CRN: 12822
MALA 6010: Foundations of Liberal Arts II
Day/Time: Thursdays 6:00-9:00 pm (REMOTE)
Course Coordinator: Dr. Janet McCormick
Office Hours: virtual – email me any time (janet.mccormick@mtsu.edu)
Office: Jones Hall 202
Course Theme and Overview
Communication – the human connection - is the essence of human life. It is the key to personal and career success, the foundation for personal development and the first step to understanding.
Communication works for those who work at it as the quality of your communication directly impacts the quality of your life. The art of communication is the language of leadership - interdisciplinary communication is where truly great ideas emerge. To effectively communicate we must realize that we are all different in the way we perceive the world and use this understanding as a guide to our communication with others. This course offers diverse perspectives on the significance of “communication” through the lens of the various disciplines of the Liberal Arts.
COURSE LEARNING OUTCOMES
Upon completion of this course, students will:
• Gain an understanding of the foundation of Liberal Arts disciplines
• Increase content knowledge of the Liberal Arts disciplines
• Develop a greater appreciation of the interdisciplinary approach to learning
• Improve the ability to read and write critically and at an advanced level
• Recognize the methods of knowing in various disciplines
This course is an experiential learning course. The course includes a hands-on learning project (applied learning, service-learning, creative activity, teacher education, laboratory, co-op, or internship). The course will count toward the requirements of the EXL Scholars Program that formally began on campus in fall 2006. MTSU wants to provide relevant real-world learning opportunities for students. Research shows that students are more engaged in learning when they can learn “by doing” and that these types of learning opportunities will provide experiences students can include on their resumes that will assist them in gaining employment and/or gaining acceptance into graduate programs. For more information about the EXL Scholars Program, check the website: http://www.mtsu.edu/~exl.
COURSE STRUCTURE
The course will begin with an introduction to the Liberal Arts and the M.A. in Liberal Arts program. The next 12 weeks will feature inspiring professors from six different departments or programs who will discuss their approaches to the topic of “community” through their disciplines. Each individual professor will lead the class for two weeks and will assign readings and give assignments. Through these exercises and discussions, you will have the opportunity to learn fascinating subject matter while using approaches from different disciplines. You will also work on your reading, oral, and written communication skills. At the end of the course, professors and students will engage in a round table session in which you will work to bring together what you have learned about “community” and different methods used to approach this topic during the semester.
ATTENDANCE
Regular attendance is essential, especially since this course only meets one day a week, and professors rotate every two weeks. If you must be absent, it is your responsibility to contact the coordinator and the professor to request the opportunity to make up your work (this may involve extra readings and assignments). Work may be made up only at the discretion of the block instructor. Please be aware that absences will negatively impact your attainment in the course as well as your grade. Make every effort to attend every class.
GRADING
The grading for the course will be based upon a weighted percentage system with a minimum of 0% and a maximum of 100% as indicated below:
Each professor will give you assignments and participation grades which will make up 15% of your grade. With six professors, this will make up 90% of your final grade.
Further, toward the end of the semester, you will write a 5-page essay reflecting on the ways your understanding of the notion of “transitions” has been informed by the various Liberal Arts disciplines presented to you this semester. Your essay should draw on concrete examples from lectures and readings from the course, which will serve as your sources. This essay will be due at the roundtable and will be 5% of your grade.
Participation in the round table, including a brief presentation of your essay, will make up 3% of your grade.
You will also begin (or continue) the process of composing an e-portfolio. This will be 2% of your grade.
The following grading scale will be used:
A 940-1000
A- 900-930
B+ 870-890
B 840-860
B- 800-830
C+ 770-790
C 740-760
C- 700-730
D+ 670-690
D 640-660
D- 600-630
F 00-590
ETHICAL SCHOLARLY CONDUCT
Cheating, plagiarism, fabrication, and facilitation are unacceptable and will result in a grade of “0” for the assignment. For the purposes of this course, these terms are defined as follows:
Cheating - turning in work composed for other courses, copying the work of other students, using others’ work
Plagiarism - copying the words of an author without proper notation and acknowledgement
Fabrication - making up content and or sources
Facilitation - getting unauthorized assistance from others to complete your work
Violators may also be reported to the Assistant Dean for Judicial Affairs, without exception. Remember to start your papers early to avoid the temptation to resort to any of these offenses. If you have any difficulty with the material, please ask for help.
