Music 2116 Rules

MUSIC 2116: SURVEY OF MUSIC FROM c. 1750 TO c. 2010
Index #15012--Spring Semester 2012--Prof. John R. Howell

2116 Home - Instructor - Calendar - Syllbaus - Concert Schedule - Recording Index - Writing

These are the laws of the Music 2116 Universe!

This page has been updated for Spring, 2012.

Your name Your E-mail Personal Emergencies

Your student number Your Instructor Honor Code

Other

Your name:

Please use one form of your name consistently for all work handed in and all e-mail messages (not "Arthur Paul Snodgrass III" one time and "Boomer" the next). I prefer first name first unless a specific form (like an opscan form) asks for last name first. And it's really helpful if you use the name that the Registrar uses, although I want to know how you really prefer to be addressed.
Sign your email messages with your full name and email address; in fact it's a good idea to go ahead and set up an automatic signature that will appear on all your emails. And if you send a message from someone else's computer, identify yourself clearly. I can not identify people by first name or cutesy email address.
Asian students, you may use either the Asian form <familyname givenname> or the American form <givenname familyname>, but please use the same form all the time. It is always best to use the form that the Registrar uses for your student records, so I can find your name alphabetically.
Please print your name clearly on all work turned in, do not sign in an illegible scribble.

Your student number:

Please give me your full student number on the Student Information Form so I can check it against my class roll. If you get a new student number, that takes effect immediately. Memorize it, because you'll need it for every class. There may be changes in the rules for using student numbers during the semester.
Please use your full student number on all Opscan forms used for Quizzes, and double check that it is bubbled accurately because if it isn't, the computer won't recognize you. This has been a special problem with the new assigned numbers, because if you mess up just one number the computer will probably identify you as someone else. (Social security numbers are fairly randomized, but the 905... student numbers are assigned consecutively.)
Please use only the last 4 digits of your student number (along with your printed name) on all other work that is turned in.
When I e-mail the scores of Quizzes to the class, they will be identified by the last 4 digits of your student number, but they will be listed in alphabetical order. It should not take long to figure out how many screens down you need to go to find your scores. On rare occasions two students will have the same last 4; it happened last year. Contact me to make sure you are checking the right entry. The Registrar does not want us to use any part of your student number, but has not yet provided an equally good and practical way to identify students uniquely. I will attempt to post your scores on Scholar, so you can access them easily, but I can't guarantee that it will always work.

Your e-mail:

Activate your e-mail account immediately if it is not already active, and give me your e-mail address on the Student Information Form. If you can't do that, e-mail me at John.Howell@vt.edu and give me your e-mail address no later than the 2nd Wednesday of the semester. Give me the address you actually check every day, because otherwise I'll be sending messages to the address Tech has assigned to you.
Always put " 2116 " (without the quotes) and nothing else on the "Subject" line so I can find class messages and answer them as quickly as possible. I will put 2116 and a short description on messages I send to the class, to help you sort them out. Most days I get well over 100 emails. I will answer as quickly as possible, but may not get to your message before a class you are asking about.
Always include your full name either as part of your e-mail address or as a signature. In fact, it would be smart to set up an alias that includes your full name in your email address itself. If you don't have a signature block set up for your email, do it now. Emails with no identification but a cutesy or obscure email address are no better than anonymous messages and will necessarily be ignored.

Your instructor:

I prefer to be called "John" if you can manage it. "Mr. Howell" was my father, and "Dr. Howell is inaccurate because while I finished the Ph.D. courses I did not finish the degree. Besides, my two M.D. daughters-in-law are the REAL Dr. Howells in the family! I also directed shows for Disney for two seasons, and really liked the first-name basis that Walt insisted on.
You can e-mail questions or problems to me 24 hours a day, but be aware that I may not be able to read late night or last-minute posts until after the class you're asking about.
I do not have posted office hours, but will arrange to meet with anyone who needs to see me in person at a mutually agreeable time. E-mail me and we'll work it out, but most questions can be answered and most problems soved using email.
It is always my intention to start class on time and end it on time. I don't want to waste your time and I don't want to waste my own.

