UPDATE to Blog Post 5 and the Final Project!

The class has agreed to change up (and hopefully make easier) the rest of the semester.

First, instead of your Blog Post 5 (Deviance Debate) we will be having an in-class debate on April 24th. Blog Post 5 is worth 20 points. Those points will now be earned in the following way:

• 5 points: Submit a potential debate topic, on Angel (see the "Deviance Debate" folder under the Lessons tab). Nominate a topic--one of the suggestions, or one of your own making--and briefly explain what you feel are the two "sides" of the debate we should take on. This is due Wednesday, April 11th by midnight and is available now.
  
• 5 points: After I get all of the submissions, I will choose the top 5, and put them in the same folder on Angel, as a survey. You will need to vote for your top choice, out of those five.
• 10 points: On the day of the Deviance Debate (April 24th) you will bring your arguments, ready to debate, to class. I will give you a handout in advance. You should have two solid arguments for each side, so four arguments total. If you are uncomfortable speaking in front of class, do not worry--your "side" will nominate spokespeople to represent that side of the argument.

As you can see, the total will be 20 points, so our grading scale will stay exactly the same. Still, this is a slight change to the syllabus. One that probably works to your advantage, in most cases. If you are uncomfortable with this in any way, please let me know as soon as possible.

Second, the Final Project will now be due April 29th. This gives you one more week. Remember that for the Final Project you are expected to expand upon your favorite blog post or posts, making them into a substantially different project than you originally had. You can expand one blog post, or combine two or three--you just need to make sure you are doing more than copying or pasting, as this is considered plagiarism (yes, you can plagiarize yourself).

Final Projects can be in the format of a Blog Post, or a traditional paper. If you go one of these routes, your final product must be between 2000 and 3000 words.

You also have a creative option, INSTEAD of writing a paper or Blog Post. You may make a video, a podcast, or a presentation--I am also open to other options. Please let me know by next Thursday (4/19) so I can make the schedule for April 26th. These should be 5 to 8 minutes long (or the equivalent, based on the format you choose). Talk to me if you have any questions.