Please complete the Plagiarism Tutorial at the following site: http://lib.usm.edu/plagiarism_tutorial.html
ePORTFOLIO STATEMENT
As part of the MALA program, students should be building an ePortfolio showcasing their learning. Please upload a photo and a bio for your ePortfolio home page as soon as possible as a reference for your block instructors.
ACCOMMODATION FOR STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES
Middle Tennessee State University is committed to campus access in accordance with Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act and Section 504 of the Vocational Rehabilitation Act of 1973. Any student interested in reasonable accommodations can consult the Disability & Access Center (DAC) website www.mtsu.edu/dac and/or contact the DAC for assistance at 615-898-2783 or dacemail@mtsu.edu.
RESPECT AND ELECTRONICS
Please abide by a policy of mutual respect for your instructor and your fellow students. Cell phones or any other electronic devices should be silenced, and texting or e-mailing should not be done during class. Students are expected to focus on the course material and contribute in a positive manner.
First day of Class (Thursday Jan 28)
Course overview with MALA Program Director
Dr. Janet McCormick, Professor
Department of Communication Studies
Block 1 Feb 4 and 11
Dr. Jessica Hejny, Assistant Professor
Department of Political Science and International Relations
Bio
Block Description:
Week 1:
Week 2:
Grade Distribution:
Block 2 Feb 18 and 25
The Conversational Nature of Philosophy Week one readings/assignments:
Dr. Phil Oliver, Professor
Department of Philosophy and Religious Studies
I'm an early-rising philosophy prof at a large state university in Tennessee, with interests in American philosophy, humanism, naturalism, atheism, science and exploration, walking, cycling, baseball, literature, pop culture, the pursuit of happiness, and the perpetual dawn of day. You can follow me on Twitter (@Osopher), but of course as Brian Cohen said: You don't have to follow me. You don't have to follow anybody.
Block Description:
The communication of ideas, and the constructive-critical work of discussing and evaluating them, is central to the mission of philosophy, "the search for wisdom." Philosophers in America's pragmatic tradition, in particular, have emphasized the notion of philosophy as an ongoing trans-historical conversation between and among ourselves, our forebears, and future generations. In that sense, philosophy is an intrinsically pluralistic philosophy of communication. We'll read and discuss William James, who said "The pluralistic form takes for me a stronger hold on reality than any other philosophy I know of, being essentially a social philosophy, a philosophy of 'co'..." Richard Rorty, who called philosophy "the conversation of mankind" and said “The world does not speak. Only we do. The world can, once we have programmed ourselves with a language, cause us to hold beliefs. But it cannot propose a language for us to speak. Only other human beings can do that." David Whyte, the philosopher/poet who speaks and writes eloquently of "the conversational nature of reality."
Week One Readings/Assignments:
Specific texts/assignments from the writings of James, Rorty, and Whyte to be announced.
500-word essays in response to discussion questions
Week Two Readings/Assignments:
Specific texts/assignments from the writings of James, Rorty, and Whyte to be announced.
500-word essays in response to discussion questions
Grade Distribution:
Essay 1- 5% (50 points)
Essay 2 - 5% (50 points)
Discussion - 5% (50 points)
Block 3 March 4 and 11
“Communication in Anthropology: How did we get here, how do we spread the word?”
Dr. Shannon Hodge, Professor
Department of Sociology and Anthropology
Dr. Hodge is a professor of Anthropology in the department of Sociology and Anthropology here at MTSU. Her teaching and research focus is on Archaeology and Biological Anthropology, and where the two sub-disciplines overlap with one another. Specifically, she is a Bioarchaeologist, which means she researches archaeological questions using data she can get from human skeletal remains. Kind of like being a forensic anthropologist of the past. She teaches undergraduate courses in Biological Anthropology, Human Osteology, Bioarchaeology, and Archaeology of Death, plus a university general education course in World Prehistory. Her research is on the bioarchaeology of prehistoric Native Americans, and on African Diaspora bioarchaeology. Right now, though, she is working on a research project on some U.S. soldiers’ remains from the Mexican-American War who had died and been buried on a battlefield in Monterrey, Mexico. They were repatriated to the U.S. in 2016, and she has co-led an international team of forensic anthropologists and archaeologists to thoroughly examine the remains. Her team believes that they were volunteers from Tennessee.
