Introduction to Political Science PSCI-1000-850/851

Fall Semester 2014, August 25 December 19

Instructor: Michael Sullivan
msullivan@unomaha.edu
Phone (voicemail) 402-554-4072

Textbook
Political Science: An Introduction 12
th
Edition. Roskin, Cord, Medeiros & Jones.


PSCI-1000-850 ONLINE

Contacting the Instructor: You may contact me at any time utilizing my e-mail listed
above. I will respond to e-mails on Monday, Wednesday & Friday. At times I may respond
on additional days, however, you can count on the days listed above. E-mail me directly
from your own e-mail account. DO NOT e-mail me through the Blackboard dashboard. If
you need to speak with me you can leave a voicemail at the number above & I will return
your call. Ensure you leave a callback number.

Grading & Weighting


Grading Scale Grade Weighting____
98-100 A+ Exam I 15%
95-97 A Exam II 15%
92-94 A- Exam III 15%
88-91 B+ Exam IV 15%
85-87 B Quizzes 20%
82-84 B- Discussion Board 20%
78-81 C+
75-77 C
72-74 C-
68-71 D+
65-67 D
62-64 D-
0-61 F

Note-As you see above PARTICIPATION (Discussion
Board) is 20% of your FINAL COURSE GRADE.
Therefore, for example, if you earn 100% on every exam & quiz, but participate 0% you
cannot & will not earn a final grade over 80%; a C+.

Course Content

This course is designed to introduce you to the field of political science. We will cover key




concepts in political science, political theory and political ideology, comparative and US
politics. By introducing the basic political science concepts and demonstrating their
significance in understanding political issues, you will better understand how political
science is not only a field of inquiry with theoretical models of analysis, but also one of
practical applications.

Course Organization

The course is organized into 4 parts and corresponds directly with the text.

Part I The Bases of Politics Chapters 1-6
Part II Political Attitudes Chapters 7-8
Part III Political Interactions Chapters 9-12
Part IV Political Institutions Chapters 13-15

As you will see below, the course is organized in a simple way and set up to discourage
procrastination. Each week, starting on Sunday, you have one or two chapters to read,
Power Point presentations to review & one or two quizzes. Exam weeks increase your load.
Following the schedule below will ensure your successful progression through the course.

Exams and Quizzes VERY IMPORTANT!

Exams and quizzes will have a pull date. The pull date is the day the item will no longer
be available to you. You can open and work on the items any time after they are posted. All
exams and quizzes have a 3 day window. You may take them at any time during that
window. Be warned though. Once you open an exam or quiz you must finish it
immediately. You can open it only once and I will not reset this for anyone. NO
EXCEPTIONS. Below you will see that I have highlighted the pull dates for all exams and
quizzes. It is highly recommended you copy this into your planner, PDA, phone or
whatever source of organization you utilize. Remember that quizzes are 20% OF YOUR
GRADE. Take them seriously! You will find exams and quizzes in Assignments.
Additionally, study guides for each exam are available to you in Course Documents.
Time limits are; Exams=90 minutes, Quizzes=15 minutes.
A study guide for each exam will be posted one week before the exam is posted. The study
guides have the exact questions from the exam AND the page number in the text where you
will find the answer. How great is that?

MISSING AN EXAM SERIOUSLY DIMINISHES YOUR CHANCES OF
SUCCESS IN THIS COURSE.
Use the study guides for each exam. If you do not use them your success is highly
unlikely. Many questions are difficult, but easy if you have utilized the study guide.
Preparation for each exam should consume several hours.
As you see below all quizzes and exams are posted on Thursday morning at 6:00am
& pulled at 10:00pm on Saturday of the same week. Providing the same window
each week is designed to simplify when quizzes & exams are due. This makes it
easier for you to utilize your time and keeps assignment planning simple &




consistent from week to week.
NOTE: Exam 4 will be pulled on Friday 12/19 as this is the last day of the semester.

