Instructor Information:
Travlyn A. Russell: trussell@mail.fremont.k12.ca.us
Work: 510-656-5711 x. 46366
Cell:
510-691-8492 Personal Facebook: Travlyn Russell Class Facebook: Mrs. Russell's American Government Class (Group)
Twitter: Travlyn
Introduction:
Welcome
American Government/Economics, one of the most useful classes in high
school. This class is where you learn
how your government works and teaches you to make important personal and
political decisions. This syllabus is
designed to help you navigate this course effectively.
My Expectations:
- You will arrive before the bell rings, sit
down, take out any materials you need, and prepare for class. Class starts on time and ends on
time. If you are late or need to
get organized, don’t make a production out of it. Be quiet and respectful. If you are lost, because you were late,
wait until I am done speaking and introducing the ideas for the day’s
class, THEN ask your questions.
Don’t ask the person next to you or behind you. Be patient, you will get a chance to
catch up. This kind of behavior
is COMMON COURTESY. I expect that
you will listen to me, take notes, and not bother people trying to do
their job—even if they are your friends.
I will note that you were late and deduct points on your grade
accordingly. If you have a pass,
give it to me AFTER the introduction and explanations are made. That is when I note the tardy students
anyway. All “housekeeping” matters
can be handled after the introduction to the day’s lesson and before the
group activity—yes, even if it is ten minutes before the end of
class. NOTHING is more important
than learning in my class, which includes a pass from your last teacher
with an excuse of why you were ten minutes late. Tardy
students lose ten points from his or her grade, unless there is a signed
pass from their parent or previous period’s teacher. I am not interested in an explanation,
you either have a pass or you don’t.
Period.
- You will do all of the assignments and turn
them in on time. I don’t want to hear
about Calculus or English homework.
You either have your assignment or you don’t. I don’t want to discuss it. Get a calendar; learn to manage your
time. Come see me if you are a
wanton procrastinator, and I will map out a plan for you to GET MY
ASSIGNMENTS IN ON TIME. “On time”
means any time before 8 p.m. on the day the assignment is due. If you have an excused absence on the
day something is due, you must turn it in on the DAY YOU RETURN TO
SCHOOL. If I am absent the day
something is due, put it in the “in” box; it will not get lost or
stolen. I accept emailed assignments, in fact I adore them, BUT if you
type in the incorrect email address, that is not my problem. Please put the title of the assignment
in the subject line. If you do not do put the title in the
subject line, it might get erased or blocked by my spam blocker, and I
will not let you resend it.
Please write your first and last name in the body of the
email. Tell me what period you are
in, and please write a professional email.
Abbreviations and characters are not appropriate in an email to
your teacher.
Bad Example of
an Email to Mrs. Russell:
hi, heres my assignment. J
Good Example
of an Email to Mrs. Russell:
Dear Mrs. Russell,
Attached please find my reading notes for the week
of September 10th.
Have a good weekend,
Joe Smith
Third Period
If you do not know how to attach a document in
email, please do not use email to send me homework. By the way, it is the twenty-first century;
learn to attach a document.
- You will attempt/complete every assignment. I know I sort of said this already, but
many students fail, because they fail to turn in all the assignments. Time and math are on your side. You can still get a good grade without
getting and ‘A’ on every assignment.
If you get a 100% on 50% of the assignments, you will get an
‘F’. That’s is just math. I am a slave to my math. If you have a 89%, you get a B+, period. Don’t shoot yourself in the foot, and do
everything.
- Come see me if you are having problems. I am on your
side. I want to help you. If you don’t know what to do, you need
an explanation, you need help getting organized, come see me BEFORE it is
too late. You know when you are not
doing as well as you like to. That
moment is the moment you should schedule an appointment.
- You must follow all school and class rules. Disruptive behavior (talking, singing,
sleeping, anything other than what I have asked you to do) will result in
a warning then a detention if it continues. Any behavior that violates school rules
or the State’s education code (verbal assault, sexual harassment, physical
violence, preventing other students from learning, etcetera) will result
in a referral to the Assistant Principal’s Office.
Communication Policy:
PLEASE email me homework or
requests for help with your full name
and period in the subject line.
PLEASE include your name in any
text messages you send me; I do not memorize the phone numbers of my students.
PLEASE use correct spelling and
punctuation in your emails and texts; I am old and do not understand all the
abbreviations used in emails and texts yet.
Grading Policies: (Each
Semester)
20% Projects/Essays
20% Tests
20% Classwork
25% Homework
15% QUEST
Contracts:
Contracts will be given if a student reaches 60%; if a
student doesn’t achieve 60%, then contracts are at the teacher’s
discretion. Under ALL circumstances, a
student must request the contract themselves.
They will not be given unless a student asks for one. Contracts must be completed one week before
grades are due to give me time to grade them.
