Photo: Colleen Hayes / NBC.

This course challenges each of us to share in the difficult process of negotiation and conflict resolution. As a result, class attendance and participation (both in- and outside of class) are crucial in understanding and retaining the class material.

The more you are able to meaningfully engage in this class, the more you will learn and the better you may perform.

Out-of-class participation is done through the social media site Twitter, which will be used to determine your base participation grade. Meanwhile, your in-class participation influences that base participation grade based on consideration of the items below.

Distracting behavior during our class meetings lowers your overall participation grade. Distracting behavior includes, but is not limited to, sleeping in class, chatting with the person sitting next to you, using your phone or laptop without permission, leaving the classroom, and/or doing homework for another class.

Active and productive class participation, on the other hand, may boost your overall participation grade.

Each unused free pass also increases your overall participation grade by 0.5 point (one-twentieth of a letter grade).

Photo: Drew Goddard / NBC.

Participation points

Participation points that are awarded throughout the semester also affect your overall participation grade. You earn these points based on class attendance and your performance during class activities. However, failing to effectively participate in an activity, due to absence or lack of preparation, earns you zero (0) participation points. Participation points cannot be made up.

At the end of the course, the total number of participation points you earned is compared to the class average. If you are above average for participation points, then your overall participation grade is increased by 5 points (one-half letter grade) per standard deviation you are above average. If you are below the class’ average, then your participation grade decreases by 2.5 points (one-quarter letter grade) per standard deviation you are below.

Make things easier for yourself—and for your classmates—by showing up on time to each of our class meetings.

Photo: Colleen Hayes / NBC.

Attendance

Given the importance of attendance for this class, I will take roll promptly at the start of each class meeting at 1:50PM. If you are seated and prepared to begin class, you will earn 2,000 participation points. If you show up after that—even if you are only late by 5 seconds—then you will be marked as late and earn 500 points. However, if you show up more than 10 minutes late, you are marked as absent. All absences earn 0 points.

This means that you get no “free” absences from class. There is one exception: You and I agree on a reasonable accommodation prior to the day you miss class. I will consider arrangements after the fact only in extraordinary, documented circumstances.

Students marked absent from more than 6 class meetings will automatically fail this course. For this calculation, 2 late arrivals will count as an absence.