Course Syllabus
Mexica Musicians and Dancers Performing GIF. From Book 8 of the Florentine Codex. https://www.mexicolore.co.uk/aztecs/gif-offerings Accessed 05/16/24.
Please set aside some time to review the entire syllabus below as it contains important information on course materials, assignments, grading, resources, and policies. In order to succeed in this class, you must familiarize yourself with the syllabus.
Course Description
This introductory art appreciation course surveys global artistic styles, including European, African, Asian, Oceanic, and American, from 1500 C.E. through contemporary times. The course focuses on the development, diversity, and interaction of art and cultural traditions and emphasizes comparisons of western and non-western visual expression as a reflection of differing cultural perspectives.
Student Learning Outcomes
Course Materials
There are no required textbooks or materials for this class! This class is an "Open Educational Resources" class, meaning that all course materials will be provided in the course. I have carefully selected top-notch, free, online resources for you to use in lieu of a textbook.
Class Meetings
100% online and asynchronous, meaning that there are no required Zoom meetings at designated times. You will watch the lecture videos at your convenience as long as you do it before the weekly deadlines posted in the schedule at the very end of this syllabus. Do not work more than 1 week ahead without instructor's approval.
Instructor Announcements & Messages
I will post announcements throughout the semester using the Canvas Announcement feature. Students are expected to read ALL instructor announcements and will be held responsible for the content of those announcements.
I will also send reminder messages that will appear in your Canvas Inbox to help keep you on track and to check in on your progress. Just please remember that reminders are a courtesy rather than an expectation. Make sure that you set in place your own personal reminders for upcoming deadlines, as well.
Canvas notifies students of instructor announcements and messages according to each student's preferred Notification Preferences. So, please set up your notifications to get these announcements in the way you prefer (email or text or both).
Instructor Contact
The best and quickest way to reach me is by using Canvas Inbox (see Inbox icon on the far-left menu). I prefer to be addressed as Dr. Saleh or Prof. Saleh. Please email me ONLY via Canvas Inbox for all course related issues. I respond within 24-48 hours to emails from 9 am through 5 pm except on weekends and holidays.
For information on how to use the Canvas Inbox feature to email your instructor and classmates, consult this guide.
Office Hours
To provide you with the most flexibility, over the summer, my office hours are online and by appointment. I will be logged onto the BigBlueButton, an online, video-conference space. Please email me with some days and times that work for you, and I'll do my best to accommodate you ASAP.
Standards of Conduct
Students are required to abide by the SRJC Student Conduct Code and Academic Integrity Policy:
SRJC's statement on Academic Integrity
Violation of these standards is basis for referral to the Vice President of Student Services or dismissal from class or College.
Collaborating on or copying of quizzes, papers, extra credit, discussion posts in whole or in part will be considered an act of academic dishonesty and result in a grade of 0 for that assignment. Receiving a 0 on any assignment in this class for any reason makes you ineligible to submit extra credit work at the end of the semester.
Acts of academic dishonesty include, but are not limited to, the following:
- Cheating: Any act of obtaining or attempting to obtain credit for academic work through the use of dishonest, deceptive or fraudulent means.
- Plagiarism: Any act of submitting the work of another, in whole or in part, as one’s own without properly referencing the source. This includes use of direct quotations, paraphrases, ideas and facts which are not common knowledge, whether the sources are published or unpublished.
- Artificial Intelligence (AI): The use of any AI tools is not permitted in this class. Representing work created by AI as your own is plagiarism and will be prosecuted as such.
- Collusion: Any act where a student knowingly or intentionally helps or is helped by another student(s) to commit an act of academic dishonesty.
- Other Academic Misconduct: Any act such as stealing, altering grades, forging, sabotaging the work of others, lying or any other acts of academic dishonesty as deemed by instructor.
Consult this link on Plagiarism:
UCLA Best Practices for Avoiding PlagiarismLinks to an external site.
