UCC/UGC/ECCC
Proposal for New Course
Please attach proposed Syllabus in approved university format.
1. Course subject and number: ARH 220
2. Units:
See upper and lower division undergraduate course definitions.
3. College:
Arts and Letters
4. Academic Unit:
3
Comparative Cultural
Studies
5. Student Learning Outcomes of the new course. (Resources & Examples for Developing Course Learning
Outcomes)
In the process of participating in this course, students will have an opportunity to develop and
to demonstrate the following:





An understanding of basic concepts of major feminist and critical cultural theories.
The ability to apply these theories to varied forms of visual representation through critical
analysis both orally and in writing.
The ability to locate through critical analysis a visual text’s treatment of gender, sexuality,
race, class, ethnicity and nationality.
The ability to locate and examine the complex discursive webs embedded in visual cultural
forms that shape our individual identity, socio-cultural location and interpretive voice.
Membership and participation in a critical interpretive community informed by common
understandings of visual cultural and feminist discourse.
6. Justification for new course, including how the course contributes to degree program outcomes,
or other university requirements / student learning outcomes. (Resources, Examples & Tools for Developing
Effective Program Student Learning Outcomes).
The class was well received when it was offered as a topics course (ARH 299), and it
strengthens the art history curriculum by expanding the 200-level offerings. The course topic
also dovetails nicely with our 20th-century offerings in modern and contemporary art and art
theory.
7. Effective BEGINNING of what term and year?
See effective dates calendar.
Fall 2013
8. Long course title: FEMINISM AND VISUAL CULTURE
(max 100 characters including spaces)
Effective Fall 2012
9. Short course title: FEMINISM AND VISUAL CULTURE
(max. 30 characters including spaces)
10. Catalog course description (max. 60 words, excluding requisites):
This course explores how various forms of visual representation contribute to our notions of
sex- and gender-based identity and their intersections with race, class, ethnicity and
nationality. Representations from art, film, video, print media and other cultural forms will be
viewed and analyzed within the context of feminist critical and theoretical frameworks.
11. Will this course be part of any plan (major, minor or certificate) or sub plan (emphasis)?
Yes
If yes, include the appropriate plan proposal.
No
12. Does this course duplicate content of existing courses?
Yes
No
If yes, list the courses with duplicate material. If the duplication is greater than 20%, explain why
NAU should establish this course.
13. Will this course impact any other academic unit’s enrollment or plan(s)?
If yes, include a letter of response from each impacted academic unit.
14. Grading option:
Letter grade
Yes
Pass/Fail
No
Both
15. Co-convened with:
14a. UGC approval date*:
(For example: ESE 450 and ESE 550) See co-convening policy.
*Must be approved by UGC before UCC submission, and both course syllabi must be presented.
16. Cross-listed with:
(For example: ES 450 and DIS 450) See cross listing policy.
Please submit a single cross-listed syllabus that will be used for all cross-listed courses.
17. May course be repeated for additional units?
16a. If yes, maximum units allowed?
16b. If yes, may course be repeated for additional units in the same term?
18. Prerequisites:
NONE
If prerequisites, include the rationale for the prerequisites.
19. Co requisites:
NONE
If co requisites, include the rationale for the co requisites.
Effective Fall 2012
Yes
No
Yes
No
20. Does this course include combined lecture and lab components?
Yes
No
If yes, include the units specific to each component in the course description above.
Dr. Jennifer McLerran, Dr. Tom
21. Names of the current faculty qualified to teach this course: Patin
Answer 22-23 for UCC/ECCC only:
22. Is this course being proposed for Liberal Studies designation?
If yes, include a Liberal Studies proposal and syllabus with this proposal.
Yes
23. Is this course being proposed for Diversity designation?
If yes, include a Diversity proposal and syllabus with this proposal.
