WORLD THEATRE I

WORLD THEATRE I

California State University, Dominguez Hills William R. DeLuca, Theatre Arts

Fall Semester 2003: M,W 10:00-11:45 AM Email:BDeLuca@csudh.edu

Section: THE 355-01 Homepage: www.csudh.edu/bdeluca/

Room: SBS E220 Office: LCH E311 (310 - 243 - 2400)

Units: 3 Hours: MW 12-1; TTh 11:30-1;

TEXT:

Wilson, Edwin, and Alvin Goldfarb. Living Theatre. 3rd edition.

Boston: McGraw Hill Publishing Company, 2000.

Lorraine Hansberry. A Raisin in the Sun.

OBJECTIVES & OUTCOMES:

This course enables students to discover the major theatrical achievements of Eastern and Western civilization and helps them to develop an appreciation for the creative impulse that shapes human value systems. Students in World History I gain an understanding of the plays, physical theatres, actors, producer-directors, and production styles that contributed to the development of theatre from its ritual origins to the 16th century.

In addition to the analysis, communication and critical thinking skills acquired from lectures, in-class reports, reading assignments, discussions and cooperative group work, students will employ various in-class writing techniques and research writing exercises to help them interpret, evaluate, and explain the cultural significance of theatre. Upon completion of this course and assessed by their papers, presentations, and exams, students will have demonstrated improved organizing, researching, writing, and speaking skills.

NOTE: Students are advised to refer to Page 14 of the University Catalogue for our policy on Academic Integrity. All forms of cheating or plagiarism are unacceptable in regard to the intended objectives of this course, and should be avoided.

REQUIREMENTS:

1. ATTENDANCE AND LATENESS: Students are expected to attend every class on time and contact the instructor prior to class should conflicts arise. Repeated lateness and/or three absences or more will lower grades.

2. PARTICIPATION: Students are expected to possess an active curiosity and an informed expression about the ideas, events, and people that make up the theatre history of each era. Cooperative learning groups, panels, and in-class discussions provide students opportunities to compare and contrast historical trends, and synthesize their analyses of drama literature with theatre history research.

3. DISCUSSION BOARD: Students are responsible for participating in online exercises within Blackboard, a campus network that supplies web sites for CSUDH classes. The Discussion Board is designed to promote student reflection, discussion, and writing skills in three areas:

CHAPTER QUESTIONS - For four selected chapters, students post one discussion-based question based on their reading of the chapter.

CHAPTER RESPONSES - For the same chapters, students write a one paragraph reply to another student's posted question.

OUTLINE IDENTIFICATIONS - For four identification items on the class outlines, students post a short description which will serve the class as a review for both the Mid-term and Final exams.

Students need to consult the Writing Guidelines (posted on the Blackboard site) for complete directions on each writing assignment.

4. PANEL: Students use classroom sessions to analyze and prepare a discussion of A Raisin in the Sun. Panels are intended to help students work collaboratively to develop a focused presentation on the characters, plot, language and themes of a play.

5. RESEARCH PAPER: Students are required to complete both a rough draft and a final 7 to 10 page research assignment. Grades for these papers are determined by the student's adherence to deadlines (20% off for late assignments), thoroughness of research, writing ability, and clarity of logic. See the Writing Guidelines.

6. RESEARCH PRESENTATION: Students are required to present a ten-minute research presentation, along with outline of the speech (purpose and main points) and a bibliography. Grades for this research project are determined by the student's adherence to deadlines, thoroughness of research, speaking ability, and clarity of logic. See the Guidelines for complete directions.

7. EXAMS: Two exams (Mid-Term and Final) are used to assess the student's familiarity with material from the course readings. Both exams involve identifications and essays. FINAL EXAM: Wednesday, December 8, 10:00 AM≠ 12:00 PM.

GRADE DISTRIBUTION:

Participation: 40%

Attendance 29 points

Chapter Questions (4 at 2 points each) 8

Chapter Responses (4 at 4 points each) 16

Outline Identifications (4 at 3 points each) 12

Panel 15

Research Paper: 35%

First Draft 15

Final Draft 35

Presentation 20

Exams: 25%

Mid-Term Exam 20

Final Exam 30

100% 200 points

CRITERIA FOR GRADE OF ≥A≤

Keeping in mind that the grade of ≥A≤ is often associated with ≥outstanding≤ or ≥superior≤ work, to obtain an ≥A≤ in this course you must not only meet the minimum criteria delineated in the course requirements, but also accomplish each of the following three objectives:

1) Have perfect attendance and punctuality, hand in assignments on time, speak often and participate openly in class activities.

2) Show a clear understanding of text material by knowing outline items and developing well thought-out writings on exam questions.

3) Compose well-written papers that reveal strong organization, logical progression, meaningful paragraphing, independent thought, engagement with the topic, and readable, unambiguous sentences that are virtually free of errors in grammar, usage, spelling, or mechanics.