welcome letter anth 5 online summer 2015

June 14, 2015

Dear Foothill Students:

If you are receiving this email you are either registered or waitlisted for my online Summer 2015 Anth 5, Magic, Science & Religion class (CRN 10168), which is going to be delivered entirely via the Internet (called an online course). As the start of this course is coming up soon - Monday, June 29th

- Im sending this letter with some important info so were ready to get going from Day 1!

THIS LETTER IS KIND OF LONG AND DETAILED BUT PLEASE READ ALL OF IT AND READ IT CAREFULLY IN ORDER TO GET A GREAT START TO THE CLASS. In this letter you will find information about:

1. What you will learn about in this course 2. What text you will need to purchase to do the required reading 3. When the course begins and ends, and how to make sure you stay

enrolled in the course 4. Expectations about workload for this fast-faced summer session 5. How to get ready to take a course online 6. HOW TO START THE COURSE ON JUNE 29TH

7. How to get other questions answered

First, I want to welcome you to this course that I hope you will find interesting, thought-provoking and of long-term value for your academic, professional and personal life! I know many of you (most of you) have likely signed up for this course to fulfill a general education requirement for your major, some of you are Anthropology majors (hi!!!), and others are joining us because the course sounds really interesting and covers material you have long had a personal interest in. Maybe youre in it for all of those reasons??

I also know that some of you have taken many online classes, while for others this is your first online class (and you are likely feeling a little intimidated and lost). Some of you are just starting your college careers. Others may already have your B.As, or even graduate degrees! Many of you are working full time, some are stay at home parents. All of you likely have very busy lives outside of school.

Anth 5 Welcome Letter Summer 2015 1

I have tried to build this class around the great diversity of students who come together in the summer to explore this topic of Magic, Science & Religion, also known as the Anthropology of Religion. Regardless of why you are taking this course, or what your background is, it is my sincere hope that there is something for everyone.

If you have never taken an online course before, and/or you have never taken a summer session course before please read this important announcement:

This online course is designed to be engaging and demanding, and will cover material that is comparable to a 12-week UC and CSU-transferrable course. Given that we will accomplish this in a very short 6-week summer session without any face-to-face meetings, it is essential for you to understand that in order to be successful in this class, you will need to:

o Log into our course website in Etudes multiple times during each week, preferably daily, starting on DAY 1 JUNE 29TH

o Stay actively engaged in the course (logging in daily or nearly daily) up through the last day of the course (the day of the final exam) on AUGUST 7th. (Please know up front that I will be unable to make any exceptions to the dates.)

o Plan your summer schedule to be able to dedicate an average of 24 hours a week to this class. (These are the California State-approved standards for a fully online, 6-week, 4-unit class.)

First-time online students (or first-time Etudes users): If this is your first online course, or your first time using Foothill Colleges online course management system, Etudes, then I strongly urge you to do at least one of the following:

1. Attend the on-campus Orientation to Etudes sessions held during the first week of each quarter. FOR SUMMER 2015:

Tuesday, June 30th from 1:00 - 2:30 pm in Room 4008 Visit http://www.foothill.edu/fga/etudes_oncampus_orientation.php for

more details and schedule/location. 2. Watch the video version of Orientation to Etudes at

http://www.foothill.edu/fga/etudes_orientation.php.


3. Complete the Self-Assessment Questionnaire and visit the Online Learning Tour webpages at http://www.foothill.edu/fga/getstarted.php#new

Important note: if you are not feeling confident in the online learning environment after taking the orientation and/or self assessment, I highly encourage you to consider signing up for the face-to-face section of Anth 5, also being offered face-to-face this summer.

Course start date & time: This online course will start at 8:00 a.m. on Monday, June 29th and run through Friday, August 7th. All course material, including assignments, announcements, modules, etc., will be housed in Foothill Colleges Course Management System called Etudes. You should plan on logging into Etudes and our course site on Monday, June 29th! Regular and frequent attendance (demonstrated by logging into the course site AND completing assignments every week) is required for this course. In an accelerated summer session, it is very easy to fall behind so please join the class early and frequently.

IMPORTANT: Please note that any student who has not read and accepted the syllabus, and completed Module 1 assignments by the end of the first week of class will be dropped from the course. After that date, students may be dropped for a lack of active engagement in the course EACH WEEK (see syllabus for details).

