Course Information
FYE 101: First Year Experience – Section 08, Fall 2010
1 Credit: F 1:30p.m. – 2:20p.m.
MacLean Room 164
Textbook:
Focus
on College Success, 2nd
ed., by Staley, C. – Wadsworth Cengage Learning Pub.
Learning Community Reading: “Surely
You’re Joking Mr. Feynman!” – Feynman, R. and Leighhton,
R.
Instructor:
Justin James,
Mathematics Department
Office:
MacLean 375M Office
Phone: 477-4011
Office
Hours: MTWRF 9:30 – 10:20am Email: jamesju@mnstate.edu
TR 12:30 –
2:20pm Webpage: web.mnstate.edu/jamesju
W
1:30 – 2:20pm
Other Times by Appointment
Course Description: FYE is a course designed to help you get the most
out of your college experience. Although
FYE is not structured in the same way as a traditional academic course you will
need to complete specific course requirements in order to accumulate enough
points to earn a passing grade.
Required Supplies: textbook, learning community
reading text
Instructional Strategies: Lecture, discussion, small group work, projects and
activities
Attendance and Academic
Expectations: You are expected to attend class
regularly and on time. After your first absence,
your course grade will be lowered by 2% for each additional unexcused absence this semester. You are expected to complete the course
readings prior to each class meeting.
Course Requirements: Grading will be based upon: attendance,
class participation, completion of
all required class activities and assignments, and completion of all required
Passports and the Technology assignment.
Reflection Papers: In
these short writing assignments, you will be asked to write a paper related to that
week’s theme topic. These papers must be
typed (double spaced with standard margins).
These informal papers are graded mainly on how well they address the
assigned topic(s), but you should write in complete sentences and express your
thoughts clearly. Each reflection paper
will contribute 10 points toward your final grade.
Learning Community Reading Assignment: By now, each of you should have received a copy of
the book: “Surely You’re
Joking, Mr. Feynman!” You will be
expected to read and then complete a writing assignment based on this
book. We will also spend time discussing
portions of the book during class. Your
contribution to these and other discussions in class will contribute toward the
participation points you earn this semester.
Passport Activities: There are four required Passport Activities in the
following areas: an “Academic Passport”, a “Cultural/Fine Arts Passport”, an
“Athletic/Fitness Passport”, and a “Community Passport”. Each passport assignment will count 20 points
toward your final grade. The course
Schedule gives suggested deadlines for each passport activity, but you will
receive credit for each activity you complete before the end of the semester. More information about the Passports is
located on the MSUM website at
http://web.mnstate.edu/fye/passport_activities.cfm.
Other Activities: There will be several other required activities both in
and outside class. These include
surveys, personal assessments, interviewing faculty members, group assignments,
and other short activities that contribute to applying the content we cover
during class.
Thought Cards: For
the first few class meetings, each student will be asked to hand in a “thought
card”. These thought cards give you a chance to ask
questions you may not want to ask in front of your classmates, to let me know
about a concern you have, or even to ask a random question unrelated to the
class.
Exams: There will be no exams in this course.
However, we will have an activity during the scheduled final exam period.
Course
Grading Policy -- Your
final grade in the course will be computed as follows:
Thought Cards: 25 points
Reading Assignment
Paper: 30 points
Other Required
Activities: 100 points
Reflection Papers: 80 points
Participation: 60 points
Passport Activities: 80 points
Technology Assignment: 25 points
Total:
400 points
I
will compute the percentage of the total possible points each student earned during
the semester (rounded to the nearest .1%), and will then assign letter grades
based on the following scale. I may make
slight adjustments to this scale (down, never up), but don’t count on this
happening.
96.5-100.0% A+ 81.5-86.4% B 69.0-71.4% C–
91.5-96.5% A
79.0-81.4% B– 66.0-68.9% D+
89.0-91.4% A– 76.5-78.9% C+ 60.0-65.9% D
86.5-88.9% B+ 71.5-76.4% C <60.0% F
Make-up
Work: I only give
make-up assignments for extreme personal emergencies or for absences
which are officially sanctioned by the University. I expect written documentation in either of
these cases. If you are going to miss
class, let me know about the situation as quickly as possible.
Special Accommodations: Students
with disabilities who believe they may need an accommodation in this class are
encouraged to contact Greg Toutges, Coordinator of
Disability Services at 477-5859 (Voice/TTY), CMU 114 as soon as possible to
ensure that accommodations are implemented in a timely fashion.
Academic Honesty: You are expected to do your own
work. You may work with others and get help on assignments, but the work
you submit must be your own. Cheating and/or plagiarism are not tolerated
in any course at any level. See the MSUM Academic Honesty policy for more
information on the possible consequences of cheating.
Thanks,
And Let’s Have A Great Semester!!
First
Year Experience – Section 08 Course Page