<p>I signed up to take UH101 Moral Forum, a class that interests me greatly. However, I’m curious as to how this class is graded. Do only the finalists get A’s, or is it possible for everybody to make an A? I would rather take another UH101 if getting a good grade is almost impossible.</p>
<p>My professor is Stephen Black.</p>
<p>Thank you very much!</p>
<p>I can’t answer your question, but would you mind explaining to me what you mean by finalist?</p>
<p>My son is a TA in Moral Forum and was a 2010 finalist in the debate tournament that is the centerpiece of the course. All finalists in the 2010 tournament were awarded $2,000 for their achievement. </p>
<p>I’ll ask him about grading and will post his response as soon as I get it.</p>
<p>This is a fabulous, challenging course, and Stephen Black is an innovative catalyst for positive social change.</p>
<p>I notice Stephen Black continues to be involved in many such ‘service-based learning’ classes at UA over the years.</p>
<p>As malanai mentioned, there’s a debate tournament that is a part of the course! Seems like a lot of fun but I would hate for my grade to be based off that in the case that I don’t do well.</p>
<p>malanai, thank you for asking your son! And congrats to him for doing so well.</p>
<p>Ok, I just got off the phone with my son and here’s the scoop. If you do the reading, participate in class, write well and can articulate your arguments, you can get an A even if you bomb out in the first round of the tournament.</p>
<p>My son urged me to say that it’s an awesome course, he’d love for you to take it, and you shouldn’t worry at all about getting a good grade if you’re a student who’s willing to work and learn. Again, your grade is not linked to your performance in the tournament.</p>
<p>This is by far the coolest thing I’ve ever heard of. I’m my high school debate captain, and this sounds like a blast. Is it open to freshmen?</p>
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<p>Absolutely! My son took it his very first semester at UA. One of the cool things about this course is that Stephen Black brings back students from this class to be TA’s. The position is called Moral Forum Scholar and the students selected for this position get 1 Honors College credit, though it’s really a labor of love. My son was a Moral Forum Scholar last year and will serve as one again this year.</p>
<p>Do you know how the formatting for the debate works?</p>
<p>Here you go: [Debate</a> Rules and Judging | CESR](<a href=“http://cesr.ua.edu/initiatives/moral-forum/debate-rules-and-judging/]Debate”>http://cesr.ua.edu/initiatives/moral-forum/debate-rules-and-judging/)</p>
<p>Also this: <a href=“http://cesr.ua.edu/initiatives/moral-forum/goals-of-moral-forum/[/url]”>http://cesr.ua.edu/initiatives/moral-forum/goals-of-moral-forum/</a></p>
<p>Thanks so much for all this info! Son was under the impression that the course was only good for those who were Debate Team in high school.</p>
<p>Glad to hear it is more open than that.</p>
<p>FWIW, my son had never debated in his life (other than with his parents 
) prior to this course. He and his partner, both freshmen, lost in the finals to a pair of juniors who’d been members of their high school debate team. The final debate was very cool. It was held before the general public in an auditorium and covered by the school newspaper. The finalists were required to wear business attire.</p>
<p>What this course is really all about is a rigorous immersion in critical thinking. </p>
<p>BTW, participants in this course can either choose their debate partner or opt for random assignment. My son, knowing nobody, opted for the latter and scored with a terrific young man from Alabama.</p>
<p>Also, for those of you unfamiliar with Stephen Black’s pedigree, he is the grandson of former U.S. Supreme Court Justice Hugo Black.</p>
<p>[Fall</a> 2012: The Individual Mandate | CESR](<a href=“http://cesr.ua.edu/initiatives/moral-forum/fall-2012-the-individual-mandate/]Fall”>http://cesr.ua.edu/initiatives/moral-forum/fall-2012-the-individual-mandate/)</p>
<p>There is a syllabus on this page from last fall that explains grading in great detail.</p>