*Extra Credit Assignments will be available
Attendance & Class Participation (in-class discussion(s) & activities)
Student-centered pedagogy: The student-centered approach put participants’ interest first by acknowledging their needs as central to the learning experience. Rather than designing the course from the professor’s perspective, it is designed from the learner’s perspective. The learner-centered approach encourages a dynamic relationship between learners and the professor. The students take ownership of the content, determine how it will be useful or relevant to them, and build the connections to allow learning to happen. When the student, rather than the professor, is the focus of the instruction, the learning becomes more meaningful.
Due to the nature of the course and the importance of engaging in a dynamic learning experience, all students will complete course readings and assignments prior to class meetings and contribute meaningfully to class discussions. As such, quizzes may be administered throughout the semester without notice and will count towards participation. During discussion, please always be mindful that everyone participates. Our course/classroom is both a SAFE and BRAVE space respectful and supportive of each others experiences, culture, religion, abilities, appearance, language(s), nationalities, immigration journey, and identities.
*No student may record any classroom activity without the consent of the professor.
Throughout the semester you are required to complete short writing assignments (as indicated in the course schedule below). These writing assignments are linked to current affairs, your lived experience(s) and course readings (some weeks require you to write about the in-class film). Emailed writing assignments are NOT accepted- no exceptions.
The purpose of these writing assignments is for you to discuss how you have critically assessed the readings, and/or content in relation to your experiences. These are NOT summaries of the readings/content, that’s what class meetings are for. I am interested in learning how you interacted, interpreted and/or related (or not) to the material(s). You must include reference to an excerpt from the readings that directly relates to your reaction/reflection. Students may be randomly called on to share for participation credit.
An original research paper of 5 pages (plus a references section) is expected for this course. Your topic must be about “Latinx and the U.S.” (as stated in the course description) and will not be discussed during our course this semester. Thus, research paper topics must be submitted for approval in advance, by the date noted in the syllabus. Only soft copy word documents are accepted for all of the components of the paper.
You are required to submit a research paper proposal, including:
*An alternative project will be made available and will be discussed further during course overview.
The final exam is composed of readings and lectures (including class discussions). Several of the concepts we will discuss all semester do build on each other. Theories and terminology that are introduced will continue throughout the course and you will be expected to refer, identify and use these theories and terminology for your final exam. The final exam is cumulative. The exam will cover all the assigned readings and films, as well as any material developed from class discussions. There will be no make-up exams except in cases of emergency which must be documented. Please notify the instructor in advance if a legitimate conflict exists that will prevent taking the exam on the scheduled date listed in the course outline below.
Final Grades
| Percentage | Grade |
|---|---|
| 93% and above | A |
| 90-92.99% | A- |
| 87-89.99% | B+ |
| 83-86.99% | B |
| 80-82.99% | B- |
| 77-79.99% | C+ |
| 73-76.99% | C |
| 70-72.99% | C- |
| 60-69.99% | D |
| Below 60% | F |
Unless otherwise noted, this OER for PRLS 1001: Introduction to Puerto Rican and Latin@ Studies was created and curated by Vanessa Santiago for Brooklyn College Fall 2023 and is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
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