Discussion Forums

Each week one or two discussion forums will be posted on the Discussion Board. You are
required to participate in each forum throughout the semester. Topics will range from the
current chapter in your text to current events in the political sphere. This is our classroom
and represents 20% OF YOUR GRADE. I read every posting and will respond to many.
You are required to respond to me and/or you fellow students. A healthy, lively discussion
environment is our goal. For your grade in this area I keep statistics on all of your postings
and supplement them with my experience with you in the classroom. Your individual
postings are required to be more than a sentence or two. It is expected that your postings are
well thought out and stay on task. Additionally, I expect you to challenge your classmates
and challenge the instructor. Developing and enhancing your critical thinking skills is our
task. A level of decorum that is seen in the live classroom is expected, though you should
feel free to vigorously express and defend your opinions. We all think in a different way.
Respect that your classmates may not agree with you.

NOTE: You must post in each discussion forum at least twice. One of these postings
must be by Wednesday each week. Your first post in each forum should be in direct
response to the instructors question. Subsequent posts may also be in response to the
instructor, or a response to another student. Forums will be open from Monday
through Saturday.
Advice

You must be disciplined and organized to ensure your success in this course. Follow the
schedule and DO NOT GET BEHIND. You will find it very difficult to catch up if you do.
PowerPoint presentations are here to supplement your reading. They do not replace your
reading. If you do not read the text intensely your success in this course is doubtful. Again,
I cannot emphasize enough that you must INTENSELY READ THE TEXT. I
recommend reading each chapter as many times as you need to grasp the material. But
dont just read, study it and use the PowerPoint presentations to reinforce your reading.
Then take your weekly quizzes and/or exam. Feel free to reach out to me with any
questions. I am here to help you succeed, and am happy to engage with you at any time

Schedule

Notes-
* Below I will use W/E to specify weeks. W/E= WEEK ENDING. For example, if I write
W/E 8/30, this indicates work for the week ending on Saturday August 30.
*PP = Power Point presentations to supplement your reading.
* Quizzes and exams are posted at 6:00am
* Pull Date=date/time the exam/quiz is no longer available for you to complete







W/E=8/30
Read Ch. 1
PP Ch. 1
Discussion Forums
Quiz 1 Thursday Pull date 8/30, 10:00pm

W/E=9/6
Read Ch. 2
PP Ch. 2
Discussion Forums
Quiz 2 Thursday Pull date 9/6, 10:00pm

W/E=9/13
Read Ch. 3
PP Ch. 3
Discussion Forums
Quiz 3 Thursday Pull date 9/13, 10:00pm


W/E=9/20
Read Ch. 4
PP Ch. 4
Discussion Forums
Quiz 4 Thursday Pull date 9/20, 10:00pm
Exam1 Thursday Pull date 9/20, 10:00pm


W/E=9/27
Read Ch. 5
PP Ch. 5
Discussion Forums
Quiz 5 Thursday Pull date 9/27, 10:00pm

W/E=10/4
Read Ch. 6
PP Ch. 6
Discussion Forums
Quiz 6 Thursday Pull date 10/4, 10:00pm

W/E=10/11
Read Ch. 7
PP Ch. 7
Discussion Forums
Quiz 7 Thursday Pull date 10/11, 10:00pm





W/E=10/18
Read Ch. 8
PP Ch. 8
Discussion Forums
Quiz 8 Thursday Pull date 10/18, 10:00pm
Exam 2 Thursday Pull date 10/18, 10:00pm

W/E=10/25
Fall Break is Monday & Tuesday. Lets take the entire week off. Enjoy!


W/E=11/1
Read Ch. 9
PP Ch. 9
Discussion Forums
Quiz 9 Thursday Pull date 11/1, 10:00pm

W/E=11/8
Read Ch. 10 & 11
PP Ch. 10 & 11
Discussion Forums
Quizzes 10 & 11 Thursday Pull date 11/8, 10:00pm

W/E=11/15
Read Ch. 12
PP Ch. 12
Discussion Forums
Quiz 12 Thursday Pull date 11/15, 10:00pm
Exam 3 Thursday Pull date 11/15, 10:00pm


W/E=11/22
Read Ch. 13 & 14
PP Ch. 13 & 14
Discussion Forums
Quizzes 13 & 14 Thursday Pull date 11/22, 10:00pm


W/E=11/29
Thanksgiving Break is Wed, Thurs. & Fri. Lets take the entire week off to enjoy the
holiday. I hope you are able to relax with family and friends!









