Ethics Assignment List
Rules for Grading Schemes
All of these are required formal elements, but you can adjust the percentage weights a bit. See descriptions below.
Required:
- Preparation, 20%
- Short Answer Exercise, 15-20%
- Critical Analysis Paper and Peer Review, 25%
- Final Exam min. 25-45%
You may choose additional formal or informal assignments from the list below. Informal work cannot exceed 30% of your grade weight.
Required Elements
Preparation (formal, required, 20%)
Your preparation for class will be assessed by short electronic quizzes given at the start of most classes.
Short Answer Exercise (formal, required, 15-20%)
Periodically, you will be invited to write a short answer, in class, to a study question from the previous few classes. Sometimes you may be asked to peer review others' answers as well.
Critical Analysis Paper (formal, required, 10-25%)
This is a standard philosophy paper in which you take on a topic relevant to class that can be discussed critically in 4-6 pages. We will use the Peerceptive peer review website for this assignment.
Final Exam (formal, required, 25-45%)
An exam in which you write two short essays. Open book and open note.
Optional Elements
Class Presentation - Short (informal, optional, 10-15%)
A brief (10-15 minute) class presentation of a topic of your choice (in consultation with your professor).
Journal (informal, optional, 5-10%, 3-6 entries)
Journal entries of 2-3 pages (1-2 screens of email text) each reflecting on course content or topics related to the course. Entries should be submitted by email one at a time for interactive response. Journals must be completed by April 15.
Mid-term Exam (formal, optional, 0-25%)
In class open book essay exam. 2 essays.
Movie Reflection Paper (informal, optional, 10%)
Write a 3-4 page analysis of the representation of an ethical issue or problem in a popular film. Must be completed by April 15th.
Short research paper (formal, optional, 10-15%)
This short research assignment allows you to look into a course question or topic of interest to you. ©2015 by Mark Alfino, Department of Philosophy, Gonzaga University.
