1. Class Participation (10%): Participating in class is a must. This is a significant portion of your grade (basically one-and-a-half letter grade!) so it’s imperative that you contribute to class discussions. I appreciate any well-intentioned participation in class discussions but I am more happy when you say something that shows me that you’ve carefully read the assigned readings for that day. I will carefully note through the semester those students who are actively engaging with the assigned readings.
2. Attendance (5%): I will take attendance once a week at the beginning of class. No more than one unexcused absence and two excused absences will be allowed. For excused absences, I will need official written documentation.
3. Quizzes (4 X 10 = 40%): There will be four major quizzes during the semester, each covering one quarter of the material in the course. The quizzes will generally consist of multiple choice and short essay questions covering the material discussed in class since the previous quiz. The quizzes will last 15 minutes and be given at the beginning of class. See the schedule for dates of the four quizzes.
4. Book Discussion Papers (2 X 10%): Students will be required to submit on September 29 and October 13, two short (about 2-3 pages) book discussion papers on the books Frankenstein and Laika, respectively. I will hand out specific prompts about out a week before the assignments are due. Please submit hard copies in class. I will not accept papers e-mailed to me.
5. Final Research Paper (25%): Click here for full details.
6. Presentation (10%): This will consist of one short (no more than 10 minutes) in-class presentation. Presentations will begin on November 21, with four students presenting per day. I will draw up a schedule within the first month of the semester. The presentations will essentially be a way for you to share the topic of your final paper with the class. You will organize your presentation around a set of images and/or videos (no more than 3 minutes for a video clip) and provide a summary of the historical issues at stake in your topic. There will be no makeup presentations.