W/E=12/6
Read Ch. 15
PP Ch. 15
Discussion Forums
Quiz 15 Thursday Pull date 12/6, 10:00pm
Exam 4Thursday Pull date 12/19, 10:00pm


W/E=12/13
Prep week; no assignments or Discussion forums due, unless you decide to complete Exam
4 early.

LAST DAY OF THE SEMESTER IS DECEMBER 19



(The instructor may make changes to the syllabus at any time. Any changes will be
communicated in Announcements.)

Extra Credit

Extra credit is not available in this course.

Important Course Drop Dates


August 31
Last day before 12:00 midnight to DROP a course via mavlink from the "General" session
and receive a 100% refund. To register for a course in the "General" session after this date,
a student must have a permission number and register via mavlink. This is also the last day
to add a course in the "General" session for "AUDIT". Audit must be done in person at the
Records and Registration Office, EAB 105.

September 7
Last day before 12:00 midnight to withdraw via mavlink from a "General" session course
with a grade of "W" and receive a 75% refund

September 14
Last day before 12:00 midnight to withdraw via mavlink from a "General" session course
with a grade of "W" and receive a 50% refund. This is also the last day in the "General"
session to change to "CR/NC" option in a course. CR/NC option must be done in person at
the Records and Registration Office, EAB 105.

September 21
Last day before 12:00 midnight to withdraw via mavlink from a "General" session course
with a grade of "W" and receive a 25% refund.





November 7
Last date before midnight to withdraw from a General session course with a grade of "W"
via Mavlink. This is also the last day to change a course to "Audit" and change from
"CR/NC" to grade registration in a course.


Academic Policy
The maintenance of academic honesty and integrity is a vital concern of the University
community. Any student found guilty of academic dishonesty shall be subject to both
academic and disciplinary sanctions. Academic dishonesty includes, but is not limited to,
the following:
Cheating Copying or attempting to copy from an academic test or examination of another
student; using or attempting to use unauthorized materials, information, notes, study aids
or other devices for an academic test, examination or exercise; engaging or attempting to
engage the assistance of another individual in misrepresenting the academic performance
of a student; or communicating information in an unauthorized manner to another person
for an academic test, examination or exercise.
Fabrication and falsification Falsifying or fabricating any information or citation in any
academic exercise, work, speech, test or examination. Falsification is the alteration of
information, while fabrication is the invention or counterfeiting of information.
Plagiarism Presenting the work of another as ones own (i.e., without proper
acknowledgment of the source) and submitting examinations, theses, reports, speeches,
drawings, laboratory notes or other academic work in whole or in part as ones own when
such work has been prepared by another person or copied from another person.
Abuse of academic materials and/or equipment
Destroying, defacing, stealing, or making inaccessible library or other academic resource
material.
Complicity in academic dishonesty Helping or attempting to help another student to
commit an act of academic dishonesty.
Falsifying grade reports Changing or destroying grades, scores or markings on an
examination or in an instructors records.
Misrepresentation to avoid academic work
Misrepresentation by fabricating an otherwise justifiable excuse such as illness, injury,
accident, etc., in order to avoid or delay timely submission of academic work or to avoid or
delay the taking of a test or examination.
A student determined to be in violation of any of the above will receive a grade of F and
may be subject to further disciplinary action by the university.
Students with Disabilities
Accommodations will be arranged for students with verified disabilities. Students should
discuss eligibility and services with the Disability Services Coordinator in EAB 117 or call
554-3799. More information can be found at
http://www.unomaha.edu/disability/Student%20Handbook.html#Anchor-Accommodatio-
22794