History 1740 Syllabus


	Page Last Updated: November 1, 2011 3:53 PM

	Syllabus Contents
		Find the MWF and TH Schedules in HTML and PDF Format Find your required and recommended texts. Find the Dixie College general education objectives. Find the History 1700 course objectives. Find the like to student policies Find the grading system for this class Find a description of the course exam requirement Find a description of the homeworkand attendance requirement Find a description of the hard copy paper assignment Find the Writing Aids


	American Institutions Requirement: This course satisfies the American Institutions category of the Dixie State College General Education requirements.


	Texts
		Required Texts
			Walton and Rockoff, History of the American Economy, 11 Edition, ISBN 978-0-324-78662-0

		Companion Website for History of the American Economy
		*Link to History of the American Economy* at Amazon**. Find used books here.

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	Gifts: Gift from students to the teacher can be misinterpreted. While the thought will be appreciated, Mr. Green cannot accept gifts under any circumstances. I would be better for all concerned if they were not offered.


	Class Interruptions: Please turn off your cell phones, radios, walkmans, and alarms such as watches and palm pilots during class. Electronic disturbances of this class will not be allowed.


	Economics 1740 Course Objectives
	•	Students will be able to identify and understand the major chronological and topical divisions in American History.

	•	Students will be able to demonstrate substantive knowledge of the economic history of America. They will also be able to describe and analyze major economic and historical themes and arguments found in primary and secondary source materials.

	•	Students will argue and write analytically, cogently, and comparatively about significant issues and problems in American economic history

	•	Students will think critically as they evaluate and analyze the primary and secondary sources that make up the assigned reading for the course. They will then apply their findings in order to answer questions, solve problems, support or critique arguments, and explain ideas

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	Policies
		"An eminent mathematician once remarked that he was never satisfied with his knowledge of a mathematical theory until he could explain it to the next (person) he met in the street. This is hardly exaggerated; however, we must remember that a satisfactory explanation entails duties on both sides."

		http://new.dixie.edu/reg/syllabus Use the link to find the 1) the semester schedule, 2) information on student resources including the library, disability resource center, IT help, testing center etc., 3) policy statements including academic integrity,, disruptive behavior, absences for college functions and disability accommodation, and 4) D-Mail.

	Student Duties
		You must commit to a fifteen week program of rigorous study. For the average C+ to B-) Dixie College student, this course will demand two hours out-of-class study for every hour we meet in class or 6 hours a week. This means careful reading: in order to perform well on exams and class assignments you will have to work with your textbook, as opposed to just reading it. It also means you will do college level writing. Finally, you must be willing to consider viewpoints different from your own and to express your opinion in class.

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	Grades
		Judgment concerning how much of the content of the class each student has learned will be made using the following formula: Exam grade times 45% Test Grades times 40% Homeworkl and Attendance 15%


			All grades will be determined using one of the following two methods. First, the score on the will be divided by the high score in the class. If the score is within 95% of the high, the resulting grade will be an A. The breakdown will then descend by percentages of the high until the a score that is 60% of the high earns a D- (see the % of Grade conversion box). However, if the average grade for the class, calculated using the first method, is less than a C, at the instructor’s discretion a second method might be used in place the first. Under this second methodology, instead of dividing by the high score, the instructor will divide until the average grade for the class is set closer to or at a C. Further adjustments will be made if there are several sections of the class and significantly differentiated denominators between the classes. If there are multiple sections of the class that use the same measuring instrument, as when all section take the same test, the average will calculated from all sections rather than each class individually.

		Absolute Class Requirement
			You must take both the midterm exam and the final exam to pass the class.

