Class Info

Textbook & Course Curriculum

Suggested Optional Text

Grading

Requirements

Notes

Related Links

Detail Course Schedule & Assignment

09/24/04:

• Wednesday 09/29/04 class will meet in the Galanti Lunge (3rd floor of the Library)

09/21/04: 

• Class will meet in the Multicultural Center Room 005 (the computer classroom located in the lower level)
• Be sure to finish all the reading assignments assigned on Week02

09/14/04:

• All the weekly reading assignments are now updated.

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Class Info

Class Meets: Wed. 12-1:15pm
Location: Multicultural Center Room 005 (the computer classroom located in the lower level)
Course web site: http://www.uri.edu/mcc/BDDcourse/2004Fall/index.html

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Textbook & Course Curriculum

URI 101e is an on-line, interactive text you will use in this course. To access this material you must be registered. To do this:

• Step 1. If you attended summer orientation in June and completed the survey in the technology workshop, you may go to www.uri101.com update your profile and get your course materials.
• Step 2. If you did NOT attend summer orientation, you must first go to www.uri101survey.com/signup to create your profile. (Important ¨C Once you have completed the survey, it will take 24 hours before you are able to access the course materials -- so plan accordingly.)
• Step 3. Once you are successfully at the URI 101 website, please update your profile by clicking on the icon at the top of the page entitled: Update Your Info. Now you are registered and ready to access your course materials.

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Suggested Optional Text

Ricchini, John & Arndt, Terry. Life During College: Valuable Advice & Tips for Success 1st Edition, Life After Graduation, LLC, March 2002.

The purpose of this course is to help you explore issues relevant to new students at URI. When you complete this course you should have a better understanding of the University of Rhode Island, its resources, the various opportunities available to you, issues important to the URI community, and your own academic goals. Most importantly, you will have experienced working collaboratively in a group, and will have developed some important skills for your academic success.

Many of the topics covered in this class will be in response to what you determine your needs and interests to be. However, they will typically fall within three main categories that provide a basic structure for the course:

• 1) Planning your academic goals. Includes topics that will help you think about and plan your courses, your internships, and your extra-curricular activities for the next few years. You will discuss major and career choices, and set personal and academic goals for success. There is a presentation on experiential learning in this category.
• 2) Enhancing your academic skills. Focuses on learning more about yourself as a learner. This includes assessing your learning style, developing selected computer skills, improving time management, and working on critical thinking and analysis skills. A presentation on University College and the Academic Enhancement Center is a part of this category.
• 3) Adjusting to college life. Includes many topics you deal with in your transition from high school to college. It includes guidance on how to use the many resources available to you at the University of Rhode Island, information on getting involved and coping with residential life and using the library. It also covers issues of diversity, alcohol and drug usage, and concerns for personal safety. A presentation on health and safety is included in this category.
• 4) The cause and effects of the gap in access and skills between various social and cultural groups,understanding social and cultural issues.

This is a one-credit class and we will assign work accordingly. You will get credit for the work you do in class, as well as the preparation and meeting times out of class. You are expected to do all assignments on time.

As you make your transition to URI, you will have many new and exciting experiences and, inevitably, some challenges. To help you meet these changes successfully, URI 101 provides important information as well as support through your URI 101 instructor and mentor. University College also provides ¡°Rhode Assistance¡± specifically to help students with issues or problems that arise as they adjust to URI, for example how to get help with academics, what to do if you are having problems adjusting, who to ask if you need more personal information. If you feel you need assistance on any issue please feel free to contact Rhode Assistance, in University College, Roosevelt Hall, 874-4076 or via email at jess@uri.edu. Your conversations are confidential. We hope this is just one more way to help you be successful, academically and personally, at URI.

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Grading

Important ¨C Please Note: The course catalogue (8.33.13) states ¡°Students not attending courses in which they enrolled have the obligation to drop those courses before the drop deadline. (This applies to all your courses.) Names of students who are absent from the first and second class meetings of a course and who do not notify the course instructor of their intention to attend future class meetings may be submitted by the course instructor for deletion from the class.¡± In other words, go to class or you may be dropped so that other students may enroll during the add period.

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Requirements

ATTENDANCE AND PARTICIPATION (20 Points)

Our class meetings will be primarily presentations from University service providers and offices, discussions, and activities. You have to be in class and be prepared to earn full credit for attendance and participation. Class will be more fun and productive if everyone completes readings and assignments, on time and thoughtfully. Please come to class on time, prepared to contribute to the classroom experience.

We expect you to call us if you have an emergency and cannot attend class. We hope to teach you the rules of college learning, therefore you should know now that an emergency means you are sick and you have a doctor¡¯s note, not that you want to visit a friend who has a cold (see the difference?!). You will lose points for unexcused absences. Class attendance and participation is worth 20% of your grade.

