Office Hours: Tu 9-10am, 2-4pm;
Th 9-10am, 4-5pm; or by appointment.
tcarney@sou.edu
Web page: http://www.sou.edu/history/carney/
Hst 455 will be conducted as a colloquium course. Students will read and exhaustively
discuss major works in the history of colonial Anglo-America. Readings will be divided
between the three major sections of colonial America, and students will write response papers
on the readings.
The goals of Hst 455 are to:
1. Prepare students bound for teaching careers, service as public historians, graduate
schools, or educated life in general by providing them with a solid foundation of
knowledge and understanding of the history of colonial America.
2. Build the intellectual capacities of students by encouraging critical thinking and
analysis, making them more fit for whatever career or life they may choose.
3. Improve student abilities to search for and find valid sources of information and
knowledge through both printed and electronic media.
4. Enhance the writing skills of students by offering them opportunities to write and
receive professional feedback on what they have written.
5. Acquaint students (especially younger students) with the standards and expectations
of the professional world.
Course Materials.
The following are available at the SOU Bookstore:
Rutman and Rutman, A Place in Time
Morgan, The Puritan Dilemma
Wood, Black Majority
Franklin, The Autobiography
Specific reading assignments will be given in class meetings. If you miss a meeting,
ask another class member to the professor.
In addition to specific materials assigned in this syllabus or in course meetings, the
professor encourages the use of the SOSC library. Of particular value are the following
reference items:
Dictionary of American History (8 Vols., 1978)
Encyclopedia of American History, Richard B. Morris, ed. (1982)
The Oxford Companion to American History (1960)
The Reader's Companion to American History, Eric Foner and John A. Garraty,
eds. (1991)
Dictionary of American Biography (30 Vols.)
Other materials and books on specific topics in early American history can be found in the
RogueLinx catalog under subject "United States--History" or under more specific subject
headings. See a reference librarian or the professor for assistance.
Response Papers. Students will prepare three 1000 word essays in response to the course
readings. The specific topics for these papers will be announced in class. These papers will
be in lieu of a midterm examination.
Grading. Final letter grades will be computed based on the following:
Response essays 50 pts each
Final exam 200 pts
Discussion 100 pts
Improvement demonstrated throughout the term will be strongly considered in determining
final letter grade. Grades will also be based on the meaning of those letters as indicated in the
Winter Term Class Schedule:
A = Exceptional accomplishment
B = Superior
C = Average
D = Inferior
F = Failed
Pluses and minuses will be used to further refine the grading. Please understand that high
grades are earned not given. You build your grade from the bottom up rather than being
"marked off" from the top down. A student's "usual" grades in other courses have no bearing
on his or her grades in this course. Likewise, grades one student receives have no bearing on
grades assigned to another.
No grade better than a "B" will be given for work that does not represent
exceptional scholarly achievement.
Grades are one of the ways in which student work at the university will be recognized
and rewarded in the "real" world. Job and career opportunities will depend upon good grades
as evidence of accomplishment and the ability to work towards goals. Students are advised
that though the professor takes grades very seriously for this reason, he nevertheless considers
them to be of little importance compared to learning and thinking about American history,
culture, and civilization.
Office Hours: In spite of the fact that students are often regimented and treated en mass, the
professor believes that, in essence, a student and a professor must relate as individuals. Given
the nature of American universities this is often difficult. For this reason, the professor
encourages each student to take advantage of listed office hours. Office hour times are listed
at the top of the first page of this syllabus. If you cannot meet during posted times, see the
professor for an appointment. Please note that the professor will not answer his office phone
during posted hours so as not to interrupt students who have come for a conference or tutorial.
If you must phone during those times, please leave a message on the answering system.
Other Items of Note:
1. Lectures and other course meetings are open only to students who are properly
registered in Hst 455. It is the responsibility of each student to verify such registration.
No unregistered person will be allowed to attend lectures or other course meetings
without the written consent of the professor unless the meeting has been announced as
open to the public.
2. Lectures are provided for instructional purposes only and remain the intellectual
property of the professor. Other uses are prohibited. Lecture material is covered by
copyright (Title 17 U.S. Code).
3. Lectures and other course meetings may not be tape recorded without the professor's
written consent.
4. Students are expected to adhere to all the rules and regulations of Southern Oregon
University regarding conduct and academic honesty. See Student Handbook and Fall
Term Schedule.
5. Students must take care to avoid plagiarism (copying the words or ideas of others
without giving proper credit to make them seem as if they are one's own). The best
way to avoid plagiarism is to put everything in your own words. You may quote
others, but you must surround their words with quote marks (or set them off in an
indented block), and you must indicate the source of the quote. Quotes should be
short, and they should be of such a character that rephrasing in one's own words would
do injustice to the sense, significance, or impact of the projected quote. Plagiarism is a
form of academic dishonesty and will not be tolerated.
6. All assignments must be submitted before a grade can be issued for the course.
Students do not have the option of failing to complete an assignment for a lesser grade.