Pandemic Perspectives: Synthesizing Lessons and Contemporary Implications from Module Readings

The module response must consist of 10 paragraphs total (think of a paragraph as comprising roughly 4-6 sentences). It must include a word count. Responses that are below 800 words or over 1200 words will receive a deduction (see below). The response must be submitted as a PDF on D2L by the deadlines in the syllabus.

Do not include quotes (from readings or lectures or anything else) in your module responses. Everything must be paraphrased and stated in your own words. We will be using Turn-it-in.com to ensure that text is not taken from other sources (whether the Internet, readings, lectures, or AI text generators).

Instances in which strings of text are taken from other sources will be considered academic dishonesty, and you will automatically receive a 0 on the assignment. If there is a second offense, you will receive a 0 on the assignment, and I will report you to the university.

The format of the module response should be as follows:

1) Introduction and takeaway message of the module theme (1 paragraph)

a. The goal of this paragraph is to provide the reader with some sense of what the module theme is about and what the big message is about pandemics that comes out of it. Here you will briefly review the basic subject matter in the readings/films and lecture in the module theme. Then you will offer a simple explanation of the central takeaway message to emerge from the material covered.

2) Summary of the each of the module readings (7 paragraphs) a. Here you will dedicate one paragraph to each lecture’s set of assigned readings.[For the films, you should write about two paragraphs per film given that they cover two lectures each.] There are seven lectures per module, resulting in seven paragraphs of writing. A good summary succinctly identifies the main points of the set of readings and communicates the key messages. A summary does not include your opinions; it is a synthesis of what is in the set of readings. To earn a high grade, your summary needs to be concise and clear. It should not include any quotations (as mentioned above). The goal of the summary is to provide enough information that a reader has a snapshot of what the major messages are of the set of readings.

b. NOTE: This will only be 6 paragraphs for Module Response #1 (because you do not need to summarize the first lecture (Introduction)).

3) Analysis of how the module readings engage or connect to one another (1 paragraph) a. Here you will analyze how the module readings (or films) engage or connect to one another. If the module readings primarily come from a book, discuss the ways in which the book’s chapters interrelate. The key here is to demonstrate

your analytical skills and ability to identify themes in the readings (or films) and how they speak to one another.

4) Discussion of contemporary implications (1 paragraph) a. Here you will reflect on what the messages of the module imply for the contemporary COVID-19 pandemic. Most of the readings and films were published before the COVID-19 outbreak, so this is an opportunity to discuss their meaning in light of recent circumstances. You do not need to include citations here, but any facts you present must be consistent with reporting in BBC News ( https://www.bbc.com/news).1

Grading Rubric The module responses will be graded out of 100 points. They will be evaluated based on five factors: 1) accuracy (everything stated is correct); 2) clarity (writing and main points are clear to the reader); 3) critical thinking (evaluation of the materials is sophisticated); 4) quality of writing (writing is free of grammatical and other errors); 5) fulfillment of assignment instructions (completion of all of the tasks indicated above). There will be automatic deductions for the following: • Response is under 800 words or over 1200 words: -25 points • Response includes quotes: -10 points • File not submitted on D2L: -5 points • File not submitted as a PDF: -5 points • Word count is missing: -5 points • Late submission: 1-15 minutes (-10 points), 16-60 minutes (-15 points), 61-180 minutes (-25 points), >180 minutes (not accepted) 1 BBC News is considered to be a centrist news source (see https://guides.lib.umich.edu/c.php?g=637508&p=4462444).