Yes
Scott Galland
Reviewed by Curriculum Process Associate
11/29/2012
Date
Approvals:
Department Chair/ Unit Head (if appropriate)
Date
Chair of college curriculum committee
Date
Dean of college
Date
For Committee use only:
UCC/UGC/ECCC Approval
Date
Approved as submitted:
Yes
No
Approved as modified:
Yes
No
Effective Fall 2012
No
No
College of Arts and Letters
Department of Comparative Cultural Studies
ARH 220:
Feminism and Visual Culture
[3 credit hours]
Day/Time:
Instructor:
Office Phone:
E-mail:
TuTh 9:35-10:50 AM
Dr. Jennifer McLerran
928-523-5623
jen.mclerran@nau.edu
Building/Room:
Office:
Office Hours:
Riles, Rm. 205
Riles, Rm. 117
TuTh 3:45-4:45
Course Prerequisites:
NONE
Course Description:
This course explores how various forms of visual representation contribute to our notions of sex- and genderbased identity and their intersections with race, class, ethnicity and nationality. Our exploration of feminist
visual culture will fall into three broad categories, around which class readings and discussions are arranged: 1)
feminism and visual culture studies theory and history; 2) the construction of sex- and gender-based identity in
and through material culture and the mass media; 3) feminist art and feminist performance activism.
Representations from art, film, video, print media and other cultural forms will be viewed and analyzed within
the context of feminist critical and theoretical frameworks. We will conclude the course with an examination of
feminist strategies of resistance offered by artists and other cultural practitioners.
Readings and class discussions: Reading assignments must be completed by the day listed on the syllabus and
students are expected to come to class prepared to discuss them. Attendance is mandatory. Any more than 3
unexcused absences will result in a reduction in the student’s course grade. Attendance and participation will
constitute 10% of the student’s grade.
Reaction papers: One-page reaction papers (250-300 words, typed, double-spaced) on the readings for ten of
the fifteen weeks of the course are required. Each paper will constitute 2% of the student’s overall course grade.
Guidelines for reaction papers will be handed out and posted on the ARH 299 Blackboard site.
Presentations: Each student will be required to participate in two group presentations covering daily readings.
Discussion questions provided by the professor will aid the students in constructing their presentations and form
the basis of classroom discussion. Presentations must be approximately one hour in length and allow for ten to
fifteen minutes of open discussion at their conclusion.
Exams: Students must complete a mid-term take-home essay exam (25% of grade) and a final take-home essay
exam (25% of grade).
Failure to complete all assignments will result in a failing grade for the course.
This course supports the mission of the Liberal Studies program by helping students:
1) understand the traditions and legacies that have created the dynamics and tensions that shape the world.
2) practice the habits of an examined or self-reflective life to facilitate ethical and responsible living.
Effective Fall 2012
ARH 220 is in the Aesthetic and Humanistic Inquiry block and supports the intent of the block by:
1) involving students in analysis of various forms of creative expression.
2) helping students develop an understanding of how human experience and values are expressed through
creative endeavors.
3) helping students develop their capacities for analysis and ethical reasoning along with an understanding of
the multiple facets of the human condition.
The reading and writing requirements for ARH 220 will develop essential Critical Thinking and Effective
Writing skills. The assignments listed below will help students acquire a broad range of knowledge and
essential skills for success beyond graduation. The course will especially cultivate effective writing though
essay exams, short papers and a research paper.
Student Learning Expectations/Outcomes for this Course:
Students will gain the skills, knowledge and abilities necessary to:
Communicate effectively in speech.
 Read critically (for comprehension, critique and questioning).
 Think critically about problems facing our society.
 Reason ethically.
 Write effectively.
More specifically, in the process of participating in this course, students will have an opportunity to develop and
to demonstrate the following:
 An understanding of basic concepts of major feminist and critical cultural theories.
 The ability to apply these theories to varied forms of visual representation through critical analysis both
orally and in writing.
 The ability to locate through critical analysis a visual text’s treatment of gender, sexuality, race, class,
ethnicity and nationality.
 The ability to locate and examine the complex discursive webs embedded in visual cultural forms that
shape our individual identity, socio-cultural location and interpretive voice.
 Membership and participation in a critical interpretive community informed by common understandings
of visual cultural and feminist discourse.
