US HISTORY SINCE 1865, HIS 103
Norfolk State University, Spring 2003
Section 01: MWF 11:00a-11:50a, BMH C115
Section 51: M 6:30p-9:30p, BMH C117
Prof. Jeff Littlejohn
Office: Brown Hall, C156
Office Phone: 823-8984
Hours: 9.15-11.00 M-F or appt.
http://www.jefflittlejohn.com
jeffreylittlejohn@hotmail.com

Course Description:
History 103 presents an introductory survey of the chief cultural, intellectual, and political developments in America between the Civil War and the present. Thematically, the course covers six topics: 1) the transition from an agrarian community to an industrial society, 2) the rise of urban class conflict, 3) the problem of racism and racial conflict, 4) the transformation of the national state, 5) the development of a corporate form of business, and 6) the rise of America as the world's economic, military, and cultural superpower.

Required Texts:
* Harold Evans, The American Century (available at Barnes and Noble for $19.99).
* ILRN Internet Materials (available online at ilrn.com for $20.00), including: 1) an online textbook, America Unbound: 1865 to Present; 2) an online reader, Readings in American History: 1865 to Present; and 3) ten online interactive modules that we will use to prepare for class.

Attendance:
Regular attendance and punctuality are indicative of serious scholarship. You should be in class, awake and aware, and prepared for discussion. Attendance will often be taken. You will get three "mulligans," i.e. occasions on which you may miss class without penalty. You should save these in case you need them. A fourth missed class will result in a subtraction of 2 points from your semester average. A fifth missed class will cost you a further 5 points. A sixth missed class will result in an F for the term. There will be no exceptions to this rule.

Note: Students who are regularly tardy will be denied entrance to class. After the first two weeks, if the door is closed, then do not enter the room. Class is already in progress.

Classroom Demeanor:
Though HIS 103 is a lecture course, students are encouraged to ask questions and initiate discussion. The more you engage the material, the better you will learn it, and the better you will do in the course. To facilitate an open classroom dialogue, students should not: 1) have cell phones or beepers turned on; 2) be reading the school paper or doing other homework; 3) leave early or disturb their fellows.

Grading:
* Three exams will be given in class, each worth 100 points.
* Fifteen online quizzes will be given, each worth 10 points.
* Based on a total of 450 points, we will use a tiered grading system as follows:

Exams:
Three multiple-choice/essay exams will be given during the term. The exams will be based upon class notes and the assigned readings. Review sheets will be distributed before the exams. Makeup exams will be given only in the most serious of circumstances. Students are responsible for contacting Prof. Littlejohn on or before the date of a missed exam if they desire to schedule a make-up.

Quizzes:
Twenty reading quizzes will be posted at ILRN.COM during the term. Students are responsible for taking fifteen of the quizzes, which are each worth ten points.

Academic Honesty:
Academic or academically related misconduct includes, but is not limited to, unauthorized collaboration or use of external information during examinations; plagiarizing or representing another's ideas as one's own; falsely obtaining, distributing, using or receiving test materials; obtaining or gaining unauthorized academic information or materials; or engaging in any conduct which is intended or reasonably likely to confer upon one's self or another an unfair advantage or unfair benefit respecting an academic matter.

Any violations of these academic honesty standards will result in a failing grade for the course and a recommendation for University discipline.

Weather Policy:
If the University is in session, our class will meet.

MEETING TOPICS AND READINGS

Note on the texts:
America Unbound, the online textbook at Ilrn.com, provides a basic introduction to each week's material. The reading is simple and at times dry. The American Century, on the other hand, offers a sophisticated pictorial survey of the same information. The book employs a stylish and at times complicated vocabulary and assumes that the reader has some familiarity with the topics being discussed. Thus, we have two texts. The first will provide a basic introduction, while the second will give a more nuanced and visual survey of the period.

UNIT ONE: THE DEVELOPMENT OF MODERN AMERICA, 1865-1900

Week I, Jan 13-17: Reconstruction [1865-77]

Read Chapter One of America Unbound on "Reconstruction" at ILRN.COM
Read the Thirteenth, Fourteenth, and Fifteenth Amendments to the Constitution [ilrn]
Online Quiz I on Chapter One of America Unbound at ILRN.COM [Jan 13 to Jan 19]

Week II, Jan 20-24: The New South [1877-1900]

Read Chapter Two of America Unbound on the "New South and Race Relations" [ilrn]
Read pages 34 and 35 in The American Century
Online Quiz II on Chapter Two of America Unbound at ILRN.COM [Jan 17 to Jan 24]

Week III, Jan 27-31: The New West [1877-1900]

Read Chapter One of The American Century
Read Chapter Three of America Unbound on "The American West" at ILRN.COM
Online Quiz III on Chapter Three of America Unbound at ILRN.COM [Jan 24 to Jan 31]

Week IV, Feb 3-Feb 7: The Gilded Age in the North [1877-1900]

Read pages 20-25 and 36-39 of The American Century
Read Chapter Four of America Unbound on "The Rise of American Big Business" [ilrn]
Complete the ILRN interactive module "Chicago: Building a City"
Online Quiz IV on Chapter Four of America Unbound at ILRN.COM [Jan 31-Feb 7]
Online Quiz V on "Chicago: Building a City" at ILRN.COM [Jan 31-Feb 7]

