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.
