HISTORY 105Y
Section 7
Honors
U.S. History to 1877
Office: Morgan Room 203-E
Office hours: 11am-12:30pm TTH and by appointment
Phone numbers: Dept. 298-1053 and Office 298-1575
Email: G-Hall@wiu.edu
Fax number: 298-2540
Webpage: www.wiu.edu/users/gh101
Course Description and Objectives:
This course is an examination of United States history from the earliest settlements to the end of Reconstruction. The course lectures, readings, and class discussions will focus on major themes and issues of the time period that include the political, economic, social, environmental, and cultural changes that establish the unique historical character of American society.
Students are expected to attend every class period. Students will take two in-class midterms, a final in-class exam, write one book review, and write several short reports on FYE events. To help you become more effective writers, you should consult a writing resource when composing the think piece essay. A writing resource can be the Writing Center on campus, A Pocket Style Manual, a web site devoted to helping students compose historical essays such as <http://academic.bowdoin.edu/WritingGuides>, or another resource.
The objectives for students in this course involve a better understanding of change through time, the ability to identify major themes in U.S. history, and a historical appreciation of the contrasting experiences of different social and cultural groups. This course will emphasize critical thinking, writing, and focused analysis on a broad range of topics, events, social movements, and on individual contributions to American history.
Required Texts:
Rediker, The Slave Ship: A Human History
Dana Jr., Two Years before the Mast: A Personal Narrative
McPherson, For Cause & Comrades: Why Men Fought in the Civil War
Recommended Texts:
Diana Hacker, A Pocket Style Manual
Kate Turabian, A Manual for Writers
Exams:
There will be three in-class exams in this course. The first and second exams will act as midterms and the last will act as your final. For each exam you will need to answer ten short essay questions. Each exam will be worth up to 100 points. A make-up for a missed midterm exam will be given to a student with an acceptable and documented excuse. The make-up must be taken before the regularly scheduled exams are handed back. The day and time of the make-up exam will be taken when mutually convent for the professor and student. If a day and time cannot be agreed upon then the make-up exam(s) must be taken at the end of the semester in conjunction with the course final. No make-up exam finals will be given.
Book Review Essay:
Students will be responsible for writing one book review essay on one of the books in the course. The book review must be four to five pages in length. Your papers must be typed and double spaced, twelve-point font, and standard one-inch border. The essay should be turned in on the assigned due dates. Late papers will be docked five points for every day that they are late. I will not count weekends or holidays. I will not accept essays turned in more than five days late. The last book review option on For Cause and Freedom is exempt from the late policy. That review must be turned in the day of the final. The book review essay will be worth up to 50 points.
Class Participation:
Students are expected to attend every class session, participate in class discussions, and write two 1 to 2 page reports on three co-curricular events. Class participation is worth up to 50 points.
Student Behavior:
Students are expected to behave with respect toward the course, their fellow students, and the instructor. Cell phones and other electronic devices are prohibited in the classroom. If a student uses such a device in class then the student will be asked to leave. Conversations and other disruptive behavior that interferes with teaching and/or learning will not be tolerated and can result in an assigned classroom seat or expulsion from the class. Continued disruptive behavior on the part of a student can result in an “F” in the course.
Academic Accommodations:
“In accordance with University policy and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), academic accommodations may be made for any student who notifies the instructor of the need for an accommodation. It is imperative that you take the initiative to bring such needs to the instructor’s attention, as he/she is not legally permitted to inquire about such particular needs of students. Students who may require special assistance in emergency evacuations (i.e. fire, tornado, etc.) should contact the instructor as to the most appropriate procedures to follow in such an emergency. Contact Disability support Services at 298-2512 for additional services.”
Academic Dishonesty:
Academic honesty is expected of all students. Cheating and plagiarism will not be tolerated on any course assignments. Cheating is broadly defined as any activity, method, or technique which gives a student an unfair advantage over other students in the completion of evaluated work or which substitutes work done by another for one's own. Cheating can result in failure in the course. For example, if a student tries to use a cell phone or other electronic device during an exam, the student will be given an automatic “F” and will be excused from class. Plagiarism involves submitting as one's own the words, ideas, and/or information of others without proper and customary acknowledgment of one's sources. To avoid plagiarism, students must use a citation. When directly using an author's words in a paper, students must use quotation marks to distinguish a source's words from their own. Students who plagiarize in their think piece paper or other written assignments risk failing the course. Collaborative writing on the think piece paper and other written assignments will not be tolerated. It can result in failure in the course.
Grading policy:
I will base your final grade on a 400-point scale. The midterms and final exams will make up 300 points of the total, the book review essay 50 points, and the combined total of class participation/FYE assignments is worth 50.
A=400-360; B=359-320; C=319-280; D=279-240; F=239-0
This syllabus is subject to revision at the discretion of the professor as necessary.
Course Schedule:
Week One: Slave Ship, introduction
1/15 Introduction; 1/17 lecture “Native Americans and the American Exchange”
Week Two: Slave Ship, chapters one and two
1/22 lecture “Overview of the First Century of English Colonization in North America”; 1/24 lecture cont. and class discussion
Week Three: Slave Ship, chapters three and four
1/29 lecture “Colonial Slavery”; 1/31 lecture cont. and class discussion
Week Four: Slave Ship, chapters five and six
2/5 lecture “18th Century Culture and Society before the Revolution”; 2/7 lecture cont. and class discussion
Week Five: Slave Ship, chapters seven and eight
2/12 lecture “From British Colonies to Independent American States”; 2/14 lecture cont. and class discussion
Week Six: Slave Ship, chapters nine, ten, and epilogue
2/19 class discussion; 2/21 Midterm Exam #1
Week Seven: Two Years before the Mast, chapters one through eight
2/26 lecture “America’s Agrarian Republic”; 2/28 lecture cont., class discussion, and Slave Ship book review due
Week Eight: Two Years before the Mast, chapters nine through fifteen
3/4; lecture “The Antebellum South”; 3/6 lecture cont. and class discussion
Week Nine: Spring Break
3/11 No Classes; 3/13 No Classes
Week Ten: Two Years before the Mast, chapters sixteen through twenty-one
3/18 lecture “The Development of American Democracy”; 3/20 lecture cont. and class discussion
Week Eleven: Two Years before the Mast, chapters twenty-two through twenty-six
3/25 lecture “Reform Movements before the Civil War”; 3/27 lecture cont. and class discussion
Week Twelve: Two Years before the Mast, chapters twenty-seven through thirty
4/1 class discussion; 4/3 Midterm Exam #2
Week Thirteen: Two Years before the Mast, chapters thirty-one through thirty-four
4/8 lecture “Conquest and Early Settlement of an American West”; 4/10 lecture cont. and class discussion
Week Fourteen: Two Years before the Mast, chapters thirty-five through twenty-four years after
4/15 lecture “Sectionalism and Crisis over Slavery”; 4/17 lecture cont., and class discussion
Week Fifteen: For Cause and Freedom, preface through chapter six
4/22 lecture “Civil War” and Two Years before the Mast due; 4/24 lecture cont. and class discussion
Week Sixteen: For Cause and Freedom, chapters seven through twelve
4/29 lecture “Reconstruction and African American Expressions of Freedom”; 5/1 All FYE reports due, lecture cont., and class discussion
Week Seventeen: Final
5/8 Final Exam 8am and For Cause and Freedom book review due