School of Design, Arts, and Humanities 2018-19
COURSE
SYLLABUS
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Course Number
POL 320 – A |
Course
Title
The Congress |
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Fall Semester |
Spring
Semester
XXX |
Summer
Semester |
Credit
Hours 3 |
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Name
of Instructor William
Miller |
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Meeting
Day, Time, and Room Number |
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Final
Exam Day, Time, and Room Number The final exam will be held on Wednesday,
May 8th, at 3:00pm in St. Joseph’s Hall G102.
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Office
Hours, Location, Phone Tuesdays
and Fridays 1:00-2:00pm, 3:30pm to 4:00pm; Wednesdays by appointment. My
office is Rowley !018; my telephone number is 703 284 1687, but always email
ahead of time! |
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E-mail and Web Site My email is wmiller@marymount.edu. Email is
the best way to reach me! All announcements and assignments are posted only
on my web site,
www.millerpolitics.com, not on Canvas. |
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Course
Description A review of the history of Congress
and a description of its functions, its structure, and the legislative process.
The course examines current and historical issues that relate to the proper
role of Congress in the American scheme of government. Prerequisites: a grade
of C or better in POL 104 or POL 230/305, and a grade of C or better in POL
250 or its equivalent, or permission of instructor. Liberal Arts
Core/University Requirements Designation: SS-2. (3) |
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UNIVERSITY
STATEMENTS
ACADEMIC INTEGRITY
By accepting this
syllabus, you pledge to uphold the principles of Academic Integrity expressed by
the Marymount University Community. You agree to observe these principles
yourself and to defend them against abuse by others. Items submitted for this course may be submitted to TurnItIn.com for
analysis.
STUDENT COPYRIGHT INFORMATION
For
the benefit of current and future students, work in this course may be used for
educational critique, demonstrations, samples, presentations, and
verification. Outside of these uses,
work shall not be sold, copied, broadcast, or distributed for profit without
student consent.
ACCOMMODATIONS AND ACCESSIBILITY
CONCERNS
Please address any special challenges or needs with the instructor at
the beginning of the semester.
Students with Disabilities
If
you are seeking accommodations (class/course adjustments) for a long-term or
short-term (less than 6 months) disability, you must do the following:
1) Register as a student with a disability with Student
Access Services (SAS) in the Center for Teaching and Learning. This process takes time, so you should engage
it as early as possible.
2) Once registered with SAS, you may be approved for
accommodations by SAS. Approved
accommodations will be listed on a “Faculty Contact Sheet” (FCS). This is important because not all
accommodation requests are approved.
3) After receiving the FCS, meet with each of your
instructors as soon as possible to review your accommodations, and have them
sign the FCS. This document will help you and your instructors develop a plan
for providing the approved accommodations.
4) Let SAS know if there are any concerns about the way
your accommodations are being implemented by your instructors.
Please remember that:
1) Accommodations for disabling conditions cannot be
granted if you do not follow the above steps.
2) Accommodations are not retroactive. That is, accommodations can only be applied
to a course after they have been
approved by SAS and put into motion by you
through working with your instructors.
3) Appointments with the SAS staff are scheduled through
the Starfish "Success Network" tab in Canvas. For more information, check the SAS website,
e-mail access@marymount.edu, or call 703-284-1538.
Students with Temporary Challenges
Temporary
challenges due to accident, illness, etc. that may result in missing class or
navigating general campus access do not fall under the purview of SAS. If you
experience something of this nature, please start by alerting your
instructors. The Dean of Student Success
may be involved in alerting instructors in extreme cases.
EMERGENCY NOTIFICATION POLICY
When
students are absent due to a crisis situation or unexpected, serious illness
and unable to contact their individual instructors directly, the Division of
Student Affairs can send out an Emergency Notification. To initiate an
Emergency Notification, students should contact the Division of Student Affairs 703-284-1615 or student.affairs@marymount.edu. Emergency
Notifications are NOT appropriate for non-emergency situations (e.g. car
problems, planned absences, minor illnesses, or a past absence); are NOT
a request or mandate to excuse an absence, which is at the sole discretion of
the instructor; and are NOT a requirement for student absences. If a
student contacts instructors about an emergency situation directly, it is not
necessary to involve the Division of Student Affairs as arrangements are made
to resolve the absence.
For
non-emergency absences, students should inform
their instructors directly.
ACCESS TO STUDENT WORK
Copies of your work
in this course including copies of any submitted papers and your portfolios may
be kept on file for institutional research, assessment and accreditation
purposes. All work used for these purposes will be submitted confidentially.
