POL S 102
M, W 2:00 p.m.--2:50 p.m.,
CG333 Office Hours:
Tuesday
Section Meetings Tuesday, 3-4 p.m.
Wednesday, Noon--1:00 p.m.
Thursday,
10--11:00 a.m., and by appt.
Phone:
594-0400
e-mail:
ckennedy@mail.sdsu.edu
Class
Web Site:
http://www-rohan.sdsu.edu/~ckennedy/102s03home.html
Official
Course Description: "Political
processes and institutions in the United States and California. Considers a variety of public policy issues
such as environmental quality, health, education, relation between government
and business, taxation, and
foreign affairs as reflected in the dynamics of national and state
politics. When taken with Political
Science 101 will satisfy graduation requirement in American Institutions. Credit
will not be allowed for both Political Science 102 and 320."
This
course is intended to acquaint you with the foundations, processes and
institutions of American and California government. If you intend to pursue studies in the political science
major/minor field, it will provide the necessary background for more advanced
courses in political science. If you are
not pursuing studies in political science, the course will inform you about how
the federal and state governments work, both in theory and in practice. The overriding goal of this course is to
provide you with tools that will help you to be a more intelligent consumer of
political news and information and to better understand the civic
responsibilities that attend to American citizenship.
One particular goal of this course is to help you to
understand how politics and government affect you personally, and what means
you have to influence your government.
Thus, we will do a great deal more than recite facts, figures, names,
dates and places. We will also
investigate many of the major controversies surrounding the Constitution, our
electoral system, and our political institutions. This course will not be taught with a single point of view. It will, however, if successful, help you to
explore and understand your own political attitudes and beliefs and how those
beliefs are expressed and represented in the political process. Finally, this course is designed to help you
learn how to communicate your understanding of American politics to others
through the application of critical thinking and expository writing skills.
You will be required to obtain internet access so
that you can check the class web page periodically for important assignment and
deadline information and to complete required course readings. If you require assistance in this area,
please confer with your Graduate Assistant during the first two weeks of the
course.
REQUIRED
TEXTS: (available
at campus bookstores unless otherwise noted)
Wasserman/Schmidt/Stone,
2002. "Basics of American Politics" and "Writing in Political
Science". This package is special ordered for this course and includes the
following texts:
Wasserman, Gary. 2002. 10th edition. Wasserman's Basics of American Politics,
Longman: New York.
Schmidt, Diane. 2000. 2nd edition. Writing in Political Science. Longman:
New York.
Stone, Barbara. 2002. California Politics
Supplement. 2nd ed.: 70 page primer on state and local
government issues in California
Coursepack
materials from KB Books, 5187 College Avenue (next to Dominos Pizza).
GRADING:
Section
Participation/Assignments 30%
First
Examination--2/19/03 15%
Multiple
Choice/Identifications/Essay
Bring
a blue book, 882 scantron, pen and a pencil
Second
Examination--3/26/03 15%
Multiple
Choice/Identifications/Essay
Bring
a blue book, 882 scantron, pen and a pencil
8-10 page research paper*
Due
at the beginning of class on 4/30/03 25%
Third
Examination--Monday, May 12, 2003, 1-3 p.m.
Multiple
Choice/Identifications/Essays 15%
Bring
a blue book, 882 scantron, pen and a pencil
* The length of your paper will be determined
by your topic. Additional information
will be presented in section and lecture.
COURSE
OUTLINE:
All
lecture reading assignments and due dates will be made in lecture and
subsequently posted on the class web page.
Please be sure to note what readings are assigned and when those
readings are to be completed.
I.
Political
Ideology--Where Do You Stand?
Required Reading:
Coursepack-- O'Leary
and Bradley "Which Side are you On?
O'Leary and Bradley
"The Quiz"
O'Leary and Bradley
"What is a Conservative?"
O'Leary and Bradley
"What is a Liberal?"
Cohen "Why I'm Still
Left"
DuPont "The
Conservative Manifesto"
CIRP. College Freshmen….
Recommended: Baradat: The Spectrum of Political Attitudes
II. The Foundations of American Politics
Required Reading:
Wasserman, chapters 1 and 9 and pages 255-275
Coursepack-- Baradat
The Evolution of Democratic Theory
Hightower This Land is Your Land
Chomsky The Common Good
III. The Constitution, the Bill of Rights and
Civil Liberties
Required Reading:
Wasserman, chapters 2 and 6
Coursepack-- Lynch and Levendosky
The Nation
Holmes
Turley
Civil Liberties vs. Security, in The
Atlantic Monthly on-line
URL:
http://www.theatlantic.com/unbound/flashbks/liberties.htm
The War on Civil Liberties, in the
New York Times on-line
URL:
http://www.nytimes.com/2002/09/10/opinion/10TUE1.html
IV.
