Course Requirements and Grading  

 
Grading
Your final grade will consist of the following elements:
 
class performance 20%
compositions 20%
quizzes 10%
oral presentations 10%
final exam 20%
term paper 20%
 
Grading scale:
A   100-93
A-  92-90
B+ 86-89
B   80-85
B-  75-79
C+ 78-79
C   75-77
C-  73-74
D   70-72
F    69-
 
Class Performance:
Your participation is crucial to the success of this course! In order to excel in this class and make it an enjoyable and enriching experience you will have to meticulously prepare for each class and be actively involved in its discussions. To this end you will have to attentively read all the assigned materials, organize your thoughts and have ready a list of key vocabulary. Our discussions will involve live speech therefore you will not be allowed to read verbatim from a prepared statement.
 
In each class you will be given a work-sheet which will help you prepare the newly assigned text. The work-sheet will contain one or more of the following:
 
-target vocabulary (from the assigned text);
-exercises;
-new concepts;
-grammar issues to identify in the text and review in your Reference Grammar;
-a set of questions to keep in mind while reading the given text.
 
 
Before each class you are expected to:
 
-carefully read the assigned text and be ready to answer questions about its content;
-be ready to analyze the assigned text;
-translate unfamiliar words using the dictionary and provided glossary;
-formulate your own questions and thoughts about the text;
-learn the target vocabulary;
-mark difficult words and passages and be ready to ask questions and/or participate in discussions about their renditions into English;
-review the assigned grammar.
 
Your performance in the class will be graded on the scale from 0 to 3 points:
3=contributed several thoughtful and insightful comments to class discussion
2=completely prepared and participated in class discussion at a satisfactory level
1=present in class but quiet for the most part
0=absent.
 
Attendance Policy
Please be sure to bring a letter of excuse for official or excused absences (illness, religious holidays, family emergencies). After three unexcused absences, your course grade may be lowered by one step (e.g., AàA-, BàB, DàF, etc.) Five or more unexcused absences may result in the lowering of your grade by a full letter (e.g., AàB, BàC, etc). This is a performance-based course. Your listening and speaking abilities in Russian cannot improve if you miss classes with any frequency.
 
Russian Compositions
There will be 5 compositions in this class. Each time you will be given a choice of three or more essay topics and will be expected to write a one page essay (double-spaced) on the topic of your choice. This exercise is designed to help you in developing your writing self-expression in Russian. Skills developed by this exercise include correct usage of vocabulary, grammar, and style; organization of your material/argument, and analytical skills. Each essay will receive a letter grade. The due dates for the Russian compositions are listed in the course syllabus. You will have 5 days for each essay. Your essays will be corrected and returned immediately. Except in extreme circumstances, each day late equals one step down in your grade for that assignment (e.g. BàB-, etc.).
 
Final paper
Learning to read and interpret complex Russian literary texts is one of the main objectives of this course. To this end, you will be asked to write a final paper ( apx. 6-8 pp. in English or 3-4 pp. in Russian) in which you will explore in depth some aspect of the texts we have read and discussed in class. The papers will be written in English or Russian on topics of your choosing (in consultation with me). Therefore, you should be thinking throughout the semester about possible paper topics, in accordance with your own personal interests. The deadline for choosing your final paper topic will be April 15. I will also provide some suggestions to get you started. Remember to keep your ideas focused and specific, and please feel welcome to speak with me during office hours at any stage of the writing process! You are encouraged to turn in a first draft of your final paper. Final paper valuation criteria
 
Rewrites
are mandatory. While rewriting and rethinking your final paper and/or your compositions you will have an opportunity to review vocabulary, style, and grammar as well as to learn from your mistakes. On the first draft of your essay I will underline grammatical mistakes and make suggestions on how to improve your essay`s argument, style, and composition. The first draft will be graded, so I encourage you to put your best effort in it from the start. Your final grade for each essay (the only one to be recorded) will depend on 1. the quality of the first draft reflected in the initial grade; and 2. how well you implement the suggested corrections and changes in the rewrite. A good rewrite can raise your initial grade an entire letter (B+àA+, etc.)
 
Quizzes
You will be given short quizzes every week. These will be mostly vocabulary quizzes, yet you will also be asked to translate one or two phrases/sentences RàE and/or EàR, containing currently reviewed grammatical and stylistic issues. There will also be two cumulative quizzes.
 
Oral Presentations
Each student in this course will give 3 presentations. Presentations #1 and 2 will be given during the semester. Presentation #3 will be given during the last two classes. The last two classes will be devoted exclusively to presentations. They will cover all the course materials and will be designed as a review for the final exam.
Your final presentation will consist of a 5-7 min. speech on the topic explored in your paper or on the topic of your choice. A list of suggested topics will be supplied, but you can choose your own topic as well (It has to be discussed with and approved by me). During the semester these presentations will serve as a starting point to the daily discussions, of which they will comprise an integral part. After giving his/her mini-speech, each speaker will lead the class in a discussion of the current reading material.
 
Final Exam
The final exam will be oral. It will comprise two parts:
 
· Answering several questions about concepts and topics under discussion in this course and on the idiosyncratic endorsements of the utopian/dystopian thought by the individual authors. (in Russian);
 
· a translation into Russian and/or English of several phrases containing our target vocabulary and grammar.
 
 
Good luck!
 

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