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	Written Exams
		The exam grade is based on two major written exams given during the semester which account for 45% of your grade. The midterm will account for 40% of this grade and the final the remaining 60%. *Nature of the Exam* Each exam is a take-home essay in which you will respond to a topic or question selected by the instructor. The question will be provided to you one week before each exam. Each exam will have a word count requirement.. *The Option: Student Choice For Figuring The Exam Grade* Most students in the class will not have been exposed to a written exam. Because of this, many will be disappointed by their performance on the midterm exam. They will not really have understood what to expect. To manage this weakness in the course structure, each student will be given a choice as to how his or her exam grade is calculated. Option One: the midterm will count as 40% of the exam grade while the final exam will count as 60% of the exam grade. Option Two:the final exam grade will be used as the exam grade. The midterm grade will be discarded. The default grade will be option one. To be eligible for option two, students must comply with all four of the following requirements: Turn in the midterm exam. Failure to take the midterm, means you will automatically fail the class; choosing not to take the midterm makes option two meaningless. Retrieve the midterm exam from Mr. Green within one week of when the exam is turned back. [The exam will be turned back during one class period. If you are not in attendance on that day, be warned that the one week clock begins ticking when that class period ends.] Option Visit #1:completing #3 above, Bring your graded paper to Mr. Green office during his office hours and go over it with him in office. This must be done by Option Visit #1 due date (see your semester schedule for this date).lose the opportunity to use the option if this first visit is not completed by that date Option Visit #2:completing Option Visit #1, you must make at least one follow up visit to Mr. Green’s office to analyze the assignments given to you during the first visit. This must be done before the day of your scheduled final exam. You lose the opportunity to use the option if this second visit is not completed by that date. *Exam Grading* The exam will receive a grade of A to F based how well the essay meets the following criteria: 1) structure, 2) understanding of the material presented in the class slides, lectures, and discussion, 3) creativity, and, as a minor criteria, 4) formatting, grammar, and mechanics. Structure: the essay must have a recognizable purpose statement which includes a thesis and key ideas that support the thesis. Short responses will have topic sentences that introduce the key ideas that will be discussed. All answers will use good transitions and repeated key terms throughout the exposition. other words, the paper must be unified and coherent. Content:paper must demonstrate and clear and deep understanding of the class lectures and discussions and the assigned reading. Using material from Wikipedia or any other on line or hard copy encyclopedia, textbook or other source, on the other hand, will hurt your grade. Creativity: Essays that go beyond the obvious by showing new insights, unique organization, or other demonstrations of creative thinking, while still meeting the structure and content requirements, will receive the highest grades. *Exam Formatting* The paper must be typed. The paper must be double spaced. The paper must have 1" margins all around. The paper must use a 12 point font. The paper can use simple referencing. If you wish to cite a passage from the PowerPoint slides or the text, put the paraphrase or quotation's page number after the quote in brackets( ex. [307] ). You do not need the include the author or title since I will know what the page number references. The paper must include the “Econ 1740 Exam Grading Form” as its cover sheet. The cover sheet must include the name, section, and word count boxes properly and correctly filled in. *Paper Structure, Grammar and Mechanics* The essay must have a recognizable purpose statement and the short response questions must have topic sentences that introduce the key ideas . (for examples, see exam guide posted on the exams and grades page on the website.) The paper must be free of spelling errors and comma splices, run on sentences, and apostrophes. There must be proper punctuation of subordinate clauses and compound sentences, a single point of view (no you and your, etc.), and proper use of colons and semicolons. *Exam Schedule* The date of each exam is listed in the schedule of semester activities in this syllabus. *Missing the Final Exam* The date and time of your final exam are listed in the schedule bulletin (and under the line on Mr. Green's Home Page). You must take your final with your class on the correct day at the correct time. Student’s missing finals for any reason without written permission from Mr. Green and the Dean of Arts, Letters, and Sciences will not be allowed to make up the exam. *Early or Late Exam*s Early exams a will not be allowed except under very strict conditions . (See the attendance policy above.) An early or late midterm will require private consultation with Mr. Green (in his office, not the classroom) and will require evidence of school sponsored activities or real emergencies before they will even be considered. At this point, the on-line syllabus at Mr. Green’s website links to a set of writing aids that will help you as you prepare your essays.

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	Writing Aids
		The following set of writing guides were developed by Dr. Allan Payne of the Dixie College English faculty to help students compose papers that are unified, coherent, and correct. When Mr. Green grades your paper, he will assume that you have read and incorporated the standards these guides contain.

		Guide 1	A two page list of key writing terms with their definitions. Mr. Green uses most of these term when explaining his assignment.

		Guide 2	A one page graphic example of a properly structured paper and a one page sample paper that follows the example.


		Guide 3	A six page guide to basic grammar and punctuation rules.

