Faculty Office Phone/VoiceMail E-mail Course Zap/Section Place TIme

Dr. Dial‑Driver

BH 201‑A

(918) 343-7747

edial-driver@rsu.edu

HONS 3113H

1350/001

BH 205

MW 12-1:15

Appointments: If you need to see me, please call or come by. It is best to call first because occasionally I will not be available during regular office hours because of other campus commitments. Please leave a message on the sheet of paper on the office door or on my voice mail. I will return your call as soon as possible.

Course Description: Catalog description: “3113H: Junior Honors Seminar—Integration of junior honors and degree curriculum with independent reading and research. Presentation of research results. Service learning component possible. Prerequisite HONS 2113 and junior status.” Three hours credit.

Course Introduction: Junior Honors Seminar is a course designed to continue your education in a number of ways. In addition to readings that expand your educational horizons, you will be doing research in your major field and presenting the results of that research to the class in a manner that makes your field and your research pertinent and interesting to students from your own and other fields. This course is designed to help you learn more about your own and other fields and about how to read, analyze, write about, and communicate your field and general information to others. This course will consist of very little lecture and much discussion. That means you need to read the material so you can talk about it! Your input is invaluable. You must participate in class discussion to practice the skills necessary to successfully complete the required assignments.

Textbooks and Resources

Brookes, Martin. Fly: The Unsung Hero of Modern Science. Ecco/Harper. 978-0066212517/ 978-0060936792

Gladwell, Malcolm. Blink. Back Bay, 2007. 978-0316010665

Winchester, Simon. The Professor and the Madman. Harper, 2005. 978-0060839789

Sacks, Oliver. An Anthropologist on Mars. Vintage: 1996. 978-0679756972

Welsom, Eileen. The Plutonium Files. Delta, 1999. 978-0385319546

Coerr, Eleanor. Sadako and the Thousand Cranes. Dill. 978-044080177x

Taylor, Dial-Driver, Burrage, Emmons. Voices from the Heartland. Norman: University of Oklahoma, 2007.

Dial-Driver, Emily. Guide to College Writing. 6^th ed., rev. Reno: BentTree, 2006. 1933005370

Other materials: Printer paper

Library Materials: Materials relating to this course, including textbooks, are on reserve in Stratton Taylor Library.

Names and Phone numbers of classmates

___________________________________ __________________________________

Learning Objectives

In accordance with the Rogers State University mission and the mission of the Department of Communications and Fine Arts, this course is intended to provide the opportunity for students to develop and display effective communication skills, both written and oral; critical and creative thinking; multicultural exposure; global perspective, and a appreciation for the diverse views of art, knowledge, culture, and the world. Junior Honors Seminar leads to the following outcomes:

1. Junior Honors Seminar is required for those students aspiring to an honors degree.

2. Junior Honors Seminar is designed to build and display effective communication skills and creative and critical thinking in an atmosphere of academic freedom which encourages interaction in a positive academic climate.

3. This course is designed to create opportunities for cultural, intellectual, and personal enrichment for students.

During the semester, you will study non-fiction. You will

1. analyze research

2. synthesize research topics

3. analyze non-fiction

4. evaluate non-fiction in a number of ways

5. write about evaluation of a non-fiction literary work

6. respond to questions about non-fiction, especially in realms of synthesis and evaluation

7. use communications skills, oral and written

Assessment Tools

By the end of the semester you will have	Fulfilled Objective
1. passed two tests on the reading and study material	1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, and 7
2. written and handed in a Reading Journal	1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, and 7
3. written an acceptable, short, documented paper using MLA format	1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, and 7
4. written a responsive essay	1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, and 7
4. led class discussion on the non-fiction works	1, 2, 3, 4, 6, and 7

Mid-Level (Class Assessment): Students will be assessed on their knowledge of the literary terms, criticism, analysis, and evaluation.

Exit Assessment: Students will be assessed on their knowledge of the literary terms, criticism, analysis, and evaluation.

