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Mandatory Online Orientation Women in Literature is a fast-moving, exciting class! If you like to read - and even more important, like to discuss your reading with others and study the background of the writer and the period - this class may be just right for you! It is essential, though, that you plan enough time to do the reading, write your paper, and participate in the discussions. This class will take quite as much time as a brick-and-mortar class, and you will need to be the one to manage that time! Welcome to class! Here are the essential things you will need to know: Menus and Access: All of the important material that you need to succeed in this class is included on this Website - please bookmark it now! You will see to the left, a column that has a menu. Please take a look at the categories and visit the pages to see what the site contains. For our Discussion List, we will use the Discussion option on your Blackboard Page (see Discussion). Lectures All the lectures for the course are already posted. You should take an hour or so to survey them to see the scope of the course and get a feel for how long it takes you to read and study a lecture. Each of these lectures is lengthy - enough material to represent what might be covered in a three-hour lecture. Also, when you begin to choose an author for your Research Paper, it is helpful to have an idea of the areas we are studying! Whenever you encounter an idea or issue that interests you, or about which you would like to know more, please make note of it for class discussion. [See: notes for Lecture 1.] Books and Reading Your reading will consist of printed texts and web articles and stories (both on this site and on other resources sites). The Reading List is posted at the Website and here: Book List: You can purchase these texts in the IVC bookstore or at Assigned Texts: Austen, Jane: Mansfield Park Behn, Aphra: Oronooko Bronte, Emily: Wuthering Heights Didion, Joan: The Last Thing He Wanted Morrison, Toni: Sula Shelley, Mary: Frankenstein Woolf, Virginia: A Room of One's Own
Books on the reading list are available at IVC Bookstore or on Amazon.com. To order a book on Amazon, simply enter the author, find the title, and proceed to the ordering section. Weekly Project/Posting Assignments In the class schedule for some of the weeks, you will see writing assignments. Some of your material for these exercises may be used as part of your Final Research Project. You should complete the writing assignment for each week in a timely manner and post it on the Discussion List or in an emergency, e-mail it to me for posting. You can also post about the lecture, the reading, and on the discussion threads of other students. Remember that you must post every week to pass the class! [See Assignments.] Please Note!! You must post once a week on time on the Discussion List to pass the class. If, for some reason, this will not be possible, you should drop the class right away. Also, you need to read all the posts from the students for the week. The Discussion list is our class session. I will often convey important information to students in answer to their posts. If unforseeable problems develop, please let me know right away. I can give you permission to back-post, but you can only back-post with permission from me. Otherwise, it is a requirement to post every week on time - you must post every week to pass the class. Research Paper: Your writing for the class will also include a fully-documented 8-10 page Research Paper on a woman author of your choice. [See Assignments.] Discussion List Your class is enhanced by an open discussion forum on Blackboard. You can ask questions, talk about the reading with your classmates, or share exciting texts and sites by and about women that you have discovered. To participate in the discussion list, go to your "MySite - Blackboard Classes" and click on the menu item for the Discussion Group. You must post in a timely manner once a week to pass the class. Exams You will not have a mid-term in this class. Instead, you will have a Take-home Final. You may start on this essay at any time. [See Assignments.] Attendance Because of the nature of this class, the grading and class attendance policies may be unfamiliar to you. Essentially, your attendance will be noted by me as you post in your weekly writing assignment and as you participate in the Discussion List. Please see Grading Policies. Your participation each week on the Discussion List is your record of attendance! Be sure to post on time every week. Computer Support This class is designed for students who already have a basic familiarity with the WWW, discussion groups, and computer usage. If you are having trouble accessing any part of the materials, please let me know and I will try to provide assistance. However, I cannot troubleshoot each home computer, so it is your responsibility to assure access to the activities of the class. [This is not a course in getting acquainted with your computer or getting familiar with the Internet - these are skills you need to already have mastered - as much as we ever can :-))] If you have any questions, please Contact me. Continue to Lecture I. |
