Pols 111
Introduction to Political Science
Fall 2017
Instructor: Steve Herr
Phone: or 731-431-1659
Email: or
Office Hours: M/W 1 - 3 pm T 8:45 – 9:30, 10:45 - 12:00 pm
Office: 280 June Buchanan Alumni Center (JBAC)
Website: ydpsteveherr.us
Prerequisite: None
Course Description:Students will explore the origin and impact of contemporary and past political ideologies on today’s political environment. A study of political theory and politics and investigation of theory and practice of government.
Text: None
Course Objectives
1. To better understand how our knowledge of political science may help us understand the legitimate use of force in social actions.
2. To applycore concepts and modes of inquiry in a variety of situations.
3. To be able totransferknowledge and skills in new situations, to build on and use them.
4. Tocommunicateideas and incollaboratein problem solving
Course Requirements
1.Attend class.
2.Participate in group discussions.
2.Journal.
3. Final exam.
Grades
Attendance 25%, participation 25%, journal 25% and final exam 25%.
Teaching Methods/Technology
The class will be discussion based. We will use the best technology available to us. The class will also include lectures, focused discussions, specific readings, research assignments, in class reviews, written summaries and cumulative evaluations.
Thursday August 17th
Introduction
Tuesday August 22nd
Tolstoy, “The Three Questions.”
Syllubus
Thursday August 24th
Plato, Apology.
Tuesday August 29th
Pericles, “Funeral Oration,”
Thursday August 31st
The Ten Commandments
Tuesday September 5th
Tim Reid, “Ohio’s ‘dirty little secret’: blue-coller Democrats for Trump”
Thursday September 7th
Ariel Levy, “Prodigal Son”
Tuesday September 12th
Thomas Jefferson, “Letter to the Danbury Baptists”
U. S. Constitution – Amendment 1
Thomas Jefferson, “Draft for a Bill for Establishing Religious Freedom 1779”
Thursday September 14th
Thomas Jefferson, “Letter to the Danbury Baptists”
U. S. Constitution – Amendment 1
Thomas Jefferson, “Draft for a Bill for Establishing Religious Freedom 1779”
Barack Obama, “Remarks by the President at the National Prayer Breakfast”
Tuesday September 19th
Chief Joseph, “Chief Joseph Surrenders”
Charles Lindberg, “Des Moines Speech”
Thursday September 21st
Adrian Chen, “Fake News form the radio age to today”
Tuesday September 26th
Nicolas Loris, “Trump’s Sweeping Executive Order on Climate Policy Has Been Sorely Needed”
Thursday September 28th
Gen. George Patton, “Speech to the 3rd Army”
Tuesday October 3rd
“Reparations”
“UN Committee urges US government to pay reparations for slavery”
“Black slave owners in the United States”
Thursday October 5th
Fall Break – No Class
Tuesday October 10th
My Daughter is getting married: No Class
Thursday October 12th
Federalist No. 10
Tuesday October 17th
“Washington’s Farewell Address 1776
Thursday October 19th
“Booker T. Washington Delivers the 1895 Atlanta Compromise Speech”
Tuesday October 24th
WBAI
Thursday October 26th
Lucy Stone, “A Disappointed Woman”
Susan B. Anthony, “On the Woman’s Right to Vote”
Tuesday October 31
J. Burton, M. Farrell, F. Lord and R. Lord
“A Brief History of Japanese American Relocation During World War II”
Thursday November 2nd
Malcolm X, “A Declaration of Independence” March 12, 1964
Tuesday November 7th
John Oliver, “Nuclear Waste”
Harvey Wasserman, “Tunnel Collapse at Hanford Nuclear Dump”
Thursday November 9th
“The Fourth Estate”
Ami Sedghi, “Where are the deadliest places for journalists”
Tuesday November 14th
Paul Ford, “Reboot the World”
Thursday November 16th
Tara Ross, “The Electoral College: Enlightened Democracy”
Tuesday November 21st
Jonathan Edwards, “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God.”
Thursday November 23rd
Thanksgiving – No Class
Tuesday November 28th
Matt Taibbi, “Secrets and Lies of the Bailout”
Thursday November 30th
Last Day of Class
December 4 – 8
Final Exams
Class Attendance Policy
Students and faculty should realize that one of the most vital aspects of a college experience is attendance and punctuality in the classroom and that the value of this experience cannot be exclusively measured by testing procedures alone. Should the occasion arise in which a faculty member is unavoidably detained for a class, students must wait a minimum of 15 minutes before leaving. If students find it necessary to miss a class, it is their responsibility to arrange with the instructor to make up all work missed. Instructors must devise their own attendance policies, have them approved by the Dean of the College, include them in the course syllabi, and explain them to students. Continuation in class for a student who misses more than 20% of class time during any one semester, whether excused or unexcused, may be possible only after consultation with the faculty member involved and Dean of the College.
Writing Across the Curriculum
This course provides a means of addressing student writing proficiency. Students will keep a journal reviewing the major class readings, class reflections and the final exam.
Cultural Diversity and Global Perspectives
The wonder of a liberal arts education is a search for the truth. In this class we will follow that wonder in all its richness and possibility, regardless of where those paths may lead us.
Critical Thinking
Alice Lloyd College has a goal to improve the critical thinking abilities of its students. The College has adopted Paul and Elder’s (2007) definition of critical thinking, which defines critical thinking as, “the art of analyzing and evaluating thinking with a view to improving it” (p. 4).
Source: Paul, R., & Elder, L. (2007). The Miniature Guide to Critical Thinking Concepts and Tools (4thed.). Tomales, CA: Foundation for Critical Thinking Press.
Dress Code
Alice Lloyd College has a long-standing tradition of emphasizing development of the total person and a commitment to personal and community enhancement. As members of the campus community, students are expected to dress modestly and appropriately for various occasions.
The College recognizes that “modest” or “appropriate” is often loosely defined in society at large. Therefore, the following guidelines are offered to assist students in choosing suitable dress:
Professional Day (Tuesday) Dress: Professional dress will be required of all students on central campus until 2:00 p.m. and for all convocation programs. Central campus includes all of the campus buildings with the exception of the gym, maintenance building, fitness center, and the residence halls.
Plagiarism Statement: Plagiarism is the act of using another person’s ideas or expression in your writing without acknowledging the source… In short, to plagiarize is to give the impression that you have written or thought something you have in fact borrowed from someone else. Plagiarism often carries severe penalties, ranging from failure in a course to expulsion from school.
The most blatant form of plagiarism is to repeat as your own someone else’s sentences, more or less verbatim… Other form of plagiarism include repeating someone else’s particularly apt phrase without appropriate acknowledgement, paraphrasing another person’s argument as your own, and presenting another’s line of thing as though it were your own…