History 17B Syllabus Online - 6 Week Summer 2020 PDF

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Syllabus History 17B...

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History 17B (Online) History of the United States since 1865 Professor Behzad Hamkar Summer 2020 (6 Week) Email: [email protected] (I respond to emails within 48 hours Monday-Friday). To avoid having any of your emails sent to my “junk-mail” folder, please email me either via Canvas or your official Sierra College email account. Do not email me from your personal email account. I have made every effort to make this course accessible to all students, including students with disabilities. If you encounter a problem accessing anything in this course, please contact me immediately by email and contact the college’s Disability Support Programs and Services (DSPS) department at (916) 660-7460.

“When the past no longer illuminates the future, the spirit walks in darkness.” - Alexis de Tocqueville

COURSE DESCRIPTION: This survey course covers American history from the period immediately following the Civil War until the present. A combination of lectures/discussions, readings, videos, and exams will be used to facilitate the learning process. By the end of the semester, students will have a solid understanding of the history of America and the issues that helped shape our current cultural, economic, social, and political landscape. Some believe that history is “just one damned thing after another” and that the study of history is about memorizing facts and dates. Nonsense, I say! Instead, we will focus on understanding how things came to be the way they are. How do we avoid repeating the mistakes of the past and how can we make better and more informed decisions about our future? Enlightened students understand that history is not just a set of facts, but a series of arguments, issues, and controversies. Finally, Thomas Carlyle once stated in a famous quote that “the history of the world is but the biography of great men.” In this class, we will not follow this claim. We will learn about the individuals that didn’t make newspaper headlines, such as the Native Americans, factory workers, farmers, students, immigrants, and women. By including their stories, we will have a better grasp of what America is and how it became to be the country it is today.

“He is a lover of his country who rebukes and does not excuse its sins” - Frederick Douglass

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REQUIRED TEXT: The following books are required readings and can be purchased at the bookstore: Eric Foner, Give Me Liberty! An American History, Volume 2 Fifth Seagull Edition; ISBN: 978-0-393-61565-4 Eric Foner, Voices of Freedom, A Documentary History, Volume 2 Fifth Edition ISBN: 978-0-393-61450-3 Note: Students can possibly “get by” with older versions of the book. However, the page numbers I assign will not match up with older versions of Give Me Liberty. In addition, some of the documents in Voices of Freedom are not available in older versions. Students are highly encouraged to get the assigned version of the texts.

COURSE STUDENT LEARNING OUTCOMES: 1. CSLO 1 - Differentiate primary and secondary sources and how each are used to make historical claims. 2. CSLO 2 - Analyze the origins of the American Constitution and its impact on American cultural developments with an emphasis on race, class, gender and ethnicity. 3. CSLO 3 - Investigate major political, economic and social change in United States with emphasis on the role of racial and ethnic minority groups. 4. CSLO 4 - Evaluate the role of geography in the economic and political changes in U.S. history.

CSLO 5 - Compose coherent, persuasive historical argument using correct academic citation methods.

Student Support: Most student issues (i.e. registration, courses, MySierra, etc.) can be addressed or directed by visiting The Hub Student Support.

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COURSE POLICIES: Technology Requirements: You need a computer with reliable access to an internet connection (preferably high speed). Also, Exams are monitored with Proctorio and require the use of Google Chrome and a laptop or Personal Computer. Tablets or smartphones will not work for Exams. Be advised that “losing internet connection” will not be accepted as an excuse to submit late assignments. Academic Dishonesty: Any students involved in cheating on exams or plagiarizing assignments will be dealt with in the manner as prescribed in the school catalogue. This includes being subject to failing the course and/or expulsion. Please consult Student Rights and Responsibilities Handbook that is available in the Counseling Offices or at the Associated Students of Sierra College Office if you are not sure what constitutes cheating, plagiarism, or dishonesty. Class Rules: All students are expected to be professional, courteous, and behave in a collegiate manner. In addition, read the link in Canvas on Netiquette regarding proper online codes of conduct. The instructor reserves the right to drop students from the course who act in disruptive and disrespectful manners.

GRADING: Your course grade will be calculated as follows. A = 179-200 B = 159-178

Discussion Board Participation (There will be 11 DB questions, 10 points each and I drop the lowest score)

10 x 10 = 100 points

C = 139-158 D = 119-138 F = 118 and below

Exams (5 Exams total, 25 points each and I drop the lowest score) Total Possible

4 x 25 = 100 points

200 points

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Class Structure: This class is broken into Five Units. Each Unit consists of three Lectures, two to three Discussion Board responses, and one Exam. The Course Calendar below outlines what is covered in each Unit and the dates for each Unit. All Discussion Questions and Exams must be completed by the end of the Unit date. No late submissions or make-up exams will be allowed. Be sure to read page 5 of the syllabus thoroughly to understand the rules and expectations of the Discussion Boards.

