Dr. Therese Shelton
Associate Professor,
Dept Math and Computer Science,
Southwestern University,
Georgetown, TX.
http://www.southwestern.edu/~shelton
Office hours generally Mon 9:30-10:30 a.m., Tu 2:00-2:50 p.m., Th 1:00-1:50 p.m.
(I am here a lot; drop by or email or call!)
shelton@southwestern.edu
(email is my preferred method of contact if not in person)
office MBH 141; X1489 (863-1489).
home 863-4651 (generally 7 am - 9 pm)
Course Description
Explore practical, ethical, and social implications
of resource scarcity, waste and wastefulness, and stewardship.
Go beyond the usual 3R's:
Reading, wRiting, and 'Rithmetic, and
Reduce, Re-use, and Recycle.
Assessment
| Summer Assignments (due orientation wk) | 22% | 9% Essay on summer reading. due Mon Aug 20
9% Waste Log, Reflection. due Tu Aug 21 4% Articles. due Fri Aug 24 |
| Class discussion and Short Writings | 20% | throughout the semester |
| Civic Engagement | 8% | several opportunities |
| Research Paper and Presentation | 35% | 5% Topic due for approval Tu Sep 4 (wk 2)
5% Outline and bibliography due Tu Sep 11 (wk 3) 15% Paper due Th Sep 27 (wk 5) 10% PowerPoint and Oral presentation Oct 2, 4 (wk 6) |
| Final Exam | 15% | Th Oct 11 (wk 7) |
Materials
Summer reading: Trash by Andy Mulligan
Periodic assigned reading materials.
Continual access to your SU email, Moodle, file storage (Helios), internet.
Use both Helios and portable storage (USB drive, portable HD).
Learning Outcomes The following is a partial list. Upon successful completion of this First Year Seminar, the student will be able to:
General Comments
We will work on communication skills, both written and oral.
Clear and effective writing requires good sentence construction, punctuation, and proper grammar.
Justification of assertions is essential, whether in technical or persuasive writing.
Be an active rather than passive learner. Take responsibility for your
learning.
The course will periodically make use of technology,
particularly Excel and Word.
It is the responsibility of the student
to save frequently and often and to have back-up copies of all files on independent
media (for instance on Helios AND on an external storage device).
I expect you to take advantage of the Center for Academic Success if needed,
and I will notify that office if I believe someone may benefit from the opportunities
that office affords.
There will be a mix of individual and collaborative work
as well as a variety of teaching and learning styles.
Collaborative work will sometimes require meeting with peers outside of class time.
I look forward to reading your thoughtful comments on course evaluations.
Helpful as these comments are, they will not help you in this semester.
They are designed to help me teach future sections of this course.
Please give me feedback, either in person, by voice mail, by e-mail,
or with a note left under my door throughout the semester.
Anonymous comments are fine.
Grading Scale: 98.00-100 = A+; 92.00-97.99 = A; 90.00-91.99=A-. The pattern continues through D-. 0.00-59.99=F.
Grading Policy
Please note that, according to the Catalog,
"all required work is expected to be completed for [a grade of C]". In other words,
even if your grade
is 99, if you miss a single assignment, such as a minor quiz in this class,
it is possible that your grade could be anything less than a C.
Completion of all work is just one of the requirements for
a grade of C or better.
NO Curving: I do not grade you based on who else may be in your class.
I set standards which I communicate to the class, and then I evaluate how
you as an individual meet these standards. The only grade which might be
altered or curved (and I do not guarantee a curve) is the course grade;
this means after the final has been taken. I also do not round (except,
perhaps, the course grade, and this is not guaranteed); 89.75 is a B+,
not an A-.
I am careful in grading because I assume that you are careful in preparing
your material. I expect you to read any comments I make. Sometimes I make
few written comments but have a general class discussion and/or post a
detailed key. It is important that you understand my grading system, so
if you are puzzled by a grade, please see me.
I use different standards when grading different kinds of work. For
instance, I will be more lenient of errors on a short, in-class assignment that is more of a learning experience;
I will expect a higher standard on take-home quizzes and on exams.
Attendance, Past-Due Assignments
As explained in the Student Handbook, your attendance at each class is required.
It is certainly stating the obvious that
you need to come on time and stay the entire time, alert and awake, fully engaged in classroom activities.
