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Approved by Faculty Senate March 30, 2009
History 150-01: United States History to 1865
Winona State University Department of History
Course ID #000741 Instructor: Dr. Tomas Tolvaisas
MWF 9:00 AM - 9:50 AM Office Room: Minne Hall 215
Spring 2008 (January 14-May 1, 2008) Office Phone: (507) 457-5407
Meeting Place: Minne Hall 240 Email:
Office Hours: Mondays and Wednesdays, 10:00 AM – 12 PM, or by appointment.
Introduction:
Welcome to the first half of the American history survey!
This course will present the major political, economic, social, and cultural developments in American history from the initial settlement of the British colonies in North America to the end of the Civil War in 1865. We will explore how Americans managed of their domestic affairs and conducted their relations with other countries. Among others, the course will highlight such important themes as the development of the American unity; process of territorial expansion; relations with the minorities; causes and consequences of American conflict with foreign powers. Special emphasis throughout the course will be placed on the role of individuals in the making of the U.S. history.
University Studies Outcomes
A) to promote students’ ability to identify and understand specific elements and assumptions of a particular Humanities Discipline: this will be addressed in discussions of course readings;
B) to promote students’ ability to understand how historical context, cultural values, and gender influence perceptions and interpretations: this will be addressed in discussions of primary sources;
C) to promote students’ ability to understand the role of critical analysis in interpreting and evaluating expressions of human experience: this will be addressed through lectures, discussions, and written assignments.
Course Objectives
· to develop students’ understanding of both long-term trends and discrete events in the history of the United States since 1865;
· to develop in students an understanding of the historical background of contemporary social issues;
· to develop students’ ability to analyze primary sources;
· to develop students’ ability to differentiate primary from secondary sources;
· to develop students’ ability to express their ideas clearly in written and oral forms;
· to enhance students’ capacity for independent, critical thought.
Evaluation
Class Participation: 15%
You will receive a grade for your oral work in class: answering and raising questions, responding to your colleagues’ arguments, and analyzing primary documents and secondary sources individually or in groups with your classmates.
Unannounced Quizzes: 10%
Throughout the semester there will be several short quizzes. Each of them will ask you some basic factual information from the textbook (dates, names, locations, historical concepts, etc.). The quizzes constitute a substantial part of your final grade, so please keep up with the reading assignments. You cannot make up any quiz if you are absent from the class meeting during which the quiz is given.
Evaluation (continued from page 1)
Midterm Exam: 20%
The examination will consist of two parts. The first part will be made up of a number of identifications (“IDs”): names, places, events, concepts, etc. You will have to describe them and explain their significance (a short paragraph of about 6-7 sentences for each ID). The second division will ask you to write an essay on the materials that we will have covered in the first half of the course. You will receive a study guide a week before the exam.
Short Paper: 30%
In a brief paper (3-4 pages, typed, double-spaced, with regular margins and proper documentation of consulted sources) you will be asked to answer an essay question by analyzing primary documents and secondary sources, by using information from the textbook, and by incorporating your own ideas and arguments. You will have some choice with regards to the essay topics. I will distribute a handout with the writing assignments (and will post them online) several weeks before your brief papers are due in class. You are welcome to consult with me at any stage of your writing.
Final Exam: 25%
The final examination will cover the second half of the course. It will NOT be comprehensive/cumulative. It will consist of identifications and a short essay questions from the materials that we will have covered in the second half of the course. You will receive a study guide a week before the exam.
Grading Scale Evaluation Criteria
90-100 A Excellent work, exceeding standard class expectations
80-89 B Very good, solid performance
70-79 C Good, average work that meets general class requirements
60-69 D Satisfactory work that falls short of basic course requirements
0-59 F Poor performance that falls short of the minimal class expectations
Class Attendance
It is strongly advised because it will facilitate your learning. Daily attendance will be taken through a sign-in sheet. If you are 10 or more minutes late for class without a documented excuse, you will NOT be allowed to sign-in; and each two undocumented late arrivals will count as one unexcused absence. You are allowed to have only TWO unexcused absences in this course. Each additional unexcused absence will lower your final (course) grade by one percent. You must provide me with written documentation for all your “excused” absences (such as serious medical or family emergencies).
Laptop and Electronic Policy
*Please turn the ringer off on your cell phone and/or pager while you are in the classroom
there. NO texting will be allowed or tolerated during the class.
