Collin College

Russian 1411.S1Y
Spring 2017
Course Syllabus
COURSE INFORMATION

Course Number: RUSS1411 (S1Y)

Course Title: Beginning Russian I
Course Description: An introduction to the four basic skills of speaking, reading,
writing, and listening. Beginning Russian I is intended for students with little or no
prior training in the language. The course includes an introduction to the Russian
culture. Instruction is enhanced by the use of audio and video materials. No
prerequisites.
Course Credit Hours: 4
Prerequisite: None
Student Learning Outcomes
Upon successful completion of this course, students will:
1. Engage in conversations using level-appropriate grammatical structures including
narrating events that take place in the present and producing questions and
responses on a variety of topics dealing with everyday life.
2. Demonstrate understanding of level-appropriate spoken Russian.
3. Write simple sentences and organize them into short paragraphs.
4. Read and comprehend level-appropriate texts.
5. Identify and discuss Russian traditions, customs and values.
6. Compare and contrast Russian traditions, customs and values with
characteristics of their own culture.
College Repeat Policy
Repeat Policy: Beginning Fall 2016, Texas residents attempting a course more than
twice at Collin College are subject to regular tuition plus an additional $50 per semester
credit hour. Please see the Repeating Courses section of the Fall 2016 Registration
Guide for more information.
Withdrawal Policy
The last day to withdraw is March 17. It is the students responsibility to formally
withdraw if unable to complete this course. If you drop the course before the census date
(January 30), you will not receive a grade of any kind for this course. If you withdraw from
the course after the census date, a grade of W will appear on your transcript and it will
count as one attempt toward the repeat policy.

Course Policies
Disruptive behavior will not be tolerated. Disruptive behavior includes, but is not limited, to
the following: interfering with teaching by talking with other students during directed
instruction, preparing work for another class, engaging in social networking activities
such as texting, talking on the phone, and web browsing from laptops, smart phones, or
any other electronic devices during class time. Cell phones must be turned off during
class. The use of laptops is not allowed in class.
ACADEMIC ETHICS
Every member of the Collin College community is expected to maintain the highest
standards of academic integrity. Collin College may initiate disciplinary proceedings
against a student accused of scholastic dishonesty. Scholastic dishonesty includes, but
is not limited to, statements, acts, or omissions related to applications for enrollment or
the award of a degree, and/or the submission of ones own work material that is not
ones own. Scholastic dishonesty may involve, but is not limited to, one or more of the
following acts: cheating, plagiarism, collusion, use of annotated texts or teachers
editions, use of information about exams posted on the Internet or electronic medium,
and/or falsifying academic records. While specific examples are listed below, this is not
an exhaustive list and scholastic dishonesty may encompass other conduct, including
any conduct through electronic or computerized means:
Plagiarism is the use of an authors words or ideas as if they were ones own without
giving credit to the source, including, but not limited to, failure to acknowledge a direct
quotation.
Cheating is the willful giving or receiving of information in an unauthorized manner
during an examination;, collaborating with another student during an examination
without authority; using, buying, selling, soliciting, stealing, or otherwise obtaining
examination questions in advance, copying computer or Internet files, using someone
elses work for assignments as if it were ones own;, or any other dishonest means of
attempting to fulfill the requirements of a course.
Collusion is intentionally or unintentionally aiding or attempting to aid another in an act
of scholastic dishonesty, including but not limited to, failing to secure academic work;,
providing a paper or project to another student; providing an inappropriate level of
assistance; communicating answers to a classmate during an examination or any other
course assignment; removing tests or answer sheets from a test site, and allowing a
classmate to copy answers.
In cases where an incident report has been filed for alleged violation of scholastic
dishonesty, faculty are requested to delay posting a grade, for the academic work in
question, until the Dean of Students Office renders an administrative decision of the
case. Students found responsible for scholastic dishonesty offenses will receive an
authorized disciplinary penalty from the Dean of Students Office. The student may also
receive an academic penalty in the course where the scholastic dishonesty took place.
The professor will determine the appropriate academic penalty.

