CRN 21799 - POLS C1000 Syllabus - Fall 2025.pdf

 

COURSE DESCRIPTION & GENERAL INFORMATION

COURSE DESCRIPTION: A study of American government at the national, state, and local levels. Governmental principles, institutions, and their historical development are examined. This will involve the discussion of controversial political issues. Please remember reasonable people often disagree, and the challenge and requirement of this course is to maintain civil discourse. This course satisfies part of the history and government requirements for the CSU UC, Allan Hancock College, and many private colleges. CAN GOVT 2, acceptable for credit: CSU, UC

REQUIRED BOOK: 

• Krutz & Waskiewicz; American Government 3e; OpenStax (online) – FREE!!

https://openstax.org/details/books/american-government-3e

• Additional readings and videos provided on Canvas

RECOMMENDED PREPARATION:         

College-level written work is required in this course and will be a significant factor in your grade.

STUDENT LEARNING OUTCOMES: Successful completion of this course will mean you can:

1. Explain the structure of the US government and the major historical underpinnings of that system, including the role of the Constitution.
2. Analyze competing political ideologies, specifically as they relate to US politics.
3. Describe how economic and cultural influences affect political decisions in the US.
4. Evaluate how individual participation affects politics and democracy, and how it has changed over time.

 

POLICIES & PROCEDURES

COURSE REQUIREMENTS: Student must complete all reading assignments, participate in class discussion, submit written assignments and take the examination as scheduled.  This course also requires Internet access and proficiency. It is your responsibility to ensure that your computer is working properly and that you can access all the necessary links on the Canvas site. If you experience any computer difficulties, please refer to the “Help” tab located along the left margin of the Canvas site. If you continually encounter computer problems, I urge you to use a different computer and/or use the computers at the college. 

ENROLLMENT POLICY: Generally, it is the responsibility of the student to DROP this course through the Admissions & Records office.  However, if you persistently do not participate, I may drop you.  If you are going to be offline for more than a week, please send me an email via Canvas Inbox in advance. 

DUE DATES: All assignments and online posts are due by 11:59 PM Pacific Time on the Sunday of the relevant week. Some assignments may have due dates that fall on a holiday. Rather than make the due date earlier in the week, it remains on the Sunday even if it is a college holiday. You may always submit work early. 

LATE WORK and MAKE-UP POLICY: I do not accept late assignments. I assign assignments week(s) in advance; it is the student’s responsibility to manage their time accordingly. However, technology can fail us, if so, please send me a message via Canvas Inbox, fully explaining your issue BEFORE the deadline of the assignment. Failure to do so, an extension or excuse will not be granted.

Student are given one late assignment pass, to be used no later than 1 week after the deadline. To utilize this homework pass, students must email me requesting the use of the pass no later than 5:00pm the day the assignment is due. If you do not use your homework pass by the end of the semester, you will receive 5 extra credit points. 

Make-up for the Exams will only be honored when a reason with valid documentation supporting a legitimate reason is provided. The make-up should be taken within one week of the missed exam. Students are given advanced notice, prepare and organize your time accordingly.   

It is the student's responsibility to request or acquire missed Lecture Notes, Assignments, or Instructions!

COURSE & COLLEGE POLICIES

The Policies and Procedures for student conduct can be found in the Allan Hancock College Catalog which describe discrimination policies, guidelines of conduct, administration discipline, and student grievances. 

STUDENT GRIEVANCE [COMPLIANT] POLICY:

If you feel you have just cause for a complaint, there is both an informal and formal process to resolve complaints. The first step is to meet with the person(s) involved in the complaint and you can be accompanied by a Student Body Commissioner. For all of the information about student grievances, please go here: https://www.hancockcollege.edu/complaints/students.php

DIVERSITY, EQUITY AND INCLUSION

As an instructor and as a person, I am committed to the values of diversity, equity and inclusion. Here’s what these values mean:

• Diversity: Diversity is the range of human differences and identities, including but not limited to race, ethnicity, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, social class, physical ability or attributes, religious or ethical values system, national origin, perspectives, language, and political beliefs [including all intersectionalities].
• Equity: Equity is the promotion of justice, individualized treatment, and fairness needed for all individuals to achieve individual and communal success.
• Inclusion: Inclusion is the policy and intentional practice by which barriers are removed so that all individuals may be fully involved and empowered to participate meaningfully in all aspects of the college.

RULES OF ENGAGEMENT: This course involves the discussion of controversial political issues.  Remember that reasonable people often disagree.  The challenge and requirement of this course is to maintain civil discourse. We will achieve this by following three basic rules: 

1. Use polite and civil behavior
   1. Maintain calm level and tone of speech and written words.
   2. Allow others to finish their statements uninterrupted.
   3. Respect others and respect yourself by focusing on evidence rather than emotion.
2. Use clearly defined terms (providing your own definitions if necessary).
3. Strictly avoid inflammatory, derogatory and insulting words, phrases and labels.

***DISCLAIMER***

STUDENTS MAY BE EXPOSED TO STRONG LANGUAGE DUE TO THE CONTEXT OF THIS SUBJECT.

RECORDING CLASS: Other than Learning Assistance Program (LAP) directed auxiliary aids and academic accommodations, the use of any electronic listening or recording device in any classroom is prohibited without the explicit prior consent of the instructor (CA Ed Code Sec. 78907). It is in violation of Allan Hancock College policy (BP 5500) which address student conduct. It is also a crime to record any private communication, such as a classroom lecture, without the consent of all parties to the conversation (Cal. Penal Code § 632). Violation of such rules may result in disciplinary action.

 

TENTATIVE COURSE ASSIGNMENTS

LEARNING OBJECTIVES: These will be provided for every Module of study and are intended as a study guide. They will be helpful in preparing for exams and completing other work for the class. 

READING: Reading assignments are from the American Government textbook & Canvas. I suggest you use the PowerPoint Lecture Slides as a starting point and core content. Use the textbook for more detail, examples and explanations. Take note of the concepts you do not understand.  Then, re-read those difficult sections again and if it is still unclear, be sure to ask those questions online.

READING QUIZZES: It is a requirement to read the relevant materials each week. There will be scheduled short quizzes worth a maximum of 5 points each. Each Quiz will be timed. There is no “backtracking” and you have only one try, so do your best! Remember that these are individual assessments and are not to be done together with classmates.

EXAMS: There are two exams, worth 50 points each. The exam will include multiple choice and/or written responses.  The exams are TIMED. When the time limit is reached Canvas will “force submit” your work. There is no “backtracking” on the multiple-choice section, and you have only one try, so do your best! Remember that these are individual assessments and are not to be done together with classmates.

CANVAS POSTS:

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS (“DQ”): Students will be assigned Discussion Board Posts. Discussion boards will be published that relate to lecture (Discussion prompt/YouTube videos). Students are to write a minimum 200-word reflection, provide an opinion, on the topic or chosen video. Then reflect/critique another student discussion submission (minimum 100-words). Discussions are worth a maximum of 10 points each.

An Introduction assignment will be worth 15 points. Failure to submit the “About You” assignment will result in an automatic drop from the class. 

CURRENT EVENTS POSTS: Students will be assigned Current Event Posts. To assist with critical thinking and writing skills, students are required to read a National/Domestic news article (via media news outlets). Must be legitimate sources, if in doubt, ask for help. Sources cannot be repeated. After reading the article, students are to identify the targeted audience, the message, and intent of the article. Additional instructions will be on Canvas. Current Events posts are worth a maximum of 10 points each.

HYPOTHESIS (ANNOTATION): This assignment is worth a maximum of 30 points. Instructions will be available on Canvas.

CLASS PROJECT: This is a class project worth a maximum of 50 points. Instructions will be available on Canvas.

EXTRA CREDIT: Extra credit opportunities are available throughout the semester. Details will be provided in Canvas Announcements.

 

ROUGH GRADING POLICY:

Rough Grading Policy

Assignment	Percentage
Reading Quizzes	20%
Canvas Posts	22%
Hypothesis - Annotation	10%
Class Project	16%
Exam 1	16%
Exam 2	16%
Total	100.0%

 

 

GRADING SCALE:

Grading Scale

Points Required	To Earn
90 - 100%	A
80 - 89.9%	B
70 - 79.9%	C
60 - 69.9%	D

 

TENTATIVE CLASS SCHEDULE

NOTE:  The following schedule is TENTATIVE and subject to change. Changes will always be announced in class or via Canvas early enough to complete assignments. However, it is your responsibility to keep up with schedule changes. 

 

Tentative Class Schedule

Week	Date of Class	Topics	Required Reading*
		SECTION 1
1	August 18-24	Course Intro & Overview American Government and Civic Engagement	Module 0: Orientation Ch. 1
2	August 25-31	The Constitution and Its Origins	Ch.  2
3	September 1-7	The Constitution and Its Origins American Federalism	Ch. 2 Ch. 3 Patrick Henry
4	September 8-14	Civil Liberties	Ch. 4
5	September 15-21	Civil Rights	Ch. 5 Malcolm X
6	September 22-28	Catch Up Week/Study Guide
7	September 29 – October 5
		SECTION 2
8	October 6-12	The Politics of Public Opinion	Ch. 6
9	October 13-19	The Media Interest Groups and Lobbying	Ch. 8 Ch. 10
10	October 20-26	Political Parties Voting and Elections	Ch. 9 Ch. 7
		SECTION 3
11	October 27-November 2	Congress	Ch. 11 Class Project TBD
12	November 3-9	The Presidency	Ch. 12
13	November 10-16	Courts	Ch. 13
14	November 17-23	State and Local Government The Bureaucracies	Ch. 14 Ch. 15
		SECTION 4
15	November 24-30	Domestic Policy Foreign Policy	Ch. 16 Ch. 17
16	December 1-7	Catch Up Week/Study Guide
17	December 8-14	EXAM #2

 

*** Required Reading includes: textbook chapters as indicated, as well as additional content on Canvas (Lecture Slides, mandatory articles/videos, Articles and Amendments to the US Constitution).

***Reminder: Bookmark the Canvas site (https://hancockcollege.instructure.com), and use it rather than going through myHancock. Accessing Canvas through myHancock may cause you to be kicked off Canvas when myHancock logs you out for lack of activity.

 

 

 

IMPORTANT STUDENT RESOURCES & REMINDERS

LEARNING TIPS:

1. Read the syllabus once a week, students are responsible to know the due date of all assignments and exams.
2. Work consistently by planning time each week to read the designated chapter(s) and complete the assignments.
3. DO NOT Procrastinate! This is not a “self-paced” course. Course Documents will be available for limited periods of time. Assignments and other Assessments have due dates and deadlines.
4. Keep up with class Announcements via Canvas.
5. Keep up with current events.
6. Keep organized.
7. Ask questions about unclear topics, do not assume.
8. Create a Grammarly.com account (https://www.grammarly.com/1)
9. Create a Dropbox account. With Dropbox, students’ documents can be accessed at any time from any computer. Sharing information, notes and edits is easier and hassle-free (https://www.dropbox.com/?landing=dbv2).  
10. Especially when taking tests, access Canvas directly (https://hancockcollege.instructure.com), not through myHancock.

The number one mistake that students make is that they do not communicate with their Professors. We cannot read your mind! Please talk to me if you have any issues or difficulties regarding all matters related to this course.

DISCLAIMER

From time to time during the semester, changes may be made to this syllabus. Students will be notified of changes through the Announcements feature on Canvas.

 

COURSE RESOURCES & TOOLS:

1. Syllabus – This should answer most of your questions about due dates, grading and other policies.
2. The Required Reading & Videos – The textbook is an especially important resource for this course.
3. Lecture Slides – These are required and a critical part of course content.
4. Canvas Content – All Lecture Slides, Links and Assignments are posted on Canvas.
5. Learning Objectives – These detailed questions to help guide you through each learning unit and to inform you as to what level of understanding is expected.
6. Assignment Details & Rubrics – These describe the standards and criteria for grading the various assignments.
7. Useful Links – Various website links will be provided on Canvas to help you with research for assignments.
8. Office Hours – If you cannot contact me during scheduled time, make an appointment.
9. Fellow Classmates – We will work together and get to know each other this semester.  Your classmates are an important resource for studying and understanding different perspectives.

 

CAMPUS RESOURCES: 

1. Academic Resource Center – This is a rich resource for tutoring, group study, workshops and computer use.
2. Computer Access – There are computers and Wi-Fi available for your use in various locations across campus.
3. Counselors – Seek the advice of college counselors to build your study program and avoid frustrating missteps.
4. Learning Assistance Program (LAP) – Please visit LAP if you have (or think you might have) any disability that could affect your education.  It is the policy of this college and this course to provide reasonable accommodations but students requesting such accommodation are required to identify themselves to LAP.

Americans with Disabilities Act

Any personal learning accommodations that may be needed by a student covered by the Americans

with Disabilities Act (ADA) must be made known to the instructor as soon as possible. This is the

student’s responsibility. Information about services, academic modifications and

documentation requirements can be obtained from the Learning Assistance Program (LAP).

For more information about services available to AHC students with disabilities, contact:

(805) 922‐6966 ext. 3274 (Santa Maria Campus)

(805) 922‐6966 ext. 5274 (Lompoc Valley Center from Santa Maria)

(805) 735‐3366 ext. 5274 (Lompoc Valley Center from Lompoc)

(805) 928‐7834 (TTY/TDD for the Deaf)

(805) 922‐69‐6966 (Video Phone)

5. Health Services – Provides students with medical services, health counseling, crisis and mental health counseling, and appropriate referrals to community resources.

6. Assistance Programs – Hancock has numerous programs to assist students. Some of these are CARE, CalWorks, MESA, Veterans’ Center. See a counselor for more information.

7. Instructors & Fellow Students – The people around you are a great source of information, do not be afraid to ask!

8. The Library – Search for and check out a book or publication the old-fashioned way – go to the library! This is an important skill you need (the internet is not enough)!

9. Job Placement – This is a good resource if you are looking for a short- or long-term job.

10. Associated Students – This is a great way to get involved in campus government and/or specific clubs based on your personal interests. (Student Services)