ARTH 210. Women Artists in Europe and Asia, 1300–1750. Spring 2022.
Professor Lara Blanchard
tel: x3893
Art & Architecture Department, 208 Houghton House

Class meetings: MWF 12:10–1:10pm, , in person (212 Houghton House) and occasionally via Zoom (see Canvas for link)

Office hours: Mondays 10:30am–12:00 noon, Tuesdays 1:30–3:00pm, or by appointment, in person (208 Houghton House) or via Zoom (see Canvas for link)

 

Course description:
Written histories of art before the modern era have too often overlooked or marginalized women artists, even though they worked in the same media as men (painting, printmaking, illustration, calligraphy) and depicted similar subjects (portraits, religious themes, still lifes, and nature). This course examines European and Asian women artists between 1300 and 1750, with particular attention to the cultures of Italy and China after 1500. Topics will include the reasons for women’s omission from the canon of art history; women’s status as amateur or professional artists; and their identities as court artists, members of artistic families, courtesans, or nuns. The course is cross-listed with Media & Society, European Studies, Asian Studies, and Women’s Studies. It addresses two of the aspirational goals of the curriculum: a critical understanding of social inequalities (substantially), and a critical understanding of cultural difference (substantially).

 

Learning objectives:
One objective is for students to gain practical skills useful in any study of art history, including an understanding of how meaning can be encoded in visual media and improved proficiency in writing and research. More conceptual learning objectives include understanding how works of art operate as historical artifacts that reveal current ideas on politics, religion, and society; as well as broader knowledge of women’s roles in early modern Europe and Asia.

 

Books (available in the Library):

Bal, Mieke, ed. The Artemisia Files: Artemisia Gentileschi for Feminists and Other Thinking People. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2005. ISBN-13: 9780226035826 (REQUIRED).

Barnet, Sylvan, ed. A Short Guide to Writing about Art. 11th ed. Upper Saddle River, N.J.: Pearson, 2015. ISBN-13: 9780205886999 (RECOMMENDED for students new to art history).

 

Certain supplementary materials will be available via Canvas:

  • Supplementary readings will be posted in the folder Files | Readings.
  • Image sheets and other daily handouts will be posted in the folders Files | Handouts (parts 1 and 2).
  • PowerPoint files will be posted in the folders Files | Image presentations (parts 1 and 2).
  • Assignments will be posted in the folder Files | Assignments.
  • Discussion questions that count toward participation will be posted on the Discussion Board.

 

Supplementary readings (available in the Library):

Addiss, Stephen. “The Three Women of Gion.” In Flowering in the Shadows: Women in the History of Chinese and Japanese Painting, edited by Marsha Weidner, 241–63. Honolulu: University of Hawai‘i Press, 1990.

Akiyama Terukazu. “Woman Painters at the Heian Court.” Translated by Maribeth Graybill. In Flowering in the Shadows: Women in the History of Chinese and Japanese Painting, edited by Marsha Weidner, 159–84. Honolulu: University of Hawai‘i Press, 1990.

Alpers, Svetlana. “Art History and Its Exclusions: The Example of Dutch Art.” In Feminism and Art History: Questioning the Litany, edited by Norma Broude and Mary D. Garrard, 183–99. New York: Harper & Row, 1982.

Brusati, Celeste. “Stilled Lives: Self-Portraiture and Self-Reflection in Seventeenth-Century Netherlandish Still-Life Painting.” Simiolus: Netherlands Quarterly for the History of Art 20, no. 2/3 (1990–91): 168–82.

Eck, Xander van. Review of Judith Leyster: A Dutch Master and Her World, by James A. Welu. Simiolus: Netherlands Quarterly for the History of Art 22, no. 1/2 (1993–94): 105–9.

Even, Yael. “Judith Leyster: An Unsuitable Place for a Woman.” Konsthistorisk Tidskrift 71, no. 3 (2002): 115–24.

Fister, Patricia. Japanese Women Artists, 1600–1900. Lawrence, Kans.: Spencer Museum of Art, 1988.

Gellman, Lola B. Review of Judith Leyster: A Woman Painter in Holland’s Golden Age, by Frima Fox Hofrichter. Woman’s Art Journal 13, no. 1 (Spring–Summer 1992): 34–36.

