Deutsch 325: Deutsche Dramen – Kursinformation Winter 2007

Lehrbücher	Notenschema
Quiz	Hausaufgaben und Lesestrategien

Lehrbücher

Required	Coursepack [at Excel, 1117 S. University, 996-1500]
Required	Ackermann [editor]/Dürrenmatt [author]. Der Besuch der alten Dame. Houghton Mifflin; ISBN: 0395040892
Recommended	Martin Durell: Hammer’s German Grammar and Usage, 4th ed.
Dictionary Recommendations	If you can afford it, I would recommend the Harper Collins German Unabridged Dictionary (4th ed.). For use in class, the orange “Concise Edition” of Webster’s New World German Dictionary is probably the most practical. A useful online resource for this class, if used thoughtfully, is the BEOLINGUS online dictionary. A link to it is in the navigation bar on all the main pages on this site.

Notenschema:

Anwesenheit und Beteiligung	20%
Hausaufgaben	20%
Aufsätze	30%
Quiznoten	30%

Note: If you miss more than four hours of class unexcused, your Anwesenheit und Beteiligung grade will begin to suffer. You can make up up to four hours of unexcused absences by attending Deutschtische or watching German movies and writing about them.

Quiz:

Wir werden 7 “Quizze” haben. Jeder Quiz testet das, was wir seit dem letzten Quiz in der Klasse gemacht haben (Vokabeln, Texte, Grammatik)

Hausaufgaben und Lesestrategien:

Homework assignments are intended to motivate and help you to come to class prepared to discuss the readings and work on grammar. They will be graded on a “check”/”check plus”/”check minus” scale based mainly on content. Grammar homework gets a “check” if it is on time and your score is above 80%, and a “check minus” otherwise. Homework on the readings ordinarily gets a “check” if it is on time. If it is late or indicates that you may not have done the reading carefully enough, it gets a “check minus.” Homework on the readings will not be accepted if it is more than three class days late. “Check plusses” are awarded for homework on the reading whose content and/or German is outstanding. “Check plusses” compensate for “check minusses” and two “check plusses” compensate for a missing assignment. You can make up up to three missed assignments by watching German movies and writing about them. If you have “checks” for all your homework assignments for the semester, you get an “A” for this component of your grade, since this will mean you’ve done a lot of work

Please think in terms of reading texts multiple times instead of just once thoroughly: first, look over the vocab list, then skim the text at least once quickly for the main idea, then read it once carefully. As regards looking up words, you should feel guilty if you try to look up every word you’re unsure of, and you should feel good if you try to guess the meanings of unfamiliar words using the context, your knowledge of the subject, similarities to related English terms, etc. If your guess turns out not to make sense, you can always still go back and look the word up.