United States Immigration History

History 209

Professor Andrew E. Kersten

Fall 2008

MAC 206

 

 

Course Description:

This course surveys American immigration history with a special focus on ethnic and race relations. It emphasizes several critical issues such as ethnic and racial contact and conflict, language maintenance, immigration law, the "laws" of immigration, multiculturalism, nativism, and religion. Although this is a lower level course, it may indeed challenge you to think and read critically and move you to participate more than you are used to. I strongly encourage everyone to meet the intellectual challenges that this course presents.

 

Course Information:

Contact times: Tuesday & Thursday, 12:30–1:55 P.M.

Office Hours: 11:00 A.M.–Noon, Tuesday & Thursday, and by appointment

Instructor email: kerstena@uwgb.edu

Course email: C12009-f08@uwgb.edu

 

Required Books:

Gjerde, Major Problems in American Immigration and Ethnic History

Otsuka, When the Emperor Was Divine

Reimers, Unwelcome Strangers

 

General Education Learning Outcomes (http://www.uwgb.edu/catalog/undrgrad/gened.htm):

Ethnic Studies: An understanding of the causes and effects of stereotyping and racism and an appreciation of cultural diversity in the United States

 

Intended Student Learning Outcomes:

 

Additional Rules:

 

Expectations:

á       Attend class every day, and be respectful of others during class.

á       Come to class on time and prepared for the day's work.

á       Participate in class every day.

á       Read and understand all materials.

á       Work hard and honestly and professionally.

 

Writing:

All written work must be typed or printed in black ink. You must have your name on your paper, follow good writing etiquette, staple your pages together, and use page numbers for papers longer than two pages. Double-space everything. No cover pages or report covers. See the back of the syllabus for a style guide. All written work must follow the Chicago Manuel of Style. See http://www.dianahacker.com/resdoc/p04_c10_s2.html

 

Grading:

Grades are not curved. Except in emergency situations, late work will lose one letter grade per weekday (Sunday through Saturday) without prior approval of the instructor.  Attendance will be taken and students are expected to attend class for the entire period and are expected to contribute to discussions.  Cheating constitutes a violation of University policy and students will be subject to University disciplinary actions. IÕm happy to talk about grades, but not by email. Please see me during office hours or make an appointment.

Course Assignments:

1) Attendance is mandatory. The lectures and discussions will be a major part of the course.  In addition, valuable information will be regularly distributed during the first few minutes of class. Be prompt and attend the entire class period.

 

2) Read and be prepared to discuss all readings.  The books will be a part of the exams and classroom discussions.  Read them once thoroughly, take notes, and review before exams and discussions.  Ask questions.

 

3) Take two midterm (15% each) and a final (30%). 

 

4) Write summaries of all daily readings. These summaries must be 300-600 words and discuss all of the readings that day. These summaries are due the day that we will discuss the readings. This constitutes 10% of your grade.

 

5) Final Project assignment: You have three options. Choose ONE:

                I.      Write a 5 page essay on the history of an immigrant group or leader of an immigrant group or an important topic in immigration history. You have to choose the topic and get your sources from the Cofrin Library.  If the subject is a group you must answer the main questions of immigration history such as who came?, how did they come?, how many?, and what happened to them? Also you must use at least five secondary sources: three of which must be books and two of which must be from academic journals.  Internet sources outside of the Cofrin Library databases must be pre-approved. You must also use one primary source collection from the Area Research Center. You will need a bibliography page with this assignment. You must use at least one quote from each source.

               II.      Gather a group of 5 students and present your information about an individual or an immigrant group or an important topic in immigration history to the class.  You have to choose the topic.  If the subject is a group you must answer the main questions of immigration history such as who came?, how did they come?, how many?, and what happened to them? Also you must use at least ten secondary sources, five of which must be from academic journals. The rest must be from books or encyclopedias. Internet sources outside of the Cofrin Library databases must be pre-approved. You must also use one primary source collection from the Area Research Center. You have to turn in your prospectus during the fourth week of class. Each group must meet with me during office hours at least once before the groupÕs presentation and after the presentation present me with a CD with: 1) a list of who did what in the group presentation 2) an outline of the talk, 3) a bibliography of sources in Chicago Style Format, and 4) all PowerPoint files. The presentation must be 25-30 minutes long.

