History 2010: American People through Reconstruction Spring 2007
Instructor: Pete Roode peter.roode@gmail.com
phone 867- 3516 (cellphone may work occasionally 542-7781)
COURSE DESCRIPTION:
History 2010 is an introduction to U.S. history from the earliest inhabitants through Reconstruction. By the end of this course you should have gained a perspective on the development of the United States in the context of world history. The course focuses on central themes and issues in the development of American society and institutions by raising questions about human values, gender roles, economic growth, institutional change, cultural development, and political democracy as Americans have faced them. A variety of themes will be treated in this course: colonization and its impact on Native American society; the creation of a system of human slavery; the development of diverse cultures and economies among the various colonies; the American Revolution and its effects on U.S. society; the search for a suitable form of federal government; the formative experiences of the early national period and War of 1812; the growing and changing economy of the United States; the expanding role of women in society; the various reform movements of American history; U.S. expansionism; the causes and course of the Civil War; and Reconstruction
Textbook, The American Promise – third compact edition (referred to as AP in assignments below) At bedfordstmartins.com/roarkcompact, you will find a recommended study plan, self-quizzes, map activities and more.
Required reading: Narrative of Soujorner Truth unabridged Dover Thrift Edition
New York Times.
Additional supplemental short readings will be passed out in class
and / or sent out as e-mail attachments
and / or posted at http://hist2010-pete.blogspot.com/
and / or put on the course reserve on Voyager
EXAMS Midterm Examination: March 2
Final exam – Friday April 27 10:00-12:00
Scantron sheets are required for each exam (blue form #19641)
QUIZZES: May include all kinds of questions. Short answers & multiple choice & definitions & fill in the blanks & essays. They may be announced or unannounced, at any time after a reading assignment is due or a topic is covered in class. There are no make-ups on quizzes.
Grading - plus/minus system ( A, B+, B, B-, C+ …etc)
· 20%--Midterm Exam
· 30%--Final Exam
· 30%-- Quizzes
· 10% -- out of class essay
10% -- class participation and Notebook
If your grades up to the final are a solid “A” I will exempt you from the final
Deadlines
January 15 Last day to drop for a 100% refund
Last day to register without paying $100 late fee
January 17 Last day to register (late fee charged)
January 19 Last day to add a class
January 29 Last day for 75% refund deadline
Last day to drop without a grade
February 11 25% refund deadline
March 5 Last day to drop a course and receive a W
April 18 Deadline to withdraw from the University
Reasonable Accommodation for Students with Disabilities
If you have a disability that may require assistance or accommodation, or you have questions related to any accommodations for testing, note takers, readers, etc., please speak with me as soon as possible. Students may also contact the Office of Disabled Students Services (898-2783) with questions about such services.
A statement regarding Hope Scholarships
To retain Tennessee Education Lottery Scholarship eligibility, you must earn a cumulative TELS GPA of 2.75 after 24 attempted hours and a cumulative TELS GPA of 3.0 thereafter. A grade of C, D, F, or I in this class may negatively impact TELS eligibility. Dropping a class after 14 days may also impact eligibility; if you withdraw from this class and it results in an enrollment status of less than full time, you may lose eligibility for your lottery scholarship.
CLASS ATTENDENCE AND PARTICIPATION All students are expected to attend all class periods. Attendance will be taken at the beginning of every class period. It is the student’s responsibility to notify the instructor after class if s/he arrives after attendance has been taken. Students are only allowed 3 absences over the course of the semester. Any additional absences will be deducted (1 point for every additional absence) from the student’s participation grade. The decision to excuse absences for other reasons (such as student illness, university sponsored activity, or family death) lies solely with the instructor and requires documentation by a physician, team coach, faculty advisor, or dean.
Additionally the fact that a student may be absent from a class does not in any way relieve that student of the responsibility for the work covered or assigned during the absence. It is the student’s responsibility to turn in any work due on the day of the absence upon first returning to class. Participation in side conversations during class may have an effect on your participation grade. Conversations that distract or disrupt the class may result in the participants being expelled from class. Turn off your cell phones before class
If an emergency situation requires leaving class early notify the instructor before class.
Respect for other peoples’ views and ideas and courtesy to your classmates and the instructor are required.
COURSE NOTEBOOK – At the end of the semester your notebook will be graded on whether it is complete and thorough. Do you have all the handouts, notes, assignments, quizzes, etc that made up the course in your notebook? I suggest you keep the notebook organized from the beginning and update it regularly. Do you have just the outline I provide or have you filled in connections and definitions and explanations? Most of you must take notes in class to do well. If you have a memory that does not require notes and you demonstrate it on the tests I will grade your notebook with that in mind. If you don’t do as well on tests, this is an opportunity to demonstrate that you made a serious effort, and effort is considered in grades.
OUT OF CLASS ESSAY Each student will write a 3-5 page paper analyzing how a particular element (from the list below) changed over time, including an analysis of that element in American society today, as determined through your semester’s reading of articles in the New York Times. You may choose any of the following elements.
Role of Religion in American Life
War and Conflict in American Society
Balance of Power between State / Local and National / Federal Governments
Role of Women in American Society
America in the Global Economy
Race in American Society
•This paper must be typed, double-spaced, and written in clear, correct prose. It should be based on the assigned readings and class lectures as well as your reading of the New York Times. Additional outside research is not necessary.
•The first paragraph of your paper should include a short introduction to the material (to provide adequate context so that the general reader–Mom–would know what you’re talking about) as well as your thesis. There are stronger and weaker thesis statements. For example, “Women’s experiences during the Revolution and the Civil War were fundamentally the same” would be a weak thesis. Although it makes the argument that the two experiences are similar, it does not explain what makes them similar. A stronger thesis would be “Because women showed themselves to be competent in a broad range of activities during both the Revolution and the Civil War, they were able to expand their postwar social roles and education in both cases.” This thesis statement not only says why they are similar but how.
