Syllabus Highlights: The Study of History (Hist 3000)
Dalton State College (Fall 2015)
Section 01H: Wednesday, 8:00 AM to 9:15 AM (Liberal Arts 204)
Section 01H: Wednesday, 8:00 AM to 9:15 AM (Liberal Arts 204)
Contact Information
Dr. Sarah Mergel Associate Professor of History Liberal Arts 244 706.272.2675 Email: [email protected] Twitter: @sarahkmergel |
Office Hours
Tuesday – 12:15 PM to 1:30 PM, 3:00 PM to 4:15 PM Wednesday – 9:30 AM to 12:30 PM Thursday – 12:15 PM to 1:30 PM, 3:00 PM to 4:15 PM Or By Appointment |
Course Description and Learning Outcomes
History is an art and a science. Thus, good history tells a story about past events, but also seeks to explain the causes and the effects those events. History is also a discipline that imparts critical thinking, research, writing, and presentation skills. To help you make you a better historian, this course will introduce you to the analysis, research, writing, and citation techniques used by historians. It will also expose you to different schools of historical thought and fields of study (i.e., historiography).
The best way to study and learn history is through reading, lecture, discussion, and writing and all four will be used in this hybrid course. Given the focus of this course, lecture will be kept to a minimum. For the most part, you will complete reading assignments and we will discuss them in class. Moreover, we will practice the techniques used by historians online and in class. The purpose of the course activities is to help you think more critically about the sources you will encounter in your other history classes as well as to help you complete writing assignments for your other history classes.
During the semester: (1) students will identify and describe some of the major schools of American historiography and recognize how history developed as a scholarly discipline; (2) students will recognize the distinction between primary and secondary sources, evaluate them, and understand how each is used to make historical claims; (3) students will demonstrate the ability to cite sources correctly and to write as a historian; and (4) students will learn how to define and clarify research topics/questions and how to use library research tools.
The best way to study and learn history is through reading, lecture, discussion, and writing and all four will be used in this hybrid course. Given the focus of this course, lecture will be kept to a minimum. For the most part, you will complete reading assignments and we will discuss them in class. Moreover, we will practice the techniques used by historians online and in class. The purpose of the course activities is to help you think more critically about the sources you will encounter in your other history classes as well as to help you complete writing assignments for your other history classes.
During the semester: (1) students will identify and describe some of the major schools of American historiography and recognize how history developed as a scholarly discipline; (2) students will recognize the distinction between primary and secondary sources, evaluate them, and understand how each is used to make historical claims; (3) students will demonstrate the ability to cite sources correctly and to write as a historian; and (4) students will learn how to define and clarify research topics/questions and how to use library research tools.
Required Books and Online Readings
Anbinder, Tyler. Five Points, reissue edition. New York: Free Press, 2010. ISBN-13: 9781439141557.
Arnold, John H. History: A Very Short Introduction. New York: Oxford University Press, 2000. ISBN-13: 9780192853523.
Banner, James M., ed. A Century of American Historiography. Boston: Bedford/St. Martins, 2009. ISBN-13: 9780312539481.
Boorstin, Daniel J. The Genius of American Politics. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1953. Online. [Chapter 3, 66-98]
Brundage, Anthony. Going to the Sources: A Guide to Historical Research and Writing, fifth edition. Malden, MA: Wiley & Sons, 2013. ISBN-13: 9781118515310.
Gaddis, John Lewis. We Now Know: Rethinking the Cold War. New York: Oxford University Press, 1997. Online. [Chapter 1, 1-25]
Handlin, Oscar. The Uprooted. Boston: Little, Brown, 1951. Online. [Chapter 3, 63-93, and Chapter 6, 144-169]
Levine, Lawrence. The Unpredictable Past: Explorations in American Cultural History. New York: Oxford University Press, 1993. Online [Chapter 11, 206-230]
Nash, Gary B. Unknown American Revolution. New York: Penguin Books, 2005. Online [Chapter 8, 366-422]
Susman, Warren I. Culture as History: The Transformation of American Society in the Twentieth Century, revised edition. New York: Pantheon Books, 1984. Online. [Chapter 9, 150-183]
Williams, William Appleman. The Tragedy of American Diplomacy, revised edition. New York: Dell Publishing, 1962. Online. [Chapter 6, 202-275]
All books listed with ISBNs are available new at the Dalton State bookstore and used at most online book retailers. Several of the print books are available in Kindle and Nook format. All other readings are available on GeorgiaVIEW under Content/Readings.
Arnold, John H. History: A Very Short Introduction. New York: Oxford University Press, 2000. ISBN-13: 9780192853523.
