School of Design,
Arts, and Humanities 2019-20
COURSE
SYLLABUS (as revised for online segment of semester)
Course Number
POL 388-A |
Course
Title
Politics of North America |
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Fall Semester |
Spring
Semester
XX |
Summer
Semester |
Credit
Hours 3 |
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Name
of Instructor William Miller |
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Meeting
Day, Time, and Room Number |
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Final
Exam Day, Time, and Room Number Tuesday, May 5th, 3:00-5:30pm,
St. Joseph, 103
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Office
Hours, Location, Phone Tuesdays and Fridays, 12:45-1:45pm. Rowley
G1018. (703) 284-1687 Always email ahead of time! |
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E-mail and Web Site wmiller@marymount.edu Email
is always the best way to reach me! Website: www.millerpolitics.com All
announcements and assignments are posted on this website, never on Canvas. |
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Course
Description Examines the systems of government of Canada, the United States, and
Mexico and their relations with each other. Prerequisite:
EN 102 and either POL 102, POL 103, or POL 104. Liberal Arts Core/University
Requirements Designation: GP, SS-2. (3) |
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1. BROAD PURPOSE OF COURSE
Examines the politics and the systems of government of Canada, the
United States, and Mexico and their relations with each other. We shall also
compare the recently negotiated USMCA Trade Agreement with its NAFTA
predecessor.
2. COURSE
OBJECTIVES: Upon successful completion of this course
students will be expected to:
Liberal
Arts Core Outcomes (general and discipline-specific)
General
Learning Outcomes – Skills – Analysis, Critical Reasoning and Problem-Solving
Students will
practice analytical discourse, critical reasoning and problem-solving through
examination of the structure and function of the governments of Canada and
Mexico as they pertain to the resolution of conflict and/or process of policy
development available to these nations.
The outcome
will be measured by performance on short and long answers on tests and the
research paper.
General
Learning Outcomes – Attitudes – Civic Responsibility
Students
will apply their appreciation of the relation among individual choices, social
issues, and global concern through analysis of the past and present practices
of the governments of our two neighboring national states.
The
outcome will be measured by class participation demonstrating knowledge of the
reading and performance on tests.
Course-Specific
Outcomes
Upon
successful completion of this course students will be expected
(1) to demonstrate
familiarity with theories of political representation as they relate to
comparative government studies;
(2) to demonstrate
familiarity with the political history and present forms of government of
Canada and Mexico;
(3) to demonstrate
familiarity with the electoral politics of Canada and Mexico;
(4) to demonstrate
familiarity with several of the significant issues presently facing the
governments of Canada and Mexico; and
(5) to be
able to analyze the structure of discursive writings about Congressional issues
and to write and defend a short thesis on a topic relating to one or both
countries of study.
These
outcomes will be measured by class participation and in written papers and
exams.
3. TEACHING
METHOD
Lectures, discussion, and student
presentations.
4. GRADING POLICY (NOTE: REVISED
GRADING SCALE!)
Tuesday, January 21, 2020, is the
last day to withdraw from a class without academic record
Friday, May 1, 2020, is the last day to
withdraw from a class with a grade of W (NOTE CHANGE!!!)
NOTE
REVISIONS!
The final
grade will be based upon two exams, several presentations, a research paper, and
your participation in class discussions.
25% =
Canada exam
25% =
Mexico exam
10% =
Class participation
20% =
Seminar Papers/Presentations (I anticipate two presentations by each student
this semester)
20% =
Research Paper
The usual
scale of 90-100%=A, 80-89%=B, 70-79%=C, 60-69%=D, and 59% and below=F will be
used for all graded work.
The exams
and the written assignments are all based on the primary readings of the course:
not on the class lectures, which are intended to help you understand the
readings and not to substitute for the readings. No grade of "I" or
"Incomplete" will be given. If possible, assignments and exams
will be graded and returned within two weeks. Assignments handed
in late will receive an F.
