GVPT 473Fall 2007 MW 1-1:50 p.m.E. Uslaner Tydings 2126E, [email protected] Assistant: Jesse Mathewson, [email protected] Assistant: Michael LaBattaglia, [email protected] home page: http://www.bsos.umd.edu/gvpt/uslaner/gvpt473.htmlThe U.S. CongressThis course will examine politics and policy-making in the U.S. Congress. We shall focuson what motivates members of Congress, how bills become (or don't become) laws, how Congresshas changed over the past two decades, the roles of committees, parties, and the President in affect-ing Congressional decision-making, and elections and representation.The course has its own home page: http://www.bsos.umd.edu/gvpt/uslaner/gvpt473.htmlThe page has lots of information (including the syllabus, suggestions for the paper design, class notes,information on internships, and useful linkages).The course requirements include: (1) a midterm examination on October 29 covering materialthrough Topic 6 (20 percent of your grade); (2) a 10 page paper in which you analyze the fate of abill introduced in a recent Congress (30 percent of your grade, due on December 3 in class); (3) atake-home final examination due on Friday, December 14 at 1:30 p.m. in my office (40 percent ofyour grade); and (4) class participation in lectures and discussion sections (10 percent of your grade). See the end of the syllabus for the take-home final and the requirements for the paper. Youare also required to turn in a one-page statement of your paper proposal by October 1. This paper willnot be graded but if you do not turn it in on time, you will lose one-third of a grade on your coursepaper for each day late. I encourage you to set up meetings on your paper with either Mr. Mathewsonor myself.All written work must be your own. Copying the work of others, whether that of fellowstudents or anyone else, constitutes plagiarism. You need not copy a work in its entirety to plagiarize.Should you plagiarize, you will be reported to the appropriate authorities at the university and the casewill be prosecuted. The penalties for plagiarism range from failure in the course to expulsion fromthe university. The university defines plagiarism as using the works of others without attribution.I also include the use of others' words with attribution if your use of others' words are excessive.It is fine to quote others when useful. It is wrong to make extensive use of other people's words. Thepaper should reflect your own ideas and words. If you have any questions about what constitutesexcessive use of other people's words, please ask me. The paper is an exercise in research, notretyping others' words. Should anyone have any questions, please feel free to consult me. All casesof plagiarism will be referred to the University Honors Court.You are expected to come to class--and not to leave early because you have some otherpressing obligations. Doctors and dentists have office hours other than Mondays and Wednesdaysat 1:00. Poor attendance will adversely affect your participation grade. The only excuses that willbe accepted for missing examinations are medical (YOU MUST HAVE A NOTE FROM EITHERTHE HEALTH CENTER OR YOUR DOCTOR) or a verified death in your immediate family. If youare not sick enough to visit a doctor, you are well enough to take an exam. This note MUST de-scribe the nature of your illness and why you could not take the examination. Merely visitingthe Health Center or your doctor is not an excuse for missing an examination. If the note is notdetailed, I will call the Health Center or doctor to verify (sorry, but false excuses in the pastforce me to be skeptical).I take notice of who walks out of class when I have my back turned and who shows up late.When you come in late or leave early (even to go to the rest room), it takes my attention away fromteaching. If you have to come late because you can’t make it here from another class across campus,please let me know and please enter the class by making the minimum disturbance. Also, I expectyou to schedule meetings with other professors, job interviews, and appointments with doctors anddentists when the class is not in session. Missing class will adversely affect your participation grade.I expect you to take care with your writing. An excessive number of spelling and/or grammat-ical errors will lead to a reduction in your grade on both the paper and essay questions onexaminations.Incompletes will not be granted unless: (1) you die; (2) you have a baby; or (3) you canconvince me, prior to week 10, that something terrible will happen to you if an incomplete is notgranted. Failure to request an incomplete prior to November 28 will, except under the most unusualcircumstances, eliminate the possibility of receiving an incomplete. Also, I try to be accessible toanswer questions that you might have. If something terrible happens, please wait until a reasonablehour to let me know of your problem. IF FOR ANY REASON YOU CANNOT TAKE AN EXAMINATION OR HAND IN ANASSIGNMENT ON TIME, YOU NEED TO CONTACT ME OR MR. MATHEWSON BE-FORE THE ASSIGNMENT IS TO BE HANDED IN. IF WE DON’T HEAR FROM YOUBEFORE THE DEADLINE, THERE WILL BE NO POSSIBILITY OF A MAKE-UP FOREXAMS AND YOU WILL AUTOMATICALLY LOSE A FULL GRADE FOR EACH DAYLATE FOR PAPERS/TAKE-HOME EXAMS. WE WILL MAKE EXCEPTIONS FORTRULY EXCEPTIONAL CIRCUMSTANCES, BUT YOU MUST BE ABLE TO DEMON-STRATE TO US THAT YOU WERE UNABLE TO CONTACT US. IF YOU DO MISS ANEXAMINATION, YOU NEED A STATEMENT FROM YOUR DOCTOR VERIFYINGYOUR ILLNESS.PLEASE ALSO NOTE: THE COURSE PAPER IS DUE IN CLASS ON DECEMBER3, 2007 AND THE TAKE HOME FINAL IS DUE EITHER IN MY OFFICE OR IN THEMAIN GVPT OFFICE AT 1:30 P.M. ON DECEMBER 14, 2007. THE DEPARTMENT OFGOVERNMENT AND POLITICS DOES NOT TAKE RESPONSIBILITY FOR PAPERS.ESPECIALLY IF YOUR PAPER IS LATE, YOU MUST BE SURE TO GET IT TO US PER-SONALLY. WE CANNOT ASSUME THAT YOU LEFT IT IN THE MAIN OFFICE AT APARTICULAR TIME OR UNDER MY DOOR. WE ASSUME THAT ALL LATE PAPERSWERE PLACED UNDER MY DOOR OR IN THE MAIN GVPT OFFICE WHEN WE RE-TRIEVE THEM. IMPORTANT DATES TO REMEMBER: * October 1: ONE-PAGE STATEMENT OF YOUR PAPER TOPIC * OCTOBER 29: MID-TERM EXAMINATION * DECEMBER 3: COURSE PAPER DUE (IN CLASS)* DECEMBER 14: TAKE-HOME FINAL DUE (1:30 P.M. IN MY OFFICE OR MAINGVPT OFFICE ). ALL PAPERS MUST BE TURNED IN ON TIME AND WITH HARDCOPIES. WE CANNOT DOWNLOAD YOUR PAPERS. AND, SORRY,WE DO NOT