PHILADELPHIA UNIVERSITY
School of Liberal Arts
L352.455 - Area Studies: Latin America
Guidelines for Oral Presentations
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Each group presentation should be between 25 and 30 minutes long with each member of the group talking for at least 5 minutes. Keeping to time will be important and running over the allotted time will influence the final grading of a group’s work.
Presentations will be on one of the following 5 topics.
Compare the recent neoliberal governments in Colombia and Bolivia.
Compare the socialist governments of Lula in Brazil and Lagos in Chile.
The African Contribution to Brazilian Civilization.
U. S. Policy towards Latin America (excluding the Caribbean), 1968-1988.
U.S. Policy towards Latin America (excluding the Caribbean), 1988-.
Groups will be graded on how well they meet 3 criteria:
Provide the necessary context and background to understand the group’s topic.
Demonstrate deep and rigorous research
Present information in a clear, efficient and lively manner.
Missing a scheduled presentation:
If any student member misses a presentation for any reason, they will have to write a 5 page typed paper on their topic. I will assess penalties on a student’s grade depending on the reason for missing a presentation. Students should be aware that these penalties could be extremely harsh.
Schedule of Presentations:
Each group will deliver their presentation twice. First before the mid-term, each group will present a rough draft of their report to me alone. The second version will be one given to the entire class at the end of the semester, incorporating my suggestions and additional research. Each group needs to give me a detailed, typed bibliography of all their sources.
Schedule of Presentations:
Each group will deliver their presentation twice. First, before the mid-term, each group will present a rough draft of their report to me alone. The second version will be one given to the entire class at the end of the semester, incorporating my suggestions and additional research.
Rough Drafts:
September 28 - Groups # 1 & 2
October 3 - Groups # 3 & 4
October 5 - Group # 5
The Final Version:
November 21 - Groups # 1 & 2
November 28 - Groups # 3 & 4
November 30 - Group # 5
Grading:
Each student will receive two grades for the presentation. One grade will be the group grade based on smooth organization, overall coherence, and tight teamwork (the group grade is derived from your grades on the rough and final versions). That will represent 40% of a student's grade. The second grade will be on each student’s part of the group presentation based on depth and accuracy of research and efficient delivery of appropriate information (the individual grade is derived in the same fashion as the group grade). That will represent 60% of a student's grade. The average of the two grades will comprise a student’s final grade on the presentation.
Remember:
Audiovisual aids are a plus but are not compulsory.
Get your facts right. Be sure you spell and pronounce Latin American names correctly.
Be current in your information.