*We will NOT use laptops in this class. If you do bring a computer to class, please leave it in your bag.
*Please DO NOT use any electronic devices during our meetings.
*NO audio recordings of the lectures and/or class discussions are allowed.
Academic Integrity and Plagiarism
*“Academic integrity at Winona State University is based on honesty. The university community requires that work produced by students represents their personal efforts and requires that they properly acknowledge the intellectual contributions of others.”
*”WSU students are required to adhere to the University’s standards of academic integrity. The following are examples, not intended to be all inclusive, of types of behavior that are unacceptable and will be viewed as violations of the Academic Integrity Policy”: cheating, fabrication, deception and misrepresentation, multiple submissions, plagiarism.
Academic Integrity and Plagiarism (continued from page 2)
*Plagiarism is the use of written material (such as quotations) and/or ideas from the work of other scholars and students as one’s own without proper documentation of such sources. All cases of intentional plagiarism will result in “F” grade for the course.
*If you have any questions and/or concerns about the aforementioned academic integrity policy and/or how to avoid plagiarism, please consult the Undergraduate Catalogue and talk with me.
Other Concerns
*Please do not conduct private conversations during class.
*NO electronic submissions of the short papers (by email) will be accepted.
*Late work without proper documentation will NOT be accepted. All make-up work needs to be pre-arranged with me in advance.
*Students with special needs or disabilities should contact me as soon as possible. I will make every effort to facilitate your studying in this course.
*There are no extra credit options in this course.
*On the days of scheduled class discussions you MUST bring the required books to class. Bringing books to class during other meetings is suggested, but optional.
*I expect you to take notes during my lectures and our class discussions.
Required Reading Materials
To be purchased at the bookstore of the WSU, Kryzsko Commons Building, in Winona, MN 55987 (phone: 507-457-5319, fax: 507-457-5627, e-mail: ).
Textbook:
· John Murrin, Paul E. Johnson, James M. McPherson, Alice Fahs, Gary Gerstle, Emily S. Rosenberg, and Norman L. Rosenberg. Liberty, Equality, and Power: A History of the American People, Volume I: To 1877. 5th edition. Thompson/Wadsworth, 2008. ISBN 10: 0495116068 ISBN-13: 9780495116066.
Primary Source Reader:
· Elizabeth Cobbs Hoffman and Jon Gjerde, eds. Major Problems in American History. Volume 1: To 1877. Documents and Essays. 2nd edition. Boston and New York: Houghton Mifflin Co, 2007.
ISBN-10: 0-618-67832-8, ISBN-13: 978-0-618-67832-7.
Other books:
· The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin. (Edited with Introduction by Louis P. Masur). 2nd edition. Boston and New York: Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2003. ISBN-10: 0-312-40415-8, ISBN-13: 978-0-312-40415-4.
· Margaret Fuller. Woman in the Nineteenth Century (Dover Thrift Editions). Dover Publications, New Ed edition, 1999. ISBN 10: 0486406628, ISBN 13: 978-0486406626.
“Desire to Learn” (D2L) Website
Web address: https://winona.ims.mnscu.edu/. Please log in to this website and consult it for announcements, assignments, links, and other course information. You can save information from the webpage of our class on your computers and/or print it out. You are responsible for knowing all the updates and following all the guidelines on that webpage.
Additional Internet Resources:
· Patrick Rael. Reading, Writing, and Researching for History: A Guide for College Students (Brunswick, ME: Bowdoin College, 2004), http://academic.bowdoin.edu/WritingGuides/
· Paul Halsall, Internet Modern History Sourcebook (New York: Fordham University, 1997), http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/mod/modsbook.html
PLEASE NOTE: in order to participate productively and actively in class discussions you MUST complete ALL of the assigned readings BEFORE class discussion meetings, specified in the syllabus. You should also try to do your best to complete all of the assigned readings before our regular meetings. These materials will help your understanding of the lectures and enhance your performance during class discussions.
*** This syllabus is a plan, not a contract. Any of the following entries could be changed depending on circumstances.
SCHEDULE
WEEK 1
Monday, January 14
Introduction to the course
Wednesday, January 16
The Age of Discoveries and the Spanish Conquest
Chapter 1, Liberty, Equality, Power (textbook)
Friday, January 18
Documentary film: “Clash of Cultures” (500 Nations Series, Part 3)
WEEK 2
Monday, January 21
NO CLASS. Martin Luther King Holiday!
