Course Policies
for
Patrick W. Conner
The following policies are standard in all of the courses I teach.
They apply at all levels, graduate and undergraduate. Read
them carefully, and speak to me immediately if you think that your
particular
situation merits special consideration. The following items are
considered
on this page, and you may click on these items in order to read the
policy
so named: Attendance; Responsibilities;
Incompletes;
Deception
& Dissembling; Conferences;
Instructor's
Philosophy of Instruction.
This course will meet 32 times this session. You should realize that if
you miss class more than three times during the semester, you will have
missed more than 10% of the class
meetings. I shall count heads at each class meeting to gauge rates of
attendance, and if they remain good, I will not being to call a role
and take daily attendence; if they begin to wane, I shall announce that
attendance will be mandatory for the rest of the semester, and begin to
take a regular attendance.
While merely attending without participating (by "participating" I mean
being mentally involved in the discussion and classroom activities) is
counter-productive, not attending deprives you of class insights and
collective
understanding about difficult concepts and it deprives the class of
your
point-of-view as well. Athletes, debaters, and other students
whose
participation in WVU-sponsored events may affect their attendance
differently
should make an appointment to see me during the first two days of
classes
to discuss my policies regarding them.
Everyone is late now and then, but please try to be on time; class
begins
at 4:00 (or as near to that as I can make it) and ends at 5:15. Do not assume the right
to leave and reenter the class unless you are ill.
Complete the assigned reading and writing for each class before it
meets,
and ponder the implications of ideas freshly encountered and facts
newly
met. Search the texts and query the instructor about matters you do not
comprehend before (not after) the examinations. Should you miss a
class,
obtain a full report of our activities from a trustworthy colleague,
but
please understand that neither a colleague's notes nor my attempt to
summarize
a lecture via email can adequately compensate for classroom activities.
I am always available by e-mail, and you should contact me whenever you
need to do so. Click HERE to do
so.
We now live in the age of computing, and -- as you can see -- a web
site will be part of the apparatus of this course via the MIX.
You are expected to make full and responsible use of the computing
resources
with which you are provided, and it is your responsibility to secure
access
to an adequate computer in order to use these resources. It is
assumed
that you have learned the skills needed, but if you haven't, ask a
colleague
to help you learn them. You only need to know how to access the MIX,
manage
email and to locate the course website on the Internet.
As a matter of policy, I do not give incompletes except under the most
unusual circumstances. If a student becomes seriously ill or encounters
personal problems such that he/she cannot attend most classes or do the
work for them, then the appropriate course of action is to withdraw
from
the University; it is not the University's role to take responsibility
for a student's misfortune by giving credit for work not done.
Refer to the section on "Academic Responsibilities" and "Academic
Dishonesty"
in the WVU Student
Handbook
for definitions of cheating and plagiarism. The student caught
cheating,
whether maliciously or naively, will receive an F in the course, and I
may seek to have him or her removed from the University.
You may schedule a conference with me by calling my office (293-8400
x4500
or x4505) or e-mailing my assistant, Ms.
Downey,
who handles my schedule. (Click on her name to contact her,
and be sure to explain in your note that you are a student in my
class,
and indicate the nature of our business, if you can, so that I can be
prepared
to help you.) Should we schedule a meeting and should you miss it, I
will
consider the miss equivalent to missing class and I shall record it as
such, unless you contact my office in due time to cancel the meeting. I
shall also keep office hours in G-13 Colson Hall during the hour
preceding our meetings.
I assume that all of my students are responsible, adult human beings
capable
of dealing with sophisticated issues in a sophisticated manner.
Language
and literature cover all aspects of human lives and choices, and we
have
to be able to talk about social situations and linguistic conventions
from
many points of view. While I never consciously seek to impose my views
on personal matters on my students, nevertheless I consider it a part
of
my duties as a university instructor to challenge your beliefs about
anything
that may come up in the classroom, and, particularly when discussing
language
matters, I may seem to ignore what you consider to be the conventions
of
"polite" speech to do so. If you feel offended by me or by
your colleagues, or if you experience other negative emotions for
whatever
reason, please discuss the problem with me privately.
Having said that, I hasten to add that the classroom should be a
comfortable
place for all present to think about important issues in an adult
manner regardless of your gender, religion or lack therof, or political
persuasions. While these subjects and others of equal or greater
sensitivity will come up and you may not hear anyone expressing your
own point of view unless you choose to do so, no one should express
him- or herself in a way that affronts you personnally. Please also
speak to me privately if you feel this is the case.
