University of Wisconsin
Oshkosh
Political Science 84-175;
002C
SYLLABUS
(Fall 2004; TR 1:20 pm- 2:50
pm; Clow 101)
The
main objectives of this course are:
·
to
grasp the general knowledge of contemporary American political system at the
three levels;
·
to
understand how the system operates;
·
to
develop the skills necessary to critically think political problems. In
pursuing these goals, it is hoped that students will become better equipped to
analyze everyday events, to ask right questions, and to recognize underlying
assumptions of written works by academics, government officials, and
journalists in the field of American politics.
Instructor
Dr. Baodong Liu Office:
420 Clow; Office Hours: W 2:20-5:20 pm;
Tel: 424 7162; liu@uwosh.edu; Course
Homepage: http://www.uwosh.edu/faculty_staff/liu
Dr.
Liu has a terminal degree in political science. His main research fields
include urban and minority politics, state and local government, elections and
research methods. Dr. Liu has adopted both quantitative and qualitative
approaches in his research. He has published articles in professional journals
such as the Social Science Quarterly, Urban Affairs Review, American Review
of Politics, Journal of Urban Affairs, Journal of Political Science, Political
Behavior, and the Southeastern Political Review. His research has won
several major awards from the American Political Science Association and the
Southwestern Political Science Association.
Liu,
Baodong and Thomas E. Patterson. 2004. Governing America. New York:
McGraw Hill Company.
Exam
1 20%
Exam 2 20%
Exam 3 20%
Exam 4
20%
Quizzes/Attendance 20%
A:
(92, 100 pts); A/B: (89, 91 pts); B: (82, 88 pts); B/C: (79, 81 pts); C: (72,
78 pts); C/D: (69, 71 pts); D: (60, 68 pts); F: <60
Since
this class is taught in a very large classroom, students are required to follow
two strict rules: 1) all cell-phones must be turned off, and 2) no chats during
the sessions are allowed. Those who don’t respect the time of others and the
overall environment will be asked to leave the class and lose their attendance
scores.
Students
will have the access to the review questions in order to prepare for their
exams, though no answer keys to review questions will be given out automatically
through emails. (To encourage careful reading and class attendance, I reserve
the right to ask some questions in the tests that are not included in the set
of review questions.) To receive attendance scores for the absence beyond
personal control, students need to provide documents from the appropriate
authority.
The
reading assignments and course calendar are as follows:
9/9 Introduction
9/14 The American Heritage:
Read Patterson Chapter 1
9/16 Constitution
Chp.2
9/21
Constitution and Federalism
Chp. 2 and Chp.3
9/23 Debates on American Democracy
Liu, Chp.1
9/28 Civil Liberties
Chp.4
9/30 Equal Rights
Chp.5
10/5 Exam 1
10/7 Public Opinion and Political
Socialization
Chp. 6
10/12 Voting and Participation I
Chp. 7
10/14 Voting and Participation II
Chp. 7, also read Liu, Chp.
2
10/19 Political Parties, Candidates,
and Campaigns
Chp. 8
10/21 Interest Groups
Chp. 9, Liu Chp. 3
10/26 News Media
Chp. 10
10/28 Exam 2
11/2 Congress
Chp. 11
11/4 Congress
Chp. 11; Liu, Chp. 4
11/9 State and Local Legislatures
Saffell and Basehart Chapter5
11/11 The Presidency
Chp. 12
11/16 Governors and Mayors
Saffell and Basehart Chapter6
11/18 The Judiciary
Chp. 14
11/30 The Judiciary
Chp. 14
12/2 Exam 3
12/7 Economic and Environmental Policy
Chp. 15
12/ 9 Welfare and Education Policy
Chp. 16
12/14 Foreign and Defense Policy
Chp. 17
12/17 Exam 4