American History Research Paper
HIST-B 111 - HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES FROM DISCOVERY TO 1865)
A general survey of the United States from the era of discovery to the present, emphasizing major political, economic, social and intellectual developments
COURSE DESCRIPTION AND OBJECTIVES:
This course examines American history from prehistoric times through the Civil War Era, and is designed around several concepts and themes. The first is that the experiences and ideas of everyday Americans matter and are vitally important in how American history has unfolded. Secondly, students will be exposed to interpretations of American history that force them to consider the importance of historical contingency. By avoiding perceptions of inevitability, the course materials, discussions, …show more content…
and lectures will allow students to consider potential alternatives to the “traditional” narrative and to understand that the actions and ideologies of all Americans, not just the “winners,” have been vital to the ways in which history has developed.
Through assigned readings in a host of methodologies ranging from literary theory to musicology, students will be exposed to a past that is more than dates and famous elite men, and something besides an inevitable course of events. Lastly, this course will be organized around the understanding that students learn history best when they have the opportunity to “do” history themselves, that is, by closely examining the historical sources themselves and developing original and independent interpretations of the past.
Learning Outcomes:
Students will demonstrate the ability to
• Analyze historical facts and interpretations concerning U.S. history to 1865.
• Analyze and compare political, geographic, economic, social, cultural, religious, and intellectual institutions, structures and processes across the range of historical periods and cultures in U.S. to 1865.
• Recognize and articulate the diversity of human experience across the range of historical periods and the complexities of cultures and societies in U.S. history to 1865.
• Draw on historical perspectives from U.S. history to 1865 to evaluate contemporary problems and issues.
• Analyze the contributions of past cultures and societies in U.S. history until 1865 to contemporary U.S. society.
The textbook for HIST: B111 Discovery-1865 will be
"The American Nation: A History of the U.S."
ISBN-10: 0205960979
COURSE REQUIREMENTS:
ATTENDANCE / PARTICIPATION: You are expected to regularly attend class meetings, having completed all the readings and ready to participate in discussions.You are allowed three unexcused absences without any penalty; four or more absences will negatively affect your class participation grade (more on this below).
To be counted present, you should be in class on time, and stay in class the entire period. If you must arrive late or leave early, please do so as non-disruptively as possible, and let me know ahead of time that you will be leaving.As you can also see, participation is an important part of your grade. I will grade on in-class and online discussion participation, in-class writing assignments, and occasional quizzes on the reading assignments. Remember, participation is not accomplished by packing in a barrage of "me too," or "what he said" at the end of class. There is no make-up for in-class assignments, so, again, please attend regularly. If speaking in class is difficult for you, please come talk to me at the beginning of the semester to discuss strategies that will help engage in the classroom …show more content…
structure.
Examinations: There will be three exams and a final exam over the course of the semester. Each exam will carry a value of 20% for a possible total of 60%.
The final exam will carry a value of 30%.
Essay: You will be required to write one formal essay valued at 10%.
The hisotry department uses the Chicago style writing format. The premise of your essay will be an approved historical figure or event that you believe was significant to early American history until 1865. No two subjects or topics may be the same. Therefore, it is in your best interest to submit your topic selection quickly and in writing(instructions to follow). Your essay should be 3 to 5 pages in length, double spaced, Times New Roman 12 point fontand submitted via email as a word document. (No other format will be accepted.)
If you are unfamiliar with the Chicago writing style, please go to the writing center or review the process online or utilize another source in order to submit your assignment accurately.
Research Requirements: 1 Book based upon the event or historical figure you’ve selected, 3 or more historical websites. Note: No textbooks or Wiki usage allowed.
Class Participation: As previously mentioned attendance is required. It is in your best interest not to miss any lectures, be prepared by completing all assigned readings,and to be actively engaged in the classroom.
FYI: All contentinformation that is provided via PowerPoint, lecture, and textbook is fair game for all exams. It is in your best interest to print the PowerPoint slides that I will make avaiable to you, please bring them with you to class. This is a lecture class that will follow the PP information which is dirived directly from the textbook.
