Instructor: Mr. Ron Jacobs
Class Room: A220 Muskegon High School
Office Hours: 2:45 – 3:24 m-f
Contact Information:
Office Phone: (231) 720 –2935
Email: rjacobs1@mpsk12.net or rjacobs20@aol.com
Web Address: www.rjacobs.2ya.com or www.angelfire.com/mi4/jacobs
Qualifications:
Associates of General Studies Degree - Lansing Community College - 1995
Bachelors of General Studies Degree - University of Michigan - Ann Arbor - 1997
Teacher Certificate in Secondary Education - University of Michigan - Flint - 2000
Masters of Educational Leadership Degree - Western Michigan University – Spring 2006
Course Philosophy:
“Freedom is not Free” – F. Roosevelt
“An unexamined life is one not worth living”- Plato
“An educated mind will not allow the chains of enslavement”- Jacobs
Course Information:
Open to: Juniors and Seniors
Length: One full school year
Credits: Two credits
Prerequisite: completion of American Government with instructor recommendation
Content: An examination of the nature of the American political system, its development over the past 200 years, and how it works today.
Note: Students will have an opportunity in May to take the College Board Exam in Government for possible college credit.
Course Overview:
The Advanced Placement American Government and Politics class is intended for qualified students who wish to complete a college level course while still in high school. The course is designed to give students a critical perspective on politics and government in the United States. The class involves both the study of general concepts used to interpret American politics and the analysis of specific case studies. It also requires familiarity with the various institutions, groups, beliefs, and ideas that make up the American political reality. This course serves as an introduction to the U.S. national government. It is taught with the conviction that students want to know not only who governs them but also what difference it makes who governs. In short, the course attempts to demonstrate how our government institutions and political processes help explain why some policies and not others are adopted.
Course outline
The major units of study are:
I. Constitutional Underpinnings of United States Government
II. Political Beliefs and Behaviors
III. Political Parties and Interest Groups
IV. Institutions of National Government
V. Public Policy
VI. Civil Rights and Civil Liberties
A.P. U.S. Government and Politics Assignment:
To participate in this discussion board, you will need to read current newspapers and watch television news programs. You will need to take notes on your news worthy observations, and post them on the discussion board. Also, post a related question to your observations and comment on two questions posted by your classmates.
Discussion Board Requirements:
Helpful Options: Pick any national or international news topic that interests you and explain your insights, or compare how it is covered in two different newspapers or news stations. One of your newspapers could be a national paper such as The New York Times, The Washington Post, or The Wall Street Journal and the other may be any local paper you wish to read. (I have links to these papers on my web site) Moreover, How do the two papers or stations differ in the way they cover the same story? Do they report the same facts, or do they emphasize different issues? (ABC, CBS, CNN, NBC, BBC, Comedy Central, CNBC, MSNBC).
Is there any particular or consistent political orientation in the way the news item is covered? For example, is there a liberal or conservative bias?
How do the views or political orientations of the editorials compare to the article on the same subject? For example, do the editorials adopt the same or different views on the news when compared to the articles?
Is there any particular or consistent political orientation in the way the news item is covered? For example, is there a liberal or conservative bias?
How do the two papers or stations differ in defining what is news? Is the news acts of violence, human drama, etc.?
Look at the advertisements s in the newspapers or during the television show. Whom are the ads directed to, and do you think the ads give you a clue as to whom the news is being written for or how it may be slanted? For example, if the ads are “yuppie” do you think the news is being written with a yuppie slant?
How important is video film or visual presentation to the station in presenting the news? Is much news presented without films/visuals?
What role does the news anchor have on the news? How does he or she act, and how might he or she influence you or the presentation of the news?
A.P. U.S. Government and Politics Assignment:
Option One: Close- Up Washington D.C. weeklong study visit is much more than a field trip it’s an exciting weeklong study visit to the nation’s capital, where you will have the opportunity to experience your government and the political process firsthand. While most visitors to the city just see Washington’s monuments and museums, Close Up Washington participants get an inside look at the nation’s capital with the people and places that make it unique. As a Close-Up participate you will attend meetings with both your senators and representative on Capitol Hill, discuss public policy with Washington “insiders” at interactive seminars, engage in small and large-group learning activities, visits Washington’s monuments and museums, explore Washington’s neighborhoods and observe Washington’s cultural events. The weeklong study visit will be in April before the AP Exam and cost each student approximately $1200 to $1400.
A.P. GOVERNMENT RECOMMENDED READING LIST
Weekly Discussion Board Assignments:
I. Read and watch the news at least once a week
II. Make observations and take notes
III. Post observations in one to two paragraphs on discussion board
IV. Pose a question to classmates
V. Comment on two classmates observations in one to two paragraphs
Close- Up Washington D.C. weeklong study visit or Research / Term paper and other appropriate assignments
The goal of this assignment is to develop your political awareness and critical thinking skills on various political topics. Select ONE of the two options below:
Cuomo, Mario: Reason To Believe
Dionne, E.J.: Why Americans Hate Politics
Duffy, Michael Marching In Place: The Status Quo Presidency of President George H. Bush
Ginsberg, Benjamin:. Politics By Other Means
Halberstam, David: The Best and the Brightest The Powers That Be
Halderman, H.R.: The Halderman Diaries
Jameson, Kathleen Dirty Politics: Deception, Distraction, and Democracy
Johnson, Haynes: Sleepwalking Through History: America in the Reagan Years
Johnson, Haynes and David S. Broder: The System: The American Way of Politics at the Breaking Point
Lazarus, Ed: Closed Chambers; Inside the Supreme Court
O'Neill, Tip and William Novak: Man of the House
Reich, Robert: Locked in the Cabinet
Rudman, Warren: Combat; 12 Years in the U.S. Senate
Smith, Hedrick: The Power Game; How Washington Works
Schlesinger, Arthur jr.: The Imperial Presidency
Schroeder, Patricia: 24 Years of House Work…and the place is still a Mess
Schwartz, Bernard: Decision; How the Supreme Court Decides Cases
White, Theodore: The Making of the President
Woodward, Bob: The Agenda: Inside the Clinton White House
Wright, Jim: Balance of Power
