Texas History, 3398W
San Jacinto, Spring
Day, by Van Jones 1986
Course Syllabus
Spring 2012
3 Semester Hours
12:30pm -1:50pm Tuesday-Thursday, crn 20095,
section 01
CHSS Room 120
6:00pm -8:40pm Tuesday, crn 22181, section 02
University center, room 121
Texas History 398 is a “W” course, which means that at least 50%
of your course grade will derive from writing activities designed to help you
master course objectives. Writing in this course is one of the tools your
instructor will use to help you learn course material. Some writing activities
will require you to draft and revise your work, with or without instructor
feedback. Others may not receive a grade but are designed to assist you in
critical reflection of the course material. You should approach writing in this
course as a tool to use a part of your learning as well as a tool your
instructor will use to assess your level of learning.
—posted per directive,
College of Humanities & Social Sciences
A Note of admonition
and fair Warning!!!
Everyone needs to see
this link
NOTE: Please know
that I reserve the right to make revisions to the syllabus.
Once the class
begins, if I find it necessary to make changes, I will try to notify you by
email and make those revisions in bold pink font.
Professor Ty Cashion (Ph.D. TCU, 1993)
Contact Info Office
AB4 463 Office phone
936-294-3835 email his_rtc@shsu.edu a
◊◊◊ If you call and fail to reach me by phone,
please send me an email—do not leave a voice message ◊◊◊
Office Hours 11:00am–12:30pm Tuesday
& Thursday (any time by appointment)
I will try and be available 30
minutes before and after class on Tuesday evenings for
students in section 02
I am always happy to meet with students and will try to
be available as my schedule allows.
Please know, however, that other duties and appointments may
occasionally take me away from the office during the posted times. Therefore, you would be wise to make
arrangements; otherwise, feel free to drop by anytime. Know, too, that I check my email account
regularly and answer all student correspondence with a valid university-issued
address.
email & Phone correspondence
Some days I receive more email messages than I am able to read,
but those I can tell are student-related will always get first priority. Use your university-issued email address
exclusively for all electronic correspondence between us. Instructions
for contacting me by email: 1) open SHSUonline; 2) go to “My Classes”: 3)
click on the link for this course; 4) on the menu bar and select “email”; 5) do
not type anything in the subject line [the SHSUonline default will alert me
that I have a message from a student in this class] 6) send me a message. Note: Be aware that there will be times when
I need to send information to the entire class via SHSUonline. Unless you are in the habit of communicating
through your university-issued address, you will find yourself out of the
loop. It is incumbent upon you to check
your email and make sure that you remain well informed. Feel free to call my office as well, but do
not expect me to respond to voice messages—I don’t play phone tag. If you get no response, please email me. If you have an emergency, please call our
department office; the number is 936-294-1475.
One
last note…never use the “digital drop
box!
Text/Reader/Monograph
Textbook Calvert, DeLeon, &
Cantrell, The History of Texas, 4th
ed. (hereafter “C&D”)
Reader Swanlund & Bane,
A Lone Star Reader (hereafter “LSR”)
Monograph Cashion, Sam Houston State
University: An Institutional Memory, 1879-2004 *
(*this book is available
online; see the link below the image of the dust jacket, below)
Course Objectives and
Instructional Method
Students will develop an understanding of the history, land, and
culture of Texas through lectures, text, readings, and film. Beyond a survey knowledge of Texas history,
students will learn to think critically, form opinions, and express themselves
clearly in class discussions and through written work.
Schedule of Activities and
Examinations
The pace and periodization
for this course is organized around the C&D textbook. As a matter of routine, you will be assigned
a chapter from the textbook each week.
Corresponding lectures will be delivered, and a reading from the LSR
will be assigned as well; occasionally you will have a virtual assignment
introducing readings and videos from the web.
Weekly examinations covering the
textbook, lectures, reader, and virtual assignments will be administered via Blackboard. The course grade will be
calculated on an averaged 100-point scale, contingent upon the volume and
quality of your written efforts. For a
detailed explanation as well as an assignment schedule, see the link, “Weekly
Reading & Assignments,” below.
