History 219: Illinois and Local History
Course Syllabus
Fall 2009
William
Rainey Harper College
Thursdays
2:00-4:40 PM
Room J159
Instructor: James A. Edstrom
Office: F146
Phone: (847) 925-6763
email: jedstrom@harpercollege.edu
Fax: (847) 925-6037
Course
website: http://www.harpercollege.edu/~jedstrom
There are three primary objectives associated with this
course. The overall course objective is to familiarize students with the
pivotal social, political and economic events in the history of Illinois from
prehistory down to the present day. Secondly, the course seeks to sharpen
students' critical thinking and writing skills. Students are expected to
learn to make connections between specific historical events and long-term
historical trends and express their observations clearly in written form.
Finally, the course will reinforce the methods, sources, and interpretations of
historical research. Students will explore questions and problems with historical
interpretations in written assignments and class discussions.
Biles, Roger. Illinois: A History of the Land and Its People. DeKalb, Ill.:
Northern Illinois University Press, c2005. (0-87580-604-X)
Buisseret, David. Historic
Illinois from the Air.
Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1990. (0-226-07989-9)
There will also be additional article readings available on
Reserve in the Library and through BlackBoard.
The final grade will be determined by the weighted average of
assignments plus a class participation grade. The coursework will consist
of 3 quizzes, 2 primary source essays, 1 longer research paper and three exams
for a total of 500 possible points. Active contributions to designated
class discussion assignments will determine the class participation
grade. Each assignment counts as a percentage of your final grade, as
listed below:
Research paper 100 points
Primary source essays (2) 50
points (25 points each)
Quizzes 50
points
Exam #1 (covering August 30-September 20) 75 points
Exam #2 (covering October 4-25) 75 points
Final Exam (covering November 8-December 13) 100 points
Class Participation 50
points
Final Grade 500
points
Students will receive specific information on the papers in
class. Exams will be multiple choice, short answer and essay
questions. A review sheet will be handed out one week before the exams.
All
course documents are posted on Blackboard at http://harper.blackboard.com. This includes the assignments and the lecture
outlines. I will also post exam study
guides one week before each exam.
On the dates indicated, you will hand in a two-page essay
summarizing and analyzing a primary source from any time in Illinois history.
There will be 3 unannounced quizzes at the beginning of a
class period. The quizzes will be open-notes, but not open
book. Make-up quizzes are not given except in special cases.
In general, if you arrive late for a class when a quiz was scheduled, you
missed the quiz.
There will be a number of opportunities for extra credit that will
be made available throughout the semester. I am open to proposals that
you may have for extra credit. In these instances, you will need to meet
with me and make the arrangements beforehand, including the precise amount of
credit that the project will be worth. Extra credit should not be
depended upon as a substitute for any missed work in the normal course of the
semester (quizzes, exams, papers, etc.).
Papers submitted by the next class period after it was due are
subject to being graded with a 10% deduction. Late work will not be
accepted after the class period following the original due date without prior
approval from the instructor. If you have a valid reason for needing an
extension, please communicate your need to me early. Make-up exams
will NOT be given without valid documentation.
Grades will be determined using the following scale. Keep in
mind that Harper College does not use the minus grades (A-, B-, C-, etc) on
report cards or transcripts.
91-100 A
90 A-
81-89 B
80 B-
71-79 C
70 C-
61-69 D
60 D-
0-59 F
Although students are not graded on their attendance, regular
attendance is expected. Students are responsible for all information
presented in every class session. Repeated absences will seriously hurt
students' performance on examinations and written assignments.
Additionally, students will be regularly called upon during class lectures to
provide their own insight and analysis. There will be no late work
accepted for missed class participation assignments. Make-up exams
are practically non-existent. Students who miss a scheduled exam must
make arrangements with the instructor in advance or have an approved written
excuse in order to take a late exam. If you will miss significant class
time due to illness or a major emergency, contact the instructor as soon as
possible to make the proper arrangements. Approximately one week prior to
each exam, I will distribute a study guide. I will only distribute the
study guide during that one class period.
According to Harper College’s Academic Honesty Policy, “Academic
dishonesty includes cheating, plagiarism or other improper appropriation of
another’s work as one’s own and falsifying records to advance one’s academic
standing… Any form of academic dishonesty as defined by the faculty member or
department is a serious offense requiring disciplinary measures.
