• Deadlines for essays may be extended on request; but students will then be held to them. One grade-stage down for every day or part of a day late (this includes weekend days): e.g. 4 days late, a B+ becomes a C. Any assignment that is more than a week late will not be accepted.
• All components of the course are mandatory: failure to complete any of them will result in an F.
• If you have a minor ailment, please use the on-line MSAF. You should contact me by e-mail immediately after submitting the form. I will usually then grant you (at most) a one-week extension on the assignment, based on the original due date. Use these forms wisely (and honestly!), as you only get one per semester. For any major medical or other problem leading to absence, you should go to your faculty/program office, and they will contact me accordingly.
• Students registered with SAS should come to see me as soon as possible after the start of the semester, to discuss any special assistance needed and have me sign their accommodations letter.
• Please retain a copy of all your graded papers and assignments.
• E-mail policy: In accordance with Faculty policy, you should use your own McMaster e-mail account (@mcmaster.ca) for all e-mail correspondence with me. This policy protects confidentiality and confirms the identity of the student.
• Grade conversion: The scale used by the Registrar's Office ( http://registrar.mcmaster.ca/calendar/2012-13/pg145.html ) will be used to convert number grades into final letter grades.
• You will have the opportunity to evaluate my teaching and the course as a whole towards the end of the term.
• Academic integrity policy: Academic dishonesty consists in misrepresentation by deception or by other fraudulent means and can result in serious consequences, e.g. the grade of zero on an assignment, loss of credit with a notation on the transcript (notation reads: “Grade of F assigned for academic dishonesty”), and/or suspension or expulsion from the university. Examples of academic dishonesty are 1. Plagiarism, e.g. the submission of work that is not one’s own or for which other credit has been obtained. 2. Improper collaboration in group work. 3. Copying or using unauthorized aids in tests and examinations. It is your responsibility to understand what constitutes academic dishonesty. For information on the various kinds of academic dishonesty please refer to the Academic Integrity Policy, specifically Appendix 3, located at http://www.mcmaster.ca/univsec/policy/AcademicIntegrity.pdf.