Course Syllabus
HI/POL 451
History of Modern
Winter 2011
Instructor:
Terrence Monroe
808.941-7140
808.941-7140
Office hours: 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM Mon. - Fri.
(not available weekends or holidays)
Experienced
as an instructor of in-class courses (since 1974) and online courses (since
2000) in various disciplines of world history and contemporary Asian
civilizations for colleges and universities throughout the
Course Overview:
This course examines the political,
economic, and cultural forces that shaped modern
Learning
Outcomes:
·
To
understand today’s
·
To
understand the causes of the 1893 overthrow of the
· To appreciate the formation of an American Hawaii with its unique local culture.
Text:
There
is no text assigned for this course; reading will be comprised of the online
lectures.
Course Requirements:
Successful completion of this course
depends upon:
·
Completion
of three essays assignments.
·
Participation
in weekly discussion forums.
·
Completion
of a proctored final exam (the third essays assignment).
*Please be sure to carefully read the
Orientation Addendum for guidance on these assignments.
Grading Policy:
Discussion postings should be posted throughout the week and must be posted before the week closes each Sunday night. Discussion postings may not be made up once the weekly discussion forum closes; if you miss a particular week’s discussion forum, you may not go back in after the Sunday night deadline for that week and post. Still, you are expected to complete all assignments on time. Please bear in mind that an Incomplete is generally not an option, since there is no way to make up the discussion forum participation element of your grade once the course is finished (after all, the group will have moved on, and there wouldn’t be anyone to discuss anything with). Please bear in mind also that participation in the discussion forums is what makes an online course work.
Your essays assignment, discussion forum,
and final exam grades will be posted in the Gradebook
within 7 days of their due dates. Each essays assignment will have a maximum
value of 200 points (for a total of 600 points). Each week’s discussion forum
will have a maximum value of 100 points (for a total of 1000 points). Total
points for this course: 1600.
Grading
Scale:
A: 90 - 100
(1440 - 1600 points)
B: 80 - 89
(1280 - 1439 points)
C: 70 - 79
(1120 - 1279 points)
D: 60 - 69
(960 - 1119 points)
F: less
than 60 (less than 960 points)
Assignment Schedule:
Week 1 (Jan. 10 –
Jan. 16):
Participate in Week 1 discussion forum
Week 2 (Jan. 17 –
Jan. 23):
Participate in Week 2 discussion forum
Week 3 (Jan. 24 –
Jan. 30):
Participate in Week 3 discussion forum
Submit essays
assignment 1
Week 4 (Jan. 31 –
Feb. 6):
Participate in Week 4 discussion forum
Week 5 (Feb. 7 –
Feb. 13):
Participate in Week 5 discussion forum
Week 6 (Feb. 14 –
Feb. 20):
Participate in Week 6 discussion forum
Submit essays
assignment 2
Week 7 (Feb. 21 – Feb.
27):
Participate in Week 7 discussion forum
Week 8 (Feb. 28 –
Mar. 6):
Participate in Week 8 discussion forum
Week 9 (Mar. 7 –
Mar. 13):
Participate in Week 9 discussion forum
Week 10 (Mar. 14 –
Mar. 20):
Participate in
Week 10 discussion forum
Final exam:
complete essays assignment 3 under proctor’s supervision (no notes or other
references permitted);
date, time, and locations to be announced
TO:
Military Students and DOD Employees
In an effort to service our students on the
***If you are a civilian and have a MWR
student pass you can take your exam at the Main campus or Schofield. You must
already have your pass; the Army will not make civilian passes for exam
purposes only. Civilians are not able to
take exams at
Instructions to
reserve a seat at one of the military installations:
1.
Some
instructors prefer students test at the main campus. Please discuss your
testing options with your instructor prior to registering for a seat.
2.
You
must have access to the military base you will be attending.
3.
This reservation must be made no earlier than the 7th
week of the course. We do have a maximum seating, so reservations are first come first serve.
4.
You
must email the following information to one
site only:
Ø
Name,
Social Security# (last 4 digits)
Ø
Contact
phone # & valid email address
Ø
Type
of access (Active duty, Military family member, DOD)
Ø
Time
slot (1 per class) –
Ø
Course
#, Course Title, & Instructor
5.
You
will receive an email confirmation for the site requested, if you do not receive a confirmation email within 2 days, please
contact the office you emailed or resend the reservation request. You must
print out your confirmation and bring it with you to the exam (along with a
valid picture ID).
6.
If
you do not pre-register for a seat, no exam will be available for you at either
of the sites.
