SPRING 2003

HISTORY 218
U.S. HISTORY SINCE 1865

This course is an historical survey of United States history since 1865 with major emphasis on the Twentieth Century. The course is designed to help you understand major themes of U.S. History and its culture, and to be able to interpret, organize, and communicate your knowledge in writing and in class discussion.

TEXTS: Markman, Marsha, and Boe, Jonathan, eds., The American Journey, Vol. II; Hersey, John, Hiroshima; Wilson, John M., Forging the American Character, Vol. II; Bradley, James, Flags of Our Fathers, Neal, Arthur G., National Trauma and Collective Memory

ATTENDANCE POLICIES (CLASS): In order to understand the continuity of history and the cause and effect relationships of one period to another, it is essential that students attend class. Students are held responsible for the material presented in every lecture along with the reading assignments. Students must attend class on time and will be penalized for lateness. Every two lates will be counted as an absence. Any student with an excess of 4 unexcused absences will not pass the course. Any student who must leave class prior to the end of the class session must receive permission prior to the beginning of the class.

ATTENDANCE POLICIES (EXAMS): Exams are crucial to the course and students are expected to make every effort to complete them as scheduled. A student will be excused from a scheduled exam only in the most unusual circumstances and only with a written excuse. Examples of acceptable excuses would be: (1) illness requiring a doctor or nurse's attention. The nature of the medical problem must be included in the excuse and a recommendation that the student not go to class. A simple note from a nurse or doctor indicating that the student visited the clinic or office is not acceptable; (2) approved school functions with an excuse request from the Registrar's office; (3) a death in the immediate family, with a note from the parent or guardian.

Examples of unacceptable excuses are, oversleeping, forgetting to come to class, forgetting the exam, car trouble, traffic problems, fear, nervousness, broken romances, etc.

MAKE-UP POLICY (EXAMS): Students missing an exam with an acceptable excuse will be permitted to make-up the missed exam during the last week of the course, in the Dwight Beeson Hall auditorium. Students missing an exam without an acceptable excuse will receive an automatic "F" on the exam missed and will receive a numerical score no higher than a 50% or 10 points below the lowest score in the class, whichever is lower.

QUIZZES: Short daily quizzes will be given regularly throughout the course, as announced. These quizzes will come from assignments given in advance and will be given at the beginning of a class session. Students will be permitted to drop the two lowest quiz grades at the end of the semester. Make-ups will not be given for missed quizzes.

FINAL GRADE: The final grade will be derived from examinations, term project, and quiz grades. It will consist of 1600 points as follows:

Exam 300 points March
Exam 300 points April 1
Quizzes or Specific
graded assignments
300 points As Scheduled
Term Paper and Oral 200 points As Scheduled
Exam on Hiroshima and Flags 200 points As Scheduled
Final Exam 300 points May 20
  *1600 points  

*Final Grades will be computed using the following grade scale

A 91.1-100 B- 80-81.9 D+ 68-69.9
A- 90-91 C+ 78-79.9 D 62-67.9
B+ 88-89.9 C 72-77.9 D- 60-61.9
B 82-87.9 C- 70-71.9 F 59.9 or below

LESSON ASSIGNMENTS
Date Subject Assignment
Jan. 30 Course Introduction None
Feb. 4 T. Roosevelt: Looking Back None
Feb. 6 Reconstruction (Review) Wilson, Ch 1; Journey, 4
Feb. 11 Political Scene, 19th Century None
Feb. 13 The West Wilson, Ch 2; Journey, 1, 2
Feb. 18 Economic Changes & Culture, 19th Century Wilson, Ch 3, 6; Journey, 3,5,11,12
Feb. 20 Reform Movements, 1870-1914 Wilson, Ch 4; Journey, 7,8,9,10
Feb. 25 New Manifest Destiny Wilson, Ch 5
Feb. 27 New Manifest Destiny Wilson, Ch 5
Mar. 4 Exam  
Mar. 6 World War I None
Mar. 11 World War I Wilson, Ch 7; Journey, 14
Mar. 13 1920s and Great Depression Wilson, Ch 8, 9; Journey, 16, 17, Neal, Ch 3
Mar. 18 FDR and New Deal Wilson, Ch 10; Journey 18
Mar. 20 Neutrality and Pearl Harbor Journey, 21
Apr. 1 Exam  
Apr. 3 World War II, Strategy and Struggle, 1941-42 Journey, 22, 23, 24
Neal, Ch 2, 4
Apr. 8 World War II, Europe None
Apr. 10 World War II, Europe and Japan Journey, 23 (Exam: Bradley)
Apr. 15 Japan: Advancing the Bomber Line None, Journey, 24
Apr. 17 Hiroshima

Wilson, Ch 11; Journey, 25 (Exam: Hersey)

Apr. 22 Civil Rights Wilson, Ch 12, 13; Journey, 26, 27, Neal, Ch 9
Apr. 24 Cold War Journey 26, Neal, Ch 5, 6
Apr. 29 Korea None
May 1 Vietnam Wilson, Ch 14; Journey 29, 30
May 6 Vietnam Journey, 32, Neal, Ch 7,8
Wilson, Ch 14
May 8 Post Vietnam Wilson, Ch 16; Neal, ch 10, 11
May 13 Post Vietnam None
May 20 Final Exam  


Last updated: January 24, 2003 . Maintained by Susan W. Murphy.
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