Political Science 100 (9:05 – 10:00 am; IPJ 220A)
Fall 2009
Dr. Mike Williams
Office and Phone: IPJ 286B; 260-4012
Office Hours: MWF: 8:00 am - 9:00 am; 1:15-2:45 pm or by appointment
E-mail: jmwilliams@sandiego.edu
Website: http://home.sandiego.edu/~jmwilliams/
PS 100:
INTRODUCTION TO POLITICAL SCIENCE
Your daily participation is one of the most important features of this course. Each of us will bring different ideas to class discussions and the course is designed for us to share our different opinions in an intense, yet polite, manner. I do not claim to dispense Truth with respect to political science, and it is my hope that we will learn from each other over the course of the semester. Thus, there will be very few traditional lectures given. Instead, each class I will choose - at random - two to three students to lead class discussion for that day. I will ask questions concerning the assigned readings and students will be expected to have read the material closely enough to respond in a thoughtful manner. Because you never know when your number may turn up, it is best to be prepared each class for your turn in the “hot seat.” Your class participation grade will depend on how prepared you are when you are one of the leaders of class discussion. You are allowed to pass on your role as class leader one time without any penalty. If you pass more than once, your class participation grade will be lowered. If you are absent when called on, it will be counted as a pass. Regular attendance is required for this course and more than one absence will lower your class participation grade 5% for each subsequent absence.
While this process may seem intimidating at first, it will become more familiar to you over the course of the semester and will help you learn how to construct, and deconstruct, arguments. One of the major reasons the class is designed in this manner is because the ability to make reasoned arguments and engage one another in serous conversation is one of the hallmarks of effective citizenship. In addition, practicing these skills on a daily basis will prove to be helpful for the midterms, the short paper, and the final exam.
There will be one midterm examination on October 9. This exam will cover all the material assigned up to that date unless specified differently by the instructor. The final exam will be cumulative (the date of the final exam will be announced in class).
The final exam will consist of an in-class group oral presentation and an essay exam. The final exam will be on Wednesday, December 16 from 8-10 am. The group oral presentation portion of the exam will require you to answer a particular question that will be assigned during the semester. The group will prepare a four-minute answer and present it to the class. There will then be an opportunity for the class to ask follow-up questions for eight minutes.
Reaction Papers
You will be required to read a newspaper on a daily basis and look for one article a week that relates to something we have discussed in class or that was covered in the readings. You must find your article from one of the following papers: The New York Times (www.nytimes.com), The Los Angeles Times (www.latimes.com), or The Wall Street Journal (www.wsj.com). You will write a one-page critical analysis of the newspaper article (double-spaced, 12 point font, one-inch margins). You will complete four reaction papers for the semester.
Your final grade will be based on the midterm, the reaction papers, the final exam and class participation.
Under no circumstances - except serious illness or serious family emergency - will you be allowed to take the midterm or final at an earlier or later date. You may not email assignments unless I have given you prior permission. Missed exams or late papers will not be accepted unless students notify me before the absence or late paper and have a written verifiable medical excuse. If you do not provide such notification, all late papers or missed exams will receive a zero. Those who present me with a verifiable medical excuse will be allowed to take a makeup exam that will be scheduled for the last day of the semester. Other late assignments be graded down one full grade per day and the assignment will not be accepted after three days.
Classroom Etiquette
When class begins, I expect each of you to behave in a responsible and respectful manner. Over the last few years, there has been a noticeable increase in the number of instances where students disrupt class discussions in a variety of ways. For example, it seems to be more common for students to arrive late, to walk out of class during discussions, to receive telephone calls, to receive and send text messages, to receive and send emails, and to surf the net. Obviously, such behavior is not acceptable. Unless there is an emergency, I expect every student to arrive to class on time and to stay for the entire class period. While in class, students should not receive or send any phone calls or text messages. Students will be penalized for any of these infractions. Also, unless a student can provide a letter from Disability Services, laptops will not be allowed during class.
I expect you to comply fully with the standards of academic integrity set forth by the University of San Diego. Any incident of academic dishonesty (as defined in the Undergraduate Bulletin) will be punished to the full extent allowed by the University.
