This page describes the general policies for courses taught by Professor Tiftickjian at Delta State University. For details about any particular course, click the links at the top or bottom of this page. For information on how to contact Dr. Tiftickjian, please visit his home page.
Contact information
We use email as our main contact method outside of class time. Be sure I have your preferred email address. Remember that DSU considers your Okramail account to be the official means for contact between DSU administrative offices and students. For the purposes of Dr. Tiftickjian’s courses, you may use your Okramail address or any other email address you prefer. Please give me the address you check on a regular basis.
I also like to have your local phone number in case I need to contact you more immediately.
Attendance policy
Regular and punctual attendance is each student’s responsibility. Although I may not take roll at every class meeting, I do keep a record of your general attendance behavior. Because class participation does have a bearing on your grade, it is important not to cut class. If you must miss a class, please contact me as soon as possible to find out how to make up the work.
According to University policy “students must attend a minimum of 75 percent of all scheduled classes…When a student accumulates absences greater than 25 percent of the scheduled meetings of class, the student receives a grade of F in the class (“cuts out”). It is very rare that I cut a student out of the class because of excessive absences, but those who miss a lot of classes usually perform so poorly that it has the same effect—a failing grade.
You don’t really need to worry about distinguishing between “excused” and “unexcused” absences. As far as I am concerned, you are responsible for any work you miss regardless of the reason. But I am not unreasonable here. If you must miss a class for a valid reason, I will give you any help I can to help you get caught up, but you must ask for help. If you don’t ask, I will assume that is not important to you that you missed the work. Don’t be shy about finding out what to do to get caught up. I won’t scold you (too much) for missing classes, and I am concerned about helping you make up the work.
Drops, audits, and incomplete grades
University policy states that if you decide to drop a course, you may do so at any time before the W/F deadline without the instructor’s permission and it will not appear on your record at all. After the W/F deadline you must have my permission to drop. You will be assigned a grade of W or F, and your record will show that grade. You will receive a grade of W only if you have a passing grade on the day you drop. Otherwise, you receive a grade of F. A grade of F counts as a failure just as it would if you had failed the course without dropping. A grade of W has no effect on your grade point average. After the last day to drop a class deadline, you may not drop no matter what your grade is.
If you intend to take this course as an audit instead of for credit, you must let me know within about a week after classes begin. Audit status is only given in special circumstances-usually for students who lack the usual prerequisites and wish to take the course only for personal enrichment. Audit status is not granted to biology majors or minors and cannot be used as a way to “bail out” of the course and avoid a failing grade. Students auditing the class are required to attend class as usual and do all assignments but are not required to take exams.
See the current University calendar for specific deadlines.
A grade of incomplete (I) is only given in very unusual circumstances, such as when there is an illness or an emergency late in the semester. I have only rarely given I grades. It has almost always been because a student could not take the final exam, but all other requirements were satisfactory. Even in this circumstance, a student must have a passing grade on all completed work. A grade of I is considered to be an F until it is removed. An I must be removed within 12 months or it is changed permanently to an F.
Grading policy
Your final grade will be based on total points. This makes it easy to figure your current grade at any time. To calculate your grade, add up your points from all sources (exams, quizzes, homework, lab work, etc.), divide this by the total points that would be possible on those same assignments. Then multiply this number by 100 to get your percent grade. Your course syllabus will give detailed information on how test and assignments will work and on how many points each will count. It also shows the grading scale I use to determine letter grades from your total points.
There are generally no “extra credit” assignments, although occasionally a few extra points are given for optional assignments. I feel that time taken on extra credit only takes time away from the more important required work. Students tend to ask about extra credit only at the end of the semester when they have not done well on required work. The time to be concerned about poor performance is as soon as you realize there is a problem. It is fine to ask for help on ways to improve your grade while there is still time left, but don’t expect to undo a whole semester of problems just before the final exam.
I will return all your work to you after I have graded it, except for major exams. I prefer to keep these in case there is a dispute about a particular grade, but you are welcome to review your graded exams as often as you like in my office. I try to grade all exams and assignments within a week after they are completed. I succeed in this most of the time, but once in a while it might take a bit longer. I keep all work that students don’t pick up for a period of 12 months after the end of the semester.
