HS 161 - U.S. History From Reconstruction to the Present

This course equivalency was HS 250.

1. Analyze scholarly and creative artifacts and activities from 1877 through the present, and connect themes (such as Industrialization, Reconstruction, Race Relations, Immigration, Politics, Imperialism, and the Cold War) to the present in order to understand the world and himself or herself from different points of view. (GELO 3)
2. Through the use of primary source analysis both individually and in groups, students will be asked to think critically about the interplay between and among Americans both at home and abroad from 1877 through the modern era. Particular attention will be paid to the impact American culture has had on the international arena and the impact that race has had on modern American society and politics. (GELO 4)
3. Using the concept of Race as a Social Construct, students will explore the scholarship surrounding the creation of modern racism as it relates to both immigrants, African-Americans, Native Americans and Whites. Particular attention will be paid to the Civil Rights movement and to the creation of Whiteness. (GELO 5)
4. Through the study of History, students will learn how past generations have labored to explain the world, explore causation for diverse cultural traditions, and appreciate the diversity and complexities of the global community in general and American society in particular. (GELO 4)
5. Through learning historical methods of analysis, students will be able to conduct primary and secondary research, analyze data, craft academic arguments about historical causation and social significance, and effectively present their findings both orally and in written form. (GELO 3)
6. Through selected readings, lectures, group discussions, and documentary films, students will comprehend how changing historic context and social, political, economic, and cultural conditions in America from 1877 through the present, impacted the behavior of individuals, the operation of societal institutions and/or the perception of social phenomena (such as Civil Rights, Immigration, Great Depression, and war). (GELO 5)
7. Through detailed analysis and comparison of primary and secondary sources, students will explore questions and hypotheses related to political power, agency of the common people, race relations, social class, gender, and shifting value systems. (GELO 3)
8. Students will analyze the complex relationship between the social construction of race, race science, gender politics and their impacts on modern politics, health care, socio-economic status, and education. (GELO 4)
9. Discuss how communities, countries or cultures differ in their values, politics, communication styles, beliefs and practices. (GELO 4)

I. Reconstruction (1863-1877)

A. Radical Reconstruction and Presidential Reconstruction

B. Jim Crow America

C. Slave Narratives

II. The Trans-Mississippi West (1860-1900)

A. American Indians and Cultural and Military Conflict

B. Immigration in the West

C. Industrial Growth

III. Production and Consumption in the Gilded Age (1865-1900’s)

A. The Rise of Corporate America

B. Workers and Resistance

C. Grange Movement

D. People’s Party

E. Working Classes, Poverty, Immigration

F. Social Darwinism

IV. Democracy and Empire Building (1870-1914)

A. Imperialism

B. Spanish-American War

C. Big Stick Policy

D. Dollar Diplomacy

E. Wilsonian World View

V. Urban America and The Progressive Era (1900-1917)

A. Muckrakers

B. Women’s Suffrage

C. ERA Movement

D. Trust Busting

E. Fair Deal

F. New Freedom

VI. Global Power and the Great War (1901-1920)

A. Europe and the Descent Into War

B. American Intervention

C. Total War

D. The Home Front

E. Failure of International Peace

F. Radicalism and the Red Scare

VII. The Twenties (1919-1929)

A. The Roaring Twenties

B. Agricultural Decay

C. The Rise of Hate (KKK)

D. Prohibition and Crime

E. The Lost Generation

VIII. The Great Depression and New Deal (1929-1940’s)

A. Causes

B. New Deal Politics

C. Political Unrest and the Grapes of Wrath Mentality

D. Race and the New Deal

IX. World War II (1941-1945)

A. Europe’s Descent Into War

B. American Intervention

C. The Home Front

D. Shaping the Peace

E. FHA and the GI Bill

F. Race, Gender, and Military Growth

G. Atomic Weapons

X. The Cold War: Early Years: (1944-1952)

A. Creating a National Security State

B. National Security at Home

C. Changing Post-War Culture

D. Korea

E. Cuban Crisis

XI. American Society and Culture at Midcentury: (1952-1963)

A. Affluence and its Limits

B. Debating the Role of Government at Midcentury

C. Politics of Gender and Identity

D. Civil Rights Origins

XII. Civil Rights Movement (1945 (or earlier) - 1970’s)

A. Accommodation vs. Resistance

B. Political Efforts

C. Jim Crow America under Fire

D. Changing Nature of Resistance

E. MLK to the Black Panthers

F. Latino Resistance

G. Native American Resistance

H. Gender and Sexual Choice

XIII. Cold War: Later Years and Vietnam Era (1965-1980’s)

A. Vietnam

B. Counter-Culture Movement

C. 1968

D. Nixon Doctrine

E. Watergate

F. Popular Culture

G. Gender and Race

XIV. Conservative Ascendancy (1974-1991)

A. Reagan Revolution

B. Cold War (Part II)

C. The Politics of Social Movements in the Conservative Era

XV. Modern U.S. in a Global Age (1992-?)

A. Culture and Media

B. Politics

C. Warfare

D. 9/11 and Terrorism

E. Obama Revolution

Discussion based on secondary resources and primary sources: 20-50%
Mandatory Course Components:
Course Components can be modified as long as Student Learning Outcomes are being met for Humanities and Social Sciences as listed in this document. In addition, the course components must fall within the ranges listed below. Any major deviations from the suggested material will have to be vetted through the Department.

Papers: 30-40%

Essay Exams: 40-60%

Presentations, Group Work, and Participation: 10-20%

Quizzes and Written Assessments: 10-20%
Name of Industry Recognize Credentials: NA

Course prepares students to seek the following external certification:
No
Course-Specific Placement Test:
Course Aligned with ARW/IRW Pairing: IRW 98, IRW 99