Banner, James M., ed. A Century of American Historiography. Boston: Bedford/St. Martins, 2009. ISBN-13: 9780312539481.
Boorstin, Daniel J. The Genius of American Politics. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1953. Online. [Chapter 3, 66-98]
Brundage, Anthony. Going to the Sources: A Guide to Historical Research and Writing, fifth edition. Malden, MA: Wiley & Sons, 2013. ISBN-13: 9781118515310.
Gaddis, John Lewis. We Now Know: Rethinking the Cold War. New York: Oxford University Press, 1997. Online. [Chapter 1, 1-25]
Handlin, Oscar. The Uprooted. Boston: Little, Brown, 1951. Online. [Chapter 3, 63-93, and Chapter 6, 144-169]
Levine, Lawrence. The Unpredictable Past: Explorations in American Cultural History. New York: Oxford University Press, 1993. Online [Chapter 11, 206-230]
Nash, Gary B. Unknown American Revolution. New York: Penguin Books, 2005. Online [Chapter 8, 366-422]
Susman, Warren I. Culture as History: The Transformation of American Society in the Twentieth Century, revised edition. New York: Pantheon Books, 1984. Online. [Chapter 9, 150-183]
Williams, William Appleman. The Tragedy of American Diplomacy, revised edition. New York: Dell Publishing, 1962. Online. [Chapter 6, 202-275]
All books listed with ISBNs are available new at the Dalton State bookstore and used at most online book retailers. Several of the print books are available in Kindle and Nook format. All other readings are available on GeorgiaVIEW under Content/Readings.
Assignments
Online Quizzes
You will take five online quizzes during the semester. The first quiz will assess your knowledge of the course requirements by testing you over the contents of the syllabus. The remaining quizzes will relate to the reading assignments in order to help you prepare for class discussions and grapple with historiographical concepts. The quizzes may contain multiple choice, true/false, matching, identification, or short-answer questions. You can access the quizzes online through Content/Assignments or through Quizzes. (Learning Outcome 1)
Online Skills Assessments
You will complete three online skills assessments to help you develop the ability to recognize sources, to write as a historian, and to cite sources correctly. The skills assessments will contain multiple choice, true/false, identification, or short-answer questions. You can access the quizzes online through Content/Assignments or through Quizzes. (Learning Outcomes 2/3)
Group Discussions
You will participate in four group discussions on the reading material to help you learn to evaluate secondary sources. I will randomly assign you to a reading circle at the beginning of the semester, and for each discussion, you will play a different role to help the group understand the day’s selection. On the day of the discussion, your group will spend time reviewing the book, and then your group will present one element (aspect) of the review to the class (the elements will rotate with each discussion). We will go over this activity in class before the first discussion, but you can find detailed information about the discussions online under Content/Assignments. (Learning Outcome 2)
Myth Busters Project
You will complete a piece of original historical research in which you choose a myth about American history and debunk that myth. As part of the assignment, you will identify a myth, find relevant sources to support your argument, evaluate a primary source document, evaluate a secondary source (book), and write the essay. The purpose of this assignment is to help develop the skills necessary to complete a research project, to create an original piece of historical writing, and to create an Open Education Resource (which adds to the body of quality historical literature on the internet). You will submit all your work for this assignment to GeorgiaVIEW and track your progress using an online checklist. You can find detailed instructions about this assignment online under Content/Assignments. (Learning Outcomes 2/3/4)
You will take five online quizzes during the semester. The first quiz will assess your knowledge of the course requirements by testing you over the contents of the syllabus. The remaining quizzes will relate to the reading assignments in order to help you prepare for class discussions and grapple with historiographical concepts. The quizzes may contain multiple choice, true/false, matching, identification, or short-answer questions. You can access the quizzes online through Content/Assignments or through Quizzes. (Learning Outcome 1)
Online Skills Assessments
You will complete three online skills assessments to help you develop the ability to recognize sources, to write as a historian, and to cite sources correctly. The skills assessments will contain multiple choice, true/false, identification, or short-answer questions. You can access the quizzes online through Content/Assignments or through Quizzes. (Learning Outcomes 2/3)
Group Discussions
You will participate in four group discussions on the reading material to help you learn to evaluate secondary sources. I will randomly assign you to a reading circle at the beginning of the semester, and for each discussion, you will play a different role to help the group understand the day’s selection. On the day of the discussion, your group will spend time reviewing the book, and then your group will present one element (aspect) of the review to the class (the elements will rotate with each discussion). We will go over this activity in class before the first discussion, but you can find detailed information about the discussions online under Content/Assignments. (Learning Outcome 2)
Myth Busters Project
You will complete a piece of original historical research in which you choose a myth about American history and debunk that myth. As part of the assignment, you will identify a myth, find relevant sources to support your argument, evaluate a primary source document, evaluate a secondary source (book), and write the essay. The purpose of this assignment is to help develop the skills necessary to complete a research project, to create an original piece of historical writing, and to create an Open Education Resource (which adds to the body of quality historical literature on the internet). You will submit all your work for this assignment to GeorgiaVIEW and track your progress using an online checklist. You can find detailed instructions about this assignment online under Content/Assignments. (Learning Outcomes 2/3/4)
Grading Information
Computation
Your final grade in HIST 3000 is based on how many points you accumulate during the semester. Below is a list of all the graded elements of the course and their point value. You can access all grades, including your ongoing points total for the course, through online under Grades.
