Course Meeting Times
Required seminar sessions: 1 session/week, 2 hours/session, to discuss the topics and readings for the week.
Optional sessions: 1 session/week, 1 hour/session, dedicated to guest speakers, student presentations, research/writing workshops, and additional in-class material.
Prerequisites
None
Course Description
11.013J American Urban History is a seminar on the history of institutions and institutional change in American cities from roughly 1850 to the present. Among the institutions the course examines are political machines, police departments, courts, schools, prisons, public authorities, and universities. In keeping with the seminar structure, the course focuses on readings and discussions.
This 12-unit undergraduate-level course fulfills MIT’s General Institute Requirements (GIRs) for a Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences - Humanities (HASS-H) subject; it also fulfills the Communication Intensive in the Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences (CI-H) requirement.
Expectations
In order to succeed in this class and learn the material, you must (a) attend and participate in all classes and discussions, (b) read all required readings with a thoughtful, attentive, critical mind, (c) prepare and submit short (one-page) responses to weekly discussion questions, (d) take part in the in-class midterm exercise, and (e) complete all stages of the final term paper and present it to your classmates. These requirements are described in more detail below.
Attendance and Participation
Given the infrequency of our meetings, attendance (and active participation) is required. If you need to miss a class, please let me know in advance and be sure to still post your weekly response by the deadline; I may also request that you supplement your written response with additional material, to solicit your thoughts and insights on some of what we discussed in class.
Readings
Each week, the outline below includes a set of readings for you to prepare for our discussion. Typically, these will include a balance of the following:
- Background readings from the Oxford Encyclopedia of American Urban History or other reference book, to provide context on the topics for the week. Note that while these articles tend to be relatively uncontroversial in their coverage of the topics, no source is absolutely “neutral” or free from interpretive slant, and you may at times find that the authors have allowed their own historical or political agendas to slip into the discussion; if so, note it, reflect on it, and bring your thoughts to our discussion.
- Primary sources, including newspaper articles, speeches, letters, public reports, and other historical documents, providing evidence to help us understand the topic for the week.
- Academic articles or book chapters written by historians recounting, describing, analyzing, interpreting, revealing, or otherwise “making sense” of some aspect of the past, related to the week’s topic.
Assignments
As noted above, this course has been designed to meet MIT’s CI-H requirement. Students are required to submit seven short written reflections and a final term paper (written over a number of stages, and presented in class as well; see below). The total writing output of the class, including weekly responses, will be approximately 20–25 pages.
- Weekly Reflections: Starting with the second week of the syllabus, you are asked to write short responses (2–3 tight paragraphs) to one or more questions about the readings each week. Responses must be submitted for 7 of the 9 indicated weeks of the syllabus (student’s choice), no later than Monday at noon. Late comments will not be accepted. But if you fail to get one in on time, don’t worry—since they’re only required for seven of the weeks, you can miss one or two, no questions, no problem, no penalty, no advance permission required. [Note: that said, just because you don’t need to submit the notes doesn’t mean you don’t need to do the readings or participate in the discussions!] For details of prompts for each week, see the Weekly Reflections page.
- Pick-a-City Exercise: In week 3, we will not have a weekly reflection assignment, but you will be asked to prepare a short summary of the history and development of a selected American city in the 19th century; for details, see the Pick-a-City Exercise page.
- Midterm In-Class Exercise: In lieu of a midterm exam, we will conduct an in-class debate to tease out some of the differences and similarities between “boss politics” and political machines on the one hand and the advocacy and activism of social reformers and political “progressives” on the other. At the start of the class, some of you will be assigned to play the role of “Boss Politicians” and some will be “Progressive Reformers,” and a few of you will be assigned to act as moderators, asking pointed questions for each side to respond to and commentary following the debate on what was said; for details, see the Midterm In-Class Exercise page.
- Final Paper: By the end of the semester, you must complete a final term paper on a topic of your own choosing, integrating material from the class with your own outside research using primary and secondary sources. This assignment will be due in a number of stages; for details, see the Final Paper page.
- In-Class Presentation: You will deliver a presentation in class during the last two weeks of the semester. More information will be provided later in the semester about the format of this assignment, and we will dedicate some class time for brainstorming topics and discussing research strategies.
There will be no final exam.
Grading
Final grades for the class will be based on the following formula:
- Weekly responses (7 x 5%) 35%
- Pick-a-City exercise 5%
- Midterm in-class exercise 10%
- Proposal/outline for final paper 5%
- Final paper 25%
- Class participation 20%
Extra Credit
Students seeking extra credit may submit weekly reflections for the additional two “free” weeks, worth up to 4 points total (maximum 2 points per reflection). All extra credit submissions must be received no later than the last day of class.
Additional Notes
Feedback
Somewhere in here I wanted to be sure to mention that I really do care about your ideas and feedback on the course, and ideally would want it during the semester so I can be aware of problems (or opportunities) and make changes as necessary. Please feel free to contact me with issues as they arise, either in person or through email (or even anonymous notes).
Office Hours
Students can book times to meet with me via DUSP’s online portal. If these times don’t work with your schedule, we can easily arrange some other time to meet outside of class—just email or talk to me in person and we’ll figure something out. (When booking a time, please be sure to add a note to let me know what the meeting will be about.)
Some Other Required Elements
Although all of this should go without saying, the Institute requires us to say the following:
Accommodation for Disabilities
If you have a documented disability, or any other problem you think may affect your ability to perform in class, please see me early in the semester so that arrangements may be made to accommodate you.
Academic Misconduct
Plagiarism and cheating are both academic crimes. Never (1) turn in an assignment that you did not write yourself, (2) turn in an assignment for this class that you previously turned in for another class, or (3) cheat on an exam. If you do so, it may result in a failing grade for the class, and possibly even suspension from the Institute. Please see me if you have any questions about what constitutes plagiarism. Anyone caught cheating on an exam will be reported to the provost in line with recognized university procedures.