ATTENDANCE
AND MAKE-UP EXAM POLICY
Attendance: This is not a distance learning class.
Beginning with the second week of classes, students are allowed a total
of nine absences, excused and/or unexcused. Students
who miss ten or more classes for any reason whatever will receive an “F” in the
course.
Each unexcused absence
beyond three—up to the absolute limit of nine—will result in a lowering of the
final grade by two percentage points. To be excused, an absence
must be documented, unless I indicate otherwise. Excused absences are typically
medical-, legal-, or job-related excuses. Acceptable documentation typically
consists of a statement or form on official stationery (1)
signed by a third party (doctor, police, judge, supervisor—not a parent or
family member!) that (2) refers specifically to the day of absence from class
and (3) the reason for the absence. If there is an on-going medical, legal, or
employment condition that may affect your attendance, let me know at the
beginning of the semester, not after the fact.
A lot of
students are commuters. Occasionally coming to class late—even
really late once or twice—is not considered an absence. Coming to class
without hard copies of the text for the day, leaving the classroom for most of
the class-time, or leaving class early without the permission of the
instructor, however, is always considered an unexcused absence.
Merely
informing me ahead of time that you will be absent from class does not mean I
excuse the absence, though I appreciate your courtesy. I will not excuse your
absence because you are simply not feeling well or because you choose to do
something worthwhile other than come to class even if you inform me ahead of
time. If you are coughing and sneezing and coming down with a cold or the flu,
and you don't want to spread your virus to your classmates, your fellow
students and I salute you! Staying home may be the right thing to do, but it is
not an excused absence. You all get three unexcused absences to use as you see
fit, and it is your decision to use them to stay home when you don't feel well
or want to attend some other event or need to prepare for another class instead
of going to my class. Use them for good reasons: that's what they are for.
The limit
of nine total absences recognizes that excessive excused absences
may also be a problem. You should discuss such situations with me well before
the last month of the semester. Any absence prevents you from participating in
the class, but if your job or an illness keeps you away from class, it will
significantly affect the class participation component of your grade and may be
a good reason to drop the course and take it another time. All of us find
ourselves in these situations from time to time and have to deal with them
appropriately. You also have an obligation to report this to a University
office (see the section titled “Attendance” in the University Catalogue).
When in doubt
about any of these policies, please come and talk to me. They have been
formulated with our substantial commuter and working student population in mind
and are intended to be fair to everyone. You should also review the
University's policies on absenteeism in the section titled “Attendance” in the
University Catalogue.
Make-up
Exams: The
same basic rules about excused absences apply to taking mid-terms. My policy of
giving makeup exams on the same day as the final does NOT mean that you may
choose to take the mid-term exam on that day rather than on the regularly
scheduled day: it is not an alternative test date. To be eligible for a makeup,
you must qualify for an excused absence, and this you should do a reasonable
time before the day of the mid-term, if that is at all possible. You may be
excused from taking a mid-term if you are certifiably sick or your job prevents
you from attending class or you have a legal or employment emergency on the day
of the test. If one of these applies, and I am informed in a reasonable time
before the exam, and you have written documentation to support your
request, you may take the exam on the same day as the final exam. If
none of these reasons apply, you may not take the exam at another time, and you
will get a zero for the exam. Travel plans will never excuse an
absence. Parental or family notes do not constitute proper documentation.
If you are late for the exam because of events outside of your control, let me
know immediately or as soon as possible that day, and I will
let you take the exam that same day if possible.
A FEW
FURTHER RULES
For the benefit of the class and your classmates, the
following rules regarding electronic devices also apply to this course:
1. Turn your cell phone ringer off
during the class. If you are expecting an important call, put your phone on
“Vibrate,” sit near the door, and, when the call comes, answer it outside the
classroom.