Honig, Elizabeth Alice. “The Art of Being ‘Artistic’: Dutch Women’s Creative Practices in the 17th Century.” Woman’s Art Journal 22, no. 2 (Autumn 2001–Winter 2002): 31–39.

National Museum of Women in the Arts. Italian Women Artists from Renaissance to Baroque. Milan: Skira, 2007.

Neri, Janice. “Stitches, Specimens, and Pictures: Maria Sibylla Merian and the Processing of the Natural World.” Chapter 5 of The Insect and the Image: Visualizing Nature in Early Modern Europe, 1500–1700, 139–80. University of Minnesota Press, 2011.

Oberer, Angela. “Rosalba Carriera—An Independent Single Artist in Eighteenth-Century Venice.” In The Life and Work of Rosalba Carriera (1673–1757): The Queen of Pastel, 27–95. Amsterdam: Amsterdam University Press, 2020.

Russell, Margarita. “The Women Painters in Houbraken’s Groote Schouburgh.” Woman’s Art Journal 2, no. 1 (Spring–Summer 1981): 7–11.

Takeuchi, Melinda. “Ike Taiga: A Biographical Study.” Harvard Journal of Asiatic Studies 43, no. 1 (June 1983): 141–86.

Weidner, Marsha. “The Conventional Success of Ch’en Shu.” In Flowering in the Shadows: Women in the History of Chinese and Japanese Painting, edited by Marsha Weidner, 123–56. Honolulu: University of Hawai‘i Press, 1990.

Weidner, Marsha, Ellen Johnston Laing, Irving Yucheng Lo, Christina Chu, and James Robinson. Views from Jade Terrace: Chinese Women Artists 1300–1912. Indianapolis: Indianapolis Museum of Art, 1988.

Wetzel, Jean. “Hidden Connections: Courtesans in the Art World of the Ming Dynasty.” Women’s Studies 31, no. 5 (September/October 2002): 645–69.

Winston-Allen, Anne. “Observant Sisters.” Frieze, Sept. 8, 2016, https://frieze.com/article/observant-sisters.

 

Weekly schedule (please note: schedule may be subject to minor changes):

INTRODUCTION.

Jan. 24 (M).  Overview of the course.

Jan. 26 (W).  Women in art histories: Italy.

  • Jordana Pomeroy, “Italian Women Artists from Renaissance to Baroque,” in National Museum of Women in the Arts, Italian Women Artists from Renaissance to Baroque (Milan: Skira, 2007), 19–22.

Jan. 28 (F).  Women in art histories: the Netherlands.

  • Svetlana Alpers, “Art History and Its Exclusions: The Example of Dutch Art,” in Feminism and Art History: Questioning the Litany, ed. Norma Broude and Mary D. Garrard (New York: Harper & Row, 1982), 183–99.

Jan. 31 (M).  Women in art histories: China.

  • Marsha Weidner, “Women in the History of Chinese Painting,” in Marsha Weidner et al., Views from Jade Terrace: Chinese Women Artists 1300–1912 (Indianapolis: Indianapolis Museum of Art, 1988), 12–29.

Feb. 2 (W).  Women in art histories: Japan.

  • Patricia Fister, “Introduction: The World of Women in Japan, 1600–1900,” in Japanese Women Artists, 1600–1900 (Lawrence, Kans.: Spencer Museum of Art, 1988), 9–16.
  • Akiyama Terukazu, “Woman Painters at the Heian Court,” trans. Maribeth Graybill, in Flowering in the Shadows: Women in the History of Chinese and Japanese Painting, ed. Marsha Weidner (Honolulu: University of Hawai‘i Press, 1990), 159–84.

Feb. 4 (F).  Research in art history.

Feb. 7 (M).  Guan Daosheng, amateur painter.

  • James Robinson, “Attributed to Guan Daosheng,” in Weidner et al., Views from Jade Terrace, 66–70.

Feb. 9 (W).  Caterina Vigri and Sibylla von Bondorf, medieval European nuns.

