How to do well on assignments

I welcome your interests, curiosity, and your take on the readings I have assigned. You and your thoughts are important to the outcome of this class.

By grading of your assignments for my classes I am following College policy. But my grading specifically is a thoughtful and thorough assessment of your work that is based on criteria to determine how well you understand the authors, our discussions & lectures.

current classes | grading in general | getting it done | daily participation is crucial

Be sure to specifically refer to comments that I make on the drafts of your papers and compare them to the CLIFS criteria in my syllabus for your class.
Dr. Siry

What do I mean by understand?

• Expressing your awareness of other explanations by the use of more than two pieces of evidence that you restate in your own words with examples.

• Carefully presenting evidence to analyze from more that one source about similar information, concepts, or episodes, in clear descriptive writing.

• Making an analogy between two different sources of information or divergent views on an event, relating key facts, describing people, or presenting materials that reveal either subtle or overt explanations of what happened, how something transpired, or when this caused subsequent consequences to unfold.

A User's Guide to learning in my classes and expressing your ideas, while discovering your identity with respect to self directed learning and your place in nature, the economic system, the world, or the "scheme of things."

What and How and Grades

Frequently by working in groups you will be asked to work together to compare and generate new ideas about course work, your writings, and new concepts.

What you must do:

each syllabus will differ, so look at the syllabus for your class with respect to precise value:

attendance, participation by answering questions in class, discussing the texts, & showing up for field trips * 20% or see syllabus.

essay; first – worth 20% or less, but see your course syllabus.

mid-term, – worth 20% or less, but see your course syllabus.

essay; second – worth 20% or less, but see your course syllabus.

final presentation: written essay, bibliography, notes on references given as a verbal presentation with a handout to the class on the Final Exam Day – worth 20% or less so see the syllabus.

* your notes from the reading assigned and from class discussion are used in class and should be referred to in your daily free writing!

How must you complete your written work:

Written and verbal presentations involve frequent practice, making connections in related or supportive ideas among all of your texts and revising your writing.

Be sure to put end notes or foot notes on all your written work.

Concepts and methods

More on writing.

Writing essays

The content of good essays

Critical to use and understand metaphors

Suggestions for improving your writing

The importance of vocabulary

See how I evaluate writing.

Word webs | Basic vocabulary | Advanced Vocabulary | Antonyms

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Dr. Siry

What do I mean by understand?

A User's Guide to learning in my classes and expressing your ideas, while discovering your identity with respect to self directed learning and your place in nature, the economic system, the world, or the "scheme of things."

What and How and Grades