Constitution, Society, and Values Week 1 Unit 1 Course Syllabus

1. Constitution, Society, and ValuesWeek 1Unit 1Course Syllabus Christopher Dreisbach, Ph.D. Johns Hopkins University

2. The Syllabus-Overview • This unit walks through the syllabus step by step. • The syllabus is available under the coursebook/orientation tab • This overview includes • Instructor information • Course Information • University Notices

3. Instructor Information-i • The instructor for this course is Christopher Dreisbach, Ph.D. • Feel free to call him Chris • His phone numbers are • O: 410-516-9868 • Please try this number first during business hours • H:443-708-0330 • Please try this number first during non-business hours • You may call this number at any time • C:410-967-1915

4. Instructor Information-ii • Chris’s e-mail addresses are • Cdreisbach@ jhu.edu • CD8757@comcast.net • When e-mailing him something, please send it to both addresses • Since receiving duplicates is better than not receiving the item at all • You may also send e-mail through the directory of the Electronic Learning Community (ELC)

5. Course Information-Overview • The syllabus organizes the course information as follows: • Credit hours and Meeting Times • Description and Objectives • Required Readings • Assignments • Course Schedule • Evaluation and Grading

6. Course Information-Credit Hours and Meeting Times • The course is three credit hours • The course runs for 10 weeks • There is no scheduled face-to-face meeting • But there will be opportunities to meet as a class online • Details appear in the course schedule

7. Course Information-Description and Objectives-i • A lengthy description appears in the syllabus • In brief, this course: • Examines the concepts of rights, law, and justice • As they allegedly pertain to the U. S.Constitution • Historically • In contemporary terms • Discusses possible applications of this examination to issues facing organizational and community leaders.

8. Course Information-Description and Objectives-ii • There are six course objectives • To survey the history of the ideas of rights, law, justice, and their relationship to the Constitution • To familiarize ourselves with the variety of definitions and interpretations of rights, law, justice, and the Constitution. • To develop and implement strategies for evaluating these definitions and interpretations in terms of their contribution to leadership

9. Course Information-Description and Objectives-iii • To understand the role these definitions and interpretations play in the American value system(s). • To articulate and refine our own positions on the subject. • To apply this study to specific cases in determining the best solutions to these cases as they confront communities and their leaders. • More specific Unit Objectives appear in the course schedule

10. Course Information-Required Readings-i • There are four required texts • Agel, J. & Gerberg, M. (Eds.). (1987). The U.S. Constitution for everyone. New York: Perigree. • Balkin, J. M. and Siegel, R. (Eds.) (2009). The Constitution in 2020. New York: Oxford University Press. • Feinberg, J & Coleman, J (Eds.) (2008). Philosophy of law (8th ed.) Belmont, CA; Wadsworth. • Webster,M. (Ed.) (1992). The Federalist papers in modern language. Bellevue, WA: Merrill Press.

11. Course Information-Required Readings-ii • Other required and recommended readings will be available online • As files or • As links to files

12. Course Information-Assignments-Overview • The Assignments section of the Syllabus has three subsections • Course Conduct • Class Work • Specific Assignments

13. Course Information-Assignments-Course Conduct-i • This fully online course has 10 units, one per week: • Unit 1 introduces the course • Units 2 and 3 look at the anatomy and history of the Constitution • Units 4 through 9 examine the history and nature of law, rights, and justice • Unit 10 considers the future of the Constitution.  • A more detailed schedule appears below.

14. Course Information-Assignments-Course Conduct-ii • The following are available online at the Electronic Learning Community (ELC) site for this course • All materials • Live discussions • Discussion boards • Assignments

15. Course Information-Assignments-Class Work • Each student should  • Be familiar with all components of the ten course units including • Objectives • Reading assignments • Discussion questions • Assessments (essays or quizzes) • Participate in class discussions. •  Submit assignments on time.

16. Course Information-Assignments-Specific-i • There are five graded components to the course • Four 750-word essays • Three graded quizzes • Reviews of the Federalist Papers • Final Paper • Class Participation

17. Course Information-Assignments-Specific-ii • Four 750-word (max.) essays. • Essays are due at the end of Weeks 3, 5, 7, and 9. • Specific topics appear in the course schedule. • Any paper uploaded late will receive one lower grade for each 24 hours that it is late.

18. Course Information-Assignments-Specific-iii • Three Graded Quizzes • In Weeks 4, 6, and 8. • Multiple choice and short answer • Usually on the course content for that week • May be cumulative on occasion

19. Course Information-Assignments-Specific-iv • Weekly Discussion Board Postings. • One question per week • Usually will be about course content for the current week • Each student should respond • To the question and • At least once to each of the other student’s responses. • Postings are due no later than midnight on the Monday of the week that the discussion question is posted.

20. Course Information-Assignments-Specific-v • Summary of selected Federalist Papers. • These papers collectively offer the first and most complete argument for The U. S. Constitution. • Each student will be assigned to a group which will summarize and discuss a selection of the papers as follows: • Group 1: Papers 1-22 • Group 2: Papers 23-36 • Group 3: Papers 37-51 • Group 4: Papers 52-66 • Group 5: Papers 67-85

21. Course Information-Assignments-Specific-vi • Summary of selected Federalist Papers (ctd) • Through Week 8, each group will • Post a progress report on its reviews • Respond to a discussion question about those papers • Completed reviews are due at the end of Week 9. • Members of each group should decide among themselves how they will produce the reviews

22. Course Information-Assignments-Specific-vii • Summary of selected Federalist Papers (ctd) • Each group should summarize its set of assigned papers, explaining • how many there are • how they relate to each other • what role they play in the overall argument of the Federalist papers.