  • Irene Graziani, “Caterina Vigri,” in National Museum of Women in the Arts, Italian Women Artists, 84–89.
  • Anne Winston-Allen, “Observant Sisters,” Frieze, Sept. 8, 2016, https://frieze.com/article/observant-sisters.

RENAISSANCE ITALY.

Feb. 11 (F).  Plautilla Nelli, nun.

  • National Museum of Women in the Arts, Italian Women Artists, 102–5.

Feb. 14 (M).  Sofonisba Anguissola (1532–1635), portrait painter.

  • Stefania Biancani and Ann Sutherland Harris, “Sofonisba Anguissola,” in National Museum of Women in the Arts, Italian Women Artists, 106–21.

Feb. 16 (W).  Diana Mantuana (ca. 1547–1612), engraver.

  • Silvia Urbini and Jordana Pomeroy, “Diana Scultori (aka Ghisi),” in National Museum of Women in the Arts, Italian Women Artists, 126–33.

Feb. 18 (F).  Lavinia Fontana (1552–1614): early works.

  • Caroline P. Murphy et al., “Lavinia Fontana,” in National Museum of Women in the Arts, Italian Women Artists, 134–47.
  • RESEARCH PAPER PROPOSAL due.

Feb. 21 (M).  Lavinia Fontana: late works.

  • Caroline P. Murphy et al., “Lavinia Fontana,” in National Museum of Women in the Arts, Italian Women Artists, 148–65.

MING CHINA.

Feb. 23 (W).  Miss Qiu (fl. ca. 1576), professional painter.

  • Ellen Johnston Laing, “Miss Qiu,” in Weidner et al., Views from Jade Terrace, 70–72.

Feb. 25 (F).  Ming dynasty courtesans.

  • Jean Wetzel, “Hidden Connections: Courtesans in the Art World of the Ming Dynasty,” Women’s Studies 31, no. 5 (September/October 2002): 645–69.

Feb. 28 (M).  Ma Shouzhen (1548–1604), courtesan painter.

  • James Robinson, “Ma Shouzhen,” in Weidner et al., Views from Jade Terrace, 72–81.

Mar. 2 (W).  Xue Susu (fl. 1601–33), courtesan painter.

  • James Robinson, “Xue Susu (Wu),” in Weidner et al., Views from Jade Terrace, 82–88.

Mar. 4 (F).  Lin Xue (fl. ca. 1600–50), courtesan painter.

  • Marsha Weidner, “Lin Xue,” in Weidner et al., Views from Jade Terrace, 94–96.

Mar. 7 (M).  Wen Shu (1595–1634), professional literati painter.

  • Ellen Johnston Laing, “Wen Shu,” in Weidner et al., Views from Jade Terrace, 88–91.
  • RESEARCH WORKSHEETS due.

Mar. 9 (W).  Liu Yin, aka Liu Rushi (1618–64), amateur painter.

  • Marsha Weidner, “Liu Shi (Yin),” in Weidner et al., Views from Jade Terrace, 99–102.

BAROQUE ITALY.

Mar. 11 (F).  Female subjects in Artemisia Gentileschi’s paintings (1593–1656).

  • Mary D. Garrard, “Artemisia’s Hand,” in The Artemisia Files: Artemisia Gentileschi for Feminists and Other Thinking People, ed. Mieke Bal (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2005), 1–32.

Mar. 14 (M).  Artemisia Gentileschi’s Judith paintings (1593–1656).

  • Elena Ciletti, “‘Gran Macchina è Bellezza’: Looking at the Gentileschi Judiths,” in Bal, The Artemisia Files, 63–106.
  • FIRST TEST due.

Mar. 16 (W).  Artemisia Gentileschi (1593–1656) in art history.

  • Mieke Bal, “Introduction,” in The Artemisia Files, ix–xxv.
  • Nanette Solomon, “Judging Artemisia: A Baroque Woman in Modern Art History,” in Bal, The Artemisia Files, 33–62.

Mar. 18 (F).  Giovanna Garzoni (1600–70), professional portrait and still life painter.

  • Stefania Biancani, Ilaria Rossi, and Jordana Pomeroy, “Giovanna Garzoni,” in National Museum of Women in the Arts, Italian Women Artists, 220–39.