Block description:
In this block, we will discuss communication through an anthropological lens. First we will address communication purely in the sense of language, and talk about human evolution and language, and primate language studies. We will broaden our scope next to talk about communication in human cultures, and then end up talking about how anthropologists and scientists communicate with the public about our work.
Assignments and Grade Distribution:
Readings will be posted on the D2L course homepage, and you will complete two small projects - one due in class the second week of the block, and one to be turned in to a dropbox on D2L, and answer some essay questions based on readings and class discussion, also to be turned in to a dropbox on D2L.
Nonverbal communication observation exercise – Covid-safe observation of nonverbal communication, be prepared to discuss in class the second week (5% or 50 points)
Communication, Anthropology, and Not Anthropology essay - due on D2L at the end of the semester (5% or 50 points)
Class readings and D2L essay quiz/exam after the second week (5% or 50 points)
Block 4 March 18 and 25
Communication through the Lens of Dramatic Work
Darren E. Levin, Associate Professor
Department of Theatre and Dance
Darren E. Levin joined the Department of Theatre and Dance in 2013. He earned his BFA in Theatre Design and Technology from Missouri State University (2007), and MFA in Theatrical Design (Lighting Design) from The University of Texas at Austin (2010).
Darren is an Associate Artist with Nashville Repertory Theatre where his lighting design credits include Avenue Q, Pipeline (First Night Nominee), Every Brilliant Thing Topdog/Underdog, Smart People, Posterity (Regional Premiere), Good Monsters (World Premiere), Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead. Darren also designs extensively with Black Hills Playhouse, Green Mountain Opera Festival, Theatre West Summer Repertory, and Mountain Rep Theatre with credits including Side Show, Footloose, 9 to 5, Peter and the Starcatcher, The Rape of Lucretia, La Cenerentola, and She Loves Me.
Prior to joining the MTSU faculty, Darren served as the Assistant Technical Director and Lighting Supervisor for McCain Auditorium at Kansas State University. He has also worked with and designed for Cedar Point Live Entertainment/Cedar Fair Entertainment Corporation, Juanita K. Hammons Hall for the Performing Arts, and he toured with Feld Entertainment’s Disney on Ice.
Darren is a member of the United States Institute of Theatre Technology (USITT) where he serves as the Vice Commissioner for Communications of the Lighting Design and Technology Commission and as a council member for the Essential Skills for the Entertainment Technician (eSET) program. Darren is a proud member of United Scenic Artists 829 (USA829) and the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees (IATSE) Local 205-Austin, TX.
Block Description:
This unit will explore the topic of communication through the lens of dramatic work. Theatre has the power to transcend history, and responds to political and social movements, sharing and communicating the voice and identity of communities, movements, minorities, and mainstream ideas. Performance has the unique power to incite discussion and discourse about social movements as well as prevalent social and political issues. Theatre studies, reacts to, and communicates the community and identity of society, often inciting and inspiring discussion and study of challenging subject matter.
Through performance audiences are invited by a company (i.e. community) of artists into a dialogue about often timely issues in our society. For instance, Hair responds and opens dialogue on the political, social and sexual identity of the 1960’s; many shows that deal with race and inequality relating to multiple turbulent time periods; and LGBT centered plays have led and responded to the human rights movement.
In preparing for theatrical performance, all artists involved in the process delve into the world of the play and conduct dramaturgical research that spans most if not all areas of the liberal arts. As a case study, we will look at the script and recording of A Doll’s House. The block will culminate in the writing of a dramaturgical/character analysis of two characters in the script and how they communicate to and for communities within our culture.
Required Performance
Due to changes in the entertainment and theatre industries and the unknowns surrounding the Covid-19 Pandemic, the required performances will be available digitally.
Romeo and Juliet The Romeo and Juliet script is available at https://shakespeare.folger.edu/shakespeares-works/romeo-and-juliet/entire-play/ with performance video available at https://youtu.be/ZyTwuGX0zPs
Content/Trigger Warning:
Please note performances may include, (but are not limited to) the following content: full nudity, gun shots, adult language, adult situations, and other triggers not yet known. Also, please note that specials effects like gun shots, theatrical haze, strobe lights, etc. may be present in these productions. Please feel free to reach out to the block faculty PRIOR to the performance for specific details.