Americans with Disabilities Act

Collin College will adhere to all applicable federal, state and local laws, regulations and
guidelines with respect to providing reasonable accommodations as required to afford
equal opportunity. It is the students responsibility to contact the ACCESS office, SCC
G200 or 972.881.5898 (V/TTD: 972.881.5950) to arrange for appropriate
accommodations. See the current Collin Student Handbook for additional information.
INSTRUCTOR INFORMATION

Professor: Dulce de Castro

Office Number: BB209, Spring Creek Campus
On-Campus Office Hours
Monday and Wednesday: 10:50 a.m. 12:50 p.m.
Online Office Hours
Tuesday: 8:30 a.m. 10:30 a.m. and by appointment.
Office Phone Number: 972-881-5824
Email: ddecastro@collin.edu (Please use this email address only if the server is down. You
should communicate with me through Canvas email.)
Class Information
Section Number: S1Y
Meeting Times / Location: Monday and Wednesday from 1:00 p.m. to 2:15 p.m., B111
(SCC).
Required Materials
Textbook (packaged with the Online Activities Manual): Troika, Second Edition by
Marita Nummikoski
ISBN: 9781118730102
Method of Evaluation
Class Participation
10%
Quizzes
15%
Exams
25%
Final Exam
10%
Online/Written Assignments and Practice Quizzes
20%
Presentations, Oral Activities, Voice and Text Chat
15%
Oral Exam
5%
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------100%
Grading Scale
100-90 = A

89-80 = B

79-70 = C

69-60 = D

59 and below = F

Minimum Technology Requirement

You will need to have regular and reliable access to a computer and the Internet since
some assignments, quizzes, and exams are online. In addition, you will need a headset
with a microphone or a computer with a built-in microphone.
Netiquette Expectations
Standards of courtesy and respect must be maintained at all times in our online
classroom. As a student, you are asked to show respect and consideration when
communicating with other students and your instructor via email, voice/text chat,
discussion board, or any other online communication tool. Violations of the standards of
appropriate behavior online will be reported to the Dean of Students and appropriate
disciplinary action will be taken by the college.
Standards for Instructor Response and Availability
If you need to email me, I prefer that you contact me via Canvas email. If the Canvas
server is down, you can use the following email address to contact me:
ddecastro@collin.edu. You should expect a reply from me within 24 hours. I usually do not
check emails on weekends. Please take advantage of my office hours. I am also
available by appointment if my office hours do not suit you.
Attendance
Students are allowed two free absences. If a student is absent four or more times
(including the two free absences) and the absences are unexcused, the student will
forfeit all points of the participation grade. An absence from class is considered
unexcused with the exception of the following: personal or family illness requiring
physician assistance/hospitalization, school-sponsored activity, religious holiday or
death of a family member. Documentation must be provided within two class days after
return to class.
Habitual or excessive tardiness will adversely affect the participation grade. If a student
leaves before the end of class, he or she will forfeit participation points for that day.
Participation
Class participation is a vital part of your language-learning experience and it counts 10
percent of your grade in the course. Daily preparation before class will result in good
class performance and successful language learning. Good class participation requires
both regular attendance and actual involvement in all class activities and assignments.
However, perfect attendance does not automatically guarantee a perfect participation
grade. As explained above, if a student misses four or more classes, he or she will
receive a zero for class participation.
Exams and Quizzes
There will be several quizzes and four exams: Chapter 1 Exam, Chapter 2 Exam,
Chapter 3 Exam, and Chapter 4 Exam. In addition, there will be a comprehensive final
exam.