Any form of cheating or academic dishonesty will not be tolerated and will result in a grade of "F" for the course. Further, any academic dishonesty will be reported to the Department Chair. Because it is your responsibility to know and understand University policy regarding academic integrity, “Serious Violations” will be administered for academic dishonesty in this class (“unauthorized assistance on examination, falsification or invention of data, unauthorized collaboration on an academic exercise, plagiarism, misappropriation of resource materials, unauthorized access of an instructor’s files or computer account, other serious violation of academic integrity as established by the instructor”). Be advised that academic dishonesty can lead to academic disqualification. It is rather easy to identify illegitimate assignments, and I do not hesitate to consult USD faculty or colleagues at other institutions nationwide regarding students’ work and I will require each student to submit the country reports to turnitin.com. I encourage you to discuss coursework with classmates and friends, but do your own work and write your own papers. If at any time you need help or would like to talk about an exam or assignment, please come talk to me.
Grading
Midterm: 20%
Participation: 20%
Reaction Papers: 20%
Final: 40%
All of these books should be available in the bookstore. The other materials for the course are on E-Reserve and traditional reserve with Copley Library. These materials are designated with an “ER” in the syllabus. The class password to access the E-Reserve readings is: ps100. Please notify me as soon as possible if any of these materials are not available.
Course Outline and Assigned Readings
Section I: Political Power, the Study of Politics and The Goals and Philosophical Foundations of Democratic Politics
Sept. 2 Introduction to class
Sept. 4 Articles on the politics of health care reform [ER]
Sept. 7 NO CLASS
Sept. 9 Aristotle, Politics [ER]
Sept. 11 Aristotle, Politics [ER]
Sept. 14 Hobbes, Leviathan [ER]
Sept. 16 Locke, Two Treatises of Government [ER]
Sept. 18 Anouilh, Antigone [entire]
Section II: The Making of Democratic Institutions
Sept. 21 Dahl, chapters 1-2; U.S. Constitution [ER]
Reaction Paper #1 Due (at beginning of class)
Sept. 23 Brutus #1; Madison, Federalist #10 [ER]
Sept. 25 Dahl, chapter 3
Sept. 28 Dahl, chapter 4
Sept. 30 Dahl, chapter 5
Oct. 2 Dahl, chapters 6-7
Oct. 5 Dahl, chapter 8
Oct. 7 Articles of Confederation; Constitution of the Confederate States; South African Constitution (pages 1-20) [ER]
Reaction Paper #2 Due (at beginning of class)
Oct. 9 Midterm Exam
Oct. 12 TBA
Section III: The Rights and Responsibilities of Citizenship
Oct. 14 Dred Scott v. Sandford (1857); Minor v. Happersett (1875); U.S. Constitution, 13th, 14th, and 15th amendments [ER]
Oct. 16 Foner, “Blacks and the U.S. Constitution”; Emancipation Proclamation [ER]
Oct. 19 TBA
Oct. 21 Keyssar, “Breaking Barriers” [ER]
Oct. 23 NO CLASS
Oct. 26 Plato, Crito [ER]
Oct. 28 King, “Letter from the Birmingham Jail” [ER]
Oct. 30 Putnam, “Bowling Alone” [ER]
Nov. 2 Kestnbaum, “Citizenship and Compulsory Military Service” [ER]
Nov. 4 Raskin, “Legal Aliens, Local Citizens” [ER]
Nov. 6 Huntington, “The Hispanic Challenge” [ER]
Nov. 9 Foner, “Who is an American?” [ER]
Section IV: The Challenges of Democratic Politics
Nov. 11 Ibsen, Enemy of the People
Reaction Paper #3 Due (at beginning of class)
Nov. 13 Ibsen, Enemy of the People
Nov. 16 CIRCLE, “Millennials talk politics” [ER]
Nov. 18 CIRCLE, “Youth voters in 2008 election” [ER]
Nov. 20 Group Presentation Preparation
Nov. 23 Articles on Campaign Finance Reform [ER]
Nov. 25 No Class
Nov. 27 No Class
Nov. 30 Lawrence v. Texas (2003) [ER]
Dec. 2 Specter, “The Need to Roll Back Presidential Power Grabs”; Mahler, “After the Imperial Presidency” [ER]
Dec. 4 Goldsmith, “The Cheney Fallacy”; Comparative Constitutions [ER]
Section V: Citizenship and Democracy in South Africa
Dec. 7 Marx, “Apartheid’s End” [ER]
Reaction Paper #4 Due (at beginning of class)
Dec. 9 Stanley, “Evaluating the Truth and Reconciliation Commission” [ER]
Dec. 11 Williams, “Leading from Behind” [ER]
Dec. 14 Group Presentation Preparation
Dec. 16 Final Exam (8 – 10 am)