This blog will be used in our Senior Seminar for the Winter '09 quarter to provide homework reminders, post relevant readings (possibly to read as homework!), and for other such necessary course-related discourse. Once I've touched-up the syllabus it will be posted on here so it has a constant, if only virtual, presence in your life!
Sincerely,
C.
The SYLLABUS!!!
EN 491- LEC1
Senior Seminar: Technology and Society
Meets: Room E-314
MWF 12pm – 1:15pm
Term: Winter ’09 (1/12 – 3/27/09)
Professor: Christopher Ankney
Contact: cankney@colum.edu
Availability: by appointment; easily reached via e-mail above
Course Description:This course will examine the relationships among technology, society, culture and the future. Taking as our starting point both popular and extreme views on technology and society, we will explore the contemporary literature on technology to form some broad conclusions on the topic.
Required Materials:DeLillo, Don. White Noise. New York: Penguin Books, 1984.
Postman, Neil. Technopoly. New York: Knopf, 1992.
Teich, Albert H. (ed.) Technology and the Future, 10th ed. Thomson Wadsworth: 2003.
Access to class blog: http://culturetech491.blogspot.com/
E-mailing Papers:All major papers are to be handed in via e-mail. For each paper, you will be given printed guidelines with more detailed requirements. When sending assignments by e-mail, name your file this way: your last name_first name_assignment name_course name
For example, if your name is John Smith and you are handing in the midterm, name your file as such: smith_john_midterm_senior seminar
*And very importantly, save your file as a .doc or .rtf file, otherwise your paper cannot be opened and graded!
Course Rules:Below are rules that should be understood within the classroom, but are posted here as a reminder for those wanting to be decent human beings!
• Turn your cell phones to silent/vibrate, AND do not answer in the classroom. If you have an important call, take it outside. Do not distract the class.
• RESPECT your classmates and your teacher. It is rude to talk while others are talking, and it is highly rude to talk back when addressed. As Harvey Danger sings, “…If you’re bored than you’re boring….”
• When called on, answer to the best of your ability. There is no place for silence!!!
• Bring your texts to class, and take notes.
• Hand your work in, do it to the best of your ability and understanding, and follow the guidelines. Participate. Be an active body, not technological goo.
• Ask questions when confused! There is no reason to not get clarification if you need it. ?s = good
Attendance and Participation:You must come to class to pass, no matter what your circumstances are.
• You are given four (4) excused or unexcused absences in the quarter. Any more (that means 5 or more) and you either fail the course or my have your grade reduced at least one letter grade. For purposes of this policy, I do not discriminate between absences – missing class is missing class, is missing class!
• Tardiness counts, too. Excessive tardiness adds up to absences. Every 4 tardies count as one absences. A tardy is defined as not being seated and ready for class at its start time, which in our case is 2:45pm.
• If you are more than 15 minutes late for the class's scheduled meeting time you will be marked absent.
• It's not enough to show up. You must participate in classroom discussions. Your final grade will have a class participation component factored in.
Late Work Policy:• There will be no makeup or late work. Quizzes, papers and homework assignments will only be accepted on the date due. With our work load, and short time together, we can’t allow work to pile!
• There are NO EXCUSES. Sickness, family and job issues don’t matter if it’s too late. Neither does confusion about an assignment, what it’s asking, or when it is due. Your teacher will not accept late work, and you receive a zero (0) for assignment – UNLESS you speak with me well enough in advance of the due date and we agree to work out something else.
• You CANNOT pass this class without handing in any graded essays or responses. Though late work receives no credit it still must be handed in. You must prove you can do the work, and do so correctly.
Academic Integrity and Plagiarism:Cheating results in automatic failure, for the assignment or for the course, depending on the severity of the action. Passing off someone else's work as your own is not tolerated – especially if the work shows intentional neglect. The final decision of punishment is at the teacher’s discretion.
Grading Scale:A 1000 – 900 points
B 894 - 795
C 794 - 695
D 694 - 595
F 594 - below
Course Assignment Descriptions and Grade Value:A Thinker’s Response Essays ( 2 @ 100 pts each=200pts) – Both of these short essays of approximately 2 – 3-pages in length will ask you to answer a specific question or set of questions in response to particular reading/s.
Review Quizzes (2 @ 100 pts each=200pts) – Both of these quizzes will be short, and will focus on your ability to recall the important points made by individual authors, as well as important concepts discussed in our readings and class time.
Midterm Essay (250 points) - This 4 – 5 page paper will require you to take a creative but critical look at the questions discussed in the first half of the quarter. Rather than rely on a simple response to any one text, however, you are expected to make a “real-world” application of ideas discussed and read.
Leadership Response (100pts) – Each student will, at least once during the quarter, lead part of the class discussion by providing 2-3 considerate questions in response to the day’s reading and/or focus. Each student will provide a 1-page paper with his or her “leader questions” developed and explained.
Final Essay / Project (250pts) – Each student will present a 4 – 5-page paper along with a companion 15-minute oral/visual presentation. Similar to the mid-term, but more interactive and inventive, you are asked to demonstrate a clear and more specific viewpoint on our general topic of the connection/s between culture and technology. You are asked to use your creative skills – including any drawing, musical, photography, cinematography/directing, crafting, re-searching, or whatever else your fresh young minds can bring to the plate.
Weekly Calendar: 1) Note that reading and writing assignment dates may be amended as professor sees fit
2) T &TF = Technology and The Future, edited by Albert Teich
Week 1:1/12 – 1/16 W – in-class reading, discussion
F – T &TF: p. 3-12; 35-40
Marx; Berry Introduction; Defining technology & culture
Week 2: 1/19 – 1/23
W – T &TF: p. 13-21; 22-26; 41-50
Pool; Tenner; Florman
F – T &TF: p. 91-92; 93-102; 103-112
Mesthene; McDermott Monday – No Class, Happy MLK, Jr. Day;
Week 3: 1/26 – 1/30
M – T &TF: p. 115-137; 138-143
Joy; Seely Brown and Duguid
W– T &TF: p. 251-252; 253-265; 282-292
Ceruzzi; Lessig
F – in-class handout: Klosterman
Due F: A Thinker’s Response #1, by e-mail
Week 4: 2/2 – 2/6
M – T &TF: p. 167-68; 169-173; 174-186; 201-206
Lovins and Lovins; Martin; Dempsey
W– T &TF: p. 207-8; 209-217; TBA
Weinberg
F – T &TF: p. 233-234; 235-243; 244-250
Karl and Trenberth; Abraham Wednesday – Review Quiz #1
Week 5: 2/9 – 2/13
M – TBA
W– TBA
F – starting White Noise by DeLillo
Due F: Midterm Essay, by e-mail
Week 6: 2/16 – 2/20
M – White Noise by DeLillo
W– White Noise by DeLillo
F – White Noise by DeLillo
Week 7: 2/23 – 2/27
M – White Noise by DeLillo
W– White Noise by DeLillo
F – handout, TBA
Due F: A Thinker’s Response #2, by e-mail
Week 8: 3/2 – 3/6
M – starting Technopoly by Postman
W– Technopoly by Postman
F – Technopoly by Postman
Week 9: 3/9 – 3/13
M – Technopoly by Postman
W– Technopoly by Postman
F – Technopoly by Postman
Wednesday – Review Quiz #2
Week 10: 3/16 – 3/20
M – Starting Final Presentations
W–Final Presentations
F – Final Presentations
Final Presentations and Papers Due
Week 11: 3/23 – 3/27
Wrap-up! Possibly no class . . .
Buffer Zone – left unscheduled in case time is needed for presentations
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