 

This major assignment is worth 30% of your grade (5%+25%). In the fourth week of class (see syllabus for exact date), turn in your prospectus which will explain which assignment youÕre going to do. Then do the assignment and turn it in or present it the last week of class (see syllabus).

 

5) Participate in all discussions and activities.

 

6) Periodically, there will be outside class extra credit assignments based on video presentations and other campus activities. You can have a total of 2 extra credit assignments before any one exam.

 

Midterm Exams

15% each (30% total)

Final Exam

30%

Prospectus for project

5%

Final project

25%

Summaries

10%

Total

100%

 

Grading Scale:

100-93 A                  

92-90 A/B                 

89-85 B  

84-80 B/C                

79-70 C  

69-60 D

 

Student Conduct:

I expect all students to abide by the UW-Green Bay student conduct policies. See http://www.uwgb.edu/deanofstudents/policies_procedures/index.html and especially

http://www.uwgb.edu/deanofstudents/policies_procedures/students/civility_tolerance.html

 

Disability Notice:

Consistent with the federal law and the policies of the University of Wisconsin, it is the policy of the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay to provide appropriate and necessary accommodations to students with documented physical and learning disabilities. If you anticipate requiring any auxiliary aids or services, you should contact me or the Coordinator of Services for Students with Disabilities at 465-2671 as soon as possible to discuss your needs and arrange for the provision of services.

 


Paper Turn In Checklist:


Have you remembered the little things?

¬  Have you put your name on the first page of the paper?

¬  Have you remember not to attach a cover page?

¬  Have you numbered your pages?

¬  Have you stapled your paper?

¬  Have you used black ink?

¬  Have you double-spaced your paper?

 

 

Have you remembered the big things?

¬  Have you clearly identified your thesis?

¬  Have you used proper paragraph form (with indents)?

¬  Have you used topic sentences?

¬  Have you used quotations to support your ideas?

¬  Have you used proper footnote and bibliographic formats?

¬  Have you revised your paper with several drafts?


 

 

 

 

 

 


 

Grading Rubric:

As (90-100)

Bs (80-89)

Cs (70-79)

Ds (60-69)

F (59 and below)

Your essay is well constructed. It has paragraphs, topic sentences, and most importantly a clear thesis. Your essay demonstrates a command of the material. It uses quotes from the readings. You have an exceptional command of the English language. You avoid making many grammatical or stylistic errors.

Your essay is very good. It has paragraphs. You probably need to develop your thesis and/or topic sentences. You have a fair command of the reading materials but could have used more quotes or direct references. You have some grammatical and stylistic problems.

Your essay is good. And yet, your essay needs work to improve its structure. You need to work on your thesis and/or topic sentences. You have a fair command of the reading materials. You could have used more quotes. You have serious grammatical and stylistic problems.

Your essay lacks coherence. You make errors in essay structure, style, and grammar. You lack a command of the reading materials. You make many stylistic and grammatical errors. This paper needs a lot of work.

You failed to complete the assignment.

 

Course Outline

 

Week One

September 2 (T): Introduction and Deb Anderson

September 4 (R): Discussion of Gjerde, Chapter 1

 

Week Two

September 9 (T): English Colonization

September 11 (R): Other Europeans

 

Week Three

September 16 (T): African ÒimmigrantsÓ

September 18 (R): Africans in America

 

Week Four

September 23 (T): Discussion of Gjerde, Chapter 2

September 25 (R): Pioneers of the Century of Immigration

                  Prospectus Due

 

Week Five

September 30 (T): Review
October 2 (R): Exam I

 

Week Six

October 7 (T): Research Day in Area Research Center

October 9 (R): Research Day in Area Research Center

 

Week Seven

October 14 (T): Discussion of Gjerde, Chapter 3 and 4

October 16 (R): Mediterranean Immigrants to the United States

 