Personal emergencies:

If you have a personal or family emergency and need to go home, go! You're excused. (A note from a doctor, minister, or other official-type person when you come back would be nice, not just for me but for all your instructors.) Try to let me know what's happening by e-mail or voicemail as soon as you can, but don't worry about it until you can. We'll figure out making up missed work later. The Dean of Students Office can send warnings about emergencies to all your instructors.
If you have to take someone else from the class along for physical or emotional support, do it! They're excused too.

Honor Code:

This class is taught under the provisions of the University Honor Code and Honor System.
Cheating, plagiarism, or any other violation of the Honor Code is unacceptable. That includes the use of cellphones during quizzes or exams.
Violations of the Honor Code will be reported through the Honor Court System.
If you are not familiar with the Honor Code, you can find it online at <http://www.honorsystem.vt.edu/constitution.html>. Read it!
Students observing cheating or other Honor Code violiations are responsible under the Honor Code for reporting those violations. However, first please speak with the student or students involved and tell them what you have observed. If you observe a repeat of the violation you should e-mail me privately. You do not need to identify yourself if you do not wish to, but should identify the individuals cheating. You may also report violations directly to the Honor Code office on the 3rd floor of Squires, without informing me.

For all students, but especially for students who grew up in other cultures, there is a link on the 2116 Homepage to a site that explains what is considered plagiarism and cheating in written work in North American universities. Read it! Ignorance of these definitions of plagiarism will not be accepted as an excuse for anyone.

Other:

Excused absenses (which allow you to make up work missed):
- Personal or family emergencies (supported by a note or other document)
- Official trips by Music Department ensemble (if I am informed in advance)
- Trips for official University business (if I am informed in advance)
- Job interviews or other professional activities (if I am informed in advance)
- Official trips by University varsity or club sports teams (if I am informed in advance and receive a memo from your coach)
- Specific religious holidays (if I am informed in advance)
Unexcused absenses (don't even ask!):
- My ride is leaving early
- I overslept
- I had to study for another class
- I had to make up a test in another class
- I had to go to a review session for another class
- My plane to Cancun is leaving early
- I didn't know we had a Quiz today
- My cat ate my CDs
- My CDs are on the plane to Cancun with my cat
Students with disabilities should speak with me about any special accomodations that might be needed. I will do everything I can to make this class user-friendly for you. Be sure to contact the Dean of Students' Office for official recognition of disabilities and special support programs.
Scores and grades, especially Scholar scores, will sometimes be e-mailed to the class in this form (subject to announced changes):
- Column 1: Student numbers (last 4 digits, but in alphabetical order)
- Column 2: Your Estimated Running Grade as of that moment in time, as a grade percentage (scale of 0-100%)
- Columns 3 ... n: Your score, in points or as a grade percentage, for the Quiz or assignment being reported on
- This may change from time to time during the semester. You will be informed.
- I have previously used a Mail-Merge system that allowed me to report individual grades to individual students rather than to the entire class. It worked very well, I can no longer do that because Tech has instituted a limit on the number of emails that can be sent at one time that is smaller than the size of classes we actually teach! You will usually know what your "Estimated Running Grade" in the class is, but remember that it is just an estimate.
Grading Options
- Find the list of 3 Options under Evaluation and Grading on the Syllabus page
- Choose the Option that best fits your study strengths and schedule
- Email your choice to me by the second Wednesday of the semester, 11:59:59 pm
- All students who fail to notify me will automatically be placed on Option 1
- You will have one opportunity to change your Option, within one week after Unit Quiz 1 is taken. Email me during that time period only, if you want to make a change. No changes permitted after that
- Please be aware that your estimated running grade is only an estimate. In order to make that running grade at least somewhat accurate, I have filled in 70% placeholders for everyone's Unit Quiz, Scholar Quizzes, and Concert Review scores, and your Final Exam score is automatically the same as your Unit Quiz average. Those placeholders will be replaced by your real scores as they are entered, and as soon as you have your first Unit Quiz score, your Unit Quiz average will become your estimated Final Exam score. Everyone starts the semester with a 70% estimated grade, which will go up or down depending on your real scores. Any quiz or assignment that is not taken or not turned in will be scored zero, and zeros do nasty things to averages!

2116 Home - Instructor - Calendar - Syllbaus - Concert Schedule - Recording Index - Writing

Your name	Your E-mail	Personal Emergencies
Your student number	Your Instructor	Honor Code
	Other