Online Quizzes = 170 points (15 percent)
Group Discussions = 200 points (18 percent)
Myth Busters Project = 610 points (55 percent)
Evaluation
To help you understand how I will calculate your final grade, here is some information on assessment:
Strandards
Grades are based on your performance and capability. You earn your grades; I do not give them to you. Simply showing up for class and completing all the assignments does not guarantee that your will receive a “good grade.” To receive a higher grade, you must demonstrate proficiency in the material. For different students, gaining that proficiency requires different levels of work, because not all students walk into the class with the same aptitude for the course content. For this course to count toward your graduation requirements, you must earn a C or better. The standards for the respective grades are as follows:
Late or Missed Work
You must complete all of your work by the deadline posted on the online course calendar in order to receive full credit for your work. With the exception of the final essay, all late work must be submitted by Monday, December 7, 2015 @ 5:00 PM. Those struggling to meet deadlines because of major life issues should contact me before they get too far behind, so we can discuss the options for moving forward in the course.
Online Activities – To receive full credit on your quizzes and skills assessments, you must submit the work by the stated deadline. You may take your quizzes or assessments after the deadline, but you will lose five percent off your total score on any late quiz or assessment. In other words, if you received 37/40 (93 percent) on your quiz, but you submitted it after the deadline, you recorded score would be 35/40 (88 percent).
Written Assignments – For late submissions of the topic selection form, the preliminary bibliography, the primary source analysis, and the book review, you will lose up to ten points off your total score—two points per day for the first five days the submission is late.
Myth Buster Essays – You will lose up to fifteen points off your total score for the draft and/or the final essay—five points per day for the first three days the submission is late. Students who do not submit the draft by second day will not be eligible to participate in the peer review process and thus will not earn any points for that element of the project grade. Students who fail to submit their final essay by Monday, December 14 @ 5:00 PM will receive a zero on the assignment.
Academic Honesty Policy
You are expected and required to do your own work in this course. If I catch you in any act of academic dishonesty whether on tests or writing assignments, you will earn a zero on the assignment in question and you may receive an F for the course. When you submit your writing assignments, GeorgiaVIEW will automatically send them to Turnitin.com to check for plagiarism. I will report any instances of cheating or plagiarism to the Chair of the History Department. If warranted, we will report the incident to Dalton State College’s student conduct committee. You can find more information on what constitutes academic dishonesty as well as the disciplinary procedures for students who engage in such dishonesty in Dalton State Catalog under Student Handbook (http://catalog.daltonstate.edu/studenthandbook/studentsrightsandresponsibilities/).
Your final grade in HIST 3000 is based on how many points you accumulate during the semester. Below is a list of all the graded elements of the course and their point value. You can access all grades, including your ongoing points total for the course, through online under Grades.
Online Quizzes = 170 points (15 percent)
- Syllabus Quiz (10 points)
- Reading Quizzes (4 @ 40 points)
Group Discussions = 200 points (18 percent)
Myth Busters Project = 610 points (55 percent)
- Topic Selection (50 points)
- Preliminary Bibliography (50 points)
- Primary Source Analysis (100 points)
- Book Review (100 points)
- Draft Essay (150 points)
- Peer Review Comments (10 points)
- Final Essay (150 points)
Evaluation
To help you understand how I will calculate your final grade, here is some information on assessment:
- For the syllabus quiz, the reading quizzes, and the online skills assessments, I will assess your performance based on whether or not you know the correct answer to the question; I will award partial credit for any short answer questions.
- For the group discussions, I will assess your contribution to the group discussion based on the notes each group provides about their discussion and the quality of the groups’ presentation to the class. Your fellow group members will also assess your preparation for discussion and your contribution to the group’s work. You should review the discussion criteria under Assignments/Group Discussions so you understand the expectations for this element especially since you will help evaluate your classmates.