Acknowledgement of Diverse Course Content
Each of us identifies in multiple ways, including but not limited to race, ethnicity, national origin, ancestry, language, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability, health, age, religion, culture, socio-economic status, political affiliation, veteran status, etc... And each of these diverse identities, along with many others not mentioned here, shape the perspectives our students, faculty, and staff bring to our campus. At SRJC, we work to promote diversity, equity and inclusion not only because this approach fuels compassion, understanding, and collaboration, but also because a diverse atmosphere encourages intellectual growth and innovation.
Critically examining and assessing our most basic assumptions and values is one of the tasks vital to the college experience and our growth as human beings. This course requires the study of artworks and images that may include nudity, violence, and sensitive content, which may reflect religious, political, sexual, cultural, and economic opinions that differ from your own worldview. As part of your college journey of learning and exploration, you are expected to maintain an open mind and to work to understand differing viewpoints (especially when dealing with topics that you may find uncomfortable). By enrolling in this class, you have given your informed consent to exposure to such topics and materials.
Due Dates
Assignments for this class will be due before 11:59 pm PST on the due date. All due dates are subject to change and changes will be sent through announcements in Canvas.
Late Policy
Late submission of required assignments will be deducted 5% off for each day past the due date. It's not advisable to re-do or re-submit work (in order to improve a grade) more than a week after a deadline has passed, since the late penalties will negate any benefits. And no work will be accepted after the last day of class.
Quizzes
There is a required multiple-choice quiz at the end of each module. Questions come from the class lectures and suggested readings. Each module will include a list of all the important images and vocabulary terms to help you focus and prepare for the quizzes. You are allowed to take each quiz up to 5 times, and your highest score will be recorded.
Discussion Board Posts
At the end of each module, you'll be asked to participate in a discussion based on the materials presented in the lecture. Please make sure that you've watched the lecture videos before replying to the discussion and remember to be polite and sensitive to your classmates.
For each module, you'll be expected to post your answer to the prompt and leave a comment on one classmate's post. Both your own post and response to a peer must be submitted at the same time. If you're the 1st to start the discussion, then state that you're starting the discussion. Please follow the instructions for each prompt carefully and leave a thoughtful and meaningful response to a classmate.
Your discussion posts must be unique to you, so you can't repeat content another student already shared. Also, your discussion posts must be 100% your own thoughts, ideas, and words. If/when references are made, they must be cited correctly. A plagiarized or AI-generated discussion post will result in 0 points and no chance to re-submit. Also, if you leave a vague or brief response to a classmate, you will not earn that point. Late penalties (5% off per day) apply if you re-submit your post after the assignment due date.
Guidelines for Discussion Posts
You are not allowed to work more than 1 week ahead without instructor approval.
Your discussion post and response to a classmate must be submitted at the same time. You can't add a peer response later (even if it's before the deadline).
If you are the first person in your group to submit a post, you must begin the conversation by stating that you're the first or include a statement recognizing that you're getting the conversation started. The 1st person to start the conversation is not required to submit a peer response. But if you don't state that you're the 1st to reply, then you will not earn that 1 point.
If you leave a generic, vague, or brief reply to a classmate's post, then you will not earn that 1 participation point. We expect meaningful and thoughtful responses to your peers' work, and your comment should relate directly to something stated by your classmate.
If you submit incorrect work for the discussion (an example from outside the time period and region under discussion; including an inauthentic work of art; repeating an existing example already presented by a classmate; ignoring the subject of the assignment; lacking art historical relevance), then you will receive 0 points on the post and will be able to earn no more than 5 points maximum for a re-submission (not including late penalties).
If you receive 6 points or less on your post, then you may qualify for a one-time resubmission. Late penalties apply to resubmissions, and you must delete (not edit) your original post to resubmit it.
If you chose to resubmit your discussion post, you must delete your original post and notify us using a comment on your own assignment that alerts us that you've submitted a corrected version of your post. We will never know that you made corrections and are requesting a grade modification, unless you inform us by leaving a comment (not a reply) on the assignment. The comment can be a simple "made corrections, please re-grade."
There may be multiple sections of this course, in which case student names and published coursework may be visible to students in another section.