Discipline for academic dishonesty involving a specific course shall be first
determined by the instructor of the course and may include failure of the
specific assignment, project, or test or failure of the course.” In other
words, it’s not worth it. If you have any questions about what
constitutes academic dishonesty, ask me or any professor on campus.
Observing a few common sense rules will make everyone’s
educational experience more enjoyable and productive. The following is a
list of some of the expectations I have for participating in this class.
If you anticipate any difficulty following these rules, please see me after
class.
1) Turn
off cell phones and pagers in class.
2) Respect the recognized speaker, whether it
is the instructor, another student, a movie, etc. You do not have to
agree with what is being said and you will have an opportunity to express your
point of view, provided it is done with respect towards the rest of the class.
3) When in
class, pay attention and participate. If you need to read the paper,
write letters, talk to friends, paint your nails, listen to headphones, etc.,
don’t come to class.
4) Coming
late to class is disruptive to the instructor and the class. While
sometimes being a little late cannot be helped, repeated tardiness is
unacceptable.
5) When
sending email, be sure to include your full name and class number so I know who
I am communicating with. Also, there are a few times when I will accept
assignments submitted via email. If you want to submit an assignment via
email, you must discuss it with me first. It is simply not practical
for me to accept every assignment via email. I cannot be responsible
for any formatting errors that may occur. Harper College uses Microsoft
Word 2000 as its word processing program. If you contact me via email, be
sure to use the correct email address listed on the front page.
6) I will
only write letters of recommendation for students who are earning either an “A”
or “B” and have regularly attended class and participated in class discussions.
If you have any type of disability that will require some form of
accommodation (scribe, test reader, etc.), please see the instructor after
class or during office hours to make the necessary arrangements or you can
contact the Harper College Access and Disabilities Center directly at
925-6266. The sooner you make such arrangements, the easier it will be to
make any accommodations.
Office hours: By appointment. You may call or e-mail
me to schedule a meeting.
Session 1: August
27th
Illinois Geography and Geology
Native American Cultures in Illinois
Use of the Harper College Library
Session 2: September
3rd
The French Incursion into Illinois
British Rule and the War of Independence
The Northwest Ordinance
Session 3: September
10th
The Territorial Period and Early Statehood
Session 4: September
17th
The First Constitution of Illinois
The Early Development and Rise of Chicago
Construction of the Illinois‑Michigan
Canal
Session 5: September
24th
The Early Years of Statehood, 1818-1860
The Ambivalent Status of African‑Americans
in Illinois
Elijah P. Lovejoy
Primary Source Essay #1 Due!
Session 6: October
1st
Exam #1 (covering August 27-September 17)
Session
7: October 8th
Joseph Smith and the Mormons
The Coming of the Railroad
The Constitution of 1848
Session 8: October
15th
Illinois during the 1850s
Abraham Lincoln and Stephen A. Douglas
Illinois in the Civil War
Session 9: October
22nd
Repeal of the “Black Code"
The Constitution of 1870
The Rise of the Industrial State
The Great Chicago Fire of 1871
Session 10: October
29tht
Exam #2 (covering September 24th and October 8th-October 22nd)
Session 11: November
5th
The Rise of New Immigrant Groups
Labor Movements: The Haymarket Riot of
1886 and the Pullman Strike of 1894
Rising Influence of Women as Reformers
Draft proposal for research paper
due!
Session 12: November
12th
Chicago Politics at the Turn of the Century
The Columbian Exposition of 1893
Primary Source Essay #2 Due!
Session 13: November
19th
The Great Migration: The New Movement
of African‑Americans to Illinois
Illinois during World War I
Social Turmoil after the War: The
"Red Scare” and Race Riots of 1919
Prohibition and the Rise of Organized Crime
"Bloody Williamson" and the
Resurgence of the Ku Klux Klan in Illinois
November
26th: Thanksgiving—No class!
Session
14: December 3rd
Illinois during the Depression
Illinois during World War II
Session 15: December
10th
Final Research Paper Due!
The Postwar Rise of the Suburbs
Richard J. Daley and the Democratic Machine
Racial and Political Turmoil of the 1960s
Constitution of 1970 and Aftermath
Session 16: December 17th
Final Exam (covering November
5-December 10)
Last updated August 21, 2009
Copyright 2004-2009 by James A. Edstrom