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ATTEND DIVERSITY WEEK (10 Points)

Diversity Week, September 27 ¨C October 1, celebrates the importance of diversity and identity in higher education, in the workplace, in the community, and in the global arena. Students are to attend at least one workshop or activity and write a one-page reaction paper. More details will be given in class. A detailed schedule of Diversity Week activities can be found at: http://www.uri.edu/mcc

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FEINSTEIN ENRICHING AMERICA COMMUNITY SERVICE (15 Points)

In the fall of 1995, Rhode Island philanthropist Alan Shawn Feinstein generously endowed the service-learning component of URI 101, creating a program formally designated as the Feinstein Enriching America Program. This endowment insured that each University of Rhode Island student would have the opportunity to be involved in a meaningful community service activity, to reflect upon that experience and have the forum to share their thoughts and feelings with other students. Service Learning provides an opportunity to work collaboratively with others, while understanding the needs of the broader community in which you live and your life. As Mr. Feinstein has said, your "commitment to the values of caring brotherhood and community service gives you the opportunity to make a profound difference in the future."

Our Community Service Project. Our pre-arranged community service project is scheduled for (add date). We will meet at (add location) at (add time) and work until about (add end time). This is a (add day of week), so make your plans now and clear the day. We will be working on the issue of (add issue) with the (add name of community organization) on the (name of activity) program. We would like the class to complete this activity together, therefore attendance is mandatory.

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CAMPUS INVOLVEMENT EXPERIENCE (20 Points Total)

Another important part of this course is that you become involved in the campus community in some way. This will be demonstrated by completing the following activities:

Join a group or organization (10 Points)

Joining a campus club or organization is a great way to meet other people on campus who share similar interests, strengthen your resume, keep your life in order (believe it or not, being busier helps you plan your day, your week, and your whole semester more efficiently!), all while learning and developing valuable skills. For this assignment, we¡¯d like you to join a campus group of interest to you. It may be a club within your major, a student leadership organization, a multicultural association, or a social/recreational club. You can find information about campus clubs and organizations at the URI homepage for students.

The objective of this assignment is to get you involved in the campus community early on in your college career and to increase your classmates¡¯ awareness of the types of activities available to them. For this reason, you are to prepare a two-page report of your experience and present it to the class on (add date that assignment is due). You should address the following when constructing your report:

• Name of the organization
• Meeting times/location
• Describe the organization (i.e. what¡¯s its purpose, who are its members, etc.).
• What are the rules for joining?
• What are attendance requirements?
• What are meetings like?
• How do you feel about this organization?
• Would you recommend that others join? Who? Why?
  
  Students are encouraged to attend the Involvement Fair on Wednesday, September 22nd, 10:00 a.m. ¨C 2:00 p.m. This event will be held in front of the Memorial Union, or in the Memorial Union Ballroom if it rains, and it will provide an opportunity for you to learn more about the various clubs and organizations on campus.

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AND, Interview a professor (10 Points)

Most instructors list their office locations and phone numbers and e-mail addresses on their syllabi. However, the best way to schedule an interview with a professor is to go up to them after class, explain your assignment, and ask if they would meet with you for the interview. Most instructors welcome the opportunity to get to know students outside of class. It is a good idea to select a faculty member in the department of your major, or if you¡¯re undecided, a major you might be interested in pursuing. This is a good way to learn more about the field. This assignment should be done in person. DO NOT e-mail questions and ask faculty to respond.

The questions that you ask are up to you, but you should prepare the questions ahead of time. See your instructor or mentor for a list of suggested questions or if you need help in thinking up other questions. You are to prepare a one-to-two page report of your experience due (add date that assignment is due). Consider the following questions when constructing your report:

• Describe the professor with whom you spoke (i.e. department, individual attributes, background).
• Did anything he/she said surprise you?
• How are college professors different from high school teachers?
• What did you learn from the interview?
• What did you wish you had asked during the interview and didn¡¯t?
• How did you find the experience?
• Was the interview different from what you expected? How?

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ONLINE ALCOHOL ACTIVITY (10 Points)

AlcoholEdu is an interactive on-line alcohol and drug education program that is in use in over 200 campuses nation-wide. IT TAKES APPROXIMATELY 2 HOURS TO COMPLETE AND CAN BE DONE IN STAGES, BUT YOU MUST COMPLETE THE INITIAL SURVEY DURING YOUR THIRD WEEK OF CLASSES. Begin by going to http://www.uri.edu/substance_abuse and following instructions. If you have any difficulty getting started, contact Dan Reilly dreilly@uri.edu immediately. The completion of this on-line course is part of your grade. Instructors will be notified of your progress.

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JOURNALS AND OTHER ASSIGNMENTS (15 Points)

Journal entries and other assignments, such as online exercises, will be required throughout the course. Journal entries are to be at least one page in length, and must be typed.

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ON LINE ASSESSMENTS (10 Points)

All brief surveys are to be completed as assigned

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Detail Course & Assignment Schedule (tenatative)

Notes

Any student with a documented disability is welcome to contact
the Disability Services for Students office at 330 Memorial Union
(874-2098) as early in the semester as possible to arrange reasonable
accommodations. This info is now available on the new DSS website.

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Related Links:

• Instructor's Handbook

• Using the Internet inK-12 Instruction

• University of Pennsylvania's AmeriCorps Program to Bridge the Digital Divide

• Digital Divide Project: High School Curriculum

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