Celtic Heritage: Focus on the Emerald Isle
Dr.
Karen Guffey
Spring
2023
Hours: TR: 12:00 - 12:30; 1:45 - 3:30; 4:20 - 5:05
Monday & Wednesday (online ONLY), 7:00 pm -
8:00 pm
I am a night person, so you have a very
good chance of getting a response from me
between 11 pm and 2 am; you have virtually no chance between 6 am
and noon.
*Phone:
678-359-5232 (Remember that I’m on campus only T & R and therefore don’t
check my messages a lot.)
*Email:
k_guffey@gordonstate.edu Email is by far the best way to get hold of
me. I check it more often than I answer
my personal phone.
Textbook: none. See course
website for a list of readings & videos.
Objectives: to
understand the origins of the Celtic culture and its many incarnations,
including the current one, & to experience it firsthand; to understand what
defines “Celtic culture”; to demonstrate an awareness of the ways various
aspects of the culture (language, religion, politics, etc.) are intertwined and
play roles other than the obvious in the makeup of the culture.
ATTENDANCE
Class attendance is
required. You are allowed two
absences. Any absence after the second
MUST be excused. In other words, if you
are in the hospital for your first two absences, you don’t get a freebie later
on. The first two absences are the only
freebies, and if you need to use them to sleep in, fine. If you need to use them because you’re sick,
fine. But your third, fourth, fifth,
etc., absences have to be excused.
The penalty for each
unexcused absence is 3 points off your final average.
Any student who ceases to participate
in the class should go to the registrar’s office to take the appropriate steps
to withdraw. If he fails to officially
drop the class, he will receive a WF in the course. THE FINAL DATE TO DROP A COURSE WITHOUT A
PENALTY IS March 16. If
you drop the course after that date, you will receive a WF in the course.
COURSE WORK
Readings, videos, &
Power Points. Tests and the final exam
will come from the material on the course slide shows. I will give you more specific information
about what to study as the time approaches.
Course slide shows are
available as Power Points and as videos.
Independent research
& journals:
You will do some general reading the first few weeks (four hours per week,
divided into submissions on Tuesdays and Fridays), & then you will choose
an area in which to “specialize.” It should be neither too broad nor too
narrow. “Music” would be too broad; “bagpipes” might be too narrow. You will do
your own research, & you will take notes in a journal. (You may propose
other formats that are more comfortable for you.) You will use your notes as a
basis for your reports and for your research paper, which is due Monday, May
4, and which counts 25% of your grade.
For the reading for your
journal, you may use hard copies or online sites of books, articles, tourist
websites, or any other sort of site that provides information about ancient
Celts, Ireland or any Celtic country and/or any aspect of those countries. You can also view videos (no more than 2 of
the 4 hours required each week), and at the bottom of the course website are
some suggestions. Google & surf
away! If you like sports, google
“Ireland sports.” If you like dancing,
google “Ireland dancing.” In short, you
can put Ireland/Irish (or Scotland/Scottish) in front of anything you enjoy and
read about that country’s version of it.
You can also watch (no more than two hours per week) movies set in
Ireland and then put your observations about the country/people/setting/etc. in
your journal notes.
Your notes should
include the sources you’ve read or skimmed or watched,
notes that you jot down as you read, notes to yourself about other topics or sites
to check out, and/or summaries of what you’ve read/watched. The notes can be
handwritten (you can submit a picture) or typed, and they can be complete
sentences, incomplete sentences, lists, paragraphs – anything that helps you
recall what you’ve read and that demonstrates two hours of reading for each
submission.
By April 3, you
need to have a topic for your research paper.
(Not necessarily your thesis.)
Feel free to email me with questions as you go about deciding on one.
Your journal grade will
be based on your notes. You are expected to post notes that reflect TWO hours
of reading by 11:59 pm every Wednesday and notes that reflect TWO
hours of reading by 11:59 pm every Saturday. (If you don’t like
having assignments on the weekend, you are free to submit your entry earlier.) The
length of your journal entries may vary, since viewing videos (no more than two
hours per week) is also permissible & requires more time and results in
less material covered, and I will give you guidance before taking away points
for insufficient work. Each week there
will be assignment boxes for your posts.
