Senior Seminar - CORE 390
Medical Practice and Ethics in China:
Integrative Medicine and Public Health in an Interconnected World

Beibei, China - Fall 2004

COURSE SYLLABUS

INSTRUCTOR: Dr. Henry JakubowskiSti

Under construction!

READING MATERIAL (required)

• Elements of Moral Philosophy, James Rachel.  Edition: 4th, May 2002 ; ISBN: 007282574X

• Cross Cultural Perspectives in Medical Ethics, Second Edition.  Robert M. Veatch, Ph.D., Kennedy Institute of Ethics, Georgetown University. ISBN: 0763713325;

• Web Readings

I will assign readings in advance 

COURSE OBJECTIVES

The Guidelines for Senior Seminar in Exploring the Human Condition: Guidelines for a Joint Core Curriculum state that give the student:

• an understanding of the role that empirical information plays in justifying moral judgment
• an ability to sort relevant form irrelevant data
• an understanding of relationships
• an ability to assess the cogency of arguments
• an appreciation of the implications of claims
• an ability to analyze concepts
• an appreciation of and ability to use contextual thinking
• an ability to image vividly the impact of events and decisions upon the needs, perceptions, and desires of others.
• an appreciation of emotions ion the decision making process
• an ability to identify and assess normative components of issues
• an ability to clarity the relationship between an issue and one’s own values.

Many  of these can be summarized in the first objective below.  The main objectives of this course are to:

1. increase your critical thinking skills of students as you explore moral questions dealing with medical and public heath issues. 
2. help students better articulate and substantiate, through discussion and writing, their own views about these moral issues.  

In order to analyze, synthesize and evaluate complex situation, students must first learn relevant facts and ideas, translate them in meaningful ways, interpret information by forming relationships among different ideas, and apply their understanding to new problems.  Any topics could be used to facilitate the acquisition of critical thinking skills, but you will apply our new skills to an understanding of biomedical and public health issues.  It is impossible to develop logical and morally defensible ideas without understanding the basic information of a field.   You need content to develop and defend your ideas.  

MY PHILOSOPHY ON INTEGRATION OF SENIOR  SEMINAR AND STUDY ABROAD IN BEIBEI

A Senior Seminar course offered in China must be different than the same Senior Seminar offered at CSB/SJU.  Obviously two major goals of your China experience are to immerse yourself and get to know Chinese culture and to develop relationships with Chinese people.  At the same time, it is important to fulfill the requirements of a senior seminar course.  You must be held accountable for both.  Hence your grade for Senior Seminar will reflect not only your efforts in Senior Seminar class, but your efforts in engaging in your Chinese experience.   

GROUP WORK - Learning Through Discussion (LTD)

Most of our class will involve small and large group discussions of assigned reading.  In LTD, you must first relate what the author stated, apply what you learned to other situations, and then evaluate the new ideas.  These steps involve memory, analysis, synthesis and evaluation.  We will follow a specific format for LTD which will follow a specific thee-part plan.  The LTD plan was taken from the book, Learning Through Discussion, 3rd. edition, by Rabow et. al.(1994), which is out-of-print.

EVALUATION

• 20% class participation.   See descriptions of participation below. 
• 20% exam 1.  This will cover theories of moral philosophies
• 15% writing (individual and group) through the semester
• 5%  Let's Play Q and A (Orientation Meeting Participation/Activities)
• 20% final presentation/paper
• 20% engagement in China culture, activities, language.

Please note:  Disrespectful and rude behavior on your part toward the Chinese people and other participants on the trip will not only lower your grade for Senior Seminar, but might also jeopardize your very participation in the trip!

 ATTENDANCE POLICY

• Miss three classes, maximum grade B
• Miss four classes, maximum grade C
• Miss five classes, maximum grade D
• Miss six or more classes, maximum grade F.

GUIDELINES FOR PARTICIPATION

One days of discussion of assigned readings, everyone is expected to bring a discussion outline to class.  In addition, the following characteristics will be observed to determine the extent of your participation:

• Offer facts that are relevant but don’t explain how.
• Offer little extension beyond a simple comment of your ideas
• Offer ideas tangentially related to the reading and discussion

FINAL  PRESENTATION AND PAPER

Detailed Information on Final Paper/Presentation

STUDENT EXPECTATIONS

CHANGES IN COURSE/SYLLABUS

I reserve the right to change the course and syllabus during the semester to accommodate changes in the course that I deem necessary to improve it.

Last update on 04/29/2007