Syllabus
The Sixties

 http://www.austincc.edu/dlauderb

HIST 2341-007	MW 12:00-1:20 pm
SYN 45946	RGC 025

Contact Information

Spring 2012

OFFICE HOURS

MW 10:30 — 12:00 Noon

TTH 9:00 am — 12:00 Noon

You can contact me via e-mail at:

dlauderb@austincc.edu 

or leave a message at:  223-3397

We can also meet by appointment. Just ask!

email: dlauderb@austincc.edu 

Office

Attache Offices (ATT) Room 218
1209 Rio Grande Street

Across the street from the main entrance
to the Rio Grande Campus

email: dlauderb@austincc.edu 

For the official Course Description, Course Objectives, and Course Rationale, see the ACC History Department web site at:

This course covers the period in American history from the end of World War II to the election of Ronald Reagan in 1980.  To make sense of such a concentrated view of history, the class will concentrate on four distinct but interrelated periods:

        1945-1960, 1960-1964, 1964-1968, 1968-1980.

There will be exams covering the material from each of these periods.  (See Exams below)

The subtitle of this course is An Interpretive History of Life in America, 1965-1980.  The name was chosen for a reason.  Despite having a reputation of being nothing more than a mess of names, dates, and places, history is, first and foremost, about people and how they lived their lives.  It is about the factors that shaped their existence and the choices they made.  Any attempt to write about the past, however, is fraught with danger, because a serious question always looms:  how do we know that what we are writing is correct?  The obvious answer is, we do not, and cannot, always know the correct answer.  But we generally can make good guesses, often very perceptive ones.  Consequently, history reflects one's interpretation of the past.  Whether you are a professional historian or not, each individual makes her or his own choice about what in history is important to her or him.  The purpose of this course is to provide students with a useful framework from which to interpret some of the important themes on life in America's past between the years 1965 and 1980.

Required Reading

The assigned reading for this course are:

Mark Hamilton Lytle, America's Uncivil Wars (NY: Oxford University Press, 2006); ISBN 9780195174977;
George Herring, America's Longest War: The United States and Vietnam, 1950-1975, 4th ed. (NY: McGraw Hill, 2006); ISBN 978-0-07-253618-8
Susan Douglass, Where the Girls Are: Growing Up Female with the Mass Media (NY: Three Rivers Press, 1995); ISBN 0-8129-2530-0
Anne Moody, Coming of Age in Mississippi  (NY: Laurel, 1992). [1964].  ISBN 0-440-31488-7

Attendance

Class attendance is crucial.  The bulk of the material on which students will be tested is contained in the lectures.  Students cannot expect to pass the course with only a knowledge of the information in the assigned readings.  The instructor reserves the right to withdraw a student for poor attendance.  The instructor will notify students in danger of being withdrawn from the course for poor attendance.

NOTE:  Students who stop attending class must fill out the necessary paperwork to withdraw from the course.  The instructor will not.  If you stop attending class and you do not properly withdraw from the course, then you will receive an F for the course.

Rules

There are only three rules for this course:  1.) be on time; 2.) stay awake; and 3.) turn off all pagers, cell phones, and tape recorders, etc., BEFORE entering class.  The instructor reserves the right to withdraw any student who fails to abide by the course rules.

Discussion

All students are encouraged to participate in class discussions on a regular basis.  “PARTICIPATING” DOES NOT MEAN GIVING THE “RIGHT” ANSWERS; IT MEANS THINKING ABOUT THE MATERIAL AND SHARING YOUR THOUGHTS.  This is NOT a requirement.  Students will NOT be penalized if they do not participate in discussion, meaning that failure to participate will NOT “hurt” your grade.  Students who do participate consistently, though, will receive positive consideration.  The instructor will determine the merits of class participation.

Exams

Students will take four Exams.  Each exam will cover a separate chronological period:

        1945-1960, 1960-1964, 1964-1968, 1968-1980.

There will NOT be a comprehensive “final” exam.  The last exam will test for the material covered since the third exam.

Each exam will have two parts:  objective and essay.  The objective section will count toward 40% of your exam grade.  The essay section will count toward 60% of each exam grade.  See the Course Schedule for the dates of each exam.

The purpose of the exam is to test your ability to analyze the information contained in the textbook and the class lectures.  Memorization will NOT be enough.  In order to demonstrate your knowledge of the course materials, you must use clear, concise sentences.  You must show that you can organize your thoughts and explain your reasoning.  Good grammar, spelling, and punctuation are essential.  These are the criteria on which your essay grade will be based.

Retests

Students who fail either of the first two exams will have the opportunity to retest.  All retests must be arranged with the instructor and must be taken by the date specified by the instructor.  The highest grade that can be earned on a  retest is a 70. Students may NOT use the retest to make up an exam.

Retests will be given at the Rio Grande Campus Testing Center.  For hours, see the ACC Testing Centers or call:  223-3164. And you MUST have an ACC ID before you can take an exam at one of the ACC Testing Centers.

Make-Up Exams

Students who cannot attend class the day an exam is given may have the opportunity to take a make-up exam.  Students must contact the instructor BEFORE the scheduled date of the exam to arrange for a make-up exam. ONLY STUDENTS WHO RECEIVE PERMISSION FROM THE INSTRUCTOR MAY TAKE A MAKE-UP EXAM.  See the Course Schedule for the date when you take the make-up exam.

