Discussion Section Syllabus

Global Poverty and Practice 115 - Global Poverty: Challenges and Hopes - Fall 2019
GSI: Gabe Murphy Discussion Sections
gabe.murphy@berkeley.edu (102) Fri 11am-12pm @ Barrows 155
(105) Mon 2pm-3pm @ Barrows 155
Office Hours:
Time: Wednesday 2:30pm-4:30pm
Location: Blum Center 100B

GRADE BREAKDOWN
Grading structure
Midterm: 30%
Paper: 20%
Final: 30%
Discussion Section (GSI determined): 20%
Attendance: 5%
Participation: 10%
Discussion Leading: 5%

SECTION REQUIREMENTS
Attendance and Readings: Students are expected to attend sections regularly and to complete all
reading assignments. Section offers opportunities to engage with the readings in ways that aren’t
possible in the lecture format, and doing well on the examinations and assignments will depend
on diligently attending both lectures and sections and keeping up with weekly readings. Section
is not meant to catch you up on readings you didn’t get to. Students should come to section with
access to either print or digital versions of the readings for that week. Students are allowed to
miss 2 sections over the course of the semester (though that’s not recommended). Beginning
with the third absence, your grade will fall 1% for each absence (up to 5%, though participation
will be docked as well beginning with the 3rd absence).

Participation: Students are expected to participate in discussion during Section. Discussing the
ideas and concepts covered in class and the readings is an excellent way to internalize the
material, and will help you succeed in each component of the course. That’s why participation
accounts for the largest portion of your Section grade. The term paper for this course is due in
class on Tuesday, November 26. Part of your Section participation grade will include writing a
400 word document detailing the question you will pose in the term paper, the way you will
approach the question, and the argument you expect to make. This 400 word paper topic should
be submitted through bCourses by October 21. Late submissions will impact your participation
grade. Please come to see me during office hours to discuss your paper topic.
Discussion Leading: During the first section, I will assign each student a specific week within
the semester where they will help lead discussions (some students will have the same week).
During your assigned week, you will be expected to come to class prepared to lead a 15-20
minute discussion (5 minutes of presenting and 10-15 minutes of discussion) on a topic of your
choosing from the week’s readings. Rather than simply summarizing key points from the
readings, discussion leaders should critically engage with the material by a) presenting on the
strengths and/or weaknesses of one or more arguments made by the authors, b) synthesizing
material from multiple readings, and c) preparing at least two discussion questions for the class.
Students should clear their discussion questions with me at least 24 hours before Section over
email or in office hours. I encourage coming to office hours to go over your plan for leading a
discussion.

KEY DATES
● Midterm- October 17
● Paper Topic- October 21
● Paper- November 26
● Final- December 17, 8-11am
● Both exams will be held in VLS 2050
Note-All students must take the exams on these dates: exceptions will not be granted unless
the requests conform with the accommodations policy of the campus.

CITATION, SOURCING, AND PLAGIARISM

Citations and Sourcing: Chicago, APA, or MLA are all acceptable as long as you are consistent
throughout your work. Resources on citations can be found at
http://www.lib.berkeley.edu/instruct/guides/citations.html. Wikipedia or other similar websites
are not sources but can be used to help you find relevant citations.
Plagiarism: UC Berkeley has a no tolerance policy of plagiarism. Students who engage in
cheating or plagiarism will be referred to the academic council for disciplinary action. Visit the
Center for Student Conduct at https://sa.berkeley.edu/conduct to learn more about plagiarism.
Electronic submissions will be automatically scanned for plagiarism by Turnitin software.

TECHNOLOGY POLICY
Laptops and other electronic devices are welcome for note taking and other course-related
purposes, but for nothing else. Using your computer for social media, browsing the web, email,
etc. will distract you and others from the section, and impact your participation grade. This
policy is subject to change if technological distractions become a problem.

EMAIL AND OFFICE HOUR POLICIES

To the best of your ability, please use email for questions about course logistics only. Questions
about course content are much better for discussion sections or office hours. I may take 24-48
hours to respond to email, and will not guarantee a response over the weekend. If you need to
meet but cannot make my regular office hours, email me to set up an appointment.

ACCOMODATIONS
Students who need accommodation or who have logistical questions should contact the Disabled
Student Program (DSP) office. Student information is kept strictly confidential. See:
http://dsp.berkeley.edu/. While you are not required to inform me about personal matters, letting
me know about any special learning needs or other accommodations you may need will help me
to help you.