Consultation:
I’m always available via email, or you may
call and leave a message at any time, day or night. My phone ringer is turned
off, so don’t worry about calling in the middle of the night—it’s okay! I will
try to return your call within 12-24 hours. For those of you who are outside
Hawaii, calling Hawaii these days is cheap—free on most cell phone plans,
several cents a minute with a prepaid phone card, 10-25 cents/minute with phone
company long distance plans. If you just leave a quick message, you shouldn’t
suffer much financially, and I’ll pay for the return call, of course. As far as
email is concerned, I will try to respond to your message within 24-36 hours;
however, please do not expect me to respond on weekends or holidays—I need to
have a life of some kind!
Now, don’t forget to read the Orientation!
Orientation
If
this is your first online course, don't be alarmed. I think you'll find it’s
pretty straightforward. It may not, however, be what you expect. An online
course is not a glorified correspondence course, nor is it a course in directed
reading. You are not isolated and out there on your own. To the contrary,
you’re likely to become more involved with your classmates than you ordinarily
would be in a regular class. One of the nice things about an online course is
that your classroom is open 24/7. Time of day (or night) and physical location
is irrelevant—we’re living in a global village. For those of who are able to
discipline yourselves academically, you’ll find that the freedom of working and
studying online is sweet indeed. Another nice thing about learning online is
that the discussion forums enable you to leisurely examine everything that
everyone in your class has said to date about a particular discussion topic,
pick and choose what to respond to, and think through your response before
pecking it out on your keyboard. All that tends to make for a much more thoughtful
and better quality discussion, and you may conclude, as I have, that it’s a
better way to learn. What’s more, you’ll find that the online learning
environment can introduce you to the galaxy of online resources including
websites, online libraries, subject guides, and lots more.
I am assuming that you are reasonably well acquainted with the use of a computer and with our course management system, which is fairly intuitive and quite forgiving (as such things go), but if you ever have a question about getting around in that, let me know. I promise you immediate and cheerful assistance!
Now, as to course requirements:
The first thing
that makes up your course grade is a series of three essays assignments (the
third of which will serve as your final exam). The topic for each
of these essays assignments is the same, as follows:
In each
of five (5) brief essays of approximately
200 - 300 words each (1,000 - 1,500 words total), identify a topic (you decide
which one, as long as they it something to do with the material you've studied
to date in this course) and reflect on its why it matters. You will need to
write on a different topic for each of your five brief essays. Do not write the usual student essay
that just recites history (like the text does). Instead, I want you to explain why your topic matters. Does it explain
things that are happening now? Or, how did it affect society back then? Or, how
was it affected by society back then. Be creative and interpretative, but do
not recite the historical record (since we already know what happened). No quotes, no citations, no footnotes—these essays
must be 100% in your own words. Everything
you write for these assignments must be
entirely in your own words, however humble. Plagiarism may result in your
eviction from this course. Do not cite or recite anything—I already know what
happened in history, so what I want is your insight as to the implications of your topics. I want to
see evidence that you’re thinking things through in these matters and wondering
about what it all means. Any citation of material from any other sources will
result in a mark-down of your grade.
You should be working on these essays
assignments continuously, and your
work should have the polished feel of being the result of a steady, daily
progression of thought and reflection. You can never tell when insight will
strike, so you should get into the habit (now) of taking notes as we go along
of things like this that occur to you; carry a little notebook and pen around
with you always (except in the shower)--it’s a habit that will serve you very
well indeed for all kinds of purposes. Polish, embellish, and refine your
insights as you go. Don’t even think about trying to sit down to compose these essays all at once—it’s a daunting,
unproductive, and highly improbable prospect. If it appears that you have slapped
together this assignment at the last minute, your grade will suffer for it.
Everything you write for these assignments must be entirely in your own words,
however humble. Plagiarism will result in your eviction from this course. Do
not cite or recite anything—I already know what happened in history, so what I
want is your insight as to the implications
of your topics. I want to see evidence that you’re thinking things through in
these matters and wondering about what it all means. Any citation of material
from any other sources will result in a mark-down of your grade.
You must write on five (5) separate topics for each
of these essays assignments. Your five essays for each assignment should be
clearly segregated from each other--do not submit them run together into one
big essay.