Attendance Policy: Attendance is vital. You cannot discuss if you are not here. Excessive absences (more than the equivalent of one week of class) will affect your grade. Please tell me if you come in late. Otherwise you will be marked absent. If you are more than 10 minutes late, you will not receive credit for attendance for that class meeting.

Standards of Achievement: All student work will be held to the following academic criteria.

Grading Scale and Academic Profiles

The Communications and Fine Arts Division has adopted a standard grading scale:

A 90-100% B 80-89% C 70-79% D 60-69% F 59% and below

Academic Profile

	Descriptor	Description
A	Excellent	Students receiving an “A” can be considered to have exhibited extraordinary effort in class and scholarship exceeding the expectations of the instructor and to have exhibited most or all of the following: to have attended regularly and on time (missed fewer than the equivalent of one week of class meetings); to have participated fully in peer evaluations and in class discussion, revealing personal initiative in both; to have used well-supported and well-structured logical arguments in essay writing; to have revealed a grasp of mechanics that prevents errors; to have revealed depth of critical thought and observation; to have exhibited timeliness in turning in assignments; to have revealed strong interest in intellectual, cultural, and personal growth by reading and discussing assigned material; to have shown consistent improvement in academics.
B	Above Average	Students receiving a “B” can be considered to have exhibited above-average effort in class, revealing noticeable improvement in academics, and showing accurate and complete scholarship. The student will have exhibited most or all of the following: have attended regularly (not missed more than the equivalent of one week of class meetings) and on time; have participated honestly and solidly in peer evaluations and in class discussion; have used supported and structured logical arguments in essay writing; have revealed a grasp of mechanics that prevents many errors; have revealed critical thought and observation; have exhibited a moderate grasp of timeliness in turning in assignments; have revealed interest in intellectual, cultural, and personal growth by reading and discussing assigned material.
C	Average	Students receiving a “C” can be considered to have exhibited average effort in class, performing satisfactorily but not above average, with some self-direction, and have shown signs of academic progress, meeting assignment parameters accurately. The student will have exhibited most or all of the following: attended regularly (not missed more than the equivalent of one week of class meetings) and on time; participated willingly in peer evaluations and in class discussion; have used supported and structured arguments in essay writing; have revealed an average grasp of mechanics that prevents most errors; have revealed average critical thought and observation; have exhibited a moderate grasp of timeliness in turning in assignments; have revealed average interest in intellectual, cultural, and personal growth by reading and discussing assigned material.
D	Below Average	Students receiving a “D” can be considered to have exhibited some effort in class, but not enough to show fully engagement with the subject and with the course material, showing little or no initiative and academic improvement, and not meeting the scholarship requirements of assignments. The student will have exhibited most or all of the following: have participated somewhat in peer evaluations and in class discussion; have attended somewhat regularly (missed more than the equivalent of one week and less than the equivalent of two weeks) and usually on time; have used some structured and supported arguments in essay writing; have revealed a sub-standard grasp of mechanics that prevents only some errors; have revealed below average critical thought and observation; have exhibited some grasp of timeliness in turning in assignments; have revealed below average interest in intellectual, cultural, and personal growth by reading and discussing assigned material; have not met the scholarship requirements of assignments; have not shown initiative; have not revealed academic improvement.
F	Unsatisfactory	Students receiving an “F” can be considered to have exhibited little or no desire to pass the course. This will usually involve poor participation and attendance (missed more than the equivalent of two weeks of class meetings) and little or no effort to attempt improvement as well as scholarship deficiencies and lack of effort to complete assignments.

Sample Essays

The Guide to College Writing includes essays in an appendix. Each of these essays is the equivalent of an “A” or “A-“ essay, generally for a freshman class.

Department of Communications and Fine Arts Policy on Plagiarism

Plagiarism is a form of academic dishonesty. Plagiarism is representing someone else's ideas or work as your own. To avoid plagiarism, when you use someone else's data, arguments, designs, words, ideas, project, etc., you must make it clear that the work originated with someone else by citing the source. See the Guide to College Writing for a discussion of how to avoid plagiarism. Please review the Student Code of Responsibilities and Conduct published by Rogers State University for a full discussion of “Code of Academic Conduct” and plagiarism penalties. The RSU web site has links to the “Code.” Students found plagiarizing are subject to penalties.