You can check your grade online through the course web site using a password that I will assign for you. Note that posting your grade is not done on Delta State’s Blackboard system. The login ID and password you might be using for another course through Blackboard will not work for this course.
Please talk to me any time you are concerned about your performance in the class. I believe that you have the right to know where you stand at all times. If you ever think that I have made errors in computing your grade, please let me know. I do sometimes make mistakes. I’m always happy to discuss with you on an individual basis why something was graded the way it was.
Make-up work
A word about make-up exams-try to avoid them. If you miss an exam because of illness or other valid reason, you will be allowed a makeup. Having an exam in another course on the same day is not considered a valid reason for missing an exam. If you know that you will have to miss an exam because you are participating in a University event, please let me know ahead of time so that we can make special arrangements. In these cases, you can usually take the exam a day early and thus take the same test as the rest of the class. If you must take the exam late, the makeup will be a different test. Makeup exams are made somewhat more difficult than regular exams because you have the advantage of additional study time.
Special times will be scheduled for make-up exams 2-3 times during the semester. Make-up exams can only be taken at one of these designated times.
Makeup of other work is usually allowed, with the exception of short daily quizzes. Making up lab work is often difficult because of the amount of preparation time needed. If you must miss a lab, please see me as soon as possible and we will work out the best way for you to make up the work.
Final exams
According to strict Delta State policy, final exams may only be given when officially scheduled. The day and time of the final exam are shown on the course schedule. Don’t ask to take the final early or late. There will be no exceptions to this policy except for in very rare and unusual circumstances.
Graduating seniors
If you are a senior planning to graduate at the end of this semester, you may know that your grades must be turned in before final exam week. Various instructors handle this problem in different ways. Here is my solution. You will take your final exam during finals week along with the rest of the class as usual. You are not exempt from the final. At the grade deadline, assuming you have a passing grade, I will turn in a C grade for you regardless of your actual grade. After you take the final exam and final grades are calculated, if your grade is above a C, I will ask that it be changed to your correct grade.
Cheating and plagiarism
The official policy (undergraduate) of the University on cheating and plagiarism is stated below.
“Cheating and plagiarism are not tolerated. If it is established that a violation has occurred, instructors may determine the penalty, and should report the offense to the division/department chair, the student’s advisor, the dean, and the Office of Academic Affairs. The usual minimum penalty involves a grade of zero on the test, examination, or paper in question. A second offense by any student will be reviewed for more stringent action and will usually result in suspension. Any additional offenses will usually result in expulsion from the university.”
I expect all students in this course to behave as mature and responsible scholars. I will follow the above policy strictly. If you ever have any doubts about what constitutes plagiarism-ask. Don’t risk a violation just because you are not sure how to utilize the work of others in your own writing assignments.
I may sometimes ask you to work in groups on certain assignments. I encourage you to cooperate with the others in your group, but when individual reports are required of each student, you are expected to turn in your own work. This means you don’t just copy someone else’s work, you do the write-up in your own words.
Non-discrimination policy
Delta State University is committed to a policy of equal employment and educational opportunity. Delta State University does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, age, disability, or veteran status. This policy extends to all programs and activities supported by the University.
Students with disabilities
Students requesting accommodations due to a disability must identify themselves to the Delta State ADA Coordinator and provide him with documentation of the disability. The student may then request specific, approved accommodations from professors. Faculty will meet with students who have an accommodations plan to discuss how the accommodations can best be provided. Professors are not expected to provide accommodations without an accommodations plan, provide accommodations not on the plan, or offer make up work for the time prior to the accommodations plan.
The ADA Coordinator will maintain a file which contains appropriate documentation for each student who had identified him/herself as disabled, schedule and participate in accommodations planning, and refer students to other programs for assistance as appropriate. If a student has a disability that qualifies under the ADA (see DSU Undergraduate Bulletin) and requires accommodation, he/she should contact the Counseling and Testing Center for information on appropriate policies and procedures. Contact Dr. Richard Houston, (662) 846-4690, or rhouston@deltastate.edu.