The quizzes and exams must be completed by the deadlines indicated in the course
schedule. There will be no make-up exams or quizzes except under the circumstances
listed above under Attendance. To make up an exam or quiz, the student must provide
proper documentation. The lowest exam score and the lowest quiz score will be
dropped. The final exam will not be dropped.
PLEASE DO NOT ACCESS ANY EXAM OR QUIZ UNLESS YOU ARE READY TO
TAKE IT. If you access an exam or a quiz and then close your browser or abandon the
exam or the quiz without submitting your answers, you will get a zero for that exam or
quiz and you will not be allowed to retake it. YOU MUST NOT ACCESS ANY EXAM OR
QUIZ MORE THAN ONCE UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES.
You are expected to complete all of the exams and quizzes without using your textbook
or any notes or assistance from anybody or from any source. Scholastic dishonesty is
an unacceptable mode of conduct. Cheating on an exam or quiz in this course will be
dealt with according to Collin College policy on scholastic dishonesty. All of the exams
and quizzes are timed. If you prepare well, you should have enough time to complete
them.
Presentations
Students are expected to do at least three presentations. The presentations will be
based on topics chosen by the instructor or by the student with prior instructor approval.
Voice and Text Chat / Oral Activities
Starting on the third week of classes, you should spend a total of 30 minutes a week
interacting with classmates via voice chat and text chat. For example, you could spend
20 minutes a week on voice chat and 10 minutes a week on text chat. The activities for
voice and text chat are posted in Canvas. On the Discussion Board (under Voice and
Text Chat), you need to post the time(s) and day(s) when you are available to chat.
You will make several audio recordings, which are described under Oral Activities on
the course page in Canvas. The instructions for doing these recordings are also posted
in Canvas.
Oral Exam
The oral exam will be based on the topics and oral activities covered in the course. The
instructions for the oral exam are posted on the course page in Canvas.
Online Assignments and Written Exercises
For each chapter you need to complete the assigned online exercises and written
exercises.
To access the Activities Manual online assignments, you need to create a Quia account.
To set up the account, you need to provide the COURSE CODE, which is TBTB799.
The instructions on how to set up an account are posted in Canvas.

Course Schedule
The course schedule is subject to change at the discretion of the instructor. The
instructor reserves the right to make changes to the syllabus as needed. Students will
be informed of any changes at the earliest date possible.
WEEK 1 (January 17-22)
Wednesday: Introduction; Russian alphabet
WEEK 2 (January 2329)
Monday: Russian alphabet
Wednesday: Russian alphabet
WEEK 3 (January 30 February 5)
Monday: Russian alphabet
Wednesday: Russian alphabet
The online reading alphabet exercises, the alphabet practice quizzes, and the
alphabet quizzes are due on Sunday, February 5.
WEEK 4 (February 6-12)
Monday: Chapter 1
Wednesday: Chapter 1
WEEK 5 (February 13-19)
Monday: Chapter 1
Wednesday: Chapter 1
WEEK 6 (February 2026)
Monday: Chapter 1
Wednesday: Chapter 1
Cursive writing exercises, Chapter 1 assignments, Chapter 1 quizzes, Oral
Activity 1, Oral Activity 2, and Oral Activity 3 are due on Saturday, February 25.
Chapter 1 Exam is due on Sunday, February 26.
WEEK 7 (February 27 - March 5)
Monday: Chapter 2
Wednesday: Chapter 2
WEEK 8 (March 6-12): SPRING BREAK
WEEK 9 (March 13-19)
Monday: Chapter 2
Wednesday: Chapter 2

WEEK 10 (March 20-26)

Monday: Chapter 2
Wednesday: Chapter 2
Chapter 2 assignments, Chapter 2 quizzes, Oral Activity 4, Oral Activity 5, Oral
Activity 6, and Oral Activity 7 are due on Saturday, March 25.
Chapter 2 Exam is due on Sunday, March 26.
WEEK 11 (March 27 - April 2)
Monday: Chapter 3
Wednesday: Chapter 3
WEEK 12 (April 3-9)
Monday: Chapter 3
Wednesday: Chapter 3
WEEK 13 (April 10-16)
Monday: Chapter 3
Wednesday: Chapter 3
Chapter 3 assignments, Chapter 3 quizzes, Oral activity 8, and Oral Activity 9 are
due on Saturday, April 15.
Chapter 3 Exam is due on Sunday, April 16.
WEEK 14 (April 17-23):
Monday: Chapter 4
Wednesday: Chapter 4
WEEK 15 (April 2430)
Monday: Chapter 4
Wednesday: Chapter 4
WEEK 16 (May 1-7)
Monday: Chapter 4
Wednesday: Chapter 4; Oral Exam
Chapter 4 assignments, Chapter 4 quizzes, Oral activity 10, and Oral Activity 11
are due on Thursday, May 4.
Chapter 4 Exam is due on Friday, May 5.
WEEK 17
FINAL EXAM: Wednesday, May 10.