United States Government Syllabus for 2023-2024
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Tutoring for Success applies to any student whose overall performance in the course falls below 75%. The instructor will create the task in the Student Engagement Portal (Watermark) to direct the student to the appropriate tutoring service, which may be faculty- or SI-led, discipline-specific, and/or general. The tutoring service assigned, the due date for when the tutoring must be completed, and the amount of tutoring required are at the discretion of the instructor. Additionally, the task will alert the student’s success team. Students who do not fulfill the assigned tutoring task may be subject to program- and course-specific penalties that could result in a grade reduction and/or in not being allowed to progress in the course until the tutoring requirement has been satisfied.

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Students who do not attend class on or prior to the census date will be administratively dropped. Effective Fall, 2016

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Course

GOVT-2305-022 United States Government

Prerequisites

Course Description

Origin and development of the U.S. Constitution, structure and powers of the national government including the legislative, executive and judicial branches, federalism, political participation, the national election process, public policy, civil liberties and civil rights.

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

Online Course

Syllabus Information

Textbooks

 

Supplies

Access to reliable internet and a computer to access the course through the internet.

Student Performance

1. Explain the origin and development of constitutional democracy in the United States
2. Describe separation of powers and checks and balances in both theory and practice
3. Demonstrate knowledge of the federal system
4. Demonstrate knowledge of the legislative, executive and judicial branches of the federal government
5. Evaluate the role of public opinion, interest groups and political parties in the political system and analyze the election process
6. Describe the rights and responsibilities of citizens
7. Analyze issues and policies in U.S. politics

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

Particularly because this is an online-only course, you will need to read your textbook to get the best grade. Exam questions are pulled from the textbook. To help guide you as you read the book and study for exams, I will provide my PowerPoint presentations and notes from my in-class lectures. These materials will help you identify what is important to focus on during the reading. Additionally, the information in your Chapter Notes assignments will highlight important topics in each chapter.

You only need to purchase the book, either in print or online. You can find the book at the AC bookstore or online through vendors like Chegg, Amazon, etc. If you want to buy an electronic copy, the first week of class you can sign up for free digital access to the book. This free access will expire before the course is over though, so at some point, you will need to buy either the book or the access code. The first assignment requiring you to read is within the first few days of class, so please sign up for access or get a book within the first two days, even if you are waiting on financial aid or for your order to be delivered.

On course discussion boards, please be aware that no one ever knows what life experiences their classmates have had. Therefore, it is incredibly important to be respectful and kind during discussions, and speak(type) in a manner that will always protect the safety of the learning environment for ALL students.

Amarillo College expects all students to engage in academic honesty and refrain from cheating and/or plagiarism.  I expect each student to complete the assignments independently. Exams should be completed independently, as should Chapter Notes, Common Assessment, and Discussion Board posts for this class. Penalties for cheating as well as plagiarism are outlined in the Amarillo College Student Handbook.

In our course calendar, I list due dates for all assignments. All work must be turned in on time to receive full credit.  Put your due dates in a planner, use phone apps or reminders; take advantage of the time you have, and plan ahead so you turn assignments in on time. 

You will need to contact me to develop arrangements for any submissions that will be turned in late. What is a reasonable or acceptable reason for turning in work late and what the timeline will be for turning in a late assignment is at my discretion.  As soon as you know you must miss an assignment, please contact me. If work is submitted late, it is subject to point or percentage deductions. I will not accept work that is more than two weeks late unless you and I have discussed your need for more time and I have granted an extension.

Grading Criteria

Grades in this course are not given, they are earned.  As a student, you will be required to complete the necessary work to earn your grade.

Overall Course Grades are broken down in this manner:

Letter Grade	Points
A	100 - 89.5
B	89.4 - 79.5
C	79.4 - 69.5
D	69.4 - 59.5
F	59.4 - 0

Display and calculation of grades will be done by Blackboard. 

Your current grade will be available in Blackboard under "My Grades" in the course menu.

Foundations assignment:

The Foundations assignment is due during Unit #1 and is worth 5% of your grade.  All information needed to complete this assignment will be in the Foundations PowerPoint and Instructor Notes or can be found in the connected book chapters.  

