History 1377

Saturday, 9-12

Bob Buzzanco

AH 557

home page: vi.uh.edu/pages/buzzmat/buzzanco.htm


Teaching Assistants:

Maria Corsi
mariacorsi1@yahoo.com
AH 641, 713.743.3126
Office Hours: Tuesday, 3-6

Books:

Package consisting of Question Authority and History Department

[referred to as "reader" below]

Building the Continental Empire, by WilliamWeeks [referred to as "Weeks"]


Grading:

Your grade in this course will be based on your scores on three exams, two during the semester,  and a final exam. The first two tests will be worth 100 points each and the final will be worth 150 points. 

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. If you have any questions about your grade on an exam, please see the T.A. first and then, if you want to discuss it further, see 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.



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.


Classroom Decorum:

Please turn off pagers and cell phones before entering class. 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 fifty minutes that class is in session.  If you decide to move about or make noise, university regulations allow us to remove your name from the roster.
 


Topics and Readings
 

Week 1,  Reader, pages 1-34

European Background

Slavery in the New World


Week 2,  Question Authority, chapter 3, Reader, pages 35-6

New England

Class in Colonial America


Week 3,  Question Authority,  chapter 2

18th Century American Society

Colonial Politics


Week 4,  Weeks, chapters 1-2; Question Authority, chapter 4

Trouble in the Colonies

Class and Religious Dissent


Week 5, Reader, pages 37-46
                   

The North American Challenge

The Empire Strikes Back


Week 6,  Question Authority, chapter 5

War and Independence

Slavery and Freedom in an age of Revolution


Week 7, 

Blueprint for a New Nation

Making a Constitution


Week 8

The Republic in Peril: Crisis and Change in the New Nation


Week 9,  Question Authority, chapter 1 and chapter 6, reader, pages 69-98

The Age of Jackson

The Market Revolution

Week 10,  

Slavery, Economy, and Society in the South



Week 11,  Weeks, chapters 3-6; Question Authority, chapter 7, Reader, pages 47-68

Slavery

Continental Expansion


Week 12,  Question Authority, chapters 8-9

The Impending Crisis


Week 13,  

Free Labor and Slave Culture

Abraham Lincoln and the Coming of War


Week 14, Reader, pages 99-end

The Civil War


Week 15, 

Reconstruction