Reports: Reports are different from the
final paper. You will pick a topic and
write an informative paper of 300 words.
For example, if you choose to talk about leprechauns, you will write
about their origin, their characteristics, examples of them in Irish literature,
etc. You have a lot of freedom regarding
the topic and how broad or narrow it is.
“Leprechauns” is fairly narrow; “mythical Celtic creatures” is pretty
broad, but that’s fine too. The biggest
requirements are organization and cohesion.
You need to have one main idea per paragraph and talk about only that
idea in the paragraph. A new idea means
a new paragraph. Below is an example of
what you DON’T want to do:
Leprechauns are Irish
creatures. The first leprechaun appeared
in a story from the year 1200. Americans
think leprechauns have a pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. Leprechauns wear green. Green is a common color in Ireland, probably
because the rain makes everything green.
Some people think Rumpelstiltskin was a leprechaun. It’s really hard to catch a leprechaun.
There are several ideas
in that paragraph, which is a huge mistake, and no idea is developed, which is
another huge mistake. You can’t just
list facts; you have to develop and relate ideas.
I will also grade you on
grammar, mechanics (punctuation, essentially), and spelling, so you’d better
proofread. College sophomores should not
write like they’re making angry posts on a social media site.
You need to give me a
works cited page for your reports, but it doesn’t have to have the APA
format. You can just post the link or
the name of the book/article and its author.
These reports are informal, and – for me; other professors might be
horrified – you don’t need to document your ideas in the paper. That is, you don’t have to put in parentheses
in the paper the source where you got your information. (Note: this refers only
to REPORTS, not the FINAL PAPER, which is formal and must be thoroughly
documented.)
There will be one
in-class report in November. You will
write on a given topic (which will by then be very familiar to you), but you
will be able to use any internet resource you want, and we will use a computer
classroom that day.
Paper: Your paper (due May 4, as mentioned above, minimum of 1200 words)
is totally, TOTALLY different from your reports. You must display critical thinking, and you
have to prove a thesis; you can’t just talk about something like you did
in your reports. For example, your
thesis statement may be “The Romantics revived the interest in Celtic heritage
because of X, Y, & Z.” In other
words, it is a theory you’ve developed & must support. It doesn’t have to be so unique a theory that
no one else has ever thought of it, but it must demonstrate your thinking & your analysis. If you wanted
to write about the harp, for example, it would need to be something like “The
harp replaced the flute as a national symbol of Ireland because of X, Y, and
Z.” (Although that’s not true, to my
knowledge.) You need at least 3
different sources; this is a research paper, not a report of one work. That means you have to DOCUMENT your
sources. The whole purpose of English
1102 is to teach you how to write a paper for EVERY class and EVERY conference
and EVERY project you ever do in your whole life, not just how to do something
for English class. You ALWAYS have to
give credit to your sources; otherwise, you’re stealing, and this type of
stealing is called plagiarism. Even
if it’s your own words and not a direct quote, you have to give credit for
the information, unless it’s information that is common knowledge. The Works Cited page is NOT ENOUGH; you have
to give credit within your paper (see the APA or MLA style guides) for any idea
that isn’t your own.
I do not
accept late papers,
so don’t bother asking. Your paper is
due May 4; that is the last full week of
classes. Since I do need time to grade,
there is no wiggle room, so I will not accept late papers.
There is an assignment
box for your final paper.
Note: If you turn in
your paper before the May
4 due date, I will
get it graded and returned to you by May 4.
You may then turn in a revision on May 4.
CHEATING
If you cheat on the final exam or final paper, you will receive an F in
the class. Cheating on a test or final
means copying onto your exam an answer from another student, a book, a cell
phone, a website, or a typed paper. You
are allowed to use handwritten notes on your tests and final exam, but you may
have nothing typed in your possession, including the study guide I will give
you.
During exams you must put your cell phone at the bottom of your backpack
or purse. If there is a cell phone
anywhere in your line of vision or that of the instructor during an exam, you
will be penalized exactly the same as you would be if you were to look up
information on the computer during the test
It doesn’t even matter if the cell phone is off, so be absolutely sure
that your phone is out of sight, out of reach, and out of mind.
You will also receive an F in the course if you cheat on your final
paper. Cheating on a paper means having
someone else write it or plagiarizing it.
