Instructor

Dr. Norma LaSalle, Professor of History

Email: nlasalle@cox.net

History of the US to 1877 - HIST-1210-371

* (Shaping America)

Videos

This course uses 16 half hour videos that coordinate with the textbook and the telecourse guide.  Click here for a schedule of viewing times.  If you miss  a video you may watch it at the Warwick, Providence, or Lincoln Learning Resources Centers. 

Required Books

These may be purchased at the bookstore at  either the Warwick or Lincoln Campus.

Textbook

Roark, Johnson, Cohen,Stage, Lawson & Hartman,  American Promise: A History of the United States to 1877. 4th edition.

Telecourse Guide (Study Guide)

Alfers, Student Course Guide for Shaping America:  United States History to 1877. 4th edition.

Reading Assignments

These are listed in the Telecourse Guide for each lesson. You do not read the whole book, but only the pages assigned in the  Student Course Guide. 

Orientation

An optional orientation meeting to review the requirements of the course will be held at 5:15 P.M. in Room 3082-3083  on September 14 (Monday) - Warwick campus.  This conference room is located on floor 3 in the Social Sciences section of the faculty office area. All exams are in this room. 

Exams

This course is divided into 4 sections.  Exam I will test on the reading and videos from Unit 1.  Exam 2 will test on Unit 2 and Exam 3 will cover Unit  3.  The last exam will test the material in Unit 4.  See the Table of Contents in the Student Course Guide for a more precise division.  Exams 1 and 4 are held on Thursdays at 5 PM and exams 2 and 3 are held on Mondays at 5:15 PM. I will set up the room with the exams and answer sheets at 4:45 PM if you wish to start earlier than 5:15 PM for the Monday exams.

The dates and room for exams (you have 1 hour and 30 minutes for the exam) are as follows:

All examinations are given in Room 3082-3083 (conference room in the Social Science area of the Knight Campus, Warwick - 3rd floor).  Bring a #2 pencil with you to the exam.

If you miss an exam or cannot  take the exam at the above times you must contact me either before the exam date or no later than 24 hours after the exam.  If you wish to take the exam earlier on the scheduled date, you may take it in my office (3rd floor Social Sciences section) at 2:30 PM.  Let me know ahead of time if you wish to take it earlier.  I have a class at 3 PM on Monday, so you must be in my office no later than 2:40 PM.  Make-up exams, which are only given for a valid excuse, can also be taken with the Social Sciences secretary no later than 4 days after the scheduled exam date.  To take a make-up with the secretary you must call her in advance to schedule it during the daytime when she is in her office.  Her name is Mrs. Lolita Paniagua and her phone is 825-2171.  After you have arranged a time and date with her, you must e-mail me at nlasalle@cox.net to let me know when you will take the make-up.  Remember all exams must be finished within 4 days of the scheduled date. No credit will be given for exams taken later than 4 days after the date.  Because each exam only covers 1/4 of the course, all 4 exams must be taken in order to pass the course.

Contacting the Instructor
By phone

294-4805 Monday from noon to 2 P.M. and from 6 P.M. to 8 P.M.

By email

nlasalle@cox.net or nlasalle@ccri.edu.  I prefer that you use the Cox site as it is easier for me to access it.

By mail
Norma Lasalle
Community College of R.I.
400 East Avenue
Warwick, RI 02886
ATT: Social Sciences Dept.

My office is on the 3rd. floor of the Knight Campus in the Social Sciences section.  I will be in the office Monday afternoon from 2:20 to 3:00 P.M. throughout the semester.  It is located in Room 3105 which is next to the personnel dept. on the third floor.

Campus Pipeline

Check you campus e-mail at least twice a week as this is the only way I can contact member of the class as group or as an individual.

Exam Grades

You may receive your grades 5 days after the exam by e-mailing me at this address: nlasalle@cox.net.  I can then hit “reply’ and give you your grade.  Corrected copies of the previous exam will be available for you to review at the next exam time.

Research Paper

Every student must submit a 4 to 5 page research paper in addition to taking the four examinations.  The paper must  be double spaced with the pages stapled together and numbered.  Please do not use plastic folders .

You must select the topic from the Essay Questions (not the short answer questions) that appear at the end of each Practice Test in the Student Course Guide.  The following are the pages in the Student Course Guide and the number of the questions from which you must make your one selection.

Essay Questions:  page 7 (question 11), page 17 (questions 14, 15), page 25 (question 12), page 35 (question 10), page 41 (question 12), page 53 (questions 10, 11, and 12), page 63 (question 8), page 69 (question 11), page 78 (questions 13 and 14), page 90 (question 14), page 97 (questions 11 and 12), page 108 (questions 13 and 14), page 118 (page 12 and 13), page 125 (question 11), page 135 (question 12), page 143 (question 11), page 156 (question 12), page 168 (question 13 and 14), page 179 (question 19), page 191 (question 10), page 200 (questions 13, 14, and 15), page 213 (question 11), pages 217-8 (questions 10 and 11), page 229 (questions 12, 13, and 14) and page 238 (question 15).

Remember – You must select your topic from one of the above essay questions.  Write the exact question that you selected on the title page along with your name. You must also cite on the title page on what page the questions appeared in the Student Guide.

A formal paper requires both footnotes (to cite direct quotations or ideas) and a bibliography at the end listing all the sources that you consulted.  At least 3 scholarly books or articles must be used and listed.  Textbooks, encyclopedia articles and internet articles that do not list a professional historian as the author are not to be included in your footnotes or bibliography. Any form or style is acceptable (end notes, footnotes, or citation within the text). Do not use only internet sources. Go to the library and read articles or books on your selected topic. At the end on the chapter in your text are suggestions for books that are scholarly and up-to-date.

You must make a copy of your paper in case it gets lost in the mail.  Papers are due no later than November 29.  If you wish to do the paper earlier you may mail it to me anytime during the semester before the due date or bring it with you to any of the first three exams. You may also leave it in my mailbox located in the Social sciences area on the 3rd. floor. Either hand in the paper at any of the exams (1, 2, or 3) or mail it so that I receive it no later than December 3 or leave it in my mailbox. Papers will be returned at exam 4 (Dec. 17). If you take exam 4 with the secretary, your graded paper will be on my desk.

Mail papers to:

Dr. Norma LaSalle- Social Sciences Dept.
Community College of Rhode Island
400 East Ave
Warwick, R.I. 02886
Grades

Each exam counts 20 percent and the research paper counts 20 percent in calculating your final grade for the course. You MUST take all 4 exams and submit a research paper in order to receive credit for the course.

Course Requirements

To complete this course successfully, you should do the following:

Final Grade

You may email me at nlasalle@cox.net to receive your final grade anytime after Dec. 21.

*Denotes Telecourse title

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