Course Structure/Approach:
The course will be taught as lecture and discussion. The instructor will provide students with discussion
questions that will guide their reading and serve as the focus of class discussions. Students will be expected to
complete all readings before the day on which they are listed on the syllabus and come to class prepared to
discuss them. Lectures will be combined with student-led presentations and discussions to facilitate the
development of critical thinking skills.
Required Texts:
Marita Sturken and Lisa Cartwright. Practices of Looking: An Introduction to Visual Culture, 2nd edition. New
York: Oxford University Press, 2009.
Readings on Blackboard, as noted on syllabus (BB).
Entries from Thomas Patin and Jennifer McLerran, Artwords: A Glossary of Contemporary Art Theory,
Greenwood Press, 1997, posted on ARH 299 Blackboard site.
Effective Fall 2012
Course Outline
I. Weeks 1 – 3
Feminism and Visual Culture Studies Theory and History
Overview of different types of feminism and their varied approaches to the problem of sex- and gender-based
oppression. Discussion of First, Second and Third Wave Feminism. Introduction to the ways in which gendered
identity is constructed in and through visual representation.
Week 1, Day 1, Tuesday, August 30
Week 1, Day 2, Thursday, September 1
Chapter 1, ” Images, Power, and Politics,” 9-48, in Marita Sturken and Lisa Cartwright. Practices of Looking:
An Introduction to Visual Culture. Oxford University Press, 2001.
Week 2 , Day 1, Tuesday, September 6
Chapter 2, “Viewers Make Meaning,” 49-91, in Marita Sturken and Lisa Cartwright. Practices of Looking: An
Introduction to Visual Culture. Oxford University Press, 2001.
Week 2, Day 2, Thursday, September 8
Chapter 3, “Modernity: Spectatorship, Power, and Knowledge,” 93-139, in Marita Sturken and Lisa Cartwright.
Practices of Looking: An Introduction to Visual Culture. Oxford University Press, 2001.
Week 3, Day 1, Tuesday, September 13
Chapter 7, “Advertising, Consumer Cultures and Desire,” 265-306, in Marita Sturken and Lisa Cartwright.
Practices of Looking: An Introduction to Visual Culture. Oxford University Press, 2001.
Week 3, Day 2, Thursday, September 15
Chapter 8, “Postmodernism, Indie Media and Popular Culture,” 307-345, in Marita Sturken and Lisa
Cartwright. Practices of Looking: An Introduction to Visual Culture. Oxford University Press, 2001.
II. Weeks 4 – 14
The Construction of Sex- and Gender-Based Identity In and Through Material Culture and the Mass
Media
Central feminist issues and concerns approached via the study of various forms of visual culture, consumer
objects and practices including advertising, design, television, film/video, fashion and cosmetic surgery. We
will also explore the ways in which race- and class-based forms of discrimination intersect with those that are
sex- and gender-based.
Week 4, Day 1, Tuesday, September 20
Toys: Dolls and Action Figures
Acosta-Alzuru, Carolina and Elizabeth P. Lestern Roushanzamir, “’Everything We Do Is a Celebration of
You!’: Pleasant Company Constructs American Girlhood,” The Communication Review 6 (2003): 45-69. (BB)
Inness, Sherrie A., "’It's a Girl Thing’: Tough Female Action Figures in the Toy Store,” in Inness, Sherrie A.
Action Chicks: New Images of Tough Women in Popular Culture. New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2004.
(BB)
Week 4, Day 2, Thursday, September 22
Effective Fall 2012
Toys: Barbie
Barbie Liberation Organization, “Barbie/G. I. Joe Home Surgery Instructions.” (BB)
Lord, M. G. “The Woman Who Would Be Barbie,” in Forever Barbie. New York: Avon Books, 1995, 244-255.
(BB)
Rand, Erica. Barbie’s Queer Accessories. Durham: Duke University Press, 1995, 29-47. (BB)
Week 5, Day 1, Tuesday, September 27
Television
Brundson, Charlotte. “The Feminist in the Kitchen: Martha, Martha and Nigella. In Joanne Hollows and Rachel
Moseley, eds. Feminism in Popular Culture. New York: Berg, 2006.
