Course Syllabus Rel 104: Introduction To Religion

Course Syllabus Rel 104: Introduction To Religion

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This course introduces the critical study of religion. Students examine the cognitive, performative, and social characteristics of religion. The course includes cross-cultural studies of religious beliefs and practices. REQUIRED TEXTBOOK: Van Voorst, R. E. (2013). RELG: World. Boston, MA: Wadsworth. STUDENT LEARNING OUTCOMES: After completing this course, the student will be able to: ‹?ú Discuss the history of religion in the world including origin, meaning and purpose within each society. ‹?ú Discuss the psychological, sociological and theological influence of religion within society and societys influences upon religion. ‹?ú Discuss the transition of beliefs and their influence upon believers and societies. ‹?ú Discuss the origins and growth of the major religions of the world with emphasis on Hinduism, Buddihism, Judaism, Christianity and Islam. ‹?ú Discuss the origins, compilation, growth and major thesis of each of the five major religions of the world. ‹?ú Elaborate through discussion and essay the significance of the major moral, ethical and religious themes of the five major religions of the world and how they relate to the life of the student COURSE POLICIES AND PROCEDURES ACADEMIC INTEGRITY: All assignments must be completed by the learner. Learners are expected to read and adhere to the Academic Integrity section of Reinhardt Universitys Academic Catalog. Cases of academic dishonesty may result in expulsion from the University, a failing grade for the course, or a failing grade for the assignment. The following are recognized as unacceptable forms of academic behavior at Reinhardt University: 1. Plagiarizing, that is presenting words or ideas not your own as if they were your own. The words of others must be enclosed in quotation marks and documented. The source of the distinctive ideas must also be acknowledged through appropriate documentation. (NOTE: Strictly adhere to APA citation and referencing guidelines to avoid this). 2. Submitting a paper written by another student or another person as if it were your own. 3. Submitting a paper containing sentences, paragraphs, orsectionslifted from anotherstudents work or other publication; there must be written documentation. 4. Submitting a paper written by you for another course or occasion without the explicit knowledge and consent of the instructor. 5. Fabricating evidence or statistics that supposedly represent your original research. 6. Cheating of any sort on tests, papers, projects, reports, etc. 7. Using the internet inappropriately as a resource. See 3 above. COURSE REQUIREMENTS/ASSIGNMENTS: Knowledge of the material presented in this course will be evaluated based on the satisfactory completion of all coursework. Methods of instruction and learning include unit reading assignments, video lectures, discussion postings, individual research, and essay assignments. Learners are expected to complete all unit activities during the week they are assigned and in the manner prescribed. Reading Assignments: Learners are expected to complete the assigned textbook readings for each unit prior to participating in discussions. Video Lectures: Learners are expected to view all assigned video lectures for each unit prior to participating in discussions. Unit Discussion Posts: Each unit discussion posting must contain a minimum of a 200 word initial response. The deadline for postings shall be published in Unit Academic Requirement Announcements. Initial postings must cite material from the course textbook and one outside scholarly source in accordance with APA guidelines. Learners must reply to a minimum of TWO DIFFERENT students in the class with a minimum of a 75 word response. Exceeding the minimum response requirement can result in additional discussion post scoring credit. The responses must be substantive in nature by adding additional knowledge to the conversation. Learners must support their responses with material cited from the course textbook or an outside scholarly source in accordance with APA guidelines. Learners must also respond to any questions posed by the instructor. All postings and replies must adhere to APA 6th Edition guidelines regarding citations and referencing. Learners must also employ proper grammar, punctuation, and correct spelling. Unit discussion posts will be averaged together and will account for 30% of the final course grade. Complete Assignments: Unit complete assignments often have more than one part. Be sure to answer each part of each question. Learners must adhere to the minimum word count specified for each assignment. Assignments must adhere to the citation and referencing guidelines contained in the 6th Edition APA Manual. Learners must also employ proper grammar, punctuation, and correct spelling in all submissions. Unit assignments will be averaged together and will account for 40% of the final course grade. The deadline for postings shall be published in Unit Academic Requirement Announcements. Course Paper: A final paper will be required for this course. The paper is due on or before 11:59 PM (EST) on Tuesday, August 4 th , 2015 and must be uploaded to the Unit #5 Dropbox in V-CAMP. The paper will account for 30% of the final course grade. See the detailed requirements for the course paper listed on the last pages of this syllabus EVALUATION & GRADING: The following grading scale will be utilized in the determination of the students course grade: Percentage of Points Earned Corresponding Letter Grade 90 to 100% A 80 to 89% B 70 to 79% C * grade of C or higher required 60 to 69% D 0 to 59% F FINAL AVERAGE BREAKDOWN: Unit Discussion Posts (Participation) 30% Unit Assignments (Complete) 40% Research Paper 30% PROJECTED LEARNING SCHEDULE: UNIT #1 (2 Weeks) June 22nd, 2015 July 5th, 2015 ‹?ú Chapter 1: Beginning Your Study of World Religions ‹?ú Chapter 2: Encountering Indigenous Religions ‹?ú Chapter 3: Encountering Hinduism UNIT #2 (2 Weeks) July 6th, 2015 July 19th, 2015 ‹?ú Chapter 4: Encountering Jainism ‹?ú Chapter 5: Encountering Buddhism ‹?ú Chapter 6: Encountering Sikhism UNIT # 3 (1 Week) July 20th, 2015 July 26th, 2015 ‹?ú Chapter 7: Encountering Daoism & Confucianism ‹?ú Chapter 8: Encountering Shinto ‹?ú Chapter 9: Encountering Zoroastrianism UNIT #4 (1 Week) July 27th, 2015 August 2nd, 2015 ‹?ú Chapter 10: Judaism ‹?ú Chapter 11: Christianity UNIT #5 (1 Week) August 3rd, 2015 August 9th, 2015 ‹?