First-Year Seminar in American Studies

Catalog description

Critical approaches to the interdisciplinary study of American culture. AMST 83 First-Year Seminar in American Studies (3) (GH;FYS) (BA) This course meets the Bachelor of Arts degree requirements. This course will be an open topic course in American Studies, limited to 20 students, and taught by an experienced professor. The course will be designed to provide a small, interactive learning environment for first-year students. Each section of 83 will address a large theme or number of themes that encourage students to examine a range of assigned texts in the context of broad questions of ethical and social value. Each section of the course will focus on a well-defined body of scholarship that is topical in the discipline, such as 'Civil Disobedience,' "Utopian Communities, and Blacks and Jews: A Multi-Cultural Perspective." In addition to the academic topic and issues of this course, students can expect to gain a general introduction to the University as an academic community and have the opportunity to explore their responsibilities as members of that community. Students will develop an understanding of the learning tools and resources available to them, including the opportunity to develop relationships with faculty and other students who share their academic interests. Each section of the course will require active class participation from all students and a minimum of three substantial written assignments. Each of these written assignments will take one of the following forms: essay, essay exam, or a semester-long reading journal. The course fulfills a General Education humanities requirement or a Bachelor of Arts humanities requirement.