Spring 2007
History 1378, U.S. from 1877
to the Present
T, Th 2:30-3:45
Bob Buzzanco
Office Hours: by
appointment
http://vi.uh.edu/pages/buzzmat/buzzanco.htm
Teaching Assistants
Maria Corsi, 641 AH
1-2:30, Tues and Thurs
Mike Phifer, 639 AH
2-5, Weds
Anna Burke, 639 AH
1-2, Monday, 10:30-12:30, Wednesday
Kristen Contos, 662 AH
12-1:30, Tues and
Thurs
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Required Books:
Book package including, History
Dept. Reader and Readings and Documents in Post-1945 U.S. History
[listed as "Readings and Documents" below]
Grading:
Your grade in this course will be based on your scores on three exams [which may include essays
and IDs], two during the
semester, at dates announced in class and on WebCt, and a final
exam. Practice
questions will be given out before the tests and review sessions with
TAs will be scheduled.
Makeup Policy--read
carefully. We do not want to get flooded with requests for
makeups. Do everything in your power to be here on test dates.
If you miss an exam due to
verifiable emergency conditions, with proper documentation, there will
be makeup tests given on a
case-by-case basis, at the discretion of the professor/TAs. On the day
of your scheduled make-up,
you will be required to make up all missing tests. The only excuses for missing that day will
also be medical or other emergencies
[not travel plans], for which you must provide written documentation.
If you miss the makeup test,
you will receive zeroes for those tests. Additionally, it is your responsibility to
notify your TA that you have missed an exam and to schedule a make up
as soon as possible.
Make sure you attend class regularly
and keep up with the assigned readings.
If at any time you are unsure of the material we are covering,
please ask the T.A. or me.
Read this carefully, because it is
an
issue every semester.
Deadlines
and important dates:
Dates
for drops, graduation, etc, can be found at: http://www.uh.edu/academics/catalog/general/Cal_event_f05s06.html
If you want to drop the class,
that’s your responsibility. To drop, get a drop form and bring it
to me to sign. It’s not my responsibility to drop the class for
you. If you want to drop, check the deadlines and meet
them. Don’t come to me at the end of the semester and ask me to
drop the class for you. Also, don’t ask me for an “incomplete”
unless you have serious mitigating circumstances–incompletes are
allowed only for “emergency” situations and not simply because you’ve
fallen behind in class or aren’t doing well. If you sense that
you’re not going to perform at the level you want to and do not want to
complete the class, withdraw from it rather than asking me for an
incomplete.
The key to success in this class is
simple: attend class regularly, and do all the readings.
Faculty
Handbook: Incomplete (I) Grade Policy
The grade
of "I" (Incomplete) is a conditional and temporary grade given when a
student is passing a course but for reasons beyond his or her control
has not completed a relatively small part of all requirements. The
student is responsible for informing the instructor immediately of the
reason for not submitting an assignment on time or not taking an
examination. The grade of "I" must be changed by fulfillment of course
requirements within one year of the date awarded or it will be changed
automatically to an "F" or a "U" (Unsatisfactory). The grade of "I" may
not be changed to a grade of "W" (Withdrawn), but may only be changed
to another letter grade. Once the student has completed the remaining
work for the course, the instructor should submit an Academic Record
Adjustment form to change the "I" grade to the grade the student has
earned. Some colleges require the student to sign an agreement with the
instructor indicating when the requirements will be met.
NOTE:
Students should be instructed not to re-register for the same course in
a following semester in order to complete the incomplete requirements.
Procedure
for questioning grades:
If, after we have turned back your exams, you have any questions or
complaints, this is the procedure to follow:
First, we will not discuss your tests right after we turn them back to
you;
please look over your exams upon return and wait a day before
contacting us.
Next, make an appointment with your TA and come to that meeting with
specific questions or concerns, in writing. If you believe you deserved
a
higher grade, be prepared to explain specifically why you believe that.