Americans with Disabilities Act

Rogers State University is committed to providing students with disabilities equal access to educational programs and services. Before any educational accommodation can be provided, any student who has a disability that he or she believes will require some form of accommodation must do the following: 1) inform the professor of each class of such need; and 2) register for services to determine eligibility for assistance with the Office of Student Affairs, located in the Student Union. Students needing more information about Student Disability Services should contact: Director of Student Development, Office of Student Affairs, Rogers State University, 918-343-7579.

Computer Writing Labs

Computers are available in the UPA, Stratton Taylor Library, and Student Support Services. Computers are available for class use in BH 207.

Graded Elements

Tests: Tests will be essay question and comprehensive.

Make-up Tests: Please take the tests on time.

Academic Reading Journal: A reading journal has two major elements: an academic element and a personal (but not a private) element. The academic element is the bibliographic data and the summary. The personal element is record of your responses to what you are reading, in the form of a personal reaction paragraph. The paragraph is informal in style; it should be interesting and revelatory. Put in your honest opinions, comments, interpretations, evaluations, insights, questions, etc. Give a response to the reading: emotional, moral and/or intellectual.

(NOTE: Read the sections in The Guide to College Writing on journal entries, summaries, and reports.

You will be doing an entry on each of the assigned works. Each entry should be at least one and one-half typed pages, but not more than three. Each entry should contain three sections.

Section I: bibliographic data

Section 2: paragraph of summary

Section 3: paragraph of personal reaction: Tell what you liked or disliked about the work.

Research Paper: Before beginning the research paper, read the sections in the Guide to College Writing on "The Research Paper."

The length for this paper is five to seven pages of text, typed. (You will include a Works Cited page that is part of the paper but is not a page of text.)

Choose a topic in your major field in which you are interested. Do research on the topic. Decide on the limited topic you intend to handle and on which you can find sufficient resource material.

You should use five or more sources in the paper, three of which must be print sources, one of which must be an Internet or other electronic source. (General encyclopedias are not appropriate sources.) Be sure that you include not only paraphrased but also quoted material. Use the documentation format appropriate for your field. You must include copies of the sources you used, with the material you used highlighted.

We will not be studying the research paper or how to write one. Make sure you read the noted sections in the Guide to College Writing. You will be graded on the conventions of essay writing, documentation, etc.

Reflective Essay: The length for this paper is three to five pages of text, typed. Choose a work which you have read/watched in this class and in which you are interested. You may choose more than one selection but not more than three. Discuss this work or these works in terms of your personal reaction/relationship to the work or works.

Presentation of Papers: You will be presenting the papers during a class meeting. Be sure to prepare and bring any visual aids that your will need to use to transmit the information to people who may or may not be familiar with the field and/or topic. Present the work that you have done, including the process which you used (with false starts, dead ends, results), the sources which you used, what you learned in terms of material and process, further research you or others need to do on the topic, other material you think would be valuable to the class. Each presentation should be between five and seven minutes, with three to five minutes for questions after the presentation.

Creative Journal: Choose a work we have dealt with in this class. Using the selection as a basis, develop the equivalent of a ten-page journal that is visual, tactile, imagistic. The purpose of this project is to illuminate the work for other class members. You need to write a one or two paragraph paper telling 1) why you choose the work you choose, (2) how you think your project illuminates/explicates the work you choose, 3) the significance of each element of your project. You will present the project to the class, at which time you will be asked to answer each of the above questions. You must present the project to receive credit. You must also label the project with the title of the work you are dealing with. Be creative. Take chances. ENJOY THIS (yes, that's part of the assignment—and required!). Don't worry; we'll look at some examples. You won't die from this.

