BOOKS REQUIRED

Norton et al., A People & A Nation, Volume one: to 1877

Rowlandson, The Sovereignty and Goodness of God

Perdue and Green, The Cherokee Removal

Jacobs, Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl

A number of readings will be on eCollege. 

INTRODUCTION 

The first European explorers and settlers arrived on a continent already well populated with people.  Soon the Europeans also introduced people from Africa, setting the stage for a nation of unparalleled diversity.  Even the Europeans differed among themselves in nationality, religion, and their ways of making a living.  This course traces the development of the North American colonies into the United States of America.  It then investigates the reasons that the U.S. broke apart in 1861, less than ninety years after its formation, and the painful beginnings of its reunion and reconstruction.  The course will emphasize the ways in which the events of centuries ago continue to have an impact on our lives in 2007. 

COURSE OBJECTIVES

1.   To provide a framework for understanding the development of the United States and its people.

2.   To encourage analytical thought about the development of the United States over four centuries.

3.   To engage in discussion about the relationship between the events of U.S. history and life in 2007.

COURSE REQUIREMENTS

Reading Quizzes

           Eleven short reading quizzes will test your daily preparation for class.  Each will be worth ten points, and you will drop the lowest one.  Quizzes CANNOT be made up.  If you miss more than one, the grade thereafter for each one missed will be 0.        100 points

Exams

           Three examinations cover approximately one-third of the course material each, with a comprehensive section on the final exam.  Make-up exams are given only to students absent for official university business, serious illness, or family emergency.  In all such instances, students must provide official verification to the instructor.

         Exam # 1                         September 25                                             100 points

         Exam # 2                         October 30                                                150 points

         Final exam                       Thursday, December 13, 8:00 a.m..           

                                                                                                                  200 points

         TOTAL EXAM GRADES                                                                                     450 points

Writing Assignments

         Three writing assignments are required in the course.  These focus on close reading and interpreting the readings.  Details about each assignment will be provided two weeks before it is due.  Any paper turned in late will automatically go down one letter grade for each day past the due date.

         Assignment 1 The Sovereignty and Goodness of God

                   (due September 6)                         100 points

         Assignment 2 The Cherokee Removal (due October 18)                   125 points

         Assignment 3 Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl

            (due November 27)                                                                        125 points

         TOTAL WRITING ASSIGNMENT GRADES                                                     350 points

Discussion

         Informed participation is expected throughout the course.

         This is a real grade and not automatic.  You start with a 75 and

         go up or down from there, depending on your attendance and

         your class participation                                                                                            100 points

TOTAL                                                                                                                       1,000 points

GRADING SCALE:

Attendance

         We are a community of learners together, and each person’s attendance is vital for the experience of others as well as for that person.  Repeated absences will affect your class participation grade. 

Honoring Due Dates

        Late work will be penalized ten points per calendar day (weekends included) unless extenuating circumstances have been discussed with me before the due date.

Communication with the Outside World during Class Time

         Please keep your attention focused inside the classroom during class time.  Use of cell phones (including text messages), BlackBerries, wireless Internet, et cetera, et cetera, et cetera, including devices of which the professor has not yet heard, is expressly and vehemently forbidden. 

Statement on Disability Services at TCU

Texas Christian University complies with the Americans with Disabilities Act and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 regarding students with disabilities.  Eligible students seeking accommodations should contact the Coordinator for Students with Disabilities in the Center for Academic Services located in Sadler Hall, 11.  Accommodations are not retroactive, therefore, students should contact the Coordinator as soon as possible in the term for which they are seeking accommodations. Further information can be obtained from the Center for Academic Services, TCU Box 297710, Fort Worth, TX 76129, or at (817) 257-7486.

Academic Misconduct (Sec. 3.4 from the Student Handbook)

            Any act that violates the academic integrity of the institution is considered academic misconduct. The procedures used to resolve suspected acts of academic misconduct are available in the offices of Academic Deans and the Office of Campus Life.  Specific examples include, but are not limited to:

Cheating: Copying from another student’s test paper, laboratory report, other report, or computer files and listings; using, during any academic exercise, material and/or devices not authorized by the person in charge of the test; collaborating with or seeking aid from another student during a test or laboratory without permission; knowingly using, buying, selling, stealing, transporting, or soliciting in its entirety or in part, the contents of a test or other assignment unauthorized for release; substituting for another student or permitting another student to substitute for oneself;

Plagiarism: The appropriation, theft, purchase or obtaining by any means another’s work, and the unacknowledged submission or incorporation of that work as one’s own offered for credit. Appropriation includes the quoting or paraphrasing of another’s work without giving credit therefore.          

Collusion: The unauthorized collaboration with another in preparing work offered for credit.

Class and Reading Schedule