2. It follows from the foregoing rule,
but it must be separately stated: no talking and no texting on cell phones
during class. If you do not follow this rule, I will publicly ask you to leave
the room for the remainder of the class and will do my best to have you removed
from the course for the rest of the semester.
3. No open lap-top or other computers are allowed in class
without my prior permission. Devices such as smart phones, tablets, Ipads, Kindles, Kobos, and Nooks
that lie flat on the desk and on to which the readings can be loaded are
permitted if approved by me, but hard copies of the readings are
better. You can mark them up and take notes on them in class.
4. Be sure to check your
Marymount email address regularly! This is Marymount’s and my
principal way of contacting you with important information. Perhaps you rely
mostly on Yahoo, gmail, or some other provider, but
check your @marymount.edu mail daily to make sure you do not miss school
information.
5. Save copies of all of your papers and
written assignments until at least a week after the end of the semester.
These rules are necessary to foster a suitable learning
environment in the classroom during class. There are enough distractions with
lawnmowers, air conditioners, and other outside forces to combat during
lectures and discussions without these controllable distractions within the
room.
5. CLASS
SCHEDULE
The following topics and dates of discussion are approximate and are subject
to change due to cancelled classes, guest speakers, and so on. I shall try to
maintain the due dates for papers and exams as they are listed below, though
they are tentative dates.
WEEK 1 (1/14-17) Introduction to the course; introduction to theories of political
representation; introduction to parliamentary and presidential forms of
government; introduction to direct and proportional systems of representation.
WEEK 2 (1/21-24) Canadian history (chapters from Bothwell history text).
Tuesday, January 21, 2020, is the last day to withdraw from a class without academic
record (FYI—
It
is also the last day to add a class.)
WEEK 3 (1/28-1/31) Canadian history (Bothwell).
WEEK 4 (2/4-7) Canadian history (Bothwell) and government (chapters from Malcolmson
and Myers).
WEEK 5 (2/11-14) Canadian government (Malcolmson and Myers).
WEEK 6 (2/18-21) Canadian government (Malcolmson and Myers); Research
Papers on Canada due
WEEK 7 (2/25-2/28) Canadian government (Malcolmson and Myers); Mid-Term
WEEK 8 (3/3-6) Mexican history (chapters from Edmonds-Poli
and Shirk)
Spring Break!
WEEK 9 (3/17-20) Mexican history (chapters from Edmonds-Poli
and Shirk)
--NOTE REVISIONS--
WEEK 10 (3/27) Mexican history and government (Edmonds-Poli
and Shirk)
WEEK 11 (3/31) Mexican government (chapters from Edmonds-Poli and Shirk)
WEEK 12 (4/7) Mexican political history: the emergence and
consolidation of PRI hegemony
WEEK 13 (4/17) Mexican political history: the breakdown of
PRI Hegemony
WEEK 14 (4/21) Current
Government Institutions; (3/24) Term Papers Due
WEEK 15 (4/28) Contemporary Mexican Issues
Friday, May 1, is the
last day to withdraw from a class with a grade of “W.”
The final exam will consist of one essay on Mexico and several shorter
definitions/identifications from the vocabulary list.
6. REQUIRED
TEXTS
Bothwell, Robert. The
Penguin History of Canada. Toronto: Penguin Canada, 2007. ISBN
978-0143050322
Edmonds-Poli, Emily, and David A. Shirk. Contemporary
Mexican Politics. 3d ed. Lanham: Rowman and Littlefield, 2015. ISBN
978-1442220263
Malcolmson, Patrick,
et al. The Canadian Regime: An Introduction to Parliamentary Government
in Canada. 6thed. Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 2016.
ISBN 978-1442635968
7. UNIVERSITY STATEMENTS
CLASS REGISTRATION REQUIRED
Students not
officially enrolled in a course offered by the university may not attend class
according to university policy. Faculty are responsible for upholding this
policy and may not add students to a class roster in Canvas.
