Each student will participate in at least two presentations during the course of the term.  Each presentation will be a joint effort by two partners, and for each presentation you will have a different partner.  This will give the professor a better chance to evaluate each student individually without placing too heavy a presentational burden on anyone.  You also learn at least as much from each other as you might from me, so the more I spread you out in this fashion, the more your educational opportunities are enhanced.

Very early in the term we will determine a schedule according to which everyone will know when they are to present.  Ideally, what you are to present will emerge as the course unfolds.  In a less ideal scenario, I will assign topics from start to finish.  For the first few weeks, I am quite happy to assign topics.

Early presentations will focus on Cox & Kastan's New History of Early English Drama.

The immediate purpose of each presentation is to spark class discussion.  You should introduce new information, or call into question seemingly obvious interpretations or assumed knowledge.  You might also lead the class through discussion of an essay  in order to ensure we all understand it: you as well as any of the rest of us.  That is, you are not expected to master the material you present.  You are welcome to come to class as befuddled as the rest of us, and to rely on the familiarity developed through multiple readings of the material to prompt thoughtful, insightful questions.  Alternatively, you might want to lead the class through the "staging" of a scene in order to enhance our understanding of the play, or of particular difficulties likely to be encountered when the text is brought into the theatre.

Not less than one class before the class in which you present you are required to submit to the professor a digital copy of the presentation for posting to the class website.  You will be able to, and are encouraged to, use this material during your presentation in class.  Each student's grade for the presentation will be an average of the grade s/he receives for both her or his presentations.  While you are encouraged to use this material as part of your presentation, it must be self-sufficient, by which I mean a person not in the class should be able to access it via the web and understand it, and gain from it.

The digital submission may be entirely or only partly textual, with the balance of the submission consisting of material appropriate to the format of web-based communication (e.g. still or video images, sound files, interactive forms, etc.).  In this, you are encouraged to be playful and to use your imagination, without violating the reasonable level of decorum appropriate to the university classroom.  In any event, the textual portion of this submission should be roughly equivalent to two pages per student (i.e. approximately 4 - 5 pp. if it were a traditionally formatted academic essay).

You should also be sure to consult Erin Patterson, the Liaison Librarian for the Department of English, about issues of copyright if you collect material for your submission rather than generating it yourself.