Deery, June. “Trading Faces: The Makeover Show as Prime-Time ‘Infomercial’.” Feminism and Film.”
Feminist Media Studies 4.2 (2004): 211-14.
Week 5, Day 2, Thursday, September 29
Television
Ross, Sharon, ‘”Tough Enough’: Female Friendship and Heroism in Xena and Buffy,” in Inness, Sherrie A.
Action Chicks: New Images of Tough Women in Popular Culture. New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2004.
Squire, Corinne. “White Trash Pride and the Exemplary Black Citizen: Counter-Narratives of Gender, ‘Race,’
and the Trailer Park in Contemporary Daytime Television Talk Shows.” Narrative Inquiry, vol. 12, no. 1
(2002): 155-72.
Week 6, Day 1, Tuesday, October 4
Advertising/Print Media/Design
Pajaczkowska, Claire, “Issues in Feminist Design,” 123-126, in Carson, Fiona and Claire Pajaczkowska, eds.
Feminist Visual Culture. New York: Routledge, 2001.
Triggs, Teal, “Graphic Design,” 147-170, in Carson, Fiona and Claire Pajaczkowska, eds. Feminist Visual
Culture. New York: Routledge, 2001.
Niblock, Sarah, “Advertising,” 295-308, in Carson, Fiona and Claire Pajaczkowska, eds. Feminist Visual
Culture. New York: Routledge, 2001.
Week 6, Day 2, Thursday, October 6
Magazines
Childress, Cindy. “Glamour’s Portrayal of Queen Latifah: Another Unreal Ideal,” Feminist Media Studies 5.1
(2005): 84-87.
Ouellette, Laurie. “Inventing the Cosmo Girl: Class Identity and Girl Style American Dreams.” Media, Culture
& Society 21 (1999): 359-83.
Week 7, Day 1, Tuesday, October 11
Film and Video: Disney
Henke, Jill Birnie and Dianne Zimmerman Umble. “And She Lived Happily Ever After…The Disney Myth in
the Video Age,” in Mediated Women: Representations in Popular Culture edited by Marian Myers. Hampton
Press, 1999, 321-338.
Nguyen, Mimi. “Who’s Your Heroine?” at http://www.poppolitics.com/archives/2001/01/Whos-Your-Heroine.
Orenstein, Peggy. “What’s Wrong With Cinderella?” in New York Times Magazine, at
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/24/magazine/24princess.t.html.
Effective Fall 2012
Week 7, Day2, Thursday, October 13
REVIEW FOR MID-TERM TAKE-HOME ESSAY EXAM
Week 8, Day 1, Tuesday, October 18
Film and Video: Sci-Fi Heroines and Bad Girls
Constable, Catherine. “Becoming the Monster’s Mother: Morphologies of Identity in the Alien Series,” Alien
Zone II, Annette Kuhn, eds. London: Verso, 1999, 173-202.
Brown, Jeffrey, “Gender, Sexuality, and Toughness: The Bad Girls of Action Film and Comic Books,” 47-74,
in Inness, Sherrie A. Action Chicks: New Images of Tough Women in Popular Culture. New York: Palgrave
Macmillan, 2004.
MID-TERM TAKE-HOME ESSAY EXAMS DUE IN CLASS
Week 8, Day 2, Thursday, October 20
The Body and Difference
Woodward, Kathleen, Chapter 2, “The Body and Difference,” 65-107, in Kathleen Woodward, ed. Identity and
Difference. London: Sage Publication in Association with The Open University, 1997.
Bordo, Susan. “Never Just Pictures,” 454-65, in Jones, Amelia, ed. The Feminism and Visual Culture Reader.
Routledge, 2003.
Week 9, Day 1, Tuesday, October 25
The Body as Site of Contestation: Cosmetic Surgery
Kathy Davis, “Cultural Dopes and She-Devils: Cosmetic Surgery as Ideological Dilemma,” in Negotiating the
Margins: The Gendered Discourses of Power and Resistance, 23-47 in Kathy Davis and Sue Fisher, eds. New
Brunswick, NJ: Rutgers University Press, 1993.