 

Week Eight

October 21 (T): Eastern Europeans, Gjerde, Chapter 7

October 23 (R): Discussion of Gjerde, Chapter 5 and 6

 

Week Nine

October 28 (T): Nativism, Gjerde, Chapter 8

October 30 (R): Discussion of Reimers

 

Week Ten

November 4 (T): Chinese, Japanese, and French Canadians

                                    Gjerde, Chapter 10

November 6 (R): Migration and Race Relations in Depression and War

                                    Gjerde, Chapter 9 and Chapter 12

 

Week Eleven

November 11 (T): Rabbit in the Moon

November 13 (R): Discussion of Otsuka

 

Week Twelve

November 18 (T): Review

November 20 (R): Exam II

 

Week Thirteen
November 25 (T): New Asian Immigrants

                                    Gjerde, Chapter 11 and Chapter 13

November 27 (R): THANKSGIVING HOLIDAY (no class)

 

Week Fourteen

December 2 (T): New World Refugees, Illegals, and the War on Terror

                                    Gjerde, Chapter 14

December 4 (R): The Golden Venture

 

Week Fifteen

December 9 (T): Review and Student Presentations

 

Final Exam: December 18 (Thursday), 10:30 A.M.–12:30 P.M.

 


 Guidelines and Expectations for the Presentations:

This assignment has five parts:

1.      You need to find a group and pick a topic for historical exploration. You need to commit to a topic and then fill out a presentation prospectus sheet (see the end of the syllabus).

2.      You need to find your sources. I will help you with this, and Deb Anderson can help you with this. I expect 1 primary source collection and 10 secondary sources for this project (five of which must be academic journal articles).

3.      You need to meet with me to talk about your progress. This is a required meeting during the eighth week of class.

4.      You need to do the research and work together to assemble your presentation.

5.      You need to present your findings to the class. You will have 25 minutes to present. On the presentation day, you need to present me with a CD with: 1) a list of who did what in the group presentation 2) an outline of the talk, 3) a bibliography of sources in Chicago Style Format, and 4) all PowerPoint files.

 

How to get started:

First, gather a group of about four people. Then, talk about historical questions that might interest you. Use your textbook or come talk with me to help generate ideas. Then, start dividing up the work. YouÕll need a convener (a person who sets up the meetings) and youÕll need to make an outline of the presentation and who is going to do what. Next, youÕll need to start working with the library resources to generate your 1 primary source collection and 10 secondary sources. Someone needs to be in charge of putting the prospectus together.

How to do your work:

The best way to organize a presentation is to assign concrete tasks to each student. Then meet regularly to make sure that everyone is on track. When there are problems or questions, youÕll need to come see me. The key is to meet regularly so that everyone has a chance to show what they have been doing.

How to present your findings:

On presentation day, you will present your findings. Commonly, students use PowerPoint to help. A good PowerPoint presentation does not have lots of text but minimal text and some images. Your group must come up with a historical question and a historical answer. In other words, it must be clear to the audience what you are talking about and what you are arguing. Remember, history is a story with a point. Then each person takes about five minutes to present his/her section of the group presentation. Remember to relate each section back to the theme and thesis. You ought to have introduction and a conclusion as well. Remember to leave enough time for questions. If you do your work correctly, there will be questions.

How I will grade you:

On the grading sheet that I will fill out will be the following categories: Preparation (Research, Outline and Organization); Presentation (clarity, argument, handouts and visuals, and discussion.

Other tips:

This is your chance to shine as a young, professional historian. Be sure to be prepared. Do the little things to get ready: dress nicely, come prepared, be courteous, be interested, and be engaging. DonÕt be silly or unprofessional.

 

Writing Tips for Students

 

 

How to Write a History Essay

Most history essays are written in response to a historical question. The best way to answer that question is to use the "five paragraph" essay.

Your first paragraph (that is, your introduction) should provide some general background on the question (and may even restate the question) and then directly answer that question. This statement is your thesis. It is a good idea to add one final sentence, which will allude to the rest of your paper.

