Department of History
State University of New York
College at Plattsburgh
HISTORY 303: HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN WOMAN
SPRING 2002
COURSE SYLLABUS
Instructor: Kevin F. Decker
Office: Champlain Valley Hall 113
Telephone: 564-5211
Electronic Mail: DeckerKF@Plattsburgh.edu
Office Hours: Wednesday 12:00-5:00 p.m. & by appointment.
Section 303:A
Tuesday & Thursday, 3:00 p.m. - 4:15 p.m.
Champlain Valley Hall 110
COURSE DESCRIPTION:
A survey course on the history of American women focusing on the significance of gender identity in determining women's experiences.
COURSE OBJECTIVE:
This is a student-centered course designed to acquaint students with the on going experiences of women in America. The primary mode of instruction will be the reading and class discussion of relevant primary and secondary literature. Students will be expected to use this material to evaluate sources from a critical perspective and convey their thoughts and ideas to their colleagues in class.
ATTENDANCE POLICY:
Contributions you may make during a class session are a critical aspect of the collective learning experience; therefore, I expect you to be in class, and will notice if you are not. Please remember that you are responsible for any materials presented during class, even if you are absent. More than three unexcused absences will have an adverse, and possibly considerable, impact on your grade in this course. Examinations and submission dates are not to be missed without a verifiable medical excuse or advanced permission.
AN IMPORTANT REMINDER:
Students enrolled in this class must do their own work. Cheating, plagiarism, and other forms of academic dishonesty will result at minimum in a failing grade for the course. Plagiarism is defined as the act of passing off another person's work or ideas from any source as one's own without attributing credit.
COURSE REQUIREMENTS: [with percentage of course grade]
1. Student Presentation [25%]
2. First Paper [25%]
3. Second Paper [25%]
4. Final Examination [25%]
REQUIRED TEXTS:
Barker-Benfield, G. J. and Catherine Clinton. Portraits of American Women from Settlement to the
Present. New York, NY: Oxford University Press, 1998.
Cowan, Ruth Schwartz. More Work for Mother. New York, NY: Basic Books, 1983.
Diner, Hasia. Erin's Daughters in America. Baltimore, MD: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1983.
Jacobs, Harriet A. Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1987.
Lunardini, Christine. What Every American Should Know About Women's History. Holbrook, MA: Adams Media Corporation, 1997.
Rowlandson, Mary. The Captive. Tucson, AZ: American Eagle Publications, Inc., 1990.
ADDITIONAL SELECTIONS:
An assortment of materials (primary source documents, etc.) will be distributed in class or posted to the instructor's web site. This material may form the basis of class discussions. Students enrolled in this class are expected to familiarize themselves with the additional materials provided and available to them.
STUDENT PRESENTATIONS:
Each student enrolled in History 303 is required to successfully complete a class presentation. Each student will provide his or her colleagues with
an informed introduction to an assigned text chapter or scholarly article. The presenter will provide an oral précis, which identifies the author's thesis, evaluates the sources consulted, and discusses both the article and its subject within
its historical context. The student presenter will also provide a series of questions to his or her colleagues for further discussion. Completion of this assignment in a timely manner is a requirement for passing the course, failure to do so will result in a failing grade for the assignment and the course.
WRITTEN ASSIGNMENTS:
Guidelines for paper topics will be discussed in class. In essence you will write two mini-research papers (between seven and eight pages) based upon both primary and secondary sources discussed in class. With the sources already selected and gathered together, you should have plenty of time to define your topic, evaluate your sources, organize your paper carefully, and write it well.
You are welcome to consult other sources, as long as they are cited properly. But this is not essential. The main sources for you paper should be the relevant primary and secondary sources used in class.
The correct use of sources is a fundamental skill in the study and writing of history. We will discuss this in class before the papers are due. The grading criteria for this paper will include: the proper identification of sources and use of quotations in the text, the correct use of footnotes or endnotes, and the correct formatting of a bibliography. Citations and bibliographies should follow the format described in Kate L. Turabian, A Manual for Writers of Term Papers, Theses, and Dissertations, which is recommended by the History Department.
