Dual U.S. History 2020 Syllabus
Mr. Rickman
Room I-8
MW 8:00-9:28
Rickmand2@k12tn.net
rickmanhchs.wordpress.com
Course Description:
U.S. History 2020 is a survey of the second half of the U.S. history survey courses offered at Jackson State Community
College.The course begins with the people who took a war-torn and devastated country post-Civil War and created a
modern America of innovation and wealth, with deep inequalities and hardships that severed as calls for reform for
much of the 20th century. It concludes with the decision to invade Iraq and the struggles to carve out stability and
democratic principles. In between these two events is a century of triumph, of struggle, and an ongoing effort to make
good on the ideals that were put to paper in Philadelphia. It’s my hope that you will see the unfolding of this course
from multiple perspectives. History is the attachment of meaning to past events. Ordinary people, not just politicians,
have meaning and are a part of our story.
Text:
Kennedy, David. The American Pageant: A History of the Republic
You will also be asked to complete a number of assigned readings from various books and primary sources.
These will be available in .pdf format on my website.
Grading:
Every assignment will have a point value. The points will be totaled up at the end of the semester. Students who receive
90% or more of the total points will have an A. Students who receive 80% -- 89% will have a B…and so on. REMEMBER:
You must have 3.0 or higher to keep your scholarship. If you are only taking my class, this mean you must make a B or
higher to keep your scholarship.
Late assignments:
The only assignments with the possibility of being taken past the assigned due date are the four quizzes and two major
tests. On all other assignments late assignments receive no credit. On the major quizzes and tests, it will have to be a
major event (death in the family, being hospitalized) to be afforded a makeup exam. Simply having an excused absence
from school will not qualify for a makeup exam. Makeup exams will be given during 1st period on Fridays. If you have a
conflict with an exam day, see me prior to being absent.
Assignments:
Quizzes: These will include 10 ID questions. Treat these like you are being asked to write 10 solid, short
paragraphs (approximately 4-6 sentences). These quizzes will also include 5-10 multiple choice questions that will be
broad in scope, asking you to pull from the specifics of the period.
Essays: I will teach you how to write solid, well-structured essays. This is my top priority in the course. You will
be writing two styles of essay. The first is a document-based essay that asks you to prove a thesis using your knowledge
of the material and support your thesis with the documents, photos, cartoon, etc. that are provided. The second type of
essay is a free response essay. These ask you to construct a thesis and apply information from the course to prove your
thesis.
Tests: We will have TWO major exams: a midterm and a final. Doing well on these exams is crucial to your
success in the course.
Podcasts: These are a way to add depth and hopefully touch on interesting topics that are rarely covered, or not
given sufficient coverage in a survey course. I will cover how you will complete assignments related to podcasts.
Book Excerpts/outside readings: You will be reading a number of excerpts from books that cover topics ranging
from Thurgood Marshall’s battles for justice in the segregated South to MTV’s first days on the air. I will also be assigning
a number of primary source documents from various periods. These will be done instead of the traditional book review.
Journal: You will be asked to keep an ongoing journal of that includes the readings, podcasts, and any of the
daily writing assignments we complete. This needs to be something that I can take up at any time in order to check.
Reading Notes: Many times I will assign you something I have come to call “reading notes.” These will serve as
the basis for many of the actual classes. This is an assignment that is not typical of a college course, but has proven to be
an effective use of your textbook time. It is a variation on what I had success with when I was a college student. These
will be checked periodically.
Course Schedule:
It should be noted that this listing is in no way a complete rundown of everything you will do in HI2020. There are daily
assignments, homework, reading/note taking, and in-class writings that would simply take up too much space to list in a
rundown. These assignments are also fluid, meaning I may develop a short assignment in October. I have no way of
listing that on a syllabus that is handed out in August.
Fridays: I am available 1st periods on Fridays if you need help with writing or anything related to the coursework. Just
ask.