UNIVERSITY POLICY ON WEATHER AND EMERGENCY
CLOSINGS
Weather
and Emergency closings are announced on Marymount’s web site: www.marymount.edu, through MUAlerts, area radio stations, and TV
stations. You may also call the Weather and
Emergency Hotline at (703) 526-6888 for current status. Unless otherwise
advised by local media or by official bulletins listed above, students are
expected to report for class as near normal time as possible on days when
weather conditions are adverse. Decisions as to inclement closing or delayed
opening are not generally made before 6:00 AM and by 3:00 PM for evening classes
of the working day. Emergency closing could occur at any time making MUAlerts the most timely announcement
mechanism. Students are expected to
attend class if the University is not officially closed. If the University
is closed, course content and
assignments will still be covered as directed by the course instructor. Please
look for communication from course instructor (e.g., Canvas) for information on
course work during periods in which the University is closed.
1. BROAD PURPOSE OF COURSE Multiple sections of the same course must have the same purpose.
A review of the
history of Congress and a description of its functions, its structure, and the
legislative process. The course examines current and historical issues that
relate to the proper role of Congress in the American scheme of government. The
course also reviews the principal
characteristics of congressional elections and campaigns.
2. COURSE OBJECTIVES: Upon successful completion of this course students will be
expected to:
Liberal Arts Core Outcomes (general
and discipline-specific)
General
Learning Outcomes – Skills – Analysis, Critical Reasoning and Problem-Solving
· Students
will practice analytical discourse, critical reasoning and
problem-solving through examination of the structure and function of the
Congress as they pertain to the resolution of conflict and/or process of policy
development available to the lawmaking body.
The outcome
will be measured by performance on short and long answers on tests and the
research paper.
General
Learning Outcomes – Attitudes – Civic Responsibility
· Students
will apply their appreciation of the relation among individual choices, social
issues and global concern through analysis of the lawmaking function of the
United States Congress as exercised by its members.
The outcome will
be measured by class participation demonstrating knowledge of the reading and
performance on tests.
Course-Specific
Outcomes
Upon successful completion of this course
students will be expected
(1) to demonstrate familiarity with the
problems faced by contemporary congressional campaigns and with the techniques used
to address and solve those problems;
(2) to demonstrate a general knowledge of
the legislative process;
(3) to demonstrate an understanding of
the major institutional changes and the development of Congress since 1789;
(4) to demonstrate familiarity with
several of the significant issues presently facing the institution and the
members of Congress; and
(5) to be able to analyze the structure
of discursive writings about Congressional issues and to write and defend a
short thesis on a topic relating to Congress.
These outcomes will be measured by class
participation and in written papers and exams.
3. TEACHING
METHOD
Lectures, class discussions of the
assigned readings, and student presentations, projects, group activities.
4. GRADING POLICY
The value (points
and/or percentage of grade) of assignments, exams, quizzes, participation, and
other graded course components must be specified.
Tuesday,
January 22, 2019, is the last day to withdraw from a class without
academic record.
Friday, March 22, 2019, is the last
day to withdraw from a class with a grade of W.
The final grade will consist of
the following components:
30% Exam
on the legislative process: Oleszek, Sundquist,
Wilson
20% Final
Exam: congressional elections and selected chapters of Dodd and Oppenheimer
text
25% Class
Presentation on legislative process (1) and Presentation and Review of
Dodd/Oppenheimer chapter
20% Quizzes
5% Active
participation in class discussions
ATTENDANCE AND MAKE-UP EXAM
POLICY
Attendance: Beginning
with the second week of classes, students are allowed a total of four absences,
excused and/or unexcused. Students who miss five or more classes for any reason
whatever will receive an “FA” in the course.
Each unexcused absence
beyond two—up to the absolute limit of four—will result in a lowering of the
final grade by two percentage points. To be excused, an absence
must be documented, unless I indicate otherwise. Excused absences are typically
medical-, legal-, or job-related excuses. Acceptable documentation typically
consists of a statement or form on official stationery (1) signed by a third
party (doctor, police, judge, supervisor) that (2) refers specifically to the
day of absence from class and (3) the reason for the absence.
Occasionally coming to class
late—even really late once or twice—is not considered an absence. Coming to
class without hard copies of the text for the day, leaving the classroom for
most of the class-time, or leaving class early without the prior permission of
the instructor, however, is considered an unexcused absence.
