Dual Credit Program
Course Syllabus
Fall 2013
U.S. History 1301
Instructor: D. Yeatts, M.A.
Period: A3
Room: Portable 10
Contact Information:
Phone: 972-926-2700
Email address: dbyeatts@garlandisd.net
Website: http://www.mryeatts.com
Course Description
Dual U.S. History covers the history of the United States from the Age of Exploration through the
present, by examining the historical, social, cultural, economic, and political institutions and
processes across a range of historical periods. The demands of the course are equivalent to those in
university courses; therefore, coverage is fast-paced, utilizes college texts, and requires extensive
reading, outside research, and lesson preparation. This class is designed to prepare students for
future higher education. Students should expect to work diligently throughout the year as success
depends on commitment and devotion to task. Student self-reliance and independent study are
essentials. Critical and evaluative thinking skills, essay writing, as well as interpretation of primary
and secondary sources, are necessary to complete successfully the course requirements. Individual
research projects are requirements for the fall and spring terms. AS A GENERAL RULE,
STUDENTS MUST PREPARE AT LEAST 2 HOURS FOR EACH HOUR IN THE CLASSROOM.
Required Textbooks and Other Course Materials
Textbook: Divine, Robert A., et al. America: Past and Present, 8th edition.
Readers: Kennedy, David M., and Thomas A. Bailey. The American Spirit, Vols. I and II.
Monograph: Douglass, Frederick. Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass an American Slave, ed.
David W. Blight.
Various essays and text excerpts (instructor provided)
Various online readings, as necessary
Supplies:
1 flash drive (1 gig or higher required, students MUST save all major essays to this drive)
Notebook paper/3 ring binder/1-3 subject notebook with pockets *your choice
Pens (writing with pencils is not allowed, except for pre-writing and drafting)
Guidelines
U.S. History 1301 courses will require the following:
• Reading from the required textbook and other sources as required by the Instructor.
• A minimum of three formal essays per semester.
• Formatting for all essays adheres to Modern Language Association (MLA) style guidelines.
• All three of the required essays must be typed.
Course Policies:
1) Attendance Policy: You are expected to be in attendance for every class meeting, on time,
with text and materials, and prepared to participate. Please read the following carefully.
a. Unexcused absences are unacceptable in this class. If you have an unexcused
absence, you will receive zeros for the assignments missed due to that absence,
regardless of the reason for the absence.
b. If you are out sick, or out for anything that GISD considers an excused
absence, you must provide the professor with a copy of the note you take to
the attendance office. This note should be turned in the next class period,
along with any work that was due during the period you missed. Ask the
attendance office to make a copy of the original note for you. It is YOUR
responsibility to e-mail to get missed work due to an excused absence. You have
two days (not class periods) after you return to turn in missed work. So, for
example, if you miss class on Monday, and return to class on Wednesday, you have
until Friday to turn in your missing work.
2) Reading and writing assignments are expected to be completed prior to the beginning of
class, unless otherwise indicated on assignment; therefore, you will be able to participate fully
in class discussion.
3) Written essays are expected to be submitted to the Instructor the day it is due. If you are
absent for any reason, the student must email the essay to the instructor before midnight.
NO late work will be accepted unless I deem the situation/circumstances to be extenuating.
Please communicate such circumstances prior to the absence when possible. Computer,
Internet, printer, paper, ink problems etc. DO NOT excuse you from due dates, so don’t
ask.
4) There are no make-ups on quizzes.
5) I reserve the right to make changes to the syllabus/course agenda.
Evaluation Procedures
Students grades will come from reading quizzes, writing assignments, unit exams, semester exams,
occasional group work and projects, and any other form of assessment the professor deems
necessary.
Writing Expectations
Students will compose essays that adhere to the grammatical and stylistic standards of academic
American English and that follow Modern Language Association (MLA) style. For full credit, essays
will adhere to topic and length requirements designated for each assignment. Correctly following
specific assignment guidelines, grammatical instruction, and MLA style will impact the student’s
success in the course. All major essays must be typed in MLA format. Please see your English
teacher if you need assistance with the format. If you do not adhere to the guidelines given, the
instructor is not required to accept your work.
Grading Policy
Each grading period will consist of eight to ten grades. This grading system has been established in a
way that requires you to do your best work on all assignments in order to achieve success.