(Mar. 19–27, Spring Break)

Mar. 28 (M).  Elisabetta Sirani (1638–65), professional painter.

  • Fiorella Frisoni, Nathalie Strasser, and Jordana Pomeroy, “Elisabetta Sirani,” in National Museum of Women in the Arts, Italian Women Artists, 241–55.

Mar. 30 (W).  Rosalba Carriera (1673–1757), professional miniature painter.

  • Angela Oberer, “Rosalba Carriera—An Independent Single Artist in Eighteenth-Century Venice,” in The Life and Work of Rosalba Carriera (1673–1757): The Queen of Pastel (Amsterdam: Amsterdam University Press, 2020), 27–77, 86–95.

THE NETHERLANDS AND GERMANY.

Apr. 1 (F).  17th- and 18th-century Dutch amateur artists.

  • Elizabeth Alice Honig, “The Art of Being ‘Artistic’: Dutch Women’s Creative Practices in the 17th Century,” Woman’s Art Journal 22, no. 2 (Autumn 2001–Winter 2002): 31–39.

Apr. 4 (M).  17th-century Dutch professional artists.

  • Honig, “The Art of Being ‘Artistic,’” 31–39.

Apr. 6 (W).  Writing workshop.

Apr. 8 (F).  Dutch artists in an 18th-century art historical text.

  • Margarita Russell, “The Women Painters in Houbraken’s Groote Schouburgh,” Woman’s Art Journal 2, no. 1 (Spring–Summer 1981): 7–11.

Apr. 11 (M).  Clara Peeters (1594–after 1657), still-life painter.

  • Celeste Brusati, “Stilled Lives: Self-Portraiture and Self-Reflection in Seventeenth-Century Netherlandish Still-Life Painting,” Simiolus: Netherlands Quarterly for the History of Art 20, no. 2/3 (1990–91): 168–82.

Apr. 13 (W).  Judith Leyster (1609–60), professional artist.

  • Yael Even, “Judith Leyster: An Unsuitable Place for a Woman,” Konsthistorisk Tidskrift 71, no. 3 (2002): 115–24.
  • Xander van Eck, Review of Judith Leyster: A Dutch Master and Her World, by James A. Welu, Simiolus: Netherlands Quarterly for the History of Art 22, no. 1/2 (1993–94): 105–9.
  • Lola B. Gellman, Review of Judith Leyster: A Woman Painter in Holland’s Golden Age, by Frima Fox Hofrichter, Woman’s Art Journal 13, no. 1 (Spring–Summer 1992): 34–36.
  • RESEARCH PAPER DRAFT due.

Apr. 15 (F).  Maria Sibylla Merian (1647–1717), naturalist and illustrator.

  • Janice Neri, “Stitches, Specimens, and Pictures: Maria Sibylla Merian and the Processing of the Natural World,” Chapter 5 of The Insect and the Image: Visualizing Nature in Early Modern Europe, 1500–1700 (Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press, 2011), 139–80.

QING CHINA AND EDO JAPAN.

Apr. 18 (M).  Chen Shu (1660–1736), professional literati painter.

  • Marsha Weidner, “Chen Shu,” in Weidner et al., Views from Jade Terrace, 117–20.
  • Marsha Weidner, “The Conventional Success of Ch’en Shu,” in Flowering in the Shadows, 123–56.

Apr. 20 (W).  Yun Bing (fl. ca. 1747), professional literati painter.

  • Marsha Weidner, “Yun Bing,” in Weidner et al., Views from Jade Terrace, 122–29.

Apr. 22 (F).  Ma Quan (fl. ca. 1723–46), flower-and-bird painter.

  • Marsha Weidner, “Ma Quan,” in Weidner et al., Views from Jade Terrace, 130–36.

Apr. 25 (M).  Ono no Ozu and Ryonen Genso: calligraphers.

  • Fister, Japanese Women Artists, 25–32.

Apr. 27 (W).  Kiyohara Yukinobu (1643–82) and Sasaki Shogen: atelier professionals.

Apr. 29 (F).  A painter of courtesans and a courtesan artist: Yamazaki Ryujo and Ohashi.

  • Fister, Japanese Women Artists, 47–52, 69–71, 76–77.

