SYLLABUS FOR HISTORY 112 ONLINE - UNITED STATES HISTORY II (U.S. History Since 1865)
Sections 31361, 31362, and 31363 Spring 2018 Dr. Brad Reynolds INTRODUCTION AND WELCOME Welcome to your online U.S. history class called United States History Since 1865 (History 112) with Dr. Brad Reynolds. (Please note that if you are viewing this prior to the first day of class then this website is subject to change! It does not become official until the first official day of your class so please reread everything here at that time if you are viewing this prior to that date.) Now, if you have not as yet read the "Online Classes Welcome and Orientation Letter Plus Online FAQs" which is located at this website. After you have read it then return to the read the rest of this Syllabus. COURSE DESCRIPTION This is a 100 percent online course. There are no face to face meetings. You will be sending work to Dr. Reynolds by email to [email protected] and you will be taking some exams at Canvas. So, make sure you register at Canvas and that you can access your account (you can reach Canvas by going to www.canyons.edu/canvas). THE DISCUSSION AREAS If you would like to communicate online with any of the other students in your class about the class material, or perhaps form a study group online, or if you have a general class question for Dr. Reynolds that you wouldn't mind sharing with the other students so they could benefit from the answer too, then you can do a posting at one of two places. One is to the Discussion Area of this Syllabus which you can reach at this website. Click on it and follow the directions to do your posting. The other way you can communicate with the students in your class, or ask the instructor a general question, is to go into your Canvas account and click on Discussions located to the left of your screen. Whichever way you decide to post, you should check the Discussion Area of this Syllabus AND the Discussions area for your class at Canvas several times each week to check for any class changes or updates to your class. But remember that if you have a question of a personal nature, like something about your grade, you should send an email directly to Dr. Reynolds at [email protected]. Now, since it is important that you can access Canvas for this class so you can take your multiple choice exams, and so that I know you have read the course Syllabus and are actively enrolled in the class, please do a posting to the Discussions area at Canvas before the first Saturday of the class or you might be dropped from the class! Just say "hello" to everyone by doing a posting with your full name and section number, your major, maybe an interesting fact about yourself, or anything else that you would like to share with the other members of your class. Who knows, you might connect with an old friend or make a new one! CLASS TOPICS For a list of the major topics covered in this class, please consult the Table of Contents in your assigned texts. This online course aims to acquaint you with the broad historical trends and the continuing controversies in American history since the end of the Civil War in 1865. It should help you realize that there are many ways to look at and respond to events. In so doing, the hope is that you will better understand the present so you can better shape the future. In order for you to understand and appreciate the course information more, you should stay current with the news of the day by regularly reading a daily newspaper, weekly news magazine, or news website, and by keeping current with the reading assignments listed below. By the end of this course it is expected that you will know why the United States failed to reconstruct the Union as a truly democratic republic following the Civil War and what the struggle has been for civil rights, why and how the West was settled during the four decades following the Civil War and what impact that had on the U.S. economy and on the people of the West (especially the Native Americans), you will learn why and how the U.S. expanded into various parts of the world in the latter half of the nineteenth century and fought a war with Spain in 1898, why and how the United States became an industrial giant at the turn of the twentieth century and the impact that has had on the American people and government, why and how the U.S. became the world’s leading military power in the early twentieth century and has retained that title, how the U.S. has dealt with rapid economic take-off and then economic depression, why the United States fought two world wars in less than twenty-five years during the first half of the twentieth century, how a hatred for communism dominated American foreign policy for over four decades, how important social changes over the last one hundred years and especially the last fifty years have (and are) creating forces that will either make America still stronger in the new century or will tear it asunder, and how the war on terrorism has affected American policy at home and abroad. STUDENT LEANING OUTCOMES or SLOs The specific Student Learning Outcomes or SLOs for this class, as listed in the course curriculum outline on file with the college, are that by the end of the semester you should be able to: Assess the causes and ramifications of social, cultural, political, and