Course Information and Policies
H105 Website, OnCourse and Email
The course website at the URL www.indiana.edu/~h105swrd will be your central source for information about this course. (Links on on this site are in orange text.) The website will be updated throughout the semester, and information found on the website supersedes information on the syllabus handed out the first day of class; please check the website regularly. You are strongly encouraged to bring the assigned timelines, lecture outlines and primary source readings to lecture, as these will help you take notes. We will discuss how to find these resources on the site and how to use them in your studies on the first day of class. Mozilla Firefox is the recommended web browser for this site.
Note that the main course website is NOT part of OnCourse, and you will find it easier to use if you link directly to www.indiana.edu/~h105swrd. You do not need to login to OnCourse to access the main site. You will, however, need to use OnCourse to view your assignment grades and any other restricted information about the course. We will also use the OnCourse email system to communicate with the class, so you should check your IU email account regularly.
Reading
The textbook you should purchase for this couse is John Murrin, et al., Liberty, Equality and Power, compact fifth edition, available at the IU Bookstore and also from on-line vendors. I have also placed a few copies on reserve at Wells Library. The textbook offers a broad roadmap to the territory we will cover this semester. It is the main "secondary" reading (that is, work written by historians) that you will be assigned.
Most of the remaining required readings are selections from "primary documents" - materials produced by people in the past. Careful reading of these sources will be essential to success on the short assignments and exams. You can find these reading assignments through links in the schedule on the course website. You must complete the assigned readings before the appropriate class, and you ideally should bring printed copies of the readings (and your notes) with you to class. You will need to refer to them during in-class assignments and discussion. One of the skills we expect you to develop in this course is a systematic way of navigating and keeping useful records of this kind of information.
Specific questions to keep in mind as you do the weekly reading can be found by clicking on the “Reading Guide” headings in the course syllabus. These questions are designed to help you read analytically rather than passively, and to prepare for written exercises and exams. For general tips on interpreting primary documents in particular, see the following guideline: Strategies for Interpreting Primary Documents.
Graded Assignments
Attendance is required. Informed participation in classroom discussion on a regular basis will enhance your grade. Habitual tardiness, absence or other unprofessional conduct (see below) will result in deductions from your final grade.
140 pts (28%) 8 short exercises, lowest grade dropped announced 1 session prior due next class, possibly some in-class, unannounced 100 pts (20%) Midterm exam I October 1 100 pts (20%) Midterm exam II November 5 160 pts (32%) Final exam December 17 Short assignments will ask you to assess material in the readings or respond to materials handed out in class on a given day. Most of these will be announced in-class (and posted to the web) shortly before they are due. A few might be open-book, in-class assignments that will take 15 minutes to complete and will not be announced in advance. The aim of these assignments is to help you learn to use primary sources as evidence, preparing you for longer essays and exams. They will also serve as the basis for in-class discussion. Please keep a copy of the assignment for yourself, as your CA will usually post the grades to On-Course without handing them back. If you would like advice on how to improve, you are encouraged to let your CA know in advance, and to meet with him or her in person during office hours. The grades of the 7 best assignments will be taken.
All three exams will be in-class, closed-book tests consisting of long essay questions. Study questions will be posted to the web at the beginning of each of the three units in the course, and a shorter list of possible exam questions will be posted a week before each exam. The two midterm exams will focus exclusively on material from the unit leading up to the exam. The final exam will emphasize material from the concluding unit, but will also contain include a few items asking you to draw connections between different parts of the course. Students must take exams on the dates scheduled. You are responsible for identifying and resolving final exam conflicts before the half-way point in the semester.
Exercises and exams cannot be made-up. The policy of dropping the lowest short-assignment grade and occasional extra-credit opportunities should accomodate inadvertently missed short-assighments. Exceptions will be considered only in the event of life altering emergencies or medical crisis. In such cases, you should notify the professor in advance if at all possible, and supply documentation from professional help and the Dean of Students (Franklin Hall 108) afterward. Exercises and exams will be scheduled to avoid conflict with religious holidays.
