U.S. History since 1865: History 2112: 03

Spring 2006

 

Instructor: Dr. Stephanie Wright

Office: TLC 3208         Phone: 678-839-6035              email: swright@westga.edu

Office Hours: T,Th 9-9:30; 10:45-11:45 and 1:45-3:45; Wed. 9-12; or by appointment

Class Meetings: T, Th, 9:30-10:45; TLC 1200

 

Course Description: This course surveys the history of the United States from Reconstruction to the present.  It provides students with an opportunity to examine the historical origins of present day America by studying the various individuals, groups, institutions, and movements that shaped the modern United States.  Important themes discussed in this course include the nation’s shift from a rural/agricultural economy to an urban-industrial power; the ways that race, class, and gender shape the historical experiences of individuals and groups; and the development of the United States into a post-industrial society.

 

Learning Outcomes:

1. Command of Historical Content: Students will demonstrate command of a body of knowledge in American History. Students will understand the development of history within a chronological context, and will demonstrate familiarity with common themes, including demographic change, social organization and change, economic organization and change, scientific and technological developments, religious movements, urbanization, political evolution, and cultural currents.

 

2. Historical Analysis: Students will demonstrate the ability to think historically through understanding of the political, social, economic, and cultural dimensions of human experience; comprehension of causal relationships and patterns of change and continuity over time; and awareness of the social significance of ethnicity, gender, race, and class in historical events and study.

 

3. Critical Reading and Thinking: Students will demonstrate familiarity with the uses and problems of interpretation associated with primary and secondary sources.

 

Course Requirements:

Participation                             50 points

Examinations (3)                       200 points each

Reading Quizzes (10)                20 points each

Group Project                          50 points

Short Paper                              100 points

No extra credit is offered in this course

 

Participation: Participation is an integral part of your classroom experience.  Please come to class prepared to discuss the assigned readings.  Contributing to class includes not only your preparation to discuss the assigned readings, but your ability to respect your fellow scholars by arriving on time, not talking while others are talking and by turning off all electronic devices.

 

Examinations: There will be three examinations.  Exams will cover material from your textbooks, primary source reader, and classroom presentations (lectures, discussion, films, and group presentations).  Exams will be a combination of multiple choice, identification and essay. 

Group Project: Your group will be responsible for perusing an issue of the Atlanta Journal (for later dates, the Journal and Constitution) during the time period under discussion for your week.  Choose an article to share with the class that reflects an issue under discussion in that week’s reading.  You should be able to give an overview of the article, discuss what it reveals to us about the time period, and compare it to your textbook’s interpretation of the same event, movement, or individual.  Your group should use Power Point to present the article and your findings to the class.  Please print up an evaluation form and bring a copy of it with you to class on the day of your presentation.  Evaluation forms are available on WebCt. Instructions for group project.

Short Paper: The short paper should be 3-4 pages, double-spaced and typewritten with Times New Roman or Courier New 12 pt font.  Handwritten papers will not be accepted.  See the short paper handout on WebCt for further instructions.

Quizzes: Ten reading quizzes will be given during the course of the semester. 

ACADEMIC HONESTY: The work that you submit and the answers that you provide on exams are expected to be your own.  When quoting words that are not your own, use quotation marks and note the source.  When paraphrasing, be sure to provide proper credit to the author through the use of footnotes.  Evidence of plagiarism on any written assignment will result in an F in the course.  Please see the UWG’s History Department statement on plagiarism at http://www.westga.edu/~history/plagiarismhtm.htm and the UWG English Department’s guide for avoiding plagiarism at: http://www.westga.edu/~engdept/Plagiarism/index.html.

Late Assignments: Assignments not turned in during the first ten minutes of class will be considered late.  Late assignments will not be accepted more than 48 hours past the due date.  The penalty for late papers is 10%.

Assigned Texts: Mary Beth Norton, et al., A People and a Nation, Brief 6th ed., volume 2

John Broesamle and Anthony Arthur, Clashes of Will: Great Confrontations that Have Shaped Modern America

Course packet

SCHEDULE

Jan. 10             Why Study History?  Introduction to Class

Jan. 12             Reconstruction: Norton, Ch. 16

Jan. 17             Reconstruction: Documents 1, 2, & 3 from course packet

Jan. 19             Reconstruction: Broesamle & Arthur, ½ of chapter 1

                        Quiz 1

Jan. 24             The Development of the West: Finish Ch. 1 of Broesamle & Arthur

                        “The Transcontinental Railroad”

Jan. 26             The Development of the West: Norton, Ch. 17, Doc. 5, course packet

Jan. 31             Industrialization: Norton, Ch. 18

                        Quiz 2

Feb. 2              Industrialization, Broesamle & Arthur, Ch. 2, Documents 7-9, course packet

Feb. 7              The Growth of Urban America: Norton, Ch. 19

                        Quiz 3

Feb. 9              The Growth of Urban America, Norton, Ch. 20; Docs 12-15, course packet

                        “America 1900”

Feb. 14            Exam 1

Feb. 16            The Progressive Era: Norton, Ch. 21 (pp. 363-371); Broesamle & Arthur,

                        Ch. 4

Feb. 21            The Progressive Era and Racial Violence: Broesamle & Arthur, Ch. 3, Docs. 18 & 19, course packet

Quiz 4 and “The Rise and Fall of Jim Crow”

Feb. 23            The Progressive Era and Women’s Suffrage: Norton, Ch. 21 (pp. 371-381); Doc. 4, course packet     

Feb. 28            Imperialism: Norton, Ch. 22

Quiz 5

 

March 2           Imperialism: Doc. 16, course packet; “America: 1900”

Last Day to withdraw with a W

March 7           WWI: Norton, Ch. 23

                        Quiz 6

March 9           Woodrow Wilson: Broesamle & Arthur, Ch. 5

March 14         Post WWI America: Docs. 21-24, course packet

                        Quiz 7

March 16         The 1920s: Norton, Ch. 24; doc. 25, course packet

March 20-24    Spring Break: No Class

March 28         The Stock Market Crash: Docs. 26 & 27

                        “The Crash”

March 30         The Great Depression: Norton, Ch. 25

                        Quiz 8

April 4              The New Deal: Broesamle & Arthur, Ch. 6

April 6              Exam 2

April 11            Precursors to War: Norton, Ch. 26

April 13            WWII: Norton, Ch. 27; docs. 28 & 29

                        Quiz 9

April 18            Postwar America: Consensus and the Cold War, Norton Ch. 28; doc. 30

April 20            The Cold War: Korea and the Origins of the Vietnam War, Norton, Ch. 29; docs. 31, 322, 33

                        Quiz 10

April 25            The Civil Rights Movement: Norton, Ch. 30

April 27            The Civil Rights Movement and Watergate: Doc. 34

Final Exam: Thursday, May 4, 8-10 AM