American Politics
Political Science 200.003
Spring 2013
Tuesday and Thursday 9:30-10:45
Dane Smith Hall 125
Dr. Timothy B. Krebs
Office: 2070 Social Sciences
Office Hours: Monday and Wednesday, 9:30-11:00
505/277-2017
email: [email protected]
Course Description and Goals: This course provides an overview of American politics and
government at the national level. We survey core areas of inquiry in the field with two primary
goals in mind, both of which are designed to sharpen our citizenship skills. First, we seek to
enhance our ability to describe, interpret and understand the political process. Second, we seek
to become better consumers of information related to politics and government in the U.S. The
course is designed for those seeking to fulfill a core course requirement and for beginning
political science majors. There are no prerequisites.
The course is divided into three sections: 1) introduction to the study of politics, political
culture, and legal foundations of the American system; 2) the public and American politics; and
3) institutions of American government. Following an introduction, we cover political culture,
the U.S. Constitution, federalism, and civil rights and liberties. We then cover several aspects of
the American political environment, including public opinion, voting, political parties and
interest groups. We conclude by covering the three branches of government: the Congress,
presidency, and the federal courts.
Learning Goals:
At the conclusion of this course students should:
1) be familiar with concepts such as the meaning of power and politics, American political
culture, separation of powers and checks and balances, and representative government;
2) grasp the central compromises that led to the formation of the Constitution and creation of
the federal system;
3) understand the basics of the civil rights movement, and the nature of civil liberties;
4) understand the main effects that public opinion, elections, political parties, and interest
groups have on the governing process in America.
5) be able to describe and explain the behavior of American political institutions such as
Congress, the presidency and federal courts;
Required Text (Available in the UNM Bookstore):
Coleman, John J., Kenneth M. Goldstein, and William G. Howell. 2011. Understanding American
Politics and Government. Second edition. New York: Longman.
1
Teaching Strategies: While I will lecture in this course, we will also use class time to answer
your questions, and to explore issues related to course material and current political events. We
should all try to learn from one another and your participation in this regard is critical.
Statement of Teaching Philosophy: Education is an interactive process. The most effective
learning occurs when we actively engage the subject matter. You will remember information
better, and be more effective test takers by actively engaging the assigned readings, coming to
class prepared to discuss them, and by being active listeners. The most successful students do
all of these things. Finally, we learn a great deal from each other, thus I will insist on respectful
treatment of each other’s opinions and views.
Attendance: From the UNM Catalog: “Policies regarding student attendance at class meetings
are set by each instructor. Students should not assume that nonattendance results in being
dropped from class. It is the student’s responsibility to initiate drops or complete withdrawals
utilizing http://registrar.unm.edu/ or LoboWeb http://my.unm.edu/. A student with
excessive absences may be dropped from a course with a grade of WF upon recommendation of
the instructor. Instructor initiated drops are submitted utilizing LoboWeb.”
http://pathfinder.unm.edu/common/policies/class-absences-student-attendance.html
There is almost always a direct correlation between attendance and your grade in the course. If
you want to perform well, you should attend. I will drop students who do not attend the first
two weeks of class.
Course Requirements: Your grade will be based on your performance on each of four exams.
Exams will include some combination of objective and subjective (i.e., written) components, and
the material on the exams will draw from the required text and lectures. Each exam is weighted
equally.
The dates of the exams are listed below, but be advised that the dates for exams 1-3 may change
depending on how the course progresses. You will be notified in advance if such a change is
required. The date of the final exam is solid. Make-up exams will be given only in the event of
a documented absence (e.g., for illness, death in the family, travel on university business). If
you miss an exam and you don’t have an approved excuse, you will earn a zero on that test.
Grading: An “A” grade reflects an outstanding or excellent grasp and understanding of the
material. A “B” grade reflects a good grasp and understanding of the material. A “C” grade
reflects a satisfactory or average grasp and understanding of the material. A “D” grade reflects
a poor grasp and understanding of the material. There are, of course, degrees of understanding
within each grade category, thus I will assign plus and minus grades.
Extra Credit: No extra credit will be given in this course.
2
Grading Scale: 97-100 = A+; 93-97 = A; 90-92 = A-; 87-89 = B+; 83-86 = B; 80-82 = B-; 77-79 = C+;
73-76 = C; 70-72 = C-; 67-69 = D+; 63-66 = D; 60-62 = D-; and 0-59 = F. If you have any questions
about the grading scale, please contact me or consult pages 40-44 of the UNM Catalog (20102011).