Resources and Assistance
If at any time during the semester you have questions about the course website, lecture material, reading material, writing assignments, or your performance in this class, please feel free to speak to either your course assistant or the professor before or after class, during office hours, via email, or via telephone to make an appointment. Note that while we are happy to help you as you study for your exams, we cannot promise to answer email sent the night before the test. Come see us in advance!
For general assistance with writing and study skills, you are encouraged to visit Writing Tutorial Services, one of the Academic Support Centers (in Briscoe, Forest, and Teter Quads), or the Student Academic Center.
For specific guidelines on how to write thesis statements, how to write topic sentences and organize paragraphs, and how to use evidence, see the relevant pamphlets produced by Writing Tutorial Services. Their guide to writing thesis statements is particularly useful for this course. For more detailed guidelines on writing history papers, see the history department's History J300/400 Resource Pages.
Students interested in pursuing more intensive work on study and writing skills are encouraged to enroll in a 2-credit course on “Learning Strategies for History” (X101) which is specially design to complement H105. Please contact X101 instructor Ms. Tammy Jo Eckhart, teckhart@indiana.edu, for more information.
If you have a disability or learning disability, please provide the professor with official written notification from Disability Services for Students (Franklin Hall 006) as soon as possible so that any necessary accommodations can be made.
Grading Scales
Grading Scale for In-Class Assignments:
A B C D F (incomplete assignment turned in) F (absent: no assignment turned in) Your CA will usually keep these assignments and post the
General Grading Scale for Exams/Course:
- A-level grades: a thorough knowledge of the material, synthesized/analyzed in independent ways.
- B-level grades: a thorough knowledge of the material, with limited synthesis and analysis
- C-level grades: a basic knowledge and understanding of the material with no synthesis or analysis.
- D-level grades: a limited and/or mistaken knowledge of the material.
- F: lacking any significant knowledge of the material.
A 93-100 A- 90-92 B+ 87-89 B 83-86 B- 80-82 C+ 77-79 C 73-76 C- 70-72 D+ 67-69 D 63-66 D- 60-62 F 59 or below
Professional Conduct
Our basic expectation in this course is that everyone will conduct themselves in a professional and collegial manner. Please assess your own actions according to standards that would apply in the work place. What would your boss and colleagues think if you answered your cell phone, checked email, or skipped out in the middle of a business meeting? Or if you failed to show up?
Absences and Course Protocol
Students whose toys or behavior disrupt class will be asked to leave. Repeated lateness or absence will be noted, and result in deductions from the final grade. In the event of a grade dispute, you will be asked to document your mental and physical presence by showing your instructors your lecture notes. You should not expect your course grade to exceed the grade that would be calculated based on the percentage of classes you attended, and failure to attend at least 60% of classes will result in automatic failure of the course.
If you have special needs due to disabilities, chronic illness or religious requirements, or if you experience difficulties due to family emergencies or illness during the semester, please come talk to us about them. The same is true for conflicts you know about ahead of time. It is easy to make arrangements ahead of time and hard to fix things afterwards
We will be following university directives regarding the anticipated flu pandemic, and will announce accomodations as the need arises. Absences due to the flu (and sanctioned flu prevention measures) will be excused, but you must make arrangements to make up work.
Bottom line: Let us know about difficulties as soon as they arise, and come see us to discuss solutions as soon as it becomes possible.
Grade Re-evaluation:
A student wishing to have an assignment grade re-evaluated must wait 24 hours after the assignment has been returned. Then, having read the comments on the assignment in question, and having prepared a written statement of why they feel the grade ought to be revised, the student should make an appointment to see the Course Assistant who graded the assignment. If a resolution is not reached after this meeting, Professor Sword will meet with the CA and student together and review the assignment. Please note that in asking us to review a grade, there is no guarantee that the grade will be revised.
Academic Honesty
All of your academic work is expected to comply with Indiana University’s Code of Student Rights, Responsibilities, and Conduct. Be scrupulous in citing your sources in all your written work. All quotations, derivative ideas and uncommon facts must be duly cited. While we encourage conversations with other students about the course material, all of your written work must be the original product of your own research and thought. Plagiarism or copying will result in failure of and withdrawal from the class, and will become a permanent part of the student's transcript and academic record. For further guidance about avoiding plagiarism, see the College of Arts and Sciences web pages on Plagiarism: What it Is and How to Avoid It.