ACADEMIC INTEGRITY
By accepting this syllabus,
you pledge to uphold the principles of Academic Integrity expressed by the
Marymount University community. You agree to observe these principles yourself
and to defend them against abuse by others. Items submitted
for this course may be submitted to TurnItIn.com for analysis.
STUDENT COPYRIGHT INFORMATION
For
the benefit of current and future students, work in this course may be used for
educational critique, demonstrations, samples, presentations, and
verification. Outside of these uses,
work shall not be sold, copied, broadcast, or distributed for profit without
student consent.
ACCOMMODATIONS AND ACCESSIBILITY CONCERNS
If you are seeking accommodations (class/course adjustments) for a disability,
here are the steps to take:
1) Register as a student with a disability with Student Access Services (SAS) in the Center for Teaching and Learning (CTL). This process takes time, so engage with SAS as early as possible.
2) Once registered with SAS, you may be approved for accommodations by SAS. Approved accommodations will be listed on a “Faculty Contact Sheet” (FCS), and you will receive a copy of this FCS from SAS.
3) Meet with each of your instructors as soon as possible to review your accommodations as per the FCS, and have them sign the FCS. This document will help you and your instructors develop a plan for providing the approved accommodations.
4) Let SAS know if you have any concerns about how your accommodations are being implemented in the classroom.
Please remember that:
1) The steps above are required in order to be granted reasonable accommodations for disabling conditions.
2) Accommodations cannot be implemented retroactively. That is, accommodations can only be applied to a course after they have been approved by SAS, and after you have discussed your accommodations with your instructor and the instructor has signed the FCS.
3) Appointments with SAS staff are scheduled through the Starfish "Success Network" tab (you can access Starfish through Canvas). For more information, check the SAS website, e-mail access@marymount.edu, or call 703-284-1538.
Temporary Challenges
Temporary
challenges due to accident, illness, etc. that may result in missing class or
navigating general campus access do not necessarily fall under the purview of SAS.
If you experience something of this nature, please start by alerting your
instructors. The Dean of Student Success
may be involved in alerting instructors in extreme cases.
EMERGENCY NOTIFICATION POLICY
When
students are absent due to a crisis situation or unexpected, serious illness
and unable to contact their individual instructors directly, the Division of
Student Affairs can send out an Emergency Notification. To initiate an
Emergency Notification, students should contact the Division of Student Affairs 703-284-1615 or student.affairs@marymount.edu. Emergency
Notifications are NOT appropriate for non-emergency situations (e.g. car
problems, planned absences, minor illnesses, or a past absence); are NOT
a request or mandate to excuse an absence, which is at the sole discretion of
the instructor; and are NOT a requirement for student absences. If a
student contacts instructors about an emergency situation directly, it is not
necessary to involve the Division of Student Affairs as arrangements are made
to resolve the absence.
For
non-emergency absences, students should inform
their instructors directly.
ACCESS TO STUDENT WORK
Copies of your work
in this course including copies of any submitted papers and your portfolios may
be kept on file for institutional research, assessment and accreditation
purposes. All work used for these purposes will be submitted
confidentially.
UNIVERSITY POLICY ON WEATHER AND EMERGENCY
CLOSINGS
Weather
and Emergency closings are announced on Marymount’s web site: www.marymount.edu, through MUAlerts, area radio stations, and TV
stations. You may also call the Weather
and Emergency Hotline at (703) 526-6888 for current status. Unless
otherwise advised by local media or by official bulletins listed above,
students are expected to report for class as near normal time as possible on
days when weather conditions are adverse. Decisions as to inclement closing or
delayed opening are not generally made before 6:00 AM and by 3:00 PM for
evening classes of the working day. Emergency closing could occur at any time
making MUAlerts the most timely announcement mechanism. Students are expected to attend class if the University is not
officially closed. If the University is closed, course content and assignments will still be
covered as directed by the course instructor. Please look for communication
from course instructor (e.g., Canvas) for information on course work during
periods in which the University is closed.