Dear On-Line POLI 1 students!
First off, WELCOME to the start of the term!! I love teaching and I'm really excited to
introduce you to the world of U.S. politics. I teach an engaged class that speaks to the
real lives of students. I'm eager to share my enthusiasm with you. And, I'm eager to
help you learn, provide you with a lot of support, and get to know you.
A number of you will have attended our optional orientation on campus on the first
Monday of the term. It is always good meeting students in person. For those of you
who are not able to make it, this letter will go over some of what we covered
regarding the logistics of the class. So, please read on. And, be in touch with
questions or concerns. And for those of you who were there, read this as a reminder
of much of what we covered. There may also be some useful new information.
Second, let's make sure we align your expectations to what this class is. In my
classes, active participation & engagement is Key to Your Learning: Right off, you
should know that while this is an online class, it is also a hands-on and participatory
version of POLI 1. I require a lot of public interaction both on-line and ALSO in your
community. You will be able to flexibly schedule almost all of this work into your
own schedule but public and hands-on learning and engagement will be a core part
of your learning experience.
AND, this is a real college level class that expects 4 hours of "classroom" time AND
THEN 6 to 12 hours of homework. So, make sure this is the class you want. If you are
looking for a class where you only read material and take tests anonymously, you
should opt to take someone else’s class. If you are looking for a class where you do
not do much actual learning or put in time, do not take this class.
This is a LONG letter with a LOT of explanation. It will seem overwhelming in its
detail at first, but you’ll find that the class actually is very straight-forward and easy
to understand once you get used to it. I strongly encourage you to get to a tutorial
help-session with one of our Class TAs in the first week of the term to touch base
and understand the class. And, I’ll give you extra credit for doing so too!
Please read on!
Warmly,
Nicky Gonzalez Yuen, Ph.D, JD
Chair, DeAnza College Political Science Dept
p.s. GOOD LUCK THIS TERM, and remember, you all are really smart!
Participation is Key to Your Learning: Right off, you should know that while this
is an online class, it is also a hands-on and participatory version of POLI 1. If you are
looking for a class where you only read material and take tests anonymously, you
should opt to take someone else’s class. I require a lot of public interaction both online and ALSO in your community. You will be able to flexibly schedule almost all of
this work into your own schedule but public and hands-on learning and engagement
will be a core part of your learning experience.
How to Understand the Structure of the Class:
First off: Watch these orientation videos we made last year. In Part 2, there
are some details that are different in the class from last year, especially about
specific due dates, so make sure you watch the Part 3 update video after
watching Part 2. ALSO read the rest of this letter for specific details.
1. Orientation Video Part 1- From fall 2014 class. Especially for online students
but also helpful for on campus students.
2. Orientation Video Part 2- From fall 2014 class. See the PART 3 video listed
below to get the most up-to-date syllabus details. Also, read the current
syllabus for complete info.
3. Orientation Video Part 3- Changes made as of Fall 2015
4. Orientation Video Part 4-- how to navigate the www.NYPOLISCI.org website.
5. Orientation Video Part 5- Using Assignment Templates
All of the details of this class are explained on the class website on my personal
teaching webpage at www.nypolisci.org. If you go directly to this URL you will see
that there are several tabs at the top of the page for different classes I teach. You
should focus your attention on the Online Poli 1 (Dist Lrning) tab.
http://nypolisci.org/main/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=134&I
temid=210
Once you have clicked on this tab you will then notice three major sub-tabs for
I) Syllabus
II) How to Succeed
III) Class Calendar
We’ll examine each of these below.
I) SYLLABUS:
If you hover over the Syllabus link itself you will see the following drop down
menus:
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Overview and Learning Goals
Required Texts
Grading & Assignments
Turning In Work
Hands-on Learning
□ Extra Credit
Let's focus on each of these in turn.
1. Overview and Learning Goals. This page describes the six class learning
goals. You can also find a chart that provides an overall summary of the class
topics and work due for the quarter. You should understand these learning
goals because ALL other assignments in the class are aimed at accomplishing
these learning goals.
2. Required Texts: This explains what books and articles you should acquire.
Most of these are on-line and free, but there is one book you will have to buy,
The Politics of Power, 7th Edition.
3. Grading and Assignments: This sub-tab explains how you earn points in the
class and what you need to do to earn a given grade. You will see that we
offer a variety of modes of learning and ways of demonstrating your learning.
