Welcome:
Welcome to the Biblical Literature online course at LeTourneau University! I look forward to journeying through God's Word with you during the next 5 weeks. I am here to help you succeed academically and to encourage you on your spiritual journey.
I love getting to know my students. The best way of contacting me is through my campus email TonyShetter@letu.edu as I check it regularly. However, you may also contact me by cell or text. My cell number is found under the tab "My Instructor" on the course page.
Course Textbooks:
Bartholomew, Craig G., and Michael W. Goheen. The Drama of Scripture: Finding Our Place in the Biblical Story. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2004.
Duvall, J. Scott, and J. Daniel Hays. Grasping God’s Word: A Hands-On Approach to Reading, Interpreting, and Applying the Bible. Third Edition. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2012.
Both textbooks are available electronically for the Logos Bible Software. www.logos.com
For this course, you will be reading through The Drama of Scripture in concert with your Bible reading. For the book Grasping God's Word, you will use it to complete the Genre Reports (GR). The GR instructions will direct you to the specific sections to read.
Submission of Work:
When submitting Study Questions (SQ) and Genre Reports (GR), please submit your files in docx format (i.e., MS Word). Blackboard opens docx files automatically and allows me, as the professor, to insert comments directly into your work. This is a benefit to me and to you as it allows for helpful and clear feedback on your assignments. If you do not have MS Word, you can complete your work using another word processor and then convert your file to docx using this free online converter: http://document.online-convert.com/convert-to-docx. Then upload the converted file to Blackboard.
Many of the weekly written assignments contain more than one file to download and complete. For example, the Week 1 Study Questions assignment includes two files: SQ1 and SQ2. You can either upload both individually (two files) in one submission, or you can combine the two assignments into one document and submit one file. I have no preference on the manner in which you submit your work, just please submit in docx format.
Grading of Work:
Weekly Devotionals: Each devotional will consist of meditating on a given passage using the lectio divina approach. You can download the instructions on this method through this link: Lectio Divina: An Introductory Guide. Upload your response to the Devotional Forum.
Interactive Assessments: To earn full credit for engagement in the weekly interactive assessments please do the following: 1 make your initial post by Wednesday (Day 3) at midnight, 2 make several (more than 3) responses to the posts of others throughout the rest of the week (concluding on Day 7 at midnight), and 3 further the discussion in your posts. For more information on writing quality discussion comments, see the "Interactive Assessment Grading Rubric" located in the Course Resources folder on Blackboard.
Study Questions: While arriving at the correct answer is important, the aim of this assignment is to help you engage with the Drama of Scripture reading. The grade for this assignment is based primarily on the effort demonstrated in wrestling with the questions and completeness. Where a thorough answer is sought, be sure to provide one.
Genre Reports: The format of these reports need not be in the style of a research paper. However, be sure to carefully follow the instructions provided for each report. Where you are asked to answer in paragraph form, be sure to compose your answers as such.
Exams: Exams will take on various formats e.g. matching, short answer, multiple choice, essay, etc. For essay questions, be sure to fully answer the question in prose form, i.e., paragraphs with complete sentences. Carefully read each question and answer correctly and thoroughly to earn a high grade on exams.
Student Resources:
LeTourneau University's Margaret Estes Library Use this link to access the library online.
Electronic Databases at LeTourneau University's Margaret Estes Library Research Databases Use link to search online databases. This is a great source for getting quality sources when doing online study since you can download electronic copies of academic peer-review journal articles.
Conjugator (Reverso) This link will conjugate verbs in a variety of languages. It will also help with grammar.