More Syllabus Info

Policies 

Attendance & Your Health

This course is designed so that learning takes place via active participation both in and outside of the class. Although daily attendance is not mandatory, many in-class activities provide irreplaceable learning experiences, and these cannot be made up.

I recognize that some students have other commitments that do not allow them to come to class. You need to do what is best for your life, and for your health. I will try my best to make resources available for students who miss class, but I can't promise all the experiences will be repeatable.  Please check in with a peer or two (not just me) to learn about what was covered.

Please do not come to class if you are feeling ill or should be in quarantine. The best place to start with recovering missed course work is the daily content page for your class, and also checking in with a buddy or two for highlights. Should your circumstances change in a way that impacts your ability to continue to succeed in our class, please notify me as soon as possible so that we can work together to connect you to support and make a plan.

About Late Work

Assigned work is not considered late until I have graded all the submitted assignments of your peers.  This means that if a deadline is 3pm on Friday, and if you don't submit yours until 4pm on Friday, you're probably fine.  In fact, I typically take a rest from Friday-Saturday, so usually Sunday I'm starting my grading work. 

Once I've graded all the other assignments, I enter 0's in for the missing assignments and return them all.  Only once you recieve a 0 in Google Classroom, then any submissions thereafter are considered late. 

All students have 2 "free" late assignments. You don't need to tell me when you'd like to use a freebee; the first 2 late assignments will automatically not receive penalty.  Once the freebees have been used up, any late assignments thereafter are penalized by 15% of the grade.  

The exception to the "2 free" rule is quizzes/miscellaneous work.  This work can not be made up after the quiz is closed or the deadline has passed. 

There is a catch: I typically don't grade late work until near or at the end of the semester. This is to help me do good self care: it is healthier for me to grade all the late work at once so that I can be more fair grading equally, and so that I can tackle it in one go.  This means that by handing in something late, you are still able to earn credit, but you are unfortunately missing out on a chance to have timely formative feedback; you have to be patient.  In summary, I have a flexible late work policy, but it is also flexible in terms of timely feedback. 

Religious Accommodations

PLU makes every effort to provide reasonable accommodations for all students who, because of religious observances, may have conflicts with scheduled exams, assignments, or required attendance in courses. Students are responsible for reviewing dates and deadlines throughout the semester to determine any such potential conflicts, and to let me know as soon as possible, ideally 2-3 weeks in advance. I am happy to make appropriate accommodations, and if you would like support in making such a request, you may contact PLU's University Pastor Jen Rude (rudejl@plu.edu or 535-7465). 

Disruptive Classroom Behavior

I am committed to protecting all my students’ opportunities participate in the learning this course has to offer. Repeated disruptive classroom behavior from any student will not be tolerated. Please follow these examples of appropriate (non-disruptive) classroom behaviors:

• Keep questions and comments relevant to the topic at hand

• Act with respect to all students, regardless of their expressed beliefs and ideas

• Arrive with plenty of time to be prepared for active participation in the class

• If you must leave early, do so without disrupting others

• Avoid computing behaviors that are distracting to yourself and other students (e.g., watching videos, checking e-mail, Facebook) 

Students who do not follow these guidelines, who make repeated offenses, or who do not respond to instructor correction may be referred to PLU’s Student Conduct System (http://www.plu.edu/srr). If someone in the classroom (including your instructor) is obstructing your ability to learn or is not following these guidelines, please tell your instructor as soon as possible. 

Academic Dishonesty. 

PLU’s expectation is that students will not cheat or plagiarize, and that they will not condone these behaviors or assist others who cheat or plagiarize. 

Cheating includes, but is not limited to:

• Submitting material that is not yours as part of your course performance, such as copying another person’s exam or written assignment, or allowing another student to copy from your exam or assignment

• Using information or devices not allowed (e.g., internet devices during exams, consulting with other groups during group assessments)

• Fabricating information (e.g., making up fake data and presenting it as if it were real)

Plagiarism includes, but is not limited to:

• Directly quoting words of others without using quotations marks or indentation to identify the script as quoted along with credit to the original source

• Using altered wording, materials, or ideas of others without properly identifying the original source

• Offering ideas or strategies as if they are your own when they come from someone else.

Any time you are unclear about whether something is cheating or plagiarism, please see your instructor or your librarian for guidance. More information about academic integrity policies can be found online in the PLU Faculty Handbook.

Use of AI and Proper Attribution

AI tools can assist in providing explanations and suggestions, but they should not be used for direct answers to graded assignments, quizzes, or examinations. You should review and revise any AI-generated responses. Also, you should cite your AI tool (give credit where it is due) any time you use it. Do not submit AI-generated content as your own work; adapt it to make it yours and give credit to the tool as the original draft; otherwise this is plagiarism.  You are always invited to meet with me for clarification on course content as a first option, as information provided by the AI can be inaccurate or incomplete.

Likewise, if you work with a partner, or get help from anyone on any assignment, you must say so (give proper credit whenever it is due). This is an important ethical practice. Acknowledging such collaborations will not affect your grade, unless otherwise clearly specified in the assignment instructions. 

Incomplete Grades. 

PLU's policies about incomplete grades can be found in the Undergraduate Academic Policies and Procedures in your course catalog.  For this course, Incomplete (I) grades are considered only for students who have completed with a C or higher more than 50% of the course work at the time when a circumstance beyond their control hindered their ability to participate.

Inclement Weather & Other Emergencies. 

Regarding questions of weather and other emergencies, please check the University website or hotline (after 6 am; (877) 322-0872) and PLU alerts regarding the status of college closure. Class cancellations due to other unexpected causes will be announced via e-mail.

Disclaimer

Certain aspects of the course may be modified in order to meet the needs of the class. Students are responsible for any changes announced in class or online.