Focus:
Through presentations by invited speakers, the relationship of art to fashion and textiles will be explored. Invited speakers will address the theme in illustrated lectures. Topics to be covered include the debate “is fashion art?” Other topics include such themes as color forecasting, creative textile design, visual merchandising, jewelry design, and fashion exhibitions at museums.

Registrants for two credits are required to complete a research paper and present it to the class.

Student presenters will research specific subjects not covered by the invited speakers, thereby increasing our knowledge. The seminar is an advanced class designed to bring together subject matter from the entire TMD curriculum.

Registration:
Section 01 - 1 cr. - students attend guest lectures and student presentations; write a 1-page summary to be submitted at the start of the following class.
Section 02 - 2 cr. - students perform all requirements for 1 cr. plus research a specific topic which they present in both oral and written form
TMD 402 may be repeated once with a different topic.

Pre-requisites:
A basic understanding of the textile and apparel industry is necessary to comprehend the topics addressed by the speakers. Completion of core TMD courses is required, thus the seminar is restricted to TM and TMD students who have been admitted to the College of Human Science and Services. Two-credit registrants should be juniors or seniors. See instructor if you are unsure of your status or ability to complete the requirements for two credits.

Course requirements:
Students registered for 1 credit must attend all class sessions and write summaries of each presentation to be handed in at the following class period. No late summaries will be accepted. The goal of assigning weekly summaries is to develop and improve your writing skills.

Students registered for 2 credits must complete the requirements for 1-credit registrants and an in-depth research report. The guidelines for the 2-credit assignments will be distributed and discussed on February 3.

Web page:
I am building a web page for the course to which all students have the opportunity to contribute. Each week a student-prepared summary will be selected for addition to the web page. The web site can be accessed at the TMD Department homepage. <http://www.uri.edu/hss/tmd/> . All students are expected to visit the web site regularly.

Attendance:
Attendance is mandatory (see course requirements above) and contributes significantly to your grade. On the first day of class, a seating chart will be made. Be sure you remember your assigned seat as attendance is taken using the seating chart. Attendance means arriving by 4 p.m. and staying until the presentation is over. Late arrivals and early departures will be noted and attendance records modified accordingly. Guest speakers contribute valuable time and effort to make their presentations, and as guests they should be treated with respect. It is rude to come in late and to walk out on invited speakers while they are talking. This includes leaving temporarily to use the restroom or to get a drink of water. And, need I say … all cell phones off and no text messaging.

Grading:
One-credit registrants will be graded on (a) the summaries, and (b) attendance. Summaries will be graded S, S+, and S-. A full semester of S graded summaries with no absences will earn an A grade for the course. The course grade will drop with increasing numbers of S- grades. Grades of S+ will counteract S- grades. (i.e. an S- and an S+ are the same as two S's). The grade for the summaries depends on full attendance at guest speakers and student presentations.

The grade will be reduced by absences. Only one excused absence is allowed. A documented medical situation is an excused absence. A job interview, early departure for spring break, health services appointment, or fashion show practice is not an excused absence because these events could be scheduled at another time. Each unexcused absence will reduce the grade by two steps as follows:

Two-credit registrants will be graded as follows:

            50% attendance and summaries

            25% presentation of project

            25% paper for written paper

For bona fide illness (written medical excuse), see instructors.

INCOMPLETES GIVEN FOR MEDICAL REASONS ONLY.

Summaries

Students who are registered for one credit must prepare a summary of each weekly speaker and of the student presentations at the end of the semester. The summary must be submitted in paper form. Paper summaries must be word-processed.  Hand-written summaries will not be accepted. Do not email summaries as my computer is four years old and I can't open some files. I much prefer that you submit paper copies at class time to avoid problems with misplacement.

Summaries each week should be no more than one page in length, single spaced. Take notes as the speaker is presenting, and keep tabs on anything you find confusing: ask a question if you have the chance. When you write the summary, have an introduction and a conclusion.  Break your summary into several paragraphs.  The style should be clear and concise: do not clutter the summary with phrases such as "the speaker said that...."  "there was a diagram that showed that......".  Avoid spelling and grammar errors.  Use spell check!  

The summaries provide you with a chance to develop skills in synthesizing information presented orally. It is a bad idea to write them word-for-word from your notes.  Speakers will not provide information at the right pace for you to be able to judge what is important and what is not. Writing them soon after the seminar is a good idea, since it is likely that you will remember more about what the speaker said than if you wait until the night before the next class. Poorly written summaries will receive a grade of S-. “Poorly written” means content is inaccurate and/or quality of writing is lacking. Numerous spelling and grammar errors will result in a grade of S-. Each student should write the weekly summary independently.

Marie Schlag, my graduate assistant, can help you if you are having problems with writing.  She is available Tuesdays, 1-2 (Quinn 302).  Reach her via e-mail (mtschlag@cox.net). URI’s Writing Center is another source of assistance.  It is located in Roosevelt Hall.  There, you will work with writing tutors on specific issues that will help you with your assignments such as paragraphing, sentence clarity, sharpening thesis statements, documenting sources, using appropriate evidence, or understanding and practicing specific grammatical concepts. URI Writing Center tutors will not edit or proofread for you; rather, they will teach you proofreading strategies you can use yourself.  Their goal is to help you become a better writer, and this requires both time and effort on your part.  Check out their web site (http://www.uri.edu/aec/wc/index.php).

The following relates only to the 2-credit option

Students registered for two credits must complete an in-depth research report which will be presented to class towards the end of the semester.

In-depth research report

Two-credit students will investigate a specific topic related to innovation in the textile/apparel complex.  Topics should not duplicate information provided by seminar speakers.  Possible topics should address innovation or an innovative approach at any level of the textile/apparel complex.  Directions for this project will be distributed and discussed January 28.  Presentations to the class will occur on April 29, and if necessary May 6. Written versions of the project are due one week after the presentation except for those presenting at the final exam time.

Grading for the written paper will be as follows:

100 points

      30 -choice of topic, good introductory statement, pertinence of material as foundation for conclusions, accurate conclusion  

      15 -neatness, spelling, evidence of careful proofreading, double-spaced, margins 1" all around, pages numbered, pages in sequence, title page

      15 -bibliography in correct form, current references, range of sources, sources properly cited

      30 -organization, logical sequence of topics, use of subheadings, quality of writing, evidence of editing and integration of material, quotations only  when necessary

      10 -paper handed in on time (due one week after presentation, except for students presenting during final exam time slot).  For every day the paper is late, 10 points will be deducted from the score.

Presentations to the class should:

            *be interesting

            *be well-prepared

            *be organized

            *use appropriate visuals (I can help you with power point presentations)

              *be well-timed (20 minutes plus 5-10 minutes for questions)

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