History 2710 American History 1877-
    A chronological history of the United States from the Gilded Age to the present.

 K.L. MacKay kmackay@weber.edu ext. 6782

"Map courtesy of www.theodora.com/maps used with permission"

This course is designed to give a general overview of U.S. history from 1877. Emphasis will be on the meaning of events: why things happened as they did, how people viewed the changing times in which they lived, the consequences of their words and actions, and continuity and change over time. This course will be reading and writing intensive. Readings include original source materials, scholarly essays, and scholarly internet sites. Writings will include quizzes, response papers, project reports, and formal papers.

Course Calendar 

(subject to change with notification)

Syllabus:
Learning Goals | Texts | Internet Resources ‌ Activities in Support of Learning | Grades

Learning Goals:

• Students will learn history, acquire knowledge of basic facts, events--especially of significant questions and major themes in American history.
• Students hone their skills in reading, thinking, writing. Students will learn how to learn, how to reflect on their own learning style.
• Students will gain a historical perspective by which to understand the present. Students will gain an understanding of how historians think and interpret the past through the lens of the present.
• Students will consider a wide variety of historical sources and learn about how historians go about "recovering the past."

    The value of History is, indeed, not scientific but moral:  by
     liberalizing the mind, by deepening the sympathies, by fortifying the
     will, it enables us to control, not society, but ourselves. . .it
     prepares us to live more humanely in the present and to meet the
     future.
               --Carl L. Becker

Texts: 

Zinn, People's History of the U.S.
Collins and Gitelman, Thomas Edison and Modern America
Adams, The Best War Ever
 Additional texts as assigned

Recommended text: Don't Know Much About History (Davis)

You might try out Advanced Placement History Quizzes from The History Teacher to find out what you may not already know about a particular era in American history.

Internet Resources

You might find helpful:

• The Outline of American History (1994)  which has useful summaries and short biographies.
• The learning modules posted from the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History:
• The Free University Online has helpful modules in American History
• The Authentic History Center
• History 102 from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. See the Student web notes.

Activities in support of learning goals:

• 3 quizzes. These will be randomized from a list of posted topics. (25 points each) These quizzes must be taken on Chi Tester at a WSU testing center.
• Projects. There will be a variety of projects. All projects should be reported/expressed in short papers (1-2 pages), typed, free of gross spelling and grammatical errors. You must complete 10--each is due the week after it is described. (10 points each)
• 3 Analyses of Scholarship. You will critique 3 pieces of scholarship in formal papers (2-3 pages), typed, free of gross spelling and grammatical errors. You may analyze the scholarship of 3 difference topics in U.S. history 1877-1997, or you may analyze a single topic through 3 different scholars. An analysis paper is due at the end of  the 6th, 11th, and 16th weeks of the semester. You will be doing some peer reviewing of each other's papers. (15 points each.)
• 1 formal Oral presentation. You will work with colleagues to develop an oral presentation on topics from the book Thomas Edison and Modern America.
• Participation statement. Your comments and questions are welcome and will be solicited. There will be some small group discussions. Students will "guide" particular readings orally in class. You will assess your own participation in a written statement -- based on attendance, preparation and participation during the quarter. (30 points)

When contacting me through email, begin the subject line with History 2710 so that I will notice your message right away.)

History 2710 is about learning, and together we will attempt to provide answers to the questions the course raises. You will not agree with all my conclusions on the topics we discuss. I sincerely encourage alternative interpretations. Be prepared to support your arguments with evidence gained from your reading.

Grades:

Grades will be a percentage of points possible-not "on the curve."