Social Problems - American Sociological Association

Syllabus—Habel Whitman College
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COURSE REQUIREMENTS AND GRADING
There are a total of 500 points possible in this course. There are a number of written assignments; group
assignments, class attendance, preparation and participation are also elements.
REQUIREMENT RATIO POINTS
Quizzes (5) 20% 100
Analytical Papers (3) 60% 300
Participation/Prep 20% 100
TOTAL 100% 500
BASIS FOR THE FINAL GRADE
There are no letter grades assigned to individual assignments. Grades will be based on a percentage of the total
points achieved (500 maximum) and will be computed according to the following format:
96.67-100.0% A+
93.34-96.66 A
90.00-93.33 A-
86.67-89.99 B+
83.34-86.66 B
80.00-83.33 B-
76.67-79.99 C+
73.34-76.66 C
70.00-73.33 C-
66.67-69.99 D+
66.34-66.66 D
60.00-66.33 D-
0.00-59.99 F
Each assignment’s rationale and grading criteria will be posted on the assignment handout itself and will be
evaluated thereafter. You are strongly advised to examine these criteria as you complete your work. What follows
is a general guideline of what constitutes an “A,” “B,” or “C” grade for this class. Please note that completion of an
assignment or all of its required tasks in no way equate the work with an “A,” a grade that is solely reserved for
excellence.
An “A” or “A-“ will be given to assignments that are clearly superior in form as well as content. In terms of
form, such assignments will:
1. Contain virtually no typographical errors;
2. Exhibit elegant as well as clear prose;
3. Include virtually no mistakes of grammar or punctuation (e.g., run-on and/or incomplete sentences, misused
semi-colons and/or apostrophes, misplaced commas, etc.);
4. Furnish adequate citations for all quotations;
5. Be well organized, with a coherent introduction as well as a conclusion that does more than merely
summarize what has already been said;
6. And so forth and so on.
In terms of content, such assignments will:
1. Indicate a thorough and careful reading of the assigned texts;
2. Prove unusually sophisticated in their grasp of the subtleties of the assigned texts;
3. Demonstrate an ability to go beyond what we have covered in class;
4. Exhibit a capacity to draw connections between nonobvious points;
5. And so forth and so on.
I am always delighted to award some form of an “A” to an assignment. However, I believe that if we are going to
employ the practice of grading them, then this designation should mean something; hence I award it only when it is
clearly merited. Because form is at least as important as content in the construction of an assignment, no matter how
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