COURSE SYLLABUS
Spring 2012.

COURSE DESCRIPTION
This course is designed to give students a broad familiarity with the methods, methodological assumptions and disciplinary tools of Native American Studies. The study of Native American cultures and religious traditions has been undertaken in a variety of academic disciplines, so an interdisciplinary approach is needed to get a comprehensive picture of these diverse cultures and traditions. This course will examine issues and problems in the study of Native American tribal people and cultures, drawing on methods and tools from a number of different fields.

RELI/NAMS 4701 counts toward the Undergraduate Certificate in Native American Studies.
RELI NAMS 6701 counts toward the Graduate Certificate in Native American Studies.
For more certification requirements, see the INAS Curriculum page.

PREREQUISITES for RELI/NAMS 4701: RELI/NAMS 1100 or permission of instructor

REQUIRED TEXTS
Books are available at Baxter Street Bookstore, Off Campus Bookstore, and the UGA bookstore.

• Akwesasne (eds.), Basic Call to Consciousness ISBN: 1570671591
• John Mohawk, Utopian Legacies  ISBN:1574160400
• Linda Tuhiwai Smith. Decolonizing Methodologies ISBN: 1856496244
• Joe Watkins, Sacred Sites and Repatriation  ISBN: 0791079694
• Dennis McPherson and J. Douglas Rabb. Indian from the Inside. ISBN 9780786443482
• Keith Basso, Wisdom Sits in Places  ISBN: 0826317243
• Claudio Saunt, Black, White, and Indian  ISBN:0195313100
• Robert Williams, Like A Loaded Weapon ISBN: 0816647100
• Weaver, Womack and Warrior, American Indian Literary Nationalism ISBN: 0826340733
• Tom King, The Truth About Stories  ISBN: 0816646279

COURSE REQUIREMENTS
The course syllabus is a general plan for the course; deviations may be necessary and will be announced to the class by the instructor. The schedule of assignments can be found on the calendar in EMMA, which you should check at least once between class meetings. Further information about  course assignments can be found on the Assignments page (link above) or in <emma> Course Materials.

The final grade for undergraduate students in RELI/NAMS 4701 is based on the following:

• 60%  2 Book Presentations
• 20%  Online Discussion Forum
• 20%  Class Participation

The final grade for graduate students enrolled in RELI/NAMS 6701 is based on the following:

• 30%  Researched Essay (20-25 pp.)
• 30%  2 Book Presentations
• 20%  Online Discussion Forum
• 20%  Class Participation

Required Attendance
This is designed primarily as a readings course, so attendance is mandatory. Students are allowed 3 absences, no questions asked. Each subsequent absence will lower your participation score by a full letter grade.

Participation and Forum
You are expected to do all assigned reading before coming to class and to actively and respectfully contribute to all in-class discussions. The participation grade could also include any impromptu writing assignments or pop quizzes. I prefer active discussion to grading responses and quizzes, so you won't need to worry about those if you don't let the conversation lag.

Students will also post 2-3 times per week to an online discussion forum. This is an informal venue, a place to work through your questions and responses to the readings. Substance matters--style and correctness do not.

This class will function as a seminar, with a substantial part of your grade based on in-class and online discussions of the assigned texts. Contributions do not need to be fully-worked out arguments that show you've achieved total enlightenment, nor do you need to agree with everything we read. (Many of the authors won't agree with each other on everything either.) I expect questions, puzzlement, critique. The point of a seminar is to work through the material together.

Shy-folk Option: Students who are quieter in class discussions can compensate by posting 3 times a week in the online forum.

Not-so-shy-folk Option: Students who contribute more than their share to the in-class discussions can post once a week for up to 6 times during the semester.

Book Presentations
Each student will give a presentation and lead discussion for two assigned texts, submitting a written summary and analysis of each book's argument. Depending on class size, you will work in pairs for this assignment.

Graduate Research Projects
Students enrolled in NAMS6701 will also write a 20-25 page researched essay for their final project, with a written proposal and annotated bibliography submitted in advance. Students are expected to design a topic that fits with their own field of interest and to consider that topic in the light of methodological issues and practices that this class will explore.

COURSE POLICIES

<emma>
Our class will use the online writing environment <emma> for access to course materials, the calendar, and the online forum. Internet Explorer is incompatible, so you will save yourself a lot of headaches by using Mozilla Firefox, Google Chrome, or Safari with EMMA. For more help, either talk to me or visit the <emma> lab in Park 117.

Make-up policy
If you are absent on the date you are scheduled to present, you need to contact me in advance and medical documentation will be required before before I will reschedule.

Late papers lose 1/2-letter grade per day. I do grant extentions when circumstances warrant, but you must make arrangements with me before the paper is due.

Weekly forums can not be made up. You can earn partial credit by adding extra posts in subsequent weeks, but skipping more than 1 full week will lower your grade. See the forum assignment instructions for more.

Communication
You need to meet with me to discuss your presentations the day before you present. My office hours are M/W 11:15-12:15. If your classes conflict with the posted hours, please see me after class or email me for an appointment.

Access
If you need special accommodations because of a disability or have emergency medical information to give me, please make an appointment to see me as soon as possible.

Academic Honesty Policy
All academic work must meet the standards contained in “A Culture of Honesty.” Students are responsible for informing themselves about those standards before performing any academic work. More detailed information about academic honesty can be found at: http://www.uga.edu/honesty/

Any student suspected of violating this policy will be referred to the Office of the Vice President of Instruction. Do not plagiarize. Credit all ideas, words, phrases, paraphrases and evidence that are not your own, and provide complete publication information for all sources. Yes, even in the forum. It may be informal, but you are still scholars who are expected to acknowledge their sources.

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Background image from the Archaeo Art Gallery by James Q. Jacobs