May 2 (M).  Kaji, Yuri (1694–1764), and Tokuyama Gyokuran (1727/28–1784): a female lineage.

  • Stephen Addiss, “The Three Women of Gion,” in Weidner, Flowering in the Shadows, 241–63.
  • Fister, Japanese Women Artists, 69–90.

May 4 (W).  Tokuyama Gyokuran and Ike no Taiga: a marriage.

  • Melinda Takeuchi, “Ike Taiga: A Biographical Study,” Harvard Journal of Asiatic Studies 43, no. 1 (June 1983): 141–86.

May 6 (F).  Conclusions.

(May 7–9, Reading Days)

May 13 (F).  SECOND TEST due, 4:30pm.

 

Communications:
I am happy to meet with you outside of class at a mutually convenient time, in person or via Zoom (see Office hours above). The best way to reach me to set up an appointment is by e-mail, but please note that I regularly read e-mail only between 9:00am and 4:30pm. If I need to contact students, I generally will do so via HWS e-mail and through Announcements on Canvas (see Websites below). You should develop the habit of checking both on a regular basis (I recommend doing so daily).

 

Attendance policy:
I expect you to attend class regularly; attending and engaging in class time with me and your peers is important for your learning. If, however, you need to miss a class (for reasons including celebration of your religion, athletic participation, field trips for a different class, or illness), I expect you to notify me as soon as possible. I expect you to notify me as soon as possible. I am willing to offer class via Zoom for students unable to attend in person, but I need advance notice in order to do that (see Canvas for link).

In the event that you find yourself experiencing symptoms of illness, I request that you do the following:

  • Stay home! This is best way to prevent spreading COVID-19 as supported by scientific evidence.
  • Follow any guidance you may receive from the COVID-19 Daily Symptom Tracker.
  • It is my expectation that you will follow the syllabus guidelines and/or contact me to discuss missed coursework. In the case that you are not able to make up missed coursework by the end of the semester, we will need to consider options that may include a medical withdrawal or incomplete for the semester, which will be done in consultation with your class Dean.

In addition, those of us meeting in person all share responsibility for the health and safety of all in the classroom environment. Until further notice, all students, visitors, faculty and staff (regardless of vaccination status) must be masked when indoors during class times, teaching fellow hours, and when present in any building on the Arts Campus (Houghton House, the Davis & Solarium Galleries, Goldstein Family Carriage House, and the Katherine D. Elliott Studio Arts Center). Masks are freely available in all buildings on the Arts Campus and at Campus Safety and must be worn properly, fully covering the wearer’s mouth and nose. Please ask a member of the Art & Architecture Department faculty or staff for assistance if needed. Anyone who refuses to comply with this policy will be asked to leave the premises. We thank you for your commitment to the maintenance of a healthy work and learning environment during this time.

Be assured that I will do what I can to work with students to facilitate their successful completion of the course. I encourage you to contact me if you have questions or concerns.

 

Course requirements:

  1. Class participation (30%). This constitutes responding to questions on the Canvas discussion board and (potentially) annotations and/or short writing assignments. I grade participation periodically, as follows: A (95) for thoughtful commentary that is analytical in nature or synthesizes material from readings and/or other classes; B (85) for answering a prompt briefly; C (75) for a response that suggests some misunderstandings; D (65) for a disruptive or disrespectful response; zero (0) for lack of participation.

  2. Research project (30%), with assignments due throughout the semester, culminating in a paper (1500–2100 words) focusing on a single woman artist from the period 1300–1750. More details to follow.

  3. First test (18%), due Monday, Mar. 14. This take-home essay exam covers material through Friday, Mar. 11.

  4. Second test (22%), due Friday, May 13, 4:30pm. This take-home essay exam covers material from Monday, Mar. 14 through Friday, May 6.

 

Format for written work:
Please follow these guidelines for all written assignments.

