POLS 3360 - Congress
Online Course

COURSE REQUIREMENT: Access to communication between the instructor and students
will require use of CSU email: The instructor will only respond to CSU email messages from
students. Go to: http://thehub.clayton.edu and click "Service" for information on configuring your
laptop computer to comply with CSU IT requirements. You MUST have your laptop computer
configured to access CSU email. You will need to take your laptop computer to The HUB, located
on the ground level of the University Center. You should have your computer configured and set
up for CSU email BEFORE classes begin, or as soon as possible there after. The HUB is located
in the University Center, or contact the HUB at 678-466-4357.    

See: on-campus orientation & examination dates later in this syllabus.

NOTE: This course uses GeorgiaView, accessible through the CSU Swan,
to view the course syllabus, and exam scores and grades.

This syllabus will be updated each semester the course is offered.
 

Prof. J. S. Trachtenberg
Clayton State University
Three Semester Credit Hours
Fall Semester 2010

Course Description: POLS 3360 - The U.S. Congress (3-0-3) The U.S. Congress and the Legislative Process presents an in-depth treatment of the origins, development, operation of the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives. This is a course designed primarily for political science and other Department of Social Sciences majors with 60 or more credit hours towards their degree.

Prerequisites: POLS 1101.

Attendance Policy: Attendance will be taken each class session. This class will meet on the CSU campus only 1 time for course orientation. Therefore, it is essential that ALL students attend the course on-campus orientation. Please make an effort to be on time.

CSU Attendance Policy: Students are expected to attend and participate in every class meeting. Instructors establish specific policies relating to absences in their courses and communicate these policies to the students through the course syllabi. Individual instructors, based upon the nature of the course, determine what effect excused and unexcused absences have in determining grades and upon students' ability to remain enrolled in their courses. The university reserves the right to determine that excessive absences, whether justified or not are sufficient cause for institutional withdrawals or failing grades.

Course Computer Usage: A CSU configured notebook computer is required for this course. Students will use their laptop computer to receive and send course related email from and to the instructor, access GeorgiaView, course web pages for examination study, write examinations in class, and receive examination results from the instructor.

Required Computer Skills:

• Able to use the Windows operating system
• Able to use Microsoft Word word processing
• Able to send and receive CSU e-mail using Outlook or Outlook Express
• Able to attach and retrieve attached files via email
• Able to use a Web browser.

• Students must abide by policies in the CSU Catalog & Student Handbook.
   

• Disruption of the Learning Environment:

  Behavior which disrupts the teaching–learning process during class activities will not tolerated.  This includes belligerent, abusive, profane, and/or threatening behavior.  A student who fails to respond to reasonable faculty direction regarding classroom behavior and/or behavior while participating
  in classroom activities may be dismissed from class.  A student who is dismissed is entitled to due process and will be afforded such rights as soon as possible following dismissal.  If found in violation, a student may be administratively withdrawn and may receive a grade of F.

http://a-s.clayton.edu/DisruptiveClassroomBehavior.htm

Click on this link  to read the Clayton State University

Basic Undergraduate Student Responsibilities Statement.
 

• The instructor and students will treat each other with the proper respect at all times.
   

• Children are NOT permitted in any CSU classroom under any circumstances, nor may they be left unattended anywhere on campus.
   

• There will be no use of cell phones in the classroom - please turn your phone to "vibrate" or off.
   

• If you come late to class, please take the first available seat nearest the door.
   

• If you must leave class early, please inform the instructor before class begins.
   

• There will be no talking among students that disturbs the instructor or the class.
   

• Cheating Will Not Be Tolerated, And Will Be Dealt With In Keeping With The CSU Conduct Code.

CSU Conduct Code and Judicial Procedures.

Withdrawals and Incompletes: Students may wish to review college policy regarding course withdrawals and incompletes in the CSU catalog. Do not hesitate to speak with me, or your advisor, if you need information relating to a course withdrawal or an incomplete.