Class Leadership: You will be leading two class discussions during the semester, one before mid-term and one after mid-term. During those seminar meetings, you will be giving information to the class and eliciting class discussion. Between information presented and discussion, you must cover 1) an introduction to the material covered in the studied text, 2) the relationship of the studied text to other works in the text field(s), 3) the relationship of the studied text to other texts studied during the semester,4) the value of the studied text. You must reveal the ability You must reveal the ability to analyze, synthesize, criticize, synergize, and evaluate. Critical and creative thinking are required.

Grading

Grade Composition

Late assignments will be lose 10% per day up to 30%; please turn things in on time. Do not miss an exam. If you do, you will have to make special arrangements with me to come in at a special time and take a special make‑up exam. It is best to take the exam as scheduled.

Tests 100 points each 200 points Documented Paper 100 points

Reflective Paper 100 points

Presentation of papers 50 points each 100 points

Class Leadership 50 points each 100 points

Academic Reading Journal 100 points

Creative Reading Journal (presentation will be part of this grade) 100 points

approximate TOTAL 800 points

Written Assignments: Each written assignment will be graded using the following criteria: Appearance—10%, Content and organization—60%, Mechanics—30%

NOTE: If you wish, you can revise and rewrite the research and reflective essays. If the paper is acceptable (if you have made the corrections, followed the guidelines and suggestions for revision noted on the paper, and turned the paper in within one week), you will receive a 10% higher grade.

Extra Credit and Late Work: Late work will lose 10% per day up to 30%. Tests taken late will be penalized at least 20%. No extra credit is anticipated.

Important Notice: You must complete all assignments to receive credit for the course.

Other Important Considerations

Expectations

q Essays and other work should be typed. Other assignments should be typed or written on the front of loose-leaf notebook paper in ink. (No spiral notebook paper or papers written in pencil will be accepted.)

q All assignments should be properly assembled to hand in at the beginning of the class period in which they are due. Bring the assignments assembled and stapled, completely ready to submit. Do not expect time to finish or to assemble or to staple assignments during class. Assignments turned in more than five minutes after the beginning of the class period are late.

q I prefer that you not use ANY tobacco products in the classroom OR wear hats or caps.

q Do not bring pagers or cell phones with audible notifications into the classroom.

q Failure to comply with these requests will be seen as denoting lack of respect for the class, the instructor, and your classmates.

E-Mail Communication: You may, of course, e-mail me with questions. However, try to keep this to a minimum. I do not accept e-mail submissions or attachments of any kind.

Ticket to Final Examination

Bring, as a ticket to the final, a one-page, typed, no name attached, evaluation of the class. Tell what you liked and dislike about the class, what you think should be added, deleted, or changed. Make any suggestions you might have. Remember, if you don’t make suggestions, future students cannot benefit from your insight and experience. I will not see these evaluations until after the grades go to the Registrar’s office.
Closure Statement

The schedule and procedures in this course are subject to change in the event of extenuating circumstances.

Schedule and Text Assignments: Each assignment should be done by the first day of the class week.

Sign-up Sheet

Junior Honors Seminar

Date: Work	Discussion Leader	Project Presentation	Paper Presentation
Aug. 20: Introduction Skills discussion	X	X	X
Aug. 20: Introduction Skills discussion	X	X	X
Aug. 27: Professor and
Madman
Sept. 5: Professor
Sept. 5: Professor
Sept. 10: Fly

Sept. 17: Fly
Sept. 17: Fly
Sept. 24: Voices

Oct. 1: Voices
Oct. 1: Voices
Oct. 8: King of Masks	X	X	X
	X	X	X
Oct. 15: Mid-term Exam	X	X	X
	X	X	X
Oct. 22: Blink
Oct. 22: Blink
Oct. 29: Blink

Nov. 5: Anthropologist
Nov. 5: Anthropologist
Nov. 12: Anthropologist

Nov. 19: Sadako/ Plutonium

Nov. 26: Sadako/ Plutonium

Dec. 3: Wings of Desire	X	X	X
	X	X	X
Dec. 10: Final	X	X	X
Dec. 10: Final	X	X	X

You must sign up to present a researched essay, a reflective essay, and a project, one each before mid-term and one each after mid-term. You must also sign up for leading class discussion, once before and once after mid-term.