The
Judiciary
Required Reading:
Wasserman, chapter 5
V. Campaigns, Elections and Voting
Required Reading:
Wasserman, chapter 7
Coursepack--Schudson, Green, Piven,
Amy
VI. California State Politics
Required Reading:
California Politics Supplement: all.
VII. Congress and the Legislative Process
Required Reading:
Wasserman, chapter 4
VIII. The Presidency
Required Reading:
Wasserman, chapter 3
Final Examination--Monday,
May 12, 2003, 1:00--3:00 p.m.
*********************************************************************
Please note the
following rules, which will be fairly but firmly enforced:
The professor
reserves the right to alter the course outline as necessary, with advance
notice being given to all students through class announcement and announcement
on the class web site.
Make-up examinations will be given only in cases of illness and family emergency and will only be given when students contact the professor in advance of missing an exam. The professor reserves the right to request documentation of any excuse submitted.
Academic dishonesty will not be tolerated. Please familiarize yourself with the University Policy regarding Plagiarism, which is attached to this syllabus for your easy reference.
Helpful Hints:
1. Bring your syllabus to each lecture and discussion section meeting.
2. Check the course web page regularly for updated information.
3. If an emergency prevents you from attending lecture, make sure that you get lecture notes from one of your peers. Be sure to return the favor when others need it.
PLEASE refrain from
disrupting lecture and discussion sections.
Disruptions include (but are not limited to):
Talking
Eating
Reading materials
other than class materials.
Coming to class
late.
Leaving class
early.
Shuffling papers,
packing backpacks and slamming textbooks as the clock inches toward 2:50
p.m.
Students who disrupt lecture or discussion section will be asked to leave. Repeat offenses will result in expulsion from the course.
Course
Reader for POL S 102
Spring,
2003
Professor
Carole Kennedy
O'Leary,
Bradley and Victor Kamber. 1996. "Which Side are you On?" in Are you a Conservative or a Liberal? Boru
Publishing: Austin, TX. P. 11-16.
O'Leary,
Bradley and Victor Kamber. 1996. "The Quiz" in Are you a Conservative or a Liberal? Boru Publishing: Austin, TX.
P. 17-25.
O'Leary,
Bradley and Victor Kamber. 1996. "What is a Liberal?" in Are you a Conservative or a Liberal? Boru
Publishing: Austin, TX. P. 45-58.
O'Leary,
Bradley and Victor Kamber. 1996. "What is a Conservative?" in Are you a Conservative or a Liberal? Boru
Publishing: Austin, TX. P. 59-77.
Cohen,
Mitchell. 2000. "Why I'm Still Left," in Scott, Gregory M. and Loren
Gatch, eds., 21 Debated Issues in
American Politics. Prentice Hall: New Jersey, p. 65-79.
DuPont,
Pete. 2000. "The Conservative Manifesto" in Scott, Gregory M. and
Loren Gatch, eds., 21 Debated Issues in
American Politics. Prentice Hall: New Jersey, p. 79-91.
CIRP.
2001. Press Release. College Freshmen More Politically Liberal
than in the Past, UCLA Survey Reveals. http://www.
gseis.ucla.edu/heri/01_press_relkease.htm.
Baradat,
Leon. 1988. "The Spectrum of Political Attitudes" and "The
Evolution of Democratic Theory", pages 18-65. Prentice Hall: Englewood
Cliffs, NJ.
Chomsky,
Noam. 2002. "The Common Good" ," in Grover, Wm. F. and Joseph
Peschek. Voices of Dissent: Critical
Readings in American Politics.p. 73-83.
Hightower,
Jim. 2002. "This Land is Your Land," ," in Grover, Wm. F. and
Joseph Peschek. Voices of Dissent:
Critical Readings in American Politics. P. 10-20.
Lynch.
Mike. 2002. "Free to Choose: Supreme Court's Decision on vouchers is a
victory for children" Union Tribune, July 7.
Levendosky.
Charles. 2002 "Voucher ruling sidesteps Constitution" Union Tribune,
July 7.
The
Nation. 2001. "Terror Law: A win for fear, a loss for freedom" http://www.thenation.com/thebeat,
October 26, 2001.
Holmes,
Kim and Edwin Meese. 2001. The Administration’s Anti-Terrorism Package:
Balancing Security and Liberty. http://www.heritage.org/library/backgrounder/bg1484.html
Turley,
Jonathan. 2003. "Liberty Ebbs by Degrees," in Los Angeles Times,
January 2, 2003.
Schudson,
Michael. 2002. "America's Ignorant Voters", in Rozell and White, eds.
