Grading and Policies

Grading Format

The course will be FAS letter-graded. Grades will be based on:

• 40% - Homework Assignments
• 30% - Final Project
• 20% - Class Attendance and Critique
• 10% - Final Course document

Collaboration and Academic Integrity

Discussion and the exchange of ideas are essential to academic work. You are encouraged to discuss and exchange ideas with your peers, the instructional staff and others while preparing for class discussions or working on assignments. In this course, you are also encouraged to explore the use of artificial intelligence (AI) tools such as ChatGPT in all assignments that you see fit (including plugins, extensions, and external platforms such as Hugging Face). Visit Harvard’s IT website to learn about current guidelines, tools, and news on AI within the College. See also Harvard's general policies on AI. Any such use must be appropriately acknowledged and cited.

• It is important to ensure that any work you submit for evaluation is the result of your own research and writing and that it reflects your own approach to a topic, unless it is explicitly marked as a group assignment. It is each student’s responsibility to assess the validity and applicability of any AI tool output that is submitted. Violations of this policy will be considered academic misconduct. Please note that the AI policy for this course reflects our specific goals.
• Different courses in the College will have a wide range of policies based on the goals of those courses, and I hope that you’ll reach out to me if at any point you’re unclear about what our policy is or why.
• We may change the AI policy during the semester, as our understanding of their role changes.

You should clearly identify the results of your own research and writing and specify any external sources of information, including AI tools, specific conversations with classmates and others that influenced your submitted work, including the College’s Writing Center as well as any books, articles, websites, online lecture videos, etc. that have helped you with your work. In the case of group projects and assignments, you will also be asked to prepare a group statement providing attribution details of each group member. Failure to document your sources or acknowledge contributions (especially amongst peers) will be considered as an ethical lapse. You must also adhere to standard citation practices whenever you use external sources of information. If you have any questions or concerns, please consult Harvard’s Writing with Sources.

Accommodations for Students with Disabilities

Students needing academic adjustments or accommodations because of a documented disability must contact the Disability Access Office (DAO). Students should request accommodations as early as possible, since they may take time to implement. Failure to do so may result in the Course Head's inability to respond in a timely manner. Students should notify DAO at any time during the semester if adjustments to their communicated accommodation plan are needed.

Inclusion and Belonging Statement

In the context of the classroom, we respect a student’s identity, including but not limited to race, gender, socioeconomic status, sexuality, intellectual ability, and religious beliefs. Every student should feel welcome to engage with the course’s material, even if the content appears to fall outside of one’s disciplinary background and abilities, communicate freely with classmates and the teaching staff. If something is said or done by anyone in class or in a meeting outside of class that makes you uncomfortable, or if there is course material that feels inappropriate, please talk or communicate with me, even if anonymously. Your feedback in accomplishing these goals is valuable.