POLITICAL SCIENCE 1014
Introduction to U.S. Government and Politics - Fall Semester, 2008

TEST ANSWERS

koofers

lecture notes

Instructor:
Dr. Charles Walcott
528 Major Williams                                                                                                      
Office Hours:  MWF 11-12; T 10:30-12
Office Phone: 231-5491                                                                                             
e-mail:  cwalcott@vt.edu

Teaching Assistants:

Miranda Canody, 510 Major Williams;  Hours: MTW 1-2  e-mail mcanody@vt.edu
Jason Johnson, 512 Major Williams;  Hours: MWTh 4-5  e-mail jwjohns@vt.edu

Required Books:                                                                                                  

Theodore J. Lowi, Benjamin Ginsberg and Kenneth A. Shepsle, American Government: Power and Purpose, Brief Tenth Edition
Norton American Politics Online Reader -- accessible on the web with password included in new editions of the Lowi text

Course Organization:
There will be lectures each Monday and Wednesday, except when there are exams. Lecture material will not simply repeat what is in your books, though it will be related.  Both reading and lectures will be covered on all exams, in roughly equal proportions. Of course, many important matters will be covered in both.

Assignments and Grading
Your course grade will consist of three midterm exams, a final exam, and a short analytical essay on a topic provided by your instructor.  Each student must write one analytical essay.  If a student writes more than one, the highest grade will count. 

Each midterm exam will be worth 40 points (20% of your grade). The essay will be worth 30 points, and the final exam will be worth 50 points.  All exams will consist entirely of multiple-choice questions.  Some of the questions on the final will repeat or closely resemble questions from the midterms.

In addition, up to three 4-point extra-credit topics will be offered at different points during the semester.  These will be announced during lectures.  Two-to-three page essays on these topics will be due at the beginning of the next class period.  There will be no advance notice of these extra-credit opportunities, and no make-ups.  They may involve current events in U.S. politics, or they may revolve around speakers here on campus. Extra credit points will simply be added to your total, as if you had gotten a few more exam questions right.  They will not change the grading scale.

For the course as a whole, the grading scale will be as follows:
A  = 180 points & up        B   = 160-170        C  =  140-150        D  = 120-130
A- = 176-179                   B-  = 156-159       C- =  136-139        D- = 116-119
B+ = 171-175                  C+ = 151-155        D+ = 131-135        F  = 115 & below

Admonitions:
We expect that you will take all exams at the scheduled time.  If you cannot, and can present written evidence of a legitimate excuse, a make-up will be arranged.  Legitimate excuses include illness and University-sponsored, extra-curricular activities.  They do not include a desire to attend a relative’s birthday party or to spend a little more time at home.  When in doubt, please ask in advance.
All make-up exams will be short-answer in format and will cover the same material as the exam that was missed. 

We will make every effort to accommodate students with disabilities. Please see Prof. Walcott if you need to make such arrangements.

The Virginia Tech Honor Code is in effect throughout this course.

Course Outline:
Note: all exams will be in McBryde 100

It is best to do the indicated readings before the lecture, or immediately afterward, so the readings and lectures can reinforce one another.

August 25  -  Introduction to the Course (no reading)

August 27  -  Politics, Values & Culture (read Lowi, ch. 1; Hardin, "The Tragedy of the Commons" in OR)

Sept. 2-8  - The Founding and the Constitution (read Lowi ch. 2; Federalist 10 & 51, Brutus 6 in OR)

Sept. 10-15  -  Federalism (read Lowi, ch. 3; McCulloch v. Maryland and Gibbons v. Ogden in OR.  Recommended: U.S. v. Morrison)

Sept. 17  -  Civil Liberties (read Lowi, ch. 4; Posner, "Not a Suicide Pact" in OR)

Sept. 22  -  Civil Rights (read Brown v. Board of Education in OR.  Recommended: Plessy v. Ferguson)

FIRST MIDTERM EXAM SEPTEMBER 24

Sept. 29 -Oct. 1  -  The Legislative Branch (read Lowi, ch. 5; David Mayhew, "Congress: The Electoral Connection" in OR)

Oct. 6-8 - The Presidency (read Lowi, ch. 6)

FIRST ANALYTICAL ESSAY DUE OCTOBER 13

Oct. 13-15 - The Executive Bureaucracy (read Lowi, ch. 7 ; James Q. Wilson, "Bureaucracies" in OR)

Oct. 20-22 - The Judicial Branch (read Lowi, ch. 8)

SECOND MIDTERM EXAM OCTOBER 27

Oct. 29-Nov. 3 - Elections (read Lowi, ch. 10; Donald Green and Alan Gerber, "Get out the Vote!" in OR)

Nov. 5-10 - Public Opinion and the Media (read Lowi, ch. 9; Tim Groseclose & Jeffrey Milyo, "A Measure of Media Bias: in OR)

Nov. 12 - Political Parties (read Lowi, ch. 11)

SECOND ANALYTICAL ESSAY DUE NOVEMBER 12

Nov. 17 - Interest Groups (read Lowi, ch 12)

THIRD MIDTERM EXAM NOVEMBER 19

Nov. 22-30   Thanksgiving Break

Dec. 1 - The Public Policy Process (read Lowi, ch. 13)

Dec. 3  - Welfare and Education (read Jacob S. Hacker, "The Divided Welfare State" in OR)

Dec. 8 - Economic Policy (read Jasmine Farrier, "Passing the Buck: Congress, the Budget, and Deficits" In OR)

Dec. 10   National Security Policy  (read Lowi, ch. 14; Daalder & Lindsay, "America Unbound: The Bush Revolution in Foreign Policy" in OR)

FINAL EXAM  December 15, 3:25 p.m.

The final exam will consist of roughly 20-25 questions from the readings and lectures since the third midterm. The rest will review earlier material.  Some will be repeats from prior exams.