Merely informing me ahead of time
that you will be absent from class does not mean I excuse the absence, though I
appreciate your courtesy. I will not excuse your absence because you are simply
not feeling well or because you choose to do something worthwhile other than
come to class even if you inform me ahead of time. If you are coughing and
sneezing and coming down with a cold or the flu, and you don't want to spread
your virus to your classmates, your fellow students and I salute you! Staying
home may be the right thing to do, but it is not an excused absence. You all
get three unexcused absences to use as you see fit, and it is your decision to
use them to stay home when you don't feel well or want to attend some other
event or need to prepare for another class instead of going to my class. Use
them for good reasons: that's what they are for.
The limit of four total absences
recognizes that excessive excused absences may also be a
problem. You should discuss such situations with me well before the last month
of the semester. This is not a distance learning class. Any absence prevents
you from participating in the class, but if your job or an illness keeps you
away from class, it will significantly affect the class participation component
of your grade and may be a good reason to drop the course and take it another
time. All of us find ourselves in these situations from time to time and have
to deal with them appropriately. You also have an obligation to report this to
a University office (see the section titled “Attendance” in the University
Catalogue).
When in doubt about any of these
policies, please come and talk to me. They have been formulated with our
substantial commuter and working student population in mind and are intended to
be fair to everyone. You should also review the University's policies on
absenteeism in the section titled “Attendance” in the University Catalogue.
Make-up Exams and Papers: The
same basic rules about excused absences apply to taking mid-terms and
presenting seminar papers. My policy of giving makeup exams on the same day as the
final does NOT mean that you may choose to take the mid-term exam on that day
rather than on the regularly scheduled day: it is not an alternative test date.
To be eligible for a makeup, you must qualify for an excused absence, and this
you should do a reasonable time before the day of the mid-term, if that is at
all possible. You may be excused from taking a mid-term if you are certifiably
sick or your job prevents you from attending class or you have a legal, family,
or personal emergency on the day of the test. If one of these applies, and I am
informed in a reasonable time before the exam, and you have written
documentation to support your request, you may take the exam on the same day as
the final exam. If none of these reasons apply, you may not take the
exam at another time, and you will get a zero for the exam. Travel
plans will never excuse an absence. If you are late for the exam because of
events outside of your control, let me know immediately or as soon as
possible that day, and I will let you take the exam later that
same day if possible.
The seminar papers that you
present in class are intended to provoke discussion, questions and comments by
fellow students, that are part of your grade and that you must participate in.
An unexcused absence on a day you are scheduled to present a
paper results in a zero for the paper. An excused absence with
advanced notice to me allows you to present the paper the following
week. More than one such excused absence requires a discussion with me.
5. CLASS
SCHEDULE
The
following topics and dates of discussion are approximate and are subject to
change due to cancelled classes, guest speakers, and so on. I shall try to
maintain the due dates for papers and exams as they are listed below. Plan
on about seventy-five pages of reading a week and a short quiz every class.
WEEK 1
(1/16) Introduction to the course; some basic political history;
recap of 2018 elections and overview of congressional campaigns and
elections.
WEEK 2
(1/23) Campaigns and Elections: Dodd and Oppenheimer (“D&O”),
chapters 3 and 4 Erikson/Wright and Jacobson
WEEK 3
(1/30) The Legislative Process: James
Sundquist, Woodrow Wilson
WEEK 4
(2/6) The Legislative Process—Contemporary Practices: Oleszek
WEEK 5
(2/13) The Legislative Process in the House—Contemporary
Practices: Oleszek
WEEK
6 (2/20) The Legislative Process in the Senate—Contemporary
Practices: Oleszek
WEEK 7
(2/27) The Legislative Process—Contemporary Practices: Oleszek
WEEK 8
(3/6) Mid-Term Examination
SPRING BREAK!!
WEEK 9
(3/20) Presentations on selected chapters from D&O
WEEK 10
(3/27) Presentations on selected chapters from D&O
WEEK 11
(4/3) Presentations on selected chapters from D&O
WEEK 12
(4/10) Presentations on selected chapters from D&O
WEEK 13
(4/17) Presentations on selected chapters from D&O
WEEK 14
(5/1) Presentations on selected chapters from D&O
The
mid-term and the final exam will be given only at the regularly scheduled time:
Wednesday, May 8th, 3:00pm.
If you
cannot take the mid-term at the regularly scheduled time, you may take it on
Tuesday or Wednesday of Finals Week.
Please
make your travel plans accordingly.