legal change in the United States; and Evaluate America's foreign affairs from the late 19th century to the present. STUDENT LEARNING OBJECTIVES The specific Student Leaning Objectives that students should know by the end of the semester in this class, according to the class outline on file with the Curriculum Committee, are the ability to: 1. Appraise the social and political issues involved in Reconstruction, while comparing and contrasting various Reconstruction formats and evaluating the impact of the 13th, 14th, and 15th Amendments; 2. Analyze the catalysts for western settlement, and the troubles between "the establishment" and Native Americans, while assessing the validity of assimilation venues such as the Dawes Severalty Act and education; 3. Evaluate the ordeals and progress of laborers in America over time, and assess the impact of ethnocentrism on labor legislation; 4. Articulate the agenda of the populist movement and discern the impact of race on farmers' alliances; 5. Assess the political and social reforms of Progressives, including the diminished role of machine politicians; 6. Appraise the reasons for, and results of, American involvement in international affairs, from the Spanish-American War through the two world wars, and discern the cultural prejudices that have had an impact on international affairs; 7. Explain the causes of the Great Depression, while comparing and contrasting Hoover's and Roosevelt's governments; 8. Analyze the causes and results of the Cold War; 9. Assess and evaluate the causes and results of the Vietnam conflict; 10. Explain the causes and on-going results of America's African-American civil rights movement; 11. Appraise the cultural and political contributions of underrepresented populations; 12. Discern examples of national policies and practices at the local and state level, and explain the mutual impact of the nation and state upon each other; and 13. Demonstrate a familiarity with selected local and state political leaders and legislative or judicial issues. CONTACT INFORMATION You can reach Dr. Reynolds 24/7 at [email protected]. (If for some reason that email does not work then you can try [email protected] but please do NOT send the same email to more than one address at a time! Thanks.) When you send an email you will get a response as soon as possible and always within 48 hours. If you do not hear back from Dr. Reynolds within 48 hours, then please forward your original email to him on the third day and do not assume it was received. Also, please remember to always include your name and your class section number (not your class number) in the subject area of your emails. Please also include a detailed message so we can be resolve you question(s) quickly. Thanks! Dr. Bradley Reynolds Dr. Reynolds holds history degrees from UCLA and USC. He has taught American history at three universities (California State University - Northridge, the University of Southern California, and the University of Vienna) and at two community colleges (College of the Canyons and El Camino College). He enjoys teaching and looks forward to discussing history with you! THE TEXTS AND WHERE TO PURCHASE THEM The two texts for this course are: Bradley Reynolds, American History, An Overview Since 1865, Eighth Edition (New York: McGraw-Hill, 2012), ISBN is 9780078119491, and A Patriot's History of the United States by Larry Schweikart and Michael Allen (New York: Sentinel, 2014), ISBN 978159521154. Both books are available at the COC Book Store and various online sites. You can also order the books from the COC Book Store by calling 1-661-362-3355 or by emailing [email protected]. The Patriot's History is additionally available as an ebook. The American History book was written specifically for your class. It includes outlines of material you should learn and a chronology of major events. A Patriot's History will give you more insight to the material so it is expected that you will read both books. They are the only books you should read and reference for this class. COURSE TOPICS For a list of course topics, please look at the Table of Contents in your course texts. COURSE READING ASSIGNMENTS Your class reading assignments are to complete in the American History book Chapters 1-9 for your first exam, Chapters 10-17 for your second test, and the remainder of the book to answer your final exam. In A Patriot's History you should read Chapters 9-14 for test one, Chapters 15-18 for test two, and Chapters 19-22 for test three. Test one covers the years 1865 to 1914, test two covers 1914 to 1953, and test three covers 1953 to the present. Besides reading your texts, you should read a current daily news source or weekly news magazine on a regular basis. You may be surprised at how much material in this class has a direct relationship to events today. So stay current with the news to enjoy the class material more and to help fulfill one of your class assignments which is to turn in ten current articles that specifically mention the primary material of your class (as described in the "History Articles" section below). The purpose of this assignment is to show you that there are articles all the time in the news today that directly relate to U.S. history between 1866 and 1999. COURSE GOALS The primary goals of this class are that