Clover Park Technical College

Spring 2024

 

 

Faculty Contact Information

Jonathan Harrington, PhD

Faculty, Political Science

Department Office: Social and Behavioral Sciences

Cell: (best way to contact): 206-973-9570

Email: jonathan.harrington@cptc.edu

Virtual classroom: 

Join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/4345654863?pwd=Z1RIVlNoeWZvMnVjdTMvd3hwa2tadz09 (Links to an external site.)

Meeting ID: 434 565 4863
Passcode: 539307

 

Instructor background

Hello everyone! I want to briefly introduce myself and my teaching philosophy. First and foremost, it is critical for all educators to embrace and celebrate people from all walks of life, from every background, color, and creed. As someone who has spent many years working and living overseas, I not only accept diversity but passionately seek it in my daily life. I love what I do.

Each student has their own unique experiences to bring to the table. My job is to allow them to let them all out through discussion, group projects, or focused research while also throwing out some specialized content and skill-building along the way. I also bring my considerable overseas experiences into the classroom, including conversational fluency in Mandarin, expertise in East Asian politics and policy, travel to more than 40 countries, and over seven years of overseas living experience. Students respect instructors who ‘walk the walk’ and actively engage in the world around them. Encouraging students to explore topics they love or finding synergies between work and school are great motivators and usually lead to great learning outcomes. 

I am a slavish believer in the old Boy Scout motto, “Be prepared.” One of the great joys of teaching is that you never know what will come up in class on any given day. Given the fast pace of change, it is crucial to always keep up with the latest research and follow current events. I refresh my courses every semester to ensure that my material matches the constantly changing needs of my students. I am passionate about learning and implementing the newest online instructional technologies. I have used Canvas, Moodle, and Blackboard. I strive to integrate new technology features into my classroom as soon as they become available. My online shells are resource-rich, full of videos, personal lectures, group project prompts, and ‘mashups.’ I have found that the most critical element for achieving successful online student outcomes is constant communication. Students need to know that you care about them and are always there, every day, ready to help. Instructors who let their online classes ‘hang’ for days quickly lose the trust and respect of students. Caring also includes understanding the personal as well as professional needs of my students. Caring may include forging friendships or bending over backward to ensure someone achieves their educational and career goals. Or, it may just involve lending a friendly ear to students struggling with work or family demands.

Dr. Jonathan Harrington has been educating students and the public about American politics and policy for more than 20 years. He earned his undergraduate degree in History from Grinnell College, MA in History from the University of Hawaii at Manoa, and his Ph.D. in Political Science from Loyola University of Chicago. 

 

Welcome video: https://animoto.com/play/tn9x28kTw0g4rk8FFQsgBgLinks to an external site.

Website: http://www.jonathanharrington.org

 

Consultation Hours

By appointment.

 

Harrington Class Schedule

POLS 202       American Government--Online

POLS 180       Critical Issues in World Politics--Online

 

I would be more than happy to meet with you in person or virtually (via Canvas) (PST). However, I plan to use email as my primary means of communication with individual students. I usually respond to emails within 24-48 hours between Monday and Friday. If you do not hear from me within 48 hours, please resend the email. You can also post general questions on the Canvas discussion board thread entitled “General Course Questions.” Also, feel free to call me during regular business hours at the phone number listed above. These rules apply to both onsite and online students.

 

Course Description

Survey of the origin and functions of the U.S. government. Examines the Articles of Confederation, the Constitution, and the creation of the federal system. Analyzes the functions of Congress, the Presidency, and the Courts. Other topics include political socialization, ideology, interest groups, political parties, and elections.

 

Course Objectives

By the end of this course, students will demonstrate skills and competencies in the following areas:

1. Develop an understanding of foundational documents in the American government.
2. Analyze the concept of federalism and its operation in the United States.
3. Develop an understanding of various factors that influence public opinion, how it is measured, and identify agents of political socialization.
4. Explain the roles, activities, and major types of interest groups and describe various techniques used by groups to promote their interests.
5. Trace the evolution of political parties and evaluate their role in the American political system.
6. Develop an understanding of the similarities and differences among the three branches of government.
7. Demonstrate applications of political science research and theoretical concepts to analyzing real-world situations.
8. Demonstrate adequate skills of expression, including grammar, rhetoric, and live presentations.
9. Demonstrate effective research skills, including using academic databases, identifying legitimate and authoritative sources, and proper documentation of research materials.

Required textbooks and/or other course materials

Required:

MindTap for Janda, Berry, Goldman, Schildkraut, Manna, The Challenge of Democracy: American Government in Global Politics, 15^th Edition.  Registration instructions can be accessed at https://www.cengage.com/student-training/mindtap/canvas/ia-no/. You can find "how-to" videos and other helpful resources at help.cengage.com/student/mindtap. 

Method of Instructor Evaluation

Course grading:

Harrington discussion board participation:                20%    

Learn it, Study it, apply it Mindtap activities:             40%

Midterm and final exams:                                          40%

 

This is an online class.  It is not a "correspondence course" in which a student may work at his/her own pace.  There will be assignments, online discussions, and/or exams with due dates each week.  Refer to the schedule at the end of this syllabus for more information. This course will follow a Monday-Sunday week schedule. In most cases, all weekly assignments are due on the Sunday evening of a given week. This provides flexibility. However, it is important to pace yourself by spreading out tasks throughout the week. Set up a work schedule and stick to it.

