Liberty and Justice: Race, Ethnicity, and Gender in American Law (PHIL 451-IC/HD)

Julie Van Camp, Professor of Philosophy, California State University, Long Beach -- Spring 2010

Monday: 7:00-9:45 pm - LA5-246

OFFICE:	MHB-703

FACULTY MAILBOXES:	MHB-917 (Department of Philosophy

E-MAIL:	jvancamp@csulb.edu

COURSE WEB SITE:	http://www.csulb.edu/~jvancamp/451/

OFFICE HOURS:	Mondays: 4:00-6:00 pm: MHB-703

COURSE REQUIREMENTS AND GRADING

University General Education requirements for IC (Interdisciplinary) courses include "substantial writing" throughout the semester, with the first writing assignment no later than the fifth week of the semester. University General Education requirements for HD (Human Diversity) courses require consideration of at least two of these groups: African-American, Asian-American, Latino, Native American, with a consider
ation of gender throughout. The course requirements and syllabus are designed to meet these University requirements. Use of Beachboard is required for this course.

The semester grade will be based on two open-book essay examinations (mid-term and final); one short essay paper; attendance at in-person classes; and various activity points, for a total of up to 110 points.

Turn-it-In Originality Checker: I will use the Originality Checker for written work for the course, including the short paper and case briefs. Individual dropboxes will be set up on Beachboard for the written assignments, so you do not need a separate Turnitin password.

SHORT PAPER.	Due: Monday, February 22 at 7:00 pm. (Beachboard dropbox) (12 points)

You will write a 4-5 page essay (800-1000 words). The assignment to be announced Monday, February 15 on Beachboard. Your paper must be sent by the deadline as a wordprocessing file (PC/Word, Wordperfect, or RTF) to the Beachboard Dropbox. No late papers will be accepted, unless you meet the requirements for make-up exams (below).

Grading: Short Paper

Grade	Points	Grade	Points	Grade	Points	Grade	Points

A+	12	B+	9	C+	6	D+	3

A	11	B	8	C	5	D	2

A-	10	B-	7	C-	4	D-	1

EXAM I: MID-TERM .	Monday, March 22 -- 7:15 - 9:15 pm – Units I, II, III (24 points)

The exam will be an open-book essay exam on Units I, II, and III in our classroom. You will be asked to analyze one case using principles developed in Units I-III. Bring with you to class both textbooks for the course. You may write your exam in a bluebook or on a laptop (PC-format: Word, Wordperfect, or Rich-
Text-Format).

EXAM II: FINAL.	Monday, May 17 – 7:15 - 9:15 pm (24 points)

The final exam will be an open-book essay exam primarily on Unit V. You will be asked to analyze one article or case using principles developed in the course. You may take the exam on a laptop and submit a PC-readable disk. (Use PC-format Word, Wordperfect, or Rich-Text-Format.)

Grading: Exams

Grade	Points	Grade	Points	Grade	Points	Grade	Points

A+	23-24	B+	17-18	C+	11-12	D+	5-6

A	21-22	B	15-16	C	9-10	D	3-4

A-	19-20	B-	13-14	C-	7-8	D-	1-2

Make-up exams and late short papers will be permitted only for serious illness and mandatory University policies. A physicians' note will be required for illness. If you will need to take a make-up exam or submit a late short paper, you must leave a message by e-mail (jvancamp@csulb.edu) no later than 5:00 p.m. the day of the exam. Your message must include a telephone number where I can reach you later that day and the next day to schedule the make-up exam.

REGULAR ATTENDANCE is expected of all students. To encourage regular attendance, additional points will be available for the course grade total:

Class: Attendance will be taken 11 times, on February 8, 15, 22, March 1, 8, 15, April 12, 19, 26, May 3, 10. You will receive 1 point for each class you attend, up to a maximum of 11 points. There will be no system of "excused" absences, except for those mandated by University policy (e.g., serious illness with a physician's note, death in the immediate family).

Attendance will be taken in a variety of ways. Sometimes a class list will be sent around for signature during class. Other times, students will be asked a simple question about the class material and submit an answer with their signature during class. (Please always have a blank piece of paper or file card with you at class.) It is understandable that students might be a few minutes late or have to leave a few minutes early for an emergency. But please do not expect attendance points for showing up briefly just to sign the attendance list. The instructor reserves the right to make spot checks at the end of class if a problem of "early leavers" develops during class.