Grades are weighted accordingly:
Exams & Essay(s)………………….40%
Quizzes ………………………..…….30%
Classroom Work .............................30%
Classroom Environment
Since all students in the class are entitled to participation in a class devoid of interruption, all cell
phones, MP3 players, electronic games, CD players, laptops, recorders, or other electronic devices
(for personal, not class use) must be turned off and put away (not on your desk/in your lap) when
class commences. Any disruption of class, whether by inconsiderate behavior, electronic devices, or
late arrivals will not be tolerated. Repeated violations will be penalized and may result in expulsion
from the class. Pretend you are taking off on an airplane. Turn off and stow all blackberries,
blueberries, raspberries, smart phones, stupid phones, and phones of intermediate intelligence,
unless the professor asks you to get them out for educational purposes. This is a human
environment; enjoy it while it lasts.
Refer to student code of conduct, pp. 237-248 in the EFC catalogue or the online version of the EFC
webpage (you can find these on www.classjump.com/wills.)
Attendance Policy
GISD guidelines as related to state attendance requirements must be observed.
Religious Holidays
Absences for observance of a religious holy day are excused. A student whose absence is excused
to observe a religious holy day is allowed to take a make-up examination or complete an assignment
within a reasonable time after the absence. (2 days per day absent)
Field Trips
Students in this course must follow the GISD policy for field trips, which states that a student
participating in a field trip must obtain the work from the day they will miss PRIOR to the field
trip. Students who go on a field trip without getting their work ahead of time will not be allowed to
make up the missing work, which will result in a grade of zero for that assignment.
Withdrawal Policy
If you are unable to complete this course, it is your responsibility to withdraw formally. The
withdrawal request must be received in the College’s Registrar’s Office. Your responsibility will be
to complete the drop by filling out paperwork provided by your professor. To check for your
official drop date, please contact Eastfield College at 972-613-1818 or Through “eConnect” at
econnect.dcccd.edu.
Failure to do so will result in your receiving a performance grade, usually an “F.” If you drop a class
or withdraw from the college before the official drop/withdrawal deadline, you will receive a “W”
(Withdraw) in each class dropped. See the appropriate high school Dual Credit administrator
before you drop because dropping this course may affect your high school credit and
potentially your graduation. Students will NOT be allowed to drop the course without Professor
and parental permission, or without a parent/teacher conference. Students will NOT be allowed to
drop the class within the first grading period.
STOP BEFORE YOU DROP
For students who enrolled in college level courses for the first time in the fall of 2007, Texas
Education Code 51.907 limits the number of courses a student may drop. You may drop no more
than 6 courses during your entire undergraduate career unless the drop qualifies as an exception.
Your campus counseling/advising center will give you more information on the allowable exceptions.
Remember that once you have accumulated 6 non-exempt drops, you cannot drop any other courses
with a “W”. Therefore, please exercise caution when dropping courses in any Texas public institution
of higher learning, including all seven of the Dallas County Community Colleges. For more
information, you may access: https://www1.dcccd.edu/coursedrops
Obtaining Final Course Grades Using eConnect
Final Grade Reports are no longer mailed. Convenient access is available online at
www.econnect.dcccd.edu or by telephone at 972-613-1818, and through the GISD Cool Ice
Gradebook system. Use your identification number when you log onto eConnect, an online system
developed by the DCCCD to provide you with timely information regarding your college record. Your
grades will also be printed on your Student Advising Report, which is available in the Admissions and
Student Records Office, T170.
Repeatability Issue
Effective for Fall Semester 2005, the Dallas County Community Colleges will charge additional tuition
to students registering the third or subsequent time for a course. All third and subsequent attempts of
the majority of credit and Continuing Education/Workforce Training courses will result in additional
tuition to be charged. Developmental Studies and some other courses will not be charged a higher
tuition rate. Third attempts include courses taken at any of the Dallas County Community Colleges
since the Fall 2002 Semester.
Financial Aid Statement
Students who are receiving any form of financial aid should check with the Financial Aid Office prior
to withdrawing from classes. Withdrawals may affect your eligibility to receive further aid and could
cause you to be in a position of repayment for the current semester. Students who fail to attend or
participate after the drop date are also subject to this policy.
Where to go if you need additional help with your writing
The Eastfield Learning Assistance Center is located in Building C-236 (Phone: 972-860-7177).
The Richland College Writing Center is located in Medina 216 (Phone: 972-238-6226).
Help with grammar and mechanics is also available on-line at the following websites:
http://webster.commnet.edu/grammar/
http://www.dianahacker.com/writersref/index.html
http://www.owl.english.purdue.edu
**Please note that at times, when a major issue such as grammar or focus becomes evident in your
writing, I will formally and in writing recommend a visit to the Eastfield Writing Center.
