POSSIBILITIES FOR EXTRA CREDIT IN THE COURSE: CONTEMPORARY MORAL PROBLEMS

Bob Corbett, instructor
PHIL 2320, Spring 2001

Given that my grading procedure is extremely strict on attendance and on-time work students at times find my grading procedure, I am allowing an option for extra credit. This is for work which I am convinced will significantly benefit the whole course, thus I welcome it.

I have links to the various contemporary moral problems we study in the class. At times we could use specific articles aimed at particular problems which come up in class. I will announce these and welcome new likes. I am willing to give extra credit for any additional links which a student provides (in the form required) and which I add to my web site.

I am looking for web sites which are concerned with:

1. The specific issues I announce in class.
2. Surprise on-line materials which the student can convince me are useful and relevant materials to add to the links page.
3. PLEASE NOTE: I am only interested in serious material. Much of what one finds on the web is philosophically trivial. So these must be serious and useful sources. When I get enough material on any particular one topic and add it to the web site I will issue an e-mail announcement of this.

The form of the extra credit work would be this:

• Find an on-line source which is not currently on my links page.
• The item must be a specifically relevant item the topic under discussion.
• The item must be intellectually serious.
• E-mail the URL to Corbett at:
  
  
  Bob Corbett bobcorbett@earthlink.net

  and also send it to:

  Bob Corbett corbetre@webster.edu

• The e-mail must have this form:
  1. The URL (eg: http://www......)
  2. The name of the article or site.
  3. The name of the author, or specify that the author is not named (a danger sign that you may not have a decent article.)
  4. Include a two sentence description of what one will find in this source.
  5. Include a couple of sentences to explain why this item seems relevant to you for our particular discussion. What can we find there of particular interest?

VALUE OF EACH ACCEPTED ITEM

At the end of the course you will have been able to have earned up to 1000 points in the oral presentation, exams, class participation and papers. You will have had the possiblity of losing a significant number of points for excessive absences. Each one of these extra credit items I accepted would be worth 10 points, 1% of your total grade. I will accept a MAXIMUM of ten of these, or 10% of your total grade. That can make a significant difference in your grade, since it takes 70% (700 points) to pass the course with a C. Were you to earn a full 10%, 100 points, added at the end to your raw total, that could make an astonishing difference in your grade. For example, scoring 830 points, or 83% would be a grade of C+, but with 100 points added would be 930 points which would be an A -.

CAUTION I will only give extra credit for items I actually USE on my web site. If you submit an item and I reject it as one I do not want on my web site for any reason, then it does not earn you extra credit of any kind. You take your chances.

I urge any of you to join in this work. The more useful and functioning links we get the better your resources will be to help you learn and gain from this course.

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