Morgan, Kathryn Pauly “Women and the Knife: Cosmetic Surgery and the Colonization of Women’s Bodies,” Hypatia,
vol. 6, no. 3 (Fall 1991): 25-53.
Kauffman, Linda S. “Cutups in Beauty School – and Postscripts, January 2000 and December 2001,” 103-124,
in Smith, Sidonie and Julia Watson, eds. Interfaces: Women/Autobiography/Image/Performance. (University
of Michigan Press, 2002).
Day 2, October 27 CLASS DOES NOT MEET
Week 10, Day 1, Tuesday, November 1
The Body as Site of Contestation: Body Image/Eating Disorders/Fashion
Woodward, Kathleen, Chapter 3, “The Body, Health and Eating Disorders,” 122-166 in Woodward, Kathleen,
ed. Identity and Difference. London: Sage Publication in Association with The Open University, 1997.
Week 10, Day 2, Thursday, November 3
The Body as Site of Contestation: Body Image/Eating Disorders/Fashion
Susan Bordo, “Reading the Slender Body,” 167-181 in Kathleen Woodward, ed. Identity and Difference.
London: Sage Publication in Association with The Open University, 1997.
Arnold, Rebecca, “Fashion,” 207-222, in Carson, Fiona and Claire Pajaczkowska, eds. Feminist Visual Culture.
New York: Routledge, 2001.
Week 11, Day 1, Tuesday, November 8
Queer Theory
Effective Fall 2012
Case, Sue-Ellen. “Toward a Butch-Femme Aesthetic,” 402-413, in Jones, Amelia, ed. The Feminism and Visual
Culture Reader. Routledge, 2003.
Clark, Danae. “Commodity Lesbianism.” Camera Obscura 25-26 (1991): 181-201.
Week 11, Day 2, Thursday, November 10
Transgender Studies
Stone, Sandy. “A Posttransexual Manifesto,” 187-191, in Jones, Amelia, ed. The Feminism and Visual Culture
Reader. Routledge, 2003.
Feinberg, Leslie, “Transgender Liberation: A Movement Whose Time Has Come,” 133-146, in McCann, Carole
R. and Seung-kyung Kim. Feminist Theory Reader: Local and Global Perspectives, second edition.
Routledge, 2010.
Week 12, Day 1, Tuesday, November 15
Intersections of Race, Class and Gender: Black Feminist Thought
hooks, bell. “The Oppositional Gaze: Black Female Spectators,” 94-104, in Jones, Amelia, ed. The Feminism
and Visual Culture Reader. Routledge, 2003.
Collins, Patricia Hill, “Defining Black Feminist Thought,” 341-356, in McCann, Carole R. and Seung-kyung
Kim. Feminist Theory Reader: Local and Global Perspectives, second edition. Routledge, 2010.
Week 12, Day 2, Thursday, November 17
Intersections of Race, Class and Gender: Chicana and Latina Feminist Thought
Martinez, Elizabeth, “La Chicana,” 43-45, in McCann, Carole R. and Seung-kyung Kim. Feminist Theory
Reader: Local and Global Perspectives, second edition. Routledge, 2010.
Anzaldua, Gloria, “La Conciencia de la Mestiza: Towards a New Consciousness,” 254-262, in McCann, Carole
R. and Seung-kyung Kim. Feminist Theory Reader: Local and Global Perspectives, second edition.
Routledge, 2010.
Moya, Paula M. L., “Chicana Feminism and Postmodernist Theory,” 463-481, in McCann, Carole R. and
Seung-kyung Kim. Feminist Theory Reader: Local and Global Perspectives, second edition. Routledge, 2010.
Week 13, Day 1, Tuesday, November 22
Transnational Feminism
Fernandez, Maria, “Postcolonial Media Theory,” 520-27, in Jones, Amelia, ed. The Feminism and Visual
Culture Reader. Routledge, 2003.
Parmar, 287-93, in Jones, Amelia, ed. The Feminism and Visual Culture Reader. Routledge, 2003.
Aflatun, Inja, “We Egyptian Women,” 29-33, in McCann, Carole R. and Seung-kyung Kim. Feminist Theory
Reader: Local and Global Perspectives, second edition. Routledge, 2010.