8-11:
Begin Industrialization/American Cities(Ch. 17/18)
ASSIGN: “People’s History of the United States” excerpt
ASSIGN Podcast: Tesla and the Current Wars
8-13:
Cont. Industrialization/American Cities (Ch. 17/18)
8-18:
Finish Industrialization/American Cities
Writing workshop: Using documents and outlining an essay
8-20:
Quiz #1 (10 MC + 10 ID)
DUE: ‘People’s History” excerpt
DUE: Podcast: Tesla and the Current Wars
Begin American’s Imperialist Stirrings/Progressive ERA (Ch. 19/20)
8-25:
Cont. American’s Imperialist Stirrings/Progressive ERA (Ch. 19/20
ASSIGN: Muckrakers reading (Upton Sinclair’s “The Jungle” and Ida B Wells)
ASSIGN: Podcast: Triangle Shirtwaist Fire
8-27:
Document-Based Essay: Progressive ERA workshop
Continue Imperialist Stirrings/Progressive ERA (Ch. 19/20)
9-1:
No School (Labor Day)
9-3:
FinishImperialist Stirrings/Progressive ERA
DUE: Document-Based Essay: Progressive ERA
DUE: Podcasts and Readings
9-8:
Quiz #2 (10 MC + 10 ID)
Begin WW1 and the 20s (Ch. 21/22)
ASSIGN: 1920s Podcasts
9-10:
Cont. 1920s (Ch. 22)
ASSIGN: “Jesus Christ as a Businessman” and other reading from 1920s society
Video: Ken Burns’ “Prohibition”
9-15:
Cont. 1920s (Ch. 22)
DUE: 1920s Readings
Writing Workshop: 1920s Essay
Video: Ken Burns’ “Prohibition”
9-17:
Finish 1920s (Ch. 22)
DUE: 1920s Podcasts
DUE: 1920s Essay
9-22:
Begin Great Depression and New Deal (Ch. 23/24)
9-24:
Cont. Great Depression and New Deal (Ch. 23/24)
9-29:
Cont. Great Depression and New Deal (Ch. 23/24)
10-1:
Document-Based Essay: New Deal workshop
Midterm Review
10-6:
MIDTERM EXAM (60 multiple choice + Free Response Essay)
10-8:
WWII (Ch. 25/26)
ASSIGN: WWII Reading excerpt (chosen from a number of excerpts)
10-13:
DUE: WWII Reading
Begin Origins of Cold/Postwar America (Ch. 27/28)
ASSIGN: Primary Sources readings from early Cold War
ASSIGN: “Devil in the Grove” excerpt
ASSIGN: Joe McCarty and the Red Scare Podcasts (parts 1 & 2)
10-15:
Cont. Origins of Cold/Postwar America (Ch. 27/28)
DUE:Primary Sources readings from early Cold War
10-20:
Cont. Origins of Cold/Postwar America (Ch. 27/28)
DUE: Joe McCarty and the Red Scare Podcasts (parts 1 & 2)
10-22:
Writing Workshop: Free Response Essay on Postwar America
DUE: “Devil in the Grove” excerpts
ASSIGN: Readings on the affluent society (1950s)
10-27:
Quiz #3
DUE: Readings on the affluent society (1950s)
Begin 60s: Challenges to status quo, youth revolt, Vietnam
ASSIGN: Freedom Rides Podcasts
ASSIGN: Reading “Strange Career of Jim Crow” pg. 169-188
10-29:
Cont. 60s: Challenges to status quo, youth revolt, Vietnam
Video: “American Experience: 1964”
11-3:
Cont. 60s: Challenges to status quo, youth revolt, Vietnam
Video: “American Experience: 1964”
DUE: Podcasts and Readings from 1960s
11-5:
Cont. 60s: Challenges to status quo, youth revolt, Vietnam
Document-Based Essay Workshop: Johnson’s woes
11-10:
Finish 1960s
Video: “1968”
11-12:
Quiz #4
DUE: Document-Based Essay: Johnson’s woes
ASSIGN: Reading excerpts Rob Kirkpatrick’s “1969”
11-17:
DUE: Reading excerpts from 1969
The Nixon Years (Ch. 30)
ASSIGN: Reading excerpts from 1969 “Nixon’s War” and Seymour Hersh’s article on My Lai Massacre
11-19:
Finish: The Nixon Years (Ch. 30)
12-1:
Begin: The Reagan Revolution, MTV, and the Culture Wars (Ch. 31)
DUE:Reading excerpts from 1969 “Nixon’s War” and Seymour Hersh’s article on My Lai Massacre
ASSIGN: Reading excerpt from “I Want MY MTV” excerpt or “Those Guys Have all the Fun: Inside ESPN”
12-3:
Finish: The Reagan Revolution, MTV, and the Culture Wars (Ch. 31)
12-8:
The Clinton Impeachment, 2000 Florida vote recount, and Axis of Evil (Ch. 32)
DUE: Reading excerpt “I Want MY MTV” excerpt or “Those Guys Have all the Fun: Inside ESPN”
12-10:
FINAL EXAM (60 multiple choice + Free Response Essay)