Reading Assignments
Please complete the following reading for the respective class period. They will frame the discussion for that class period. While some scripts may appear short, please ensure you reserve enough time to complete the readings. Students often find scripts more challenging to read as they are dialogue based. We will be approaching the scripts and readings listed from an academic standpoint. Some readings (and the required performance) may incite conflicting views, I ask that you be able discuss how audiences relate to the scripts and readings and how individual characters portray and communicate different identities/are a part of different communities within society. It is expected that you interact and participate as a responsible citizen in all class sessions, assignments, discussion and projects.
Week 1 Reading (posted to D2L):
Video/Transcript of Oskar Eustis’s TED Talk “Why Theatre is Essential to Democracy” https://www.ted.com/talks/oskar_eustis_why_theater_is_essential_to_democracy/transcript
Excerpt on Character from Backwards and Forwards
Excerpt from August Wilson’s “The Ground on Which I Stand.”
Week 2 Reading:
Please choose and read the script you wish to use for your writing assignment. We will use these scripts to frame the discussion for this class period. See writing assignment handout for script options.
Writing Assignment
You will write a 1200 word (about 4 pages) dramaturgical character analysis looking at the two characters and analyzing how an audience might be informed by these characters. In this analysis, you will address how the characters communicate to/for communities within our culture. Please see the additional file for specific information regarding the writing assignment.
Grade Distribution:
5% Class participation (50 points)
10% Paper (100 points)
Block 5 April 1 and 8
Digesting musical storytelling: learning to develop critical listening skills
Dr. Will Perkins, Assistant Professor
School of Music – Voice and Opera
Will Perkins is a diverse performer who has enjoyed singing lead roles in opera, operetta, and musical theater. He is equally at home singing Mozart as he is performing barbershop or contemporary musicals. His undergraduate studies were completed at the University of Utah, and graduate work at Indiana University. During his time at IU, Dr. Perkins created a performing group for students from many disciplines to be able to take part in all aspects of the production process, including acting, singing, costume, set, and lighting design. In addition to being on the stage, Dr. Perkins is also a director, and his talents have been sought by Indiana University Opera Theater and Brigham Young University. In the School of Music at MTSU, he teaches private voice lessons, directs the Opera Theater, and teaches field-specific academic courses.
Block Description:
During this section we will foster a discussion about why we “like” certain songs or musical genres and explore the possibilities of those with which we are less familiar. By examining characteristics of a variety of different styles, we will look at the musical features that allow the audience to understand the content and hopefully broaden the musical palate.
Week 1
Before class (all resources found under “Week 1” in D2L):
Complete musical preferences worksheet
Read show synopses
Have musical scores ready to use during class. You can print them out or view them on a device other than the one you are using to participate via Zoom, etc.
Week 2
Before class:
Watch your assigned clip(s) (delivered to you within 48 hrs after first class meeting)
Write a 3-pg paper, double-spaced, analyzing the musical content of your assigned clips
Be prepared to present your paper to the class
Grade Distribution:
Preparation/participation: 5% (50 points)
Paper/Presentation: 10% (100 points)
Block 6 April 15 and 22
Dr. Ida Fadzillah Leggett, Associate Professor
Department of Sociology and Anthropology
Bio
Block description:
Week 1:
Week 2:
Grade Distribution:
Roundtable, May 6th
w/MALA Program Director Dr. Janet McCormick
For your final unit, you are required to write a 5-page essay reflecting on the ways your understanding of the notion of “communication” has been informed by the various Liberal Arts disciplines presented to you this semester. Your essay should draw on concrete examples from lectures and readings from the course, which will serve as your sources. Put in the dropbox when complete. This essay will be 5% of your grade (50 points).
Participate in the roundtable discussion on march May 6th. Post a brief presentation (powerpoint/prezi/worddoc all fine) of your essay and respond to each of your peers. This will make up 3% of your grade (30 points).
Show progress on your e-portfolio. This will be 2% of your grade (20 points).
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