Logging into the course: To access or login to your course, follow these steps:

1. Find out your Etudes User ID and Password by following the instructions at http://www.foothill.edu/fga/logininstructions.php

2. Go to the login Gateway Portal for Etudes at https://myetudes.org 3. Bookmark this webpage (I like putting it right in my Bookmark

toolbar).

4. Be sure to check System Requirements (left side of screen) prior to

getting started with Etudes. IT IS ESSENTIAL THAT YOU HAVE ACCESS TO A COMPUTER THAT MEETS THESE SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS IN ORDER TO BE SUCCESSFUL IN THIS CLASS.


IT IS NOT POSSIBLE TO COMPLETE THIS COURSE IF YOU ONLY HAVE ACCESS TO A TABLET OR SMARTPHONE.

5. Type in your Etudes User ID and Password

If you have problems accessing or logging into the course, go to the Student Help Desk at https://foothill.helpdeskconnect.com/ or call the Foothill Online Learning office at (650) 949-7446.

If you log onto our course management system, Etudes, before Monday June 29th at 8:00 a.m. you should be able to see the course on your Dashboard, even if it is not yet published:

After the official start date and time of the class, you can click on the tab/button from your Dashboard and it should take you to our Course site.

Starting the course: Once you have entered the Course site, be sure you read carefully the Welcome Aboard Announcement (look under Recent Announcements on the Home page, or click on the Announcements menu on the left). This will give you further instructions about what to do first in the course, which will include a careful review of the course syllabus.

Waitlisted students: You have to be registered for the course to be able to log into the course website. If you are still on the waitlist after Sunday, 6/28, you will need an add code from me, your instructor, before being able to register for the course, and log on to the course website. To request an add code follow the instructions on this page: http://www.foothill.edu/fga/request_add_code.php


Getting ready for the course: Im looking forward to a great quarter exploring this wonderful topic of Magic, Science & Religion, a.k.a the Anthropology of Religion with you. Here is a little pre-information from the syllabus so you have a better sense of what well be studying, and the text youll need to have by day 3 or 4 of the course:

Course Description and Learning Objectives This course is a cross-cultural exploration into the ways humans around the world and through time have conceptualized their relationship between their natural and social world and the supernatural. This area of study is known as the anthropology of religion.

Students will be introduced to diverse belief systems from around the world from small-scale to complex societies. Well take a thematic approach to this cross-cultural exploration by looking at diverse expressions of religious belief systems such as the characterization of gods, spirits and other supernatural beings; practices of magic, divination and witchcraft; concepts of the body, soul, health, healing, death and the afterlife, etc. Well also spend time learning about myth, ritual and religious symbolism as well as religious specialists and shamanism. The primary focus will be on developing an understanding of belief systems in a cultural context. Well also touch upon questions of religious fundamentalism, the politics of religion in todays world, and religious revitalization movements.

Required Texts There is one required text for this course this quarter, and you must have access to this edition of this text from the first few days of the summer session to be successful in this class.

Moro, Pamela. 2013. Magic, Witchcraft, and Religion: A Reader in the

Anthropology of Religion. 9th edition.

New York: McGraw-Hill.

ISBN: 9780078034947.

Available at the Foothill Bookstore (http://books.foothill.edu). If you find a copy from


another source (friend, other online site, etc.), be sure you are buying the ninth edition of this text.

I will be posting a schedule of readings (we will only be reading selections from this text although all articles I think are really interesting if you have the time to read them all!) with the syllabus, which you will have access to on the first day of class.

One Last VERY IMPORTANT Note This summer I will have the unique privilege and challenge of teaching this course while I am also co-directing our Foothill field school in Ireland! (For more information about where Ill be and what well be doing, you can visit our webpage: http://www.foothill.edu/anthropology/ireland.php). I actually leave for Ireland on the start date of the course (June 29th) and will be in Ireland till August 1st, and then Spain until August 12th. I will be with you online for that entire time, although please know that there may be some days that I will not be able to respond immediately to questions and messages (usually I am VERY good about this with responses within 24 hours). I hope the excitement I might be able to bring from far-away places will make up for any delay you might experience!

Additional Questions? I hope that helps answer a few questions you might be having before the start of class. Anything else well be able to cover during those first days, but youre also welcome to send me an email and Ill do my best to respond (although Im busy wrapping up Spring quarter and getting ready for the summer, too!). You can email me at: [email protected].

Im looking forward to meeting you all online, and having a great summer session!

Kathryn Maurer Foothill Anthropology Department


welcome letter anth 5 online summer 2015

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