Last Updated: 9/05/07 Site Information
I am always torn between appearing condescending on the one hand and not offering enough information on the other. I am, however, writing this at the end of a semester with comments of students fresh in my mind. Please do not be offended by the tone of this sheet because there is probably at least one point that you will find useful. It is not intended to be threatening, it just lays things on the line. SOME GROUND RULES 1) READ THE SYLLABUS!! Everything you need to know to do well in this course is it. Read the instructions on all the following sheets carefully because some of the important information about this course is only going to be given to you here. I find examinations and grades distasteful and, therefore, make little reference to sordid aspects of administration through the course. That is why this syllabus is so long and explicit. Please read it right through. 2) Because of the style in which this course is taught, some students unfortunately feel that it is a breeze. Do not be lulled into a sense of false security by any jokes or irreverent teaching methods, for this course is as serious and demanding as any course around. 3) Because I am short of time in lectures, I do not always have a chance to give all my references. I often use anthropomorphism as an economy measure (the giving of intentions and purpose to plants or other structures that don't think). Underlying this, however, are selective mechanisms that appear to give plants intentions. When writing a scientific paper, I minimize the use of anthropomorphism as far as possible, and so should you. Do not use it in your examinations or your essays when discussing how a system works, (metaphor is a different matter, of course). 4) Throughout the semester I usually become personal friends of at least half a dozen students in the class. This has no effect on the grade of such students in the course. For example, I gave a good friend a D one semester, not because I thought the student deserved a D but because my grade book indicated that according to the ground rules laid out at the beginning of the semester, a D was appropriate. On the other side of the coin, out of 400 people at least one is going to dislike me personally and let me know; such a student stands as good a chance of getting an A as anyone else. I'm busy and have no time to pick on students, and even less inclination. You are far more anonymous than you think when it comes to assigning grades. You are important enough for me to put a lot of effort into making this course go, but not important enough for me to waste my time pulling you down. Come on, we've both got better things to do. Accept your grade with indifference, or at least with dignity. 5) Do not overshoot deadlines and do not act after the event. They are clearly marked in the schedule. If you have a problem with a deadline or an examination, let me know BEFORE and I am often sympathetic. 6) Do write your own term paper, for you will be surprised how easy it is to detect a fake. I keep careful records on what I have had before, so old papers are very dangerous sources of copy. Some of my TAs will have taught this course for several years, and you would be surprised at how easy it is to recognize things that have come through before. 7) Because of the essentially benevolent nature of my grading scheme with the best grades generally counting most, some students make the mistake of stopping work after the twelve week exam. This could drop an A to a D in some circumstances, because the final must weigh heavily. 8) Do come and see me during my office hours, for it is certainly the easiest way of clearing up problems. It's no trouble, I am paid to do that as much as I am paid to lecture and I usually enjoy the one-to-one discussion as a change of pace. 9) I have a large number of students this semester, so sometimes my office hours are full. You do not have to wait for me, because I have consistently excellent help from my Teaching Assistants. Their office hours are almost empty and they can therefore give you the individual attention you deserve better than I can. They are really top notch. Go see them before you try to catch me outside my office hours. 10) There is normally no late final. I have regularly denied permission for another final time for brothers' weddings and sisters' coming of age ceremonies. Use these to gauge before you ask. Tell your brother to fix a different date for the nuptial. Another excuse that has been used lately is: "I have (or, My parents bought me) a non-refundable airline ticket so I must be out of town on an exam day." No you don't! Tell anyone who might buy you such a ticket about my deadlines so they buy you a ticket on the day you can use it! That is why I publish exam dates.