The Fall Semester 2010 deadline to withdraw from a Full Session course without possible academic accountability is Friday, October 5th.

Disabilities: Individuals with disabilities who need to request accommodations should contact the Disability Services Coordinator, Student Center 255, 678-466-5445, disabilityservices@mail.clayton.edu.

Civic Engagement:
Civic Engagement at Clayton State University is defined as an intentional learning experience that contributes to a student’s understanding of social and civic responsibility, community leadership, and service to a diverse, democratic society. Civic Engagement outcomes are located at the Political Science Program website:
http://a-s.clayton.edu/politicalscience/default.htm

Political Science Degree Program Outcomes and Assessments:

Outcomes: Graduating political science majors should

·       Apply concepts related to the structures and principles of the U.S. Constitution to historical and current politics.

·       Explain and criticize U.S. political institutions and processes.

·       Define and distinguish how aspects of the Georgia Constitution and government differ from the U.S. Constitution and government.

·       Assess and compare how other national political systems and   international political organizations differ from the U.S. political system and recognize the importance of political geography.

·       Research and compose a project report in a subfield of political science.

·       Successfully complete a political science related internship.    

Assessments:

·       POLS 1101 pre and post assessment surveys & geography tests
 

·       POLS 4490/POLS 4491 Internship/Practicum Site Supervisor Evaluation
 

·       POLS 4500 Senior Seminar research paper
 

·       POLS 4500 Senior Political Science Program Exit Survey
 

·       ETS Political Science Field Test taken by graduating seniors

Course Expectations:
1. Attend all on-campus course orientation;
2. Complete all required textbook reading assignments;
3. Take the two course essay examinations;
4. Earn a total number of points equal to a passing grade.

Grading: There are 300 possible course points in this course. Course grades will be determined on the basis of a straight 300 point scale, with total points earned (NOT a percentage of points earned on each examination equaling a letter grade on each exam) on the two essay exams determining your course grade. For example, if you loose more than 30 points, you will be in the B range, or if you loose more than 60 points, you will be in the C range, etc. At the end of the class if you are within 3 points of a higher letter grade I will assign you that higher grade for the course.

Midterm Grades: A course midterm grade will be posted on the DUCK by midterm each semester. The midterm grade will only reflect the results of the first  of the two course examinations and in no way is a predictor of future performance or the letter grade a student may earn for the course at the end of the semester. In fact, a student who earns a B midterm grade actually has done so poorly on the first exam, loosing at least 30 points on that exam, that they have dropped a whole grade level before even taking the second exam. If you have questions, please contact the instructor.

A = 300 - 271 (30 point range)

B = 270 - 241 (30 point range)

C = 240 - 211 (30 point range)

D = 210 - 181  (30 point range)

F = 180 points or less

NOTE: Examination scores and course grades will be accessible via GAView. There are no bonus or extra credit assignments. Examination scores will not be curved. Grading will be further explained at orientation.

Essay Examinations: (300 possible points) Course grades will be determined by your performance on two essay examinations. The two examinations will be taken off-campus. The dates for these two essay examinations are provided later in the syllabus. Additional examination details will be provided at course orientation and when the examinations are emailed to the class.

Each examination is worth 150 possible points. A total of 300 possible course points may be earned from the two essay examinations. The Course Outline Reading Assignments section of this syllabus lists the textbook chapters to be covered on each of the two examinations. You will be expected to study the assigned readings in preparation for each examination. Your essay question answers should exhibit proper grammar, syntax, spelling, successful application of critical thinking skills, your understanding of the assigned readings, and knowledge of relevant history and current political events. 

Approximately two weeks prior to each examination the instructor will email the class possible essay study questions drawn from the assigned textbook chapters.  A week prior to the examination due date the actual essay examination will be mailed to the class and accessible at a link in this syllabus. You will not come to campus to take the two essay examinations; you will email them to me (joetrachtenberg@clayton.edu) as a Word formatted attachment no later than 1:00 p.m. on each examination due date. You may use the textbook and your research notes in answering the assigned essay examination question. You will be expected to include a separate references page at the end of your essay examination. Examination scores, midterm grades and course grades will be accessible via GAView. Essay examination dates are listed later in this syllabus. Please contact the instructor with any questions.