An Open Letter to Students

Attending college is analogous to being employed. Success on the job is achieved only with hard work and effort. This is also true of college.

Your employer expects you to be on the job every day, on time, and prepared to work. You are allowed only a specific number of sick days each year after which your pay is “docked.” This is also true in composition classes. Regular and prompt attendance is essential.

Meetings are an essential part of the workplace culture, and everyone is expected to attend regularly and to contribute to the discussion. If you miss an excessive number of meetings and/or do not share information, your employment success is in jeopardy. The same holds true for this class. You are not only expected to attend all of our “meetings,” but you are expected to contribute to the discussion. This requires that you come to each class prepared to discuss the assigned material. Failure to do so will put your success in jeopardy.

Your employer requires you to submit all reports on time. Failure to do so will endanger your employer’s business and your success. The same is true for this class. All “reports” (papers, etc.) are due at the scheduled time (see syllabus). If, for a justified reason, you will not be able to meet the time schedule, you must notify me, just as you would contact your employer if you needed an extension. However, as in the workplace, such extensions do not come without a cost. Extensions result in a decrease in your “salary” (grade).

Performance reviews occur periodically in the workplace, and your employer determines the degree of your success during these reviews. Such is the case in this class. The “performance reviews” for this class are papers and other assignments. These reviews require you to show not only your knowledge of the material, but also your ability to use this knowledge. Your “pay” (grade) depends on the quality of your performance.

If you attend class regularly, participate in class discussions, and submit all materials, well prepared and in a timely fashion, you have the potential to excel in this class. I am looking forward to working with you and to learning with you. I am always available if you need assistance.

Good luck! Good writing!

adapted, with permission, from Bremer, Joyce C. “The Responsible Student.” Innovation Abstracts 20.17 (4 Sep. 1998): 1.

Name: ___________________________

Date: ___________________________

Student Contract for Junior Honors Seminar

Initial each statement and turn this contract in. This contract must be on file for you to attend the class.

_____ I have read and understood the guidelines and requirements in the syllabus.

_____ I understand what plagiarism is and what penalties it will incur; I will not plagiarize.

_____ I understand that this class is for three hours college credit; this implies three hours of class

meeting.

_____ I understand that each hour of college credit usually requires two or more hours per week study

time outside of class.

_____ I understand that attendance is required.

_____ I understand literary selections for this class may contain controversial or “offensive” material; this

is the nature of some academic works.

_____________________________

(signature)

RSU Communications and Fine Arts Definition of Plagiarism

See the Guide to College Writing, pages 101-04

Course and section:___________________________

CFA Plagiarism Definition Acknowledgement

I understand and accept the following definition of plagiarism:

1. It is plagiarism to copy another’s words directly and present them as your own without quotation marks and direct indication of whose words you are copying. All significant phrases, clauses, and passages copied from another source require quotation marks and proper acknowledgement, down to the page number(s) of printed texts.

2. It is plagiarism to paraphrase another writer’s work by altering some words but communicating the same essential point(s) made by the original author without proper acknowledgment. Though quotation marks are not needed with paraphrasing, you must still acknowledge the original source directly.

3. Plagiarism includes presenting someone else’s ideas or factual discoveries as your own. If you follow another person’s general outline or approach to a topic, presenting another’s original thinking or specific conclusions as your own, you must cite the source even if your work is in your own words entirely. When you present another’s statistics, definitions, or statements of fact in your own work, you must also cite the source.

4. Plagiarism includes allowing someone else to prepare work that you present as your own.

5. Plagiarism applies in other media besides traditional written texts, including, but not limited to, oral presentations, graphs, charts, diagrams, artwork, video and audio compositions, and other electronic media such as web pages, PowerPoint presentations, and postings to online discussions.

My signature below indicates that I have read and do understand and accept the “RSU Communications and Fine Arts Definition of Plagiarism,” which contains examples and explanation of the various types of plagiarism listed above.

Print your name here: Sign your name here:
__________________________________ _________________________________