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Department: Anthropology

Course No.: ANTH 292W (3522W)

Credits: 3

Title: Ecological Anthropology Seminar

Contact: Sally McBrearty

WQ: W only

Catalog Copy: ANTH 3522W. Ecological Anthropology Seminar Either semester. Three credits.

Interdisciplinary study of the ecology of humans integrating ecological and anthropological theory with archaeological, historical, and contemporary case-studies.

W Criteria: 1.Each week, students will be required to write a précis of the readings followed by a brief outline of their opinions (no more than 2 double-spaced pages). Revision of each précis will not be required so this requirement will not count towards the “W” component. This exercise will, however, force students to summarize the main arguments or points of each text and encourage them to formulate their own ideas regarding the material being covered. By engaging with the material in this way, students play a more active role in learning the content of the course. These papers will be informally reviewed by student peers at the beginning of each class. A written commentary will be provided by the instructor for each response paper which will be returned to the student the following week. The response papers are designed to provide rapid and constant feedback throughout the course and thereby help build confidence and develop writing style. They also allow the instructor to evaluate student progress. A 15–20 page paper constitutes the “W” component of the course and forms 40% of the final grade.

2.Various modes of writing instruction will be presented in the course. Formal instruction will cover a number of topics: 1) developing an idea for a term paper; 2) getting started with research for term papers; 3) structuring a term paper; 4) citing sources; 5) enhancing the narrative; 6) improving the presentation (i.e., instruction on bibliographic styles, section headings, use of hyphens, en- and em-dashes, etc.); 7) proofreading and marking-up a manuscript; 8) preparing a manuscript for publication. Students will receive weekly written commentaries in response to their précis. Less formal instruction and an exchange of ideas is integrated into the class through peer-review. Guidelines for the term paper will mimic the process of preparing, submitting, and revising an article intended for publication in a peer-reviewed journal.

3.Students will be required to develop a paper topic by Week 5 and submit an outline of the paper during Week 6 of the semester. The first submission will be formally peer-reviewed by a member of the class in Week 9 and the revised version submitted to the instructor in Week 11. This draft will be marked-up by the instructor and returned to the student in Week 12, which should provide the students with ample time to revise their papers and submit the final versions at the end of the semester. Presentation of the research during the final week of class should also provide opportunity for comments and feedback on the work that may then be incorporated into the final version of the term paper.

4.The syllabus informs students that they must pass the “W” component of the course in order to pass the course.

Role of Grad Students: Graduate students will not be involved with this course, although employees of the Writing Center may be invited to talk to the class and highlight the work being conducted at the center.