Course Requirements (Spring 2023)

Summary of Requirements:

Late Paper Policy: Deadlines are strict. Barring personal crisis, family emergency, or illness, all late papers will be subject to one half grade point off (out of 10) per day late. I do not give paper extensions for time management issues. I also cannot guarantee detailed comments for late assignments. If you are struggling, please reach out and talk to me! We can come up with an alternative plan together.

  • Discussion leadership and avid participation (30%)
    • Participation includes: Regular and prompt attendance, active discussion leadership for your assigned week (sign up first week); engaged discussion and Moodle forum contribution, responsible and responsive blog peer review partnering and blog commentary online and in class, engaged and well-prepped discussion, assignments in on time.
    • -Attendance policy: Since the course focuses on collaborative engagement, I expect you to attend class in person as much as possible. I do take attendance. In addition to missing class for accommodations, illness or emergencies, all students have one break day they can take without penalty. Please let me know if you won't be able to make class! Consider coming to office hours (in person or via Zoom) that week to get caught up.
  • Three informal film commentaries (350-400 words) on films with reference to readings (sign up week 1) (15%) Do more for extra credit!
    • Film commentaries due Fridays after film is screened, 8 pm, posted to your personal Moodle blog forum.
    • Comments on your blog partner's Moodle forum due the following Sunday, 8 pm.
    • NOTE: at least 1 posted by spring break
  • Take-home midterm exam, due Monday, Mar 27, 8 pm, Moodle upload. (25%)
  • 10-12 page final paper (30%)
    • 1-2 page final project proposal and annotated bibliography due Sunday, Apr 23, 8 pm, upload to Personal Moodle Forum (5%)
    •  Commentary partners' comments posted by Monday, Apr 24, 8 pm
    •  10-12 page final paper due Friday, May 6, 5 pm, Moodle upload. (25%)
  • Extra Credit!! Attend an online or in-person Tibet, China or Inner Asia lecture or event at Reed or elsewhere and share with the class by uploading to our Moodle Course-Related Announcements, News and Events forum an informal commentary (250 words) relating the event to issues raised in course readings/films.

Avoid Plagiarism! Plagiarism is the failure to acknowledge one's use of another's work. Many people mistakenly believe that plagiarism can occur only if the writer willfully appropriates someone else's words or ideas in a paper. This is not the case. Whether by intent or by omission, plagiarism occurs whenever one utilizes another's language, concepts, or creative work in any medium and fails to accurately cite the author or source. The Reed Honor Principle, which you have agreed to uphold as a student at Reed College, prohibits such acts of academic dishonesty. To avoid plagiarism, take comprehensive, accurate notes and consult a writers' manual for the proper form with which to cite your sources. More questions? See the Doyle Writing Center's Guidelines on Plagiarism and Citation.

Course Organization:

Classes will revolve around student-led discussions, presentations, and film viewings.  There will be a take-home midterm exam, a course blog in which you will do learning goals reflections at the beginning and end of the course, and post at least 5 film commentaries (1 of which must be posted by spring break), a final paper proposal and annotated bibliography, and a final 10-12 pg. paper. I will expect your avid participation—including regular attendance, prompt completion of assignments, engaged and responsible partner commenting, and active involvement in discussions whenever possible. In fact, class participation and attendance will comprise a significant portion of your grade. Beginning week 2 class members will take turns posting discussion questions on the class moodle forum. For the week in which you are posting questions, you will also be responsible for helping to lead discussions both days. Our moodle site can be found at: https://moodle.reed.edu/course/view.php?id=776. It serves only as our class discussion forum and the place to find ereserves and stream films. All information on the course schedule etc. is available on the separate course website.

Reading and writing assignments are meant to encourage close, critical engagement with the history and cultural politics of Tibet in a globalizing world, as well as your thoughtful reflection on the issues they raise in the light of the anthropological perspective on nationalism, states, space, and ethnicity presented in class. The reading load is moderate to heavy and it is assigned per week.  On average, you should expect to put in two to three hours of work outside of class for every hour of in-class time.