ADA Statement
If you are a student with a disability and/or special needs who requires ADA accommodations, please
contact the Richland College Disability Services Office at: 972-238-6180 or the Eastfield College
Disability Services Office at 972-860-8348.
Student E-mail
Legal privacy issues prevent your instructor from discussing your work or your grades on commercial
e-mail accounts. If you wish to communicate with your instructor by e-mail, you must open a student
e-mail account, either an Eastfield account OR a GISD student account. It is free, and you may set it
up by going to www.dcccd.edu and click on Student Services, Online Services, and Student NetMail.
All students receiving financial aid must open a student NetMail account. If you choose to use the
GISD Student Account, you will go to Gmail.com. Your e-mail address is s+ your student ID
#@students.garlandisd.net and your password is your Npin.
Academic Honesty Statement:
Academic dishonesty includes, but is not limited to, cheating on tests, plagiarism and collusion.
Cheating includes copying from another student’s test or homework paper, using materials not
authorized, collaborating with or seeking aid from another student during a test, knowingly using,
buying, selling, stealing, or soliciting the contents of an un-administered test, and substituting for
another person to take a test. Plagiarism is the appropriating, buying, receiving as a gift, or obtaining
by any means another’s work and the unacknowledged submission or incorporation of it in one’s own
written work. Collusion is the unauthorized collaboration with another person in preparing written work
for fulfillment of course requirements. Academic dishonesty is a serious offense in college. You
can be given a failing grade on an assignment or test, failed for the course, or even be
suspended from college. Plagiarism on a major final paper will result in a zero and the student
will be reported to the college. Students who are determined to be involved in such activities shall
be punished as prescribed by college and Board policies outlined in the Student Code of Conduct.
You can access this information by going to https://www1.dcccd.edu/cat0506/ss/code.cfm .
I, __________________, have read the academic honesty statement and agree to adhere to these
(print name)
rules and guidelines. I acknowledge that there are specific and severe consequences for plagiarism
in a college class and I will ensure that all outside material is properly cited in MLA format. I
understand the consequences of plagiarism and how they affect both my high school GPA AND my
college GPA and transcripts, which will follow me the rest of my life.
Printed name: _____________________
Signature: ________________________
Date: ____________________________
Academic Freedom
ACADEMIC FREEDOM is practiced at all DCCCD Colleges. Academic Freedom allows faculty
and students to pursue whatever inquiry they feel is important and to speak about it in the
classroom without fear of censorship. Within a college environment, students may encounter
adult language and images, different philosophical viewpoints and belief systems.
Appropriate and essential discipline-specific terminology, concepts and principles are utilized
as needed in the classroom setting. All high school students are held accountable to policies,
rules, and regulations of the Dallas County Community College District. For more information
see www.dcccd.edu.
I, __________________, have read and understand the academic freedom policy of
(print parent name)
the Dallas County Community College District. I have also read and understand the DCCCD
plagiarism policy that applies to all students.
Parent Printed Name: ____________________
Parent Signature: _______________________
Date: _____________________
COURSE OUTLINE: 1st TERM (DCCCD History 1301)
(1600 to 1877)
UNIT 1
Discovered?
Exploration and Colonization (1492-1750)
Consider: “We shall be as a city upon a hill.” John Winthrop, 1630
Readings:
Text: Chapters 1-4.
Reader: Kennedy, vI, Chapters 1-6; Dollar, Chapters 1-4.
Themes:
The Geography of North America
Pre-Columbian Societies
Columbus: Hero or Villain?
Transatlantic Encounters and Colonial Beginnings, 1492-1690
Economic Theory of Mercantilism
Colonial North America, 1690-1754
The Need for Labor in Colonial America
Compare and Contrast:
Colonial Virginia, Pennsylvania, and Massachusetts
Narrative:
English/Native American Relations
Cause and Effect: Cash Crops and Slavery
UNIT 2
Who makes decisions for Virginians?
The American Revolution (1750-1783)
Consider: “When in the course of human events . . .” Thomas Jefferson, 1776
Readings:
Text: Chapter 5.
Reader: Kennedy, vI, Chapters 7-8; Dollar, Chapter 5.
