Writing assignment

It is recalled that it is a first research work. This means that an excessively loose approach to the issue is not valid, and that hypotheses have to be well-founded on data and sources with scientific significance. It is most important to strictly select bibliography; very particularly, the information found on webpages not coming from a reliable source shall be discarded. Selected references should provide an overview of the topic as well as guidance on how to address the problem which is proposed for study. Copying and pasting is not, obviously, admissible: plagiarism –furthermore easily discernible– would be severely penalised.

Participation in the forums

It is the timeliness and quality of interventions –and not just the total number of posts– what will be taken into consideration and valued.

As stated in "Plan de trabajo", participation in the forums has not specific regulations or requirements but materials should be read and posts (some of the posts) should demonstrate that materials have been indeed read. A number of interventions of the kind "I found this piece of news/document that I am sharing..." is not enough to fulfil the requisite of participation.

No assessment test is required. The final grade is obtained from the participation in the virtual classroom (weighted with 25%) and the writing assignment (weighted with 75%).

In spite of its weight in the final grade, working continuously during the semester is an obligatory task and the course cannot be passed without satisfying adequately this requirement. Forums are closed at the end of the semester (last week of final tests) and, unlike the writing assignment, the task cannot be performed during the holiday season. Therefore, the rule is clear: those who have not participated timely (from the beginning of the semester) and actively in the forums cannot pass the course. Please keep this very important caveat in mind.