There will be several online elements to this course. You will receive the access instructions and the access codes via e-mail sent to your official Lock Haven University e-mail account--make sure that you are able to get into this e-mail account and that you have cleaned-out your Inbox. You must log-in to the courseware to participate in the online elements of the course.

There will be online threaded discussions where you will interact with your fellow students. The final exam will also be conducted online.

Note: This course satisfies the General Education requirement for Government/Economics.

Required Reading:

Janda, et. al. The Challenge of Democracy_Brief Edition -- 5th Edition

Recommended Readings:
Skinner Walden Two
Achebe Things Fall Apart
Asimov Foundation
Hoffer, E. The Ordeal of Change
Hofstadter, R. The American Political Tradition
White, T. The Making of the President 1960

GRADING

Your final grade will be computed on the following basis:

Participation 10%
Quiz 10%
Mid-Term Test 20%
Final Test 25%
Vote Smart Project 10%
Court House Project 10%
Inter-Nation Simulation 10%
Discretionary 5%

Note: All assignments and exercises must be satisfactorily completed to pass the course.

Note: Students seeking either an A or an A- grade in the course must read one of the Recommended Readings listed above and submit a four-page critical essay on the book. Be prepared to discuss your essay with Dr. Farley.

Academic Honesty: Students must do their own work. Students must respect the intellectual property of other persons. Therefore, students must cite all materials (from whatever source) that is used, quoted, or paraphrased. Failure to respect the intellectual property rights of other people will result in an automatic failing grade for the semester and in possible permanent dismissal from the University.

An "INS Debriefing Questionnaire" will be due on December 2.

COURSE SCHEDULE

August 29 - Sept 4
Introduction to Course
Required Readings: Janda, Ch. 1

Sept 5 - 11
Basic Concepts
Required Readings: Janda, Ch. 2 & 3

Sept 12 - 18
Basic Concepts
Required Readings: Janda, Ch. 4

Final Exam

The Court House Project: Using Public Records to Research a Property  (due December 2)

Welcome to the Court House Project where you will do a research project using primary sources--original public documents available to you in your local county courthouse. Your task is to write a history of a property that you have chosen. You will start your research with the deed of title for the current owners and will work back in time for as far as the records go. If you are lucky you might find a chain of deed records dating back to the 1800s. Then, when you write your history of the property you will start with the oldest information and work up to the present.

Here's what you do:

1. Choose a piece of property to research. It could be a house or a commercial building--just as long as there is a structure on it. I would recommend that you choose a house. It could be the interesting house down the street or even the house where you live now.

2. Get the street address of the property.

3. Pay a visit to your local county courthouse--not city hall or the municipal building--it must be the county government's office building which is usually located in a building called the County Courthouse.

4. Go the county Tax Assessor's office and (a) introduce yourself and tell them about this assignment and (b) find out the current owner of the property you have chosen to research and the number and page of the Deed Book that has the record of the title of ownership of the current owner. You may need to consult one of the Tax Assessor's maps to find the name of the current owner and then, with this name, the office staff will be able to help you to find the Deed Book number and page number. Write down the Deed Book number and the page number and any other information about the current owner--like how much they paid for the property, when they purchased it, etc. 

5. Walk down the hall to the Register and Recorder's office and (a) introduce yourself and (b) ask to see the deed books. Show a staff member the deed book number and the page number that you are looking for. The staff member will show you how to access the deed books and from then you will be largely on your own.

6. Read the deed in the deed book for the current owner and write down pertinent information from the deed.

7. Look in the deed for the "being" clause--this is very important. In every deed there is a clause the starts out with the words "That being the . . ." The "being" clause will refer you to the previous sale of the property and will tell you the deed book and page number you will need to take your research to the deed of the previous owner--the person(s) who sold the property to the current owner. Thus, each deed contains a reference to the previous deed. In this fashion you can trace the story of the property back in time.

8. As you read the deeds write down pertinent information -- who, when, how much, etc. Be sure to copy the down the legal description of the property--you need only do this once since it rarely changes. You will find that the most common purchase price for a property is $1.00--that's right, one dollar. When a family member wants to give a property to a family member they are required to sell the property--no contract is valid unless there is "consideration." So the payment of the one dollar makes the transfer of ownership legally valid.

9. Look for the words "testate" and "intestate." If someone dies who has a written a will the person is said to have died "testate." When this happens you will see in the deed a reference to either a Probate Court or an Orphan's Court record--a book and page number in the Probate or Orphan's Court record books. You must go to that record and record what you learn about the will. Wills are a wonderful source of information about the life and times of people. If someone dies without having written a will the person is said to have died "intestate." When this happens the Probate Court or the Orphan's Court applies state law to determine who receives the person's property.

11. When you have researched the records as far as they will go then it is time to write up your history. Start with the legal description of the property and then tell its story from earliest times up to the present. Some properties with clean, simply histories may only require five pages. Other properties may require twenty-five pages to tell the story. If it is convenient you may wish to provide a current photograph of the property or a map showing its location.

Vote-Smart Project: Hold Accountable Your Member of Congress (due December 2)