History 112 - U.S. History, 1865 to Present
Spring 2010
Professor: Russell M. TremayneOffice: Aspen 125
Phone: 732-6885Email:
Course Description: This class examines important changes between 1865 and the present. An emphasis will be placed on tracing the development of the American political system, economic institutions, and U.S. culture during the Gilded Age, the Progressive Era, the World Wars, the Cold War, and conclude with recent history. The purpose of this course is to enhance critical thinking skills and student understanding of the human condition. It is designed specifically to satisfy the CSI Mission, the criteria for General Education, the Social Science Department goals, and the History Program goals listed below.
CSI Mission Statement: The College of Southern Idaho, a comprehensive community college, provides educational, social, cultural, and workforce development opportunities that meet the diverse needs of the community it serves. CSI prepares students to lead enriched, productive and responsible lives in a global society.
General Education Criteria
1. Provide a broad-based survey of a discipline and show the interconnectedness of knowledge.
2. Develop a discerning individual.
3. Practice critical thinking and problem-solving skills.
4. Promote awareness of social and cultural diversity in order to appreciate the commonality of humanity.
5. Foster the balance between individual needs and the demands of society.
6. Reinforce reading, writing, speaking, and/or quantitative skills.
7. Encourage and inspire life-long learning.
8. Encourage creativity.
Social Science Department Mission Statement
The mission of the Social Science Department is to provide educational, social and cultural opportunities which encourage enriched, productive and responsible lives primarily by instructing students to understand, interpret, and apply Social Science discipline coursework.
Social Science Department Goals
1. Help students understand important facts, concepts and theories of Social Science subjects.
2. Help students acquire techniques and methods used to gain new knowledge in the disciplines.
3. Help students learn to distinguish between fact and opinion.
4. Teach students to use evaluation, analysis and synthesis to interpret and solve problems.
5. Teach students to use different perspectives from the social sciencesto make better-informed decisions.
6. Help students acquire an informed understanding of various cultures.
7. Prepare to transfer to a university.
History Program Mission Statement
In order to prepare learners to lead enriched, productive and responsible lives, the History Program prepares students to understand and interpret a variety of historical areas and perspectives with the intention of encouraging a lifelong love of the subject.
History Program Goals
1. Examine central themes of United States History and various cultures in Western Civilization and Latin America.
2. Use reading, lecture-discussion, and supplementary material to understand and interpret the past.
3. Demonstrate an understanding of the past by writing interpretive essays.
4. Explore different perspectives about the past.
5. Acquire an appreciation of the historical process which will encourage a lifelong study of the past.
Required Books
A People and a Nation. V II, M.B. Norton.
Portrait of America. Oates &Errico, Ninth Ed. 2007.
Grades
Analytical Papers, 100 pts. each = 400
Mid Term Exam = 100
Final Exam = 100
Participation = 100
Total = 700
Participation points are determined primarily by attendance. More than three missed classes result in the loss of 5 points and each additional absence costs 5 points.
Letter grades are calculated on a standard scale:90% and above = A
80% - 89% = B
70% - 79% = C
60% - 69% = D
Below 60% = F
Honesty Policy: The CSI Honesty Policy, explained on pages 15-16 of the College Catalog applies to this class. Students must produce original work. Although the professor encourages the honor system, any cheating or plagiarism will result in failure for the class.
Course Requirements: Students must attend class and complete all of the readings, prepare four 3-5 page analytical papers, take two essay exams, a mid-term and a final.
Outcomes Assessment: Objective: Enhance critical thinking skills, examine historical developments in early U.S. history, and further understanding of the human condition.
History 112 Course Outcomes aligned with GE Criteria, SS Goals and History Program Objectives
Students will: / G E Criteria / SS Goals / History Program Objectives1. demonstrate an understanding of important developments / 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8 / 1,3,4,6,7 / 1,2,3,4,5
2. write essay exams / 2,3,4,5,6,7,8 / 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8 / 1,2,3,4
3. write an analytical paper / 2,3,4,5,6,7,8 / 1,2,3,4,5,6,7 / 1,3,4,5
4. participate in class / 2,5,7 / 1,4,6,7 / 1,2,4,5
Assessment Methods: Alignment of course outcomes with course assessment methods.