The Janda et. al. online interactive textbook is designed to provide opportunities for multiple types of engagement with course content and for learners to express their views about important issues in politics and public policy.

 

Course organization

The course is arranged by chapters/modules. Each chapter/module includes the following elements:

• Why Does [This Topic] Matter to Me? Activity (1 per chapter)

A low-stakes polling question that encourages students to consider arguments about a real-world issue tied to the chapter topic and express their own position.

 

• Chapter Reading

Textbook readings that offer an accessible, authoritative introduction to American Government. Each chapter reading in MindTap is the same chapter content found in the print edition of the textbook. Students can add notes, highlight selections of text, and have the textbook read aloud to them.

 

• Chapter quiz

A 10-15 question multiple-choice quiz that checks to see that students understand the key concepts and learning objectives presented in the chapter. Quizzes are not timed. However, learners are limited in how many times they can attempt each quiz. Not every chapter will include a quiz.

 

• Case Study Activity

A complex, application assignment that includes opportunities for document-based analysis (e.g. primary textual source materials, data) and scenarios.

 

• Concept Review Activity

A simple self-evaluation activity in which students can review the learning goals of the chapter and evaluate whether they feel confident in their ability to demonstrate their knowledge of each objective.

 

• Open-ended discussion questions

This activity allows learners to express their views on important American politics concepts.

• Midterm and final take-home essay exams

This course requires the completion of two take-home exams. The midterm will cover materials discussed through week 5 of the class. The final will cover materials covered from week 6 to the end of the course. The midterm is worth 25%, and the final is worth 25% of the grade. Check Canvas regularly for due dates.

Late work

It is important to complete assigned coursework in a timely manner. You must complete all Mindtap online assignments by the due dates. No extensions will be given except under special circumstances.

I do accept late for non-Mindtap assignments. However, the possible points that can be earned will be reduced by 10% for every day an assignment is late (this policy does not include exams that must be completed on time for credit). I understand that life occasionally gets in the way of the best-laid educational plans. Be sure to communicate with me about any issues that may come up that will interfere with your participation in this course.

Participation Policy

Enrollment in this class assumes that students accept responsibility for attending all scheduled class meetings (or frequent participation in online forums). If you are not in class, you cannot participate. I reserve the right to make full grade deductions for excessive absences (in addition to the classroom attendance/participation part of your grade). Not logging in regularly to the course shell constitutes an absence from the class. It is your responsibility to ensure that you present documentation for absences due to military duties, a medical appointment, or other verifiable reasons and coordinate with me before the class date for appropriate make-up work. Your responsibility is to be proactive and make reasonable faith efforts to contact me before any absence. You can leave a message at 206-973-9570 or contact me via email. You can also leave a message with the Social and Behavioral Sciences administrative representative. You are required to regularly check your Olympic College mail account and make timely responses to all email communications. Olympic College email is the officially sanctioned tool for all student-faculty communications. If, for some reason, you cannot reach me via email or sent an email and did not get a response within 48 hours, use another communication method listed above. If you cannot communicate directly, have a fellow student or coworker relay your message to me. You need to be proactive in facilitating all course communications. As a general rule, if you think you will miss more than 25% of scheduled class time, even with orders, you should not take an onsite class.

 

Plagiarism

Plagiarism is against the law in the State of Washington and is also against the Olympic College policy. Plagiarism includes using ideas, writings, and intellectual output created by others without attribution. This may include, but is not limited to actions such as: cutting and pasting intellectual property from books/articles/websites into an assignment without using direct quotes and providing information about the author; making minor changes to a text written by someone else, and passing it off as your own work; cutting and pasting the intellectual property of others (including your own work turned in for other class assignments) and giving attribution but not providing direct quotes; paraphrasing the ideas of others and using that text in an assignment without attribution; using papers from other courses or papers written by other students and passing them off as ‘original’ research, etc.). I want to see original work in this class. You may occasionally directly quote the work of others with attribution (no more than 20% of the text of a paper). When in doubt, cite or use direct quotes! If you have questions or concerns regarding these policies, please ask.

 

OTHER INFORMATION

Disability Statement:

CPTC values diversity and inclusion; we are committed to fostering mutual respect and full participation for all students. My goal is to create a learning environment that is equitable, useable, inclusive, and welcoming.

In order to ensure that the accommodations provided are reasonable and appropriate, all disability-related accommodation requests are processed through our Disability Resources for Student (DRS) Office.  If you have, or think you may have, a disability that may affect your work in this class and feel you need accommodations, contact the Disability Resource Coordinator to schedule an appointment and initiate a conversation about reasonable accommodations.  The DRS office is located in Bldg. 17, Room 150, 253-589-5676, disabilityresources@cptc.edu, http://www.cptc.edu/disability (Links to an external site.).

If you have already documented a disability or other condition through the CPTC DRS Office, qualified for services, and would like to receive accommodations in my class, please contact DRS and request that your Letter of Accommodations be sent to me so that I will know which accommodations are necessary to support you while in my class.   

Library/Resource Center: Building 15, 253-589-5544, Computer Lab: 253-589-5820,  Library Services (Links to an external site.), http://www.cptc.edu/library/library-services (Links to an external site.)

Student Code of Conduct:  Code of Conduct (Links to an external site.), http://www.cptc.edu/conduct-code (Links to an external site.)

Veterans Resource Center:  Building 2, Room 109, 253-589-5966, Veterans Resource Center (Links to an external site.), http://www.cptc.edu/vrc