Government 2301-Fall 2005 Dr.

Greg Thielemann
TR 12:30-1:45 Green 2.534 972-883-2048
HH 2.402 gregt@utdallas.edu

Office Hours: TR 11:30-12:30, T 4:45-5:45, or by appointment

Website: http://www.utdallas.edu/texascenter/govt2301/

Government 2301 is the first in a two-semester sequence of courses that fulfills the state’s
Government requirement. This course covers the constitutional foundations and political
behavior of the United States and Texas.

Text
Practicing Texas Politics, Brown, Lyle C. et.al. 12th edition (2004)*
Political Behavior of the American Electorate, William Flanigan and Nancy Zingale,
10th ed. (2002)*
In addition, a reserve reading has been placed in the library under my name and the
course number. This selection is used on 8-30.

* You must buy these editions. Do not purchase older ones.

Attendance
Students are required to attend class. The material covered in class is not simply a
rehashing of the textbooks. Thus, if you skip class, you will have trouble passing the
course.

Teaching Assistants
In this class, I work closely with the teaching assistants to maintain quality and
consistency. Because the teaching assistants in this class help with the grading, it is
important that you understand my policy in this area. If you are dissatisfied with a grade
and the teaching assistant has been unable to help you, you are free to visit with me about
your score. I have an open door policy regarding grades, but I ask that you wait one
week before approaching me with complaints so as to ensure that your arguments are
thoughtful rather than emotional.

Breakout Sessions
Each of you will be assigned a teaching assistant. The TA’s will keep a record of
attendance in these sessions and should you find yourself on the bubble for a grade, this
will be the deciding factor.

Extra Credit
Occasionally we will offer students extra credit for attending events sponsored by the
Center for the Study of Texas Politics. Once these events are scheduled, I will advise you
of these opportunities.
 Evaluation
Because this is an intro course, I prefer to evaluate your performance in a number of
different ways. Please be aware that I will not give make-up exams. If you are going to
miss an exam you must advise me at least one week prior to the exam date so that I can
make arrangements for you to take a different, early exam. In addition, I will not assign
letter grades to the numerical equivalents before the conclusion of the term. I will
guarantee that scores in the 90s and 100 will be an A+, an A, or an A-. I will not make
more specific assignments until the end of the term. Your goal is to accumulate as many
points as possible over the course of the term. I will offer you a chance to earn 100 points
through your attendance and examinations. The formula follows:

In Class Essay Exams- (60 points) Students will take three in-class exams, each of
which can produce a maximum of 30 points. These exams are not cumulative and must
be written in ink. You must take these exams in blue books that you will provide. We
will keep your highest two scores and drop your lowest grade on the essay exams. Thus,
if you score a 30 on each of the first two exams, you will not need to take the third exam
because you will have already accumulated the maximum number of points allowed for
the essay exams. If you miss an exam, this will be the exam you drop.

Terms Test- (40 points) Students will take three in-class terms tests, each of which can
produce a maximum of 20 points. These exams are not cumulative and must be written
in ink on a form that we will provide. The format for these tests involves the student
identifying and giving the importance of key terms from the text and lectures. Your
lowest score will be dropped. As before, if you miss a test it will be the one you drop.

Academic Honesty
I will not tolerate cheaters and will seek the most severe discipline possible. In this
course, cheating can involve looking on another student’s exam or having any
unauthorized materials during an exam.
 Course Outline

(Brown refers to the Texas Book; F&Z refers to Flanigan and Zingale. The Numbers are
the chapters that should be read before that class.)

Date Topic Readings

8-18 Pick up Syllabi
8-23 Introductory Lecture
8-25 Political Culture Brown 1, F&Z 1
8-30 Federalism and The U.S. Constitution Wilson Reserve 2-3
9-01 Texas Constitution Brown 2
9-06 Civil Rights & Legal Constitutionalism
9-08 Breakout Session
9-13 Review
9-15 Terms Test 1
9-20 Essay 1
9-22 Public Opinion Theory F&Z 6
9-27 Public Opinion Practice
9-29 Ideology
10-4 The Mass Media F&Z 7-8
10-6 Political Parties Brown 4
10-11 Interest Groups Brown 5
10-13 Breakout Session
10-18 Terms Test 2
10-20 Essay 2
10-25 Voting: Suffrage and Turnout F&Z 2
10-27 Breakout Session
11-1 Voting Models- Behavioralism F&Z 3-5
11-3 Voting Models- Rational Choice
11-8 Critical Elections
11-10 Breakout Session
11-15 Terms Test 3
11-17 Essay 3
11-22 Last Class