your will complete the class readings, the news articles assignment, the history projects, the exams, and your SLO essay as scheduled and that by doing so you will gain an understanding of how important it is to know United States history to better comprehend the present and help you shape the future. GRADING The grades in this class break down as follows: 3 Multiple Choice Tests worth 20 percent each or 60 percent of your class grade 10 History Projects worth 10 percent of your class grade 10 History Articles worth 20 percent of your class grade 1 Student Learning Outcome (SLO) Essay worth 10 percent of your class grade THE MULTIPLE CHOICE EXAMS: You will take 3 multiple choice exams worth 20 percent each or 60 percent of your class grade. The dates of each exam are listed in the "Calendar..." section below. More information on the exams is listed below under “More on the Multiple Choice Exams.” THE HISTORY PROJECTS: Another 10 percent of your class grade will come from your 10 History Projects. Their due dates are listed below in the "Calendar..." section and what the projects entail is discussed in more detail below under "History Projects." THE HISTORY NEWS ARTICLES: Another 20 percent of your class grade will come from your 10 History News Articles. Their due dates are listed below in the "Calendar..." section and how to do the articles is discussed in more detail below under "History Articles." THE STUDENT LEARNING OUTCOME (SLO) ESSAY: The last 10 percent of your class grade will come from your Student learning Outcome Essay. Its due dates is listed below in the "Calendar..." section. How to do the essay is discussed in more detail below under "Student Learning Outcome (SLO) Essay." To calculate your class grade, assign the following points for each 10 percent of your class grade: four points to an "A", three points to a "B", two points to a "C," and one point to a "D." At the end of the term add your total points and your grade will be as follows: 40-38 points A, 37-35 points A-, 34-32 B+, 31-29 B, 28-26 B-, 25-23 C+, 22-20 C, 19-17 C-, 16-14 D+, 13-11 D, 10-8 D-, and below 8 Fail. CALENDAR OF IMPORTANT DATES February 5: On this first official day of your class, you should read the course Syllabus carefully and, if you have not yet done so, read the "Online Classes Welcome and Orientation Letter Plus Online FAQs" located at this website. You should also start reading your assigned texts and start working on your first two projects and first two articles. (Note that your projects, and articles, can cover any time period between 1866 and 1999 and does not have relate directly to what you are reading at the moment.) If you have any questions about the class material you should email Dr. Reynolds this week at [email protected]. And don't forget to sign-in to the Discussions area at Canvas no later than this Friday night by 11:59 p.m. COC time! February 9: Before the end of today, the first Friday of class, you should have posted to the Discussions area at Canvas to avoid possibly being dropped from the class. And don't forget to start working on your first two projects and articles (your first two projects are due next week). Remember to please put your projects (and your articles) directly into the body of your emails (no attachments) and send all work in separate emails to [email protected]. Yes, it's a bit more work but it will make record keeping a lot easier for both of us. Remember too that you can turn in your projects (and articles) early and that you are encouraged to do so at least 72 hours prior to when they are due so that you have time to redo something if necessary. And please don't forget to put your full name and you class section number in the subject area of the emails you send. By this date you should have also started to read the first assigned chapters in your course texts. You might want to also reread the "Online Students Welcome and Orientation Letter Plus Online FAQs" since the Q and A section might have more meaning now. February 12: Today, as you start your second week of class, you should be working on your first two projects, which are due by this Friday. Remember that, before the class ends, at least one project must be a historical document. You should also be reading the first few chapters of your texts, and you should be looking for articles. February 16: Your fist two projects must be received today by 11:59 p.m. COC time. Remember to put your projects directly into your emails, to send all work in separate emails, and to include a link to your source. Also remember to put your full name and your class section number in the subject area of your emails (and your posts). You should also be looking for your first two articles, which are due next week, and you should be reading your assigned texts so you can start preparing for your first multiple choice exam in a few weeks. February 19: Today, as you start the third week of class you should be looking for your first two articles which must be received by 11:59 p.m. COC time Friday. Remember, you want articles that specifically reference the primary history of your class between 1866 and 1999. February 23: Today, as you end your third week of class, your first two articles must be received via email at [email protected] by 11:59 p.m. COC time. Remember to put