Tips for Success


"By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail"


  1. REFLECT ON WHAT YOU COULD GAIN FROM THIS CLASS

    If you approach this class proactively and optimistically, as a rare and exciting opportunity to learn--rather than passively and pessimistically, as a mandatory and boring prerequisite to pass--it will be much more rewarding, both in terms of your experience in class and your acquisition of new skills and ideas.

  2. PREPARE TO BE CHALLENGED (AND CHALLENGE YOURSELF)

  3. THINK COMMUNITY

  4. READ ASSIGNMENT GUIDELINES VERY CAREFULLY

  5. READ MY FEEDBACK FOR YOU

    As often as possible, I will provide constructive feedback for you, so it is paramount that you read it, understand it, remember it, and make an effort to apply it going forward. Otherwise, you will miss out on key suggestions and expectations, which will negatively impact your success in class.


  1. READ ALL COURSE CONTENT (NOT JUST ASSIGNMENTS)

    If you complete the course assignments without reading supplementary lectures, tips, and materials, don't be surprised if your understanding is incomplete and your performance is poor.


  1. TAKE THOUGHTFUL NOTES & ANNOTATE YOUR TEXTBOOKS

    Failing to take notes during class is one of the biggest mistakes I see students make. Always have your pencil or pen poised and at the ready to make note of key points during class. Notes are all-important--insofar as they serve as a crucial form of external memory that can be referred to after-the-fact as a study guide to reinforce understanding.

  2. TALK TO ME

    If you don't understand what I am asking of you in a certain assignment, or if you don't understand something covered in class or in feedback I've provided, do not hesitate to talk to me.

  3. TAKE ADVANTAGE OF "EASY" ASSIGNMENTS

    I offer various assignments that should be comparatively easy to ace, so be sure to complete all of these assignments to ensure the best grade possible. For example, I encourage you to take both the     Syllabus Quiz and the Plagiarism Quiz until you get a perfect score. That means you can take these quizzes as many times as necessary (by deadline). Such "easy" assignments are designed to help balance out the harder ones, but you have to complete them--and repeat them if necessary--to strike that balance.

  4. TAKE ADVANTAGE OF EXTRA CREDIT

    I offer various extra credit opportunities

  5. TAKE DEADLINES SERIOUSLY

    Late work will not be accepted. This policy is not intended to be punitive--rather it is intended to ensure efficiency and equity. In the first case, not only is it simply not manageable for me to accept late work willy-nilly or on a case-by-case basis, but it defeats the purpose of class, which is to come to a deep and incremental understanding of the material as we cover it, not after-the-fact. To my second point, accepting the late work of one student is profoundly unfair to other students who are able to meet assignment deadlines. Granted, I do recognize that deadlines may cause you stress, but they are a necessary reality of both college and professional life, so prepare ahead.

  6. UNDERSTAND HOW YOU WILL BE GRADED

  7. DEVELOP YOUR IDEAS & SUPPORT THEM WITH EVIDENCE

  8. REVISE & PROOFREAD CLOSELY FOR CLARITY OF EXPRESSION

    Show empathy for your readers--and pride in both your writing and thinking--by revising and proofreading your work for clarity of expression. Remember, the content of your ideas (their logic, power) can easily become flawed if their form (their grammar, spelling, punctuation, formatting) is flawed.


  1. ACCURATELY REPRESENT THE MATERIAL COVERED, INCLUDING NAMES, DATES, TITLES, QUOTES, & CONTENT