ACTIVITY POINTS: As listed in the right-hand column of the syllabus, 39 points are available for various activities. You are not required to complete these activities. However, these are the best way to accumu
late points toward your course grade and give yourself a cushion heading into the final exam. The syllabus is your "roadmap" to the course, including the various activity points. These include the following types of assignments:

I.	Participate in the on-line threaded discussion group on Beachboard on the readings from the previous in-person class. To receive the maximum 3 points, you should both frame questions and issues and respond thoughtfully to the comments posted by others. Your participation should demonstrate your understanding of all of the reading assignments that day. Please avoid long free-standing essays, but rather engage in appropriate discussion with others in the class.

II.	Take the on-line quiz on Beachboard on the readings from the previous in-person class. The number of questions will normally be 4, with a maximum of 4 points. These are open-book quizzes designed primarily to test your close reading of the texts and the class lectures.

III.	Brief one of the cases for the assignment for the next class and send your brief in the Student Dropbox to the instructor. Follow the outline on p. 166 of Ethical Issues.

Please note that all activity points must be completed no later than 9:00 a.m. each Monday. No extensions can be made, due to the close proximity to our classtime. Please plan ahead in case you have difficulty connecting to the Internet. You will need to plan your schedule carefully to complete each assignment. Late assignments will be accepted only if you meet a mandated University attendance exception for the entire time period during which the assignment can be completed. For example, if you are ill, you will need to bring me a physician's note that you were incapacitated and unable to do the assignment for that entire time period.

TOTAL WEEKLY COMMITMENT OF TIME TO THIS COURSE: Ordinarily, in a college-level course, for each one hour of class, students should spend two hours of time in preparation, reading, studying, writing, and on-line activities.

FINAL LETTER GRADES for the course will be assigned as follows:

Up to 110 regular points are available: 12 points for Short Paper, 24 points for Exam I (Mid-term), 24 points for Exam II (Final), 11 points for attendance, 20 points for quizes, 9 points for on-line discussion groups, 8 points for briefs, and 2 points for class introduction.

The cut-offs for final letter grades for the course are calculated as follows:

maximum	A	B	C	D
short paper	12	10	7	4	1
midterm	24	19	13	7	1
final exam	24	19	13	7	1
attendance	11	10	9	8	7
quizzes	20	15	10	7	5
discussion	9	5	4	3	2
briefs	8	6	5	4	3
introduction	2	2	2	2	2
TOTAL	110	86	63	42	22

Credit/No Credit students must accumulate sufficient points for a "C" for the course total (42).

Cheating and Plagiarism: The CSULB policy on Cheating and Plagiarism will be followed strictly. Students who have any questions or uncertainty whatsoever about this policy are responsible for meeting individually with the instructor to discuss the policy. Students found to be cheating on any exam, quiz, attendance, or other course element will be FAILED for the COURSE and may be reported to the Office of Judicial Affairs for possible probation, suspension, or expulsion. Please remember: as easy as it is for you to find papers on the World Wide Web which you steal and submit as your own work, it is just as easy for me to find the source of a stolen paper; once I find the paper you stole, you are guaranteed an "F" for the course.

COURSE OBJECTIVES:
A.	Identify and explain the major questions answered by a theory or philosophy of law.

B.	Identify and explain major examples of philosophy of law, especially natural law, legal positivism, legal realism, and pragmatism

C.	Develop close reading and analytical skills of both philosophical and legal texts

D.	Identify and explain philosophical assumptions and reasoning in legal texts

E.	Recognize and explain issues which have received close scrutiny in both philosophy and law and how those methodologies benefit from mutual insights (e.g., causation and responsibility)

F.	Identify and explain issues in the law which have benefitted from philosophical analysis (e.g., free speech)

State budget campus shut-downs and mandatory furloughs

State budget campus shut-downs and mandatory unpaid faculty furlough days are listed here. The entire campus will be shut-down on the STATE BUDGET CAMPUS CLOSURE DAYS. In addition, each faculty member is required to designate six additional unpaid furlough days, when we are not permitted to be available for class, office hours, or e-mail. These will be different for each faculty member.

•	Thursday, January 28: State Budget Faculty Furlough Day

•	Friday, February 12: State Budget Faculty Furlough Day

•	Friday, February 26: State Budget Faculty Furlough Day

•	Wednesday, March 24: State Budget Faculty Furlough Day

•	Thursday, March 25: State Budget Faculty Furlough Day

•	Friday, March 26: STATE BUDGET CAMPUS CLOSURE DAY

•	Monday, April 5: State Budget Faculty Furlough Day

•	Wednesday, April 21: STATE BUDGET CAMPUS CLOSURE DAY

•	Thursday, May 6: STATE BUDGET CAMPUS CLOSURE DAY

•	Friday, May 21: State Budget Faculty Furlough Day

1/11/2010 - subject to change until the first day of class 1/25/2010