Contemporary Readings in American
Government, p. 223-231.
Green,
John C. 2002. "Culture Clash: Social Issues and the 2000 Presidential
Vote," in Rozell and White, eds. Contemporary
Readings in American Government, p. 299-315.
Piven,
Frances Fox and Richard A. Cloward. 2002. "Why American's Still Don't
Vote," in Grover, Wm. F. and Joseph Peschek. Voices of Dissent: Critical Readings in American Politics. p.
229-238.
Amy,
Douglas J. 2002. "Making Every Vote Count: A Case for Proportional
Representation," ," in Grover, Wm. F. and Joseph Peschek. Voices of Dissent: Critical Readings in
American Politics., p. 266-270.
Brudney,
Kent M., John H. Culver and Mark E. Weber. 2003. Critical Thinking and American Government. Wadsworth: Belmont, CA.
1.
Introduction
2.
Exercise
7.1 Defining the Extent of
Congressional Power
3.
Exercise
1.1 Reading the Constitution
4.
Exercise
10.2 Do the Characteristics of Judges Tell Us Anything about Judicial
Decision-Making
5.
Exercise
8.3 Evaluating Presidential Performance
RESEARCH
PAPER ASSIGNMENT
General
Information
Your
assignment is to write a comprehensive research paper of 8-10 pages in length
that addresses a topic of your choosing in light of the course materials. The
paper must analyze a current or ongoing event, institution, issue, person, or
policy in American national politics and/or California state politics. You should give a reasoned account for this
political phenomenon, fully supported by convincing factual evidence. You will receive detailed instruction in
section regarding appropriate topics and the steps that should be taken to
ensure that your paper meets course requirements.
POL S 102
Spring, 2003
Prof. Carole Kennedy
Discussion Section Syllabus
Teaching Assistant Name:_______________________
Teaching Assistant E-mail address: _____________________________
Discussion Section Meeting Time: ________________
In discussion section, Graduate Assistants will lead discussion sections on each week's lecture topics. In addition, GAs will provide instruction on conducting political inquiry, developing critical thinking skills regarding political phenomenon, and communicating one's political ideas to an audience in both spoken and written form. All assigned readings should be done in advance of section meetings and all assignments are due at the beginning of section.
I. January
28th
Assigned Reading:
Schmidt, Section One: Political Inquiry
Assignments due in Section:
Each student should print out their political ideology axis after taking the Political Ideology "test" at http://politicalcompass.org. You will not turn this in, but will want to refer to it for discussion purposes.
II. February 4th
Assigned Reading:
Schmidt, Section Two: Critical Thinking about Politics
Assignment due in
section:
Coursepack, Brudney, et.al., Introduction and Exercise 7.1 Defining the Extent of Congressional Power.
III. February 11th
Assigned Reading:
Schmidt, Analytical Multiple Choice Exams and Essay Exams, pages, 154-161
IV. February 18th
Assigned Reading:
Schmidt, Section Three: Choosing a Topic
Constructing Outlines, pages 181-189
Section Thirteen: Assignments for Organizing and Documenting Achievements for Research
Assignment due in Section:
Coursepack, Brudney, et al., Exercise 1.1--Reading the Constitution
V. February 25th
Assignments due in Section:
Writing Schedule due at the beginning of section.
Proposed paper topics due at the beginning of section.
Assigned reading:
Schmidt, Section Four: Researching Using Internet and Traditional Sources
VI. March 4th
Assigned Reading:
Schmidt, Section Ten: Format and Examples of Conventional Research Papers
Section Thirteen: Format and Examples of Assignments for Organizing and Documenting Research
VII. March 11th
Assignment due in section:
Scratch outline due (see sample on page 182 of Schmidt).
VIII. March 18th
Assignment due in section:
Coursepack: Brudney, et.al. Exercise 10.2 Do the Characteristics of Judges Tell us Anything About Judicial Decision-Making?
IX. March 25th
To Be Announced ____________________________________________
April 1st - no class meeting due to Spring Break
X. April 8th
Assignment due in section:
Annotated bibliography due (see Schmidt, pages 167-158).
XI. April 15th
Assignment due in section: Topic Outline Due (see sample on page 183 of Schmidt)
XII. April 22nd
To Be Announced___________________________________________
XIII. April 29th
To Be Announced__________________________________________
XIV. May 6th
Assignment due in section:
Coursepack, Brudney, et.al., Exercise 8.3 Evaluating Presidential Performance.
Discussion Section Grading:
Attendance at Section 15 points
Assignments and Participation 15 points
Total points (out of 100 for entire course)
from discussion section 30
Help
for Students – Information about campus resources
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Summer/Winter Session classes and are located in NH-227, (594-6515), open
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