Our Community
As a collection of practitioners ourselves, we’ll create our own community nestled inside the larger communities of CSU, Colorado, and the modern artistic and literary landscape. Each member of our community has intrinsic value that will enrich all of our experiences in this course and influence our journeys as scholars and thinkers.Your opinions and reactions are important—offer them. The greater the energies put in by each of us, the more meaningful the course will be.
Our community will be committed to fostering and encouraging each other's growth. This will take many forms, including willingness to be vulnerable and willingness to experiment. Our community will be respectful of each other’s time and vulnerability.
Etiquette
No one has the right to inhibit the learning and safety of others. If you are doing something distracting, harassing, or dangerous to any member of this community I may ask you to leave. If you feel another student is hindering your learning or making you feel disrespected or unsafe, please inform me immediately.
Devices (cell phones, tablets, or laptops) will not be allowed, unless prior permission is obtained. As much of our course is devoted to Presence, let us be fully present to one another during class. Our devices distract and detract us from this possibility.
**Important note: Be sure to bring the collection we’re reading with you to class each day, as well as a printed copy of any additional poems or stories assigned. It is virtually impossible to draw from readings that we do not have in front of us. Failure to bring the necessary reading to class (hardcopy) will result in loss of participation points for any given day.
Course Requirements
In-Class Engagement (20% of final grade)
• You are expected to be an active participant in most class dialogues. This first requires serious preparation, including reading the assigned material. This is a crucial aspect of your participation. As you read, you should strive to understand what you are reading. Be prepared to actively, thoughtfully, and respectfully participate and contribute to most in-class discussions. Please bring the appropriate book or excerpt to class each day. Participation grade is calculated by attendance and contributions to class dialogue.
• Classroom Environment: All students are expected to be respectful toward one another and the professor. You are encouraged to be critical of all ideas, but please express your disagreement in a respectful way and only after carefully considering the other’s viewpoints. Please avoid all behavior that distracts from our learning environment, including phone and computer use.
Field Guide & Seedbank (20% of final grade)
· The Field Guide offers the opportunity to attend to the world around us, and to catalogue what it is we find in those internal and external environs, while reflecting deeply on the material at hand. Specific prompts for field guide entries will be provided each week. The goal will be to assign more prompts than necessary to fulfill this requirement. Please bring your field guide to each class, as it will be a central tool to our studies.
· The Seedbank is a mutually created multi-media repository into which you might add "seeds" for our collective consideration, enjoyment, and inspiration. Your task will be to contribute to the seedbank atleast twice a week, though hopefully you will find yourself adding to it much more often and it will become a part of a practice of attending and tending.
In-class Essay & Peer-Response (20% of final grade)
· There will be one in-class essay. The goal of the essay is to respond to a prompt, using what we have learned so far in class as a place from which to begin your exploration. In addition to the in-class prompt and presentation we will find a time to share and respond to each other’s work. You will be responsible for writing a letter of response to two classmates as part of this effort.
Unit Essays (20% of final grade)
· There will be two essays due during the regular semester. These essays should display your engagement with class material and draw connections between readings, class discussions, and activities. Your essays should represent a unique contribution to the scholarship on the topics at hand. More information, including specific topics and questions, will be distributed in class.
Final Project: Presentation + Submission (20% of final grade)
· The purpose of the final project is to facilitate a unique mode of “Encounter” with the more-than-human-world, drawing on the cares and concerns most dear to each student and our class. Students will choose topics in consultation with the professor. Ideally, 3-5 students will be interested in the same theme and can collaborate and present their projects together. This project will require creativity and teamwork in the planning process, as well as leadership and communication skills in the implementation. More information, including specific topics and questions, will be distributed in class.
Attendance Policy
• Expectations: Attendance and participation are required for this class.
In the event of an absence, it is best to contact a reliable classmate to find out what was missed and to confirm future assignments. It is the absent student’s responsibility to make-up work from missed classes—e.g., by meeting with classmates or borrowing notes from classmates. Students should also visit the Canvas course page for the latest class updates. Please contact the professor regarding absences due to illness or death in the family.
• University Representation: Students may be exempted from the regular attendance policy when they participate in University-sanctioned activities, such as athletic competitions. Students must inform the instructor prior to anticipated absences and make-up missed work on a schedule set in consultation with the instructor.
• Religious Holidays & Observances: CSU has a legal obligation to accommodate students’ absences due to religious observances. For such an accommodation, it is the student’s responsibility to complete the Religious Accommodation Request Form at the beginning of each semester and submit the request via the Office of the Vice President for Student Affairs website.
Accommodations:
If you are a student who will need accommodations in this class due to an injury, disability, chronic health condition, or mental health concern, please make an appointment with the Student Disability Center. A verifying accommodation letter from SDC is required before any official accommodation is provided. Please make an appointment with me early in the term, whether or not your SDC accommodation paperwork is ready, to discuss your individual needs so we can plan accordingly.
Student-Professor Communication:
Feel free to chat with me before or after class on any MWF. You may always set up an appointment to meet outside of classroom hours. The best way to contact me outside of class is through e-mail (robin.walter@colostate.edu). You will receive a timely response to messages sent during regular business hours. However, please note I do not check email in the evening or on weekends.
Course Learning Objectives
Critical Thinking
1) Utilize Context:
a) Evaluate the relevance of context when presenting a position.
b) Identify assumptions.
c) Analyze one’s own and others’ assumptions.
2) Understand Implications and Make Conclusions:
a) Establish a conclusion that is tied to the range of information presented.
b) Reflect on implications and consequences of stated conclusion.
Diversity & Global Learning
3) Build Self-Awareness:
a) Demonstrate how their own attitudes, behaviors, or beliefs compare or relate to those of other individuals, groups,
communities, or cultures.
4) Examine Perspectives:
a) Examine diverse perspectives when investigating social and behavioral topics within natural or human systems.
Written/Oral Communication
5) Develop Content and Message:
a) Create and develop ideas within the context of the situation and the assigned task(s).
6) Use Sources and Evidence:
a) Critically read, evaluate, apply, and synthesize evidence and/or sources in support of a claim.
7) Use language appropriate to the audience
Additional Student Learning Outcomes for the Green and Gold Initiative:
8) Develop a Sense of Continuity of Human Concerns
a) Establish connection across multiple texts, from multiple cultures and eras as pertinent to current concerns