Analytical paperEssay ExamsParticipation
XXX
1.______
XXX
2.______
XXX
3.______
XXX
4.______
The CSI, General Education, and Social Science Department goals listed above are also course objectives. Essay exams will be the primary tool used to assess student progress and development. More specifically, mid-term andfinalexams will assess student command of facts and concepts, measure their ability to distinguish fact from opinion, and test their skill using analysis and synthesis. Essays reinforce reading and writing skills, encourage life-long learning and creativity, and make students draw reasonable inferences from observations. Reading tests examine a student’s critical thinking and problem-solving skills. They force students to use analysis to break a whole idea into its component parts and use synthesis to bring component parts together into a concept.
On-Line Course Evaluation Statement: Students are strongly encouraged to complete evaluations at the end of the course. Evaluations are very important to assist the teaching staff to continually improve the course. Evaluations are available online at Evaluations open up two weeks prior to the end of the course. T he last day to complete an evaluation is the last day of the course. During the time the evaluations are open, students can complete the course evaluations at their convenience from any computer with Internet access, including in the open lab in the Library and in the SUB. When students log in, they should see the evaluations for the courses in which they are enrolled. Evaluations are anonymous. Filling out the evaluation should only take a few minutes. Your honest feedback is greatly appreciated!
Student Eligibility for Disability Services: To determine eligibility and secure services, students should contact the coordinator of Disability Services at their first opportunity after registration for a class. Student Disability Services is located on the second floor of the TaylorBuilding on the Twin Falls Campus. (208) 732-6260 (voice) or (208) 734-9929 (TTY), or email .
Class and Reading Schedule
Week One - Introduction to U.S. History. Read Chapter 16, Norton. Read Oates & Errico, A Troubled Peace – Horton, “The Black Experience During Reconstruction” and Foner, “The Checkered History of the Great Fourteenth Amendment.”
Week Two–Gilded Age. Read 17, Norton. Read Oates & Errico, Conquest of the West – Utley, “Sitting Bull and the Sioux Resistance” and Laskin, “Death on the Prairies.”
Week Three - Read Chapter 18, Norton. Read Oates & Errico, The New Industrial Order – Heilbroner, “The Master of Steel,” McCullough, “the Brooklyn B
ridge,” and Boroff, “A Little Milk, a Little Honey.”
Week Four - Chapter 19, Norton. Read Oates & Errico, Reform and Expansion – Treckel, The Lady Versus Goliath” and Kohler “America’s First Southeast Asian War.”
Paper I Due February 12
Week Five–The Progressive Era. Read Chapter 20, Norton. Read Oates & Errico, Morris, “Theodore Roosevelt” and Cashman, African Americans and the Quest for Civil Rights.”
Week Six - Read Chapter 21, Norton. Read Oates & Errico, The Struggle for Justice – Lavender, “Suffragist’ Storm Over Washington” and MacMillan, “A Tragedy of Disappointment.”
Week Seven - Read Chapter 22, Norton. Read Oates & Errico, The Twenties – Nash, “Henry Ford” and Davidson, “Justice Denied.”
Week Eight - Read 23 Norton. Read Oates & Errico, Long Dark Night of the Depression – Watkins,
“Under Hoover, the Shame and Misery Deepened” and Burns, “Government in Action.”
PaperII Due March 12; Mid-Term Exam
Week Nine - Read Chapter 24, Norton. Read Oates & Errico, World at War – Goodwin, “Franklin and Eleanor” and Heuval, “America and the Holocaust.”
Week Ten - Read 25 Norton. Read Oates & Errico, The Bomb – Maddox, “The Biggest Decision” and Knebel, “Hiroshima.”
Week Eleven - Read Chapter 26, Norton. Read Oates & Errico, “Perils of the Cold War – McCullough, “Harry Truman,” Beschloss, “Eisenhower and Kennedy,” and King, “Trapped.”
Week Twelve - Read 27, Norton. Read Oates & Errico, A New Birth of Freedom – Oates, “Trumpet of Conscience” and Cohen, “Betty Friedan.”
Paper III Due April 9
Week Thirteen - Read Chapter 28, Norton. Read Oates & Errico, The Seventies – Friedrich, “A Portrait of Richard Nixon” and Lemann, “How the Seventies Changed America.”
Week Fourteen - Read 29 Norton. Read Oates & Errico, The End of the Cold War – Brookhiser, “Reagan” and Schlesinger, “Some Lessons from the Cold War.”
Week Fifteen - Read Chapter 30, Norton. Read Oates and Errico, Isaacson, “Bill Gates” and Gaddis, “The Lessons of September 11.”
Week Sixteen – Read Chapter 31, Norton.
Paper IV DueMay 7; Final Exam