Instructor: Dr. Nancy Dreschel
312 ASI
863-4197 (office)
Objectives:
Upon completion of this course, the student should be able to…
- Explain the varied roles that pets play in society.
- Gather information and make informed decisions on pet ownership, pet care, and societal responsibility.
- Make informed decisions regarding controversial legal and societal issues related to pets and understand the impact of individual actions and decisions on broader society.
- Communicate views on pet-related societal issues through both writing and casual discussion.
- Describe the scientific method and its use in information gathering.
- Apply specific social science methodologies to societal questions.
Website:
ANGEL: https://cms.psu.edu
Log-In Policy:
Students are expected to log-in regularly to keep up-to date with announcements, discussions, etc. The class will progress at a regular pace throughout the semester and there are specific due dates and times for assignments, etc.
Grading Policy:
Assignments
| Weekly discussion | Max 56 points (4 pts. each) | |
| Virtual pet assignments: | ||
|
4 points 12 points 8 points |
|
| Study Design Assignment | 15 points | |
| Controversial issue project/ paper | 30 points | |
| Quizzes | 75 points (5 total- 15 points each) | |
| Total points | 200 | |
The final course grade will then be determined according to the following scale:
| A | 93-100% |
| A- | 90-92.9% |
| B+ | 87-89.9% |
| B | 83-86.9% |
| B- | 80-82.9% |
| C+ | 77-79.9% |
| C | 70-76.9% |
| D | 60-69.9% |
| F | <60% |
Students should be familiar with faculty senate academic policies and procedures regarding grades, especially policy 47-20 and 47-60
Extra Credit
Students may earn extra credit (up to 4 points to be added onto the total number of points) by visiting or participating in a pet-related activity or business. These would include visiting a shelter or rescue organization, attending a dog or cat show, attending a pet expo, visiting a pet store, or some other pre-approved activity (only 1 visit per facility will be counted). To obtain extra credit you must enter the “extra credit discussion area” and write a short description of what you saw, how it relates to our class and what your thoughts are about it. Photos are welcome. All extra credit is due by the last day of regular classes (12/14/07).
General descriptions of assignments/quizzes:
Discussion
Students will be divided into discussion groups of 3-4 students per group. The purpose of the discussion groups is to encourage you to think about your views of the many different ways that animals play roles in our lives and to share some of these ways with one another.
Students are expected to be civil and respectful of each other’s views, even when disagreeing. Posts should be in grammatically correct English (not necessarily complete sentences, but no texting acronyms, please). Keep in mind that this is a college level course,not an online game chat room.
The discussion forums will be assigned weekly and will either consist of responding to a specific reading or question posed in class or describing an example of “pets in society” that you see during the week. Discussion posts will count for 4 points each- 2 points for adding your initial thoughts, 1-2 points for responding (thoughtfully and grammatically correctly) to another’s post. For example, saying, “yes, I agree”, is a response but doesn’t really add anything. For full credit you must make a contribution.
Virtual pet assignments
Three assignments will be given that require you to choose a particular pet, determine how to select it, what it will require as far as equipment, care and time, how much it will cost to care for it and what the health risks associated with that pet are. The purpose of this assignment is to encourage students to understand the responsibilities and repercussions of the decisions that they make. Students are encouraged to choose 1 particular pet to use for all three assignments but can change if they want to.
Research Design Assignment
Students will work in small groups to design a research project related to class and will individually write up their idea and submit it.
Paper/Project
You will choose a controversial topic and find and evaluate supporting evidence for all sides of the controversy. This will be summarized in a short paper and/or project that will be due Wednesday, December 12. More information, specific guidelines, and grading information will be given during the semester. There will be built in deadlines for completion of the project throughout the semester. This is expected to be your own work specifically for this course and should not be a paper or project handed in for any other classes. Abstracts and projects will be shared and discussed with the class during the last week.
Quizzes
There will be five on-line, open-book quizzes based on the discussions, readings, and course work. These will be timed tests taken at your convenience during a specified time period. Once you have begun the quiz, you will not be able to come back to it at a later time.
Academic Integrity
Policy 49-20 of the Student Handbook will be followed in this course. This policy says, in part, "Academic integrity is the pursuit of scholarly activity free from fraud and deception and is an educational objective of this institution. Academic dishonesty includes, but is not limited to cheating, plagiarism, fabrication of information or citations, facilitating acts of academic dishonesty by others, unauthorized prior possession of examinations, submitting work of another person or work previously used without informing the instructor, or tampering with the academic work of other students." For more information on PennState's policies on Academic Integrity please visit the following website: http://tlt.its.psu.edu/suggestions/cyberplag/cyberplagstudent.html.
Disability Access Statement
Penn State welcomes students with disabilities into the University's educational programs. If you have a disability-related need for modifications or reasonable accommodations in this course, contact the Office for Disability Services, ODS located in room 116 Boucke Building at 814-863-1807 (V/TTY). For further information regarding ODS, please visit their web site at www. equity.psu.edu/ods. Instructors should be notified as early in the semester as possible regarding the need for modification or reasonable accommodations.
Course Outline
| Week 1 | Start Here and
Course Introduction and Overview |
Weekly Discussion |
| Week 2 | Domestication
|
Weekly Discussion |
| Week 3 | Types of Pets and Pet Selection | Weekly Discussion Pet Selection Assignment Quiz #1 |
| Week 4 | Pet Needs and Economics | Weekly Discussion Pet Needs/Costs |
| Week 5 | Social Science and Human-Animal Interaction Research |
Weekly Discussion |
| Week 6 | Behavior and Training | Weekly Discussion Quiz #2 |
| Week 7 | Legal issues | Weekly Discussion |
| Week 8 | Health Risks | Weekly Discussion Health Risk Assignment |
| Week 9 | Health Benefits | Weekly Discussion Research Design Assignment Quiz #3 |
| Week 10 | Working Animals | Weekly Discussion |
| Week 11 | Disaster and Loss | Weekly Discussion |
| Week 12 | Welfare Issues | Weekly Discussion Quiz #4 |
Thanksgiving Break |
||
| Week 13 | Pets throughout our lifespan | Weekly Discussion |
| Week 14 | Pets throughout our lifespan | Weekly Discussion Quiz #5 |
| Week 15 | Projects | Weekly Discussion |