For the class there are 1000 possible points and to earn an "A" grade you
need just 934. If you are taking the class on a pass/fail basis, you need just
700 points. There are also 150 points of possible extra credit.
o Each week you have three things to turn in:
1) A Reading Quiz due on Wednesday at 10 PM
2) A participation chat dialogue, due Fridays at 10 PM
3) One writing assignment which varies each week, due
Fridays at 10 PM
Note: during week #1, you will have a variety of different
assignments due by Saturday that are orientation/set-up
assignments. If you do not complete these, you may be
dropped from the class for non-participation.
o On the Grading and Assignments sub-tab, you can also click on various
links for directions for each of these assignments. We include: a
weekly multiple choice quiz and chat dialogue; 3 short homework
questions; 3 hands-on learning assignments; a midterm paper; a term
project due at week 11; and a final exam during week 12.
o Please come up with a plan for yourself at the beginning of the term to
get in all your work, being careful to note that online classes take
more discipline, self-motivation and organization. Best practices for
college-level classes call for from 2-3 hours of homework for each
hour/unit of class credit, in addition to class time. Because this is 4
unit online class, you should therefore plan to spend between 12 and 16
hours.
4. Turning in Work: This sub-tab explains how and where to turn in your
assignments. All of your work will be turned in and graded on-line using two
methods:
o Catalyst is De Anza's on-line learning tool. You will use Catalyst
primarily to take your weekly quiz. If you are new to Catalyst, go to
the "First Time Users Guide" at the bottom of the splash page for
help. You can also use Catalyst to check your grade progress using the
“Grades” link under Course administration tab on the left side of your
menu bar in Catalyst.
o Turnitin.com is a service that allows us to evaluate and provide
feedback for your work quickly and efficiently. You will use
turnitin.com to submit all of your assignments except your weekly
reading quiz. You can find all of the information for signing up for the
turnitin service on this link—including the class ID and passwords.
o Photos and Cover Sheets: all written assignments will include a
cover sheet/template that should include a photo of you with a closeup that clearly shows your face. You will find the coversheet/template
on the weekly calendar on nypolisci.org. Please follow directions for
these templates/coversheets. Incomplete templates or templates
without your photo may not be accepted or may receive reduced credit.
o Due Dates: You can find when each assignment is due on the weekly
class calendar, explained below.
5. Hands-On Learning: this sub-tab describes assignments that use "hands-on"
learning techniques. You have two options here—
1) 3 separate Practicing Democracy Assignments
2) 12 hours of Civic Engagement Field Work
Read over the options and pick those that best suits your schedule and
learning styles. After turning in your “Hands On Learning Contract” at week
2, you will turn in the actual assignments just three times over the quarter at
weeks 3, 7, and 10.
6. Extra Credit Options: The contents of this tab are pretty self-explanatory. You
may earn up to 150 points of extra credit total. Due weekly on Fridays and
ending at week 11. Again, be sure to include a close-up photo showing your face
with your submission.
II) CLASS CALENDAR & ASSIGNMENTS:
The second main tab I would like to focus on is the Class Calendar.
If you hover over the calendar you will see a drop-down list showing Week #1,
Week #2, etc. up to Week #12. Click on any of these to see the reading and
homework assignments due for that week.
Week #1: The assignments for the first week mostly have to do with setting up the
logistics of the class, setting up your Catalyst and Turnitin.com accounts, Facebook
page, taking two surveys and the syllabus quiz, posting on the introductory forum
and finding a participation partner from your group, etc… Please complete these
assignments, fill out the appropriate template form and submit them on
turnitin.com. There is also some reading you should do for Week 1 on the class
website, especially reading the syllabus itself, but your substantive class reading and
regular assignments will start in Week 2.
Week #2 and on: At the top of each Week’s webpage page you will see a list of
Assigned Readings and Online Video Resources. Do these. You can also click on the
audio links next to most assignments to listen to the assignments rather than
reading them, if this is a more convenient mode of engaging the assigned readings.
You can also click on the optional reading link for deeper learning but this is totally
optional and no class credit is offered for these assignments.
You will have 3 regular assignments to turn in for each week: Weekly Quizzes, Class
Participation, and ONE additional writing assignment depending on the week.
□ Reading Quizzes: Quizzes are taken on Catalyst. Each Reading Quiz will have
10 questions and you will be given 15 minutes. For the Week 1 & 2 quiz you
will have multiple attempts at the quiz. For Week #3 and onward you will
have increasingly fewer attempts. I will county your high score so keep
taking the quiz until you get the score you want or you run out of attempts.
Quizzes should be completed by 10:00 PM on Wednesday. Weekly Quizzes
are worth 30 points each. Over the quarter you will have 11 quizzes. I will
drop the low score among these quizzes. So there are a total of 300 quiz
points.
□ Homework Questions: You have 3 Homework Questions over the entire
quarter, at weeks 4, 6 and 8. You can find a link on the Calendar for each of
these weeks for the template for this assignment that you should download.