ú Chapter 12: Islam ‹?ú Chapter 13: Encountering New Religious Movements ONLINE ATTENDANCE AND WITHDRAWAL POLICY: Students are accountable for all required work in each of their courses. They must assume full responsibility for class attendance in a way satisfactory to the instructor and for work missed because of absence. Since class sessions function not merely for individual learning but also for group interaction, absences can become a serious problem both for the individual and for the group. Online courses are delivered over a period of eight weeks with activities and assignments specified for each week. An online week is defined as being Monday 12:00 AM (EST) through Sunday at 11:59 PM (EST). Deadlines for attendance are based on Eastern Standard Time. A student will be considered in attendance for a given week of online instruction if he or she participates in the course. Participation is defined as posting a response to a discussion assignment or submitting a completed course room activity/assignment during the online week prior to Sunday at 11:59 PM (EST). Initial Course Participation A student who fails to participate during the first 8 calendar days of a course shall be administratively withdrawn from the course. Ongoing Course Participation Ongoing course participation is satisfied through the continued completion of course room activities, such as written assignments, quizzes, or discussion question responses. Students who do not participate in a course for 7 or more consecutive days are not satisfying ongoing course participation. Students who are not satisfying the ongoing course participation requirement shall be notified by a University representative via University email. The learner must resume participation in the course within 3 calendar days following the sending of the notification. Students who do not resume participation in the course will be administratively withdrawn from the course and be issued a grade of ?W or ?F. A grade of ?W will be issued if an administrative or voluntary withdrawal occurs before 11:59 PM on Monday of the fifth week of the course. A grade of ?F will be issued if an administrative or voluntary withdrawal occurs after 11:59 PM on Monday of the fifth week of the course. Students may be impacted academically and financially in the case of voluntary and administrative withdrawals. It is the students responsibility to understand these implications. NON-DISCRIMINATION STATEMENT: Reinhardt University does not discriminate in any of its policies, programs, or activities on the basis of race, color, age, culture, national origin, socioeconomic status, gender, religious belief, sexual orientation, physical (dis)ability or genetic information. REL 104: INTRODUCTION TO RELIGION COURSE PAPER INFORMATION Purpose of the Project: Research is an integral part of the collegiate educational experience. The educational experience should be more than just memorizing facts and figures. Rather, the student should learn to analyze information and apply concepts to broader issues. Paper Topic: Martin Luther Kings ?Letter from a Birmingham Jail is considered one of the most important modern works in religion. It sets out many major themes that run current with faith communities and tenants all around the world. Address the following in youre the course paper: ‹?ú Highlight the similarities and differences in Kings work with the idea of justice present in other religious traditions. Attention should be paid to Kings influences, his religious tradition, and ways he incorporates other faiths. ‹?ú Demonstrate a grasp of justice, eschatology, prophecy, and salvation that you have learned throughout the course. Using at least five sources, and a minimum of 2000 words, The paper is due no later than Tuesday, August 4th at 11:59 PM (EST). Upload your completed paper to the Unit #5 Dropbox. Specific Requirements ‹?ú Must adhere to APA 6 th Edition format ‹?ú Must have a minimum of 5 acceptable scholarly references listed on the reference page and cited in the body of the work. You are highly encouraged to exceed the minimum reference count. ‹?ú Must be a minimum of 2,000 words excluding cover page and reference page?this does not mean 5 pages and a paragraph or two. ‹?ú Must have a title page that conforms to APA format. An abstract is not required. ‹?ú Must have a reference page that conforms to APA format/ ‹?ú Students may use the course text as a source, but make sure your other sources fit the category of being scholarly in nature. Wikipedia or general websites are not scholarly. Students should seek guidance from the instructor if in doubt about the acceptability of a source. ‹?ú Double spacing is required between sentences and paragraphs per APA guidelines. ‹?ú Use Times New Roman 12 font when preparing the paper. ‹?ú Must demonstrate the ability to utilize short quotes, and summary/paraphrase in proper APA format. ‹?ú Plagiarism will not be tolerated?your paper must properly document all ideas and information not your own. Plagiarism or academic dishonesty may result in a failing grade for this course. Other sanctions may be imposed based on University policy. See your syllabus and the Universitys Academic Catalog for additional information. ‹?ú Do not attempt to copy and paste from research papers or essays available online. The instructor will diligently check all papers for plagiarism. ‹?ú Use of proper grammar, correct spelling, and writing principles are expected in all work. Full credit will not be granted for work that contains grammatical or spelling errors. In the event a student does not feel competent in this area he/she should discuss the matter with the instructor. Tips for Success: ‹?ú Save citations and references sources from discussion posts and completes?students may be able to use these in the paper and it saves time! ‹?ú Start work on your project now?do not procrastinate?it will be due before you realize it and youll stress yourself out if you wait to start the week the paper is due. ‹?ú Have your paper proofed before submission by the Brainfuse Writing Lab. We all make mistakes and it is best to have another set of eyes look the product over. ‹?ú Exceed the minimum requirements?dont just do enough to get by?seek to stand above the rest by exceeding and surpassing expectations. ‹?ú Study APA formatting and seek help from the instructor. APA RESOURCES: The sites listed below provide guidance on APA format and how to cite and document various types of sources. APA resources are also available in your Eagle Web courseroom. ‹?