The course calendar has the due date for this assignment.

Planning & Research assignment:

The Planning & Research assignment is to assist you with your Common Assessment.  It is due during Unit #3 and is worth 5% of your grade.  Research will be required for this assignment; meeting with a Librarian is highly encouraged.

The course calendar has the due date for this assignment.

Common Assessment:

This is the writing assignment that every government class must complete. Instructions and grading information on the Common Assessment will be found in our Blackboard course. The Common Assessment is 15%.

Discussion Boards:

There are three discussion boards throughout the 8 weeks that are worth 20% of your grade.  For each, you will be required to read a selection in the book or review a PowerPoint and the accompanying Instructor Notes and then post a response to my required questions by the due date provided in the calendar below. Read carefully as I will be asking more than one question per discussion board. Additionally, you will be required to respond to at least one classmate by a following date. I will often interact with my students on the discussion board, but while I enjoy interacting with you, replying to me does not satisfy the requirement to respond to a classmate. 

ETIQUETTE: All students are expected to be tolerant and respectful of other students and of me. There will be zero tolerance for any type of harassment. In class discussions online, be courteous and respectful of the different opinions of your classmates. Remember that I (and potentially the entire class) will be reading what you post.

Chapter Notes:

There are five Chapter Notes assignments throughout the semester. You will need to utilize the connected book chapter in order to complete these assignments. I will drop the lowest scored Chapter Notes assignment at the end of the class. Each is worth 5% points for a total of 20%.

See our course calendar for the specific Chapter Notes and when they are due. 

Exams:

There will be 3 exams that each consist of 50 questions. The 3 exams together are worth 35% of your grade.  

Each exam will open at 12:01 AM on the date indicated on the course calendar and will close a few days later, when indicated on the calendar, at 11:59 PM. 

You must complete the exam all at once within the allotted time of 75 minutes. I do not reopen exams.

Exams are open book/open note, but are not collaborative assignments. For more information on cheating, see above.

Please do not wait until the last minute to take your exam, when you will not find anyone to assist you with technical problems. I, and most all other AC staff, will be unavailable to answer questions after 9:00 PM each night.

Do NOT take exams on a cell phone or when using an unreliable connection. It is highly suggested to use an actual computer that has a dedicated cable for the Internet connection.

You may take each exam from any location - from home, in an AC computer lab, at the public library, etc. - that has a reliable connection.

You will be able to see your exam grade immediately, but you cannot access all of the questions/answers until after the due date has passed - at that point, you can click on the menu item ‘My Grades’ in our course, click on the exam of interest, and you will then see all of the questions/answers.

Please note: exceptions can be made for extenuating circumstances, but you must communicate with me.

See below for information on attendance.

Attendance

As an online-only class, attendance is measured by your completion of assignments by their due dates. It is up to you to check our class online each day and to calendar and keep up with when all assignments are due. 

Periodically, I will make announcements, which will be posted in our class on the “Announcements” page in our course and also sent out via email, so checking your email regularly (a couple times a day) is also highly recommended.

KEY DATES: You must submit an assignment by the Census date on Monday, August 28 (08/28/2023) to avoid an automatic withdrawal from the course. This is a College policy, not mine and I am unable to change it.

Final Date to Withdraw from the Course without a Failing Grade: Tuesday, October 3rd (10/03/2023).

Calendar

Additional Information

COLLEGE POLICY: If a student overall grade in the course falls below 75%, they will be required to attend tutoring per the instructor’s directions, to better ensure success in the course.  

Please contact me if you have questions or problems that are impacting your performance in this class. My contact information is at the top of this document. 

Exceptions to the above course policies:

Exceptions to course policies can be granted unless a student is experiencing significant hardship or bereavement and the student communicates with their instructor in a timely fashion. Technical problems are not an acceptable excuse for late work unless there was a problem with Amarillo College's systems or services used by the school.

If you have unreliable Internet service, it is critical to find a backup that you can use in case of an outage. The Amarillo College Library has partnered with T-Mobile to provide free internet hotspots to eligible students.  Contact the Library to check on your eligibility.

Your instructor reserves the right to alter the syllabus, calendar, or assignments if needed.