Spring 2008

Course Description and Goals: 
This course is an introduction to United States history from 1945 to the present.  It will examine American life in its various political, economic, diplomatic, cultural, social, and military contexts.  At the end of the term students should have a measurable understanding of some of the facts, concepts, and historical interpretations that shaped the post-World War II era.  Their understanding of and ability to analyze these facts, concepts, and interpretations will be assessed through in-class exams, out-of-class writing assignments, and classroom discussions.

Required Texts: 
George Donelson Moss, Moving On: The American People Since 1945, 3rd ed. (Upper Saddle River, N.J.: Pearson Prentice Hall, 2005)

Anne Moody, Coming of Age in Mississippi (1968; New York: Delta Trade Paperback, 2004)

Bill Shanahan and John P. Brackin, Stealth Patrol: The Making of a Vietnam Ranger (Cambridge, Mass.: Da Capo Press, 2003)

Ruth Rosen, The World Split Open: How the Modern Women's Movement Changed America (New York: Penguin Books, 2000)

R. Marie Griffith, God's Daughters: Evangelical Women and the Power of Submission (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1997)

Exam Policy: 
There will be two in-class exams given during the semester—a mid-term and a final.  Test questions may include information from class lecture, discussion, multi-media presentations, the textbooks, and other assigned readings.  These questions may include any combination of the following formats: essay, short answer, and identification.

Writing Assignments: 
There will be several out-of-class writing assignments that make up a substantial portion of your final grade:

1) Each student will write reviews of four of the required texts, which should be submitted via Digital Dropbox according to the course schedule below.  Please consult the instructions for writing book reviews located on the course Blackboard site.

2) Each student will write reviews of four journal articles or book chapters, which should be submitted via Digital Dropbox according to the course schedule below.  Please consult the instructions for writing article reviews located on the course Blackboard site.
 
Attendance Policy: 
Students are expected to attend class regularly and be on time.  You are responsible for getting any information from class lecture and discussion that you might miss due to your absence before the next class meeting.  Please consult the section on Class Attendance Policy in the catalog for official University policy.

Make-up Policy: 
Students should provide me with an approved written excuse (doctor’s note, jury notice, obituary, etc.) if they must miss an exam.  Make-up exams will be in identification and/or essay formats.  Outside writing assignments must be turned in on the date due.  Students will lose ten percentage points for each calendar day the assignment is late.

Students with Documented Disabilities: 
Any student with a documented disability needing academic adjustments should speak directly to Disability Support Services and the instructor during the first two weeks of class.  All discussions will remain confidential.  This syllabus is available in alternative formats upon request.  For assistance, please contact Mary Helen Walker, Office of Disability Support Services, D. F. Lowry Building, (910.521.6695) or visit the Office of Disability Support Services website.

Withdrawal from the Course: 
The last day you may drop this course with a grade of “W” is Monday March 17, 2008.

Academic Honesty: 
Academic misconduct in any form will not be tolerated.  It is your responsibility to recognize and understand the various types of academic misconduct, including plagiarism.  Please consult the Academic Honor Code in the Student Handbook or at UNCP’s Division of Student Affairs website for official guidelines regarding the definition and handling of academic misconduct.  You may also consult the following websites for more information regarding plagiarism:

http://www.uncp.edu/tlc/plagiarism/index.htm

http://www.historians.org/governance/pd/Curriculum/plagiarism_intro.htm

http://plagiarismtest.org/

Grade Notification: 
To protect the confidentiality of student records, I will not discuss grades via the telephone or email.  Please see me personally or consult Blackboard or Braveweb if you wish to know your grades.

Course Schedule:

Week 1 (January 8-10): War Years (Moss, Chapter 1)

Week 2 (January 15-17): Rise of the Cold War (Moss, Chapters 2-3)
Robert James Maddox, The New Left and the Origins of the Cold War, pp. 3-11.  Review due by midnight on Sunday January 13, 2008.

Week 3 (January 22-24): Korean War (Moss, Chapter 2)

Week 4 (January 29-31): Affluent Society (Moss, Chapters 4-5)

Week 5 (February 5-7): Civil Rights Movement (Moss, Chapter 5)
Moody book review due by midnight on Sunday February 3, 2008.

Week 6 (February 12-14): JFK: New Frontier (Moss, Chapter 6)
Herbert S. Parmet, “The Kennedy Myth and American Politics,” The History Teacher 24 (November 1990): 31-39.  Review due by midnight on Sunday February 10, 2008.

Week 7 (February 19-26): LBJ: Great Society (Moss, Chapter 7)

Week 8 (February 28): Mid-term exam

Week 9 (March 4-6): Spring Break

Week 10 (March 11-13): Vietnam War (Moss, Chapters 7, 10, & 11)
Shanahan and Brackin book review due by midnight on Sunday March 9, 2008.

Week 11 (March 18-20): Other Protest Movements (Moss, Chapter 8)
Rosen book review due by midnight on Sunday March 16, 2008.

Week 12 (March 25-27): Decline of Liberalism (Moss, Chapters 9-10)

Week 13 (April 1-3): Era of Limits (Moss, Chapter 11)
William Stueck, “Placing Jimmy Carter’s Foreign Policy,” in Gary M. Fink and Hugh Davis Graham, eds., The Carter Presidency: Policy Choices in the Post-New Deal Era, pp. 244-66.  Review due by midnight on Sunday March 30, 2008.

Week 14 (April 8-10): Me Generation (Moss, Chapter 12)

Week 15 (April 15-17): Conservative Resurgence (Moss, Chapters 12-13)
Griffith book review due by midnight on Sunday April 13, 2008.

Week 16 (April 22-24): After the Cold War (Moss, Chapters 14-15)
George C. Herring, “From the Persian Gulf War to 9/11/2001,” in William H. Chafe, et al., A History of Our Time: Readings on Postwar America, 6th ed., pp. 443-58.  Review due by midnight on Sunday April 20, 2008.

Week 17 (April 29): Final Exam 1:30-4:00

Grading Scale:
Exams: 30%
Book Reviews: 60%
Journal articles: 10%