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	Timed Tests
		Your grade on three graded timed tests, based on your reading of Walton and Rockoff, History of the American Economy, will constitute 45% of the final grade. *Timed Test Rules* Three timed tests will be held during the semester to assess reading and comprehension of the Walton and Rockoff textbook. (See the semester schedule or Blackboard’s “Assessment Tool” for the dates that each of the three timed tests is posted.) Each test will be conducted on-line using Blackboard's "Assessments Tool." The link to each test will appear on the "Assessments Tool" page at 8:00 am on the Friday the test opens and disappear at 11:59 pm on the Monday that the test closes; all questions on the test must be completed before the test closes. Each of the three tests will have 60 true-false and multiple choice questions and will be timed for 60 minutes. All questions will be chosen at random by a computerized testing program. The testing program contains questions on every summary, discussion, detail, chart, graph, principle, and concept presented in each chapter of the textbook. A question on any of these aspects of the chapters could appear on the tests. In other words,tests are designed to insure that a thoroughly reading, studying, and understanding of the material throughout the textbook. *Timed Test Grade* Each test will be graded by dividing each score for each person taking the test by the highest score achieved by all those taking the test. The resulting percentage will be used to assign the grade. (See % To Grade Conversion box above.) The average of these three tests will be assigned at the final semester test grade. *Practice Tests* To help prepare for each of the tests, three practice tests have been posted for each of the chapters. There are two practice tests for each chapter, each has 20 sample questions, and none of has a time limit. Like the graded test, they are all available using the "Assessment Tool" in Blackboard. Each practice test question is worth a point. The resulting scores are included because Blackboard requires them. They are not used or included anywhere as part of the grade. However, the questions are drawn from the same test banks that are used to create the timed tests, and it is likely that some of the questions that appear on the practice tests will appear on the timed tests as well. In addition to the three 20 question, untimed practice tests per chapter, three timed practice tests are also included: one corresponding to each of the three timed tests. These practice timed tests are designed to mimic the real timed tests in every way. Each has 60 questions just like the timed test. Each is timed for 60 minutes just like the timed test. The only difference is that, like the chapter practice tests, the timed practice test score will not affect the grade. *No Late or Make-up Timed Tests* No make up of the three timed test is allowed. Refer to the semester schedule or Blackboard’s “Assessment Tool” or its “Calendar Tool” often to make none of the timed tests is missed. Excuses such as forgetting to check the schedule, getting stuck in Salt Lake or Las Vegas, or going on an upcoming family vacation will not count as acceptable excuses and will not be accepted. (See the attendance policy above.) Sometimes school sponsored activities or real emergencies will arise. These must be dealt with privately by consultation with Mr. Green (in his office, not in the classroom) before the test begins.