Week V, Feb 10-Feb 14: National Politics and the Populists [1877-1900]

Review and complete Chapter Two of The American Century
Read Chapter Six of America Unbound on "Labor Rebellions and Agrarian Revolts" [ilrn]
Complete the ILRN interactive module "The Wizard of Oz: A Populist Parable?"
Online Quiz VI on Chapter Five of America Unbound at ILRN.COM [Feb 7 to Feb 14]
Online Quiz VII on "The Wizard of Oz: A Populist Parable?" irln [Feb 7 to Feb 14]

EXAM I: DATE TO BE ANNOUNCED IN CLASS

UNIT TWO: MODERN AMERICA STRUGGLES AT HOME AND ABROAD, 1900-1945

Week VI, Feb 17-Feb 21: The Progressive Era [1900-1914]

Read pages 68-139 of The American Century
Read Chapter Eight of America Unbound on "The Progressive Era" at ILRN.COM
Complete the ILRN interactive module "Hull House"
Online Quiz VIII on Chapter Eight of America Unbound [Feb 14 to Feb 21]
Online Quiz IX on "Hull House" at ILRN.COM [Available from Feb 14 to Feb 21]

Week VII, Feb 24-Feb 28: World War I [1914-1919]

Read pages 48-67 and 140-179 of The American Century
Skim Chapter Nine of America Unbound on "Making an Overseas Empire" [ilrn]
Read Chapter Ten of America Unbound on "World War I" at ILRN.COM
Complete the ILRN interactive module, "The Origins of World War I"
Online Quiz X on Chapter Ten of America Unbound at ILRN.COM [Feb 21 to Feb 28]
Online Quiz XI on "The Origins of World War I" at ILRN.COM [Feb 21 to Feb 28]

Week VIII, Mar 3-Mar 7: The Twenties [1920-29]

Read Chapter Seven of The American Century
Read Chapter Eleven of America Unbound on "The New Era" at ILRN.COM
Skim Chapter Twelve of America Unbound on "Early Twentieth Century Popular Culture"
Complete the ILRN interactive module "Boom and Bust: The Stock Market, 1928-1930"
Online Quiz XII on Chapter Eleven of America Unbound [Feb 28 to March 7]
Online Quiz XIII on "Boom and Bust" at ILRN.COM [Feb 28 to March 7]

Spring Break, March 10 through March 14

Week IX, Mar 17-Mar 21: Great Depression and New Deal [1929-1939]

Read Chapter Eight of The American Century
Read Chapter Thirteen of America Unbound on "The Great Depression" at ILRN.COM
Read Chapter Fourteen of America Unbound on "The New Deal" at ILRN.COM
Complete the ILRN interactive module, "Route 66: Touring New Deal America"
Online Quiz XIV on Chapter Fourteen of America Unbound [Mar 17 to Mar 21]
Online Quiz XV on "Route 66" at ILRN.COM [Mar 17 to Mar 21]

Week X, Mar 24-Mar 28: World War II [1939-1945]

Read Chapters Nine and Ten of The American Century
Read Chapter Sixteen of America Unbound on "The Second World War" at ILRN.COM
Read Chapter Seventeen of America Unbound on "World War II - Home Front" [ilrn]
Online Quiz XVI on Chapter Sixteen of America Unbound [Mar 21 to Mar 28]

EXAM II: DATE TO BE ANNOUNCED IN CLASS

UNIT THREE: THE POSTWAR GLOBALIZATION OF AMERICAN IDEALS, 1945-2000

Week XI, March 31-April 4: The Early Cold War [1945-63]

Read Chapter Eleven of The American Century
Read Chapter Eighteen of America Unbound on "The Challenge of Communism" [ilrn]
Read Chapter Nineteen of America Unbound on "Culture and Conservatism" [ilrn]
See the ILRN interactive map on "Cold War in Europe, 1945-1990"
Online Quiz XVII on Chapter Eighteen of America Unbound [Mar 28 to Apr 4]

Week XII, April 7-April 11: The Civil Rights Movement [1945-65]

Read Chapter Twelve of The American Century
Read Chapter Twenty-One of America Unbound on "The Civil Rights Movement" [ilrn]
Online Quiz XVIII on Chapter Twenty-One of America Unbound [Apr 4 to Apr 11]

Week XIII, April 14-April 18: The Vietnam Conflict [1963-1975]

Read Chapter Thirteen of The American Century
Read Chapter Twenty-Two of America Unbound on "The Vietnam War" at ILRN.COM
Complete the ILRN interactive module, "The Kitchen Debate"
Online Quiz XIX on Chapter Twenty-Two of America Unbound [Apr 11 to Apr 18]
Online Quiz XX on "The Kitchen Debate" at ILRN.COM [Apr 11 to Apr 18]

Week XIV, April 21-April 25: American Liberals and Conservatives

Read Chapter Fourteen of The American Century
Read Chapter Twenty-Three of America Unbound on "Social Protest and Political Crisis"
Read Chapter Twenty-Four of America Unbound on "From the Ashes"

Week XV, April 28-May 2: Recent American History

Read Chapter Fifteen of The American Century
Read Chapter Twenty-Seven of America Unbound on "The End of the Cold War"

EXAM III: HELD DURING THE FINAL EXAM PERIOD