Here are three essays as an example:
·
The
kapu system: Kapu were the
Hawaiian way of regulating the social order--the difference being that in a
"sacred society" such as ancient
·
Tourism:
Much as I admire certain things about the American way of life, the scale and
much of its nature is ill-suited to a small island; these islands were never
meant to accommodate mass tourism and urban sprawl. Some modification in our
constitutional relationship with the
·
Annexation:
One wonders if Liliuokalani’s relinquishment of
rule was merely a feint along the lines of Kamehameha
III’s surrender of the kingdom to Lord George Paulet
way back when. The king had depended on the British sense of fair play to
restore his crown, and they did. Knowing that there was little support in
Washington for annexation, did Liliuokalani likewise depend on the United
States to do the right thing, believing that if she abdicated, Washington would
call off the dogs and set things right--as the British had done with Kamehameha III? There were differences: the British did not
want Hawaii, and did not want to antagonize the Americans with any bid for
control of the Islands. The Americans did want Hawaii, thanks to Manifest
Destiny having outgrown America’s borders; Americans had come to regard the
Pacific as an American lake, and the longed-for China trade as its very own.
The expansion of French and German interests in the Pacific made Americans
uneasy, and Americans had come to understand that playing the Great Game in the
Pacific required forward bases, of which Pearl Harbor was the jewel in the
crown. But America’s acquisition of Puerto Rico, Guam, and the Philippines as
the spoils of its victory in the Spanish-American War cemented Hawaii’s role in
its vision of empire.
I will be sending you the following grade
report on your essays assignments:
·
Quality of insight (50 percentage points): How well
did you interpret the significance of your topic? How well did you consider the
implications, in terms of how your topics reflect on comparable developments in
the present, past, or even the future? How creative is your thinking in terms
of drawing conclusions are where things come from and where they lead and why
they're of special significance? To what extent does your writing reflect
consistent, in-depth reflection, rather than a last-minute effort?
·
Familiarity with the facts (35 percentage points).
You may be forgiven for wondering how you are going to demonstrate familiarity
with the facts without reciting history. Let me put it this way: I am concerned
that your essays do not reflect a complete ignorance of your subject matter.
You need to acquaint yourself (using all kinds of sources, including your text,
websites, books, articles, videos, your grandpa, whatever) with what you write
about, so that your conclusions as to their significance are not completely at
odds with the reality of the historical record. You may make whatever mention
of those facts from the historical record that are needed (and only what is needed) to support your
conclusions.
·
Quality of expression (15 percentage points): How
clearly and articulately is your insight expressed? (I don't like sloppy
composition, confused syntax, and bad spelling. Show pride in your facility
with the English language--more than anything, this is your key to earning both
respect from others and a prosperous future.)
·
Total percentage X total number of points possible
= your grade.
Things that can
work against you:
·
Five topics for each essays assignment are
required; for each topic fewer than five submitted, there will be a reduction
in your grade. A total of 1,000-1,500 words is recommended--if your effort is
appreciably less or more (which is not necessarily better) than this, there may
be a proportionate reduction in your grade.
·
Do not recite history for the sake of reciting
history, in any sort of narrative form (as, for example, your textbook does)--I
already know (more or less) what happened in history. Above all, are your
essays entirely in your own words? Any
whiff of plagiarism will result in your essay being submitted to
Turnitin.com--and if plagiarism is indicated, your continued participation in
this course would be at risk.
·
If your essays are not clearly segregated, there
will be a reduction in your grade (in other words, do not submit your five essays
as one big rambling essay); this is meant to be an exercise in thinking and
writing succinctly.
If you would
like to discuss your assignment and its grade, please do not expect me to
respond in writing--I have too many students to permit me the time I would need
to peck out a personalized response to each of you who may have questions and
concerns. I ask instead that you email me and ask that I call you so that we
can discuss things--that's a lot easier, a lot more productive, and a lot more
enjoyable for both us, since I can bring your essay up on screen and roam
through whatever points we need to consider, and provide you with guidance on
how to improve your work. This way, I can provide you with as much personalized
consultation as we feel you need, and hopefully lend a much-needed dimension of
student-teacher contact to an otherwise somewhat impersonal medium of
instruction.
The second thing that makes up your course grade is your participation in the discussion forums. In each of these forums, you’ll find a number of topics that I’ve posted, and you’ll find them in the discussion forum for whichever week we’re in. In order to do well in this exercise, you should plan to log on several times throughout the week with a total of 5 responses--to your choice of the topics themselves and/or to your classmates’ postings. If you don’t feel that you’ve had enough exposure to deal with a particular topic, then by all means get on the Internet and look this stuff up so that you’ll be better informed (use some initiative here, and take control of your own learning—the text is by no means the Alpha and Omega of your education in history).
*While you only need
to respond to 5 topics and/or your classmates' postings, please try to at least
read each of my own responses to
these topics. This is also how I teach
you, and I am trying to provide you with examples of how to think
creatively about these topics, and to help get you into the habit of writing
your Exam Essays assignments.
