NORTH CENTRAL TEXAS COLLEGE
COURSE SYLLABUS
COURSE AND INSTRUCTOR INFORMATION
Course title: Music Appreciation
Course prefix, number, and section number: MUSI 1306.590
Semester/Year of course: Fall 2025
Semester start and end dates: August 25-December 12, 2025
Modality (Face to face/Synchronous or Asynchronous online/Hybrid): Face to face
Class meeting location, days, and times: Flower Mound, Room 206, TR 2:00-3:20pm
Lab meeting location, days, and times: N/A Semester credit hours: 3
Course description: Understanding music through the study of cultural periods, major composers, and musical elements. Illustrated with audio recordings and live performances. (Does not apply to a music major degree.) 48 lecture hours. Meets NCTC Core Curriculum Requirement.
Course prerequisites: N/A
Required course materials: Understanding Music: Past and Present, ISBN 978-1-940771-33-5 (Textbook is free and online, and will be provided within the course - https://oer.galileo.usg.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1000&context=arts-textbooks).
Course may also use chapters from this secondary text, also free and online: Resonances: Engaging Music in Its Cultural Context, ISBN: 978-1-940771-31-1 - https://ung.edu/university-press/books/resonances-engaging-music.php).
Name of instructor: Dax Stokes
Office location: Flower Mound Campus Library, room 115A
Telephone number: (972) 899-9332; E-mail address: dstokes@nctc.edu;
Office hours for students: TBA
SYLLABUS CHANGE DISCLAIMER
The faculty member reserves the right to make changes to this published syllabus if it is in the best interest of the educational development of this class. Any such changes will be announced as soon as possible in person and/or writing.
SUMMARY OF COURSE ASSIGNMENTS
List of graded assignments: 7 Quizzes; 1 Group Project; 1 Performance Review; 1 Research Project; Participation grade.
Final grade scale: A=538-600; B=477-536; C=417-476; D=357-416; F=356 and below.
Late work policy: One make-up quiz is allowed by request. Contact instructor for any other accommodations.
SEE CANVAS FOR THE COMPLETE COURSE CALENDAR, OUTLINE, DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF GRADED WORK, AND OTHER RELATED MATERIAL.
COURSE POLICIES
Academic Integrity Policy: Scholastic dishonesty shall include, but is not limited to cheating, plagiarism, academic falsification, intellectual property dishonesty, academic dishonesty facilitation and collusion. Faculty members may document and bring charges against a student who is engaged in or is suspected to be engaged in academic dishonesty. See Student Handbook, “Student Rights & Responsibilities: Student Conduct ([FLB(LOCAL)]”. Consequences for academic dishonesty may include: 1) Failure of course; 2) Reporting to college administration
Classroom AI Policy: Use of AI generated text for writing assignments will result in an automatic failing grade on the assignment. Subsequent uses will follow the same procedures as the Academic Integrity Policy.
Attendance Policy: Attendance will be taken at each class and is imperative for a proper understanding of the course material.
Withdrawal Policy: A student may withdraw from a course on or after the official date of record. It is the student’s responsibility to initiate and complete a Withdrawal Request Form. Last day to withdraw from the course with a “W” is: Monday, April 7, 2025
Student Learning Outcomes: At the successful completion of this course the student will be able to: 1) Identify musical works and elements in a variety of styles; 2) Analyze the elements and structures of music using appropriate terminology; 3) Critically evaluate the influence of social, political, technological, and/or cultural ideas on music; 4) Articulate the significance of music as an art form within historical, cultural and social contexts.
Core Objectives: Critical Thinking; Teamwork; Communication; Social Responsibility
COLLEGE POLICIES
ADA STATEMENT
NCTC will adhere to all applicable federal, state, and local laws, regulations and guidelines with respect to providing reasonable accommodations to afford equal educational opportunity. It is the student’s responsibility to contact the Office for Students with Disabilities to arrange appropriate accommodations. See the OSD Syllabus Addendum.