Grading ratios are as follows:
100-90 A
89-87 B+
86-80 B
79-77 C+
76-70 C
69-67 D+
66-60 D
59-0 F
OTHER IMPORTANT INFORMATION: If you have a physical, psychological, and/or learning disability which might affect your performance in this class, please contact the Office of Career Services/Disability Services at 843-208-8263 as soon as possible. The Career Services/Disability Services Office will determine appropriate accommodations based on medical documentation. Please refer to the USCB Student Handbook, the USCB Bulletin, or the USCB web site for more information. Please keep in mind our code of academic integrity, and turn in only original work, with careful citation of all materials consulted.
Plagiarism will not be tolerated and will result in an automatic 0 and possibly further USCB administrative action. The official USCB Plagiarism policy is as follows: “Plagiarism, even a first offense, will result in a failing grade for the course.” If you have any questions, feel free to ask me or check out the library’s reference guide on plagiarism at http://library.uscb.edu/plagiarism.htm.(See also USCB Student handbook, pp.33-37 for a list of academic regulations relating to the honor system) Make-up opportunities will only be granted for documented, extraordinary circumstances. A missed exam is considered a “0” until it is made up. The make-up exam will be scheduled on a Friday afternoon at the end of the semester and it will not be in the original format. Make-ups will not be the same exam as the original, and will not be drawn from the pre-circulated review sheet. The final exam will not be given at any other time for any reason other than a legitimate conflict with another exam which cannot be resolved
otherwise. The use of portable electronic devices (phones, iPods, etc.) during class will not be permitted. Laptops may be used for note taking or class-related purposes, but only so long as they do not become a distraction. This syllabus may be revised at any time, but all changes will be announced in class and posted on the course Blackboard site.
A FINAL WORD: Your experience in this class will be determined in large part by your attitude toward it. If you convince yourself that you are going to hate it and that you will not do well in it, you will, in all probability, turn out to be an excellent prophet. I have tried to set the course up so that anyone who really makes the effort can make a decent grade and learn something as well. I will also do my best to make the classes interesting and enjoyable. If you will meet me half-way by coming to class, studying, paying attention, and participating in discussions as much as possible, this may not turn out to be such a bad deal after all.
A general survey of the United States from the era of discovery to the present, emphasizing major political, economic, social and intellectual developments
COURSE DESCRIPTION AND OBJECTIVES:
This course examines American history from prehistoric times through the Civil War Era, and is designed around several concepts and themes. The first is that the experiences and ideas of everyday Americans matter and are vitally important in how American history has unfolded. Secondly, students will be exposed to interpretations of American history that force them to consider the importance of historical contingency. By avoiding perceptions of inevitability, the course materials, discussions, …show more content…
and lectures will allow students to consider potential alternatives to the “traditional” narrative and to understand that the actions and ideologies of all Americans, not just the “winners,” have been vital to the ways in which history has developed.
Through assigned readings in a host of methodologies ranging from literary theory to musicology, students will be exposed to a past that is more than dates and famous elite men, and something besides an inevitable course of events. Lastly, this course will be organized around the understanding that students learn history best when they have the opportunity to “do” history themselves, that is, by closely examining the historical sources themselves and developing original and independent interpretations of the past.
Learning Outcomes:
Students will demonstrate the ability to
• Analyze historical facts and interpretations concerning U.S. history to 1865.
• Analyze and compare political, geographic, economic, social, cultural, religious, and intellectual institutions, structures and processes across the range of historical periods and cultures in U.S. to 1865.
• Recognize and articulate the diversity of human experience across the range of historical periods and the complexities of cultures and societies in U.S. history to 1865.
• Draw on historical perspectives from U.S. history to 1865 to evaluate contemporary problems and issues.
• Analyze the contributions of past cultures and societies in U.S. history until 1865 to contemporary U.S. society.
The textbook for HIST: B111 Discovery-1865 will be
"The American Nation: A History of the U.S."
ISBN-10: 0205960979
COURSE REQUIREMENTS:
ATTENDANCE / PARTICIPATION: You are expected to regularly attend class meetings, having completed all the readings and ready to participate in discussions.You are allowed three unexcused absences without any penalty; four or more absences will negatively affect your class participation grade (more on this below).