  1. Type all work in a 12-point font.
  2. Double-space.
  3. Leave one-inch margins on all sides.
  4. Number your pages.
  5. Put your name and the date on the first page.
  6. Check that your spelling, grammar, and punctuation are correct—these are crucial to effective communication of your ideas. Your grade will drop if you have excessive errors.
  7. If you cite another source, you must use a.) parenthetical references or footnotes, as well as
    b.) a list of works cited, as explained in The Chicago Manual of Style (http://www.chicagomanualofstyle.org/tools_citationguide.html), the documentation style typically used by art historians. (See A note about cheating and plagiarism below.)
  8. Include pictures (with captions) of works of art that you discuss.

You can submit written work via Canvas. Please upload a Microsoft Word document (.doc, .docx) or a Portable Document Format file (.pdf): these are the only formats that Canvas will accept. PLEASE NOTE: I do not accept papers via e-mail.

 

A note about cheating and plagiarism:
I will not tolerate any form of academic dishonesty. It destroys the trust that I have in you to do your best, it is unfair to the other students, and obviously you will not learn anything if you resort to cheating. If I find that you have cheated or plagiarized on a test or on a written assignment, you will receive a zero for the assignment and I will contact the Deans and/or the Committee on Standards about your case. If a case goes to the Committee on Standards, I follow the Committee's recommendation; if it also finds evidence of cheating or plagiarism, the recommendation is usually failure of the course at a minimum.

In accordance with the Colleges’ Academic Policies (http://www.hws.edu/catalogue/policies.aspx) and the Handbook of Community Standards (http://www.hws.edu/studentlife/pdf/community_standards.pdf), pp. 11, 27–29, I define cheating as giving or receiving assistance on any assignment for this course, including all papers and tests, except as directly authorized by me. The Colleges define plagiarism as “the presentation or reproduction of ideas, words, or statements of another person as one’s own, without due acknowledgment.” In application, this means that in any written assignment, you need to cite your sources. When quoting directly from a text—say, five words or more in succession—you need to put those words in quotation marks and include a parenthetical reference or footnote citing the source. When rewriting a passage from a text in your own words, or including information from a text in your paper, you don’t need the quotation marks but you do still need the parenthetical reference or footnote. In addition, all sources that you cite need to be included in a list of works cited at the end of the assignment. If you don’t understand exactly what constitutes plagiarism, or how to use parenthetical references or footnotes, please ask me. I would prefer to explain what it is and how to avoid it before it happens rather than after.

 

Grading:
Tests and the research project assignments receive numerical grades. Class participation assignments will receive an A (95), B (85), C (75), D (65), or zero (0). If you are unsatisfied with a grade, please prepare a written statement explaining what grade you think you should have received and why, and submit it to me along with the assignment for review.

I mark down three points for each calendar day that an assignment is late. If you think you will need an extension, you should talk to me as early as possible before the assignment is due.

My grading scale is as follows:

 

 

A+  97–100

A  93–97

A-  90–93

 

 

B+  87–90

B  83–87

B-  80–83

 

 

C+  77–80

C  73–77

C-  70–73

 

 

D+  67–70

D  63–67

D-  60–63

 

 

 

F  0–60

 

 

The Center for Teaching and Learning (CTL):
At Hobart and William Smith Colleges, we encourage you to learn collaboratively and to seek the resources that will enable you to succeed. The Center for Teaching and Learning (CTL) is one of those resources: CTL programs and staff help you engage with your learning, accomplish the tasks before you, enhance your thinking and skills, and empower you to do your best. Resources at CTL are many: Teaching Fellows provide content support in sixteen departments, Study Mentors help you manage your time and responsibilities, Writing Fellows help you think well on paper, and professional staff help you assess academic needs.

I encourage you to explore these and other CTL resources designed to encourage your very best work. You can talk with me about these resources, visit the CTL office on the 2nd floor of the library to discuss options with the staff, or visit the CTL website at http://www.hws.edu/academics/ctl/index.aspx.

The CTL resource that will be most essential in enhancing learning in this course is the Writing Fellows program. Writing Fellows help students develop their writing by providing feedback on essay drafts, offering strategies for the writing process, and enhancing students’ understanding of what good college writing means. In this class, Writing Fellow assistance with our research paper will be extremely helpful to you, and I suggest that you make an appointment via StudyHub on the CTL website by Wednesday, Apr. 6 to begin work on the research paper draft.

