United States History I Syllabus for 2019-2020
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Course Information

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Course

HIST-1301-014 United States History I

Prerequisites

Course Description

A survey of the social, political, economic, cultural and intellectual history of the United States from the pre-Columbian era to the Civil War/Reconstruction period. United States History I includes the study of pre-Columbian, colonial, revolutionary, early national, slavery and sectionalism, and the Civil War/Reconstruction eras. Themes that may be addressed in United States History I include: American settlement and diversity, American culture, religion, civil and human rights, technological change, economic change, immigration and migration, and creation of the federal government.

Student ResourcesStudent Resources Website

Department Expectations

Occupational License Disclaimer

Notice to Students enrolled in an educational program for preparation of issuance of certain occupational licenses:

Students enrolled in an educational program in preparation for obtaining certain occupational licenses are potentially ineligible for such license if the student has been convicted of an offense. For further information, please contact:

Melodie Graves
Justice Involved Advocate
Student Service Center 117
mgraves24@actx.edu
806-371-5995
Make appointment at https://melodiegraves.youcanbook.me

You can also contact the Legal Clinic, or the faculty member in charge of the educational program that you seek to enroll in. The further information you will receive will include notification to you of your right to request a criminal history evaluation letter from the licensing authority in order to clarify your particular situation.

Hours

(3 sem hrs; 3 lec)

Class Type

Hybrid

Syllabus Information

Textbooks

The American YAWP, volume I, edited by Joseph Locke and Ben Wright. This is an OER (open educational resource) available for free online with a low-cost paper copy available at the bookstore.

Supplies

You are required to have regular access to a personal computer, tablet, or chromebook with reliable internet access

Student Performance

Upon successful completion of this course, students will be able to:

1. Create an argument through the use of historical evidence.
2. Analyze and interpret primary and secondary sources.
3. Analyze the effects of historical, social, political, economic, cultural, and global forces on this period in United States history.

Students Rights and Responsibilities

Student Rights and Responsibilities

Log in using the AC Connect Portal

In order to receive your AC Connect Email, you must log in through AC Connect at https://acconnect.actx.edu .

If you are an active staff or faculty member according to Human Resources, use "Exchange". All other students, use "AC Connect (Google) Email".

Expected Student Behavior

You are expected to follow all Amarillo College policies and procedures, particularly those relating to academic integrity and personal conduct. The following are of particular importance:

• Be respectful: to provide an environment that encourages free expression we must treat each other with dignity and respect. Students who behave inappropriately will receive no participation credit for the day and in more extreme circumstances may face disciplinary action from the college.
• Don't commit plagiarism: you must properly cite sources used in your work. Failing to provide citations will result in significant grading penalties. If willful plagiarism is involved the assignment will receive a failing grade and at the instructor's discretion you may fail the course and/or face disciplinary action from the college.
• Do your own work: while it is perfectly acceptable and encouraged to study together, you may not collaborate with others on any work that receives a grade unless specifically authorized. It is never acceptable to pass off others' work as your own, including having others take exams for you, buying papers, etc. Cheating will result in harsh penalties imposed at the instructor's discretion including failure of the assessment, failure of the course, and disciplinary action from the college.

Course materials created by your professor, including assignments, handouts, lectures, exams, quizzes, and similar materials and derivative works such as course notes are protected by copyright and for personal educational use only, and may not be reproduced, distributed, sold, bartered, or publicly posted to the Internet without your professor’s express written permission. Your instructor will pursue any available legal avenues to protect his intellectual property such as takedown notices as permitted by the Digital Millennium Copyright Act. Students found to have violated the instructor's intellectual property rights will be referred to the college for disciplinary action.

Do not record the class without your instructor's permission. Class will be recorded and posted for you.

You are responsible for taking the proper steps to solve technical problems with technology used in the class: a list of support resources has been provided for you under the “help” section of the course’s Blackboard site. It it particularly important to give yourself enough time to work through technical issues before due dates: because you will be given ample time to complete your work, technical problems will not be an acceptable excuse for failing to meet deadlines. Your professor is not a technical support person and will simply refer you to the “help” section if you come to him with technical problems, but you are encouraged to speak with him if you are unable to reach a resolution after consulting the appropriate resources.

For the entirety of the 2020 Spring II semester, Dr. Fauss will be working remotely from home, so the best way to get in touch with him will be through email. Please observe the proper etiquette for business emails: provide a descriptive yet concise subject in addition to a professional salutation and closing; additionally, you should write in complete sentences and avoid net- or text-speak. Most workplaces use email, so this should be good practice for you.

You should check your school email regularly. Dr. Fauss will occasionally send out reminders and other important information via email. If class is cancelled, an email will be sent out as early in the day as possible.

Email is not an instantaneous form of communication: Dr. Fauss checks his email at least once a day most days, and will usually get back to you by the end of the day. In most circumstances you will receive a reply within 24 hours. It is not necessary to follow up unless you have not received a reply within 24 hours.

Grading Criteria

Graded components

Module Quizzes

Each chapter module will have a timed quiz consisting of objective questions based upon the key terms and objectives. The quizzes will be 12% of your course grade. The lowest four quizzes will be dropped.

Module Posts

Each chapter module will have you post to a discussion board. The posts will be 13% of your course grade. The lowest 4 posts will be dropped.

Exams

You will be taking four online exams. The exams will consist of objective questions, and will be timed. The exams will be 50% of your course grade. The lowest exam score will be dropped.

Students who cannot take an exam during the scheduled times must inform Dr. Fauss of this as soon as possible. Make-up exams must be taken within one week of the closing of the exam.

Paper

You will be completing a short paper worth 25% of your course grade. You will be able to see the rubric used to grade the paper in "My Grades" in Blackboard.

Late papers will receive a 2 point penalty for each day turned in after the due date.

Extra credit

There will be no extra credit awarded in the class.

Display and calculation of grades by Blackboard

Your current grade will be available in Blackboard under "My Grades" in the course menu. Your grade is calculated as a running total, meaning that the grade is only based upon the material submitted as of the time you check. Your running total will be calculated based upon the weighting of the different categories of grades, so for example, exams will always calculate as the stated percentage of the total, even if only one exam is in; as more grades come in within the category, the grade will change, but it will still be calculated with the category weighting.

Final grade calculation

Final grades will be calculated according to the following criteria:

90-100 = A

80-89 = B

70-79 = C

60-69 = D

Below 60 = F

Your final grade will be rounded to the next highest integer.

Attendance

Students are expected to log into Collaborate during scheduled class times. Attendance will be taken. Students will be contacted if they miss 2 classes in a row, or miss 3 total classes.

Calendar

Additional Information

You will be assessed on your mastery of the information presented in lectures, your textbook, and other materials utilized in class. Because the quality of most information on American history on the Internet is so poor, turning to it for information is not acceptable unless specifically authorized.

If a student scores below 70% on the first exam, he or she will be required to attend tutoring per the instructor’s directions before being allowed to complete the next exam.

The instructor reserves the right to change the syllabus and calendar if needed.