Syllabus	FSem 046: Taking Flight!	Fall 2009

About this Course

Taking Flight!: In this course, we will explore the science, invention, history, art, and romance of flight. We will observe, study, and experiment with some of the inventions and contributions of many aviators and engineers. We will learn about flight from local experts and enthusiasts as well as from flyers of the present and past - some famous, some less well known. We will read and write about flying, and about building things that fly. We will use our own hands and minds to build things that fly. We will help each other do all of this, and we will share with an even wider community the excitement of taking flight!

Purpose: The primary purpose of any First Year Seminar course at Hobart and William Smith Colleges is to help the first year student make a successful transition from high school to college. A major portion of this transition is enhancing the student's abilities in the skills necessary to succeed at HWS. Therefore, the First Year Seminar places a strong emphasis on the important skills of writing, reading, critical thinking, and speaking or presenting.

Major goals of this particular seminar are to convey the importance of reading technical information and following directions, to improve skills for writing technical information for others in a clear and understandable manner, to enhance skills for researching and writing expository documents in thoughtful, accurate, and interesting ways, and to instill the ability and confidence to seek out information about an interesting topic as well as to discriminate amongst the various levels of quality of that information. An additional goal is to experience integrative learning through interaction in a Learning Community, featuring linked courses and residential, co-curricular components.

The motivation for achieving these goals will be the study of flight, because another major goal for this course is to have fun doing all of this stuff.

Core Components: The course will consist of several major components which will overlap in time and complement each other in various ways. These components are:

• Studying the basic principles of flight and aircraft design.
• Creating various air-borne contraptions and models.
• Reading, writing, and critiquing technical documentation.
• Visiting aviation museums, model aircraft events, and airports.
• Reading, researching, and reporting about a group, an individual, or events in aviation.
• Completing a final whole-class project consisting of constructing a complex model aircraft.

Texts and Resources:

• Required: Understanding Flight - by David Anderson and Scott Eberhardt. This text is very readable and will be the primary source of information for basic flight principles.
  Stick and Rudder, an Explanation of the Art of Flying - by Wolfgang Langewiesche. This book is the classic pilot's handbook. Lots of practical information for an aspiring pilot.
• Useful: Flying Models, Tips and Techniques for Beginners and Experts and Rubber Powered Model Airplanes - both by Don Ross. These books provide technical information on small aircraft model construction which you might find helpful.
  Model Aircraft Aerodynamics - by Martin Simons. This book provides more technical and thorough information on building and flying model aircraft.
  (All of these books are available at various bookstores and on-line book retailers.)
• Along the way, there will be various handouts, links to internet resources, and keyword search assignments, all of which should prove useful and interesting.

Construction labs and off-quad meetings: Several projects will require the use of tools and construction materials that will not be convenient to use in our regular classroom. On days when such projects are undertaken, we will meet in Eaton 116. An announcement will be made in class on the class day prior to the day we are to have such a lab. A notice will also be posted on the course web page.

Occasionally, we will need to go to a location on campus but far away from our classroom (such as the field house, or Odell's field). Once again announcements will be made at the preceding meeting and on the course web page.

Field Trips: There will be 3 or 4 field trips during the semester. The major field trip takes place Friday to Sunday, November 6-8. We will travel to Washington DC to experience several things, including a visit to the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum.

The other trips will be to nearby museums and/or airfields and may take place on weekday or weekend afternoons. Firm dates and times will be determined soon and announced. For these trips, in the case of a conflict in schedule with other classes or extracurricular activities, an opportunity will be provided for an alternate experience.

Library Sessions: One or two sessions presented by library personnel are required for each First Year Seminar. The sessions are about locating, accessing, and evaluating information from various sources including the internet, electronic databases, and scholarly book and journal resources. The session will be held in the library during class time. Day and place will be announced.

Assessment Policies

Journal/Logbook: You must provide a thin, 3-ring binder to keep various things in. This binder will serve as a handout/resource holder and as a journal of your activities in class and lab. Experience/response papers, required reports of lab work, and some of your assigned homework will end up in this journal/logbook. This book should be kept well organized and up-to-date, and will be collected and graded on a regular basis. Evaluation of the journal/logbook will result in a score that will count as 15% of your course grade.

Experience/Response Papers: Several "experience/response" papers will be assigned. These will be a more formal recording of your experiences on field trips, your thoughts about assigned readings, and your reports on certain projects. Photos can accompany some of these papers. A digital camera will be available for you to photograph lab (and other) projects. Some of your papers (and photos) may be posted on the course web site. Evaluation of these papers will result in a score that will count as 20% of your course grade.

Project Participation: Completion of several model building projects will be required. Some of these will be individual projects and some will be group projects. The final project will be a whole-class project consisting of building a large radio-controlled aircraft. Participation in building and completion of these projects will be evaluated and an overall score will be assigned that will count as 20% of your course grade.

Exam: There will be one midterm exam. The score on this exam will count as 20% of your course grade.

Report/Research Paper and Final Presentation: A combination book report/research paper submission and presentation will be required. A list of books and topics you may select from will be provided and your selection must be made by October 9th. Your paper must be a minimum of 12 double spaced pages (not including photos). Submission and presentation will follow the schedule listed below. Evaluation of the paper and presentation will result in a score that will count as 25% of your course grade.

Grading Scale: Scores will be weighted as indicated above and summarized below:

The initial course grade calculation will then be determined by the overall percentages:

The final course grade calculation will include consideration of factors such as attendance, conscientiousness, and level of participation. This consideration may change the initial course grade by the appending of a "+" or "-" .

Attendance And Make-up Policies: You are expected to attend every class and lab, and attendance will be checked daily. Work submitted late or missing for any reason will severely affect the evaluation of that piece of work. The opportunity to make up missed work or to submit work late will NOT be available except in instances required by The Colleges. In such cases, it is the student's responsibility to communicate and arrange for such work as soon as possible. (See HWS Catalogue, pp. 26-27.) This make-up policy will be strictly enforced.

Other

• A Note about Learning Communities: This seminar is a Learning Community linked to a Readers College, which means all students enrolled in it are also enrolled in a related Readers College course in the Spring term.

In addition to this academic component, Learning Community courses feature important social and co-curricular experiences. Students in the seminar will live in close proximity, in the same residence hall, and will be encouraged to join each other in activities outside of class. Different sorts of connections will be made to the more formal learning. The essence of a Learning Community experience is to interact within multiple, connected learning experiences and thereby enhance learning outcomes.

• A Note about the Center for Teaching and Learning (CTL): Hobart and William Smith Colleges encourages students to seek the academic collaboration and resources that will enable them to do their best work. Students who would like to enhance their study skills, writing skills, or other academic skills may visit the CTL web site at http://www.hws.edu/academics/ctl/index.aspx or contact the CTL at x3351.

Disability Accommodations: If you are a student with a disability for which you may need accommodations, you should self-identify and register for services with the Coordinator of Disability Services at the Center for Teaching and Learning (CTL), and provide documentation of your disability. Disability related accommodations and services generally will not be provided until the registration and documentation process is complete. The guidelines for documenting disabilities can be found at the following website: http://www.hws.edu/disabilities . Please direct questions about this process or Disability Services at HWS to David Silver, Coordinator of Disability Services, at silver@hws.edu or x3351.

• Hobart and William Smith Colleges' Principle of Academic Integrity will be upheld. (See HWS Catalogue, p. 23. See also HWS Handbook of Community Standards.) Specifically, work that you submit to be graded must be your own personal work.

• Written work submitted for scoring must be neat and legible.