HIST 1302 Syllabus

 

UNITED STATES HISTORY II – 1877 to Present
Catalog Course Description:  It includes an expanded treatment of the cultural history of the United States since the Civil War and the role it played in a world economy.  It will include significant milestones in our history and the role the United States played.  When possible, the topics will include the causes and effects of each significant event.

      Course Number: HIST 1302
      Credit Hours: 3
      Prerequisites:  None  
      Semester and Year: Fall 2008
      Instructor: Ken Urbanowicz
      Section # 58637
      Days Time Room:  Tuesday - Thursday, 10:00 AM  - 11:50  AM Cash Road Campus


      Office: Rm. [Houston Community College, Southwest, Stafford Campus]
      Office Hours: 7:30 – 12:45.  Tuesday & Thursday only
      E-mail:  Kenneth.urbanowicz@hccs.edu
      Contact Number:  Stafford Campus:  TBD


REQUIRED TEXTBOOK
      American Passages,  Vol. 2 [3d edition] – Ayers. Gould, Oshinsky, Soderlund
          A combined textbook with volume 1 and 2 is also available

REQUIRED REPORTS

Students will select and read one monograph from the recommended booklist and write a Book Review Essay.  Book review instructions are contained in the book list.  This list is posted on my Learning Web site.  A format (template) for writing these reviews is also posted on my web site.  The due date for this essay is shown in the class schedule.

Students will prepare a Research Paper using on-line and Library resources.  I will provide a list of topics for this assignment. A format and instructions is posted on my web site also.  This Paper will be due on the date indicated in the class schedule.


PROSPECTIVE CLASS SCHEDULE (Fall 2008)

Distributed as a separate document in class during week one

 NOTE: This Syllabus, Book Review List, Book Review format, Topic List and the Research Paper format, along with chapter outlines, are posted on my Learning Web page.  Download and read each of these documents.

GRADING POLICY
The course grade will be the sum of the grades earned in the graded parts noted in the schedule above, minus any penalty that you might have accumulated as a result of absences and lateness [see policy below]. The final grade is calculated by the GPA method [A = 90-100, B = 80-89, C = 70-79, D = 60-69, F = 0-59], and rounded to the closest whole grade.

Students are expected to sit for examinations with their class. If you miss an in-class exam, you MUST take the following steps:

Contact the instructor within 24 hours of the scheduled examination time in
person, or by message. If you fail to leave any message, it will be assumed
that you have left the class, and you will receive a course grade of "F" .  If you drop the course prior to the last day of withdrawal (November 13,  4:30 PM), you will receive a “W”. In short, making prompt contact with the instructor is your responsibility. 

On the first day that you return to class after the scheduled examination or scheduled
project due time, ask me for guidance and present your written excuse.  Note that vacation, religious holidays or other discretionary absence is not an acceptable excuse for missing any test. Make-up grades and reports must be completed within 2 days of the scheduled due date. Missed tests that are not supported by written documentation will not be counted in your grade average.  Consult the ”Guide to Student Success” Handbook for further information.

Students are expected to hand in their Research Paper and Book Review Essay on the designated day at the end of class.  Late Reports will lose 2 points for each late class day.  After 3 class days, they will not be accepted. Do Not send Reports by email or other electronic means.  Only a printed copy will be accepted.


Grades are calculated as follows:

Tests and Quizzes     =  30%
Final Exam = 30%
Research Paper  = 30%
Book Review Essay = 10%

ATTENDANCE POLICY
Regular and punctual attendance is expected. A seating chart will be kept, and
attendance will be noted at the start and end of class by visual inspection from the chart.
If you are over 15 minutes late, you are absent for that day.  It is your responsibility to inform the instructor at the end of the class session of any special circumstances. Otherwise, you will be recorded as absent.  Leaving class early will also result in you being marked absent for the day.

If you are absent, the cause of the absence is not normally relevant. You are permitted six hours absence from class without penalty of being dropped. Each absence in excess of six hours may also reduce your course grade points. Exceptions to the attendance policy will be allowed in cases of severe medical problems or emergencies of comparable gravity if verifiable documentation is supplied in a timely fashion, but such exceptions are at the discretion of the instructor.  Be sure to ask me for the handouts you may have missed when you have been absent.

It is the student’s responsibility to drop a class if they wish.  Failure to drop a class that you have stopped attending will result in a final grade of F or W for the course.

NOTICE:  Students who repeat a course three or more times may soon face significant tuition/fee increases at HCC and other Texas public colleges and universities.  Please ask your instructor/counselor about opportunities for tutoring/other assistance prior to considering course withdrawal, or if you are not receiving passing grades.