Wednesday, January 23
The Settlement of North America
Chapter 2 (textbook)
Class discussion: Introduction and Chapter 1, documents, Major Problems in American History (MPAH)
Friday, January 25
Southern Colonies
Chapters 2, 3, and 4 (textbook)
WEEK 3
Monday, January 28
Class discussion, Chapter 2 (MPAH)
Wednesday, January 30
Puritan New England
Chapters 2, 3, and 4 (textbook)
Friday, February 1
The Restoration Colonies
Chapters 2, 3, and 4 (textbook)
WEEK 4
Monday, February 4
Class discussion, Chapter 3 (MPAH)
SCHEDULE (Continued from page 4)
WEEK 4
Wednesday, February 6
The Indians’ “Old” World and “New” World
Chapters 2 and 3 (textbook)
Class discussion, Chapter 1, essays (MPAH)
Friday, February 8
Development of Large-Scale Slavery in America
Chapters 2, 3, and 4 (textbook)
WEEK 5
Monday, February 11
Class discussion, The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin
Wednesday, February 13
The Coming of the American Revolution
Chapter 5 (textbook)
Friday, February 15
Documentary film, “Taking Liberties”
WEEK 6
Monday, February 18
The First War for Independence
Chapter 6 (textbook)
Wednesday, February 20
Class discussion, Chapter 4 (MPAH)
Friday, February 22
Documentary film, “A Healthy Constitution”
WEEK 7
Monday, February 25
Class discussion, Chapter 5 (MPAH)
Wednesday, February 27
MIDTERM EXAMINATION
Friday, February 29
From the Paris Peace Treaty to the “Farewell Address”
Chapter 7 (textbook)
SCHEDULE (Continued from page 5)
WEEK 8
Monday, March 3
NO CLASS: Spring Break
Wednesday, March 5
NO CLASS: Spring Break
Friday, March 7
NO CLASS: Spring Break
WEEK 9
Monday, March 10
The First Political Party System in America
Class discussion, Chapter 6 (MPAH)
Wednesday, March 12
Documentary film, “The Duel”
Friday, March 14
From the “Empire of Liberty” to Mr. Madison’s War
Chapter 7 (textbook)
WEEK 10
Monday, March 17
Acquisition of Florida, the Monroe Doctrine, and Indian Removal
Chapters 9 and 11 (textbook)
Wednesday, March 19
Documentary film, “Removal: War and Exile in the East (500 Nations Series, Part 6)
Friday, March 21
No Class Meeting: work on your papers
WEEK 11
Monday, March 24
Class discussion, Chapter 7 (MPAH)
Wednesday, March 26
Jacksonian Democracy and the Second Political Party System in America
Chapters 11 and 12 (textbook)
Friday, March 28
Society, Culture, and Reform before the Civil War
Chapters 10 and 12 (textbook);
Class discussion, Chapter 10 (MPAH)
SCHEDULE (Continued from page 6)
WEEK 12
Monday, March 31
Class discussion, Margaret Fuller’s Woman in the Nineteenth Century
Wednesday, April 2
Northern Society
Chapter 8 (textbook)
Friday, April 4
NO CLASS! Student Spring Break Day!
WEEK 13
Monday, April 7
SHORT PAPERS ARE DUE IN CLASS!
Class discussion, Chapter 11 (MPAH)
Wednesday, April 9
Abolitionism and the South
Chapters 9 and 10 (textbook)
Friday, April 11
Class discussion, Chapter 12 (MPAH)
WEEK 14
Monday, April 14
“Manifest Destiny”: The Westward Expansion
Chapter 13 (textbook)
Wednesday, April 16
Coming of the Civil War
Chapter 13 (textbook)
Friday, April 18
Class discussion, Chapter 13 (MPAH)
WEEK 15
Monday, April 21
At the Bring of Self-Destruction: America during the Civil War (Part 1)
Chapters 15 and 16 (textbook)
Wednesday, April 23
At the Bring of Self-Destruction: America during the Civil War (Part 2)
Chapters 15 and 16 (textbook)
SCHEDULE (Continued from page 7)
WEEK 15
Friday, April 25
Class discussion, Chapter 14 (MPAH)
WEEK 16
Tuesday, April 29
FINAL EXAMINATION, 8:00 AM – 10:00 AM, Minne 240