Latin American Studies (LAST) 203 - Lecture 01
Introduction to Contemporary Latin America
Fall 2008

Saturday: 8:00 A.M. Class dates: September 13, 20, 27; October 4, 18, 25; November 1, 15, 22, 29

Instructor:	Maria Victoria Guglietti
Office Location:	SS209
E-Mail:	mvguglietti@hotmail.com
Office Hours:	By appointment

Course Description

Latin America has gained considerable importance in the context of North American trade and politics due to increasing political and economic interactions in business, trade, investment, migration, and regional integration. Examples of this process are the North American Free Trade Agreement, and the Canadian membership in the Organization of American States.

Exploration of the complex and dynamic realities of Latin America is a challenging and exciting academic experience. This class focuses on some of the dynamics that constitute the Latin American reality: the struggle for economic development, the extreme contrasts within Latin American societies (rich and poor, rural and urban, intellectual and illiterate), the permanent tension between populist, military and democratic political regimes, the complexities of cultural diversity and ethnic processes, the gender issues in the land of "machismo", the impacts of urbanization, environmental sustainability, the persistence of social and political violence, the migration to U.S and Europe, the drug traffic, etc.

Latin American Studies 203 is an introductory course designed to provide students with a interdisciplinary approach to contemporary Latin America. Our goal will be to "unpack" the complex Latin American reality.

Objectives of the Course

To offer the students a better knowledge of Latin American countries, their common trends and their disparities, so that they will be able to enjoy and take advantage of the increasing opportunities emerging from growing continental interaction.

Textbooks and Readings

Robert C. Williamson. Latin America: Cultures in Conflict. New York: Palgrave Mac Millan, 2006.

 

Assignments and Evaluation

In-class presentation (10%)

Journal: November 29 (25%)

Short Paper: November 1 (30%)

Final exam: December 6 (30%)

Participation (5%)

Assignment guidelines will be handed in the first day of class.

It is the student's responsibility to keep a copy of each submitted assignment.
Note: Please hand in your essays directly to your tutor or instructor if possible. If it is not possible to do so, a daytime drop box is available in SS110; a date stamp is provided for your use. A night drop box is also available for after-hours submission. Assignments will be removed the following morning, stamped with the previous day's date, and placed in the instructor's mailbox.

Registrar-scheduled Final Examination: YES

Please note: If your class is held in the evening, the Registrar's Office will make every attempt to schedule the final exam during the evening; however, there is NO guarantee that the exam will NOT be scheduled during the day.

Policy for Late Assignments

Assignments submitted after the deadline may be penalized with the loss of a grade (e.g.: A- to B+) for each day late.

Writing Skills Statement

Faculty policy directs that all written assignments (including, although to a lesser extent, written exam responses) will be assessed at least partly on writing skills. For details see www.comcul.ucalgary.ca/info. Writing skills include not only surface correctness (grammar, punctuation, sentence structure, etc) but also general clarity and organization. Research papers must be properly documented.

If you need help with your writing, you may use the Writing Centre. Visit the website for more details: www.efwr.ucalgary.ca

Grading System

The following grading system is used in the Faculty of Communication and Culture:

(Revised, effective September 2008)

	Grading Scale
A+	96-100
A	90-95.99
A -	85-89.99
B+	80-84.99
B	75-79.99
B-	70-74.99
C+	65-69.99
C	60-64.99
C-	55-59.99
D+	53-54.99
D	50-52.99
F	0-49

 

Where a grade on a particular assignment is expressed as a letter grade, it will normally be converted to a number using the midpoint of the scale.  That is, A- would be converted to 87.5 for calculation purposes.  F will be converted to zero.

Plagiarism

Using any source whatsoever without clearly documenting it is a serious academic offense. Consequences include failure on the assignment, failure in the course and possibly suspension or expulsion from the university.

You must document not only direct quotations but also paraphrases and ideas where they appear in your text. A reference list at the end is insufficient by itself. Readers must be able to tell exactly where your words and ideas end and other people's words and ideas begin. This includes assignments submitted in non-traditional formats such as Web pages or visual media, and material taken from such sources.

Please consult your instructor or the Writing Centre (SS 106, efwr.ucalgary.ca) if you have any questions regarding how to document sources.

Students with Disabilities

If you are a student with a disability who may require academic accommodation, it is your responsibility to register with the Disability Resource Centre (220-8237) and discuss your needs with your instructor no later than fourteen (14) days after the start of the course.

Students' Union

For details about the current Students' Union contacts for the Faculty of Communication and Culture see www.comcul.ucalgary.ca/su

"SAFEWALK" Program -- 220-5333

Campus Security will escort individuals day or night -- call 220-5333 for assistance. Use any campus phone, emergency phone or the yellow phone located at most parking lot booths.

Ethics

Whenever you perform research with human participants (i.e. surveys, interviews, observation) as part of your university studies, you are responsible for following university research ethics guidelines. Your instructor must review and approve of your research plans and supervise your research. For more information about your research ethics responsibilities, see

The Faculty of Communication and Culture Research Ethics site: http://www.comcul.ucalgary.ca/ethics

or the University of Calgary Research Ethics site: http://www.ucalgary.ca/research/compliance/ethics/info/undergrad/

Schedule of Lectures and Readings

A detailed schedule will be provided the first day of class.