Abu-Lughod, Lila, “Orientalism and Middle East Feminist Studies,” 203-211, McCann, Carole R. and Seungkyung Kim. Feminist Theory Reader: Local and Global Perspectives, second edition. Routledge, 2010.
Day 2, November 24 THANKSGIVING BREAK
III. Weeks 14 – 15
Feminist Art and Feminist Performance Activism
Exploration of strategies of resistance to gender-based oppression that have been offered by visual artists and
feminist performance activists.
Week 14, Day 1, Tuesday, November 29
Effective Fall 2012
Visual Art: Women Enter the Mainstream?
Chicago, Judy and Miriam Schapiro, “Female Imagery,” 40-43, in Jones, Amelia, ed. The Feminism and Visual
Culture Reader. Routledge, 2003.
Nochlin, Linda. “Why Have There Been No Great Women Artists?,” 229-34, in Jones, Amelia, ed. The
Feminism and Visual Culture Reader. Routledge, 2003.
Week 14, Day 2, Thursday, December 1
Visual Art: Black and Latina Feminist Art
Fusco, Coco. “Uncanny Dissonance: The Work of Lorna Simpson” from English is Broken Here, New Press,
1995, 94-104.
Gonzalez, Jennifer. “Amalia Mesa-Bains: Divine Allegories,” from Subject to Display. MIT Press, 2008, 121162.
Week 15, Day 1, Tuesday, December 6
Feminist Activist Art
Lacy, Suzanne and Leslie Labowitz, 302-313, in Jones, Amelia, ed. The Feminism and Visual Culture Reader.
Routledge, 2003.
Guerrilla Girls, 349-353, in Jones, Amelia, ed. The Feminism and Visual Culture Reader. Routledge, 2003.
Munoz, Jose, “The White to be Angry’: Vaginal Crème Davis’s Terrorist Drag,” 217-224, in Jones, Amelia, ed.
The Feminism and Visual Culture Reader. Routledge, 2003.
Week 15, Day 2, Thursday, December 8
Feminist Activist Performance Art
Flanagan, Mary and Suyin Looui, “Rethinking the F Word: A Review of Activist Art on the Internet,” NWSA
Journal, vol. 19, no. 1 (Spring 2007): 181-200.
Kutz/Flamenbaum, Rachel V. “Code Pink, Raging Grannies, and the Missile Dick Chicks: Feminist
Performance Activism in the Contemporary Anti-War Movement,” NWSA Journal, vol. 19, no. 1(Spring
2007): 89-105.
Assessement of Student Learning Outcomes:
As aligned with the Liberal Studies mission.
Methods of Assessment:
See grading rubrics for papers and group presentations attached below.
Attendance and discussion =
10 weekly reaction papers @ 2% each =
2 presentations (IN GROUPS OF 2-4) @ 10% each =
Mid-term take-home essay exam =
Final take-home essay =
10%
20%
20%
25%
25%
Timeline for Assessment:
Ten weekly reaction papers to be turned in to instructor on
Mid-term take-home essay exam due
Final take-home essay exam due
Effective Fall 2012
Tuesdays
week 8, day 1, Tuesday, October 18
Tuesday, December 13 by 5:00 p.m.
Two group presentations per student
dates to be assigned
Grading System:
ALL assignments must be completed in order to pass the course, unless you provide the instructor with a valid
written medical or institutional letter discussing why this will not be possible (notes from the Fronske health
center are not acceptable). With proper documentation, your remaining grades will be averaged together.
The grading scale for the course is as follows:
90%-100% =A
80%-89% =B
70%-79%=C
60%-69%=D
Below 59%=F
Course Policies:
Late Assignments: There will be NO makeup tests unless there is a valid medical written excuse (from the
doctor, hospital, etc), or a valid institutional excuse presented (or notification that it will be forthcoming) within
24 hours of the missed assignment. A missed assignment will be counted as a zero.