Papers should be typed (double-spaced). You are responsible for making your computer do things correctly
(eg. numbering pages, indenting paragraphs, making block quotations, etc.).
FINAL EXAMINATION:
The format of the final examination will be discussed in class.
GRADING POLICY:
Both papers and the final examination will be graded A, B, C, D, E on a standard percentage scale. Assignments not completed receive grades of zero. Since and E can be as high as 59%, a zero is a lot worse than an E. Assignments are due at the beginning of class on the due date. Late assignments are graded down. No late assignments will be accepted after the final examination, unless formal arrangements for an incomplete have been made. Student presentations will be graded on a pass/fail basis. The class presentation is a mandatory requirement for passing the course.
TENTATIVE COURSE CALENDAR:
January 24:
What Every American Should Know About Women's History, pp. xix-xxi.
Introduction.
January 29:
Class Discussion: Poetry of Anne Bradstreet.
January 31:
What Every American Should Know About Women's History, pp. 1-7.
Portraits of American Women, Part I.
[presentations: Pocahontas, Hutchinson]
February 5:
The Captive, pp. 1-58.
February 7:
What Every American Should Know About Women's History, pp. 8-9.
Portraits of American Women, Part II.
[presentations: Pinckney, Ward]
February 12:
Video Presentation: A Midwife's Tale.
February 14:
What Every American Should Know About Women's History, pp. 10-20.
Portraits of American Women, Part II.
[presentations: Wheatley, Warren]
February 19:
More Work for Mother, pp. 3-68.
February 21:
What Every American Should Know About Women's History, pp. 21-47.
Portraits of American Women, Part III.
[presentations: Chapman, Beecher]
February 26:
Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl, pp. xiii-62.
February 28:
What Every American Should Know About Women's History, pp. 48-71.
Portraits of American Women, Parts III & IV.
[presentations: Fuller, Stanton]
March 5:
Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl, pp. 63-201.
March 7:
What Every American Should Know About Women's History, pp. 72-84.
Portraits of American Women, Part IV.
[presentations: Lincoln, Davis]
March 12:
More Work for Mother. pp. 69-150.
First Written Assignment Due.
March 14:
What Every American Should Know About Women's History, pp. 85-141.
Portraits of American Women, Parts IV & V.
[presentations: Forten, Gilman]
March 26:
Erin's Daughters in America, pp. 1-69.
March 28:
Portraits of American Women, Part V.
[presentations: Addams, Wells-Barnett]
April 2:
Erin's Daughters in America, pp. 70-153.
April 4:
What Every American Should Know About Women's History, pp. 142-196
Portraits of American Women, Part VI.
[presentations: Schneiderman, Eastman]
April 9:
Video Presentation: One Woman, One Vote.
Second Written Assignment Due.
April 11:
What Every American Should Know About Women's History, pp. 197-269.
Portraits of American Women, Parts VI & VII.
[presentations: Paul, Roosevelt]
April 16:
More Work for Mother, pp. 151-221.
April 18:
What Every American Should Know About Women's History, pp. 270-289.
Portraits of American Women, Part VII.
[presentations: O'Keeffe, Mead]
ACC Warren Ballroom, President's Speaker Series, 8:00 p.m.
Alice Kessler-Harris
"Gendered Interventions: Rethinking Issues of Social Policy."
April 23:
Tentative Field Trip: Louise M. Norton Classic Design Collection, Ward Hall 213.
April 25:
What Every American Should Know About Women's History, pp. 290-313.
Portraits of American Women, Part VIII.
[presentations: Douglas, Baker]
April 30:
Video Presentation: Nine to Five.
May 2:
What Every American Should Know About Women's History, pp. 314-368.
Portraits of American Women, Part VIII.
[presentation: Friedan]
May 7:
Class Discussion.
[presentations: delayed student presentations]
May 9:
Examination Review.
The date and time of the Final Examination will appear on the special schedule issued by the Office of the Registrar.
This page last modified on 06/02/03
.
Please contact kevin.decker@plattsburgh.edu
for information concerning this website.
