Author: Rob MacDougall

Mid-semester grades added to Blackboard

Dear Class,

The school requires me to post midterm marks on Blackboard. The grades available are:

P: making satisfactory progress

N: needs improvement

SA: stopped attending

These scores are based on a calculation of the percentage of points you have earned on the total points available so far, to this point in the semester. This includes half of your participation grade for the year, half of your homework grade, and the midterm exam (which is now graded and will be returned on Monday). It does not include the grade for the annotated bibliography, which hasn’t been graded yet. Students who scored 70% and above in the course so far I marked as P, and students below that are marked as N.

These grades reflect your performance on only the 30% of the course that has been graded so far, so that means that 70% of the grade is still to be determined. If your grade is not where you want it, please note that there is still time to make major improvements.

Please let me know if you have any questions, and enjoy your weekend.

Best,

Dr. M

Homework Assignment 4, due Monday October 30, BRING TO CLASS

Create a draft thesis and arguments for your paper

Note: you do NOT need to hand this assignment in to turnitin.com YET. Please prepare it ahead of time for class, where you will work on it in pairs. You will need to upload a revised version by midnight to turnitin.com on Wednesday, 11/1.

Please read the Written Report assignment on OpenLab (also found under “Assignments”—“Case Project”)

We have practiced identifying the thesis and supporting arguments for articles we have read and for articles summarized in the annotated bibliography. Now it is time for you to develop a draft thesis for your written case report, along with supporting arguments.

For the homework assignment, please do each of the 4 parts below. Please be as concise as possible—there is no need to write more than 150 words total.

  1. Background: in about 2 sentences, give a brief background explaining what your case is about. This should be clear enough that a student who is not familiar with your case can read it and gain familiarity with the most important facts of the case.
  2. Main Ethical Dilemma: In 1 sentence, explain what you think the main ethical dilemma in your case is. An ethical dilemma is a choice that must be made in which all possible decisions violate some ethical norms. It should be worded as a question (e.g., “should the doctor do X or Y?”). The main ethical dilemma is the most important ethical dilemma in the case.
  3. Thesis: please formulate your thesis in one sentence. The thesis should summarize your main recommendation for what should happen in your case. It should respond to the main ethical issue. It should be a truth claim that is concise and appropriately specific. These are characteristics of any good thesis, as we discussed in class. The thesis should also be normative. It should explain what someone in the case—usually the health professionals—should do.
  4. Arguments: please formulate 2-3 brief arguments (i.e. 1-2 sentences each) in support of your thesis. It should be clear to someone not familiar with your case how these arguments support your thesis.

Midterm today!

You can begin the midterm any time between 2:30 and 3:45pm today. You can see further instructions in the previous post here on Openlab.

The test will be available on Blackboard. You should receive an email announcement from Blackboard at 1pm that the test has opened, with a link to the test. Alternatively, you can navigate there yourself by going to Blackboard—Content.


I will be available via email at daniel.macdougall56[at]citytech.cuny.edu, and will also be physically present in the classroom, during regular class hours. Let me know if you have questions, and best wishes for the exam.


Dr. M

Mid-term Exam next Monday, 10/16!!

Our Mid-term Exam is coming up next Monday, 10/16!!

The test will be 75 minutes long and will be administered on Blackboard. You should receive an announcement to your email at 2:30pm, when it becomes available. You can also find it under “Content” in Blackboard after 2:30pm.

The exam is open book and open notes. I recommend that you study carefully for it by filling out the study sheet ahead of time. Most of the questions require understanding concepts, not simply repeating answers from the study sheet.

Do NOT plagiarize from the internet. Utilizing answers from class materials and lectures is acceptable. Plagiarism from the internet is grounds for a zero score on the test.

You can start it any time within the normal class period (2:30-3:45pm) and will receive a full 75 minutes to take the test. It is possible to pause the test and come back later, but the clock will keep ticking and you only have 75 minutes total to take the test. You will not be able to resume after 3:45pm.

If you need a special exception you need to contact me. If for some reason you don’t contact me and also don’t take it at the appointed time, you will need a documented excuse (either medical or related to bereavement) for permission to take it at another time.

Don’t forget to download the review sheet and fill it out before the test! And let me know if you have any questions.

Dr. M

Homework Assignment 3, due TUESDAY October 10, before class

Please complete a short quiz on Blackboard before class on Tuesday, October 10 (that’s right, we’re meeting on a Tuesday next week!). You can take the test on Blackboard any time between class tomorrow and class on October 10. 

The quiz will cover our discussion of plagiarism in class tomorrow (Wed 10/4) and the course page on Academic Integrity. It is multiple choice. It is not particularly hard, and it is open book. But you have only 10 minutes to complete it once you have started, so you will want to read the materials beforehand.

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