1. Class Attendance & Participation. An important goal of this class is to introduce you to important ideas, texts, and movements throughout Asia, and for you to participate in thoughtful, critical discussions on the texts and films we’ll read throughout the semester. It is therefore important that you put the time and energy into reading and thinking about the assigned texts and films, and that you come to class prepared to share your criticisms, questions, and insights with the rest of us. See the "Attendance Policy" below. (Worth 15% of course grade)

2.  Three Short (2-3 page) Critical Essays. These papers will be your opportunity to discuss the materials assigned for the course.  You will discuss the main themes of the document(s) in the context of what you learn during class lectures, from the texts, or through the videos.  These papers should be 2-3 pages in length, and you will find prompts for each essay on the website.  (Each worth 15% of course grade)

3. In-Class Presentation:  Each student is responsible for researching a specific topic in a country or region in Asia and giving a 15 minute presentation to the class. The topic and country or region you choose is entirely up to you, but the title of your presentation is due in class on Thursday, September 19. You should review the "Tips for Class Presetnations" on the course website and set up a meeting with me if you have any questions or need further guidance.  (Worth 10% of course grade)

4. Engaged Learning Segment: The Engaged Learning segment of this course has two parts: 1. Attending 3 public talks by visiting scholars and artists whose work focuses on Asia and writing a brief 1 page reflection on each presentation. The dates for each event are highlighted in red on the "Course Schedule" page of this website; and 2., Watch 4 of the required movies at home and write a 1 page reflection on each movie, which is due at the beginning of the class scheduled to discuss each film. (Worth 15% of course grade)

5.   Final Exam:  This take-home final exam will consist of 4-5 short essay questions that ask you to critically compare and contrast 2 or more texts or films that we have studied during the semester. Each short essay should be 2 or more double-spaced pages in length, and can include external academic resources, insights from our class discussions and lectures, or thoughts from our guest speakers or public lectures. (Worth 15% of course grade)

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• Attendance Policy for this Course: Students are allowed 4 absences (excused or unexcused) per semester. Having a 5th absence—excused or unexcused—will result in failing the course, despite the quality of the rest of the student’s work. The college policy allows 2 absences—and so my policy is twice as generous than the college requires.

• Policy on the use of Generative Artificial Intelligence: This course encourages students to explore the use of generative artificial intelligence (GAI) tools such as ChatGPT for their essays, presentations, and exams. Any such use must be appropriately acknowledged and cited. It is each student’s responsibility to assess the validity and applicability of any GAI output that is submitted, and to adequately cite the source if you use GAI for your essays, reflections, or final exam; you bear the final responsibility. Violations of this policy will be considered academic misconduct. 

•  Final letter grades for the course will correspond to the following percentages:

A- 90–92         A 93–100        A+ **

B- 80–82         B 83–86          B+ 87–89        

C- 70–72         C 73–76          C+ 77–79 

D- **               D 60–66          D+ 67–69                    

F 0–59             ** = doesn’t exist at SMCM