Directions (These directions are detailed and will be the same for every week, but be sure to read and reference them carefully for the first few weeks until you get the hang of it!):

Utilizing the provided template and using primarily the textbook, provide detailed but concise (4-6 bullet-points) summaries for each section for each assigned religion for that unit. Each week you are to cover only the assigned religions of the unit. In other words, you are not free to write about any religion; you must write about the religions studied during each particular week.  Each religion should be summarized in a separate column. Here are some general guidelines that apply every week:

1. Use the template provided below. You may need to modify the template by adding columns in order to cover the required number of religions for any given week.  You may also freely modify the format to personalize it to your liking, just keep it clean, clear, and professional looking. I also included a sample from a former student for one column of one chart to give you an idea of what a good one looks like.

2. Sources:  The textbook should be your primary source of information.  However, you may want to fill in some gaps for some of the information.  If Molloy, for example, does not go into detail about a particular religion’s rituals, sacred places, or views about the afterlife, then in such cases, seek out quality academic sources from credible religious experts.  Just make sure that you reference your textbook as your primary source whenever possible, but by all means utilize other sources when necessary.  Primary areas that are overlooked by students are cosmogony beliefs (i.e., what does the religion teach about the origins of the universe and humanity) and historical development through time with dates noted for significant events. Each source must be a credible source worthy of being cited for an academic assignment. This means the source must be an e-book or peer-reviewed scholarly journal article. You will find such sources available to you in electronic format through the library (http://park.edu/library/index.htmlLinks to an external site.). You can also use Google Scholar to search to find article PDFs published through open-access sources such as Researchgate.net and Academia.edu. These sources must be academic sources written by academically qualified experts in the field. Work that cites sources outside of these parameters will not receive credit!

3. Cite your Sources. You need not provide direct quotes. This project should be in bullet-list format in your own words, but for facts included from sources outside of the textbook use in-text citations and provide a Works Cited at the bottom of the page to identify your sources. Citations should be in complete, proper MLA or APA format with a clickable hyperlink URL at the end of the reference.This means that at a minimum you will include author, date, article/page title, source title, and a clickable URL for each source. For example: Brewer Douglas J. and Emily Teeter. Religion in the Lives of the Ancient Egyptians. Fathom Archive. 2002. Web. Oct. 3 2015. <http://fathom.lib.uchicago.edu/1/777777190168>

4. Please use a uniform font (e.g., Times New Roman 12-pt).  You do not have to use complete sentences, but you need to spell correctly, capitalize correctly, and avoid typos.  Be succinct, but thorough with specific examples. Do not say, The Greek religion had many gods and goddess Instead, identify some of the key deities in the Greek pantheon. The expectation is 4-6 bullets of information in each block.

5. No late work is accepted for the weekly projects, unless pre-approved. If you miss a week, then you will receive 0/20 for the weekly grade.

6. Also, for this all all files that you submit, please include your name in the file name, e.g., “Doe.John.ReligionChart1.doc”). Note, all files must be submitted in Word format using the provided template.

7. Do your own work! I have failed students for submitting charts copied from former students. Please have integrity and help protect the integrity of the course by always doing your own work and never sharing your work with others.

The goal is for this to become a quick-reference tool for you in the future, so be specific with examples and definitions.

All sources must be properly cited, including the text.  ALWAYS cite your sources.  Discovered plagiarism may result in loss of credit for submitted work. Also, be advised that the charts are submitted through Turnitin to check for plagiarism. We are having students using Course Hero and other sites to submit plagiarized content, so we are going to have to police it more closely. When you submit your assignment through Turnitin, you will be able to see your Turnitin originality report, which provides you with a score. This score reflects the percentage of your work that is not original. This number cannot be higher than 30% for the charts. If it is, you will receive an automatic zero. I am allowing the relatively high score of 30% to account for the fact that the text within the template itself is going to be flagged and contribute to the score because all students are using the same template. If you submit and your score is over 30%, then you need to go back and reduce the amount of borrowed information. Rewrite sections using your own wording. Then resubmit your assignment and recheck your score. Repeat this process until your score is below 30%. You can revise and resubmit 3 times and get your score back relatively quickly after submitting; however after three re-submissions, Turnitin will require 24 hours to return your score. Govern yourselves accordingly.
Religions Chart Template.docxPreview the document

Sample of a Student’s Chart (Note: this chart is a bit more detailed than necessary, but notice how neatly organized it is and how every bullet of information has the in-text citation showing where the information can be found in the source <Note: If link does not work, you can find the chart in the Course Files folder)