Almost every week (specifically, 13) you will be responsible for
reading a selection from A Lone Star
Reader for which you will compose a synopsis/review of approximately 350
words (single-space, Times New Roman 12-point font). Except where noted on the syllabus, they will
be due no later than the Thursday after the exam covering the material. Please do not submit them as
attachments, via email; I’ve got two
sections of Texas history this semester and the volume of emails would bury me! Each paper will be graded either
“Acceptable,” “Needs Work,” or. “Unacceptable.”
“Acceptable” indicates that you have read and comprehended the material
at hand sufficiently, and you have summarized the thesis, conveyed the main
points, and suitably expressed your opinion.
“Needs Work” indicates that either you read the material, but not
thoroughly enough to understand it, or that you were incapable of expressing
yourself adequately. “Unacceptable”
simply indicates an unacceptable effort.
At the end of the semester I will make a final calculation. No student will receive an A in the course
who has not produced and submitted on time acceptable papers for at least 10 of
the 13 assignments; 8 of 13 for a B; 6 of 13 for a C. No student will pass the course who has not
submitted at least six of the assignments (although they will be accepted
late). For additional information, see
“Reader Guidelines” in the appropriate link below.
In addition to The History
of Texas and A Lone Star Reader,
you will have the option of reading Sam
Houston State University: An Institutional Memory, 1879-2004, for which you
may produce a book review for extra credit.
As current students and future alumni, I believe you will find it
relevant, and I hope you will enjoy it as well.
On March 22, students wanting to proceed must answer at least 15
questions correctly from a 20-question T/F, multiple-choice quiz that will test
your basic comprehension. (Please know
this is not a quiz for which you will have to prepare; simply reading the book
will assure a passing grade. I feel
impelled to do this, because it became apparent to me that too many students in
the past attempted to throw a review together without reading the book!) A first draft of the review will be due
anytime before April 5. The book review
will represent the curve for this course.
It will be worth a full letter grade.
To receive full credit, however, you must produce a well-written review
that follows the guidelines. See
“Important Links” below to access the book and to view the guidelines and
writing tips.
This course covers a lot of ground, and it moves rapidly. Harlan Davidson, your textbook publisher, has
made available a “Student E-Source Center” that includes outstanding review
material. The test bank for this book
will also be available as a reading check.
You may access this resource via SHSUonline. You will be well prepared for each exam if
you take advantage of these resources and take thorough lecture notes. NOTE: Do not confuse the “Student E-Source
Center” for the test bank!
EXAMS & Grading
Please see the “Weekly Reading & Assignments” schedule for a
detailed explanation of how the exams will be administered.
Your final course
grade will be calculated by taking an average of your exams, but will also be
subject to reader productivity as outlined above.
An important
admonition…
I bet that when you were a wee lad or lass, every one of your
mommas made sure you got yourself a “swimming buddy” before they allowed you to
head for the creek. A good one could
save you in case you started making “glub-glub” sounds. Taking college courses is much the same. You’d be wise to team up with one or two
folks whom you would trust to take notes for you when you miss class, help you
prepare for exams, and to give you assurance when you are not quite certain
about what’s going on. Otherwise, you’re
on your own… I will feel obligated to
disseminate information one time only.
If you are absent or late, the responsibility for obtaining information
is incumbent upon you. If I make changes
to the syllabus, I will try to notify you in class or by email and then make
the change in bold
pink.
IMPORTANT LINKS
Weekly Reading & Assignments HERE
Student
E-Source Center (Harlan Davidson) HERE
Do not confuse this site
for the test bank located in SHSUonline!
University Policies HERE
Attendance & Decorum HERE
Policy Regarding Use of Cell Phones &
Other Electronic Devices HERE
Guidelines for A Lone Star Reader HERE
Grammar, Usage, & Style Guide (for
reader and book review) HERE
Sam
Houston State University: An Institutional Memory
http://www.shsu.edu/~his_rtc/SHSU%20History%20online%20-%20Title%20Page.htm
Book
Review Guidelines HERE
Proofreading
Legend HERE
NOW, FOR SOME LINKS OF FUN & INTEREST
Click
on the stars (µ) to go to some great Texas sites!
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Lone Star Internet, Inc. |
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& Archives |
Cultures |
Houghton Mifflin Company |
The Project |
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