Your next three (or so) paragraphs provide a detailed, structured, and concise summary of evidence and ideas that support your thesis.

The conclusion is the place to summarize your thoughts, your essay, and your thesis. It is also the place to talk about how the past might relate to the present.

It is always a good idea to use quotations from the sources that are utilized and discussed in class.

It is always a good idea to review the Guide to Good Writing before and after you write your essay.

 

Basic Suggestions, Guidelines, and Grading

General Suggestions

¥ Start early.

¥ Have a friend read your early drafts.

Format

¥ Staple your papers.

¥ No coversheets.

¥ No plastic covers or folders.

¥ Always use page numbers.

¥ Use footnotes, endnotes, or in paragraph citation.

 

Style -- avoid these problems

 

AFW                                             Avoid Flavoring Words ("very" etc)

AWK                                             Awkward Sentence Structure 

COLL                                           Colloquial Language

DA                                                 Don't Abbreviate

DP                                                 Dangling Preposition

DUC                                             Don't Use Contractions

DUF                                              Don't Use First Person

DWQ                                            Don't Write in Questions

KPP                                               Keep the Past in the Past (use past tense verbs)

MU                                                Meaning Unclear

MVT                                              Mixed Verb Tenses

NAS                                              Not A Sentence

NSB                                              Don't Use History as Your Personal Soap Box

PV                                                 Passive Voice

RSS                                              Repetitive Sentence Structure

SC                                                 Use Standard Rules of Capitalization

SP                                                 Misspelled Word

TAS                                               Throw-away sentence (has no meaning)

TL                                                 Sentence, Paragraph, or Quote is Too Long

W                                                  Wordy

WW                                              Wrong Word

 

Documentation

For all documentation questions, refer to Turabian.  If you do not own a copy, it is worth the price. 

Here are some common formats.

FOOTNOTES and ENDNOTES:              

Published

1Andrew E. Kersten, Race, Jobs, and the War: The FEPC in the Midwest, 1941-1946  (Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 2000), 1-5.

2Andrew E. Kersten, "Jobs and Justice: The FEPC in the Motor City," Michigan Historical Review 56 (Spring 1999): 1-25.

3 Andrew E. Kersten, ed., Reach or Breech: The State and Society, 1865-1945 (Madison: University of Wisconsin Press, 2001): 25-50.

4 Andrew E. Kersten, "Willie Webb," in Ordinary Women, ed. Kriste Lindenmeyer (New York: Scholarly Resources, 2000): 50-55.

 

GENERAL RULE: NAME (FIRST, MIDDLE, LAST), TITLE, PLACE IF BOOK, VOLUME IF JOURNAL, DATE, PAGES.

 

Unpublished

3Letter, Andrew E. Kersten to Bethany R. Kersten, 27 May 1997, Andrew E. Kersten Papers, Box 15, Folder 9, University of Wisconsin-Green Bay Archives.

 

GENERAL RULE: KIND OF DOCUMENT, TITLE, DATE, COLLECTION, LOCATION WITHIN COLLECTION, PLACE OF COLLECTION.

 

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Kersten, Andrew E. "Jobs and Justice: The FEPC in the Motor City." Michigan Historical Review (Spring 1999): 1-25.

Kersten, Andrew E. Race, Jobs, and the War: The FEPC in the Midwest, 1941-1946. Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 2000.

 

Same general rules above but put last names first.  Always separate your primary and secondary material in your bibliography.  Questions?  See me or use Turabian.

Tips:

1) Be consistent and thorough.

2) In your bibliography, separate primary and secondary sources.

3) Remember the purpose of this part of the assignment.  One should be able to retrace your research steps back through your footnotes and bibliography

 

 

 

 

UW-GREEN BAY WRITING POLICY

 

The faculty of the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay has adopted the following writing policy for out-of-class assignments.

 

Acceptable Writing:

 

1.  Clear writing is a reflection of logical thinking; therefore, an acceptable paper must be     organized.  Every essay should be structured around a thesis and supported by factual evidence and arguments that are organized in a logical progression.

