Syllabus for POS-310-OL

COURSE DESCRIPTION

Constitutional Issues is a course that looks at important questions involving government power, individual rights, civil rights, and public policy. Policymakers and citizens look to the Supreme Court to interpret the United States Constitution. In this course the rulings of the Supreme Court are looked at in their historical, legal, political and social context. The rulings of the Supreme Court are the last word on what the Constitution means.

The Constitution creates our government structure and organizes the balance between liberty and authority. The Constitution provides a legal framework for our political institutions. The legislative, executive, and judicial branches serve different purposes. The political system, established by the Constitution, creates checks and balances with the three branches of government. The Constitution also establishes the system of federalism. The national and state governments share governmental powers under the principle of federalism. Most importantly, the Constitution establishes a republican form of government. A republic is government ultimately dependent on the support of the public. The Supreme Court considers all of these factors, as well as legal precedent, when cases are decided.

In today's society the Supreme Court is confronted with many significant questions: Does a public policy treat citizens equally? What is required for a person accused of a crime to be proven guilty? What is fair? Should a mentally ill convict be executed? When does life begin? When does life end? Are all religious practices protected by the Constitution? Can a moment of silence be required in public schools? Each person makes his or her own personal decision on these and other matters, but the Supreme Court makes decisions that affect all of us.

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COURSE OBJECTIVES

• Explain the origins of the Constitution of the United States and the method of its contemporary application.



• Describe the pivotal role of the Supreme Court in interpreting the Bill of Rights and defining the scope of individual freedoms and citizenship rights.



• Summarize information from readings concerning the historical background and political and social setting of constitutional controversies.



• Identify the limits and protections extended to individuals under the Bill of Rights, through Supreme Court decisions, and through the practice of selective incorporation.



• Trace the development of the First Amendment rights of free speech, association, press, and religion.



• Describe the historic background of individual freedoms.



• Identify the basic constitutional safeguards provided for criminal defendants.



• Discuss the women's suffrage movement and recent struggles over equal opportunity and sexual harassment in the workplace.



• Describe the struggles for equal protection under the law for ethnic and racial minorities in the United States.



• Analyze recent trends in Supreme Court decisions.



• Make judgments about the application of law in specific situations.



• Assess the strength of legal arguments in key Supreme Court cases.

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COURSE MATERIALS

You will need the following materials to complete the work of the course. These materials are available from the textbook supplier, MBS Direct.

Textbook

• American Constitutional Law: Power and Politics, vol. II, Civil Rights and Liberties,, by Gregg Ivers (Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 2002).
  ISBN-13: 978-0-395-88987-9

This text examines the impact of Supreme Court decisions in the area of the rights and freedoms of the individual. It provides a glossary of legal terms and several appendices: one is information on how to brief a Supreme Court case and a second is an Internet guide to legal research. Also included is the Constitution of the United States. This is a casebook, which means abridged Supreme Court decisions are included with extensive historical information to place the decision in its contemporary context.

Supreme Court Supplement

• Two Court Cases: Lawrence et al. v. Texas and Gratz et al. v. Bollinger et al. (n.p.: Tichenor Publishing, n.d.).

These two cases were argued and decided in 2003. They are provided in this document, in hard copy. You may also be able to find the full text of the cases online through www.findlaw.com. (Currently on the Findlaw site you can reach the cases by clicking "Search Cases & Codes," then "U.S. Supreme Court," then "2003 Decisions.")

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READING SUPREME COURT OPINIONS

Although you will be able to complete all of the assignments and successfully take the exams using only the textbook, your understanding of constitutional law will be deepened if you read the opinions of the Supreme Court justices in key cases.

Within Course Documents there is a document called "Introduction to the Judiciary and the Supreme Court." In the section titled "Internet Sources on the Supreme Court" you will find several Internet sites that provide the text of Supreme Court opinions. (These are also available on other sites.) There is no substitute for reading the opinions of the justices in these landmark cases.

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COURSE STRUCTURE

Constitutional Issues is a three-credit online course. It consists of six modules.

Weekly study assignments include text readings. Each module also has study questions. You are required to participate in four graded online discussions and an ungraded "Introductions" forum, which occurs during the first module. You are also required to take a proctored midterm examination and a proctored final examination.

For the course's assignment modules (study assignments, online discussions, study questions, and written assignments), go to the Assignment Modules area of the course Web site. (See the course Calendar for a detailed week-by-week schedule.)

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ONLINE PARTICIPATION

In addition to an ungraded "Introductions" forum in the first module, Constitutional Issues requires you to participate in four graded class discussions.

Communication with the mentor and among fellow students is a critical component of online learning. Participation in online discussions involves two distinct activities: an initial response to a posted question (discussion thread) and subsequent comments on classmates' responses.

You will be evaluated both on the quality of your responses (that is, your understanding of readings, and concepts as demonstrated by well-articulated, critical thinking) and quantity of your participation (that is, the number of times you participate meaningfully in the assigned forums). Responses and comments should be properly proofread and edited, professional, and respectful.

Meaningful participation in online discussions is relevant to the content, adds value, and advances the discussion. Comments such as "I agree" and "ditto" are not considered value-adding participation. Therefore, when you agree or disagree with a classmate, the reading, or your mentor, state and support your agreement or disagreement.

For additional information on online discussions, see Online Discussions in the Online Student Handbook.

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STUDY QUESTIONS AND WRITTEN ASSIGNMENTS

Constitutional Issues includes both study questions and written assignments in every module. For these questions and assignments, see the Assignment Modules area of the course Web site. Take the time to familiarize yourself with this section of the course site, and read through the study and assignment questions before you begin each module.

