Tentative Syllabus

 

HUM 3460 – Latin American/Caribbean Humanities (8-10)

 

 

Instructor:     Dr. Harry S. Coverston          

Course Location:       COM 116

Office:            227 Psychology Building

Course Meeting: MW 4:30- 5:45 p.m.

Departmental Phone:  (407) 823-2273

 

Hours:            MWF 11:30 a.m. - 1:20 p.m.

                       

Email: WebCT Coursemail ONLY

(email checked by 10 p.m. on class nights (Su-W)

           

 

Course Description: This is a study of the range of ideas in cultures of Latin America and Caribbean basin as expressed in arts, architecture, music, philosophy, religion, literature and film.

(UCF Undergraduate Catalogue).

 

This is a Gordon Rule course.

 

Prerequisites: HUM 2210 or HUM 2230

 

Course Objectives

 

1. To identify the personal and socio-cultural aspects of individual hermeneutical lenses which shape the way individuals encounter and interpret the experience of being human in the Latin American context

 

2. To critically consider the question of what it means to be human in the context of Latin America including the Caribbean and among emigrants to the US and Canada through

           

            a. the history of Latin America beginning with pre-Columbian cultures and continuing into post-modern expressions of Latin American culture          

 

            b. the artifacts of the expressive humanities and the ideas of the reflective humanities of Latin America as found in primary and secondary sources

 

            c. the history of US engagement of Latin America including expansionism, interventions and immigration

 

3. To develop means of analysis and reflection regarding course materials and ideas

 

4. To develop verbal, artistic and written expressions of analysis and reflections regarding the humanities of Latin America

 

5. To consider what ongoing actions might be an appropriate response to understandings developed in the course

 

             

Required Texts:

 

·         E. Bradford Burns, Latin America: Conflict and Creation, A Historical Reader, (Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice-Hall, 1993)

·         Edward Luci-Smith, Latin American Art of the 20'h Century, (London: Thames and Hudson, 1993)

·         Jose Vasconcelos, The Cosmic Race, (Baltimore: Johns Hopkins Press, 1997)

·         PDF materials provided for classroom use at password protected webcourse site

 

Ground Rules: Please follow the link to the Ground Rules. Read, mark and inwardly digest them. Your continued presence in this class after the add/drop deadline constitutes consent to be bound by the Course Ground Rules.

 

·         Covenant to Participate in a Learning Community spells out the remainder of instructor and student obligations to the course and will provide the basis for student self-evaluation at the end of the term.

 

·         Withdrawal Deadline: It is this instructor's desire and intent that every student complete this course in good standing. However, should it become necessary for the student to withdraw, it is the student's responsibility to withdraw from the course prior to the Friday, Oct. 17, 5 p.m. deadline

 

 

COURSE REQUIREMENTS

 

There are three components of the final grade in this class each worth 1/3.

 

 WRITING   

 

This is a Gordon Rule course. UCF requires students to attain a passing grade on four significant writing assignments. The four papers required for this course include:

 

            1. Essay Portion, Mid-term Exam

            2. Essay Portion, Final Exam

            3. Reflection/Review, Vasconcelos, The Cosmic Race

            4. Summary Reflection Paper

 

TOTAL WRITING = Four papers @ 50 points = 200 points total  (1/3 of final grade)

 

 

PARTICIPATION  

 

Students will earn participation points in a number of ways including

 

            Group Presentations

            Film reviews 

            Attendance   

            Critical Precis  

            Self-Evaluation

 

TOTAL = 300 points  (1/2 of final grade - NOTE: extra credit is built into this component)

 

 

 

EXAMS

 

Mid-Term Exam

 

Final Exam

 

TOTAL = 100 points  (1/6 of final grade)                                  

 

 

The final grade will be composed of the writing, participation and exam grades combined.

 

GRADING

 

The scale for all assignments used in this class includes the following:

 

93 - 100 = A

87-89 = B+

77-79 = C+

67-69 = D+

Below 60 = F

90-92 =     A-

83-86 = B

73-76 = C

63-66 = D

 

 

80-82 = B-

70-72 = C-

60-62 = D-

 

 

for an explanation of what these grades mean, see So, what does my grade mean?

 

FINAL GRADES (Out of 600 possible points total)

 

558 - 600 = A

522 - 539  = B+

462 - 479 = C+

402 - 419 = D+

Below 360 = F

540 - 557 = A-

498 - 521 = B

438 - 461 = C

378 - 401 = D

 

 

480 - 497 = B-

420 - 437 = C-

360 - 377 = D-

 

 

All borderline cases will be decided upon participation and attendance grades at discretion of instructor.

 

Final Comment: If something arises unexpectedly that will affect your attendance and/or performance in this class, please contact the instructor. He's a fairly understanding man but a lousy mind reader. Any departure from this syllabus is in the discretion of the instructor and depends upon the individual circumstances of the student in question. Any changes in syllabus requirements or scheduling affecting all students will occur with notice to students.