23. Course Information-Assignments-Specific-viii • Summary of selected Federalist Papers (ctd) • Each group should summarize each individual paper, including: • Its number • Its author • The newspaper in which it appeared originally • Its date of publication • Its topic • Its basic argument or explanation • The part(s) of the Constitution to which it pertains

24. Course Information-Assignments-Specific-ix • Summary of selected Federalist Papers (ctd) • The presentation should be made in PowerPoint • There is no specific word length for this assignment • But all else being equal • Brevity is a virtue

25. Course Information-Assignments-Specific-x • Final Essay • Write a 1250-word (max.) essay on the future of the Constitution, • Referring to one or more articles in Balkin & Siegel • There will be further, more detailed instructions well before the essay is due.

26. Course Information-Assignments-Specific-xi • Four Live Chats • During Weeks 1, 4, 8, and 10. • Day and time TBA. • Attendance not required • But it is a good opportunity to ask and answer questions • About the course • About specific issues

27. Course Information-Course Schedule-Overview-i • The course has 10 weekly units • Week 1: Introduction to the Course • Week 2: Anatomy of the Constitution • Week 3: The Constitution in Historical Context • Week 4: The History of Law • Week 5: The Nature of Law

28. Course Information-Course Schedule-Overview-ii • The course has 10 weekly units (ctd) • Week 6: The History of Rights • Week 7: The Nature of Rights • Week 8: The History of Justice • Week 9: The Nature of Justice • Week 10: The Future of the Constitution

29. Course Information-Course Schedule-Overview-iii • On the course schedule, each week is divided into • Objectives • Content and Readings • Activities and Assessments

30. Course Information-Week 1-Objectives • Know the rationale for the course • Know the objectives of the course • Know the assignments • Select Federalist Papers—Get into teams • Identify 7 key concepts in constitutional ethics

31. Course Information-Week 1-Content and Readings • Course Syllabus • Video of John Boehner • Dreisbach’s essay on Constitutional Literacy • Presentation on: • Syllabus • Constitutional Literacy • Federalist papers • 7 key concepts

32. Course Information-Week 1-Activities and Assessments • Whole Group: • Attend live chat {time TBA} • Discussion Board (see individual) • Teams: Federalist papers selection • Individual • Read syllabus, essay, and slides • Watch John Boehner video • Respond to discussion question • Take ungraded Constitution exam • Begin readings for next week

33. Course Information-Week 2-Objectives • Identify the number of Articles in the Constitution • Identify the number of Amendments in the Constitution • Identify the topics of each Article • Identify the subjects of each Amendment

34. Course Information-Week 2-Content and Readings • Constitution of the United States of America • Presentation on the Anatomy of the Constitution

35. Course Information-Week 2-Activities and Assessments • Whole Group: Discussion Board (see individual) • Teams • Post progress on Federalist papers review • Address posted questions about the Federalist papers • Individual • Post 10 things you didn’t know about the Constitution • Respond to discussion question • Begin readings for next week

36. Course Information-Week 3-Objectives • Identify key documents in history that pre-date the Constitution • Identify key documents in history that post-date and relate to the Constitution • Compare and Contrast • The Declaration of Independence • Articles of Confederation • The Constitution

37. Course Information-Week 3-Content and Readings • Historical Documents online • U. S. Documents online • Presentation on historical documents • Presentation on U. S. Documents

38. Course Information-Week 3-Activities and Assessments • Whole Group: Discussion Board (see individual) • Teams: • Post progress on Federalist papers • Address posted questions about the Federalist papers • Individual • Essay 1: Compare and Contrast Declaration, Articles, and Constitution • Respond to discussion questions • Begin readings for next week

39. Course Information-Week 4-Objectives • Identify key theories of law in history • Identify key moments in the history of law

40. Course Information-Week 4-Content and Readings • Historical Documents online • Presentation on historical documents

41. Course Information-Week 4-Activities and Assessments • Whole Group • Attend live chat {time TBA} • Discussion Board (see individual) • Teams • Post progress on Federalist papers • Address posted questions about the Federalist papers • Individual • Take graded quiz 1 • Respond to discussion question • Begin readings for next week

42. Course Information-Week 5-Objectives • Distinguish three basic theories of law • Identify American documents that correspond to each theory of law

43. Course Information-Week 5-Content and Readings • Feinberg and Coleman: • Required: Part 1, Chs. 1-3, 7 • Recommended: Part 1, Chs. 4-6 • Presentation on the readings

44. Course Information-Week 5-Activities and Assessments • Whole Group: Discussion Board (see individual) • Teams • Post progress on Federalist papers • Address posted questions about the Federalist papers • Individual • Essay 2: Explain which of the three basic theories is most Constitutional • Respond to discussion questions • Begin readings for next week

45. Course Information-Week 6-Objectives • Identify key theories of rights in history • Identify key figures in the history of rights

46. Course Information-Week 6-Content and Readings • Documents online • Presentation on the documents

47. Course Information-Week 6-Activities and Assessments • Whole Group: Discussion Board (see individual) • Teams • Post progress on Federalist papers • Address posted questions about the Federalist papers • Individual • Take graded quiz 2 • Respond to discussion questions • Begin readings for next week

48. Course Information-Week 7-Objectives • Distinguish 4 key theories of rights • Distinguish between liberty and equality • Distinguish theories of privacy • Distinguish theories about freedom of expression

49. Course Information-Week 7-Content and Readings • Feinberg and Coleman, Part 2, Chs. 8-12 • Presentation on the readings

50. Course Information-Week 7-Activities and Assessments • Whole Group: Discussion Board (see individual) • Teams • Post progress on Federalist papers • Address posted questions about the Federalist papers • Individual • Essay 3: Which theory of rights does the Constitution reflect? • Respond to discussion questions • Begin readings for next week