My Grading Scale:
|
99-100
is an A+
|
Any
type of A indicates that you have completed all of the assignments at an
excellent level and that you have demonstrated a sophisticated understanding
of the California State Standards, the Social Science Skills Standards, and
all additional material. Your analysis
and oral and written expression are clear, cogent, and indicate an
understanding of the interconnectedness of political and economic events and
ideas.
|
|
94-98
is an A
|
|
90-93
is an A-
|
|
88-89%
is a B+
|
A
grade of ‘B’ indicates that you have done an above average job
on most or all of the assignments. The
requirements were met and, in addition, you demonstrated creativity and
attention to detail. However, your
work does not demonstrate an exceptional understanding of all of the
California State Standards, the Social Science Skills Standards, and all
additional material, and has spots where there is room for improvement. Your
analysis and oral and written expression are clear, cogent, and indicate an
understanding of political and economic events and ideas, but there is focus
on factual reporting as opposed to synthesis or analysis.
|
|
84-87%
is a B
|
|
80-83%
is a B-
|
|
78-79%
is a C+
|
A
grade of ‘C’ indicates that you have done an average job on all or most of
your assignments (or that you are missing a major assignment). A C is not the same as an ‘F’, it means you
demonstrate an understanding of most of the State Standards, the Social
Science Skills Standards, and all additional material, but has major areas
where there is room for improvement. Your oral and written expression are
clear, cogent, and indicate an understanding of political and economic events
and ideas, but there is focus on factual reporting as opposed to synthesis or
analysis. Your analysis and synthesis
are probably weak (essentially, you cannot answer “why” or “how” but you can
answer “what”).
|
|
74-77%
is a C
|
|
70-73%
is a C-
|
|
0%-69%
is an F
|
Irvington High
School has a policy of no grades of ‘D’. However, if
your grade falls between 60% and 69%, I may offer you a contract to makeup
missing work. If you get any sort of
F, it is because you completed few assignments well or did not complete them
at all. I cannot emphasize this point
enough, if you are failing, see me!
|
My Grading Policy:
- Only exceptional work
gets an ‘A’, read those rubrics carefully!
- If you have a B+, that’s
what you have. Don’t ask me
about extra credit. I give
opportunities for extra credit through out the grading period. If you don’t take them, don’t ask me to
create special assignments just for you later. In
all cases, extra credit counts only if you have turned in all of the
regular assignments.
- I make mistakes, if
there is a mistake on your paper, or you disagree with a grade, come see
me at lunch or a prearranged time.
I honestly can’t deal with it while I am trying to teach class. I want to give you a fair hearing, not
thirty seconds while I am distracted with other things.
Other Items:
- Read assignments and
rubrics carefully, I spend a lot of time writing assignments, so I can
avoid spending too much class time going over them. If you have questions, by all means,
ask!
- I assign a lot of
reading and writing in this class, if you are struggling with the reading
and/or writing, talk to me the first week of class, so I can give you some
tips to stay afloat.
- It will be a good idea
for you to have access to a computer at home for this class. An i-Pod/MP3 player would be helpful,
again, but not required. If you do
not have access to a computer, come see me so we can strategize about you
can use the school’s resources.
- I know you have jobs,
and practice, and sweethearts, but I fully expect that you will devote at
least 3-5 hours a week for my class.
Some weeks will be harder than others
- Some work can be “made
up” and some cannot. All classwork
can be made up. Homework, essays,
presentations, and projects cannot be made up, unless there is a medical
excuse. If you know you are going
to be absent on the day something is due, you must arrange for an
extension at least 48 hours ahead of time. (Example: Your favorite great
aunt has died and the funeral is on the day of your presentation, you will
know ahead of time that you will be absent, so arrange an extension!) Occasionally, there are exceptions:
hospitalizations, alien abductions, etc. Those cases will be dealt with on
a case-by-case basis.
A Short Syllabus:
This
list is a general outline and is subject to some change as the needs of the
class dictate.
Textbooks: American
Government and Economics: Principles in Action
Quarter 1: Foundations of American Government, Political
Behavior: Government by the People, and the Legislative Branch
Quarter 2: The Executive Branch, Judicial Branch, Comparative
Political and Economic Systems, Participating in Local Government.
Quarter 3: Introduction to Economics, How Markets Work, Business
and Labor, and Money Banking and Finance, QUEST
Quarter 4:
Measuring Economic Performance, Government and Economy, The Global Economy,
QUEST
Communication Policy:
Tardies: The school policy is that students are given
detention if they are late.
Requirements:
You must have a Google account for this class with the
following type of email: JohnDoe@gmail.com. Don’t worry if you have to add some numbers
at the end to make it an unique email address. Just remember that your first and last name must be in the email address itself.
You must have flash drive for this class. PLEASE put your name on it.
Technology:
In this class you will need access to the Internet regularly. You will be blogging, researching, and collaborating--all online. If you lose your technology privileges at home, it will make it difficult for you to do your homework, so please bring a note or have your parents send an email that lets me know if you will not have access to the Internet for more than a week, so I can assist you.
I will not accept any excuses that have to do with--"I sent it---didn't you get it?" or "My email does not work; the server was down." If you send an important email, you should check if it bounces or not. The bounce notice usually comes within 15 seconds. Furthermore, when email servers go down, it is usually just for a matter of minutes, occasionally hours. So you should resend it. If you have a Google account, which you should, you can go to anyplace with the Internet and send me an email--the library or the Bay Street Cafe or wherever. If you are faced with an unanticipated problem--solve it! That's what I have to do! Excuses are not the same thing as accomplishments.
Textbook: This year we will be using the We The People textbook for American Government. It's a great book that is easy to read and actually has good questions in it. We may use the McGruder's occasionally to supplement. For Economics, we will be using: Economics: Principles in Action, which is a good overview of Economics.
QUEST: QUEST counts as 30% of your grade. The reason is that it takes up much class time, I am integrating it more thoroughly with the subject matter we are learning. You will be required to some assignments that enhance or explain the assignments you are doing in English, so I can understand your research process more thoroughly. I also expect that you will keep a Google Notebook of your sources and invite me to see them. QUEST can be really fun if you do it right; my hope is that you all do it right.
|
