirements related to format and layout.
(36-40 pts)
Content
- Elements of topics to be addressed
- Information is correct
- Coherency
(0-63 pts) / Essay is mostly objective and addresses most of the issues. Provided information is mostly necessary and sufficient to discuss the issues.
(64-71 pts) / Essay is objective and addresses all the issues. Provided information is necessary and sufficient to discuss the issues.
(72-80 pts)
Quality of Writing
- Clarity
- Grammar and English usage
- Organization and coherence
Continued / Essay is poorly written and contains flagrant spelling and grammatical errors. Essay is poorly organized, lacks clarity, and incoherent.
(0-30 pts) / Essay is mostly well-written, without spelling or grammatical errors. Essay is well organized, is clear, and ideas are presented in coherent ways.
(31-35 pts) / Essay is well-written, without spelling or grammatical errors. Essay is well organized, clear, and ideas are presented in coherent ways.
(36-40 pts)
Citations, References, & Style
- APA style
- Sources correctly cited regarding content of sources
(0-30 pts) / Essay mostly follows APA guidelines and sources are (mostly) cited correctly for content.
(31-35 pts) / Essay follows APA guidelines and sources are correctly cited for content.
(36-40 pts)
6.0Grading Rubric and Conversion
6.1Rubric
Points
Exams (2 @ 200) / 400Class Participation (13 days) / 100
Reaction Comments (14) / 100
Paper Topic (10/3) / 50
Presentation (11/28, 12/5) / 150
Term Paper (11/28) / 200
Academic Honesty Document / -----
Total: / 1000
6.2Conversion to Course Letter Grade
Points % Grade
900 – 1000 / 90 – 100 / A800 – 899 / 80 – 89 / B
700 – 799 / 70 – 79 / C
600 – 699 / 60 – 69 / D
0 – 599 / 0 – 59 / F
7.0Course Calendar1
Date Topics/Activities Readings2 Assignments Due3
8/22 / Academic honestyCourse requirements
Religious Studies / Academic honesty/plagiarism readings (see document)
Syllabus / RC1 due by 11:59 p.m.
8/28 / Introduction to Religious Terrorism / J, ch 1 / Academic Honesty document is due
RC2 due by 11:59 p.m.
9/5 / Holiday – No Class
9/12 / Christian Terrorism / J, ch 2 / RC3 due by 11:59 p.m.
9/19 / Jewish Terrorism / J, ch 3 / RC4 due by 11:59 p.m.
9/26 / Islamic Terrorism / J, ch 4 / RC5 due by 11:59 p.m.
10/3 / Sikh Terrorism / J, ch 5 / Term Paper Topic Due
RC6 due by 11:59 p.m.
10/10 / Mid-term Exam (J, chs 1-5) / RC7 due by 11:59 p.m.
10/17 / Review of Mid-term Exam
Terrorism as Performance / J, ch 7 / RC8 due by 11:59 p.m.
10/24 / Cosmic War / J, ch 8 / RC9 due by 11:59 p.m.
11/7 / Enemies and Martyrs / J, ch 9 / RC10 due by 11:59 p.m.
11/14 / Empowerment / J, ch 10 / RC11 due by 11:59 p.m.
11/21 / Religious Justification of Violence / J, ch 11 / RC12 due by 11:59 p.m.
11/28 / Presentations / Term Paper Due
RC13 due by 11:59 p.m.
12/5 / Presentations / RC14 due by 11:59 p.m.
12/8 / Final Exam (J, chs 7-11)
1 Events are subject to minor revision
2J = Juergensmeyer, Terror in the mind of God (3rded.)
ch = chapter
chs = chapters
3 All assignments are due at 6:00 p.m., unless otherwise noted
8.0Academic Honesty
TAMUCT expects all students to maintain high standards of personal and scholarly conduct. Students guilty of academic dishonesty are subject to disciplinary action. Academic dishonesty includes, but is not limited to, cheating on an examination or other academic work, plagiarism, self-plagiarism (“recycling”), or collusion. The instructor shall initiate action for each case of academic dishonesty and report it to the Associate Director of Student Conduct. Zero points will be assigned for any course product that violates academic honesty. The student should access this link for more information:
9.0Disability Support
If you believe that this course may present barriers to learning due to a disability, please contact Access and Inclusion at (254) 501-5831 in Warrior Hall, Ste. 212. For more information, please visit theirwebsite at Any information you provide is private and confidential and will be treated as such. The instructor cannot accommodate your disability unless you communicate with Access and Inclusion.
10.0Tutoring
Tutoring is available to all TAMUCT students, both on campus and online. Subjects tutored include Writing (APA). Tutors are available at the Tutoring Center in Warrior Hall 111. Visit click “Tutoring Support” for tutor schedules and contact information. If you have questions or need to schedule a tutoring session, contact Academic Support at 254-501-5830 or email .
11.0Writing Center
The University Writing Center (UWC) at Texas A&M University-Central Texas is a free workspace open to all TAMUCT students. The UWC is located in Warrior Hall, Rm 416. The Center is open 11 am - 6 pm, Monday-Thursday during the Spring semester. Students may work independently in the UWC by checking out a laptop that runs Microsoft Office suite and connects to WIFI, or by consulting the resources on writing, including all of the relevant style guides. Students may also arrange a one-on-one session with a trained and experienced writing tutor. Tutorials can be arranged by visiting the UWC. Tutors are prepared to help writers of all levels and abilities at any stage of the writing process. Sessions typically last between 20-30 minutes. While tutors will not write, edit, or grade papers, they will help students develop more effective invention and revision strategies.
12.0Late Work
As a rule, make-up work for term paper topic, term paper, presentation, and exams will not be accepted. In rare instances, however, the mid-term exam may be offered, but with a 20-point deduction (evidence pertaining to a serious emergency will be considered for such a makeup). In no instance will a make-up be offered for the final exam, and in no instance will a make-up for an exam be given after two weeks from the original exam date. To be considered as a prospect for making up an exam, the student must contact the instructor within 24 hours of having missed an exam for purposes of making it up. A request for make-up, of course, may or may not be granted. The final course grade will be posted within a few days of the final exam; therefore, no incompletes will be awarded for this course. If the student foresees that he will be unable to complete the course, then he should either drop the course or accept the posted grade.
13.0Modification of the Syllabus
This syllabus may be revised in minor ways at the discretion of the instructor. The student is responsible for noting any changes in the syllabus. More than likely, a change in the syllabus will pertain to events in the Course Calendar (sect. 7.0). A revised course calendar will be posted on Bb.
14.0Contact with the Instructor
The student should contact the instructor via the message feature of Bb about any topic or issue that pertains to the course.
15.0Announcements
The student is responsible for checking Bb for ongoing announcements pertaining to the course.