Mondays and Wednesdays, 4:30-6:00
Bennett Hall 325

Instructor:  Carl Seaquist
Email:  carlas@ccat.sas.upenn.edu
Office: Logan Hall 233
Office Hours: Monday 12:00 - 1:00 and Tuesday 3:00 - 4:00
Home Phone: 215-474-2977

Four textbooks are available at the Penn Bookstore, 3601 Walnut Street:
 

In addition, there will be a bulkpack for this course, available at Campus Copy Center, 3907 Walnut St. (215-386-6410).  The table of contents for this bulkpack is online (in .pfd format), if you would like to see what is included.

Several of the readings for the course come from journals to which Penn has an online subscription.  These can be read by Penn students online, so they have not been included in the bulkpack.  These articles are linked from the relevant daily syllabus page, and full bibliographic references are given for students who would prefer to read the hardcopy version in the library.

An outline of the schedule of lecture and discussion topics and assignments can be accessed at schedule.htm.   The dates at the left of this page are linked to individual daily syllabus pages, which will provide detailed information on that class, including full citations for the assigned readings due that day.

This class will operate with a seminar format.  All the readings should be done in preparation for class, and all students are expected to participate in discussions.  Everyone will be expected to lead discussion one time during the semester.  This involves understanding the assigned reading, plus any recommended readings, providing an overview of the material at the beginning of class, and setting the agenda for class discussion.  Every day a second student will be assigned the role of respondant.  The respondant serves as support for the discussion leader, and rest of the class serves as further support.  Much of what we learn will be learned in class, through discussion of the assigned readings and the issues these introduce.  Some of the material in this course is difficult, and you are not expected to understand all of it when you first encounter it.  But I expect you to do your best every day, and especially on the days you are assigned the role of discussion leader or respondant.  Feel free to speak with me in preparation for your day as discussion leader or respondant, to make sure you understand the main issues and have a plan for how to run the class.

I will circulate a signup sheet during the second and third classes of the semester, so you will have an early idea of what days you will be expected to serve as discussion leader or respondant.  Look at the syllabus so that you will know which classes you would like to sign up for.  Students with a background in higher-level cognitive science courses are encouraged to sign up for slots early in the term.  The first class for which you may sign up is September 18. 

There are no exams in this course.  Grades will be based on three assigned papers plus class participation and service as discussion leader and respondant.  The three papers will be due on October 2, November 13, and December 16.  These are not research papers; they will relate to our assigned readings, and will provide you with an opportunity to demonstrate your understanding of the main themes considered in the course.

The first two papers will each account for 30% of the final grade, and will be about 4-5 pages long; the final paper will count 40%, and will be slightly longer (6-8 pages).  Class participation and leading of discussions can improve the paper average by one or two plus-minus levels; lack of participation or refusal to lead discussion can lower paper grades by the same amount.  Thus a student whose papers average to a solid B (3.0) can earn a final grade ranging from C+ to A- depending on class participation.  Most students with average participation will receive a final grade corresponding to the average of their papers.

Please see me if you have any special needs or circumstances that I should be aware of.

Details about paper topics will be given in class, and also posted here.