 

Disability accommodations:
If you are a student with a disability for which you may need accommodations and are new to our office, you should self-identify for services by scheduling a Welcome meeting with Disability Services at the Center for Teaching and Learning (the link to do so is on the top right of the webpage http://www.hws.edu/academics/ctl/disability_services.aspx). Disability-related accommodations and services will be provided when the registration and documentation process is complete. The guidelines for documenting disabilities can be found at the website.

Returning students may request their accommodation letter by e-mailing the request to ctl@hws.edu or by using the link at the top right of the webpage to schedule a meeting (should you feel one is necessary).

Please direct questions about this process or Disability Services at HWS to ctl@hws.edu or x3351. Jamie Slusser, Disability Services Administrator and Accommodation Specialist, and Christen Davis, Associate Director of CTL for Disability Services, are the main contact staff for Disability Services.

 

Websites:
There are two websites for this course: one at my homepage and one at Canvas. This syllabus, paper assignments, and links to online resources can be found at both. The Canvas site also has a course calendar, daily handouts, discussions, and an online gradebook; I plan to post PowerPoint presentations used in class there as well.

To use Canvas, log in with your campus username and password. Once you have logged in, you should see, at the left of the screen, a link for Courses you are enrolled in, as well as links for your Account, Dashboard, Calendar, Inbox, Commons, and Help.

It is essential for you to get in the habit of logging into Canvas regularly, as one way I will communicate with the class is via Canvas announcements, and I will post assignments and other course materials there. If you click on the Account link and then on Settings, you can set up Canvas to notify your e-mail or your cell phone about recent activity. I strongly recommend that you set Canvas to send you notifications of announcements ASAP.

For further assistance with Canvas, click on the Help link at the bottom left, and then on “Canvas Resources for Students.” You should look for the Canvas Student Guide (https://community.canvaslms.com/t5/Student-Guide/tkb-p/student) or—for visually oriented people—the Video Guide (https://community.canvaslms.com/t5/Video-Guide/tkb-p/videos). Alternatively, contact the Help Desk of Instructional Technology through the Client Portal (https://hws.teamdynamix.com/TDClient/1889/Portal/Home/), at x4357, or at helpdesk@hws.edu.

 

Technology policy:
Some learning materials will be provided via online platforms such as Canvas (regularly) and Zoom (infrequently). Because of this, your access to a strong internet connection regularly is imperative to your success. I understand that we do not all have access to the same set of resources when not on campus. If this requirement sets up a currently unattainable goal for you, please contact me, your Dean, or the Office of Academic and Faculty Affairs for additional assistance.

Because this class may occasionally use Zoom, please be sure you have Zoom installed on your computer, tablet, or smartphone. Zoom classes may not be recorded or distributed by anyone other than me, the instructor. Below are tips for participating in a Zoom session:

  • join the meeting early and test speaker, microphone, and camera settings;
  • keep speakers away from microphones to avoid feedback;
  • mute your microphones upon entry to the meeting; and
  • do not join a meeting from multiple devices.

I encourage you to bring a laptop or tablet with you to class as it may be useful to you in note-taking, but please remember: using personal electronic devices in the classroom can also be a distraction for you and for other students. Therefore,

  • please silence notifications on all devices so that your work is not interrupted;
  • please be respectful and do not use your devices for non-class related tasks, such as e-mail; and
  • please minimize device use during whole-class, in-person discussions.

Please let me know if there are reasons you cannot follow the above guidelines.

 

Intellectual property statement:
My course materials, including this syllabus, lectures, presentations, tests, and similar materials, are protected by copyright. I am the exclusive owner of copyright for those materials that I create. I encourage you to take notes and make copies of course materials for your own educational use. You may not, however, reproduce or distribute notes or course materials publicly without my express written consent, nor may you knowingly allow others to do so. This includes providing materials to commercial course material suppliers such as CourseHero, Chegg, and other similar services. Students who publicly distribute or display copies or modified copies of an instructor’s course materials, or help others to do so, may be in violation of Hobart and William Smith Colleges’ policies on intellectual responsibility, found in the Handbook of Community Standards, p. 10.

 

©2022 Lara C. W. Blanchard. All rights reserved.