your articles directly into the body of your emails (no attachments) and to include a link to your source. Also remember to put your full name and your class section number in the subject area of your emails, and to send all work in separate emails. February 26: Today, at the start of your fourth week, you should be working on your second set of two projects (projects 3 and 4) which must be received by 11:59 p.m. COC time this Friday, and you should have started reviewing the multiple choice questions in your American History text for your first multiple choice exam in a few weeks. March 2: Today your second set of two projects (projects 3 and 4) must arrive by 11:59 p.m. COC time at [email protected]. Remember to put your projects directly into your emails and to include a link to your source. Also remember to put your full name and your class number and section number in the subject area of your emails and to send all work in separate emails. You should also be working on your second set of articles (articles 3 and 4), which must be received by 11:59 p.m. COC time next Friday. March 5: Today as you start your fifth week of class you should be working on second set of two articles (articles 3 and 4) which must be received by 11:59 p.m. COC time this Friday. March 9: Today your second two articles (articles 3 and 4) must be received by 11:59 COC time via email to [email protected]. Remember to put your articles directly into your emails and to include a link to your source. Also remember to put your full name and your class section number in the subject area of your emails, and to send all work in separate emails. March 12: Today, as you start your sixth week, you should be reviewing for your first multiple choice exam which will be posted at Canvas between 12:01 a.m. and noon on Friday. Be sure to review the multiple choice questions in your American History text before you take the exam, just as you would for a face to face class. Once you start the one hour test, which has 100 questions, you cannot stop or go back and change an answer so be prepared. March 16: This morning between 12:01 and noon your first multiple choice exam will be posted at Canvas. Make sure you complete it 11:59 pm. COC time. If something happens of a technical nature then do not panic and do NOT contact the college! Send an email to Dr. Reynolds and your problem will be dealt with within 24 hours IF you contact Dr. Reynolds before 9 p.m. on the day of your exam, so take the test early on the day it posts! And remember that the exam is timed (you have 60 minutes to complete it) and it cannot be stopped once you start it, nor can you go back and change an answer, so make sure you study the multiple choice questions in your American History book before you take the exam, just like you would in a face to face class. And make sure you have a good connection. March 19: Today, as you start your seventh week of class, you should be working on your third set of projects (projects 5 and 6) which must be received by 11:59 p.m. COC time this Friday. March 23: Today your third set of projects (projects 5 and 6) must be received by 11:59 p.m. COC time via email to [email protected]. Remember to cut and paste your projects directly into your emails and to include a link to your source. Also remember to put your full name and your class section number in the subject area of your emails and to send all work in separate emails. March 26: Today, as you start your eighth week of class, you should be working on your third set of articles (articles 5 and 6) which must be received by 11:59 p.m. COC time this Friday. You should also be reviewing the multiple choice questions for exam two which is in a few weeks. March 30: Today your third set of articles (articles 5 and 6) must be received by 11:59 p.m. COC time via email to [email protected]. Remember to put your articles directly into your emails and to include a link to your source. Also remember to put your full name and your class section number in the subject area of your emails, and to send all work in separate emails. April 2: Spring Break - no work due this week! April 11: Today, as you start your tenth week of class, you should be working on your fourth set of projects (projects 7 and 8) which must be received by 11:59 p.m. COC time this Friday. You should also working on your next set of articles that are due in a couple of weeks, and you should be reviewing the multiple choice questions in your American History text in preparation for your third multiple choice next week. April 13: Today your fourth set of projects (projects 7 and 8) must be received by 11:59 p.m. COC time via email to [email protected]. Remember to put your projects directly into your emails and to include a link to your source. Also remember to put your full name and your class section number in the subject area of your emails, and to send all work in separate emails. April 16: Today as you begin your eleventh week of class, you should be reviewing the multiple choice questions for your second multiple choice exam which will be posted at Canvas this Friday between 12:01 a.m. and noon COC time. April 20: Today, between 12:01 a.m. and noon COC time, your second multiple choice exam will post at Canvas. You must complete it by 11:59 p.m. COC time. You are strongly