Weekly supplemental readings, films and links are provided on the web syllabus for your use.  Supplemental readings are ones that are especially relevant or provide differing viewpoints; they offer points of departure for deepening your understanding of particular issues. 

Required readings are marked on the syllabus for where they can be found. I tried to provide multiple places for most readings. Multiple copies of all texts are available on reserve in the library, and many books are available in the bookstore. Most of the readings that are excerpts from books are available via ereserve. To facilitate discussion, you should have all the readings for the day and your notes ready to consult during class. Smartphones are not permitted in class; laptops will be allowed in class within limits. Please let me know if you have any trouble obtaining the readings.

Sensitive Topics and Ethical Use of Images

Anthropology courses address some of the most sensitive issues humans face (kinship, race, gender, sexuality, class inequality, violence, state politics, etc.). At the same time, class discussion is the central activity of this course and students are required to be proactive in their preparation for it. I define active participation in class as promoting a positive learning environment through respectful discourse with students and me about the topics at hand. While most of our readings, films and assignments will not directly portray graphic or violent material, I will use "Content Notes" to alert class members to any such content ahead of time. I prefer that term (vs. "Trigger warnings") because it avoids psychologizing us and does not assume what our responses to material will be. I also prefer the more neutral-sounding "Content Notes" because it encourages us not to prematurely foreclose our engagements with difficult material, but just to be aware of our own needs and to provide extra care for ourselves if necessary.

Similarly, please be thoughtful and respectful in your image-sharing practices (in your blogs, papers and Moodle posts). All images or videos shared with class members or me should be framed or contextualized with some information about their sources, why they are relevant to the discussion and any Content Notes you feel are needed.

For further information on the ethical use of images in anthropology courses, see the library guide "Ethical Use of Images".

Disability and Accessibility Resources and this course

If you have a disability that may impact your work in this class and you have received an accommodations letter from Disability and Accessibility Resources, I encourage you to meet with me early in the semester or as soon as possible after receiving your letter. Discussing your accommodation needs early on can help clarify expectations and allow time to implement accommodations that require some coordination. If you have not yet requested accommodations through Disability and Accessibility Resources for this semester, or you are interested in learning about disability resources at Reed, I encourage you to contact DAR at dar@reed.edu to request an appointment.

Ilness-related Absences

When your health allows, you are expected to be present and engaged in class. At the same time, each community member has an individual responsibility to help prevent the spread of the coronavirus and other infectious diseases. Following public health guidance is part of living in an honorable community. 

The following recommendations should guide your decision about coming to class:

  • Self-isolation is the recommended course of action for anyone experiencing flu-like symptoms, whether due to possible coronavirus or to other illnesses.  Please stay at home if you feel sick, and contact the Health and Counseling Center (HCC) or your healthcare provider to discuss. 
  • If you test positive for COVID-19, you should not attend class for five days.  Please contact the HCC and continue to isolate until you receive a negative antigen test, or until 10 days have passed since your positive test.  You can find more information on Reed’s COVID policies here.
  • The CDC suggests that people with the following symptoms may have COVID: fever or chills, cough, shortness of breath or difficulty breathing, fatigue, muscle or body aches, headache, new loss of taste or smell, sore throat, congestion or runny nose, nausea or vomiting, diarrhea.  As always, please consult a medical professional (members of the HCC or otherwise) if you have any questions about your health or health safety. 
  • If you need to miss a class, or series of classes, due to illness, self-isolation, and/or quarantine, you are responsible for emailing me to let me know as soon as possible. You are also responsible for coordinating with me to complete work that you might miss due to absences. I will always provide makeup options in cases of excused absence; this might include a written response, a Moodle post, or other check-in assignments. 

Covid Protocol for Our Class

As a community of learners, we have obligations to protect one another’s health. Please wear your masks at all times in class (I will have some available if you forget!). If you have a medical issue that will make this challenging for you, please see me and/or Disability and Accessibility Resources to discuss accommodations.  It is also possible that we may have bigger disruptions due to COVID. We will navigate the situation together, and I will try to maintain open communication so that we all know what is going on.