ESSAY EXAMINATION ONE: to be posted

ESSAY EXAMINATION TWO/FINAL: to be posted

Essay Examinations:

 NOTE: Sample essay examination questions from other similar courses are provided at the end of this syllabus.

Missed Examinations: You may not make up a missed examination. If you cannot provide your examination to the instructor by the due date (See exam due dates later in the syllabus.), please mail him to discuss the matter as soon as you become aware that there is a problem. Examination scores will not be curved. Please feel free to contact the instructor with any questions you may have regarding this policy.

Required Course Textbook: (Available in the CSU University Bookstore.)

Congress and Its Members 12th Edition, Davidson, Oleszek and Lee. CQ Press, 2009

Selective List of Websites for your use:
(The information displayed at these websites may interest you; this information is not be included in course examinations.)

For Information On Congress and the Political Parties:
United States Congress - Thomas Website

United States House of Representatives

United States Senate

Congress Link

Biographical Directory of the Congress

Democratic National Committee (Many related links are accessible from this website.)

Republican National Committee (Many related links are accessible from this website.)

Links to federal institutions, departments, agencies, and many related websites

For Election and Opinion Polling Results:
Polling Report: A compilation of surveys from a variety of sources on politics and public affairs.

Roper Center: Access to the main repository in the United States of public opinion polls. 

Pew Research Center for the People and the Press: Highly regarded, non-partisan opinion polls. 

CNN 2008 Election Information

CQ Politics Election 2008 Information

FOX News 2008 Election Information

The New York Times 2008 Election Information

The Online Newshour 2008 Election Information

The Votemaster 2008 Election Information

2008 Electoral Vote & Congressional Elections Predictor

2008 Election Exit Polling

Course Examination Reading Assignments
(Your course grade will be determined by these three examination scores;
there are no other assignments to prepare and turn in to the instructor.)

Do you need to review information on the Congress from POLS 1101?
Detailed Information on Congress

Power Point Lecture on Congress
 

POLS 3360 Congress Learning Objectives:

• Understand how the ways, structures, rules and processes of the U.S. Congress shape and constrain its outcomes

 

• Analyze elements which influence the opportunities and possibilities of any particular Congress.
   
• Explain how a bill becomes a law on the federal level.

 

• Learn how to access and use information about Congress.
   
• Demonstrate knowledge about some dimensions of how members of Congress interact with the President.
   
• Describe and discuss the role of political parties and political action groups in Congress.
   

First Examination Reading Assignments (Chapters 1 - 9):

Congress & Its Members:

Part I - In Search of the Two Congresses

Chapter 1: The Two Congresses

Chapter 2: Evolution of the Modern Congress

Part II - A Congress of Ambassadors

Chapter 3: Going for It: Recruitment and Candidacy

Chapter 4: Making It: The Electoral Game

Chapter 5: Being There: Hill Styles and Home Styles

Part III - A Deliberative Assembly of One Nation

Chapter 6: Leaders and Parties in Congress

Chapter 7: Committees: Workshops of the Congress

Chapter 8: Congressional Rules and Procedures

Chapter 9: Deliberation in Congress

First Examination - 150 possible points

Second/Final Examination Reading Assignments (Chapter 10 - 16):

Part IV - Policy Making and Change in the Two Congresses

Chapter 10: Congress and the President

Chapter 11: Congress and the Bureaucracy

Chapter 12: Congress and the Courts

Chapter 13: Congress and Organized Interests

Chapter 14: Congress, Budgets, and Domestic Policymaking

Chapter 15: Congress and National Security Policies

Part V - Conclusion

Chapter 16: The Two Congresses and the American People
Second/Final Examination - 150 possible points: (The final examination is NOT cumulative.)