All make-up exams for each of the first three exams will be given at the Rio Grande Campus Testing Center on  ONLY.  THERE WILL BE NO EXCEPTIONS TO THIS POLICY.  For hours, see the ACC Testing Centers or call:  223-3164. Remember, you MUST have an ACC ID before you can take an exam at one of the ACC Testing Centers.

Quizzes

Students will take twelve (12) quizzes.  Three quizzes will be administered in class for each section of the course.  The quizzes will consist of multiple-choice questions in the format that you will encounter on the exam.  Quizzes will ONLY be administered in class on dates announced in class.  Students who score at least a B on a quiz will earn bonus points toward the unit exam.

Research Project

The Research Project is required for those students who desire a grade of B or better.  If you do NOT complete the Research Project the highest grade that you can receive is a C.  Additionally, completion of the Final Draft does NOT automatically guarantee a grade of B or better.  The final effort will receive a point value that will be factored into the final course grade.

Please see the Course Schedule for the dates by which you must submit your:  choice of Respondent, Recorded Interview, Topic Page, Annotated Bibliography,  Outline, and Final Draft.

Grading

To earn an A:

• You must average at least 90 on the four exams and on a completed Final Draft; and
• You must take at least 9 of 12 quizzes.

• You must average at least 80 on the four exams and on a completed Final Draft; and
• You must take at least 8 of 12 quizzes.

• You must average at least 70 on the four exams; and
• You must take at least 7 of 12 quizzes.

• There will be no grade of D given in this class.

• You average less than 70 on the four exams; or
• You take less than 7 of 12 quizzes.

The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) protects the privacy and confidentiality of educational records.  So, to protect your privacy grades will not be given out over the phone, through a fellow student, or via e-mail.

Students with Disabilities

Each Austin Community College campus offers support services for students with documented physical or psychological disabilities. Students with disabilities must request reasonable accommodations through the Office of Students with Disabilities on the campus where they expect to take a majority of their classes.  Students are encouraged to do this three weeks before the start of the semester.

Scholastic Dishonesty

WARNING:  Scholastic dishonesty will NOT be tolerated.  Acts prohibited by the College for which discipline may be administered include scholastic dishonesty, included but not limited to cheating on an exam or quiz, plagiarizing, and unauthorized collaboration with another in preparing outside work.  Academic work is defined as, but not limited to tests, quizzes, whether taken electronically or on paper; projects, either individual or group; classroom presentations, and homework.  Any student guilty of scholastic dishonesty will automatically receive an F in the course and be remanded to the appropriate Austin Community College authorities for disciplinary action.  See the ACC Student Handbook for details on scholastic dishonesty.

Incompletes

Incompletes will be given ONLY with a medical excuse certified by a physician.  All incompletes MUST be completed within the first four weeks of the following session.  THERE ARE NO EXCEPTIONS TO THIS POLICY.

Withdrawals

Student Withdrawals:

A grade of F on a transcript never looks good.  Further, bringing your grade point average back up after receiving an F takes a very long time.  To avoid that scenario, students who are in danger of earning less than a C will have the option to withdraw from the class.

Student withdrawals must be completed according to the guidelines of the Austin Community College District.  See the Course Schedule for the dates and procedures for withdrawing from a class.  Students may also withdraw from the course for non-academic reasons.  Once again, see the guidelines in the course catalog for details.

Instructor Withdrawals:

If after the third exam it becomes apparent that a student CANNOT improve his/her grade enough to earn a C, then the instructor may withdraw the student from the course.  This is to prevent you from earning an F.

Office Hours

It is essential that students and the instructor make a concerted effort to maintain open lines of communication.  In other words, talk to me.  Problems generally are easier to solve BEFORE they happen.  You are encouraged to discuss any questions you may have regarding the course, the material, and your performance.  To that end, I have scheduled time to meet with students.  My office hours are listed at the top of page 1 of this Course Syllabus.  If those times do not fit your schedule, please feel free to make an appointment.  You may also contact me via e-mail at:  dlauderb@austincc.edu.  I do have one request.  If you make an appointment, please make every effort to keep that appointment.

Use of ACC email

ACC sends all email communication solely to the student's ACCmail account and expects students to read the messages in a timely manner. So that means all important information and emergency details will go only to your ACCmail . Students should expect to receive from, and send email to, their instructors from their ACCmail account. To set up an account, students can go to ACCmail for instructions.

Safety Statement

ACC is committeed to providing a safe and healthy environment for study and work. Students are expected to learn and to comply with ACC environmental, health, and safety procedures and to follow ACC safety policies. See the Environmental Health and Safety link for more details. The College also asks that each student become familiar with the Emergency Procedures and Campus Safety Plan map in each classroom. See ACC Emergency Alerts to sign up for electronic notices in the event of a serious emeergency.

Building Regulations

ACC regulations prohibit smoking, drinking, and eating in classrooms.

Student's Classroom Responsibilities

The purpose of this course is to acquaint you with the history of America from World War II to the election of Ronald Reagan.  You will be responsible for learning a considerable amount of information in a short period of time.  You must demonstrate on your exams that you can analyze what you have learned.  I will do my best to give you every opportunity to learn.  In return, I ask that you give yourself the opportunity to do the same.

Consequently, I ask that students conduct themselves in the following manner:

Bring an open mind; listen to the instructor and, especially, your classmates; and think critically about everything that is discussed in class.  The free exchange of information is vital to the pursuit of learning.

The instructor reserves the right to all lecture materials, handouts, and interpretations presented in class, and any said materials may not be reproduced in any form without the express, written consent of the instructor.

© David Marcus Lauderback, 2012 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED