The block of courses is about doing something about the environmental issues we face – a task that, of course, will require research, analysis, organization, and writing, but that must also result in practical action.  The goals of the course are to encourage you to become an active citizen in your own educational process and our wider community; to learn about, analyze, critique, and apply some of the historical and contemporary interdisciplinary thinking regarding green urbanism and urban gardening to a particular community project; to immerse yourself in one local attempt to bring Cincinnati closer to its goals of being a greener city.

Textbooks:

1. Wendell Berry, The Unsettling of America
2. Rob Hopkins, The Transition Handbook
3. Lewis Mumford, The Culture of Cities

Assignments:

Written assignments (5, 10 and 20%)—35% total

We will ask for written submissions on three occasions: 8/31, 10/7, and 11/16. Generally, you will be expected to integrate your classroom material and project experience into a coherent discussion about what you are learning. Each assignment will build on the ideas and questions raised in the previous one as well as on the cumulative course material. Thus, each assignment is worth more than the previous one.

Practical Engagement (30%)

In addition to the written assignments above, we will assess your learning at the engagement site through oral presentations. These will be group presentations (three of them) and they will draw on your individual written assignments for content. At the end of the syllabus is a list of the potential engagement sites. You will choose an engagement site by August 31 and will be expected to work 20 hours during the semester at the site on a particular project.

Participation (20%)

In addition to active participation in class, marked by insightful references about and questions arising from reading material and your practical engagement work, there will be two field trips. One will be to Enright Urban Eco-Village and Imago Earth Center, the other to Xavier’s community garden. There are three campus lectures that you are required to attend. The first is by Will Allen, an urban gardener on September 26, the second by architect and designer William McDonough on October 24 and the third by two leaders of the Transition Town USA movement on November 7. They are all Sundays at 7 pm. The last two will be held in the Schiff Family Conference Center. The first one will be in the Cintas Center arena.

Final Essay (15%)

This will be the final version of the ideas/questions/themes raised in your three writing assignments.

Class Schedule:

August 24 (JF): Introduction—Why this class?Readings: Mumford, Preface and Introduction; Martin V. Melosi, “The Place of the City in Environmental History,” Environmental History Review 17 (Spring 1993), 1-23; bits from Botkin; Register, Burgess, Zorbaugh

August 26 (KS): Introduction—Why this class?Readings: David Orr, Ecological Literacy ?; Wes Jackson, “Prologue” Becoming Native to this Place; Jason Peters, “Destined for Failure” Orion November/December 2008

August 31 (JF): Ecology of the CityReadings: Cronon, prophecy essay and wilderness essay; ***Edwin G. Burrows and Mike Wallace, Gotham, “First Impressions,” pp. 5-13 in Part One: Lenape Country and New Amsterdam to 1664 ***Garry Wills, “Chicago Underground,” The New York Review of Books (October 21, 1993), 15ff (review essay on Cronon’s Nature’s Metropolis and other books) ***John Leonard, “California Screaming,” The Nation (October 5, 1998), 35-39 (review of Davis’ Ecology of Fear, with reference to Davis’ City of Quartz)Assignment #1: 500 words due, defining “the ecology of the city”:

Sept. 2 (JF):  The Culture of CitiesReading: Mumford, “Protection and the Medieval Town” (59); Bookchin, Alexander

Sept. 7: What Does Green Urbanism look like in Cincinnati?Guest: Larry Falkin, Office of Environmental QualityReading: Climate Action Plan

Sept. 9 (JF): The Culture of CitiesReading: Mumford, “Court, Parade, and Capital” (69); Worster, Cronon

Sept. 14 (KS): Agriculture in History (look at STEP)Reading: Wendell Berry, The Unsettling of America, chs. 1-4

Sept. 16 (JF): The Culture of CitiesReading: Mumford, “The Insensate Industrial Town,” (80); Hurley, Noxious NY

Sept. 21 (KS): Agriculture in HistoryReading: Wendell Berry, The Unsettling of America, chs. 7 and 9; The Nation, Sept. 21 2009 issue; Michael Pollan, The Omnivore’s Dilemma, introduction and “The Way We Live Now: 10-12-03; The (Agri)Cultural Contradictions of Obesity”

Sept. 23: Urban Gardening: Connections between Farming and Urban and Suburban GardeningGuest speakers: Peter Huttinger, Civic Garden Center; Melinda O’Briant, Turner Farm; Molly Robertshaw, NEXUS Community GardenReading: Christopher Grampp, From Yard to Garden, ch. 1; Gene Logsdon, “The Garden is the Proving Ground for the Farm” The Contrary Farmer

Sept. 26 (Sunday): Will Allen, E/RS Lecture, 7 pm Cintas Center Arena

Sept. 27 (Monday): Lunch with Will Allen

Sept. 28 (JF): The Culture of CitiesReading: Mumford, “The Rise and Fall of Megalopolis” (76); Brechin, Platt

Sept. 30 (JF): The Culture of CitiesReading: Mumford, “The Regional Framework of Civilization” (47); Rome, Davis

Oct. 5 (KS): Green Urbanism and Urban Gardening: The ConnectionsReadings: McKibben, “The Year of Eating Locally”, Deep Economy, ch. 2; Gene Logsdon, “A Horse-drawn Economy” and “My Wilderness” from At Nature’s Pace

Oct. 7: PresentationsWritten Assignment #2 due

Oct. 12: Green Urbanism and Urban Gardening: The ConnectionsGuest speaker: Enright Ecovillage CSA (change of date!)

Oct. 14: FALL BREAK

Oct. 19 (KS): Green Urbanism and Urban Gardening: Practical EngagementReading: : Mike Tidwell, “To really save the planet, stop going green” The Washington Post, Sunday December 6, 2009; “How Consumers Can Affect Climate Change” All Things Considered, December 8, 2009; “Environmentalist says ‘going green’ is a waste of time” NPR, December 8, 2009; Bill McKibben, “Multiplication Saves the Day” Orion November/December 2008; Rebecca Solnit, “The Most Radical Thing You Can Do” Orion November/December 2008; Franklin Kalinowski, “A Nation of Addicts” Orion July/August 2009; Derrick Jensen, “Forget Shorter Showers” Orion July/August 2009; Jerome Segal, Graceful Simplicity: The Philosophy and Politics of the Alternative American Dream, (pp to be determined)

Oct. 21 (JF): The Culture of CitiesReading: Mumford, “The Politics of Regional Development” (53); Jacobs, Seattle

Oct. 24 (Sunday): William McDonough lecture, 7pm, Schiff Family Conference Center

Oct. 26 (KS): Green Urbanism and Urban Gardening: Practical EngagementReading: Hopkins, Transition Handbook, part 1

Oct. 28: Green Urbanism and Urban Gardening: Practical EngagementField Trip: Enright Ecovillage and Imago

Nov. 2 (KS): Green Urbanism and Urban Gardening: Practical Engagement (TTs)Reading: Hopkins, Transition Handbook, part 2

Nov. 4: Green Urbanism and Urban Gardening: Practical Engagement (TTs)Guests: Transition town folks in CincinnatiReading: Hopkins, Transition Handbook, part 3

Nov. 7 (Sunday): Michael Brownlee and Karen Lanphear, Transition Town USA

Nov. 9: Green Urbanism and Urban Gardening: Practical Engagement (TTs)Guests: Michael Brownlee and Karen Lanphear, Transition Town USA

Nov. 11 (JF): The Culture of CitiesReading: Mumford, “The Social Basis of the New Urban Order” (84); Warner, Merchant

Nov. 16: PresentationsWritten Assignment #3 due

Nov. 18 (JF): The Culture of CitiesReading: Spirn, Poole, Register, Duany and Plater-Zyberg, Kay, Calthrope

Nov. 23 (KS): Green Urbanism and Urban Gardening: Practical EngagementReading: www.urbanhomestead.orgVideo: Homegrown (www.homegrown-film.com)

Nov. 25: THANKSGIVING BREAK

Nov. 30 (JF): Populism for the CitiesReading: Fairfield, Zukin, Jacobs (on ecology); Hedeen, Cincinnati Arch

Dec. 2: Presentation of Final Papers

Dec. 7: Presentation of Final Papers

Dec. 9: Presentation of Final PapersFinal Essay Due

Practical Engagement Sites

Transition Anderson (1 group)
Mission: local, earth-friendly living (Debbie’s words)
How to learn more: Transition 1.0 video; website (www.transitionanderson.org/Transition_Anderson/Home.html), newsletter

What would students do:

• Attend Oct. and Dec TA public meetings (1st week), 7-9
• Attend TA events during the fall (unscheduled so far)
• Help get films/library events going at the library again
• Communications strategy—marketing initiative and events
• Assisting with monthly newsletter—200 people (to Transition Anderson/Greater Cincinnati)
• Orientation with Debbie Weber on Fridays
• Asset mapping
• New park—Johnson Park

Hyde Park Farmers’ Market (1-2 groups)
Mission: To offer both organic and conventionally grown food, provide a growers’ only market,  help people connect to others in the neighborhood, enhance the quality of life and to celebrate local foods (taken from website).
How to learn more:
Websites

• http://www.hydeparkfarmersmarket.com/
• http://www.organic-growers.com/start_a_farmers_market_1.htm
• https://muextension.missouri.edu/publications/DisplayPub.aspx?P=G6223

Constraints: Bulk of work will need to be completed by end of October
What students could do:
Group #1:
Survey: Is produce at farmers’ markets more expensive than at the supermarket?

1. price tomatoes (organic, function vs. Krogers vs. Whole Foods)
   1. depending on season, several farmers’ markets
2. compared foods vs. market-bought
3. would want to aggregate information, give to consumer, students could write articles about it 
   1. Community Food Security Coalition
   2. Kellogg Foundation
4. is farmer’s markets food a reasonable solution to food deserts

Group #2
Interview survey

1. how often did you find out about it?
2. how often do you come? What’s here that gets you to come?
3. in front of Kroger—do you go?

For both groups:

1. Mary Ida would be able to sit down with students to tell her story (w/o job—almost any time; w/job unknown)
2. she can meet with you up to 3 times
3. would you want them to go to a grower to pack up for market and then sell with them?

Civic Garden Center (2-3 groups)
Mission: The Civic Garden Center is a non-profit horticultural resource that enriches lives through education, community beautification and environmental stewardship (from website).
How to learn more: Website (civicgardencenter.org)
Constraints: bulk of hours before end of October
Students would work on:
Possible projects:

1. Neighborhood Gardens with Peter Huttinger–CAT garden (at homeless facility for veteran’s (transient population), they help maintain the garden and use it in their kitchen and People’s Garden (OTR—McMicken, 30 years old)
2. Children’s gardens with Karena Bullock—cleaning up beds, winterizing, cover crops, usually not planned activities
3. Brand new garden (first year) in Walnut Hills (private owner, 4 lots, raised beds) coming out of Hunger Project
4. Urban orchard project near Riverview East school (on Straiter Avenue) might be planting in the fall, big festival in the fall, outdoor ovens
5. CGC Demonstration Vegetable Garden
6. All groups: Flavors of Neighborhood Gardens, 100 people, late September, at CGC

Imago/Enright Ecovillage (3-4 groups)
Imago’s Mission: is to foster a deeper harmony with Earth by providing educational experiences, creating opportunities for discussion and community building, and conserving natural areas.
Enright Ecovillage Mission: Enright Ridge Urban Ecovillage (ERUEV) is a community of people fostering a sustainable urban neighborhood that promotes social and economic well-being while contributing to the preservation of our planet. We are located in Price Hill, near downtown Cincinnati, Ohio; building a new way of life on the foundations of this beautiful historic area (affordable homes, the acres of forest that surround the ridge and a traditionally strong sense of community) to create a healthier, more sustainable neighborhood.
How to learn more:

• Ecovillage website (http://enrightecovillage.org/);
• Imago Earth Center (http://www.imagoearth.org/index.html)

What students could do:

1. CSA—marketing, survey
2. Bioneers Conference
3. Earth Center—teaching for thousands of students
4. Buying club—expanding membership
5. Bike co-op (like Mobo) have a shed, know how to repair

Community and Political Power Syllabus

Gene Beaupre and Liz Blume
Course Objectives

1. This course is really about sources and uses of power in civic or public life.
   1. What is common and what is different between political power (power exercised by an elected government (executive, legislative and administrative) and community-based power, i.e., power derived from  civic associations, formal and informal, intended to affect civic life?
   2. What is the interaction between political and civic power?
   3. The focus will be on local government and community – where decisions often seem to have a more proximate and immediate impact on our lives.
2. Political Power will look at:
   1. What does it take to get elected to public office?
   2. What impact does the election process have on those holding public office?
   3. What are the formal and informal powers of elected officials, especially at the local level?
   4. What power do non-elected government officials have in influencing public policy?
   5. What influence, formal and informal, do citizens play, in the policy process?  (This will transition to an examination of civic action, citizen participation and organization and, community life.)
3. Community Power will explore:
   1. How individuals and community-based groups participate in public life and policy making.
   2. How the power necessary to change (or maintain) community life is accumulated and exercised.   And, how political entities (elected officials, public administrators, public boards and commissions) and other source of power in the community (e.g., business and corporate interests, non-profit organizations, religious organizations and the media) may react to community power.
   3. What the field of community development brings to the table and how civic life is supported
   4. How to think about creating successful community change
   5. What’s the role of a “citizen” in public life

Course Methods

1. There is no is no formal text required for the course.
2. There will be specific, relatively short readings assigned.
3. The primary method for learning how politic action happens is through analysis and guided discussion of a wide range of practical engagements.  This will require your complete commitment to non-classroom experiences, working with and observing political groups (campaign organizations, City Council actions, and the administration of public policy).
4. Similarly, an understanding of community power is best learned by a combination of direct engagement with community-based initiatives and organizations accompanied by reflection, discussion and analysis of what you experience working in communities.  (Where and how, for instance, does community action become public policy?)
5. You will most often work in teams (established in the Green Urbanism half of block) to do both political and community engagement.   Class time will be devoted to discussions of readings, in-depth analysis of practical experiences, as a forum for political and community practitioners to talk with us about what they do and what they have experienced,  team meetings as needed and, team presentations.
6. You will be asked, in your established teams to develop a community change strategy based on an issue or topic you identify as part of your placement.  This will include developing a problem statement; creating an asset inventory and developing an action plan for positive change.  Each team will be required to present their findings and recommendations to the class.

Requirements and Expectations

1. You are expected to commit mind, body and spirit to the political and community engagement that is the core of this course (and, a major part of the third “P” in PPP).  The nature of this work will likely be very different from anything you have done before, especially with the combination of political experiences and community-based work.  The non-classroom, team-based aspect of the course presents challenges (not the least of which is simply scheduling) and opportunities.  Most of what is achieved in the public sector cannot happen without multiple minds and hands, working in common, over a long period of time. The public sector is the world of team effort.  (See below for examples of students’ political and community engagement.)
2. The advantage of the academic life is the opportunity to reflect with discipline and rigor on the experiences you have and to be assisted in that examination by peers, teachers and experts.  For us, this occurs, by and large, in the classroom.  Therefore, class attendance AND participation is crucial to the learning process for all of us.
3. Finally, your experience, reflection and learning are most valuable to the public when you can effectively communicate in a wide range of public forums (written, small groups, public media opportunities and presentations).  That is what public advocates do.  This includes community-based forums (formal and informal), political activities such as campaigning and public policy advocacy, and formal presentations in class and other academic settings.
4. This is an honors program offering honor-level challenges and requiring consistent, honors-level performance.  You will be graded on:
   • Your commitment to and execution of the experiential requirements of the course,
   • Your preparation and participation in class,
   • Your contribution to team assignments,
   • Your individual preparation and execution in formal presentations.
5. Students will be evaluated on the content and timeliness of their assignments, the quality of their formal presentations, their consistent class participation and team work and the final assignment for the course.   Because nature and variety of what you do does not lend itself to a numerical score, students will be evaluated on a scale of excellent, very good, good, fair and poor.

Several points about the operation of the course:

1. At your placement you represent the University, this course and your colleagues.  No matter how varied the personalities and experiences are that you face in your placements, you are expected to conduct yourself with professionalism and to respect those you work with and encounter.  To do less will be reflected in your grade.
2. We encourage open discussion in the classroom, including your experiences and observations from your placements.  Please remember that classroom discussion should be treated as confidential.  What is said in the classroom, stays in the classroom. Discretion is an important ingredient in building trust in the political world and in the community.
3. Please note that, like Drs. Smythe and Fairfield, we take very seriously the policy on page 52 of the Xavier Catalog regarding standards of ethical behavior.
4. As noted above, the political world and community is a dynamic, sometimes disorganized and often unpredictable enterprise.  The schedule we keep over the semester may need to be adjusted to match the political and public events that unfold over the next several weeks.

Examples of students’ political and community engagement: 
The Community and Political course deployed student teams to work both sides of the 2010, highly contested race for the 1st Congressional District of Ohio.  In addition to campaign engagement, teams prepared sophisticated, well-researched campaign plans for their respective candidates that included voter analysis, strategy, messages and field operation. The syllabus is intended to be fairly loosely structured to allow for the changing opportunities that arise in any hard-fought political campaign.  After the election, the teams were guided by the former director of City Planning in field analysis of a variety of neighborhood.  The block courses give student a wide range of public engagement: civic, political and public administration.

Like all your classes at Converse, in this class, you are bound by the Converse Honor Tradition.   You may review the honor tradition in the Student Handbook.  With regard to class work, remember that you are honor-bound not to cheat or plagiarize, not to lie about your work, and to report others if they violate the honor tradition.

Remember that you must pledge all written work.  I will not grade work if it is not pledged.

COURSE DESCRIPTION AND OBJECTIVES:

This course examines American history from 1876, the end of Reconstruction, to the end of World War I.  These years mark the emergence of America as we know it–as a world economic, diplomatic, and military power.  This period was also a time of constant change–social, political, and economic.  Change generates new problems, and Americans sought to address these problems with numerous reform movements that were based on voluntary activity by individuals.  We will examine the nature of social reform movements and their successes and failures in this period.  We will also examine our assumptions about the nature of social problems and the appropriate ways to solve them by connecting our historical study to a study of a modern social service agency in the Spartanburg community.

In the process of studying this period, we will develop your skills in reading, analyzing, and synthesizing historical writing as well as your own writing and speaking skills.  This is a collaborative course:  we will all work together to integrate texts, lecture, discussion, research, and community involvement as the process for developing historical understanding.

Major issues:

1. What is “progress”?  Was “progress” good for all its citizens?  Was it good for democracy?

2. How did workers deal with changes in their conditions of work?  How did they seek to gain more control over their lives?

3. How did the federal government and business work together to bring about changes in the political economy to support modern economic development?

4. How did whites moving West view the Indians and the Hispanics they found there?  What policies did the federal government develop to deal with these earlier settlers?  How did these populations resist white encroachment?

5. How did late-nineteenth century Americans seek to “Americanize” newcomers?

6. How did white Southerners reorder race relations in the South after Reconstruction?  How did African-Americans cope with white domination?  Was the “New South” really new?

7. How did urbanization change the face of America?  What did people of the time make of the explosive urban growth?   Did the expanding metropolis provide an environment in which to address long-standing social problems or did it merely create new ones?

8. How did the nation’s public institutions respond to the Gilded Age’s growth and new wealth?

9. How were politics transformed in the Gilded Age?

10. What led to the rise of the Progressive reform movement at the turn of the century?  Were the Progressives conservative reformers, seeking to reinstate an old way of doing things?  Or were they radical visionaries seeking to remake American society?

11. How did Progressivism transform the American state?

12. Who benefited from Progressive reforms?

13. What role did women play in the reforms of the late 19^th and early 20^th centuries?  How did expectations about roles of women change?

14. Why did an environmental movement emerge during the late Gilded Age?

15. How and why did the United States seek to become a world power at the turn of the century?

THE WORK LOAD

Reading Load:

A little heavy at times.   As you’ll note in the schedule, some weeks, you will only need to read a chapter for class while in other weeks, you will need to read about entire books.  You will need to plan ahead, beginning the long readings during lighter reading weeks.  You’re a grown-up; I expect you to plan ahead and get the reading finished before class.  Our discussions will be based on the required reading as will the in-class writings, so it is critical that you do it in order to be prepared to participate in discussions and answer the in-class writing question.

Collaborative Work:

Undergraduate students will be assigned to a group; each group will then be assigned to a local social service agency.  Each member of the group will complete at least ten hours of voluntary activity with this agency, prepare a class presentation that places the work of the agency in historical context, and write a paper about the agency.  More information on the group project is available below and in class.

Writing Load:

You will do several types of writing in this class, including:

1. in-class writing on discussion questions about the reading. These 1-2 paragraph essays will generally be graded, and they serve as a springboard for discussion.  (They will also tell me whether you did the reading.)

2. a reflective journal that explores the things you have read, learned, seen, and experienced in the work for this course.  More information on the journal is available on a separate sheet.

3. a 3-5 page paper that identifies and explores the history of your group’s agency, the larger social issues addressed by your group’s social service organization, and its activities.

4. a 5-8 page take-home essay exam in which you synthesize information from your reading, from class discussions, from your group placement, and from other materials to formulate arguments and draw some conclusions about America during the Gilded Age and the Progressive Era.

Thinking Load:

Medium required, more invited.

Talking Load:

1. Daily participation.  And more than once.  Learning is an active process.  The more you participate, the more you learn.  Although I will lecture SOME in this course, the bulk of class time will be spent on intensive discussion of the readings either in small groups or as a whole class. I expect you to come to class having done the reading so that you can participate in the discussion in a meaningful way.  Participation is important; students learn a great deal from each other’s perspectives.  For that reason, participation is 15% of your course grade.  You cannot make an “A” in participation by simply showing up.  You have to TALK, but you should not plan to “wing it” in discussions.  Your comments and questions should be grounded in thorough and thoughtful consideration of the reading and the class materials.  I expect you to participate, not dominate.  Remember that your classmates also have things to contribute to the discussion.  Your participation grade will be based on your attendance, whether you come to class prepared, and the quality of your contributions to small group and full class discussions.

2. Small group presentation related to your experience in the community organization.

   See separate sheet for more information.

Attendance:

Your attendance is required.  If you don’t intend to be here every class day, for better or for worse, you’re registered for the wrong class.  One absence is acceptable–for good reason–but don’t feel obliged to take it. If you are ill or have a family emergency, I’d appreciate a phone call so that I’ll know you’re not just cutting class.  If you miss a class, I expect you to send your assignment with a classmate and I expect you to find out what you may have missed and make it up in time for the next class.

Your attendance is part of your participation grade.  If you are not here, you cannot possibly participate.  Excessive and unexcused absences will be reflected in your participation grade.  For example, if you miss one-fourth of all classes, you can expect to lose one-fourth of your participation grade off the top.

CLASS ORGANIZATION AND GRADING:

Requirements:

Participation 15%

In-Class Writing 20%

Reflective Journal 20%

Group Presentation 10%

Paper on Social Service Agency 10%

Take Home Final 25%

1. Read the syllabus.  The answers to many of your procedural questions are found there.  And hang on to your syllabus; it is your guide to this course.  You should also read instructions for assignments carefully.  Students often lose points on assignments because they fail to follow the instructions.

2. Late assignments will lower a student’s grade by one letter grade per day.

3. No late take-home exams will be accepted.  Late exams will receive a zero.

4. Do not email me your assignments OR put them in campus mail.  You should hand them to me in class or drop them off in my office.  The only exceptions to this rule must be approved by me IN ADVANCE.

5. If you have to miss class, send me an email or leave me a voice mail explaining why you are absent.

6. If you miss a class, I expect you to send your assignment with a classmate and I expect you to find out what you may have missed and make it up in time for the next class.

7. Treat each other and the instructor with respect.  You should not engage in private conversation while others are talking.  You should not use abusive language, roll your eyes, or otherwise show contempt for others’ opinions.  All of these are examples of rude and immature behavior.  You may express your opinions, including disagreement, in a civil tone without becoming disrespectful to others.

8. Turn your cell phones off.  Do not text message in class.

9. Bring the day’s assigned reading material to class.  We often refer to that material in class.  Pull it out of your book bag so that it is handy for use in class discussion.

Research Paper:

Because of the demands of the group project, this may not be the best course in which a junior or senior history major fulfills her research paper requirement in this course.  If you are considering trying to juggle both projects, please talk with me in the first week of the course.

REQUIRED READING:

Barry, The Great Influenza

Cahan, The Rise of David Levinsky

Keith, Rich Man’s War, Poor Man’s Fight

McGerr, A Fierce Discontent:  The Progressives in American History

Piott, American Reformers, 1870-1920

Worster, Rivers of Empire

THE WRITING CENTER

The Writing Center (located on the second floor of Mickel Library) can help you with writing assignments for this course.

SCHEDULE AND ASSIGNMENTS

The instructor reserves the right to change this schedule with advance notice.

Reading should be completed before class each week.

Date: Aug. 29

Topic: Intro to Course:  Progress and its Price

Date:  Sept.5

Reading: Piott, chap.1,2,5,6

Topic: Industrialists in the Gilded Age, Social problems:  evolving ideas about causes and solutions

Assignment Due:  In-class writing

Date: Sept. 12

Reading: Cahan, pp. 1-216

Topic: Workers in the Gilded Age

Assignment Due:  In-class writing

Date: Sept. 19

Reading: Cahan, pp. 217-530

Topic: Urban America:  Diverse Peoples

Assignment Due: In-class writing

Date: Sept. 26

Reading: Worster, selected chapters

Topic: “Civilizing” the Wild West

Assignment Due: In-class writing

Date: Oct. 3

Reading: Piott, chap. 4

Topic: The New (?) South

Assignment Due: In-class writing

Date: Oct. 10

Reading: Piott, chap. 8-9

Topic: Power and Politics in the Gilded Age

Assignment Due: In-class writing

Date: Oct. 17

Reading: Piott, chap. 3

Topic: Rural America and Populism

Assignment Due: In-class writing

Date: Oct. 24

Reading: McGerr part 1

Topic: Progressivism:  The Spirit of Reform

Assignment Due: In-class writing

Date: Oct. 31

Reading: Piott, chap. 12

Topic: Women’s Suffrage; Women’s Rights

Assignment Due: In-class writing

Date: Nov. 7

Reading: McGerr, part 2

Topic: Progressivism continued

Assignment Due: In-class writing

Date: Nov. 14

Reading: McGerr, part three

Topic: The American Empire

Assignment Due: In-class writing

NOV. 21-23  Thanksgiving Break—no class

Date: Nov. 28

Reading: Keith book, selected chapters

Topic: America and the Great War

Assignment Due: Group presentations in class. Reflective journals due.

Date: Dec. 5

Reading: Barry

Topic: Assessing the Age of Reform:  The 1918 Influenza Epidemic as Yardstick

Assignment Due: In-class writing.  Social service agency papers due.

Date:  Dec. 10

Assignment Due:  Take Home Final Due at 4 p.m. on Dec. 10

CONNECTING PAST AND PRESENT

A Group Activity for HST 422:  The Age of Reform

The Purpose of This Assignment

A major theme of this course is the development of voluntary activity to address social problems and achieve social change.  In the late nineteenth and early twentieth century, rapid industrialization, urbanization, and immigration aggravated many existing social problems and created some new ones.  At the same time, new ideas about science and society were reshaping Americans’ assumptions about what caused social problems such as poverty, alcoholism, juvenile delinquency, and crime.  New notions of causes led to new ideas about how to solve social problems.

New types of social service agencies grew out of all this intellectual and social ferment.  Many of today’s human service agencies are direct descendants of the agencies that appeared in the Age of Reform, and others ground their activities in ideas and philosophies that arose in the Age of Reform.  Therefore, to better understand the ideas of the Age of Reform and to better connect that past to our own present, undergraduate students in the course will complete a group project that gives them experience working with a local social service agency.  The goal here is to link the texts you are reading and the things you learn in class with the world beyond the Converse gates.

The Historical Context

In our reading and discussion, we will explore many themes related to social reform in particular:

• changing assumptions about the causes of social problems

• changing relationships between state and voluntary activities

• the role of religion in voluntarism and philanthropy

• how ideas about race, class, and ethnicity shape approaches to various social problems

• shifting definitions of appropriate realms of “public” and “private” endeavors

• why, and in what ways, people become involved in voluntary associations

• tensions between idealism and coercion in association activities

• the “professionalization” of voluntarism

The Basic Requirements

1. Each student will join a group of three.

2. Each group will be assigned to a local social service agency.

3. Each group will interview the agency director of another senior staff member about the history, origins, goals, and activities of the agency.  The goal here is to gain a shared understanding of the agency’s mission, the ways it tries to achieve that mission, and the history of the organization.

4. EACH student will complete ten hours of volunteer activity with the agency.  Students may do this work alone or with other group members, depending on her schedule.

5. EACH student will keep a reflective journal about her experience.  See below.

6. Each GROUP will make a class presentation that outlines the history, goals, and activities or your agency AND places them in the context of the social reform history that we have learned in class.

7. EACH student will complete a three to five page paper.

What Should You Write in Your Reflective Journal?

A reflective journal includes personal reflections, but those reflections should be connected to all the things you are learning in class including reading and class discussion.  Here are a few of the ingredients that go into a keeping a great journal:

• Journals should be snapshots filled with sights, sounds, smells, concerns, insights, doubts, fears, and critical questions about issues, people, and, most importantly, yourself.

• Honesty is the most important ingredient to successful journals.

• A journal is not a work log of tasks, events, times and dates.

• Write an entry after each visit. Write entries after you complete class readings or after a particularly thought-provoking class discussion.  If you can’t write a full entry, jot down random thoughts, images ,etc. which you can come back to a day or two later and expand into a colorful verbal picture.

• Final journals need to be edited for proper grammar and spelling.

These three levels of reflection may help you begin the process of reflection. Ask yourself some of the following questions:

The Three Levels of Reflection

The Mirror (A clear reflection of the Self)

What are my values? What have I learned about myself through this experience? Do I have more/less understanding or empathy than I did before volunteering? In what ways, if any, has your sense of self, your values, your sense of “community,” your willingness to serve others, and your self-confidence/self-esteem been impacted or altered through this experience? Have your motivations for volunteering changed? In what ways? How has this experience challenged stereotypes or prejudices you have/had? Any realizations, insights, or especially strong lessons learned or half-glimpsed? Will these experiences change the way you act or think in the future? How have you challenged yourself, your ideals, your philosophies, your concept of life or of the way you live?

The Microscope (Makes the small experience large)

What happened? Describe your experience. What have you learned about this agency, these people, or the community? Was there a moment of failure, success, indecision, doubt, humor, frustration, happiness, sadness? Does this experience compliment or contrast with what you’re learning in class? How? Has learning through experience taught you more, less, or the same as the class? In what ways?

The Binoculars (Makes what appears distant, appear closer)

From your service experience, are you able to identify any underlying or overarching issues that influence the problem? What could be done to change the situation? How is the issue/agency you’re serving impacted by what is going on in the larger political/social sphere? What does the future hold? What can be done?  Can you place this agency in some kind of historical context?

[This journal description is adapted from Mark Cooper, “Reflection:  Getting Learning Out of Serving,” available on-line at http://www.fiu.edu/~time4chg/Library/reflect.html.]

The Paper

Each student should write a three to five page selective and analytic history of the organization with which you worked.  Make sure to include:

• a description of the origins and mission of this agency.  What assumptions about social problems and their causes have shaped the work of this agency.

• a description of the structure of organization, how the organization evolved; who does the work? who gets paid? how is board/supervisory committee chosen?

• A description of who is served?  How is their eligibility for service determined?

• a description of the funding of organization; how it was funded in the past? Does it appear that there will be important changes in the future?

• A description and analysis of the historical context of the agency.  Place the development of the organization in framework that describes and analyzes the emergence of agencies in the area in which this organization works, and identify how conditions in which it is working have changed.

• Remember, your history should be analytical; that is, you should go beyond description to explanation and exploration.

UNDERGRADUATE PRESENTATION INSTRUCTIONS

To be made in class on November 28

At or near the end of the completion of each student’s ten hours of service, the group should:

1. Meet to develop a plan of action for a presentation that will not exceed 15 minutes.  Each student should do SOME of the talking in the class presentation.

2. Each presentation should do three things:

   • outline the history, goals, and activities or your agency.  Be sure to include who is served by the agency, how the agency determines eligibility for service, and some summary of the agency’s basic approach to social services.

   • briefly outline your volunteer work at the agency and your observations of whether the agency is meeting its own goals.

   • place the work of the agency in the context of the social reform history that we have learned in class.

3. Meet again to pull your parts together.  Rehearse the presentation AND time it.  I will penalize the grade of groups who go significantly over time.  Staying within your time limit is an important skill in life.

4. Students may use power point (presentations should be saved on your U drive or a CD-Rom) or other visual aids.

Presentations will be evaluated on

a) quality of the presentation—clarity, succinctness, and engaging presentation style. Do your individual parts flow smoothly?

b) quality of the research—evaluation of historical accuracy

c) contributions of each member of the group to the project.  For this portion, group members will have an opportunity to evaluate each other’s contributions.

This course examines the lives of women in various parts of the African continent, taking into account social, economic, and political change.  Looking into women’s private as well as their public lives, the course considers gender relations and family, issues of power, and resistance.  Readings include women’s own life histories and novels, as well as the work of academic historians.

Course Objectives:

1. To understand the great diversity in African women’s lives across time and space
2. To understand gender roles and relations within the public and private spheres
3. To understand the impact of social, economic, and political change on African women’s lives
4. To understand the ways in which women resist oppression and create identities for themselves

By the end of the semester, students should have made progress toward achievement of the following Undergraduate Educational Aims of Loyola University Maryland:

1. Intellectual Excellence: appreciation of intellectual endeavor and the life of the mind; excellence in a discipline; habits of intellectual curiosity.
2. Critical Understanding (Thinking, Reading, and Analyzing): the ability to evaluate a claim based on documentation, plausibility, and logical coherence; the ability to find and assess data about a given topic using general repositories of information, both printed and electronic; the ability to use information technology in research and problem solving, with an appreciation of its advantages and limitations
3. Eloquentia Perfecta: the ability to use speech and writing effectively, logically, gracefully, persuasively, and responsibly
4. Leadership: a willingness to act as an agent for positive change, informed by a sense of responsibility to the larger community
5. Promotion of Justice: an appreciation of the great moral issues of our time: poverty, racism, genocide, war and peace, the defense of human rights; commitment to promote justice for all, based on a respect for the dignity and sanctity of human life; commitment to and solidarity with persons who are materially poor or otherwise disadvantaged
6. Diversity: recognition of the inherent value and dignity of each person, and therefore an awareness of, sensitivity toward, and respect for the differences of race, gender, ethnicity, national origin, culture, and religion; awareness of the global context of citizenship and an informed sensitivity to the experiences of peoples outside of the United States; awareness of the multiplicity of perspectives that bear on the human experience, and the importance of historical, global and cultural context in determining the way we see the world

Written assignments include  two 7 page papers and a final exam.  Paper assignments and exam questions will be handed out in class.  Extensions will be given only with a note confirming a medical or family emergency.  (Notes should be from a doctor, Student Health Services, or the Advising Office).  Unexcused late papers will be penalized one-third of a letter grade per class period late.  Papers should include a title page, page numbers, footnotes, and bibliographies–conforming to the stipulations of A Writer’s Reference with a Guide to Writing in All of the Disciplines at Loyola.  Please consult the Department of History’s entry and the section on the Chicago Manual of Style (CMS).  Use the CMS format for footnotes and bibliography.

Service-Learning Option: In lieu of the first paper, you may opt to engage in a service-learning project that complements and enhances the course content. The service-learning option entails 20 hours of tutoring African refugee youth in the Baltimore community and a weekly journal of reflections on your experiences and their relationship to the course’s content.  Please see the professor immediately if you are interested in this option.  (See below for supplementary information on the Service-Learning Option.)

Academic Honesty: You have pledged to uphold the Loyola University Honor Code, which prohibits all forms of academic dishonesty.  Plagiarism or other forms of cheating will result in failure for the course.  This is History Department policy.  According to Black’s Law Dictionary (7th Edition), plagiarism is: “The act or an instance of copying or stealing another’s words or ideas and attributing them as one’s own.”

Grading: You are expended to attend all classes.  Absences will be excused only with official documentation from Athletics, Advising, Health Services, or a doctor.  You are expected to do all of the assigned readings and to be prepared to discuss them in class.  You must bring one readings-based discussion question to each class.  I will collect these at the beginning of the period and may call on students to present their questions for discussion.  The questions will be considered part of the “class participation” component of the grade.  If deemed necessary, unannounced quizzes, based on the readings, will be given.  Grades will be based on both written work and class attendance and participation.  Each of the following is worth 25% of the grade: 1) first paper/service learning option; 2) second paper; 3) final exam; 4) class attendance/participation.

Disability Accommodations: If you have a letter from Disability Support Services (DSS) indicating that you have a disability that requires academic accommodations, please give it to me at the beginning of the semester so that appropriate arrangements can be made.  If you need academic accommodations due to a disability and have not registered with DSS, please contact the DSS office at (410) 617-2062.

Laptop Policy: Laptops may not be used in class unless recommended by DSS.  Proper documentation is required.

RESOURCES (library reserve and bookstore):

Achebe, Chinua.  Things Fall Apart.  Bantam Doubleday Dell, 1959.  ISBN 0-385-47454-7

Ba, Miriama.  So Long A Letter.  Heinemann, 1981.  ISBN 0-435-90555-4.

Darko, Amma .  Faceless.  U.S. Distributor: Michigan State University, 2003.  ISBN 9-988550-50-2 or 978-9-988550-9.

Emecheta, Buchi. The Joys of Motherhood.  Heinemann, 1979.  ISBN 0-435-90972-X.

Nthunya,Mpho ‘M’atsepo.  Singing Away the Hunger: The Autobiography of an African Woman, 1997.  ISBN 0-253-21162-X.

Shaarawi, Huda.  Harem Years: The Memoirs of an Egyptian Feminist.  Feminist Press at CUNY, 1986.  ISBN 0-935312-70-6.

Smith, Mary F.  Baba of Karo: A Woman of the Muslim Hausa.  Yale University Press, 1981.  ISBN 0-300-02741-9.   [This book is out of print.  Several copies are on reserve in the Loyola/Notre Dame Library.  Photocopied copies are available at the book store.  You may be able to find second hand copies through the internet.]

Wright, Marcia.  Strategies of Slaves and Women: Life-Stories from East/Central Africa. [Posted online under course documents.]

Evaluation of Papers

Follows instructions

Answers all questions posed in the assignment

Uses assigned sources

Includes appropriate outside research/sources

Conforms to proper page length

Includes title page and page numbers

Includes properly formatted footnotes (CMS style)—full and abbreviated styles

Includes properly formatted bibliography (CMS style)

Content and Organization

Clear Introductory paragraph(s)

Provides necessary background information

Introduces key issues/cases/actors

Explains what the paper will demonstrate

Includes strong, clear thesis statement

Substantiates claims with evidence; thoroughly researched, properly cited

Sustains argument throughout the paper; makes regular reference to argument

Cogent organization, logical progression of paragraphs

Sharply focused paragraphs, strong topic sentences, only one idea per paragraph

No extraneous information; each paragraph contributes to building the argument

Transitions between paragraphs linking one paragraph to the next

Strong concluding paragraph

Writing Style

Clear, grammatical sentences; proper word usage; variation in word choice

Proper spelling and punctuation (evidence of proofreading)

Class Schedule

Week 1

Mon. Jan. 17, Martin Luther King Jr. Holiday (NO CLASSES)

Wed. Jan. 19, “Introduction”

Fri. Jan. 21, Refugee Youth Project Presentation

Week 2

Mon. Jan. 24, “Marginal Women: Slave Women on the Eve of ColonialConquest”Readings: Wright, pp. 47-57; 81-121.

Wed. Jan 26, “Gender Roles in the Precolonial Period”Readings: Achebe, pp. 3-109.

Fri. Jan. 28, “Continuity and Change in African Cultures”Readings: Achebe, pp. 110-209.

Week 3

Mon. Jan. 31, “Introduction: Women of the Muslim Hausa”Readings: Smith, pp. pp. 7-34.

Wed. Feb. 2, “Childhood”Readings: Smith, pp. 37-82.

Fri. Feb. 4, Video: “Becoming a Woman in Okrika” (VHS 2855)Readings: Smith, pp. 85-137.

Week 4

Mon. Feb. 7, “Marriage and Childbirth”Readings: Smith, pp. 138-173.

Wed. Feb. 9, “Polygamy, Friendship, and Adopted Kin”Readings: Smith, pp. 174-213.

Fri. Feb. 11,   Video: “Masai Women” (VHS 2473)“Widowhood, Prostitution, Adultery, and Divorce”Readings: Smith, pp. 217-254.

Week 5

Mon. Feb. 14, “An Upper-Class Egyptian Woman”Readings: Shaarawi, pp. 1-32.

Wed. Feb. 16, “Childhood in the Harem”Readings: Shaarawi, pp. 33-61.

Fri. Feb. 18, “Rebellion and Independence”Readings: Shaarawi, pp. 62-82.

Week 6

Mon. Feb. 21, Video: “Disappearing World: the Mende” (VHS 5764)FIRST PAPER DUE

Wed. Feb. 23, “Married Life in the Harem”Readings: Shaarawi, pp.83-111.

Fri. Feb. 25, “Political and Personal Protest”Readings: Shaarawi, pp. 112-137.

Week 7

Mon. Feb. 28, “Introduction to South Africa and Lesotho”Readings: Nthunya, ix-48.

Wed. March 2,  “Motherhood, In-Laws, and Love”Readings: Nthunya, 49-94.

Fri. March 4, Video: “Maids and Madams” (VHS 3953)

Week 8

SPRING BREAK (NO CLASSES)

Week 9

Mon. March 14, “Tragedy, Work, and the Hard Life”Readings: Nthunya, 95-132.

Wed. March 16, “Conclusion”Readings: Nthunya, 133-171.

Fri. March 18, Video: “You Have Struck a Rock” (VHS 3346)(Work on Paper topics.)

Week 10

Mon. March 21, Video: “Children of Apartheid” (VHS 3348)PAPER TOPICS DUE

Wed. March 23, Digital Instruction Session (Meet in Library.)

Fri. March 25,  “The Centrality of Motherhood”Readings: Emecheta, pp. 7-55.

Week 11

Mon. March 28, “Failure and Rebirth”Readings: Emecheta, pp. 56-100.

Wed. March 30, “Motherhood and Polygamy”Readings: Emecheta, pp. 101-150.

Fri. April 1, “A Woman’s Lot”Readings: Emecheta, pp. 151-197.

Week 12

Mon. April 4, “Honor and Shame”Readings: Emecheta, pp. 198-224.

Wed. April 6, Video: “With These Hands: How Women Feed Africa” (VHS 3948)(Work on your second paper.)

Fri. April 8, Video: “Faat Kine” (VHS 9796) Readings: Ba, (first half of book)

Week 13

Mon. April 11, “Polygamy, Resistance, and Abandonment”Readings: Ba, (second half of book)

Wed. April 13, “Street Children in Accra”Readings: Darko, 9-96.

Fri. April 15, “Family Traumas”Readings: Darko, 97-172.

Week 14

Mon. April 18, “Child Prostitution”Readings: Darko, 175-232.

Wed. April 20, Video: “Mama Benz: An African Market Woman” (VHS 8503)SECOND PAPER DUE

Fri. April 22, Easter (NO CLASSES)

Week 15

Mon. April 25, Easter (NO CLASSES)

Wed. April 27, Service-Learning Presentations

Fri. April 29, Service-Learning Presentations

Week 16

Mon. May 2, Video: “Asante Market Women” (VHS 7190)

FINAL EXAM:

Sec. 01 (MWF 12-12:50), Mon., May 9, 1:00-4:00 PM.

Sec. 02 (MWF 1-1:50), Fri., May 13, 9:00 AM-12:00 noon.

Service-Learning Option

What is Service-Learning?

“At Loyola College, service-learning refers to experiential learning within academic courses that is gained through structured reflection on community-based service….Essential components of service-learning include: learning and service which enhance one another, reciprocal partnership with the community, and meaningful, structured reflection.

“Service-learning courses at Loyola intentionally contribute to those Undergraduate Educational Aims which promote justice, diversity, leadership and social responsibility.  These values are central to the Jesuit educational mission of Loyola College and of all Jesuit colleges and universities.” [This definition of service-learning and related course criteria were approved by Loyola’s Council of Academic Deans on November 11, 2005.]

How does Service-Learning relate to this course?

Participation in Service-Learning will be especially useful in helping students to grasp Course Objective 2: understanding gender roles and relations within the public and private spheres; and Course Objective 3: understanding the impact of social, economic, and political change on African women’s lives.

How do I participate in the Service-Learning option?

HS 389D  service-learning participants will work with: Baltimore City Community College’s Refugee Youth Project (RYP), a tutoring program for elementary and middle school-age African refugees who have settled in Baltimore.   www.refugeeyouthproject.org Service-learning participants will tutor African students during a two-hour session once a week for approximately 8 weeks.  Over the course of the semester, service-learning participants will work a total of 20-21 hours, including 3-4 hours of training, 16 hours of tutoring, and a one hour Loyola-sponsored reflection session.  They will help the African students with English language skills, school assignments, and general acculturation.  Extra-curricular weekend activities, for additional service-learning hours, are also available.

Main Service-Learning Sites:

Refugee Youth Project (BCCC): Upton Community, (meets at the AME Zion Church, 1128 N. Pennsylvania Avenue (corner of Pennsylvania Ave. and Dolphin St.), Baltimore, MD 21217.  The tutoring days are Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays, from 3:30-5:30 PM.

Refugee Youth Project (BCCC): Moravia Park Elementary School, 6201 Frankford Ave., Baltimore, MD 21206.  The tutoring days are Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays, from 3:45-5:45 PM.

A limited number of volunteers may be able to work with high school students if they prefer:

Refugee Youth Project High School Program, Patterson High School, Room 120 Transportation and Engineering Academy, 100 Kane Street, Baltimore, MD 21224.  The tutoring days are Wednesdays and Thursdays, 3:30-5:30 PM.

Finally, there are some opportunities to work with adults in BCCC’s adult literacy classes and Community ESL classes.  This option is limited to students who can only volunteer in the mornings, evenings, or on Friday afternoons.  Volunteers interested in assisting teachers with these classes should contact BCCC’s Refugee Program Manager.

Please inform the RYP site coordinator and Loyola’s student service coordinator which day works best for you.  Once you have committed to a particular tutoring session, you must stick with it–unless you make alternative arrangements with the site coordinator.  (E-mail  or call their cell phones, below, if you run into a last-minute problem.)  Your students are counting on you!

Before beginning the program, service-learning students must:

1. Read and sign the service-learning handout.  (Return signature page to your professor by January 31.)
2. Attend a mandatory volunteer training session.  (See details below.).
3. Complete the form, “Loyola Acceptance of Risk for Community Service in a Service-Learning Course,” which will be distributed at the volunteer training session.  (Submit to Loyola’s student service coordinator.)
4. Complete BCCC’s volunteer application–with three references–which will be distributed at the training session.  You may use me as one of your references.  (Submit to Loyola’s student service coordinator.)
5. Obtain a criminal background check.  (See below.)

Criminal Background Check: As of January 1, 2009, all BCCC volunteers (including RYP ) will be required to obtain criminal background checks before they can begin their service.  Details will be provided at the volunteer training session.

The first volunteer training session will be on Saturday, January 29, from 9:00 AM-12 noon in Cohn 33.  RSVP Required!  The session will cover cultural sensitivity, cross-cultural communication, English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) teaching methods, refugee resettlement, behavior management, and general questions about the program.  If you cannot attend this session, please let me know, and I will help to make alternative arrangements.  In addition to the 3-hour volunteer training session, brief on-site training will be held during the first few weeks of the semester.  This will require going 15-20 minutes early and staying 15 minutes late during those weeks.

How can I get to my Service-Learning site?

If you have a valid driver’s license, three points or less on your license, and no outstanding tickets, you may apply for authorization to drive a Loyola-owned vehicle.  Car-pooling in a Loyola-owned vehicle is strongly encouraged! (Loyola insurance covers authorized drivers using Loyola-owned vehicles.  It does NOT cover members of the Loyola community who are using their own vehicles.  Moreover, Loyola vehicles come with a full tank of gas at the outset and a gas credit card for free gas, to be used as needed!)  (NB: You may not transport non-Loyola folks, including the children you are tutoring, in Loyola vehicles.)

The Service Coordinators with the Refugee Youth Project at the Center for Community Service and Justice (CCSJ) will help you to become an authorized driver, reserve Loyola vehicles, and arrange service-learning carpooling.

Instructions for becoming an authorized driver and reserving a vehicle, as well as the Driver Authorization Form can be found on the CCSJ website:  http://www.loyola.edu/ccsj/service_learning/students/index.html

If you plan to drive a Loyola vehicle, please begin the authorization process IMMEDIATELY.  It can take a few days for authorization to be approved, and vehicles cannot be reserved until the driver is authorized.  Driver authorization is good for three years.  If you are have been authorized previously, but are not sure of the date, contact the Motor Pool or the department through which you received authorization.

How can I contact my Service-Learning Community Partner and CCSJ’s Service Coordinator?

The CCSJ Service Coordinators are: [information deleted]

The coordinators for the tutoring programs are: [information deleted]

Besides tutoring once a week, what else does the Service-Learning option entail?

-Structured, continuous reflection is a critical component of service-learning.  After the volunteer training session, each of the eight tutoring sessions, and the Loyola reflection session, you will make an entry in your service-learning journal, reflecting on your experiences and their relationship to the course’s content.  At the end of the semester, you will have written 10 reflections.  Each entry should be one to two doubled-spaced pages in length. (I will provide specific questions for you to consider.  However, you are also free to make your own observations.)  The reflections should be e-mailed to me at the end of each week. The reflections should be in a typed, double-spaced Word document, with your name, service-learning site, and the date of service at the top of the first page.  I will respond to each reflection.  (Please read my responses!)  If you do not receive a response within a couple of days, please confirm that I have received it.

RYP and CCSJ staff are extremely interested in your reactions to the service-learning experience.  Therefore, I would like to share selected service-learning reflections with them.  Unless you personally indicate to me that you would prefer not to share your reflections, I will assume that silence indicates consent.

-Service-learning students are required to participate in one Loyola-sponsored reflection session during the semester.

-You will be asked to share your reflections with your classmates in a variety of ways.  Periodically, I will ask you to discuss your service-learning experiences with the class.  You will make a brief presentation to the class at the end of the semester.  (See class syllabus for specific dates.)

-As a service-learning participant, you will write one, instead of two, papers for this class.  In your paper, due on Monday, April 20, you might choose to investigate the history of women and gender relations in one of the African population groups with whom you are working.  (This is a variation on the second paper assignment that I will hand out in class, so please do not disregard that assignment.)  I will work with you to develop appropriate paper topics.

Service-Learning Reflection Questions

Although I expect you to submit service-learning reflections each week, the following questions will help you to reflect on Course Objective 2: “understanding gender roles and relations within the public and private spheres”; and Course Objective 3: “understanding the impact of social, economic, and political change on African women’s lives.”

NOTE: The following questions are suggestions only.  You may choose to reflect on other things or to answer these questions at different points in the semester.  Please use your own judgment as to whether or not it is appropriate to ask these questions at all.  In recent semesters, the RYP children have felt “interrogated” and resistant to talking about Africa, their native language, etc.  If you are sensing that this is the case, hold back on the questions and focus on observation only.  You might also ask your site coordinator to tell you from which countries the  children come.  Take some time to investigate those countries and their conflicts on the internet.  This will help to give you some idea of the situations that caused the children’s families to become refugees.

Week 3:  From what African countries do the students at your tutoring location come?  (Where were they born and in which countries have they lived?)  When did they leave Africa?  Which European countries conquered and colonized their homes?  What languages do they speak?  Ask the children to teach you a few words in their native language.  If they went to school before they came to the United States, what language did they speak at school?  Did their mothers go to school?  Their fathers?  Do their mothers and fathers speak English?

Week 5:  How many girls are there at your tutoring location?  How many boys?  Do boys and girls seem to have different attitudes and ways of learning?  Do they interact differently with the tutors?

Week 7: In conversing with the students you tutor, can you find out if they have brothers and sisters–and how many?  How do siblings interact at RYP?  Specifically, what role do older siblings play?  Do you notice anything in regard to homework help, discipline, sharing, or safety?  How do the girls help at home?  How do the boys help at home?  Do they have enough time to do their homework?  How do they spend their free time?

Week 9: Do the girls hope to finish high school?  What do the girls want to do after they finish school?  At what age do young women in their cultures tend to marry? Young men?  Have any women in their families earned money outside the home?  If so, what sorts of work have they done?

Week 11: Have you noticed any changes in the girls’ attitudes and skills over the course of the semester?  The boys’?  In what ways have they adapted themselves to American culture?  In what ways have they retained aspects of their own cultural backgrounds?

I HAVE READ THE SERVICE-LEARNING HANDOUT AND AGREE TO FULFILL THE REQUIREMENTS DESCRIBED IN THE DOCUMENT.

SIGNATURE______________________________________________DATE____________

This course will explore “the family” in relation to cultural identities and political policies in the United States and around the world, combined with a unique opportunity to reach out to and interact with diverse families nearby. With topics including the “Holy Family” to “Father Knows Best,” from Freud’s “Oedipal Complex” to current debates on “Family Values,” from children with AIDS to international adoption, students will analyze changing family socio-economic and psychological structures and the evolving representations of motherhood, fatherhood and childhood in the past and particularly in the present. We will compare public and private efforts to aid families in the U.S., Europe and other parts of the world, including the origins and evolution of social work and volunteerism as a form of democratic engagement. Students will grapple with complex “real world” issues as well as their own family identities.

This course will meet only 2 hours a week and require a commitment to volunteer regularly (2-3 hours/week) during the semester. At the request of Project Hospitality, students will provide child care, tutoring and other support to children in immigrant families, including at meetings to discuss labor and social welfare issues and in afterschool programs. Students will write a research paper linking their experience to a public policy initiative.

Finally, students will apply these insights in campus-community dialogues on diversity and democracy, including “Passport to Diversity: A Celebration of International Cultures in Our Community” and the National Dialogue Project “Journey to Democracy: Power, Voice and the Public Good.” Dialogues will involve civic associations on Staten Island in discussions of immigrant families, themselves given a voice, compare resources within a culture of participatory democracy, ret1ect on the college\’s and students’ responsibilities and analyze the structures of power in promoting the public good.

Students in all disciplines are encouraged to enroll.

Books Required:

• Juan Gonzalez, Harvest of Empire: A History of Latinos in America. New York: Penguin Books, 2000.
• Colin Heywood. History of Childhood: From Medieval to Modern Times. Oxford: Blackwell Publishers, 2001.
• Jonathan Kozol. Amazing Grace: The Lives of Children and the Conscience ala Nation. New York, Harper Collins, 1996.
• Jimmy Breslin. The Short, Sweet Dream of Eduardo Gutierrez. New York: Crown Publishers, 2002.
• Barbara Bergman. Saving Our Children from Poverty: What the U.S. Can Learn from France. New York: Russell Sage Foundation.
• Reed Ueda, Post-War Immigrant America: A Social History St. Martins Press, 1994.

Course Requirements:

Attendance
Your ability to raise questions and express opinions, drawing upon the readings, will be an important component of your grade. You are expected to contribute regularly and to prepare informal presentations. Attendance is required, including at film screenings and designated lectures of the Academic and Cultural Enrichment (ACE) program or Dialogues on Democracy project. More than 2 unexcused absences will be penalized as follows: for each additional absence, your final grade will drop by one-third.

Reflective Essay (10%)
Trace your own American family saga, in dialogue with democracy and diversity. Suggested guidelines will follow.

Journal Reflections (10%): During the semester, you will attempt to link specific issues raised in class discussions and readings with specific issues confronted in your placement. Using either the placement or readings as a starting point, write at least 5 journal entries (2 pages each), spaced throughout the semester.

Research Project (40%)
Each student will choose a topic related to democracy or diversity as a lens by which to reflect on their service-learning experience. Research is expected to be of high quality with at least three refereed books or journal articles published since 1985 and at least one oral history interview. You willlikely need to order materials inter-library loan-plan ahead! Tins is a semester-long project: Students will submit a bibliography, thesis, outline and first draft over a period of several weeks. Presentations will be both in-class and, as part of the Dialogue on Democracy project, for invited community members.

Mid-term (20%) and Final (20%): Essay questions. Final exam will be cumulative and include questions on placements.

Course Outline:
Additional readings or videos may be added and other changes made as needed)

1. Week 1-3: Family History: Immigration and Generations

Mon. 8/25 Introduction: Why engage families?
Children’s public/private lives around the globe
Read handouts; discuss research and service projects.
Wed. 8/27 Melting Pot or Mosaic? Integration vs. Assimilation
Read: Gonzalez, Introduction and Chapters 4-5
AND use internet to learn about Hispanic children in NYC and USA
Fri. 8/29 Read: Gonzalez, Ch. 11-12
Video: The Immigrant Experience: The Long, Long Journey (1972)

Mon. 9/1 No Classes (Labor Day)
Plan to visit Port Richmond Area this week
Wed. 9/3 Why History Matters: Creativity and Conflict
Read: Gonzalez, Ch. 1-3
Wed. eve Film screening: My Family/Mi Familia (1995)
Fri. 9/5 Discuss Film. Visit with Terry
Ueda, Post-War Immigrant America, Ch.3

Mon. 9/8 More than Kissing Babies: Economics and Politics of Democracy
Gonzalez, Ch. 10, 13 and conclusion
Wed. 9/10 Essay # 1 due:Your American Family Saga (3-4p.)

II. Week 4-6: History of Childhood

Mon. 9/15 Happy Mothers, Fallen Fathers
Read Heywood: pp.1-40
Wed. 9/17 Read Heywood: ppAl-82 (Guest: Dr. Alison Smith)
Sat. 9/20 Port Richmond Civic Association Picnic (optional)

Mon. 9/22 Brothers, Sisters and Peers
Read Heywood: pp.83-118
Wed. 9/24 When does Childhood End? Labor and Education
Read Heywood: pp.119-l72

Mon. 9/29 Review Family Policy from Nazism to the Present
Read handout
Wed. 10/1 Midterm Exam Due
Sat. 10/4 Freedom Walk

III. Week 7-10: Children in NYC

Mon. 10/6 Classes Cancelled: Yom Kippur Begin Kozol, Amazing Grace
Tues. 1017: 4:15: Dr. Lee Knefelkamp (required)
Wed. American Democracy and Children Left Behind Read Kozol, Ch. 1-3

Mon. 10/13: Columbus/Indigenous Peoples\’ Day Tues. 10/14: Kozol, Ch. 4-5
Wed. Finish Kozol, Ch. 6 and epilogue

Mon. 10/20 Buildings and Fences: Whose Responsibility?
Read Breslin, Short Sweet Dream, 1-53 Wed. 10/22 Read Breslin, 53-103

Fall Break-Work on Projects
Finish Breslin
Late October: Port Richmond Harvest Fair, Veterans\’ Park

Sun. 11/2: Celebrate Diversity! 12-5 (attendance required)
Mon. 11/3: Discuss Celebrate Diversity!
Read: Ueda, Ch 3-4

Weeks 11-15: Public Policy and Children

Wed. 11/5: Begin Bergman, Saving Our Children, 1-49

Mon. 11/10 Bergman, 50-91
Wed. 11/12 Finish Bergman, 91-153

Mon. 11/17 Research Projects Due
Wed. 11/19 Debate:Why Americans are For and Against Family Policy
Review Bergman

Mon. 11/24 International Family Policies: Adoption, Refugees, AIDs Read: handout on International adoption, web research
Thanksgiving Break
Late November/Early December: Dialogue on Democracv: Required

Mon. 12/2: Debate: Why Americans are For and Against Immigration and web search pro and con (eg. Pat Buchanan)
Wed. 12/4: What\’s Next?

Final Exam: Date TBA

Your American Family Saga A 3-4 page essay
Due: Wed. 9/10 (Bring to class)

Using the examples of the Gonzales or Sanchez Families, trace your own family’s evolution in contact with democracy and diversity. If possible, discuss these issues with a family member (but remember to handle oral history evidence with care.) Read all the questions below but focus on those most revealing of your family saga.

Discuss a family member’s voyage to America and adjustment to the new culture, society and economics. Consider issues such as housing, employment, push/pull motives, discrimination, gender, age, language, education, employment, health/abuse, voting, reliance on public support, socio-economic mobility, intermarriage, contemporary political and economic context.

How did gender, class, race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, disability and/or religion affect their adjustment and that of the second, third and/or later generations? Review issues listed above. What is their most important accomplishment? What was their greatest barrier to success? How did they change over time as America and the world has changed?

What changes in cultural values and socio-economic concerns can you trace between first generation immigrants in your family and their descendents?

Are your ancestors’ ethnicity, language, religion or culture still important to you?
Do you or other family members speak to each other in a language other than English? How informed are you of the culture and politics of their country of origin, past and present? Give specific evidence: for example, can you name the top political leader in that nation today?

How have democracy, diversity and the public good affected your family? What do these terms mean to you and your family? How do you benefit or how has your family benefited from government spending on family policy?

How do you and/or your family view immigrants today? Do you and/or your family see America/New York as a melting pot or mosaic?

Final Exam:
Please answer both questions, in 3-4 pages each (total 8 pages).

In both questions, please refer to your own civic engagement experience this semester when possible and show if and how it affected your learning. Exam is due Monday by 3pm.

Your grade will be based on the quality of your argument: the clarity and persuasiveness of your thesis, your organization and the thoroughness of your evidence. Refer whenever possible to primary sources and to specific persons, events and terms (for example, Bracero program, Family Allowances, Mother’s Pensions, TANF).

I. To what extent is an understanding of family policy in France useful in shaping public opinion and proposals (like those of Bergman) that could address the most urgent problems of American children?

In your answer, be sure to answer the following questions: How significantly do Bergman’s proposals (and their intended impact) differ from those of the National Commission on Children (NCC)? Which of France’s family policies does she find most relevant to the United States? Why does she reject Family Allowances and make minimal reference to maternity leave? Why are Bergman, Cherilyn Davidson and the NCC concerned about the shortcomings of AFDC (now T ANF)? What objections do you think the NCC would have raised had they heard Bergman’s suggestions? Finally, whose recommendations (if any) have a better chance in becoming law? Be sure to identify AFDC, T ANF and EITC in yom answer.

II. You are teaching a tenth grade class about the problems currently facing children and families in our American democracy.

First, indicate at least 3 specific problems identified in Kozol, Amazing Grace and/or Breslin, The Short Sweet Dream of Eduardo Guttierez (which the students have just read). Use at least 3 quotations as well as statistics to back up your argument and analyze these sources critically.

Then, explain how the issues relate to the struggle for power, voice and the public good in our democracy. In your answer, be sure to define “public good.”

Briefly indicate what action, if any, the students could take to address the crisis facing America’s children.

What objections and questions might the students raise in response to your presentation? Please consider race, ethnicity and economic status of the children you are addressing in your answer.

Course Description and Objectives: Hist 367 is an undergraduate, upper level history course that examines the evolution of American colonies from initial European exploration to mature provincial societies. Emphasis is placed on the interactions between Europeans, Native Americans, and Africans (and their descendants), and on the development of distinctive regions.

This course will enhance your historical knowledge, teach you to locate and analyze primary materials, dissect secondary sources, evaluate complex issues, express yourself clearly and convincingly, and present your research in a scholarly fashion.

Students enrolled in Hist 367 have the option of mentoring an elementary school student for course credit. Civic learning tends to benefit all parties involved; many former mentors assert that the experience enhanced their education and enriched their lives. As this syllabus demonstrates, great care has been taken to integrate mentoring activities with regular coursework.

Required Texts:

Thomas More, Utopia (Dover Thrift Edition: 0-486-29583-4)
Alan Taylor, American Colonies (Penguin: 0-14-200210-0)
Jill Lepore, Encounters in the New World (Oxford University Press: 0-19-515491-6)

In addition to the texts listed above, students enrolled in Hist 367 will be assigned a variety of readings and research projects involving websites, academic journals, maps, handouts, etc. These sources will comprise an important part of the course; students should approach them with the same seriousness that they approach an assignment in one of the required texts.

Course Requirements for Non-Mentors

All students in Hist 367 will become well-grounded in the history of the Colonial Period as the result of lectures, discussions, readings, and research. Some students in this course will serve as mentors at a local elementary school; their course requirements will differ considerably from those of students who do not elect the mentoring option, though the investment of time and effort for mentors and non-mentors should prove roughly equal. No penalty or disfavor will result if you elect not to participate in the Civic Learning/Mentoring pilot program.

The final grade for Hist 367 students who do not participate in the mentoring program will be based on completion of the following requirements:

PowerPoint Presentations: All students in Hist 367 will give a 10-12 minute in-class PowerPoint presentation on a topic assigned by Prof. Navin. These presentations must be well-organized, scripted, carefully researched, and make use of appropriate visuals such as maps, drawings or photos, artifacts, documents, publications, charts, etc. A works cited page must appear as the last slide on the presentation. Each presentation will be scheduled in advance so the necessary equipment will be in place. If you do not know how to produce a PowerPoint presentation, training is available at the CAI Lab in the Prince building. Reading aloud the text from a series of PowerPoint slides does NOT constitute a satisfactory presentation; students must be prepared to speak from prompts that appear in their notes or slides. PowerPoint presentations will be graded on

1. quality of research;
2. quality of images;
3. quality of presentation;
4. documentation.

Writing Assignments: All students in Hist 367 will write a research paper approximately 3,000 words in length (10-12 pages of text, in addition to cover sheet, works cited page, and appendix). This paper must be based on primary sources; specific topics will be discussed in class. Research papers will be graded on

1. quality of research;
2. quality of expression;
3. documentation;
4. timely submission. Non-mentoring students will also write two brief essays approximately 1,500-2,000 words in length (5-7 double-spaced pages, in addition to cover sheet and works cited page). These essays may be based on primary research or they may be analytical papers that make significant use of secondary sources. Analytical essays will be graded on
   1. argument, i.e., development of a thesis;
   2. effective use of class readings and other materials to support the thesis;
   3. quality of expression;
   4. documentation;
   5. timely submission. All papers must be properly documented using footnotes; consult Turabian for examples.

Exams/In-Class Quizzes: There will be a final exam; the format will be announced in class. You should also be prepared for in-class quizzes on the assigned readings. Your scores on these quizzes will be factored into your grade for class participation. Make-ups will not be allowed for in-class quizzes; make-ups for the final exam will be allowed only in exceptional circumstances;>nr>

Class Participation:

Ten percent of your grade is based on class participation. This includes attendance, preparation (i.e., having read the assigned material), participation in class discussions, and performance on in-class quizzes. Attendance is taken at the beginning of every class. If you miss eight classes, you fail the course. If you are habitually late your tardiness will be counted as an absence.

Disabilities: If you are a student with a documented disability on record at Coastal Carolina University and wish to have a reasonable accommodation made for you in this class, please see Prof. Navin immediately. Keep in mind that reasonable accommodations are not provided retroactively.

Academic Honesty: All final work must be solely that of the student submitting it. Proper documentation and adherence to the instructions outlined in this syllabus are the best safeguards against any misunderstandings regarding originality; if you have any questions, consult Prof. Navin or the Writing Center.

Civic Learning/Mentoring Option

Overview: Students enrolled in Hist 367 are invited and encouraged to participate in Coastal Carolina University?s mentoring program. The long-term goal of the program is to improve high school graduation rates in Horry County. Research has shown that study habits, attendance, goal-setting, and other key factors are shaped in elementary school, so all Hist 367 mentors will work with local fourth and fifth-grade students. Coastal?s mentoring program is part of a pilot study sponsored by the South Carolina Commission on Higher Education. In order to become a mentor you must pass a routine background check; if you have a criminal record, you are not eligible to participate in this program.
Participation in the mentoring program will enhance the value of this course by using your mentoring experience to test insights or theories from your course lectures, discussions, and readings. Your mentee?s classroom materials, lessons, and assignments will also prompt you to explore the Colonial period from new perspectives. The mentoring experience will educate you regarding state and federal curriculum standards, Social Studies lesson plans, instructional goals and techniques, social and pedagogical issues, and more. As a mentor you will enjoy a unique opportunity to work one-on-one with an elementary school student; this should improve your skills in the areas of communication, problem-solving, critical thinking, reporting, analysis, and assessment. If you plan to enter Coastal?s MAT program in Social Studies, this chance to serve as a mentor in a public school should prove invaluable.

This program benefits not only the mentors and mentees, but also their respective schools, this county and region, and society in general. No penalty or disfavor will result if you elect not to become a mentor. If you do choose to participate in the program, you are making a serious commitment with great upside potential. Always keep in mind that the development and empowerment of the child being mentored will be your top priority; at no time should Hist 367 course requirements take precedence over the needs and well-being of your mentee.

Ideally, Coastal students who participate in this program will develop mentoring relationships that they would like to continue. This may be accomplished by enrolling in future mentoring courses.

Correlation Between Coastal?s U.S. History Courses and SC History Standards: State and federal guidelines stipulate that South Carolina public school students will study U.S. history in the fourth and fifth grades. As a student taking U.S. history courses at Coastal, you cover much of the same material in your core and upper level courses, as the following chart shows:

Correlation Between Hist 367 and SC History Standards: For a clearer understanding of the applicability of this particular course ? Hist 367: Colonial America ? to the state and federal history standards for fourth-grade students, shown below are the ?indicators? provided to public school teachers for Standards 4-1 and 4-2:

Standard 4-1: The student will demonstrate an understanding of the exploration of the
New World.

Standard 4-2: The student will demonstrate an understanding of the settlement of North America
by Native Americans, Europeans, and African Americans and the interaction
among these peoples.

In-class lectures and assignments involving websites that feature historical content will cover many additional topics addressed by the SC History standards for the fourth grade. For a complete listing of SC social studies academic standards and associated ?indicators,? go to http://www.sctlc.com/ss/soc/.
Familiarity with the materials being used in your mentee?s classroom should enhance your mentoring sessions and demonstrate to your mentee that you are genuinely interested in his or her schoolwork. The Social Studies readings for fourth-graders at Palmetto Bays Elementary include the following works:

Squanto, Friend of the Pilgrims by Clyde Robert Bulla
Eagle Song by Joseph Bruchac
Molly's Pilgrim by Barbara Cohen
Secret Soldier: The Story of Deborah Samson by Ann McGovern
House Mouse, Senate Mouse by Peter W. Barnes
George Washington-A Picture Book Biography by James Cross Giblin
George vs. George – The American Revolution as seen from Both Sides by R. Schanzer
Westward to Home: Joshua's Diary, The Oregon Trail: 1848 by Mary Pope Osborne
Pink and Say by Patricia Polacco
Coming to America: The Story of Immigration by Betsy Maestro

These books are available for your review in the Palmetto Bays Elementary School library. They are quick reads and the topics offer great material for mentoring discussions.

The Mentoring Process: As a mentor, you will serve as tutor, confidant, friend, and role model for the elementary school student to whom you are assigned. You will initially meet your assigned mentee in a classroom setting, though the location may be altered (to a gymnasium, playground, cafeteria, library, etc.) with the consent of the teacher(s) and/or the school Principal. Ideally your meetings will be one-on-one sessions that center on your mentee?s assigned tasks, projects, or readings involving historical topics, but the student?s needs (which can take many forms) and the priorities identified by his or her teachers will require you to be flexible.
Your conversations with your mentee will be limited only by propriety and good judgment. As a mentor, you have the opportunity to engage a young mind in the excitement of historical discovery and the joy of shared learning and cooperative effort. Every effort has been made to integrate your coursework requirements with your mentee?s curriculum, but you should always keep in mind that your primary role is that of mentor, not tutor, and your mentoring sessions should reflect that fact. You mentee might need to discuss issues related to his or her home life, relationships, concerns, problems, etc. You must be a good listener, friend, and ally.

All new mentors will attend a mandatory training session at which they will receive instruction and support materials for the mentoring process. Mentoring coordinator Margene Willis, the K-12 mentoring specialist at the Horry County Schools/Coastal Carolina University Center for Education and Community, and Prof. Navin will also be available to assist you on an ongoing basis. See the Mentoring Schedule in this syllabus for additional information on training dates, orientation, weekly visits, etc.

The Mentoring Commitment: If you choose to participate in this mentoring program, you are making a binding commitment to mentor a student for the duration of the semester. You must go to Palmetto Bays Elementary (five miles from CCU going toward the beach on Hwy 544) and conduct mentoring sessions on at least ten occasions during the semester. If those ten sessions do not equal or exceed ten hours of time with your assigned mentee, you must make additional visits until the hourly requirement is met. You must agree to fulfill the ten session/ten hour mentoring commitment even if you drop this course or you will not be allowed to choose the mentoring option. In the past, some Coastal mentors have elected to meet with their mentees far more often than required; in several cases they have continued to mentor even when they were not enrolled in a mentoring class or after they graduated!

The students at Palmetto Bays Elementary will be available for mentoring between 7:40 and 9:30 a.m. and during their lunch hour and recess from 11:20 to 12:10. Individual students may be available at other times ? you?ll have to consult the child?s teacher. You can choose the time that fits your schedule, but you should set a time and stick with it for the duration of the semester. Students are occasionally unavailable due to federally- or state-mandated testing: see the Mentoring Schedule on page 13 for details. If you prefer to mentor at a different elementary school due to its proximity to your home or because you already have an established mentoring relationship at that location, special arrangements can be made. You will be responsible for arranging your own transportation between the two schools (carpooling is encouraged). Every time you visit your mentee you will sign in and out and wear proper identification during your time in the school.

The time you spend with your mentee is in addition to your regular Hist 367 classes, not in place of them. Your classroom time at Coastal will not be diminished by the mentoring program. At least once during the semester the Palmetto Bays students with CCU mentors are invited to Coastal Carolina University for an outing or special event (see Mentoring Schedule on page 13 of this syllabus). You are expected to participate in any such campus visits by meeting your assigned student and participating in the planned activities; you may need to be excused from classes to do so.

All mentors will be called on to describe their mentoring experience at our last class meeting. Representatives from the Provost?s and Dean?s office, from Palmetto Bays Elementary, and from the Horry County Schools/Coastal Carolina University Center for Education and Community will be invited to attend.

Grading of Mentors: The final grade for Hist 367 students who participate in the mentoring program will be based on completion of the following requirements:

See pages 2 and 3 of this syllabus for additional information regarding PowerPoint presentations, research papers, exams/in-class quizzes, class participation, extra credit opportunities, grading scale, disabilities, and academic honesty, all of which apply to students in this class who serve as mentors.

Mentoring Session Reports: You must fill out a standardized one-page report after each mentoring session; a blank copy of the report is included of page 14 of this syllabus.

Mentoring Summary Report: At the end of the semester you must submit a 5-page summary report that describes your mentoring experience, including:

• An overview of your interaction with your assigned mentee
• Suggestions on how to improve your mentee?s educational prospects or general welfare
• A statement of what you learned as a result of your mentoring effort that you would not have learned otherwise in this course
• A candid assessment of the mentoring process outlined in this syllabus, including the degree to which your coursework correlated with your mentoring activities
• Suggestions on how to improve the mentoring program

Mentoring Commentaries and Cooperative Activities: All mentors enrolled in Hist 367 will complete five assignments selected from a list of commentary topics and cooperative activities (shown on the next few pages). These topics and activities will link your course readings, lectures, and class discussion to your experience mentoring in the public schools by prompting you to:

• Use historical sources to inspire your mentee and to help him or her understand modern society and contemporary issues.
• Discover how your age, characteristics, socio-economic status, and life experiences differentiate you from your mentee in terms of historical interpretation or values.
• Draw on the fourth-grade history standards, materials, lessons, and assignments to explore the Colonial period from new perspectives.
• Use your mentoring experience to test insights or theories from your course readings.
• Assess the impact of state and federal curriculum standards and form opinions on the most effective ways to teach history to young students.
• Find ways to bond more closely with your mentee through the study of history.

Listed here are six commentary topics and three cooperative activities from which you must choose a total of five for submission or completion. Each mentoring commentary must be at least 500 words (2-3 pages) in length; some topics will undoubtedly prompt you to go far beyond the minimum requirement. Each commentary must be typed, stapled, and include a cover sheet with your name, the number of the commentary topic you address (e.g., ?Commentary Topic 3?), the date of submission, and the sequential number of that commentary (e.g., ?Number 2 of 5?). Due dates for each commentary appear on the schedule in this syllabus. Due dates for the cooperative activities are negotiable but any that you opt to do must be completed before exam week. Mentors are encouraged to undertake at least one cooperative activity because of the opportunity it creates for close interaction with your mentee.

Commentary Topic 1

Some of the colonial settlements that you study in Hist 367 housed many children while other settlements were virtually bereft of children, at least at the outset. For example, the early Chesapeake settlements, where indentured servants and their masters abounded, differed markedly from New England colonies, where a high percentage of immigrants came as sons and daughters of religious refugees. Settlements in New Spain received few immigrant children compared to the English colonies; the same can be said of New France. As you spend time with and among elementary school students, ask yourself whether they would help or hinder a colonizing effort. Write a commentary that states whether you would include children as part of a colonizing force to the New World, assuming that 17th century conditions still prevailed. Weigh the pros and cons in your commentary and be as specific as possible about the reasons for your decision.

Commentary Topic 2

Under Standard 4-1.4, South Carolina teachers of fourth-grade students undertake the following task during their first few weeks of instruction in U.S. history:

Explain the exchange of plant life, animal life, and disease that resulted from exploration of the New World, including the introduction of wheat, rice, coffee, horses, pigs, cows, and chickens to the Americas; the introduction of corn, potatoes, peanuts, and squash to Europe; and the effects of such diseases as diphtheria, measles, smallpox, and malaria on Native Americans. (G, H, E)

Considering the economy and balance of power in Europe were significantly altered by the flow of silver and gold from the Aztec and Inca empires, precious minerals constitute a glaring omission from the above list. Other significant omissions include the exchange of culture, technology, and ideas. Write a commentary that describes the transmission of specific cultural norms, technology, or ideas in either direction. Explain the significance, if any, to the indigenous population.

Commentary Topic 3

The elementary school at which you are mentoring includes significant populations of white, Hispanic, and African American students. During the Colonial period, white European colonizers pushed Native Americans off their land, greatly reduced their population through disease, displacement and warfare, and devastated their way of life and tribal stability. Europeans also forcibly transported millions of Africans to America and forced them to work on plantations where life was sheer misery, abuse was commonplace, and death came early. Based on your assessment of your mentee?s thought processes (and that of his or her classmates), to what degree should social studies lessons at the fourth-grade level portray the aforementioned events? If your mentee is at an age where his or her racial attitudes are still in the formative stage, might the study of history be detrimental? Be sure to take Standards 4-2.5, 4-2.6, and 4-2.7 (see page 5 of this syllabus) in consideration as you shape your answer.

Commentary Topic 4

The Social Studies readings for fourth-graders at Palmetto Bays Elementary include the following works about the Colonial period: Squanto, Friend of the Pilgrims by Clyde Robert Bulla, and Molly's Pilgrim by Barbara Cohen. Ask your mentee what he or she remembers about one or more of the above books. Why do you think the standardized reading list pays so much attention to the handful of colonists at Plymouth and so little attention to settlements in the Southern and Middle colonies? Taking into consideration South Carolina?s Social Studies Standards 4-1 and 4-2 as well as the usual constraints of time and budget, what other notable trends, events, or individuals from the Colonial period deserve to be included on your mentee?s reading list, and why?

Commentary Topic 5

Shown below is the Massachusetts Bay School Law passed in 1642; it was the first legally mandated system of education in America. Note that it focuses on reading ability, knowledge of the ?Capital Lawes? and religion, and ?breeding? in ?some honest lawful calling, labour or imployment.? Compare these to the educational goals of your mentee?s teachers. How much instruction, if any, does your mentee receive in law or religion? To what degree is he or she ?bred? for a future job or career? Note that in 1642 parents and masters were held accountable for these various types of instruction ? how has this changed and why?

Forasmuch as the good education of children is of singular behoof and benefit to any Common-wealth; and wheras many parents & masters are too indulgent and negligent of their duty in that kinde. It is therfore ordered that the Select men of everie town, in the severall precincts and quarters where they dwell, shall have a vigilant eye over their brethren & neighbours, to see, first that none of them shall suffer so much barbarism in any of their families as not to indeavour to teach by themselves or others, their children & apprentices so much learning as may inable them perfectly to read the english tongue, & knowledge of the Capital Lawes: upon penaltie of twentie shillings for each neglect therin. Also that all masters of families doe once a week (at the least) catechize their children and servants in the grounds & principles of Religion, & if any be unable to doe so much: that then at the least they procure such children or apprentices to learn some short orthodox catechism without book, that they may be able to answer unto the questions that shall be propounded to them out of such catechism by their parents or masters or any of the Select men when they shall call them to a tryall of what they have learned of this kinde. And further that all parents and masters do breed & bring up their children & apprentices in some honest lawful calling, labour or imployment, either in husbandry, or some other trade profitable for themselves, and the Common-wealth if they will not or cannot train them up in learning to fit them for higher imployments. And if any of the Select men after admonition by them given to such masters of families shal finde them still negligent of their dutie in the particulars aforementioned, wherby children and servants become rude, stubborn & unruly; the said Select men with the help of two Magistrates, or the next County court for that Shire, shall take such children or apprentices from them & place them with some masters for years (boyes till they come to twenty one, and girls eighteen years of age compleat) which will more strictly look unto, and force them to submit unto government according to the rules of this order, if by fair means and former instructions they will not be drawn into it.

Commentary Topic 6

When proposed in 1994, national standards for the teaching of history in our public schools became the subject of much discussion and criticism. NEH Chair Lynne Cheney claimed that the standards were an attempt on the part of liberal/left college historians to impose political correctness and a multicultural agenda on elementary/secondary teachers and their school boards. In an interview on Good Morning America, Cheney said:

It's a very good idea, and we have done this already in our schools, to make history inclusive. We want to be sure that students understand about the contributions of women and what African-Americans and Asian-Americans and Latinos have contributed to this country. But it's a very great error to quit teaching basic history in the name of political correctness, which is what I think has happened in these national standards.

Based on your observations of the materials, assignments, and lesson plans that are being employed to teach fourth-grade students U.S. history, do you think Cheney?s assessment, i.e., that basic history has given way to political correctness, is justified? Do the texts and lectures in your history courses at Coastal differ significantly in their treatment of the same period or events?
In shaping your answer you may want to review the standards currently in use for fourth-grade social studies in South Carolina public schools; some appear in this syllabus and the full list is available on-line at http://www.sctlc.com/ss/soc/. It may also be helpful to ask your mentee to name what people he or she learned about in lessons about early America.

Cooperative Activity ? Can Be Used in Place of Any Commentary Topic

Instead of writing a commentary, work with your mentee to create a poster display on any topic pertaining to the Colonial period. Sample topics might include the Columbian exchange, Native American dwellings, the Salem witch trials, immigration patterns and estimates, clothing from the colonial period, etc. If you choose this option your mentee must play a role in the selection or creation of images and must participate in the physical creation of the poster, i.e., cutting, pasting, drawing, etc. This poster must be suitable for display in the library of Palmetto Bays Elementary. This activity offers an excellent way to interact with your mentee.

Cooperative Activity ? Can Be Used in Place of Any Commentary Topic

Instead of writing a commentary, work with your mentee to simulate a news broadcast on any topic(s) pertaining to the Colonial period. The broadcast must be scripted, appropriate visuals (drawings or pictures from books or the internet) must be used, and the final product must be videotaped and submitted on disk or tape. Your various news stories should occur in roughly the same timeframe, i.e., don?t report on the landing of the pilgrims at Plymouth in a broadcast that mentions the French and Indian war. A sample broadcast might include Bacon?s Rebellion (1675), King Philip?s War (1675-6), the founding of Pennsylvania (1681), and LaSalle?s exploration of the lower Mississippi (1682). You might want to view the Colonial period timelines at The History Place (http://historyplace.com/unitedstates/revolution/rev-early.htm)
in order to identify items for your news broadcast; here is a sample excerpt:

1619 – Twenty Africans are brought by a Dutch ship to Jamestown for sale as indentured servants, marking the beginning of slavery in Colonial America.

1620 – November 9, the Mayflower ship lands at Cape Cod, Massachusetts, with 101 colonists. On November 11, the Mayflower Compact is signed by the 41 men, establishing a form of local government in which the colonists agree to abide by majority rule and to cooperate for the general good of the colony.

1620 – The first public library in the colonies is organized in Virginia with books donated by English landowners.

1621 – One of the first treaties between colonists and Native Americans is signed as the Plymouth Pilgrims enact a peace pact with the Wampanoag Tribe, with the aid of Squanto, an English speaking Native American.

1624 – Thirty families of Dutch colonists, sponsored by the Dutch West India Company arrive in New York.

Cooperative Activity ? Can Be Used in Place of Any Commentary Topic

Instead of writing a commentary, obtain copies of creation stories attributed to different Native American groups from your course readings from the Yale-New Haven Teacher?s Institute website at http://www.yale.edu/ynhti/curriculum/units/1998/2/98.02.02.x.html. Another valuable site is http://www.wsu.edu/~delahoyd/creation.myths.html. Share several of these creation stories with your mentee and help him or her draw a mural or a series of images that depict one or more of the stories. Be sure to label each drawing or mural, identifying the Native American group whose creation story it depicts. The quality of your mentee?s artwork is unimportant; the shared knowledge and shared experience are the main objectives of this exercise. Ask your mentee?s teacher if your mentee can show the drawings to his or her classmates and explain (perhaps with your help) the story behind the artwork. Here is one such creation story from the Haida, a group who lived off the coast of present-day British Columbia; they depended largely on halibut and cod for their livelihood:

Spring 2007 – CCU Mentor Schedule

CCU mentoring coordinator:
Margene Willis
K-12 mentoring specialist
Horry County Schools/Coastal Carolina University Center for Education and Community
216-C Kearns Hall
mwillis {at} coastal(.)edu
843-349-2694
CCU mentoring website: www.coastal.edu/cec/mentoring

COURSE DESCRIPTION: HIS 145 Women, Race & Class is an interdisciplinary examination of the historical institutions, forces and movements that have shaped the status, identities and conditions of multicultural women. While many of the assigned readings are based in the United States, we will also look at global connections and contexts. We will emphasize relationships between theory, practice/action and multiple perspectives.

COURSE OBJECTIVES:
• to build a learning community in which we are each actively engaged in critical thinking and discovering possible interpretations;
• to value and understand the diversity of women's experiences in the U.S.;
• to locate ourselves in relation to the historical web of race, class and gender;
• to bring together theory and practice through service learning;
to listen and communicate effectively about ideas/perspectives with which we are
unfamiliar or uncomfortable.

Course Methods & Format
This course relies upon collaboration among class members and inquiry as a process for developing historical understanding. Class weekly schedule will include 1-2 lecture/discussions on main questions and themes. Other days include seminar, computer lab, guest speakers and videos.

Learning Philosophy
I view learning as a collaborative learning experience. My approach to the study of history is thematic and emphasizes working people and social movements: their organizations, visions, and the struggle to realize democracy and equality. This course complements your other coursework by providing an opportunity to develop a perspective on our contemporary assumptions, and concerns.

Required Texts:
Kirk, Gwyn and Margo Okazawa-Rey. Women's Lives: Multicultural Perspectives. Ed. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill, 2004.

ATTENDANCE & WITHDRAWAL
Good attendance is highly correlated with high gradepoints. Students are NOT automatically dropped from courses. Drop-class forms are available in room 1104 and 4128. If turned in by January 16, no instructor's signature is needed. February 27 is the last day to withdraw; instructor's signature required and a "W" (withdrawal) appears on your transcript. Without the completed form, a "0.0" is assigned.

STUDENT RESPONSIBILITIES
By week 2, try to complete the reading by the beginning of the week. Skim for main themes and take notes to organize and develop your ideas, as well as sharpen discussion. It is unnecessary to memorize all the dates and details. Focus on expressing your understanding in your own words. Please make at least one appointment during the quarter with the instructor to discuss your progress.

WEEK	TENTATIVE TOPIC / READING	ASSIGNMENT DUE
1. 1/5-9	Introduction & Framework Chapter 1 Integrative Frameworks for Understanding	Mini-biography
2.1/12-16	Chapter 2 Identities & Social Locations	Service Learning proposal/placement due
3. 1/20-23	Chapter 3 Women's Bodies Chapter 4 Women's Sexuality
4. 1/26-30	Chapter 5 Women's Health Chapter 6 Violence Against Women	Essay 1
5. 2/2-6	Chapter 7 Relationships, Families & Households; Chapter 8 Work, Wages & Welfare	Mid-quarter Evaluation
6. 2/9-13	Chapter 9 Living in a Global Economy Essay 2 7. 2/17-20 Chapter 10 Women, Crime & Criminalization	Service Learning journals/reflection due
8. 2/23-27	Chapter 11 Women & the Military, War & Peace; Chapter 12 Women & Environment
9. 3/1-5	Chapter 13 Creating Change: Theory, Vision, and Action	Essay 3
10. 3/8-12		Essay Portfolio (includes final self-evaluation) due
11. 3/15-19		Service Learning journal s/reflection due

No Finals March 22-24

Tentative list of documentaries: Doubles, Public Hearing/Private Pain, Girls Like Us, The Global Assembly Line, The Woman Outside, Rachel Carson/Silent Spring.

Grades & Assignments: Grades will be based on evaluation of 3 areas. The percentage of the final gradepoint is in parentheses:

Participation (30%)	Readings & Connections Portfolio (40%)	Service Learning (30%)
Self-evaluations Consistent engagement in course activities Co-facilitation questions for each book (3 total) Computer lab assignments	Week 4: Essay I Week 6: Essay 2 Week 9: Essay 3 Short essays that synthesize course materials, especially applying Parts I (theory) and V (creating change).	Week 2: Proposal Week 7: Journals & Reflections for first half Week 11: Journals & Reflections for second half

Service Learning

Service Learning is one of the major assignments for this class. The goal of this service learning experience is to experience an organization's efforts to address issues/themes at the center of this course. These issues/themes are expressed in the syllabus and text (table of contents and chapter overviews).

Although members of the class will have different sites for their service learning hours, we will periodically discuss these experiences to examine the ways in which text and other course information may relate to what people are observing and experiencing.

In addition to the actual on site hours (try to schedule a minimum of 20 hours total), the following writings are required:

30 points: a proposal which includes
1. site location and your contact person
2. description of organization's mission/program
3. why you have chosen this group
4. initial questions that you hope to explore during your service learning (the "reflection"
questions in the chapters might be helpful)
5. how you hope to connect this work to HIS 145

40 points: journal entries on your service learning activities & comments based on in-class discussion of your experiences Entries should approximately correlate to your hours. One paragraph for an 8 hour block of time would not be sufficient! The journal entries will be submitted for the first half (about 10 hours) and the second half (first half = 20 points; second half = 20 points).

30 points: reflection essays for first half and second half (2 short essays; 2 pages
each).
As you are reading our text, keep notes on readings/writers/quotations that seem especially relevant to your service learning. You can incorporate these ideas into your reflections about your goals, questions, "practice" and theories that we are studying.

NOTE: the syllabus indicates due dates and we will confirm these in class