NOTE: This syllabus is subject to revision where necessary to achieve course goals. If you have any questions regarding assignments, class sessions, tests or grading please speak with me, or Dr. Rafik Mohamed, Chair, Department of Social Sciences, Clayton Hall, Room 111, 678-466-4605.
 

-IMPORTANT COURSE INFORMATION-

-PLEASE READ CAREFULLY-

Dr. Joseph S. Trachtenberg

Professor of Political Science

Homepage website: http://www.a-s.clayton.edu/trachtenberg

Office Telephone (voice mail): (678) 466-4810

joetrachtenberg@clayton.edu
(Use for private email intended only for the instructor.)

I prefer email to voice mail as both you and I may provide a more detailed message;
I check my email regularly Monday through Friday.

Generally, I will respond to your CSU email message within 24 hours or less.

COURSE LIST SERVE ADDRESSES:

Congress - POLS 3360 Online Course

Fall Semester 2010:

POLS3360-90Fall10@lists.clayton.edu

POLS 3360-91 CRN: 87849

(List serve addresses are activated the first day of each semester.)

OFFICE HOURS

Office: Clayton Hall, Room 105A

Fall Semester 2010
MTWR:11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.;
Online course meeting dates: Sat: 8:30 to 9:00 a.m. and following class; 
By prior appointment at other mutually convenient times.

For campus closing information due to weather or an electrical outage - tune to WSB AM 750.

_____________________________________________________________________

Sample Essay Examination Instructions & Questions From Other Upper Level POLS Courses

Prof. Trachtenberg 
Clayton State University                                                                 
POLS 4500 Senior Seminar
Spring Semester 2008                                                                         
Research Essay Final Examination

Instructions: 
     Your examination will be prepared outside of class and emailed to the instructor by 2:30 p.m., Tuesday, May 1st as a Word formatted attachment. The instructor will reply to your email verifying that your exam has been received; if you do not receive a reply within 24 hours, it is likely your examination was not received. Essay examinations will be double-spaced, using the 12 point Times Roman font. Include as your first page a title page with your name, the course name and number, the examination number, and the date submitted. Restate the examination question above your typed answer at the top of page two. Provide a list of all “Resources” used and, or referred to and, or quoted on a separate last page of the essay. Your scored examination will be returned to you by email. Class will NOT meet on the examination due date.
     While points will not specifically deduct points for grammar, syntax or spelling mistakes, remember, common sense dictates that a well written (i.e. correct grammar, punctuation, spelling, syntax, and clarity of meaning), logically organized, detailed, analytical essay, providing an in-depth treatment of the topic will earn more points than a short, poorly written, superficial treatment of the same subject.  How long of an answer should you provide? If you have dealt clearly, effectively and fully with all aspects of the question asked, the answer should be sufficient - approximately 3-5 pages double spaced, plus the references page.

     Assume the instructor knows very little or nothing specifically about your chosen issue or problem. The facts and explanations provided in your essay will show how well you understand the topic and its complexities. A strong essay may include information from the textbook, but it will rely principally on the use of outside primary and secondary resource materials, provide accurate in depth factual information, the opinions of recognized scholars and other experts, and your own objective logical analysis and conclusions regarding the topic. Think about and explain the factual situation and concepts involved. Do not simply quote from and paraphrase the source materials you have identified in your research. Of course, the inclusion of relevant historical and recurrent events will strengthen your essay considerably.

Resources:
     A list of the online and hardcopy resources used in the research and composition of this essay examination on a separate last page of the essay. Each cited resource listed will include the name/s of the author/s, article title, publication or website name, date, and, or Internet address (if an online resource). Please do not list the course textbook as a resource; I will assume you have made use of it.

