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 one "mulligan," i.e. an occasion
on which you may miss class without penalty. You should save it in case
you need it. A second missed class will result in a subtraction of 2 points
from your semester average. A third missed class will cost you a further
5 points. A fourth 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:
A = Exceptional (95-100%)
|
B- = Good (80-83%)
|
D+ = Needs Improvement (67-69%)
|
A- = Excellent (90-94%) |
C+ = Above Average (77-79%) |
D = Passing (64-66%) |
B+ = Superior (87-89%) |
C = Average (74-76%) |
D- = Barely Passing (60-63%) |
B = Very Good (84-86%) |
C- = Below Average (70-73%) |
F = Failure (59% and Below) |
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: NO CLASS MARTIN LUTHER KING JR. HOLIDAY
Week III,
Jan 27-31: The New South [1877-1900] and New West [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]
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 Six 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
|