Feedback
Your grades are available for you to review in your Gradebook, which includes comments that explain why you missed points and what you need to do to regain those points: How do I View Assignment Comments from My Instructor?
Grading Policy
| A | 90% or more |
| B | 80-89% |
| C | 70-79% |
| D | 69-60% |
| F | 59% or less |
Course grades are assigned automatically and will not be rounded-up under any circumstance. If you feel that you're on the border-line between one grade to the next, make sure that you complete extra credit work that may be able to bump your grade up
Pass‐No Pass (P/NP)
If you are taking this course on a pass/no-pass basis, then you must earn at least a C letter-grade to receive credit for the course.
Dropping the Class
If you decide to discontinue this course, it is your responsibility to officially drop it through your student portal. Make sure to consult SRJC's Academic Calendar for important deadlines. I will keep an eye on your participation and check in with you via email if you have not participated in the course for more than three weeks. Based on the situation, I will either recommend that you drop the class using this petition or set up an educational plan to help you get back on track. Ultimately, it is your responsibility to drop the class if you're no longer interested in it and/or no longer participating.
Extra Credit
After you've completed ALL the required assignments and received no 0s (for any reason) on the required assignments, you will have an opportunity to improve your final grade by submitting extra credit work during finals week. There will be a variety of options to select from, and they will all be listed in the Extra Credit Module (the last module located at the very bottom). Please note that the Extra Credit Module will be locked until all the required Modules have been completed. Once you've completed all the requirements for the class, the Extra Credit Module will unlock and reveal detailed instructions and submission links.
Extra credit work is not a substitute for missing required work. Use the extra credit option to improve grades on certain assignments, rather than "make-up" for missing work.
Physical & Mental Health
Should you experience any physical or mental health issues, know that all of us at SRJC care about your well-being. SRJC’s Student Health Services (SHS) has nurse practitioners and mental health therapists available. Confidential sessions are provided via secure Zoom or in-person. Sessions are free for SRJC students taking credit or non-credit classes, and some providers can converse with you in Spanish if you prefer. SHS also has on-site COVID rapid testing and vaccinations available at no cost.
To start the process for any type of physical or mental health appointment contact Student Health Services at 707-527-4445 or email studenthealthservices@santarosa.edu
Disability Resources Department
It is the mission of SRJC to support inclusive learning environments. If there are aspects of the instruction or design of this course that result in barriers to your inclusion or to accurate assessment of achievement, please notify me as soon as possible.
Students are also welcome to contact the Disability Resources Department (DRD). DRD is a resource for students that provides authorization for academic accommodations, training and access to assistive technology, and collaborates on strategies for academic success.
Lanzamiento for Latinx Students
This class participates in the Lanzamiento initiative designed to support academic achievement among Latinx and first-generation college students. All students are welcome in this program, and all students who enroll in Lanzamiento sections have dedicated resources available to them such as academic counseling, peer tutoring and success coaching, library support, mental health services, financial aid workshops, and opportunities to learn about transferring to a four-year university.
Umoja for African & African-American Students
The Umoja program assists students of African descent in completing their Associates degree and transferring to a 4-year university by providing support resources that include: access to free books and school supplies; application waivers; transfer assistance and college tours; dedicated counselors and a support team; among other benefits. Join the Umoja community by submitting this Umoja interest card, and an umoja counselor will reach out to you.
Intercultural Center
In addition to the resources mentioned above, please check out the Intercultural Center, which offers a supportive community for Native American, Asian Pacific Islander, and LGBTQA+students, faculty/staff, and their allies. I'm also proud to be a co-founder of the MENAA (Middle Eastern & North African Association), and if you identify as MENAA or have interest in the region, please let me know so that we can welcome you into our community.
Collage of Women in Art. https://neighborhoodartcenter.medium.com/art-history-for-kids-an-intro-ed5fd13deb0a Accessed 12/12/23.
IMPORTANT: The course summary below is a chronological list of assignments to help you keep track of due dates. It does NOT contain links to course learning materials. Please access the course materials through the modules.
Course Summary:
| Date | Details | Due |
|---|---|---|