Study Questions
Each module includes study questions. Be sure to answer these questions, but do not send the answers to your mentor. These are designed to aid your comprehension; in fact, you should use them (along with the graded assignments) to prepare for the examination.

Written Assignments
Send to your mentor answers to those questions that are designated Written Assignments. In these assignments you will find both short answer and essay questions.

Answer all questions as directed. Your answers to the essay questions should be well developed and supported with references from the Supreme Court decisions you have in your text and in the 2003 supplement. Be sure to include the name of the case. For example, in an answer discussing the development of the equal protection clause you might include a discussion of the concept "separate but equal" put forth in Plessy v. Ferguson. In your written essay you might say: "In Plessy v. Ferguson (1896) the Supreme Court established the concept of separate but equal. In that decision the Supreme Court defined separate but equal as. .". The point of the written assignments is to demonstrate what you know from your readings and to what extent you can apply this information to new situations.

Take the time to familiarize yourself with the Assignment Modules area of the course Web site, and read through the written assignment questions before you begin the reading for that assignment. If you need help in writing, take a look at The Writing Center: University of Wisconsin-Madison.

Also, formulate responses in your own words. Do not merely copy answers from your reading materials. When quoting or paraphrasing from the text or other sources, be sure to cite the source of information properly according to MLA or APA guidelines (see also Basic Documentation Rules).

Due dates for each assignment are listed in the course Calendar.

Prepare your written assignments using whatever word processing program you have on your computer. Include your name at the top of the paper, as well as the course name and code and the semester and year in which you are enrolled.

Before submitting your first assignment, check with your mentor to determine whether your word processing software is compatible with your mentor's software. If so, you can submit your work as you prepared it. If not, save your assignment as a rich-text (.rtf) file, using the Save As command of your software program. Rich text retains basic formatting and can be read by any other word processing program.

When satisfied that your assignment represents your best work, submit it to your mentor by means of the

>>View/Complete Assignment

link provided at the bottom of the respective assignment page. Use the Browse button within this link to locate and submit your assignment file.

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EXAMINATIONS

You are required to take two proctored examinations: a midterm and a final. See the Calendar for the official dates of your midterm and final exam weeks.

For the both of these online examinations you are required to use the College’s Online Proctor Service. Please refer to the "Examinations and Proctors" section of the Online Student Handbook (see the General Information area of the course Web site) for further information about scheduling and taking online exams and for all exam policies and procedures. You are strongly advised to make your scheduling arrangements for both exams within the first week of the semester.

Online exams are administered in the Tests & Quizzes area of the course Web site.

Midterm Examination
The midterm is a closed-book, proctored, online exam. It is two hours long and covers material in Modules 1 through 3. It consists of definition (identification), short essay, and essay questions. As preparation for the examination, answer all of the questions listed for each unit, even though you are required to submit only a selection of these for each unit. The same types of questions, though on different cases and topics, will appear on the exam.

Final Examination
The final is a closed-book, proctored, online exam. It is two hours long and covers all reading and assignments from Modules 4–6 of the course. It consists of definition (identification), short essay, and essay questions. As preparation for the examination, answer all of the questions listed for each unit, even though you are required to submit only a selection of these for each unit. The same types of questions, though on different cases and topics, will appear on the exam.

Statement about Cheating
You are on your honor not to cheat during the exam. Cheating means:

• Looking up any answer or part of an answer in an unauthorized textbook or on the Internet, or using any other source to find the answer.
• Copying and pasting or in any way copying responses or parts of responses from any other source into your online test. This includes but is not limited to copying and pasting from other documents or spreadsheets, whether written by yourself or anyone else.
• Plagiarizing answers.
• Asking anyone else to assist you by whatever means available while you take the exam.
• Copying any part of the exam to share with other students.
• Telling your mentor that you need another attempt at the exam because your connection to the Internet was interrupted when that is not true.

If there is evidence that you have cheated or plagiarized in your exam, the exam will be declared invalid, and you will fail the course.

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GRADING AND EVALUATION

Your grade in the course will be determined as follows:

Letter grades for online participation, written assignments, and the final examination are based on the following numerical grades:

Note: To receive credit for the course, you must earn a letter grade of D or higher on the weighted average of all assigned course work (e.g., exams, assignments, projects, papers, etc.). You will receive a score of 0 for any work not submitted.

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STRATEGIES FOR SUCCESS

First Steps to Success
To succeed in this course, take the following first steps:

1. Read carefully the entire Syllabus, making sure that all aspects of the course are clear to you and that you have all the materials required for the course.



2. Take the time to read the entire Online Student Handbook General Information area of the course Web site. The Handbook answers many questions about how to proceed through the course, how to schedule exams, and how to get the most from your educational experience at Thomas Edison State College.



3. Arrange to take your examinations by following the instructions in this Syllabus and the Online Student Handbook.



4. Familiarize yourself with the Blackboard environment—how to navigate it and what the various course areas contain. If you know what to expect as you navigate the course, you can better pace yourself and complete the work on time.



5. If you are not familiar with Web-based learning, or specifically with the Blackboard platform, be sure to review the processes for posting responses online and submitting assignments before class begins.

Study Tips
Consider the following study tips for success:

1. To stay on track throughout the course, begin each week by consulting the course Calendar. The calendar provides an overview of the course and indicates due dates for submitting assignments, posting discussions, and scheduling and taking your examinations. For details on each assignment module and a complete listing of learning activities, go to the Assignment Modules area of the course Web site.



2. Check the Announcements page and class Discussion Board regularly for new course information.



3. A glossary of legal terms is provided on pages 762-764 of the Ivers text. Use this glossary to clarify the meanings of words used in the discussion of cases.

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