A. What is this course about?
Cathedral High School's Course Catalog of 2009 - 2010 briefly describes the Christian Justice course as follows:
Christian Justice takes a positive approach towards matters of Justice. The course aims at inspiring hope,
not simply analyzing injustice. Students will discuss, write, research and reflect on justice issues in their
lives and the lives of others.
As part of a four year Religious Studies curriculum, Christian Justice follows the "Growing in Christian Morality" course presented in the second semester of the Sophomore year. As sophomores, the students examined individual moral, focusing on the
development of virtue and character and moral
decision-making. This course logically follows the Christian Morality course, because the Church teaches that a Catholic Christian's morality is not and cannot be a matter of an isolated individual. In their 1998 document "Sharing Catholic Social Teaching: Challenges and Directions," the Catholic Bishops of the United States declared:
Catholic social teaching is a central and essential element of our faith. Its roots are in the Hebrew prophets who announced God's special love for the poor and called God's people to a covenant of love and justice. It is a teaching founded on the life and words of Jesus Christ, who came "to bring glad tidings to the poor . . . liberty to captives . . . recovery of sight to the blind"(Lk 4:18-19), and who identified himself with "the least of these," the hungry and the stranger (cf. Mt 25:45). Catholic social teaching is built on a commitment to the poor. This commitment arises from our experiences of Christ in the eucharist.
B. What will we cover in this course?
The topics covered include:
- The Scriptures and Justice
- Catholic Social Teaching
- Doing Justice
- Choosing Life
- Building Community
- Working with Dignity
- Living the Good Life: Breaking the Cycle of Poverty
- Living the Good Life: Sharing God's goodness
- Respect for the Earth
- Waging Peace
C. How will we know if we're learning anything?
By the end of the semester, you should be able to understand all of the following:
- THINK (about justice issues happening in your life, in the school, in the Church, and in the world)
- Be proficient at expressing and defending your own beliefs and the positions of the Roman Catholic Church
- Have a better understanding of who Christ is and how your faith has an impact on your actions
- Have a critical understanding of the basis of the positions of the Roman Catholic Church, especially those surrounding justice and peace.
- Begin practicing justice as an ACTION through the way you treat others and live life.
D. How are we going to learn all of this?
- New concepts and information are introduced and explored using, teacher presentation,, group discussions, student reading and discovery activities, board displays & videos.
- The understanding of concepts, information, and skills takes place in the discussion of previous homework, projects, quizzes and tests.
- Instructional materials include notes, use of chalkboard, handouts, illustrations, bulletin board, films and guest speakers.
- Students will take class notes and keep them for reference and study.
- Students will write paragraphs or compositions on topics being taught.
- Students will synthesize what they have learned by studying for quizzes and tests.
- Students will reinforce their learning by doing make-up work and improving poor work.
E. What do I need for this class?
- Pen(s)
- College Ruled Paper
- Binder or folder (Handouts will typically come with 3 holes punched in them.)
- Textbook: Living Justice and Peace: Catholic Social Teaching in Practice , by Jerry Windley-Daoust (St. Mary's Press, © 2002)
- Access to the Internet (at home or at school)
- Every week during the regular semester, you may access online course resources from the teacher's Moodle site to see what work is going on in the class. Some assignments need to be done online. Late-breaking information will be posted there.
- The Bible, while not a required textbook for everyday use, will be occasionally used. It's a good idea for you to keep it in your locker.
- Your attention
F. How will my work be graded?
Your grade is determined by the percentage of total points you earn.
a) 90 -100 A (excellent to superior work)
b) 80 - 89 B (very good to excellent work)
c) 70 - 79 C (acceptable to very good work)
d) 60 - 69 D (almost failing to almost passing)
Grade points come from everything we do:
- Homework / Classwork / Project(s) 30% - A significant amount of work will be done online.
- Quizzes: 30% (Many of them will be online and will require to to complete them before class.)
- Tests: 30%
- Semester Exam: 10%
G. Some Rules
In addition to standard school rules, the teacher expects the following
- Use your common sense.
- Complete all written assignments and blog entries on time according to instructions.
- Demonstrate thought and comprehension of the subject matter through your written exercises and in class discussions and support personal positions when asked to do so.
- Demonstrate compassion, understanding, and patience in dealing with all members of the class.
- Come to class prepared. (If you are absent or have an early out, you should be able to catch up by checking what you missed on the Weekly Plans, the class blog, from the teacher, or a classmate.)
- Actively participate in the class activities. You should participate at least once during a regular period or block.
- Be in your seats when the bell rings. You will need to orient the seats to face the front of the classroom at the beginning of class and put them back before the end of class.
- Be respectful of yourself and all others in the room. Respect the property of others.
- Keep your feet off the desk in front of yours.
- When, in the course of answering questions out of the textbook for homework, be sure to include the question in the answer, using complete sentences (with no run-ons or sentence fragments). Avoid "parroting" what was said in the text or other assignment.
- The teacher, not the bell, dismisses the class. Avoid putting away your books early.
- Do your best, and don't give up.
|
