Course Description

CLA 1001 is a seminar course, which facilitates the integration of CLA learning community courses and collegiate academic expectations. The seminar introduces students to various dimensions of the American university system and sub-topics such as intellectual growth, academic goal-setting, and the exploration of majors. This year's section brings together students under the general heading of "The American Experience," which describes the overall curriculum for the students' first semester at UMD.

The seminar meets for two 50-minute class sessions each week. Monday class sessions meet under the guidance of the teaching assistant Aaron Burstein. Wednesday sections meet with Dr. Schwetman.

Course Objectives

Over the semester, students should achieve the following goals:

• Initiate major and career exploration.

• Develop and practice analytical skills.

• Learn to work with their peers in the process of investigating and debating topics in the university curriculum.

• Become familiar with the various university resources available to provide students with a fruitful and enjoyable university experience.

Expectations

In order to reach these goals, students will have to do the following things this semester:

• Show up to class on time and prepared to discuss the material for that day. Ask questions in class about the materials that we are discussing. Excessive absences will have a negative impact on your grade and severely impair your ability to participate in this class. As there will be time in class devoted to the completion of written assignments, absences will also make the completion of the course requirements more cumbersome for students.

• Respect your fellow students and refrain from behavior that might impair their learning opportunities. Any behavior that substantially and repeatedly interrupts the instructor's ability to teach or the students' ability to learn will result in appropriate penalties. Disruptive behavior includes inappropriate use of communications technology in the classroom, such as ringing cell phones, text-messaging, watching videos, playing computer games, doing email, or surfing the Internet on your computer instead of note-taking or other instructor-sanctioned activities. For further clarification of UMD policies in this regard, consult UMD's Student Conduct Code at "http://www.d.umn.edu/assl/conduct/code".

• Participate fully in group discussions and activities. In small-group activities, each student needs to contribute as much as the other students in the group. Freeloading will annoy others in your group and harm your grade on the assignment.

• Adhere to all of the guidelines for each assignment and turn it in on time. I will not accept late assignments. If you miss the deadline for an assignment, then you will have to achieve the necessary points for passing the class some other way. Grades for assignments will depend on adherence to guidelines, creativity and coherence of communication.

Assignments

Cultural Event Response Paper 0-10 points
due October 3rd
3 pages minimum

Attend a cultural event on campus (music, drama, lecture, or something like that). Write a 3-page paper that explains what the event was, when it took place and where. Would you recommend this event to a friend? Explain the appeal or the lack thereof.

Major Exploration Report 0-15 points
reports due on October 24th
3 pages minimum

Choose a potential major at UMD. Write a 3-page overview of the requirements for the major, career possibilities resulting from it and advantages and disadvantages associated with choosing this major. What interests you in pursuing this course of study and/or career path? Consider three areas of exploration that are crucial to choosing a major: self knowledge, educational knowledge, and occupational knowledge and address each of these in your paper.

Major Exploration Presentation 0-10 points
presentations begin on October 17th
5 minutes minimum

In a speech to your the class, present the major that you are writing about for the major exploration report. Explain why students should choose this major. And, again, consider this major on the basis of self, educational and occupational knowledge that you should acquire in researching the topic. You may also choose to collaborate with classmates on this presentation. A group can incorporate a debate about the merits of a particular major into its presentation, or it can compare related majors from different group members. The 5 minute minimum is for each member of a group in a group presentation.

CLA 1001 Website 0-20 points
to be completed by October 24th
150 words, one picture, and one link per student in each group

What would you tell next year's incoming students if you could tell them anything? This is your chance to send them a message about what to expect and how to get by in their first semester at UMD. This project will become part of the CLA1001 web page and remain visible to the public for the foreseeable future.

Students may work individually or in groups.

I will allocate time in class for groups to plan and write submissions to the web page and hold class in Kirby Plaza 143 on October 22nd to facilitate this project.

Students may use this project to discuss anything about UMD. What appears on the final webpage is subject to my approval, of course, but I will post pretty much anything within reason. I will not approve of the posting of material that offends community standards or crosses certain legal or ethical lines.

CLA 1001 Journal 0-15 points
Due on most class days

Keep in-class writing assignments in the CLA 1001 journal that Aaron and I will provide in most class sessions. Assignments will be topics relating to what is happening in your first semester at UMD.

Opinion Piece 0-20 points
Due October 24th
7 pages
7 sources (3 of which may be online sources)

Assignment guidelines available upon request. This assignment takes place primarily outside of class. The option is only open to students who discuss it with me by October 17th.

Attendance 0-34 points

Students receive two points for showing up to class on time and staying for the duration. Arriving late or leaving before the instructor ends the class means losing one of these two points.

Grade Breakdown

This is a one-credit course in which students receive a grade ranging from A to F. Students earn points by completing the following assignments.

Grade Calculations:

Assignments receive grades according to the following factors:

• Adherence to assignment guidelines and deadlines.
• Quality of critical thinking and creativity manifested in the assignment.
• Clarity and sophistication of communication including organization of ideas and style of presentation.
• Absence of mechanical (spelling and grammatical) errors.

Academic dishonesty tarnishes the reputation of the University of Minnesota Duluth and discredits the accomplishments of its students. Because the university is committed to providing students every possible opportunity to grow in mind and spirit, it must insist on an environment of trust, honest, and fairness. Consequently, all members of the academic community must regard any act of academic dishonesty as a serious offense. In keeping with this ideal, this course will adhere to UMD's Student Academic Integrity Policy, which is available online at "http://www.d.umn.edu/assl/conduct/integrity/". This policy sanctions students engaging in academic dishonesty with penalties up to and including expulsion from the university for repeat offenders.

Individuals who have any disability, either permanent or temporary, which might influence their capacity to perform in this class, are encouraged to inform me at the start of the semester. I can make special adaptations of teaching methods, assignments, materials, or testing as required to provide for equitable participation in the course. The Access Center is also available to assist students with disabilities. It is located in the Kirby Student Center and on the web at "http://www.d.umn.edu/access".

There are several different ways to get the points necessary to passing this class, but showing up on time to each class makes this process the easiest. Points you lose from absences are points that you will have to make up by doing additional assignments. Furthermore, we will devote some class time to the completion of these assignments, so absences can have two negative impacts on your ability to receive the credit.