Attendance Policy: Given the structure of the course, which is based partly on class discussions, it is imperative
that you attend each class, participate actively, and demonstrate your knowledge of the assigned readings both
verbally and in writing. Any more than two unexcused absences (those without a valid medical excuse or a
valid institutional excuse) will result in a reduction of the student’s letter grade by one-third (i.e., from an A to
an A-).
Statement on Plagiarism and Cheating: The Department of Comparative Cultural Studies considers cheating and
plagiarism serious issues and deals with them severely. Any student found cheating or plagiarizing will fail the
exam or assignment, and may be removed from the class.
Cell Phones and Other Electronic Devices: ALL cell phones, pagers, beeping watches and any other form of
electronic device MUST BE SWITCHED off BEFORE you enter the classroom. If one of these devices goes
off, you will be asked to leave the class for the remainder of the period.
University policies:
See the NAU website for the Safe Working and Learning Environment, Students with Disabilities, Institutional
Review Board, and Academic Integrity policies.
ARH 220
Effective Fall 2012
Name
_____________________________
Paper No.
_____
Evaluation Criteria
20%
Responsiveness Does your paper respond appropriately to the assignment?
Does it show that you’ve understood what the assignment asks?
20%
Thesis
Does your paper have a clear, convincing, and relevant thesis, a
claim that explains why you are writing and why the reader should be reading?
If you are arguing for something, is your argument compelling and convincing?
Will it make your audience care? If you are explaining something, do you
make clear what it is you are explaining, and why the reader might want to
know about it?
20%
Organization
Does your paper focus clearly on the logic required by your
thesis, excluding what is irrelevant? Does the paper make good organizational
sense? Do you make your argument in terms that are as specific as possible?
Do you particularize each of the grounds you give for accepting your claim, or
for following and understanding your thesis idea? Do you give examples so
readers can see what you actually mean? Are the grounds you give relevant
to the point you’re trying to make? A well-focused paper will follow clearly,
avoid unclear digressions, and its different parts will all seem to be relevant to
the claim you’re making.
20%
Fullness Do you develop your ideas sufficiently that your argument can be
followed, and that your reader will grant you authority for what you say? Do
you give your arguments enough time? Do you say enough, staying with
points long enough to convince your reader that you know what you’re talking
about?
20%
Presentation
How well have you edited your paper? Are there spelling
errors? Punctuation problems? Awkward sentences?
Grade
R
(0-20 pts)
T
(0-20 pts)
O
(0-20 pts)
F
(0-20 pts)
P
(0-20 pts)
=
Total
(0-100 pts)
__________ __________ __________ __________ __________ ___________
Effective Fall 2012
Comments:
PRESENTATION EVALUATION FORM
Today’s date:
Names of presenters:
1. The speakers presented the main arguments of each reading clearly and succinctly.
Strongly Disagree
Agree
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
Strongly
2. The speakers provided a clear and convincing critique of each reading that demonstrated critical
thinking.
Strongly Disagree
Agree
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
Strongly
3. The speakers compared and contrasted the arguments presented in the assigned readings.
Strongly Disagree
Agree
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
Strongly
8
9
10
Strongly
4. The presentation was well planned and effectively organized.
Strongly Disagree
Agree
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
5. The speakers carried out adequate additional background research (proper pronunciation of
unfamiliar words, explaining things listeners might not know).
Strongly Disagree
Agree
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
Strongly
5
6
7
8
9
10
Strongly
6. The presentation was factual and informative.
Strongly Disagree
Agree
0
1
2
3
4
7. All group members participated equally in the presentation.
Effective Fall 2012
Strongly Disagree
Agree
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
Strongly
9
10
Strongly
8. Verbal portions of the presentation were clear and understandable.
Strongly Disagree
Agree
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9. The speakers effectively used handouts, blackboard, overhead, computer equipment, or other
audio-visual materials.
Strongly Disagree
Agree
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
Strongly
8
9
10
Strongly
10. The presenters displayed interest and enthusiasm in the topic.
Strongly Disagree
Agree
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
Overall, the presentation merits the following grade (circle one):
D-
D
D+
C-
12. Summary comments:
Effective Fall 2012
C
C+
B-
B
B+
A-
A
A+