Examination Question: (150 possible points)
(A reminder: all of the work on this examination will be yours alone.)
     For your final examination essay consider how the states and the federal government might revise the presidential nomination caucus and primary process to make them more directly reflective of each party’s point of view, and in the case of the general election, the popular vote. Provide details, statistics, quotes and analysis of the information you include in your discussion. If a particular solution appears more promising than others, indicate which one and explain why this is so.

Remember, the more detailed your documentation (use of quotes, statistics and other relevant supporting information), both within your essay discussion of the problem and the list of references, the better.

Other Sample Essay Examination Questions:

Part One:  Regarding the three principle institutions of the federal government: the Congress, the Presidency, or the Supreme Court, research and then describe the policy making process that is employed to propose and/or develop public policy in one of the following circumstances:

 One, annual consideration by Congress of the federal budget;
Two, Executive Branch preparation of the federal budget for consideration by the Congress; 
Three, the U.S. Supreme Court procedures for accepting cases on appeal, preparing for and conducting oral argument in a case, and development of the majority opinion in a case. 

If you find it helpful, you may compose a diagram of the policy making process you are describing.

Part Two: Whichever of the three processes you have described, critique the process to identify its strengths and weaknesses, and finally, where you have found weaknesses, suggest changes that would improve that policy making process.

____________________________________________

Summarize the presidential election process. What do the experts suggest should be done to reform the presidential election process to ensure that the will of the voting public – the popular vote for President - is accurately reflected in the Electoral College vote?

Michael Genovese states on page 33: “There is not one great leader, not one good leader, and barely an above average leader in the lot.” What personal characteristics, qualities, talents and strengths must combine to make a “great president”?

_________________________________________________ 

Compare and contrast the presidency described in Article II the U.S. Constitution with the modern institution of the Presidency.

Summarize the presidential election process. What do the experts suggest should be done to reform the presidential election process to ensure that the will of the voting public – the popular vote for President - is accurately reflected in the Electoral College vote?

Discuss how the role of the White House staff has evolved from one presidency to another beginning with the presidency of Franklin Roosevelt and extending to the presidency of George W. Bush. As you prepare for the exam, watch a few episodes of  “The West Wing” television drama on NBC or BRAVO; compare and contrast how the presidential staff of the “West Wing” series illustrates the role played by staff in the White House.

Michael Genovese states on page 33: “There is not one great leader, not one good leader, and barely an above average leader in the lot.” What personal characteristics, qualities, talents and strengths must combine to make a “great president”?

 _____________________________________________________

 1. Explain how power, influence, authority, legitimacy and linkage collectively provide the means to control the acts of others and achieve your own particular political objectives.

2. Compare and contrast liberalism, conservatism and socialism

3. How does a nation’s type of political system influence its choice of economic systems - Answer this question in terms of the U.S. and capitalism.

4. Define "socialization" a then explain the role of each of these five agents plays in the human learning process: family, school, peers, news media and political events.

5. In this unit of the course we have considered  individual behavior, interest groups, political parties, the legislative branch, the executive branch and the judiciary. You are to apply what you have learned about these political entities, in conjunction with what your internet research can provide, first, to a succinct, chronological description, and, second, a detailed analysis of the evolving political and legal developments of the past three or more years relating to the Ms. Paula Jones - President Bill Clinton political scandal, and sexual harassment civil case, which is scheduled to go to trial in federal district court on May 29, 1998, in Little Rock, Arkansas. Be sure to include in your response the specific roles played by these six political entities at various points in the evolving scandal and case. While the description is important, the quality and depth of analysis will indicate an understanding of concepts. Keep in mind that you are expected to remain politically objective. By this point in your political education you probably understand that any political scandal, especially one focusing on the president, takes on a life of its own, with various entities becoming involved primarily to advance their own political objectives.

Make as strong a case as you can for the United Nations as an effective keeper of World peace, and then as strong a case as you can against the United Nations as an ineffective keeper of World peace. Use the UN’s handling of the on going Iraqi – Security Council presidential site inspection controversy as the basis for your analysis.