If you cheat on anything else, you will receive a 0 on that assignment.
TESTS and EXAM
You may use any handwritten notes you want during the tests and
final exam. I’ll give you a study guide,
and you’ll have access to the slides from which the material is taken. Don’t let this fool you into thinking you
don’t need to pay attention in class or prepare for the tests. I have multiple students fail every single
test because they don’t pay attention in class and don’t organize their notes
or thoughts. The tests really aren’t
hard if you pay attention to what’s important in class discussion and if you
and your brain are engaged in class. But
the tests require thought and analysis based on the material, and a bunch of
notes that you don’t know how to put together or pull from isn’t enough.
On the other hand, if you and your brain are engaged in class and you
take the time to look over, maybe rewrite and/or reorganize your notes, this
course is not that hard. Your homework
is reading whatever you want that’s related to Celts and/or Celtic countries;
your reports are informal; I give you study guides for the tests and complete
access to the written and narrated slides from which the tests come. Really, is there any reason anyone should
fail this course? But engagement is key.
CLASSROOM BEHAVIOR
You may not eat in class. This
includes sandwiches, chips, candy, and all other types of
food. Failure to schedule a lunch period is not an excuse for eating
in class.
Turn your cell phone off before entering
class. You may not have a cell phone in your hand, on your desk, or
anywhere in sight during the entire class. If the instructor spots a
cell phone in your hand or somewhere on your desk, you will lose 1
point off your final average in the class.
Students are not allowed to use offensive
language in class. This includes “four-letter words” as well as
words that may offend others because of religious beliefs.
GRADING
Journal 12.5% Two due per week, with the
exception of some during weeks when you
have a report due
Reports 12.5% (due February 9, March 9,
April 6) NO
REPORTS ACCEPTED LATE.
Submit as a Word document attached to the Assignment box in
D2L.
Tests 30%
Final
Exam 20%
Research
Paper 25% (due May 4) NO PAPERS ACCEPTED LATE. Submit as a
Word
document
attached to the Assignment box in D2L.
Title IX: Gordon State College is committed
to providing an environment free of all forms of discrimination and sexual
harassment, including sexual assault, domestic violence, dating violence and
stalking. If you (or someone you know) has experienced or experiences any of
these incidents, know that you are not alone. All faculty members at Gordon
State College are mandated reporters. Any student reporting any type of sexual
harassment, sexual assault, dating violence, domestic violence or stalking must
be made aware that any report made to a faculty member under the provisions of
Title IX will be reported to the Title IX Coordinator or a Title IX Deputy
Coordinator. If you wish to speak with someone confidentially, you must contact
the Counseling and Accessibility Services office, Room 212, Student Life
Center. The licensed counselors in the Counseling Office are able to provide
confidential support. Gordon State College does not discriminate against any
student on the basis of pregnancy, parenting or related conditions. Students
seeking accommodations on the basis of pregnancy, parenting or related
conditions should contact Counseling and Accessibility Services regarding the
process of documenting pregnancy related issues and being approved for
accommodations, including pregnancy related absences as defined under Title IX.
ADA and 504: If you have a documented disability as
described by the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and the Rehabilitation
Act of 1973, Section 504, you may be eligible to receive accommodations to
assist in programmatic and/or physical accessibility. The Counseling and
Accessibility Services office located in the Student Center, Room 212 can
assist you in formulating a reasonable accommodation plan and in providing
support in developing appropriate accommodations to ensure equal access to all
GSC programs and facilities. Course requirements will not be waived, but
accommodations may assist you in meeting the requirements. For documentation
requirements and for additional information, contact Counseling and
Accessibility Services at 678-359-5585. House Bill 280 For information
regarding House Bill 280, see the University System of Georgia at the following
link: http://www.usg.edu/hb280
Religious Holidays: Gordon State College acknowledges
that the academic calendar can sometimes conflict with major holidays from
among our diverse religious traditions. If a student must miss class due to the
observance of a religious holiday, that absence may be excused. To be excused,
the student must inform his/her instructors before the absence and make
alternate arrangements for any work due at the time of the absence. An excused
absence for the observance of a religious holiday does not excuse student from
responsibility for required course work.