•The second, third, and fourth paragraphs of your paper should organize and present the historical evidence to prove your thesis. Each paragraph should have one main point/thesis, which reinforces the paper’s main thesis and which appears in the first sentence of the paragraph. All of the rest of the material in that paragraph should reinforce the paragraph’s thesis. In this case, each evidentiary paragraph will likely deal with a different period in which you are examining the role of your element in American life.
•The final paragraph of your paper should compare and contrast the role of your element in early American history to its role in contemporary (present-day) American life, based on your reading of the New York Times.
•Quotes can help strengthen your argument if used judiciously. Quotes from historical participants (e.g., Susan B. Anthony) can lend your paper a more authoritative tone and help prove your argument (it's much like calling witnesses in a trial to support your position). Quotes from historians or basic historical information, however, are not desirable; you should put this information in your own words. If you include a direct quote from the text, you must put it in quotation marks and include a parenthetical note giving me the source of the quotation--e.g., (RTAP, 245). All additional sources of information (including New York Times articles) must be listed at the end of the paper. Failure to do this may amount to plagiarism, which may result in a grade of "0" on the paper and a grade of "F" in the course (see more on this below under Statement of Academic Integrity).
•Get a draft of your paper done early. I am available to help you in formulating the ideas for your paper and to aid in the writing of it. I will read and comment upon any paper drafts up to 48 hours before they are due. Your paper will be graded according to the content and aptness of your ideas as well as the quality and accuracy of your writing (for example, there should be no spelling, typographical, or grammatical errors).
Writing Assignments Hard copies will be due at the beginning of class on the assigned date. An e-mail copy should be sent to hist2010@gmail.com with the paper attached in Microsoft Word format or pasted into the body of the e-mail. Late essays will receive reduced grades.
Plagiarism is the intentional copying of another person’s words (including another student’s) and submitting as one’s own words. Plagiarism will result in a grade of F on an assignment, and egregious offenses will place the student in jeopardy of receiving an F in the course.
Expected learning outcomes in survey classes
History expected learning:
1. Analyze historical facts and interpretations.
2. Analyze and compare political, geographic, economic, social, cultural, religious and intellectual institutions, structures, and processes across a range of historical periods and cultures.
3. Recognize and articulate the diversity of human experience across a range of historical periods and the complexities of a global culture and society; all of our work will explore the global position of our country.
4. Draw on historical perspective to evaluate contemporary problems/issues.
5. Analyze the contributions of past cultures/societies to the contemporary world.
This course fulfills the Learning Outcomes for a General Studies class.
OFFICE HOURS AND MEETINGS: I will usually be available in the History computer lab between 9:15 and 11:00. I will occasionally be doing copying, eating or other errands so you should make an appointment if you want to make sure to catch me. I’m also available right after class. I would strongly encourage meeting EARLY if you do not understand any of your grades. As the result of any such discussion I reserve the right to raise, lower or leave the grade the same.
Weekly Schedule - readings must be completed before class meetings
WEEK 1 : January 17 Introduction – America-in-the-world overview.
January 19 Ancient America AP chapter 1
WEEK 2 : January 22 Europeans Encounter the New World AP Chapter 2
January 24
January 26 Southern Colonies 17th Century AP, Chapter 3
WEEK 3 : January 29 last day to drop w/o grade
January 31 Reading “The Causes of Bacon’s Rebellion” Discussion: Historians, and Bacon’s Rebellion
February 2 Northern Colonies 17th Century AP Chapter 4
WEEK 4 : February 5 Reading "The Salem Witchcraft Scare" Discussion
February 7 Colonial America in Eighteenth Century AP Chapter 5
February 9
WEEK 5: February 12 British Empire & the Colonial Crisis AP Chapter 6
February 14 Inaccurate farmers / Geoffrey Perret. On Voyager course reserve (rood2010 pswd)
February 16 The War For America AP Chapter 7
WEEK 6 February 19
February 21 BUILDING A REPUBLIC 1775-1789 AP Chapter 8
February 23
WEEK 7: February 26 NEW NATION TAKES FORM 1789-1800 AP Chapter 9
February 28 Reading due: RTAP, "Women and the American Revolution” Class discussion
Republican Motherhood and Other Social Aspects of the Revolution
March 2 MIDTERM EXAM (March 5 last day to drop with W)
WEEK 8 March 12 Reading due: RTAP, "The Struggle Over the Constitution”
Class discussion: Understanding the Federalists and the Antifederalists
March 14 REPUBLICANS IN POWER 1800-1824 AP Chapter 10
March 16 reading: Land and Market. Charles Sellers voyager course reserve (rood2010 pswd)
WEEK 9 : March 19 EXPANDING REPUBLIC AP Chapter 11
March 21 Reading due: RTAP, “Andrew Jackson and Cherokee Removal” Class Discussion
March 23 NEW WEST & FREE NORTH AP Chapter 12
WEEK 10 : March 26 Narrative of Soujorner Truth reading due
March 28 Slave South AP Chapter 13
March 30
WEEK 11 : April 2
April 4
April 6 Reading due: RTAP, “Manifest destiny” Class Discussion
Week 12: April 9
April 11 House Divided 1846-1861 AP Chapter 14
April 13
WEEK 13 : April 16 CRUCIBLE OF WAR AP Chapter 15
April 18
April 20 REVOLUTION HALF ACCOMPLISHED AP Chapter 16
WEEK 14 : April 23
April 25
May 7 grades due
Final Exam Friday April 27 10:00-12:00
To contact Pete Roode send e-mail to peter.roode@gmail.com