Respond to the homework question in 300-350 words, with a 50-75 word
additional personal viewpoint conclusion. Then upload the completed
template/assignment to www.turnitin.com. Be sure to use the template,
providing a word count, a close-up photo showing your face, etc. Incomplete
templates or templates without your photo may not be accepted or may receive
reduced credit.
These assignments typically start with a short video to view and then
ask you to reflect on the weekly readings. They are worth 40 points
each.
Submit your Homework Question on www.turnitin.com.
Peer/Self Review on www.turnitin.com. Be sure to review the
model response I will post after the assignment due date and then to
complete a peer- and self-review. This is an important part of your
learning process and is worth 10 of the 40 total points available for
each homework question. You will have two days after the assignment
submission date to complete your peer/self review. People submitting
late h/w questions will not be able to do the peer/self review.
□ Hands-On Learning/Practicing Democracy Assignments: The Practicing
Democracy Assignments, described above, are one-time exercises that help
you learn how to be citizens in a democracy-- active participants in
governance, hands-on advocacy, and the building of relationships that are the
foundation for collective participation in the important decisions in our
society. These are worth 40 points each (for 120 points total over the
quarter) and are uploaded to www.turnitin.com at weeks 3, 7, and 10. You
must decide at week 2 whether you are going to choose this option or the
field work option described below.
□ Hands-On Learning/Civic Engagement Field Work: The alternative to
Practicing Democracy Assignments, described above, is civic engagement
field work where you volunteer for a political organization for 12 hours over
the quarter. You can choose from our list or you can find one of your own and
apply to have us approve it. If you take this option, you will turn in 3 Civic
Engagement Field Reports with at least 2 hours and not more than 8 hours of
work reported each time. These are worth 120 points total over the quarter
and are uploaded to www.turnitin.com at weeks 3, 7, and 10. You must
decide at week 2 whether you are going to choose this option or the
practicing democracy assignment described below.
□ Note: there are a number of Field Work options that will dove-tail with your
term project, making that assignment much easier if you choose those Field
Work options.
□ Class Participation: You will also engage in class participation by finding a
partner within your assigned group and carrying out a weekly
interview/dialogue in a chat session using a series of prescribed questions as
well as two questions of your own. This is your opportunity both to reflect on
your substantive learning of the class material and also your process as a
student. This will be your best opportunity to give and receive peer-based
support for your learning in this class.
You will choose the forum for your chat sessions. You may use the
Chat Room provided each week on Catalyst (but make sure you
coordinate with the rest of your group members so you do not conflict
with other group members trying to use the chat room at the same
time). You may also: set up a free account on www.chatzy.com; or use
any other method of chatting you choose PROVIDED it has a
time/date stamp.
Submitting your assignment: After you carry out your chat room
dialogue/interview, be sure you copy it and paste it into the
assignment template we provide and then submit it to the
participation assignment on www.turnitin.com. As usual, make sure
you also provide a close-up photo of yourself showing your face. This
is worth up to 10 points per week and should be uploaded to
www.turnitin.com on Fridays at 10 PM.
WEEK 1 & 12: There are a also few mandatory week 1 and week 12
miscellaneous participation assignments with over 30 points:
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Introductory Class Survey
Political Science Department Civic Attitude Survey
Introductory Forum Post and Selection of Partner
Setting up your Catalyst Account with a Photo
Setting up your Turnitin.com account
Setting up your class Facebook account and making an initial post
Taking the Week 1 Syllabus Quiz
Filling out your Class Exit Survey (Unit 12)
Completing the Political Science Department Civic Attitude Survey
part 2
FACEBOOK PAGE: There is a class Facebook page where you will interact with
other students in the class, ask and answer questions, comment on class material,
post related articles, videos, etc. We use of the class Facebook page not only
because it is a useful source of information and interaction about the class, but also
because it, along with many other forms of social media, is an indispensible means
of political communication in contemporary society. If peer-to-peer participation is
the lifeblood of a democracy, then Facebook and other means of communication
using social media are essential tools to master. So, go ahead and play with this and
see how it works. If you are not comfortable using your real name on Facebook, you
may set up an alias account using your real first name and a pseudonym for your
last name. Just be sure to let ME know who you are on Facebook and keep
reminding me!
HOW TO SUCCEED:
This is the final major tab you should look at. It describes resources available to you
to help you out, including a list of Teaching Assistants and a schedule of help
sessions (for which you can earn extra credit!!)
I hope this overview has been helpful to you. Please post questions you have on the
class Facebook page or write back to me directly via email at YuenNicky@fhda.edu.
GOOD LUCK THIS TERM, and remember, you all are really smart!
Nicky Gonzalez Yuen, Ph.D, JD
Chair, DeAnza College Political Science Dept