HLSS522 - Weapons of Mass Destruction and the New Terrorism

After successfully completing this course, you will be able to:

CO-1: Evaluate evidence that shows WMDs are used by terrorists.

CO-2: Analyze the effect of CBRN weapon use on targeted populations.

CO-3: Examine the potential effects of agroterrorism, as a sub-set of biological terrorism.

CO-4: Prepare a threat assessment for a CBRN event.

CO-5: Generate new ideas for WMD planning.

The course grade is based on the following assessments:

Discussion Forums – 20 percent

Each week, a discussion question is provided and posts should reflect an assimilation of the readings. Students are required to provide a substantive initial post by Thursday at 11:55 pm ET and respond to 2 or more classmates by Sunday 11:55 pm ET. Forum posts are graded on timeliness, relevance, knowledge of the weekly readings, and the quality of original ideas.

Research Question, Purpose Statement, and Literature Review Exercise – 15 percent

The components of this assignment include a research question, a purpose statement, and a literature review of at least 6 sources, two of which must be peer-reviewed. The specific research question should relate to a general topic in the course. 6-8 pages.

Research Paper – 35 percent

Adding to the 6-8 page assignment in Week Two, the research paper should be at least 10 additional pages of analysis of your topic, not including the cover page, the reference list, and any appendices.

Final Assignment – 30 percent

This assignment is a take-home essay assignment of 4 questions, 2-3 pages each, to test knowledge and assimilation of the course objectives. The exclusive use of required texts and readings from this course is mandatory.

All required readings are located in the Weekly Lessons area of the classroom.