Reading a daily newspaper: If you are not doing so already, I strongly encourage you to
consume news about American politics and government on a regular basis. This will
significantly increase your understanding of the material in this class. Most daily newspapers
are available on-line. See the Albuquerque Journal, Weekly Alibi, and Santa Fe New Mexican and
major newspapers such as The New York Times, Washington Post, Chicago Tribune, and Los Angeles
Times. Blogs are also good sources of information, see Huffington Post, Politico, etc.
Classroom Rules: 1) Please do not be late. 2) Do not come to class for purposes of doing work
for another course. 3) If you need to leave class during the middle of a session, please let me
know ahead of time. 4) You may not leave class during an exam (except in the case of a dire
emergency). 5) Please silence all phones, iPods, etc. prior to the start of class. There is to be no
texting in class (or while driving!).
Accommodations: Qualified students with disabilities needing appropriate academic
adjustments should contact me as soon as possible to ensure your needs are met in a timely
manner. Handouts are available in alternative accessible formats upon request.
Email Communication: This course is web enhanced, which means that I will use UNM Learn
(https://learn.unm.edu/) to communicate with you, to share information, and to post
additional readings germane to the course. Please regularly check your UNM email account or
have your UNM mail forwarded to your preferred email account.
Dishonesty in Academic Matters: “Each student is expected to maintain the highest standards
of integrity in academic and professional matters. The University reserves the right to take
disciplinary action, including dismissal, against any student who is found responsible for
academic dishonesty. Any student who has been judged to have engaged in academic
dishonesty in course work may receive a reduced or failing grade for the work in question
and/or for the course.
Academic dishonesty includes, but is not limited to, dishonesty in quizzes, tests, or
assignments; claiming credit for work not done or done by others; hindering the academic work
of other students; misrepresenting academic or professional qualifications within or outside the
university” (UNM Catalog, 2010-2011, p.46).
Instructor’s note on academic dishonesty: Academic dishonesty (cheating on a test, plagiarizing
a paper, etc.) may result in an F on an assignment, an F in the class, or expulsion from the
university. These are not good options. Regardless of my decision in a case of academic
dishonesty, I will report the matter to university authorities. In all work, we will abide by the
highest standards of academic integrity. This is particularly important with regard to citation of
material.
3
Class Participation and Readings. I expect students to be prepared to participate in class and to
have read the assigned materials prior to each session.
Course Outline and Readings
I. Foundations of the American Political System
In this section we introduce the foundations of American politics. We explore key concepts in
the study of politics, American political culture, the logic behind the founding of the country,
the framing of the U.S. Constitution, federalism, and civil liberties and civil rights.
Week 1 (1/14)
Chapter 1: Thinking About American Politics
Week 2 (1/21)
Chapter 2: Political Culture
Week 3 (1/28)
Chapter 3: The Constitution
Week 4 (2/4)
Chapter 3: The Constitution
***Exam 1 on Thursday, February 7 (chapters 1-3)***
Week 5 (2/11)
Chapter 4: Federalism
Week 6 (2/18)
Chapter 5: Civil Liberties and Civil Rights
II. The Public and American Politics
In this section, we examine the various political forces and actors that shape how the
government functions. We discuss public opinion, voting, political parties, and interest groups.
We begin by exploring individual political behavior before moving to a discussion of group or
collective behavior.
Week 7 (2/25)
Chapter 6: Public Opinion
Week 8 (3/4)
Chapter 6: Public Opinion
***Exam 2, Thursday, March 7 (Chapters 4-6)***
Week 9 (3/11)
Spring Break
4
Week 10 (3/18)
Chapter 7: Participation and Voting in America
Week 11 (3/25)
Chapter 9: Political Parties
Week 12 (4/1)
Chapter 10: Interest Groups
Week 13 (4/8)
***Exam 3 on Tuesday, April 9 (chapters 7,9-10)***
***Midwest Political Science Association meeting April 11-14. Class cancelled on Thursday***
III. The Institutions of American Government
In this section we describe and explain the major institutions of American government:
Congress, the presidency, and federal courts. We take particular care to notice how the goals of
individual actors in the system intersect with the opportunities and constraints imposed by the
institutions in which they function.
Week 14 (4/15)
Chapter 11: Congress
Week 15 (4/22)
Chapter 12: The Presidency
Week 16 (4/29)
Chapter 13: The Federal Court System
***Exam 4 on Tuesday, May 7, beginning at 7:30 a.m. (chapters 11-13). The final exam will be
held in our regular classroom.***
5