- For the Myth Busters Project, I will assess each component of the project separately based on the grading criteria posted online under Assignments/Final Project. The criteria for each component will correspond to the learning outcome related to that part of the overall project.
- Regarding attendance, I expect you to attend our regularly scheduled meetings and to spend time online grappling with the course material. If you miss more than three face-to-face classes, barring a documented emergency, you will not pass this course. FYI: This policy is in keeping with the History Department’s attendance policy for major-related courses.
Strandards
Grades are based on your performance and capability. You earn your grades; I do not give them to you. Simply showing up for class and completing all the assignments does not guarantee that your will receive a “good grade.” To receive a higher grade, you must demonstrate proficiency in the material. For different students, gaining that proficiency requires different levels of work, because not all students walk into the class with the same aptitude for the course content. For this course to count toward your graduation requirements, you must earn a C or better. The standards for the respective grades are as follows:
- A (990 to 1,100 points). If you earn this grade, then you have displayed superior performance in your course work. This includes demonstrating the ability to process and comprehend complex ideas, while being able to convey those ideas to others in a clear, intelligent manner. At this level, you have gone beyond simple requirements and have sought to excel in your preparation for and presentation of assigned work. You also have shown excellence in communication skills and the ability to contextualize material.
- B (880 to 989 points). If you earn this grade, then you have displayed above average performance in your course work. This includes demonstrating the ability to process and comprehend complex ideas, while being able to convey those ideas to others in a mostly clear, intelligent manner. At this level, you have gone beyond minimum requirements in terms of preparation and presentation of assigned work; you also have shown above average communication skills and ability to contextualize material.
- C (770 to 879 points). If you earn this grade, then you have met the minimum requirements for the course by displaying adequate performance in your course work. This includes demonstrating the ability to comprehend complex ideas and convey those ideas in a like manner. At this level, you have shown competence in terms of preparation and presentation of assigned work; you also have demonstrated acceptable communication skills and ability to contextualize materials.
- D (660 to 769 points). If you earn this grade, then you have performed below the minimum requirements for the course. This includes failure to complete or turn in assignments on time, or failure to demonstrate adequately the ability to comprehend or convey complex ideas. At this level, you have failed to prepare or present the assigned work effectively. You likely have not demonstrated adequate communication skills or ability to contextualize materials as well.
- F (0 to 659 points). If you earn this grade, then you have not met the requirements of the course. This includes failure to complete or turn in assignments, or failure to demonstrate ability to comprehend and convey complex ideas. At this level, you have not performed in a manner satisfactory to the standards of the class.
Late or Missed Work
You must complete all of your work by the deadline posted on the online course calendar in order to receive full credit for your work. With the exception of the final essay, all late work must be submitted by Monday, December 7, 2015 @ 5:00 PM. Those struggling to meet deadlines because of major life issues should contact me before they get too far behind, so we can discuss the options for moving forward in the course.
Online Activities – To receive full credit on your quizzes and skills assessments, you must submit the work by the stated deadline. You may take your quizzes or assessments after the deadline, but you will lose five percent off your total score on any late quiz or assessment. In other words, if you received 37/40 (93 percent) on your quiz, but you submitted it after the deadline, you recorded score would be 35/40 (88 percent).
Written Assignments – For late submissions of the topic selection form, the preliminary bibliography, the primary source analysis, and the book review, you will lose up to ten points off your total score—two points per day for the first five days the submission is late.
Myth Buster Essays – You will lose up to fifteen points off your total score for the draft and/or the final essay—five points per day for the first three days the submission is late. Students who do not submit the draft by second day will not be eligible to participate in the peer review process and thus will not earn any points for that element of the project grade. Students who fail to submit their final essay by Monday, December 14 @ 5:00 PM will receive a zero on the assignment.
Academic Honesty Policy
You are expected and required to do your own work in this course. If I catch you in any act of academic dishonesty whether on tests or writing assignments, you will earn a zero on the assignment in question and you may receive an F for the course. When you submit your writing assignments, GeorgiaVIEW will automatically send them to Turnitin.com to check for plagiarism. I will report any instances of cheating or plagiarism to the Chair of the History Department. If warranted, we will report the incident to Dalton State College’s student conduct committee. You can find more information on what constitutes academic dishonesty as well as the disciplinary procedures for students who engage in such dishonesty in Dalton State Catalog under Student Handbook (http://catalog.daltonstate.edu/studenthandbook/studentsrightsandresponsibilities/).
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