Do
not simply say "I studied and thought I should have done better."
Then, if the TA and you do not reach an agreement, the TA will re-grade
the
entire test and your final grade may be raised, stay the same, or
lowered.
If, at that point, you are still not satisfied, bring your exam to me,
again with specific questions or concerns in writing, and I will go
over it
with you.
At the end of the semester, DO NOT send me an email asking for your
grade
to be raised simply because you need extra points to
maintain your grade point
average or to graduate or for other such
reasons. If you have a question about
a particular grading decision, you may of course
talk to us, but don't simply beg
for points or a grade.
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Academic Honesty:
You are expected to do your own work in this class. The tests will
consist
of in-class essays and you will be expected to write your answers on
your
own. If you have any questions about the University of Houston
plagiarism
policy, please consult the University Handbook.
Also, there are now many websites covering various aspects of U.S.
history.
Feel free to peruse them--many are quite useful--but do not turn in work
from the web as your own. We are all familiar with the various
resources on
the web and will be able to notice any cases of turning in information
from
the web as your own.
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Classroom Decorum:
It goes without saying that you are expected to arrive in the classroom
on
time, remain seated and quiet, and remain until the class ends.
Please turn off all pagers and cell phones before entering the
auditorium.
Remember, this is a college course; you have decided to enrol and
attend.
Therefore, if you are in class it is imperative that you remain silent
for
the full time that class is in session. If you decide to move about or
make noise, or otherwise disrupt your fellow students, university
regulations allow us to remove your name from the roster. The TAs and I
will be vigilant in enforcing procedures on behavior.
Should problems arise, the class will be given a single warning. If
disruptions persist after that, the professor reserves the right to take
appropriate measures.
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E-Mail and Discussions:
We will be using WebCT for this class. To get started go to http://www.uh.edu/webct
I'll also give more information in class.
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Lecture materials and notes:
I consider the lectures I deliver to be my intellectual property and no
one
should post them on a web site or otherwise make them available publicly
without my permission.
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TOPICS AND READING ASSIGNMENTS
Week 1
Background: Capitalism, Labor Wars, Empire
Reader, pp. 1-42
Week 2
Imperialism, Markets and the Great War
Reader, pp. 43-100
Week 3
The Aftermath of War, Abroad and At Home
Week 4
The 1920s
Reader, pp. 101-136
Week 5
FDR and the New Deal
Reader, pp. 137-189
Week 6
The Onset of War
Week 7 Test 1
War, the Bomb, and Cold War
"Readings and Documents," Intro and chapter 1 (and questions at end of chapter)
Week 8
The War at Home: Domestic Containment
Beaver, Beatniks, and Confomity
Reader, pp. 205-252
"Readings and Documents", chapters 2 and 4 (and questions at end of chapter)
Week 9
Taking the Third World
Reader, pp. 253-57
"Readings and Documents", chapter 3 (and questions at end of chapter)
Week 10
Questioning Authority in the 1960s
"Readings
and Documents", chapters
5 and 8 (and
questions at end of chapter)
Optional Reading:
Buzzanco, Vietnam
and the
Transformation of American Life ,
at http://vi.uh.edu/pages/buzzmat/vntalpdf/vntalpdf.html
Week 11 Test 2
The Modern Civil Rights Era
"Readings and Documents", chapter 6 (and questions at end of chapter)
Week 12
Vietnam and the Limits of Power
"Readings and Documents",
chapter 7 (and
questions at end of chapter)
Week 13
Backlash and H2Ogate
"Readings and Documents",
chapter 9 (and
questions at end of chapter)
Week 14
Reagan's America
Clinton and the Republicrats
Reader, pp. 123-29
"Readings and Documents", chapters 10
and 11 (and
questions at end of chapter)
Week 15
"Readings and Documents", chapter 12 (and questions at end of chapter)
Final Exam,
consult http://www.uh.edu/enroll/rar/final_exam_schedule.htmlm_schedule.html