Syllabus+-+Summer+1+2010+5+week+GOVT+2302+-+01


 * Note: This is still under construction, but it will be finished by the first day of class**

Kevin Jefferies Office: D-225 Office Phone: 281-756-3736 email:** **kjefferies@alvincollege.edu**
 * Government 2302
 * class blog:** [|The Weaker Party]


 * GOVT 2302 - 01**


 * Introduction: Why is This Course Offered?**

We live in a democratic republic. In such a system the people are sovereign, meaning that ultimate political authority rests with the people. This isn't necessarily good news. Overall levels of knowledge about governmental are quite low. The founding generation recognized this and created a governing system that placed a significant number of barriers between the people and the law. This was to ensure that the "instability, injustice, and confusion" common in democracies would not lead the new country to an early demise. Nevertheless it was understood that participation would expand and an educated population would be required to ensure that the country would survive. Public education and democratic government therefore go hand in hand. This class is not only offered, but required, in order to ensure that you become a knowledgable participant in the American governing system.


 * Learning Objectives: What Do I Plan to Accomplish?**

GOVT 2302 explores the institutions of American government on the national, state, and local level. Broadly this means that we will look at the legislative, executive, and judicial branches, and their relative components, powers and personnel. We will begin by exploring the organic evolution of these institutions over the course of British history, and how that history helped determine how each branch was designed in the United States and Texas Constitutions. We will devote a good amount of time to reading through the relevant articles in each constitution. We will then analyze how each branch has evolved since the Constitution was written and the state of their designs today, including an understanding of the people who occupy those positions currently. We will also use this information to help make sense of the current controversies that each institution is dealing with. We will conclude with a look at some of the current, topical public policy disputes: health care, financial regulations, and energy. Hopefully our discussion of the governing institutions will help us understand how policy is shaped.


 * Methods for Accomplishing Course Objectives**

Below (under calendars) you will see a series of links which take you to pages I have put together on the subject matter You will be expected to read not only the material I have assembled for you, but additional material pulled from various sources on the World Wide Web. Your understanding of this material will be assessed in two ways. The first is based on your ability to answer short answer questions while the second will be based on answering multiple choice and other similar questions. The first is subjective and is meant to force you to think critically about the subject matter while the latter tests your factual understanding of the material.


 * Readings:** All of the readings in this class are available online in the pages you are linked to below. If you wish to use a traditional textbook, the following two are available in the bookstore:

//Lowi, Theodore, Benjamin Ginsberg and Kenneth Shepsle. American Government. 11th Edition. New York: W.W. Norton. Brown, Lyle et al. Practicing Texas Politics. 13th Edition. Boston: Houghton Mifflin.//

You will notice that I also maintain a blog -- [|http://theweakerparty.blogspot.com] -- where I post tems, usually on a daily basis, that pertain to the subject matter of the class. Everyday we will spend time discussing how current events illustrate the principles we cover in class. The blog features a large number of links to the various institutions we will come to understand in this class. In order to better communicate, I want you to go to the page and subscribe to it, you will notice a subscription widget on the right of the page. By subscribing, you will receive daily information regarding not only what we will cover in the class, but also various other notices such as whether class will be cancelled.


 * Here some online resources that should be useful:**

- [|The Founders' Constitution] - [|U.S. Constitution: FindLaw]. - [|From Revolution to Reconstruction and Afterwards].


 * Grading:** A = 89.5 - 100; B = 79.5 - 89.5; C = 69.5 - 79.5; D = 59.5 - 69.5; F 59.5 - 0

Your grade will be based on the following:


 * Weekly Quizes (60%):** Every week we will have a quiz, mostly multiple choice. over the material covered that week. These are primarily designed to assess how well you are learning the "facts" discussed in class.


 * Final (25%)** On the last day of class, July 12, I will give you a comprehensive, cumulative final that will cover the bulk of the material we've covered in class.

There will also be three small written assignments that will force you to dig into some aspect of each of the three branches of government -be it on the national, state or local level. What you write about is up to you and can be based on anything topical pertaining to those institutions. Use a typical commentary you might find in a newspaper as your guide. Everyday we will spend sometime talking about current issues, and I'd like you to use these as a guide for how to do this assignment. I want you to put you work on this site so that everyone else can read it, and you can read theirs. I'll walk you through this in class, but it'll force you to join up this wiki so you can add you work to the pages below by editting them.

Commentary #2: The Executive (5%) Commentary #3: The Judiciary (5%)
 * Commentary #1: The Legislature (5%)

These are due on July 12th.**


 * Regarding Student Behavior:** You are adults and will be expected to act accordingly. This is true whether you are in my lecture or online classes. Lecture students, do not sleep or engage in idle chatter in the classroom. Unruly students will be asked to leave. I encourage active discussion, so be prepared to state your opinions and justify them. I also expect you to come to class prepared to discuss the material at hand. Be ready to be called on at any moment to answer questions about the subject matter.

Online students, I expect you to do your own work. This means that you will not ask anyone else to write papers for you, or you will not simply copy text from various sources and tell me you did it. Among the Founders, proper behavior was considered to be a necessary mark of a civilized person and a requirement for political participation. Read through Washington's [|Rules for Civility and Decent Behavior]. It is a great example. Consider adopting a few.

//Please Note: If you have any disabilities or other special needs that will affect your ability to learn in this class, please inform me. Appropriate steps will be taken to make reasonable accommodations and assistance with your needs.//


 * Scholastic Dishonesty:** If you cheat in any way in this class and are caught, you will fail the course. Do not download items from the internet and pass them off as your own. If you do so, you will receive a zero for that paper or assignment and hat grade will be final. If you do it a second time, you risk failing the course, or receiving a sanction for you actions.


 * Calendars:

GOVT 2302 - 01 (5 Week)**

Week One (June 8 - 10) - Review of 2301 - The Legislature: Definition and Historical Background. - The Legislature: Constitutional Design. - multiple choice quiz June 10

Week Two (June 14 - 17) - The Legislature: Constitutional Design. (continued) - The Legislature: Evolution and Current Organization. - The Legislature: Contemporary Issues (cancel this section) - multiple choice quiz June 17

Week Three (June 21 - 24) - The Executive: Definition and Historical Background - The Executive: Constitutional Design - multiple choice quiz June 24

Week Four (June 28 - July 1) - The Executive: Current Organization - The Executive: Contemporary Issues - multiple choice quiz July 1

Week Five (July 5 - 8) - The Judiciary: Definition and Historical Background. - The Judiciary: Constitutional Design. - The Judiciary - Judicial Review and the Current Court - The Judiciary: Contemporary Issues. - multiple choice quiz July 8

Final: July 12