The instructor has the right to take reasonable measures to ensure a class period free of disruptions.  Adult behavior is expected at all times.  The use of cell phones, digital cameras, radios, and pagers is prohibited in the classroom at all times. They need to be turned off when entering the classroom.  Students answering a phone or text message will be asked to leave the classroom for that day.  Exceptions to this rule are only medical emergencies.  Laptops can be used when seated in the back row but are only to be used for class notes.   Cell phone cameras are also forbidden in the classroom.  Students creating disruptions of any type will be moved to another seat or asked to leave the classroom. 


Minimum Course Learning Outcomes

The student will learn to:
➢    Trace the expansion of settlers and the conquest of the far West.
➢    Describe the dramatic rise of industrial capacity in the nineteenth century.
➢    Analyze the causes and results of the transformation into an urban society and culture.
➢    Analyze the governmental leadership as the country enters a period of national crisis.
➢    Describe the growing expansion of the industrial powers into new territories.
➢    Trace the rise of Progressivism beginning in the nineteenth century.
➢    Describe the reform movement within the national government.
➢    Describe the events leading up to World War I and the results it had on the U.S.
➢    Explain the effects of the “New Era” on American life in the 1920s.
➢    Analyze the causes of the “Great Depression” and describe the effects it had on the population.
➢    Describe the effects of the “New Deal” in resolving some basic problems of the depression.
➢    Describe the limited American internationalism and its effect on our neutrality.
➢    Explain the American social and political changes as a result of our victory in World War II.
➢    Describe the causes and effects of the “Cold War” era.
➢    Analyze the changes in the social and economic landscape that resulted from the booming prosperity of the 1950s.
➢    Describe the causes and effects of the growing “Liberalism” movement.
➢    Explain the actions and reactions to crisis during the 1960-1980 period.
➢    Describe the international and domestic issues of the Reagan-Bush years



Academic Integrity:
HCC is committed to a high standard of academic integrity in the academic
community. In becoming a part of the academic community, students are
responsible for honesty and independent effort. Failure to uphold these
standards includes, but is not limited to, the following: plagiarizing written
work or projects, cheating on exams or assignments, collusion on an exam or
project, and misrepresentation of credentials or prerequisites when registering
for a course. Cheating includes:

•    looking at or copying from another student's exam,
•    orally communicating or receiving answers during an exam,
•    having another person take an exam or complete a project or assignment,
•    using unauthorized notes, texts, or other materials for an exam,
•    obtaining or distributing an unauthorized copy of an exam.

Plagiarism means passing off as his/her own the ideas or writings of another
(that is, without giving proper credit by documenting sources). Plagiarism
includes submitting a paper, report or project that someone else has prepared,
in whole or in part. There are websites for instructors to determine if a sentence or paragraph has been copied into your report.  Collusion means inappropriate collaboration on assignments intended for independent competition. These definitions are not exhaustive. When there is clear evidence of cheating, plagiarism, collusion or misrepresentation, a faculty member will take disciplinary action. Disciplinary actions may include, but need not be limited to the following:

•    requiring the student to retake or resubmit an exam or assignment
•    assigning a grade of 0 or "F" for an exam or assignment
•    assigning a grade of "F" for the course.


Software Piracy:
Law strictly prohibits unauthorized copying of software purchased by Houston Community College for use in laboratories. College administration will take
appropriate disciplinary action against anyone violating copyright laws.

Guaranteed Graduate Policy:
The Houston Community College District guarantees that graduates of
its Associate of Arts, Associate of Science, or Associate of Applied Science and
all Certificate programs, providing under certain circumstances, additional
education and training tuition free to students lacking appropriate mastery of
specified competencies. For additional information, refer to the college catalog.



ADA Statement:
The HCCD colleges are dedicated to providing the least restrictive learning
environment for all students. The college district promotes equity in academic
access through the implementation of reasonable accommodations, which will
enable students with disabilities to participate in and benefit from all
post-secondary educational activities. HCCD complies with the requirements of
the Vocational Rehabilitation Act of 1973, Title V, Section 504 and the
Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA).

Any student with a documented disability
(e.g. physical, learning, psychiatric, vision, hearing, etc.) who
needs to arrange reasonable accommodations must contact the
Disability Services Office of their respective college at the
beginning of each semester. Faculty is authorized to provide only
the accommodations requested by the Disability Support Services
Office.

Equal Opportunity Statement:
It is the policy of the Houston Community College District to
provide equal employment, admission and educational opportunities without regard
to race, color, religion, national origin, sex, age, or disability.

The HCC Colleges strive to provide an excellent learning environment free
from harassment or intimidation directed at any person's race, color, religion,
national origin, sex, age, or disability. Any form of harassment will not be
tolerated.




















Tear off this page and sign and date it.  Turn it in to me on the second class day.  Signing this form is your acknowledgement that you have read and understand the rules and information in this syllabus and agree to follow them while in class.

I, _________________________________________________
     (Printed Name)

 have read, understand and agree to follow the rules and information presented in the attached syllabus.

Class Number: ________________________   Date:  _______________________


Signature: ________________________________________________