In this spirit, any electronic devices (cell phones, pagers, etc) should be off in general;
on some rare ocassions it may be appropriate to have one on but in a silent mode.
During exams these may not be used at all.
Use of classtime for active computer lab use is a privilege; students shall refrain from
distractions such as email or games during class time. In all endeavors, students
shall focus on the task at hand.
A university approved excuse is generally required to make up any missed exam
or assignment. If you know before-hand that you will be gone, you may have to
complete an assignment early.
In general, I prefer email notification of absences rather than voicemail. It is always the student's
responsibility to make up missed work in a timely fashion.
Assignments must be turned in at the beginning of class on the due date unless otherwise specified.
Any assignment not turned in at that time will be penalized one full letter
grade for each 24 hour period that it is overdue. In general, an assignment that
is more than 72 hours overdue will not be accepted.
Honor System, Some Expectations for Individual and Collaborative Work
We are all very fortunate to have the Honor System here at Southwestern.
In general, professors establish ground rules for acceptable collaboration
or rules for exams, and students follow those rules. You must write out
and sign the honor pledge on all work to be graded. The approved
wording is as follows:
"I have acted with honesty and integrity in producing
this work and am unaware of anyone who has not."
By matriculating at this university, each of you has agreed to uphold this wonderful tradition.
Unless otherwise specified, work is to be done individually.
When group work is allowed, full collaboration is essential. This does not necessarily mean
that everyone has all of the answers. In some cases, one student may appropriately be at the forefront of
collaborative work while others are in more of a following mode. If, however, someone is
contributing very little or not at all, then obviously that person would need to be excluded
from the pledge.
When collaboration is allowed, that means with another student from your section in the current semester.
In addition to the more obvious violations of our Honor System,
such as collaborating on individual work or plagiarism, some examples include, but are not
limited to:
falsifying data, marking someone as present on the roll sheet who is absent,
including someone in a group pledge who did not collaborate,
discussing "pop quizzes" or exams with someone who has not taken it, including someone
from another section of the same class,
submitting work done in a previous semester,
unauthorized use of resources (human or inanimate, printed or electronic),
texting or web searching for answers,
having a book or solution manual open during an exam,
listening to or viewing unauthorized pre-recorded notes,
using unauthorized programs on your calculator or electronic device.
Signing the pledge indicates compliance with those rules.
Students with Disabilities
Southwestern University will make reasonable accommodations for persons with documented disabilities. Students should contact the Center for Academic Success to determine their eligibility to receive accommodations.
It is the student's responsibility to discuss any necessary
accommodations with the appropriate faculty member.
Calendar (subject to change)
| week | day, date, time | place | description |
| Orientation Week | M Aug 20 10-noon | FWO 209 | Welcome! Summer book. Essay due. |
| Tu Aug 2 9-noon | FWO 209 | Summer log of trash and recycling with reflection due.
Dr. Sarah Brackmann Civic Engagement. |
|
| Th Aug 23 9-noon | FWO 209 | Honor Code Discussion. | |
| F Aug 24 10-noon | FWO 209 | 2 newspaper articles due.
Student researcher Yvette Niyomugaba |
|
| Week 1 | Tu Aug 28 10-11:15am | Library Foyer | Library Tour. Free beverage at Coffee Bar. |
| Th Aug 30 | FWO 209 | ||
| Week 2 Mon holiday |
Tu Sep 4 | FWO 209 | Research paper topic due for approval. |
| Th Sep 6 | FWO 209 | Lorenza Ciggaroa, Center for Academic Success | |
| Week 3 | Tu Sep 11 | FWO 209 | Research paper outline and bibliography due. |
| Th Sep 13 | FWO 305 | Diversity Discussion | |
| Week 4 | Tu Sep 18 | FWO 209 | |
| Th Sep 20 | FWO 209 | ||
| Week 5 | Tu Sep 25 | MBH 115, 118 | Collegiate Learning Assessment (CLA) |
| Th Sep 27 | FWO 209 | Paper due | |
| Week 6 | Tu Oct 2 | FWO 209 | Presentations |
| Th Oct 4 | FWO 209 | Presentations | |
| Week 7 | Tu Oct 9 | FWO 209 | Review. Course evaluations. |
| Th Oct 11 | FWO 209 | Final Exam |
(Note: This syllabus may be amended.)