NHH 3306 "Current Readings in Natural History"

NHH 3306 H01
Current Readings in Natural History

Spring 2009
MWF 11-12:20*
*until tutorials are scheduled


DR. SUSAN TOMLINSON
201B McClellan Hall
742-0036 ext. 239
susan.tomlinson@ttu.edu

Course teaching blog: http://doctortteaching.blogspot.com/

Spring 2009 Office Hours (tentative): MW 1:30-3, or by appt.

Course Description
Dude ranches, Eskimos, animal tracking, bats and caves—what do these have in common? They are all part of the everyday conversation in “Current Readings in Natural History.”Together we will explore the desert, the Rocky Mountains, the great American prairie, and other places with us as we engage in a variety of topics related to nature, the environment, and life. There will be an optional one-day field trip to Carlsbad Caverns. This course is reading and writing intensive.
The purpose of this course is to examine representative works from the field of nature writing. We will look not only at the ideas presented by the authors we study, but at the ways they present them. We will “read as writers” in order to improve our own skills in communicating via the written work.

Learning Outcomes

At the conclusion of this course, student should be able to:

• write clear, effective expository and personal narrative essays
• Read literature critically for comprehension, retention, and improvement in writing skills
• Discuss the readings critically (both content and techniques)

Assessment

Weekly annotations on readings 50%
Two Essays (6-10 pages, double spaced) 25% each

• Annotations: Two-page, double-spaced, typed papers regarding the previous week’s reading. Use quotations, references, and argument to support your claims. Attribute all work to its proper source and provide a list of references (not to be include in the one-page limit). These will emphasize examination of content/ideas and technique employed by the author.

• Essays: These are formal essays based on themes arising from the texts. Students must arrive at their own thesis statements (the proper work of all writers), and use quotations, references, and argument to support claims. All essays must be double-spaced, stapled, and turned along with first and final drafts. Each draft must include a list of references, or risk a 10-point deduction from the assignment grade.

Writing will be assessed on the following (not in any particular order):

o Development of argument
o Organization of thought
o Clarity of meaning
o Use of language

Required Texts (in approximate order)

• A Field Guide to Getting Lost (Rebecca Solnit)
• PrairyErth (William Least Heat-Moon)
• Where Rivers Change Directions (Mark Spragg)
• Point Last Seen (Hannah Nyala)
• The River Why (David James Duncan)
• The Survival of the Bark Canoe (John McPhee)
• The Moon by Whalelight (Diane Ackerman)
Class Meeting Schedule
• Weekly discussion: The class will meet as a full group once weekly on Mondays for discussion of the readings.
• Tutorials: The class will be subdivided into small groups for weekly tutorial sessions. The tutorials are for the purpose of further discussion of the readings and critique/editing/revising of essays and weekly annotations. Times to be arranged.

Writing schedule

Weekly writing assignments for each tutorial group will be posted on the teaching blog: http://doctortteaching.blogspot.com/

Students are responsible for checking the blog for the schedule.

Class Deportment

• Late Work: Because all student writing will be critiqued in a weekly tutorial, late work will not be tolerated. I understand that occasionally things happen, and in extreme circumstances exceptions can be made, but please do not abuse my good nature by being late.

• Attendance is mandatory. Exceptions may be made for university related activities, family emergencies, personal illness, and religious holidays or observances, and other unforeseen forces of nature. Please do not abuse my good nature, and please notify me in advance.

• Academic Dishonesty: Cheating will not be tolerated in this class. Punishment will be meted out according to the severity of the infraction, and may include but not be limited to: grade reduction, failure on an assignment, failure in the course, and a report to the academic dean.

• Plagiarism: The Texas Tech University Student Affairs Handbook asserts that plagiarism is “The use, by paraphrase or direct quotation, of the published or unpublished work of another person without full and clear acknowledgement,” and, “the unacknowledged use of materials prepared by another person or agency engaged in the selling of term papers or other academic materials” (22).

• Plagiarism will not be tolerated. Punishment will be meted out according to the severity of the infraction.


Accommodation for Disabled Students:

Any student who, because of a disability, may require special arrangements in order to meet the
course requirements should contact the instructor as soon as possible to make any necessary
arrangements. Students should present appropriate verification from Student Disability Services during the instructor’s office hours. Please note instructors are not allowed to provide
classroom accommodations to a student until appropriate verification from Student Disability
Services has been provided. For additional information, you may contact the Student Disability
Services office at 335 West Hall or 806-742-2405.

Student Absence for Observation of Religious Holy Days

A student who is absent from classes for the observation of a religious holy day shall be allowed to take an examination or complete an assignment scheduled for that day within a reasonable time after the absence if, not later than the fifteenth day after the first day of the semester, the student had notified the instructor of each scheduled class that the student would be absent for a religious holy day.

Academic Integrity (TTU O.P. 34.12)

Academic dishonesty includes, but is not limited to, cheating, plagiarism, collusion, falsifying academic records, misrepresenting facts, and any act designed to give unfair academic advantage to the student or the attempt to commit such an act. The university definitions of academic dishonesty and policies for dealing with it are laid out in the Code of Student Affairs and in University Operating Policy 34.12. You should be familiar with these definitions.

Cheating of any form, but especially plagiarism (i.e., the representation of someone else’s work or ideas as your own) will be dealt with harshly. At a minimum, the offending essay will receive a grade of 0, which will be averaged into your overall grade. Flagrant or repeated cases of plagiarism may result in a grade of F for the course. All cases of cheating will be reported to the appropriate academic dean and to the Honors College dean, who may take additional disciplinary action as they see fit.