Professor: Dr. Gary L. Maris
Room 302 Elizabeth Hall
Phone: 386-822-7536 or Home: 386-736-0760 (I do not mind
calls to my home.)
Email: gmaris@stetson.edu
(I
check email pretty frequently at the office and home.)
Fax: 386-822-7569. This is the fax for the Political
Science office.
Stetson Box # 8311.
Web Page located at http://www.stetson.edu/~gmaris
Office Hours: Generally posted. Please feel free to call me at home or office or communicate by email to set up an appointment at whatever time is convenient for both of us.
BLACKBOARD: E-MAIL REQUIREMENT: Stetson automatically provides e-mail addresses for all students. These are automatically placed into the Blackboard program that is available for faculty to send e-mail to students in the courses. You are responsible for checking your email daily; thus, you are responsible for making sure that the e-mail address on Blackboard is the one you will be checking. If you prefer an address other than the Stetson address you need simply to do the following:
1. Go to the Stetson Blackboard address at http://blackboard.stetson.edu/
2. Click on "Log In" and log in using your user name and password.
2. At the "Welcome" page look at "Tools" [a box with a menu to the left of the page] and click on "Personal Information." This will bring up a menu where you can click on personal information edit and go to a screen allowing you to edit your e-mail address. Be sure and click on "Submit" once you have made the edit.
Academic Assistance: A frequent problem is that a student who is having trouble in a course understanding the material, not fully grasping a particular assignment, studying hard but still coming up short on exams, etc. does not discuss these problems with the professor. Please avail yourself of the climate of teaching at Stetson and our willingness to meet with students to help out over the rough places in the road to better academic performance.
NOTE ALSO the Academic Support Office which is to provide study skills workshops and one-on-one help. It also provides disability support services for students. Any student with a physical or learning disability (including Attention Deficit Disorder) must register with the Academic Support Office in order to receive academic accommodations."
Class Attendance: The activities in the classroom are considered to be a vital part of the learning process. The intellectual engagement of ideas between professors and students and between students is not only a good part of the learning process but also a good preparation for numerous activities in life where listening and engaging in discussions are vital functions. The ability to formulate good questions and pursue lines of intellectual inquiry in a public forum is important to numerous types of interpersonal activities, including the political one of participating effectively in democratic politics. Since not all knowledge can be evaluated from exams and papers, attendance and participation in class provide another source for evaluation. More than 3 absences will result in a lowering of one’s course grade. Extensive absences [more than 25% of the class meetings] may be considered grounds for an "F" in the course or a grade no higher than a "D". This will be determined on a case-by-case basis.
Late Papers: All papers should be turned in on the assigned date. It is simply a part of life to produce work for an expected time. Judges don't excuse lawyers for turning in their legal briefs late or not appearing in court on time; doctors are expected to present papers at professional conferences at the assigned times; scholars are expected to have manuscripts turned in at the contracted times, etc. One day late = 1/2 grade loss, two or more days = a full grade loss.
Unethical Behavior: What is commonly called cheating is unethical behavior. Setting and enforcing standards of behavior is not simply a practice in order to provide a legitimate grade in a course but is a part of the essential ethical fabric of the society in helping to inculcate good behavior in our relations with one another. Unethical behavior may consist of copying answers from someone else’s exam, turning in work that is not really your own , and a host of other activities that generally most members of the community would quickly recognize as cheating; thus all need not be spelled out here. Assisting someone else in cheating also involves one in the cheating. Plagiarism, including turning in a paper done in one class into another class, is a common problem. Plagiarism is defined in the MLA Handbook as follows: “To use another person’s ideas or expressions in your writing without acknowledging the source is to plagiarize.” The Handbook also states: “In writing your research paper, then, you must document everything that you borrow-not only direct quotations and paraphrases but also information and ideas. “ Examples are provided in the Handbook. You can also locate examples at the following Web site: http://www.stetson.edu/~gmaris/Write.htm#Ethics
Acts of cheating will result either in an F in the work under discussion or an F in the course, depending on the circumstances.
Grading: Grades in the course will be given in accordance with the statement in the University Bulletin: “The grade of A (= or -) may be interpreted to mean that the instructor recognizes exceptional capacity and exceptional performance. The grade of B (+ or -) signifies that the student has gained a significantly more effective command of material than is generally expected in the course. The grade of C or C+ is the instructor’s certification that the student has demonstrated the required mastery of the material. A student is graded C- or D (+ or -) when his/her grasp of the course essentials is minimal. The F grade indicates failure to master the essentials and the necessity for repeating the course before credit may be earned.”
Classroom Etiquette:
What is OUT:
- No laptops -- these wonderful devices also mean not looking at professors and fellow students and add to the distractions of the classroom at times. Also, using good 'ol pen and paper to take notes is still a handy practice. [Yes, I use computers extensively; but the classroom is a place essentially for human interaction.]
- No cell phones and no text messaging. Students text messaging during class will be asked to leave the classroom.
- No food in the classroom. Your neighbor may have missed breakfast and this will be distracting. Hearing someone chomp on snacks while listening to a lecture of the comments of another students is also a distraction.
What is IN:
- Courtesy in discussion and debate. This means respect for the ideas of others. Today's media seems to stress the battle-like arguments complete with shouting and denigration of the views of others. Civil discourse is part of the backbone of a good democracy s well as a pleasant society for life and dealing with life's concerns. For a good example of civil discussion from several points of view see the Lehrer News Hour weekdays at 7PM on PBS. Persons with opposing points of view are given equal time to express themselves in a civil and useful fashion without loaded questions and leading commentaries from the moderators.
- Interrupting the professor with questions requiring clarification, challenge to what has been said, pleas to slow down and repeat, etc. PLEASE DO. Make me clarify and justify when desired. I want to know whatever confusion exists and disagreement is out there in order that it can be rectified when possible. You do not need to agree with me but you should understand what I have said and be able to recount it in class or on exams along with whatever disagreements you might have. To disagree in class forces me to be sure of the logic and evidence I am using -- which sometimes may need change in the light of your challenge.
- Careful note-taking in class. I bring information and ideas to class which I consider helpful to the learning process. I expect you to be able to recount such information and ideas on exams. Unless you have a photographic memory you will need to do what most of us mere mortals do -- listen carefully, take notes and ask questions when confusion exists or understanding is not clear.