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	Homework and Attendance
		This section constitutes 15% of your final grade. The homework portion will constitute 70% of this grade and attendance portion will make up the other 30%. *Homework* During the semester, various homework assignments will be made. These will begin with the syllabus quiz, the pre-test, and the post test which are posted as assessments on Blackboard. In addition, worksheets, problems, and a pre-Midterm exam paper will be required. *The Syllabus Quiz* A syllabus quiz is posted on the “Assessment Tool” in Blackboard. The quiz contains questions based on this syllabus. You will be allowed to take the quiz twice with the highest score counting toward the homework grade. *The Pre-Test and the Post Test* A pre-test and post test are also posted on the “Assessment Tool” in Blackboard. The pre-test and the post test are both the same test conducted twice — once at the beginning of the semester and one at the end. Each test can be taken only once, but full credit will be given just for completing them. *Hard Copy Paper Assignment* Prior to the midterm exam, a sample of your writing in hard copy will be assigned to help assess your understanding of a purpose statement and coherent structure. These are key grading components of the midterm and the final exam. The assignment is to prepare an answer to the modified version of question #2 of the potential midterm essay questions from the exam guide (located in the exams and grades page on the website) that follows: Show your knowledge of supply and demand by thoroughly defining supply, then demand, and showing first how a supply determinate and second how a demand determinant can explain the market for tobacco in colonial America. You may use data from the textbook to broaden your discussion, but the assignment is to show that you can identify a determinant and use it to manipulate a supply and demand model. Include two correctly drawn and labeled diagrams, like those required for the supply and demand worksheet, to illustrate first a supply shift and second a demand in the tobacco market. The diagrams can be computer generated, or they can be hand drawn (draw them neatly). Paper Grading Criteria The paper will be graded on conceptual understanding and writing quality like a normal paper, but five criteria must be met: The first paragraph of the essay must contain a true purpose statement (see the exam guide). Papers missing the purpose statement will lose points. The essay must use one or two examples of a supply or demand application that you have found in your reading of the textbook. That is, you mist find a determinant of either supply or demand implied by the narrative in the text. Your analysis must name that determinant and show how that determinant affects the supply and demand model: which curve is shifted and the direction of the shift. The paper must include one graph for each example used in the paper. The graphs must include a properly labeled supply and demand model that looks like the crossed diagram introduced in the lectures where on of the curves supply curve you wish as long as you explain them. (The graph explanations can be used as part of your word count.) The graph can be had drawn or computer generated. The essay must be at least 750 words. The essay must not be late. Two points will be deducted if the paper is not turned in on the at the beginning of class on the due date. Two additional points will be deducted for each day thereafter (weekends not included). The essay must be grammatically correct (too many mechanical errors -- commas, semi-colons, colons, point-of-view shifts, etc. interfere with reading and will result in drops in a loss of points. The paper must conform to the following formatting: Printed it in easy to read fonts like Times Roman, Arial, Calibri, etc. Double spaced Uses 1" (normal) margins (all around) Uses a 12 point font Proper identification: Place your name and course section (morning or evening) at the top of the paper. Please do not use a cover sheet. Hard Copy (e-mail or other electronic submissions will not be accepted) Include a word count (see the appropriate box on the paper’s cover sheet) Failure to follow the bulleted formatting criteria in #4 will result in a grade of "unacceptable." You will in, this case, be asked to rewrite the paper that includes the formatting and turn it in again. The paper will be graded using grading comments from the cover sheet which will be handed out in class. The cover sheet will include a list of grading criteria each with an assigned grading weight. The sum of these scores will determine the score of the paper. Grammar and Spelling Markings The "Writing Mechanics and Punctuation Codes" chart (link) contains Mr. Green’s grammar and spelling codes. These explain any two letter markings on your graded paper. Grammar errors will affect your score. If your paper is returned with many of these coded comments, you may wish to bone up on writing mechanics. Your ability to get into graduate school and your performance in a profession l be negatively affected if you don’t know the punctuation and grammar rules. Meaning of the Paper Grade Any grade less than 24 points should be taken as a warning. On the midterm, the grade will be based on primarily on structure and on content. Inability to structure the argument on the essay and short answer responses will create in a poor result on the midterm. Therefore, if the paper grade is less that an 24 points, bring your paper to Mr. Green’s office to see what need to be done to improve the paper for resubmisssion. Paper Resubmission You may resubmit the paper for a higher grade. Resubmission will only be allowed if your bring your graded paper to Mr. Green in his office for explanation of the grade. Your resubmitted paper is due one week from the day the papers are turned back in class. If you are not present on the day the papers are returned, you will need to come to my office and get your paper. The same deadline will still apply. When you resubmit, be sure to attach the old paper with the old grade and markings Late Papers Late papers, those turned in after the due date, will lose one point for each day they are late. No papers will be accepted after noon on the Friday before the midterm. *Homework Scoring* Each of the homework assignments will have a number of points possible assigned. The syllabus quiz is worth a possible 10 points. Both the pre and post tests are worth 10 points. An A grade on the hard copy paper is worth 24 points. At the end of the semester, the total points for the homework assignments will be totaled and divided by the high score to determine the percent of the high and create the homework grade. (See the % of grade conversion table above to see how the letter grade is determined.) *Class Attendance* One half of the class time in this course will be devoted to small group, large group, and class discussions. The purpose of these discussion activities is to clarify the problems presented by economic theory, to clarify the events and people important in the historical narrative, and to express and be challenged in attitudes and opinions concerning the issues raised in the course. To make this process work, you must attend each discussion session. Therefore, an informal note will be made of those present, and especially, those who participate in the discussion. Sometimes this participation will be voluntary and other times you will be called on to express your understanding or your opinion.

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