Themes:
The Duel for North America, 1700-1763
Colonial Discontent, 1763-1776
The American Revolution, 1776-1783
Dividing a Continent: The Treaty of Paris, 1783
Compare and Contrast:
French and English Colonial Objectives, 1700-1763
Narrative:
Women in the American Revolution
The emerging idea of democracy
UNIT 3
Toward a more perfect union?
The Articles of Confederation and the Constitution (1783-1790)
Consider: “[We have] a republic . . . if you can keep it.” Benjamin Franklin, 1787
Readings:
Text: Chapter 6.
Reader: Kennedy, vI, Chapter 9; Dollar, Chapter 6.
Themes:
British Economic Policy, 1783-1790
Western Lands: The Northwest Ordnance
Shay’s Rebellion
Summer in the City: The Philadelphia Convention, 1787
The Ratification Debate: The Federalist Papers
The Ratification Debate: The Bill of Rights
Compare and Contrast:
Federalists/Anti-Federalists
Narrative:
Land Policy in the West: The Northwest Ordnance
UNIT 4:
The supreme law of the land?
The Federalists in Power (1789-1800)
Consider: “Observe good faith and justice toward all nations.” George Washington, 1797
Readings:
Text: Chapter 7.
Reader: Kennedy, vI, Chapter 10; Dollar, Chapter 7.
Themes:
Jefferson v. Hamilton, round 1
The Whiskey Rebellion
The Neutrality Proclamation
Washington’s Retirement
The Alien and Sedition Acts
Compare and Contrast :
The Federalists and the Jeffersonian Republicans
Narrative:
Origins of American foreign policies
UNIT 5
Strict constructionists?
The Jeffersonians in Power (1800-1824)
Consider: “We are all Republicans, we are all Federalists.” Thomas Jefferson, 1801
Readings:
Text: Chapters 8-9.
Reader: Kennedy, vI, Chapters 11-12.
Themes:
The Election of 1800; Jefferson v. Hamilton, round 2
John Marshall and Judicial Review
The Louisiana Purchase
The War of 1812 and Era of Good Feelings
The Missouri Compromise
Compare and Contrast:
Jeffersonians in Power: Ideals v. Realities
Narrative:
Physical Geography and the Development of the USA
UNIT 6
A democratic republic?
Jacksonian Era and Reform (1828-1860)
Consider: “The Union, next to our liberty, most dear.” John C. Calhoun, 1830. “Liberty and
Union, now and forever, one and inseparable.” Daniel Webster, 1830
Readings:
Text: Chapter 10.
Reader: Kennedy, vI, Chapters 13-14; Dollar, Chapter 9.
Themes:
Age of the Common Man – political, social, cultural, economic
The Election of 1828
Patronage
The Industrial Revolution comes to the USA
The Nullification Crisis
The Trail of Tears
The loyal opposition: The Whigs and “King Andrew”
Nativism
Compare and Contrast:
Myth and Reality: The Cherokees and Assimilation
Narrative:
Cause and Effect: Bank Policies and the Panic of 1837
UNIT 7
E pluribus unum (one from many)?
Expansionism and Sectionalism (1793-1860)
Consider: “I can wade the brown Mississippi, jump the Ohio, ride a streak of lightnin’, and
whip my weight in wildcats . . . I’m half-horse and half-alligator!” Jedediah Smith, c1830
Readings:
Text: Chapter 13-14.
Reader: Kennedy, vI, Chapters 15-19; Dollar, Chapters 8, 10-13.
Themes:
Sectionalism
Abolitionist Movement
Manifest Destiny
The Election of 1848
The Mexican War
Normal Events of an Abnormal Era
Compare and Contrast:
Clay’s American Plan -- Internal Improvements, Tariffs, Land Policies, Slavery – the
West, the North, the South
Narrative:
Manifest Destiny
UNIT 8
An indissoluble union?
The Civil War and Reconstruction (1860-1877)
Consider: “This nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom — and that government
of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.” Abraham
Lincoln, 1863
Readings;
Text: Chapter 15-16.
Reader: Kennedy, vI, Chapters 20-22; Dollar, Chapters 14-16
Themes:
The Election of 1860 and the Secession Crisis
Northern/Southern War Aims
The Emancipation Proclamation
African-American participation
Women and the Civil War
The Turning Point: Gettysburg and Vicksburg
Radical Republicans and Reconstruction
Amending the Constitution
Impeaching a President
“Black Reconstruction”
Compare and Contrast:
The 1863 Campaigns of the Armies of the Potomac and Northern Virginia
Narrative:
African-Americans’ participation in the Civil War