NECESSARY STATEMENTS
Email
I use Email to communicate with students. If you have any difficulties making use of this (now antiquated) form, get in touch with your TA, Sarah Robbins sarah.robbins@utoronto.ca , and she will make certain you are well connected…old school.
Changes to the Syllabus
Every attempt will be made to follow this syllabus, but it IS subject to change. I will notify you of any changes promptly.
Drop Date for the Course: November 8, 2018
All students will have received a minimum 25% of the final grade by this date.
About Due Dates and Late Assignments:
[From the Syllabus]
Deadline for requesting special consideration: 24 hours prior to the deadline
Method for requesting consideration: Email
Supporting Documentation: A personal statement is sufficient
‘Penalty’ for Lateness: 10% per ‘business/week’ day
Last date to submit all coursework: Dec 10, 2018
I regret this severity; in my experience it is necessary to ensure fairness.
Advice: There are many excellent reasons to miss a deadline, and to get an extension. There are some not so good reasons. Think of your colleagues, and consider the fairness necessary in any grading practice. If your reasons can be applied to everyone else in the class (‘I was in a show’), that isn’t a good reason. Something peculiar to your life (including that old reliable standby, ‘my computer crashed’) is a good reason.
Extensions:
All these deadlines and statement of ‘penalties’ said, I am well aware of your scheduling challenges. You should examine the schedule now, and compare it with your own. You should keep comparing as the semester unfolds. If there are difficulties with a submission date, notify me as soon as you see it, and we will discuss the options.
A Note on Planning:
Weather, illness and personal emergencies arise for all of us–as do opportunities for guests and improvised discussions. I will adjust the schedule accordingly.
Religious Holidays:
I will, of course, make any reasonable accommodation necessary for religious observances, in accordance with U of T policy: http://www.governingcouncil.utoronto.ca/policies/religious.htm.
Robert Gillespie Academic Skills Centre
The Robert Gillespie Academic Skills Centre (Room 390, Hazel McCallion Academic Learning Centre) offers a range of workshops, seminars and individual consultations to help you develop the academic skills you need for success in your studies. Online information is available here: http://www.utm.utoronto.ca/asc Phone: 905-828-3858.
Required Statement On Academic Integrity:
[Also in the full syllabus] Failing to properly cite your sources—and any other method of presenting another person’s work as your work—is plagiarism. Plagiarism has serious consequences at the University of Toronto. If you are ever unsure about questions of academic honesty, consult with me. In the meantime, there is also an excellent guide to avoiding plagiarism available here: http://advice.writing.utoronto.ca/using-sources/how-not-to-plagiarize/
A Note on Intellectual Property
Video, audio, and photographic recording of lectures is prohibited without my explicit permission. Use of handouts (and all other material) for any purpose other than studying for this course without first obtaining my consent is prohibited.
AccessAbility Policy
Students with diverse needs are welcome in this course, and we will make whatever accommodations are necessary to ensure your success. The UTM AccessAbility Resource Centre offers services to assess specific student needs, provide referrals, and arrange appropriate accommodations. Students with questions about disability/health accommodations are encouraged to contact their instructor and/or the AccessAbility Resource Centre when the course begins. The AccessAbility Resource Centre staff can be contacted by phone (905-569-4699), email (access@utm.utoronto.ca) or in person (Room 2047, South Building).
Grading Rubric
Essays will be graded on the following scale, in accordance with UTM standards:
A+, A, A-: Strong evidence of original thinking; good organization, capacity to analyze and synthesize; superior grasp of subject matter with sound critical evaluations; evidence of extensive knowledge base.
B+, B, B-: Evidence of grasp of subject matter, some evidence of critical capacity and analytic ability; reasonable understanding of relevant issues; evidence of familiarity with the literature.
C+, C, C-: Student who is profiting from their university experience; understanding of the subject matter; ability to develop solutions to simple problems in the material.
D+, D, D-: Some evidence of familiarity with subject matter and some evidence that critical and analytic skills have been developed.
F: Little evidence of even superficial understanding of subject matter; weakness in critical and analytical skills, with limited or irrelevant use of literature.
Performance and Popular Culture 