INTRODUCTION TO PHILOSOPHY

Course Requirements

Attendance. If you do not plan to attend class and participate constructively, then you should withdraw from this class. A course on philosophy is by its nature aimed at self-examination and discussion; consequently, doing well in this class requires being there. Missing class does not directly affect your grade, although students with poor attendance typically do quite poorly in the class. On the average, students missing more than two classes during a semester receive grades below the class average. During Jan term, one day is equivalent to a week of classes during a normal semester.

Groups. The students in the class will be divided into four groups (seven or eight students per group): the Plato Group, Aristotle Group, Descartes Group, and Kant Group. These groups will function primarily in the following ways: (1) discuss questions at the beginning of each class, (2) work through the learning objectives for each day in preparation for the quizzes, (3) post to, and comment on, the online discussion forums.

Quizzes. There will be a quiz at the beginning of every class (on the readings for the day and material discussed the previous day), and occasional quizzes at the end of the day as well (on what was discussed in class that day). These quizzes help keep each of us informed of your grasp of the material, and should provide additional motivation to stay current with the readings, and to work through the day’s material each evening. [Makeup: Missed quizzes can be made up in my office before the next class meeting. It is wholly your responsibility to make this arrangement.]

Discussion Forums. There will be five discussion forums, and each student is required to post one entry per forum (400-600 words each) as well as comment on two posts per forum (100-150 words per comment). These will be evaluated using these rubrics.

You may write additional comments to increase your score for this grade item.

These forums will take place on ANGEL. Due dates are found on the schedule. NB: You are encouraged to make these postings as early as you wish; you can always modify them later. The due date for the comments is always one day after the due date for the posting; feel free to write these comments as soon as there are postings. See the Writing page for more directions.

Film Evaluation. We will watch nine films together as a class. You will need to write evaluations of any six of these films (you choose which six). These evaluations are due before class begins the next morning. The form is available on ANGEL; you should type this up using your normal word processor, and then cut-and-paste the completed form into the appropriate drop box.

Essays. You will need to write two essays (about 600-800 words each) that discuss the philosophical aspect of a film (drawn from a list found on ANGEL in the “Course Materials/Essays” folder). See the rubric for more details. These essays are due on Jan 18 (Mon), and Jan 26 (Tue).

You may complete a third response paper for extra credit, if you wish. This third essay would be due on the last class day, and would be worth up to 2% of the course grade (i.e., a perfect score of 10 pts. would add 2%).

In-Class Writing. There will be brief informal writing exercises in-class.

Grading. The course grade is determined as follows: the set of Quizzes (30%), the Discussion Forums (30%), the Film Evaluations (10%), the two Essays (25%), and the In-Class Writing (5%).

I use the following letter grade conversion scale: A (94-100), A- (90-93), B+ (87-89), B (83-86), B- (80-82), C+ (77-79), C (73-76), C- (70-72), D+ (67-69), D (63-66), D-(60-62), F (0-59).

Cell Phones. No Cell Phones! Please do not bring these to class. If you do bring a cell phone, it needs to be turned off and put away, preferably at the bottom of a very deep pocket or book bag. If you are unable to part company with your cell phone, or are unable to keep it turned off and stowed, then please do not come to class. Thank you.

Cheating and Plagiarism. Plagiarism consists of submitting the statements, ideas, opinions, or findings of another as if they were your own. It is not plagiarism to copy from or paraphrase a source as long as this is acknowledged and the source is cited. Cheating and deliberate plagiarism will result in automatically failing the class. For more information, see the college Catalog.

Students with Disabilities. Manchester College, in compliance with federal guidelines, is committed to providing students with disabilities an access to programs and activities that is equal to the access provided to students without disabilities.

If you believe that you need an accommodation due to a disability, please contact Bonnie O’Connell, the director of services for students with disabilities, to establish your eligibility and to coordinate reasonable accommodations. It is your responsibility to seek this accommodation. Students whose accommodation requests are approved will be given confidential letters to deliver to their professors that verifies the nature of the student’s disability and documents the need for auxiliary aids and services and/or academic adjustments/accommodations. Students are encouraged to meet with each professor early in the semester to discuss the academic implications of the disability as they relate to the specific course and to request appropriate accommodation. The Disabilities Office is located in the Success Center (second floor of the Union); please telephone 982-5076 to schedule an appointment.

Manchester College // Registrar // Department of Religion and Philosophy // Last updated: 23 Jan 2010