urged to take the exam early, and to complete the exam no later than 9.p.m., so that if something happens of a technical nature you will have time to possibly retake the exam. If you have a technical problem, you are not likely to have an opportunity to complete the exam if you do not contact Dr. Reynolds before 9 p.m. on the day of the exam. So take the exam early! And remember that if something does happen, do NOT contact the college. Instead, send an email to [email protected] and you will hear back from Dr. Reynolds within 24 hours. April 23: Today, as we begin the twelfth week of class, you should be working on your fourth set of articles (articles 7 and 8) which must be received by 11:59 p.m. COC time this Friday. April 29: Today two more articles must be received by 11:59 p.m. COC time via email to[email protected] . Be sure to cut and paste your work directly into your emails and to include your full name and class number and section number in the subject area of your emails. And please send all work in separate emails. May 2: Today, as we begin the thirteenth week of class, you should be working on your last set of projects (projects 9 and 10) which must be received before midnight COC time this Friday. You should also be reviewing for your last multiple choice exam in a few weeks. May 6: Today by 11:59 p.m. COC time, your last set of projects (projects 9 and 10) must be via email to[email protected]. Be sure to put your work directly into your emails and to include your full name and class number and section number in the subject area of your emails. And please send all work in separate emails. May 9: Today as you start your fourteenth week of class you should be working on your last set of articles (articles 9 and 10) which must be received by 11:59 p.m. COC this Friday. May 13: Today your last set of articles (articles 9 and 10) must be received by 11:59 p.m. COC time. May 16: Take a breather this week before your final exam next week. May 23: Today, as you begin your fifteenth and next to last week of class, you should be preparing for your third multiple choice exam which will be posted next week at Blackboard. May 27: This morning before noon COC time your third multiple choice exam will be available at Blackboard. You must complete the exam before 9 p.m. COC time. You are strongly urged to take the exam early so that if something happens of a technical nature you are more likely to have time to retake the exam. Remember - if a problem arises while you are taking the exam then you should send an email to [email protected]. Please do NOT contact the college. Congratulations - you have completed the course! REVIEW OF IMPORTANT CLASS DATES February 8: This is your first day of class. Make sure you carefully read your course syllabus and that you contact Dr. Reynolds if you have any questions about the class. February 12: By today you must have signed into the Discussion Area at the course website or Discussions area of Blackboard or you could be dropped from the class. February 19: Your first two projects are due. February 26: Your first two articles are due. March 4: Your third and fourth projects are due. March 11: Your third and fourth articles are due. March 18: Your first multiple choice exam is posted to Blackboard. March 25: Your fifth and sixth projects are due. April 1: Your fifth and sixth articles are due. April 4: Spring Break no work due! April 15: Your seventh and eighth projects are due. April 22: Your second multiple choice exam is available and due at Blackboard. April 29: Your seventh and eighth articles are due. May 6: Your ninth and tenth projects are due. May 13: Your ninth and tenth articles are due. May 16: Take a breather this week before your final exam next week. May 27: Your third multiple choice exam is available and due at Blackboard. MORE ON THE MULTIPLE CHOICE EXAMS AND WHAT TO READ FOR THE TESTS The multiple choice questions will come for the most part from the questions at the end of each chapter of theAmerican History text, so if you study the questions in Chapters 1-9 for your first multiple choice test you should not have too many surprises. And if you study the multiples at the end of Chapters 10-17 for test two you should not have too many surprises. And if you study the remaining chapters for your third multiple choice test then you should do well on it too! The multiple choice tests will be available at Blackboard before noon COC time on the days they are due. Check the "Calendar..." section above for the dates. Note that the multiple choice tests are timed (you will have 60 minutes for each of your three multiple choice exams) and each exam has 100 questions so be prepared before you go to take each exam, just as you would in a face to face class! Also, just so you are not caught by surprise and then panic, sometimes the tests at Blackboard move slowly. However, that's why you have 60 minutes to complete the exam! Most students are able to finish the 100 question multiple choice test in 45 minutes or less, so extra time has been built into the test in case of problems. Nevertheless, you are also STRONGLY ADVISED to take the multiple choice exams early on the days they post so that if you have any technical problems they can be resolved before the deadline of when you test must be completed. You