6. REQUIRED
TEXTS
Dodd, Lawrence C., and Bruce I.
Oppenheimer. Congress Reconsidered. 11th ed.
Washington, D.C.: CQ Press, 2017.
Oleszek, Walter J. Congressional
Procedures and the Policy Process. 10th ed. (9th ed.
Is also acceptable) Washington, D.C.: CQ Press, 2014.
7. REQUIRED
OR SUGGESTED READINGS OR AUDIO-VISUAL MATERIALS
Sundquist, "Endemic Weaknesses
of Congress" in Decline and Resurgence of Congress (Washington,
D.C.: Brookings, 1981).
In addition to the required texts
listed above, I shall also hand out several articles to be assigned throughout
the course.
Older books on Congress (many of
which are excellent for comparison with contemporary accounts):
Bolling, Richard. House
Out of Order. New York: E.P. Dutton, 1966. A call for the radical
reform that followed.
Fiorina,
Morris. Congress: Keystone of the Washington Establishment.
Rev. ed. New Haven: Yale, 1989. A classic study of Congress, and a classic
model of a research paper.
Fiorina, Morris. Divided
Government. 2d ed. Needham Heights, MA: Allyn and Bacon, 1996.
Jacobson,
Gary, and Jamie Carson. The Politics of Congressional Elections. 9th ed.
Rowman and Littlefield, 2015. Contains excellent bibliographical
references.
Kettl, Donald F. Deficit
Politics: The Search for Balance in American Politics. 2d ed. New
York: Longman, 2002.
Mayhew,
David. Congress: The Electoral Connection. New Haven: Yale
University Press, 1974. Compare to Fiorina’s Keystone.
________. Divided We Govern:
Party Control, Lawmaking, and Investigations, 1946-1990. New Haven:
Yale University Press, 1993. Compare to Fiorina’s Divided Government.
Ornstein, Norman, Thomas Mann,
and Michael Malbin. Vital Statistics on Congress. Washington,
D.C.: Congressional Quarterly Press, (latest edition in library).
Schick, Allen. The
Federal Budget: Politics, Policy, Process. Rev. ed. Washington, D.C.:
Brookings Institution Press, 2000.
Sinclair, Barbara. Unorthodox
Lawmaking. 4th ed. Washington, D.C.: Congressional Quarterly Press,
2012.
Straus, Jacob R., ed. Party
and Procedure in the United States Congress. 2d.ed. Lanham: Rowman and
Littlefield, 2016.
Sundquist, James L. Decline
and Resurgence of Congress. Washington, D.C.: Brookings, 1981.
Wilson,
Woodrow. Congressional Government: A Study in American Politics. First
published in 1885. Transaction Pubs., 2002. Public domain. Kindle Edition,
2011.
On the Internet:
An excellent source of
information about Congress is the website of the Library of Congress, http://Thomas.loc.gov .
This source makes available the texts and status of legislative measures for
the past several congresses as well as the daily text of the Congressional
Record.
Congressional Elections, 1900 to Present.
For material on the congressional
incumbency advantage, see Incumbency
Re-election Rates (Thirty-Thousand Org.), Incumbency Re-election Rates (Center for
Responsive Politics)
Rasmussen
Political Polling Reports
A FEW FURTHER RULES
For the benefit of the class and
your classmates, the following rules regarding electronic devices also apply to
this course:
1. Turn your cell phones off
during the class. If you are expecting an important call, put your phone on
“Vibrate,” sit near the door, and, when the call comes, answer it outside the
classroom.
2, It follows from the foregoing
rule, but it must be separately stated: no talking and no texting on cell phones
during class. If you do not follow this rule, I will publicly ask you to leave
the room for the remainder of the class and will do my best to have you removed
from the course for the rest of the semester.
3. No open lap-top or other
computers are allowed in class without my prior permission. Devices
such as tablets, Ipads, Kindles, Kobos, and Nooks that lie flat on the
desk and on to which the readings can be loaded are permitted if approved by
me, but hard copies of the readings are better. You can mark them up and take
notes on them in class.
4. Be sure to
check your Marymount email address regularly! This is
Marymount’s and my principal way of contacting you with important information.
Perhaps you rely mostly on Yahoo, gmail, or some other provider, but check
your @marymount.edu mail daily to make sure you do not miss school information.
These rules are necessary to
foster a suitable learning environment in the classroom during class. There are
enough distractions with lawnmowers, air conditioners, and other outside forces
to combat during lectures and discussions without these controllable
distractions within the room.