"Teaching is leading students into situations from which they can only escape by thinking."  (Anon.)

My job is to facilitate your learning.  I will make any reasonable effort toward that end.  If there are things I can do differently to help you in your education, please let me know.

"The least of the work of learning is done in the classroom." (Thomas Merton)

"If I taught something and no one learned it, what happened?" (Diane Halpern)

"If you make people think they're thinking, they'll love you; but if you really make them think, they'll hate you." (Don Marquis)

"Not to know is bad.  Not to want to know is worse.  Not to hope is unthinkable.  Not to care is unforgivable." (Nigerian proverb)

"Education is what survives when what has been learned has been forgotten." (B.F. Skinner)

"Concepts without perceptions are empty; perceptions without concepts are blind." (Kant)

"Enlighten the people generally, and tyranny and oppressions of body and mind will vanish like evil spirits at the dawn of day." (Thomas Jefferson)

"Education is not the filling of a pail, but the lighting of a fire." (William Butler Yeats)

"Creativity is the residue of time wasted." (Albert Einstein)

"Wisdom is in learning what to overlook." (William James)

"In examinations those who do not wish to know ask questions of those who cannot tell." (Sir Walter Raleigh)

"Genius does what it must, and Talent does what it can." (Owen Meredith)

"Mediocrity knows nothing higher than itself, but talent instantly recognizes genius." (Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

"First-rate people hire first-rate people; second-rate people hire third-rate people." (Leo Rosten)

"Great minds discuss ideas; Average minds discuss events; Small minds discuss people." (Eleanor Roosevelt)

"The universe is full of magical things patiently waiting for our wits to grow sharper." (Eden Phillpots)

"Don't be afraid to take a big step if one is indicated. You can't cross a chasm in two small jumps." (David Lloyd George)

"Knowing is not enough; we must apply. Willing is not enough; we must do." (Johann Wolfgang von Goethe)

The best ways to contact me outside of class time are email and phone (552-6437).

The weekly schedule listed on the syllabus is provided as a rough guide to topics and the order in which they are likely to be addressed. But this is only a guide: our pace and even some specific topics are apt to vary depending on the circumstances of the term. Teaching and learning are interactive processes.

Don't be reluctant to ask questions about what we are doing in class, or about class assignments.  Even when you think you are the only one who doesn't understand something, you aren't.  Others will be grateful you asked, and appreciate hearing my reply to your question.  If you are bashful about asking during class, catch me at the beginning or end of class, or in my office.

If you need to miss class because of illness or a family emergency, let me know so that we can arrange a make-up of any missed work.  Even if you need to be out of town, we can use email or fax to keep the coursework flowing.

Out of consideration for others, please silence cell phones and any other electronic devices (watches, PDAs, etc) before coming to class.

Keep all of your work (quizzes, papers, etc.) at least until the end of the term.  They could prove handy if there as any confusion about what's been completed or how it was evaluated.  In accordance with University policies, I keep student papers for one year; you are always welcome to stop by after the term is completed to pick up any of yours.

If you are turning in a multiple-page written assignment, staple all the pages together before you turn it in.  Folding down the top corners, or using paper clips, are not good substitutes for stapling.

If you are turning in a paper when I'm not available, do not slide it under my office door.  Drop it off at the Social Science office (Taylor 122) instead; they'll put it in my mailbox.

Most assignments are scored on a ten point scale. But that doesn't mean that they all count equally toward your course grade. The weights assigned to individual assignments vary, and are generally determined at the end of the term.

Most assignments may be turned in a little late at the cost of a lowered grade. Very late papers will not be accepted.

You are always welcome to speak with me about your work in the class, grading in general or for specific assignments, and strategies to improve your class performance.

The following information is provided by Academic Support Services.  It may apply to you.  "If you are in need of academic support because of a documented disability (whether it is psychiatric, learning, mobility, health related, or sensory), you may be eligible for academic accommodations through disability services for students. Contact Disability Services for Students; Director, DSS; 552-6213; or schedule an appointment in person at the ACCESS Center, Stevenson Union, Lower Level."

 Back to Dan's page