With any of these forums, there will be a number of topics to choose from; go with whichever ones arouse your interest. You do not need to respond to all of the discussion topics—just go with the ones (5 of them) that most interest you. Because of the enormous terrain that we’ll be covering in this course, the discussion topics that I’ve posted are nothing more than a sample, just enough to whet your taste buds for the fantastic variety of things that could constitute a history course of this sort.
Your
responses to these topics should be thoughtful and concise. Don’t ramble--try
to make your points succinctly. Not too succinct, however--I’m looking for a
lot more than just “Great idea! Wish I had thought of that!” Your postings
should each be around 100 words--but that’s just a rough guideline, since I
value quality of insight much more than quantity of words. I especially value
postings that reflect something of the history that you may have learned thus
far; uninformed personal opinion, frankly, is dime-a-dozen, while an opinion
that is at least somewhat informed by history will rank very highly in my esteem.
Be sure to post your responses in the discussion forum—do not email them to me.
If you’re not sure how to post to the forum, just ask and I’ll walk you through
it.
Discussion
is what makes an online course work; otherwise, an online course is just a glorified
correspondence course. Be sure to respond to your classmates! If your classmate
posts a response to a topic that interests you, look it over and consider
posting a different point of view if, in your opinion, it merits one. We’re
trying to get an actual exchange of views going here, and the gods will surely
smile upon whatever you can think to do to help that process along. I think
you’ll be amazed at how much you’ll learn from each other in these forums.
There’s
one last thing I need to say about these discussions: they’re meant to be
provocative and, in many cases, relevant to the issues of today. They say that
“history is”--not “history was”--and one of the paramount points of
why we study history is to apply its lessons and implications in consideration
of things that are happening in the here and now. To that end, I encourage my
students to think creatively and philosophically about these things, and not
just to soak up the historical record for the sake of spewing it out on their
exams and then forgetting the whole business. If I can teach my students to wonder about the lessons of history and
how they may shed light on the things that are happening in their lives, then
hopefully it will become a habit that will flourish (and serve them well) throughout
life.
Again,
I do not accept late submissions of your discussion forum postings. Reason
being, the discussion is a group project, and if you miss the deadline, the
group will have moved on and you’ll have nobody to discuss anything with. I
expect you to log on regularly; by that, I mean that you should log in at the
start of the forum, again in the middle, and again towards the end. As with
writing your Exam Essays assignments, your participation in the discussion
forums needs to be continuous. If I see (from the time-stamp of your postings)
that most of your postings were made at the last moment, your grade will suffer
for it, since by posting at the last moment, you will have deprived your
classmates of the opportunity to discuss anything with you.
As to extra credit assignments:
there are none. Please do not ask for the opportunity to do extra credit work
to make up for an assignment that you may have missed.
If
you have any dispute over course requirements, policies, grades, or anything
else that you haven’t gotten a satisfactory response from me on, you have my phone number: 808.941-7140.
I am your court of first appeal, and as your teacher, I have both the right and
the responsibility to resolve your concerns before they go anywhere else. Do
not take any complaint or concern that you may have to the department chair,
the dean, the president of the
In
closing, I’d like to think you’re here because you want to learn, rather than
just meet a requirement, right? Right??? I would ask you to think about what a
college education should really mean to you; the day will come, long after
you’ve gone out and conquered the world (or been conquered by it), when you’ll
realize that what really matters in life is learning, personal growth, and
wisdom—take the word of a wise old hound on that for now. I expect your best
effort, but more so, you should expect that from yourself. I’m not some guy
sitting on the beach doing this to keep myself in mai
tais and suntan lotion (I haven’t been to the beach
in more years than I can remember); I take your education very seriously, and I
trust that you will do the same. Once the course is finished, I must ask that
you not lean on me about your grade, telling me that you really, really need an
A (when in fact you’ve earned less), or that maintaining your 4.0 GPA is a
matter of life or death, or that your financial aid is in danger if you don’t
pass. I do not respond well to such overtures, and they tend to be
counter-productive. The time to worry about such things is while you’re working
your way through the course--not after it’s over and done with--and again, I
think you’ll find that I’m quite generous with the grades as long as you do the
required work and make your best effort.
With
that said, go ahead and jump into your Week 1 stuff. And relax… despite all the
stern-sounding rules and regs, I’m actually very easy
to get along with.
If you want to
talk with me about things, send me an email asking that I call you; I’ll then
call you back on my nickel. I don’t have time for telephone tag, so please
specify in your message the best time(s) for me to reach you, and I’ll try to
schedule the call accordingly. In your message, be sure to specify which
college you’re in (I teach for more than one), and which course you’re taking;
please do not assume that I should know you by name (even if we’ve talked a
dozen times); I’m the original absent-minded professor, and I need all the help
I can get (don’t we all, though).
Aloha… Terrence Monroe