cannot take the exam past the due date and time. So take note of when the exams will be available. You should also consider using Firefox or Chrome or Safari as your browser instead of Explorer since it's more reliable with Blackboard. Whatever, keep in mind that your failure to do an exam will result in zero, which means an F for that test plus one lower class grade, and the multiple choice tests cannot be taken late under any circumstances. So make sure you have a good computer connection, that you have adequately prepared for the test, and that you take the exam early. And note that once the test begins it cannot be stopped nor can you go back and check or change answers. THE HISTORY ARTICLES Besides your exam grades, 30 percent of your class grade will come from the ten history news articles assignment. The purpose of this assignment is to show you that there are articles in the news all the time which specifically mention the primary content of your class, which is U.S. history, between 1866 and 1999. So look for articles thatspecifically reference the primary material you are studying between 1866 and 1999. Also note that the articles must come from a current news source (an original publication date within the term dates of your class) like a daily newspaper or news website or a weekly newspaper or weekly news magazine. (Do NOT use a history magazine or history website, do not get your articles from a newspaper blog or magazine blog, and do not use "This Day in History" blurbs, or sites like the New York Times "Topics" or an obituary section since doing so defeats the purpose of the assignment which is to show you that there are articles in the news all the time that specifically mention the primary history of your class ). When you find what is required, put your work into the body of your email with an active link to the source (or scan or photo it and send it as an attachment if you are using a hard copy of something but make sure you also send the page number, date and name of the source). Then write a paragraph about what the article says and another on how it specifically mentions something from the primary content of your class (meaning U.S. history between 1866 an 1999). Then discuss why it is important to know the history of your class to understand the article. Make sure you submit your articles in separate emails by their due dates mentioned in the "Calendar..." section if you plan to complete this assignment, and remember that you can turn articles in early (and you should try to do so at least 72 hours before they are due so you will have time to redo an article if needed)! Also remember that I do NOT accept work late! If you turn in all the articles by their due dates you will receive an "A" for this part of your class grade. Eight articles will earn you a "B," seven a "C" and six a "D." If you turn in less than six articles then you will get an F for this assignment, but that's better than a zero which is what you will get if you turn in nothing. (A zero is an F for the assignment plus one lower class grade!) So turn in something! And make sure you keep a copy of what you submit until you are told by Dr. Reynolds that your article was graded and recorded! Then keep the accepted email until you get your final class grade! THE HISTORY PROJECTS Another class assignment is to complete your ten history projects relating to the primary content of your class (U.S. history) between the years 1866 and 1999. The purpose of this assignment is to show that there are many ways to learn about the primary history you are studying. To find some of the history project worksheets, go tobradleyreynolds.weebly.com and click on "Projects." You can answer the questions as they appear on the worksheets, or you can write an essay using the questions listed, or you can make up your own questions providing they explain how your project relates to the primary history of your class, what one needs to know about the primary history of your class to understand the project, and what you learned about the primary history of your class from doing the project. Things you can do include attending a lecture on something related to the primary content of this class, writing a book review on a book related to the primary content of this class, visiting a museum or library to see an exhibit related to the primary content of this class (if you do this make sure you keep the receipt so you can send a copy of it with your review), critiquing a historical cartoon or poster or photograph of something related to the primary content of this class, interviewing someone who knows about information related to the primary content of this class, or even analyzing a song or video game about topics related to the primary content of this class. Whatever you decide to do (and you re welcome to suggest something that it is not listed), remember that you are expected to do ten projects (at least five different ones, meaning you can do any type of project two times), you must follow the directions for each project as stated on each worksheet (although your reviews can be 1 to 3 pages and do not have to be 2 pages as stated on each worksheet), you may not do more than two of the same projects (so, for example, you cannot do three movie reviews), and you need to send each