AI STATEMENT
Absent a clear statement from a course instructor, use of or consultation with generative Artificial Intelligence (AI) or other similar technologies shall be treated analogously to assistance from another person, agency, or entity. In particular, using generative AI tools to substantially complete an assignment or exam is not permitted. Students should acknowledge the use of generative AI (other than incidental use) and default to disclosing such assistance when in doubt.
When students use generative AI to replace the rigorous demands of personal engagement with their coursework, it runs counter to the educational mission of the college and undermines the heart of education itself. Artificial Intelligence, large language models, and other such technologies hold promise for deploying knowledge in service to others and accelerating the discovery of new knowledge. However, such technology poses new challenges to pedagogy and to integrity. Within the context of the teaching mission of the college and consistent with the Student Code of Conduct, the authority to define the appropriate use, study, and deployment of these technologies rests with the faculty.
Individual course instructors, in coordination with their divisions, set policies regulating the use of generative AI tools in their courses, including allowing or disallowing some or all uses of such tools. Course instructors will set such policies in their course syllabi and clearly communicate such policies to students. Students who are unsure of policies regarding generative AI tools are encouraged to ask their instructors for clarification.
STUDENT HANDBOOK
Students are expected to follow all rules and regulations found in the Student Handbook.
STUDENT SERVICES
NCTC provides a multitude of services and resources to support students. See the Student Services Syllabus Addendum for a listing of those departments and links to their sites.
QUESTIONS, CONCERNS, or COMPLAINTS
The student should contact the instructor to deal with any questions, concerns, or complaints specific to the class. If the student and faculty are not able to resolve the issue, the student may contact the chair or coordinator of the division. If the student remains unsatisfied, the student may proceed to contact the instructional dean.
Name of Chair: Dr. Aaron Wood, Interim Division Chair, VPA
Office location: 2010 Performing Arts Center, Gainesville
Telephone number: (940) 668-3385
E-mail address: awood@nctc.edu
Name of Instructional Dean: Mary D. Martinson, Dean of Instruction & Learning Support
Office location: Library 1403, Gainesville Campus
Telephone number: 940-668-4209 ext. 4377
E-mail address: mmartinson@nctc.edu
Student Services Addenda
THE OFFICE FOR STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES
The Office for Students with Disabilities (OSD) provides accommodations for students with disabilities. OSD counselors and advisors also provide strategies for academic success; individual, career, and academic counseling services; referrals to campus and community services; and assistance with admission and registration.
Students with disabilities do not need to disclose their disabilities to college officials if they are not requesting any accommodations.
OSD is federally funded through the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Federal Grant.
NCTC is committed to making its degree and certificate programs accessible to all qualified persons in accordance with the Americans with Disabilities Act, ADA Amendments Act, and The Rehabilitation Act (1973), Section 504.
REQUEST SERVICES
New Students
Accommodations require preparation in advance. Please make your request before the semester begins to ensure complete coverage for the entire semester. You can certainly request accommodations after the semester starts, but please be aware that accommodations are not retroactive.Accommodations begin when OSD approves them. In other words, the sooner, the better.
*Documentation is required before any accommodations can be provided. Depending on your diagnosis, this documentation should come from a medical doctor, psychologist, or other licensed or properly credentialed professional.
Current Students
Contact the OSD at the beginning of each semester well in advance of registration.
Contact Us
Please reach out to us to schedule an intake or if you have questions or concerns.
Wayne Smith, OSD Manager, kwsmith@nctc.edu, (940) 498-6207
Yvonne Sandmann, OSD Advisor, ysandmann@nctc.edu, (940) 668-3300
https://www.nctc.edu/osd
LIBRARY
NCTC has brick-and-mortar libraries on the Gainesville, Corinth, Flower Mound, or Bowie campuses that are staffed by credentialed librarians wanting to help you succeed in your college career. All students are welcome at any library.
On campus? Visit our website www.nctc.edu/libraries.
Off-campus? Our research databases are now available in OneLogin.
For Virtual Assistance from a librarian, please use https://www.nctc.edu/ask-a-librarian or schedule a virtual appointment in Upswing, accessed through OneLogin.
Please visit www.nctc.edu/libraries for the operating hours, phone number, and email of the library nearest you.