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POL 201 (ONLINE COURSE) Introduction to Political Science and American Government
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Overview
There is no on-campus or online orientation associated with this course. There is a general online orientation offered through Cerritos College that you may want to take if this is your first online course. You will find the general online orientation at www.cerritos.edu/de/. If you are already familiar with online education courses at Cerritos College, then you are ready to get started in this course by thoroughly reading the syllabus. Everything you need to know about getting started and what to expect throughout the term can be found in the syllabus (see below).
Syllabus
In the course of this semester we will contrast democratic ideals with American politics, discussing the extent to which the U.S. is realizing or not realizing these ideals. In carrying out this task, we will analyze the American public, five major American political institutions (the mass media, political parties, interest groups, elections, and public opinion polling), the three American governing institutions (the executive, legislative and judicial branches). Course GoalsI have structured this course with some specific instructional goals in mind. Through this course, it is my hope that students gain:
The text you will be using for this course is American Government Continuity and Change, 9th Edition, by Karen O'Connor and Larry J. Sabato. The book is available through the Cerritos College Bookstore and is required for the course.
You are also required to purchase access to Mypoliscilab 2.0 CourseCompass (MPSL) for this course. MPSL is the online supplement associated with the text and holds additional content that is required throughout the term.
You may purchase used copies of the text; however, you must purchase a unique (new) Mypoliscilab booklet for the course. I recommend that you look for a shrink-wrapped package in the bookstore. A shrink-wrapped package includes the book and the Mypoliscilab booklet in one unit. Make sure you purchase a new MyPoliSciLab booklet. A used one that has already been registered will not work again.To save some money, the Government in America text including all Mypoliscilab content can be purchased as an e-book at almost half the price of the traditional hard copy book. This can be purchased online at http://www.ablongman.com/mypoliscilab/first-time-students-cc.html. Click on "I need to buy access" and follow the instructions from their if you want to purchase the e-book. Note: you will need the course ID number (reece19665) and you will NOT be purchasing a physical copy of the book. With the e-book, you will need to read the text online or print it out on your own printer.
All written materials submitted in digital format (e.g., emailed attachments) must be submitted in Microsoft Office Word OR Rich Text format.
Students are required to have access to a computer with an Internet connection and multimedia capabilities. You must be able to go online with the computer and watch or listen to streaming media files. A significant amount of work in this class will be done online. You may use the campus computers available to students in various computing labs (e.g., Computer Assisted Instruction Lab) or any other computer (work computer, home computer, etc.). If you plan to use campus computers, you will need to purchase headphones in order to hear audio and video files.
Students must also have an email account to complete this course. If you do not already have an account, you can get a free email account through online services such as Hotmail and Yahoo (see www.hotmail.com or www.yahoo.com).
Your final grade in this course will be based on the following:
Chapter Readings Each week you will be required to read from the text and take a corresponding chapter exams online. Once you have purchased the required text and corresponding Mypoliscilab booklet, you will have all the materials you need to complete this course.
Videos and Activities Each week you will be required to watch at least one video and complete at least one online activity. Each will have a corresponding quiz online.
PoliSci News Review Each week you will be required to read the PoliSci News Review. This is a summary of the news posted to mypoliscilab each week. You will also be required to take the corresponding online quiz each week.
Essay OR Video Production Assignment You may choose between the essay assignment or the video production assignment (MyDemocracy Project). Both assignments due date on April 4, 2008.
Discussion Forum You are required to post at least two comments in each course discussion forum. I will be posting discussion questions on a regular basis. You can reply to my discussion questions directly or reply to other student comments. You will be graded on the frequency and quality of your submissions. For full credit, you must post two comments per module that are thoughtful and grammatically correct. For full credit, each post should be 3-4 sentences.
Weighting of Exams and Assignments
Calculating Your Grade
To calculate or track your performance in this course, use the following formula:
Add all the points together. If you have 90 of more points, you will receive an A in the course. If you have 80 or more, you will receive a B. If you have 70 or more, you will receive a C. If you have 60 or more, you will receive a D. If you have less than 60 points, you will fail the course.
Registering and Navigating Mypoliscilab
The Mypoliscilab booklet comes with comprehensive registration and navigation instructions. To register for this course you need to use the Course ID # of reece19665. All other information regarding navigation can be found in the Student Starter Kit that comes with Mypoliscilab. The starter kit will tell you how to find and use all online resources. Look specifically for information related to:
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