To be counted present, you should be in class on time, and stay in class the entire period. If you must arrive late or leave early, please do so as non-disruptively as possible, and let me know ahead of time that you will be leaving.As you can also see, participation is an important part of your grade. I will grade on in-class and online discussion participation, in-class writing assignments, and occasional quizzes on the reading assignments. Remember, participation is not accomplished by packing in a barrage of "me too," or "what he said" at the end of class. There is no make-up for in-class assignments, so, again, please attend regularly. If speaking in class is difficult for you, please come talk to me at the beginning of the semester to discuss strategies that will help engage in the classroom …show more content…
structure.
Examinations: There will be three exams and a final exam over the course of the semester. Each exam will carry a value of 20% for a possible total of 60%.
The final exam will carry a value of 30%.
Essay: You will be required to write one formal essay valued at 10%.
The hisotry department uses the Chicago style writing format. The premise of your essay will be an approved historical figure or event that you believe was significant to early American history until 1865. No two subjects or topics may be the same. Therefore, it is in your best interest to submit your topic selection quickly and in writing(instructions to follow). Your essay should be 3 to 5 pages in length, double spaced, Times New Roman 12 point fontand submitted via email as a word document. (No other format will be accepted.)
If you are unfamiliar with the Chicago writing style, please go to the writing center or review the process online or utilize another source in order to submit your assignment accurately.
Research Requirements: 1 Book based upon the event or historical figure you’ve selected, 3 or more historical websites. Note: No textbooks or Wiki usage allowed.
Class Participation: As previously mentioned attendance is required. It is in your best interest not to miss any lectures, be prepared by completing all assigned readings,and to be actively engaged in the classroom.
FYI: All contentinformation that is provided via PowerPoint, lecture, and textbook is fair game for all exams. It is in your best interest to print the PowerPoint slides that I will make avaiable to you, please bring them with you to class. This is a lecture class that will follow the PP information which is dirived directly from the textbook.
Grading ratios are as follows:
100-90 A
89-87 B+
86-80 B
79-77 C+
76-70 C
69-67 D+
66-60 D
59-0 F
OTHER IMPORTANT INFORMATION: If you have a physical, psychological, and/or learning disability which might affect your performance in this class, please contact the Office of Career Services/Disability Services at 843-208-8263 as soon as possible. The Career Services/Disability Services Office will determine appropriate accommodations based on medical documentation. Please refer to the USCB Student Handbook, the USCB Bulletin, or the USCB web site for more information. Please keep in mind our code of academic integrity, and turn in only original work, with careful citation of all materials consulted.
Plagiarism will not be tolerated and will result in an automatic 0 and possibly further USCB administrative action. The official USCB Plagiarism policy is as follows: “Plagiarism, even a first offense, will result in a failing grade for the course.” If you have any questions, feel free to ask me or check out the library’s reference guide on plagiarism at http://library.uscb.edu/plagiarism.htm.(See also USCB Student handbook, pp.33-37 for a list of academic regulations relating to the honor system) Make-up opportunities will only be granted for documented, extraordinary circumstances. A missed exam is considered a “0” until it is made up. The make-up exam will be scheduled on a Friday afternoon at the end of the semester and it will not be in the original format. Make-ups will not be the same exam as the original, and will not be drawn from the pre-circulated review sheet. The final exam will not be given at any other time for any reason other than a legitimate conflict with another exam which cannot be resolved
otherwise. The use of portable electronic devices (phones, iPods, etc.) during class will not be permitted. Laptops may be used for note taking or class-related purposes, but only so long as they do not become a distraction. This syllabus may be revised at any time, but all changes will be announced in class and posted on the course Blackboard site.
A FINAL WORD: Your experience in this class will be determined in large part by your attitude toward it. If you convince yourself that you are going to hate it and that you will not do well in it, you will, in all probability, turn out to be an excellent prophet. I have tried to set the course up so that anyone who really makes the effort can make a decent grade and learn something as well. I will also do my best to make the classes interesting and enjoyable. If you will meet me half-way by coming to class, studying, paying attention, and participating in discussions as much as possible, this may not turn out to be such a bad deal after all.