COURSE CALENDAR 8th

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Unit 1: June – June Lecture 1: Reconstruction: The Unfinished Revolution Lecture 2: Westward Expansion: How the West was Won….and Lost. Lecture 3: Industrializing America [No Discussion Board for Lecture 3] Exam #1 Covering Lectures 1-3 Unit 2: June 16th – June 23rd Lecture 4: Immigration and the Rise of the City Lecture 5: Politics of the Gilded Age: From Stalemate to Crisis Lecture 6: Becoming a World Power [No Discussion Board for Lecture 6] Exam #2 Covering Lectures 4 -6 Unit 3: June 24th – July 1st Lecture 7: The Progressive Era Lecture 8: America and the “Great War” Lecture 9: The 1920s: The New Era [No Discussion Board for Lecture 9] Exam #3 Covering Lectures 7-9 Unit 4: July 2nd – July 9th Lecture 10: The Great Depression and New Deal Experiment Lecture 11: America and the “Good War” Lecture 12: Origins of the Cold War [No Discussion Board for Lecture 12] Exam # 4 Covering Lectures 10-12 Unit 5: July 10th – July 18th Lecture 13: The Civil Rights Movements Lecture 14: The Tumultuous Sixties Lecture 15: America’s Right Turn Exam #5 Covering Lectures 13-15

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“Failing to prepare is preparing to fail” - Coach John Wooden

DISCUSSION BOARD: The heart and soul of our online community will be built on the interaction developed in the Discussion Board. Each Unit consists of a set of assigned readings and discussion board questions. There are specific rules relating to when and how you should post on the discussion board. 1. After I post the assigned readings and discussion questions, you are required to use the assigned reading material to respond to the posted questions AND to at least one of your classmates’ comments by midnight of the end of the Unit (for example, Unit 1 runs from June 8th to June 15th, so all work needs to be completed by June 15th). That particular unit and discussion boards will be closed at midnight. 2. You may NOT make all of your postings in the same discussion board on the same day and are encouraged to visit each discussion board at least twice. This is to encourage students to respond to each other’s comments in a thoughtful and constructive manner. Students that make all their comments on a single day will be deducted two points from that discussion grading. In other words, if you answer a Discussion Board question and make your classmate response to that same Discussion Board question on the same day, you’ll be deducted two points. 3. However, since there are separate Discussion Board questions for each Lecture in this accelerated 6-Week course, students can make same-day posts in the separate Discussion Boards. For example, it is fine to make your initial post to the Lecture 1 Discussion Board question and Lecture 2 Discussion Board question on June 12th. You are penalized only if you make same day post and classmate response in the same Discussion Board. Your Discussion Board comments will be graded on the following criteria: 1. Students must have addressed the discussion question and responded to a classmate’s comment by the midnight deadline. 2. You will be graded on how insightful, analytical, and thoughtful your response is. Be sure to support your analysis with relevant references from readings. Students are required to cite at least three of the week’s reading assignments in post (i.e. Give Me Liberty, Voices of Freedom, Lecture, video clip, etc.) Here are a few examples for citation format: If you are citing from page 6 of Give Me Liberty, simply mention in your paragraph (GML, 6). If citing page 4 of Lecture, follow your statement with (Lecture, 4). Page 3 of Voices of Freedom would be (VOF, 3). 3. Responses to classmate posts such as “I agree with you” or “good point” are not considered insightful and will receive zero points. Instead, they should add to the discussion with thoughtful feedback, advice, suggestions, questions, or supportive comments. When commenting on one another’s posts, begin by addressing them by their first name (i.e. Hello Robert, I agree with your statements, however….) In general, your Discussion Board comments will be weekly mini-essays, and a thorough, thoughtful, developed response with specific examples to support analysis will be roughly 300-500 words. You are expected to use college level writing skills, and have your comments be thoroughly spell checked. Posts that are not spell checked will receive a deduction in points. Once posts are made, they may not be edited, so be sure to proofread before submitting. Note: I do not accept any late submissions, but I do drop the lowest Discussion Board score in case “life happens” (i.e. illness, out of town, technical difficulties, work, etc.)

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EXAMS: All exams will be taken online. Exams will cover the readings in Give Me Liberty, Voices of Freedom, and assigned lectures. The final is not comprehensive. Instead, each of the five exams will cover one section of the course. Exams consist of 25 multiple-choice questions. Exams are timed, so make sure you allot enough time to complete each assessment. Once you begin an exam, you have 35 minutes to finish it. It is important that you have a dependable high-speed internet connection. I use Proctorio for Exam Security, so you’ll need to download Google Chrome with Proctorio extensions to take the Exams. In addition, Exams must be taken on either a laptop or personal computer. Proctorio does not work with tablets or smartphones. There will be directions/links on the Exams in Canvas on how to download Proctorio. As is the case with the Discussion Board, running into technical difficulties (dropped or slow connection) will not be accepted as an excuse for not completing the exams. Note: I do not allow any makeup exams, however, I do drop the lowest exam score in case “life happens” (i.e. illness, out of town, technical difficulties, work, etc.) Any student who is working with Disabled Student Services and requires additional services regarding the exams in this course must contact me prior to the above exam dates.

“Education seems to be in America the only commodity where the customer tries to get as little as he can for his money.” - Max Forman By the end of the semester, you will have spent a significant amount of time, energy, and money for this class. Get your money’s worth!...