Required Materials
The textbook for this course is Lynn Hunt, et al., The Making of the West: Peoples and Cultures, A Concise History, which is avabile for purchase in the bookstore. It is essential that you buy the textbook, which will provide you with the basic narrative of events, brief biographies of key players in those events, and other supporting materials such as maps, charts, and so on. (I will spend some time in class during the first two sessions helping you to become a more effective user of a textbook, so don't be daunted by the number of pages assigned!)
You also will be responsible for watching a set of video lectures prepared by the Department of History and Art History for this course. You may purchase the full set of video lectures at the bookstore, watch them on local area cable television, or view them in the library using a set placed on reserve. Please be aware that the Johnson Center library has only two full sets on reserve, and there are close to 1,500 students signed up for this course this semester. If you decide to purchase the videos be sure to ask around to see if you can buy a used set from someone. More than 2,000 sets have been sold in the past several years, and the campus bookstore does not take returns on the videos (they refuse to take returns on any electronic media for any reason), so someone should have a set for sale cheap. Ask around.
Finally, you should purchase a copy of Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, which is also available at the bookstore for less than $10.
Attendance
Because this course covers several thousand years in just one semester, attendance is absolutely necessary if you want to keep up. The University mandates that attendance cannot be required, but because a full fifth of your grade is predicated on your participation in the discussions that take place in class, if you fail to attend class, your grade will certainly suffer. I expect everyone to talk, but for those of you who are shy or have other reasons for not wanting to talk a lot, please be assured that it will be the quality of your participation, not the quantity, that counts most.
Contact Information and Office Hours
My office is located in Pohick Module Room 3, and I will always be available on Thursday afternoons between 1:00-3:00 to talk to you about the course. I am in my office most days of the week, however, and you should feel free to stop by anytime. I can't promise I'll be there, but I'll be happy to see you if I am. You can also always call me on my office phone (703-993-4213) or e-mail me at jscheinf@gmu.edu.
Linked Course
This course is linked with your English 101 class. Several of the assignments you complete for this course will also be handed in to your professor in English 101. Each of us grades these assignments according to our own expectations and requirements, so don't be surprised if you receive different grades for the same assignment from your two different professors.
Grading
Everyone is always very concerned about grades. Grades are important, but I guarantee you that you will get a good grade if you participate enthusiastically in all of the readings, writings, trips, and class discussions. Still, I'm sure you want to know exactly how I'll calculate grades at the end of term, so here it is:
Class participation - 20%
Weekly online exercises - 10%
Summary essay (due 9/15) - 10%
Descriptive essay (due 9/22) - 5%
Narrative paper (due 9/29) - 5%
Research paper (due 11/17) - 20%
Opinion essay (due 12/9) - 10%
Final Exam 20%
Medical and Other Excuses
Every semester someone is forced to miss either an examination or the due date for an assignment as the result of an illness or a family emergency. If you find yourself in this situation, fairness to all students in the class requires proper documentation, without which your excuses will not be accepted. If you need to know more about this process, please consult me as soon as the emergency is taken care of.
Late Papers
Late papers will be accepted. However, for each day a paper is late, one-half of a letter grade will be deducted from your final grade for that paper. In other words, a paper that would have received an A-, but was two days late, would receive a B- instead. No matter how late your paper is, it must be handed in, even if it has already reached the F level: Unless all assignments are completed by the last day of the semester, you will fail the course. Similarly, you must complete all of your online exercises before class, and late entries will be graded down according to the same scheme.
Plagiarism and Cheating
I will not tolerate cheating or plagarism. When you are cheating, you are not learning, and you are here to learn. If you have any questions about what is expected of you in this regard, please review the George Mason University Honor Code. Note that penalties for academic dishonesty are severe, including failing the assignment, failing the course, many hours of community service, suspension or even expulsion from the University.
Food, Drink, Tobacco
Soft drinks are permitted in class, but food and tobacco are not. Eat, smoke, or dip before you come to class.
ADA
Any student who requires special arrangements should obtain appropriate verification from the Disability Resource Center and contact me to make necessary accomodations.