Course Compact

· Everyone will attend all classes and will arrive on time. (Each absence will detract from your final grade.)

· Everyone will do the assigned reading before coming to class.

· Everyone recognizes that “multi-tasking” diffuses attention and focus. Hence, we’ll turn off our phones and refrain from using laptops in class. [The same rules as at the Harvard Business School]

· Everyone will participate in each class and show respect and encouragement for the participation of others. Participation may take a variety of forms but successful contributions to class lectures and discussions include:

a) listening attentively;

b) raising a question about the topic or issues at hand [this can often clarify a murky point or a misunderstanding];

c) summarizing the ideas of others to confirm understanding;

d) providing reasoning or evidence to support an idea mentioned by you or someone else;

e) suggesting connections between several contributions or previous class or group discussions;

f) presenting concise results of individual or a group investigations.

· Everyone will work to improve her skills of analytical reading, which include:

a) Using pre-reading techniques of skimming and scanning to locate and understand main points and main arguments, together with examples of supporting evidence before returning to read the entire piece.

b) Identifying main points and themes.

c) Identifying and connecting examples of evidence for main points and themes.

d) Distilling from a pile of information a meaningful summary of the essentials.

e) Effectively and succinctly conveying ideas in writing and discussion.

· Everyone will evaluated as follows for the final course grade:

1. Attendance at all classes, a number of oral presentations, and informed participation in discussions. (20%)

2. Several in-class quizzes (20%)

3. Two essays. (40%)

4. A take-home final essay (20%)

Further, we agree to abide by the following ground rules:

1. Without exception, all will be treated with courtesy and respect.

2. We shall not distract others by making gestures or carrying on unrelated side conversations.

3. We shall observe the honor code governing academic and personal conduct, including the proper acknowledgement of sources to avoid plagiarism.

4. We shall do our best to be constructive; if we dislike the readings, we shall not throw rotten fruit at the instructor but explain our reservations or difficulties calmly.

Signed________________________________________________