 

2.  Writers must acknowledge their use of data or ideas of others; therefore, an acceptable paper must have proper documentation of all source material, following professional guidelines such as those approved by the Modern Language Association (MLA), the American Psychological Association (APA), or the American Association for the Advancement of Science, or those published in a standard style manual such as Turabian, A Manual for Writers of Term Papers, Theses, and Dissertations.

 

3.  An acceptable paper must reflect control of correct grammar, usage, spelling, and punctuation.

 

4.  An acceptable paper must be presented in appropriate manuscript form, with errors neatly corrected and care taken with margins, numbering of pages, spacing, and format.

 

Unacceptable Writing:

 

1.  A paper without clear organization is unacceptable.  Unclear organization includes illogical progressions from one idea to another and the inclusion of unnecessary ideas.

 

2.  A paper without proper documentation is unacceptable.  Failure to acknowledge the use of another writer's words or ideas constitutes plagiarism.  Plagiarism is both unethical and illegal.  The use of professional editing for student papers is also unacceptable, as is the use of purchased papers, which is also a form of plagiarism.

 

3.  A paper containing frequent errors in grammar, usage, spelling, or punctuation is unacceptable.

 

4.  A paper which does not appear to be carefully done is unacceptable.  This includes papers with ragged edges, typographical errors and strikeovers, illegible handwriting, stains, or smudges.

 

To achieve acceptable writing standards, students should purchase and use a good dictionary and a writing handbook.  Assistance in improving writing skills is available through regular courses in composition and from the Writing Center, which conducts writings workshops and provides advice and tutoring (but not editing).  All students who wish to improve their writing are encouraged to use these resources.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

CRITERIA FOR EVALUATING WRITING

Listed below are some major factors that differentiate good writing from poor writing.

This list may help you identify particular aspects of your writing that need improvement.  For further assistance consult with instructors who are familiar with your writing skills.  Writing assistance is also available in the Writing Center (CL 109).

 

1.  PURPOSE

     Is the purpose of your paper clear to the audience?

     Is the purpose appropriate to the assignment and to the audience?

     Is the purpose consistently maintained throughout the paper?

 

2.  CONTENT

     Are the ideas in the paper interesting?

     Do the ideas in the paper reflect independent thought, a new approach, fresh insights?

     Is the writer actively engaged with the topic?

 

3.  ORGANIZATION

     Are the ideas developed in a logical order?

     Is the organizational pattern clear to the readers?

     Is the discussion coherent?  Are transitional devices used effectively to shift smoothly from one idea to another?

    

4.  DEVELOPMENT

     Are the major ideas adequately supported with examples, specific details, and other kinds of   evidence?

     Are the ideas presented in meaningful paragraphs?

     Is there a general sense of completeness and closure?

 

5.  WORDS:  CHOICE AND ARRANGEMENT

     Have clear, precise, and appropriate words been selected?

     Have cliches been avoided?

     Have the words been arranged into correct and graceful sentences?

 

6.  STYLE AND TONE

     Is the style clear, lively, fluent?

     Is the tone appropriate for the purpose and audience?

     Are the sentences varied in length and structure?

     Is there appropriate use of metaphor, analogy, parallelism, and other rhetorical devices?

 

7.  TECHNICAL QUALITIES:  MECHANICS

     Does the writing conform to the conventions of grammar, spelling, punctuation, and usage?

     Is the format of the paper appropriate to the assignment?

     Has all material from other sources been properly documented?

     Has the paper been carefully proofread, with all typos neatly corrected?

 


Prospectus for Final Project

 

Directions: Reproduce this page on your computer and turn it in.  Attach copies of your outline and bibliography.  I will return your form and attachments as soon as possible. Remember your form must be typed.

 

1.  Your names:

 

2.   Proposed topic for presentation:

 

 

3.  Write a 150 word abstract of your presentation.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

4. On the back, provide a topic outline which describes the sections and major points which will be discussed in your presentation.

 

 

 

5. Provide your primary and secondary bibliography on a separate page.