Course Expectations | Course Policies | Absence Policy | Academic Integrity | Accommodations | Statement of Diversity and Inclusivity | Tips for Doing Well in the Course |
Latin 102 is the second course in a two-semester introduction to the Latin language. This course will build upon the basics of the Latin language introduced in the first semester (e.g., declension, conjugation, complex sentence structure, etc.) and eventually build towards a strong command of Latin vocabulary, grammar, and syntax. The goal of first-year Latin is to build a solid foundation for reading actual ancient Roman texts. As such, the acquisition of those linguistic skills, elucidated and practiced through classroom practice and translation and composition exercises, will set a foundation for reading unedited Latin from Hyginus’ Fabulae, a compendium of Greco-Roman myth.
The course will use a flipped classroom and active learning pedagogy. What that means is that you will be responsible for previewing the material that we will cover in class ahead of time. You will read the relevant grammatical overviews and familiarize yourself with basic morphology and vocabulary before coming to class. I will keep you to this by giving you a short, simple quiz at the beginning of class. Class time will be spent employing your newly developed knowledge through a variety of activities that explore the finer points of the material and answering lingering questions about the material. My role is to facilitate your learning rather than to dictate how you do it.
Aside from daily quizzes, all assessments will take place outside of class and will focus on developing the active skills necessary to understand Latin. The intent here is to give you time and space to engage with the material at your own pace. Further, you will have an opportunity to revise all of your assignments since learning is best done iteratively (i.e. repetitively).
Finally, this course is CBL (community-based learning) designate class. As such, outreach and community engagement is a required part of the course. Beginning in the second week of the class, you will be asked to commit at least one hour a week (usually between 3 – 4 PM) to teach Latin to elementary school students in the Worcester area.
Below you will find all of my official policies as well as relevant links to the college’s official policies on these matters.
If you miss or are going to miss class, please e-mail me to let me know what is going on. That way we can work together to ensure that you can stay up-to-date with what’s going on with the class. Should your absence fall under the college’s policy on excused absence, as described here, you will have an opportunity to make up any missed assessments.
You are expected to abide by Holy Cross’ Academic Integrity Policy, posted here. Cheating on any assignment (for instance, using unauthorized notes to help answer questions, copying another student’s answers, or employing online translation programs) will result in penalties ranging from a failure on the specific assignment or quiz to failure for the entire course.
I want to add one final point of clarification about how collaboration intersects with academic dishonesty. We encourage you to collaborate with your classmates to answer questions, clarify difficult topics, and practice grammatical and syntactic concepts. However, in the end, your work on assignments and assessments must be your own. Replications of another student’s work at the sentence or paragraph level, especially of any mistakes that that work may contain, or having external helpers like tutors generate your work for you both qualify as academic dishonesty and will be penalized accordingly.
Students who need accommodations should notify the instructor as soon as possible and work through the Office of Accessibility Services.
It is my intent that students from all backgrounds and perspectives be well-served by this course, that students’ learning needs be addressed both in and out of class, and that the diversity that the students bring to this class be viewed as a resource, strength and benefit. It is my intent to present materials and activities that are respectful of diversity: gender identity, sexuality, disability, age, socioeconomic status, ethnicity, race, nationality, religion, and culture. Your suggestions are encouraged and appreciated. Please let me know ways to improve the effectiveness of the course for you personally, or for other students or student groups.
Because our course has a CBL component, it will also be incumbent on you to maintain these standards during school visits. You will be dealing with diverse set of populations, whose life experiences are, in many cases, different than your own. For support in these matters, you may find it useful to get in touch with CBL office.
Below are list of best practices based on the behavior of students have done well in previous iterations of the course:
