United States Government
”If men were angels, government would not be necessary.”
                                                                -James Madison

Fall 2009
United States Government
Modified Course Outline
Instructor: Amanda Bigelow
Office: D307
Office Phone: 815-224-0203
Email: amanda_bigelow@ivcc.edu
Web Page:  http://www.ivcc.edu/bigelow
Office Hours: M & W: 1-3, T: 8:45-9:30 and 10:45-11, Th: 8:45-9:30, 10:45-11 and 12:15-1:45, or by appointment

Health Update: I reserve the right to ask students to leave class if I believe they have an active illness that may threaten the health or safety of other students in the class or if the illness is a distraction to the class environment.

Text:  Ginsberg, Lowi, and Weir.  We The People: An Introduction to American Politics, 7^th Edition, Norton (can be purchased in the IVCC bookstore in person or online at http://www.ivccbookstore.com).

Information on the textbook rental program can be found at http://www.ivccbookstore.com/site_rental.asp?mscssid=124FC272454240A0A567CFE005F2DE5B

BLACKBOARD ACCESS
I will be using Blackboard for the purposes of group email and for grading.  You will be enrolled as a Blackboard user by me. To access Blackboard go to the Blackboard webpage (ivcc.blackboard.com) and click the login button. You will then be able to login by providing your username and password. Your username consists of the first 3 letters of your last name and last 4 digits of your Social Security Number (see the example below). Your password is the first three digits of your SSN. Once you have successfully logged in to the system for the first time, you should use the Change Password option in the Personal Information section of the Tool box (located on the left-hand side of the Blackboard welcome screen. If you have difficulty accessing the system, you should email me for assistance.  It is imperative that the email address that is in Blackboard is the email address you use.  Please login to blackboard and change update your email address.  If you need assistance with doing this, please go to the Learning Commons (computer lab).

            Example:         Jane Doeber (Social Security Number 123-00-4567)

                                    Her username for Blackboard would be: doe4567

                                    Her password for Blackboard would be: 123

 
However, if you registered as a new student on/after August 10th, then you password will be your student i.d., which is the 7 digits to the left of the last two digits on the right of your Student i.d. card. 

Course Objectives:
*To prepare the student to become a member of the global community by becoming more aware of the international system of governments, global interdependency and the strengths and limitations of current international organizations and state governments.
*To illustrate the inequalities that exist in the world today, analyze how the American system of government and the international community may perpetuate these inequalities, and look for solutions to the problems of inequalities in the world community.
*To give the student an understanding of the nature and scope of political science both theoretically and historically.
*To make the student aware of her/his social and cultural biases in order to learn critical analysis skills
*To assist students in demonstrating a competent understanding of International Relations in the following ways:
*Ability to compare and contrast the traditional and modern approaches to the study of International Political institutions.
*Ability to describe and compare the philosophies underlying various intergovernmental and nongovernmental organizations
*Ability to describe and analyze the social and political issues besetting the global environment in the 21st Century.
*Ability to understand the role that each of has to play in the world and how we as individuals can make a difference.

Grading:

Class Participation – 30%
Class attendance is required and students should come to class prepared to discuss the materials assigned for that week and to discuss any news items on the United States government they come across that should be raised for discussion.  I hope that students will come to class with insightful questions and/or comments about the assigned readings and news stories, and I will also be calling on students at random to answer some questions of my own.  Answers to my questions should show that the student has read and understands the class materials and that they have the ability to apply critical thinking skills to those materials.  The quality of your contributions is more important than the quantity, but both are expected.

Below are some guidelines that may help you to understand my expectations and how you will be graded on this portion of your grade.

Excellent contributor (A): The student attends class on a regular basis and comes prepared with insightful comments and questions about the course materials.  The student also shows a high level of critical thinking in evaluating course materials.  The class as a whole benefits highly from this student’s contributions.

Good contributor (B): The student attends class on a regular basis and often comes prepared with insightful comments and questions about the course material.  The student also shows some critical thinking in evaluating course materials.  The class as a whole generally benefits from this student’s contributions.

Fair contributor (C): The student attends class more often than not and sometimes comes to class with questions or comments that reflect some insight into the course materials.  The student shows some critical thinking in evaluating course materials but often struggles to see beyond personal biases.  The class sometimes benefits from this student’s contributions.

Unsatisfactory contributor (D): The student comes to class but is unprepared.  Comments are not insightful, are extremely bias or do not benefit the class. 

Non-contributor (F): The student either does not maintain regular attendance or attends but does not contribute to class discussions. 

Study questions – 20%
Under the links for this course are several study questions for each reading assignment; due dates for the questions can be found in the course outline.  Keep the answers legible, short and to the point.  These questions, along with class notes will be the basis for exams.  You will be notified in class of any additional assignments.  

My notes for this class are available online and some answers may be found in there.  Otherwise, you should look to the text or online for the answers.  If you are unable to find the answer to a question, email me.  These questions, along with class notes, blackboard discussions and reading assignments, will be the basis for exams. 

Exams - 50%
There will be three exams throughout the semester.  The dates and topic materials are listed in the syllabus.  You must bring a blue book with you to class on exam day.  Blue books can be purchased in the bookstore for a nominal fee.  Exams will consist of short answer questions.  Exams will be open note (not open book).  Please come prepared on exam day meaning that you have a thorough understanding of the materials presented in the notes, readings, class discussions and study questions.  Make-up exams will only be granted to students who have a valid excuse that can be documented in writing and when I have approved the absence ahead of time.

Academic dishonesty:
Plagiarism or cheating in any form will not be tolerated.  All words or ideas that are not your own must be cited in all of the work that is submitted for this course.  Anyone caught cheating or plagiarizing may receive a failing grade for the entire course.  Additionally, a report of the transgression will be filed with the Vice President of Academic Affairs.  Academic dishonesty includes, but is not limited to the following examples:  1) Answering questions in your homework based on materials you obtained from another source without giving credit to that source.  Even if you paraphrase from another source, you must give credit.  When using the exact words of someone else, you must use quotations and cite.  However, you should very rarely do this since you will not learn as well if you don't put things in your own words. 2) Putting any material on an exam that is not in your own words.  Even if you put something in your homework that is not in your own words, on an exam it MUST BE IN YOUR OWN WORDS.  3) Using websites or other sources other than your notes or the text to take your exam.  4) Turning in any work that is not your own or having someone else do the work for you.

Final grades:
The grading scale for this course will be as follows:
            90-100%=4.0
            80-89%=3.0
            70-79%=2.0
            60-69%=1.0

I round grades up at .5 and down at .4 so every point counts in this class.  Also, please be aware that the final grade is not based on total points, rather on weighted grades.  The weighting is as follows: 30% for Class Attendance, 50% for exams, 20% for study questions.  The final weighted grade in Blackboard is the correct grade.

SPECIAL NEEDS
If you are a student with a cognitive, physical or psychiatric disability you may be eligible for academic support services such as extended test time, texts on tape, note-taking services, etc.  If you are interested in receiving academic support services, please contact the Special Populations Office at 224-0284 or stop by office B204.  You can also visit their website at www.ivcc.edu/disability.  You are also encouraged to discuss your individual needs with the instructor so that your educational experience is a productive one.

COURSE WITHDRAWAL
In the event that you must withdraw from this course, you are expected to follow established college procedures outlined in the college catalog.  The final date to withdraw from this course is Friday November 6th, however, I must receive your request by Thursday November 5th at 11:59 p.m. in order to process the request on time.