project in a separate email. Also, please make sure that the work you reference for your project is from within the term dates of your class. So, for example, if you do a museum review or a film review, make sure it comes from something you did within the dates of your class term. Once you have completed your project you should cut and paste your work into an email to Dr. Reynolds. If any of this is unclear, be sure to contact Dr. Reynolds via email for a further explanation. If you complete all ten history projects by their due dates, which are mentioned in the Calendar section above, then you will get an "A" for this part of your class grade (remember - I do NOT accept work late). Eight completed projects by the proper due dates will earn you a "B," seven projects will earn you a "C," and six projects a "D." If you turn in less than six projects then you will get an F for this assignment, but that's better than a zero which is what you will get if you turn in nothing. (A zero is an "F" for the assignment plus one lower class grade!) So turn in something! As with the news articles, you can turn in your ten history projects either individually or in total anytime prior to their due dates to receive full credit, but you should try to turn them in sooner than later and preferably at least 72 hours before they are due so if something is rejected or lost you will have time to redo it. And make sure you keep a copy of each project until you know it has been approved by Dr. Reynolds! Then keep the accepted email until you get your final class grade! THE STUDENT LEARNING OUTCOME (SLO) ESSAY In addition, you will take two essays exams. You will have the option of taking essay exam one or two and then everyone will take essay exam three. If you opt to do both essay tests one and two, then your highest essay grade from those first two exams will count as your first essay grade which is 30 percent of your class grade. Therefore, you should consider doing essay exam one so you can improve your essay exam score on essay exam two if needed. Again, everyone will take the final essay exam which is also 30 percent of your class grade. The essays on your exams will come from the essay questions listed below. You will receive specific instructions on how to prepare for each essay in class prior to each exam, but before that you can and should check the "Tips on Writing Essays" at bradleyreynolds.weebly.com. For now suffice it to say that you will receive at least three of the five essays listed for each test and you will select one to answer. (So if you study at least three of the questions listed for each test you are guaranteed to get at least one of the questions you studied on your exam!) Please note that when you take your essay tests you will need to write your essays in full sentences and paragraphs and that spelling, punctuation, grammar, and organization will count when determining your essay grades. So if you have a writing problem, see Dr. Reynolds for ways you might improve your writing or wait and take this class after you have taken a writing class. Generally speaking, an essay that answers the question asked but in a broad general way emphasizing only lecture material and perhaps needing better writing and organization will probably earn a "C." (In other words, your essays are expected to include specific information from your required book.) A "B" essay is a very good essay but one that could perhaps use more specifics from the book or lectures and/or more analysis and/or tighter writing and organization. An "A" essay is one that is well written and organized, answers the question in full, and uses specific examples from the lectures and book. You will get a "D" if your essay has inaccurate information, and/or is poorly written and organized, and/or if it omits parts of the question asked. You will get an "F" if you fail to answer the question asked or if your writing is extremely poor or if you write very little. And you will get a "zero" if you fail to take the exam. A zero means an F for the test plus one lower class grade! And note that if you cheat on an exam you will get a Fail for the class! Students sometimes wonder how much they should write to get an "A." While you will be graded more on content then on length, generally speaking an "A" exam tends to fill most of a small examination book, both sides of the page. In other words, don't expect to get a very good grade if you write only a few pages. In short, an "A" means outstanding, a "B" means very good, a "C" means satisfactory, a "D" means unsatisfactory, and an "F" means you failed to answer the question. CHEATING, COPYING AND PLAGIARISM Unfortunately, a note needs to be made here about cheating, copying, and plagiarism. If you are caught cheating, or if you copy the work of someone else, or if you plagiarize, you will receive a fail for the class and you may be subject to further disciplinary action including suspension or expulsion. So make sure you obey the rules! If you have any questions about any of this make sure you ask Dr. Reynolds. IF YOU DECIDE TO DROP THIS CLASS If you decide to drop this class it is your responsibility to do so before the drop date. If you remain in the class you should plan to complete all the class assignments by their due dates. WELCOME TO THE CLASS! |