Pols 350 Group and Minority Politics
Course Syllabus
Texts | Objectives | Description | Requirements | Grades | Policies
The following books are required for the course. Other readings are on reserve, on the web, or will be distributed in class.
H. R. Mahood. 2000. Interest Groups in American National Politics: An Overview. Prentice Hall.
Paula D. McClain and Joseph Stewart, Jr. 1999. "Can We All Get Along?" Racial and Ethnic Minorities in American Politics. Second edition, Updated. Westview.
In a free society, like-minded citizens will organize to pursue their common interests from government. James Madison, the father of the U.S. Constitution, recognized that while "factions" were inevitable with liberty, their power must be controlled for democracy to work. Despite Madison’s warning, interest groups have become the driving force in American elections and policy making today. Thus, as citizens and students of government and politics, it is important to have a thorough understanding of interest groups, the role they play in the American political system, and the consequences of interest group power. This course is designed to provide you with such an understanding of interest groups generally, and minority groups in particular. With an informed appreciation of group power, we can better address the harmful effects of "special interests" and achieve a democracy in which more voices are heard.
This course fulfills the university requirement for cultural diversity credits by examining minority group politics from the interest group perspective of political science. We begin by briefly exploring the importance of group identification and solidarity in our lives. Next, we place interest groups in the context of the particular features of the American political system: political culture, representative democracy, separation of powers, federalism, civil liberties, and civil rights. Particular attention is given to the experience of minority groups in American history. Then we analyze pluralist theory, examining the prevalence of different types of groups and factors affecting group membership and the organization of interests. The first half of the course is completed with a look at the interesting relationship between political parties and interest groups.
The second half of the course begins with a quick examination of the typical background of a lobbyist. Then we give thorough consideration to the strategies and tactics used by interest groups to get their way, including direct lobbying (face-to-face contacts, testimony at congressional hearings, contributing campaign money) indirect lobbying (molding public opinion, mobilizing the grassroots, campaign spending), and outsider movements (litigation, protest). Finally, we investigate some contemporary issues related to minority group power, including racial gerrymandering, cumulative voting, proportional representation, and campaign finance reform.
This course is centered on your readings, research, and class discussions. Therefore, it is particularly important that you read the assigned material on time, attend all classes, and participate in the discussions and projects.
Students must complete the following:
(1) Take Home Mid-Term and Final Essay Exams
The course web site lists the essay questions and due dates.
(2) Groups in a Policy Fight Research Paper
Each student must complete a 6-8 page (typed, double-spaced, with 1" margins and numbered pages) research paper analyzing the role of interest groups in a prominent national policy fight. Your paper should first describe briefly the history of the policy debate. The main section of your paper should identify the primary interest groups involved in the policy fight, their views on the policy, and the specific actions taken by the groups to influence the outcome of the debate. Finally, your paper should address the extent to which the goals of pluralism were achieved. You must have an approved topic by October 10 and submit a preliminary bibliography listing at least six sources and a paper outline by November 9. The course web site lists ideas for topics, helpful research resources and appropriate citation guidelines. The paper is due in class on December 12. We will discuss your findings during the last week of class.
(3) Minority Politics Collaborative Case Study (for the web)
Each student will be assigned to a four-person group responsible for completing a case study of minority politics in an American city. The case studies should address the following questions:
- What was the historical development (economically, demographically, politically, socially) of the city?
- What are the relative size, distribution, income, education, and other characteristics of the minority population?
- What is the structure of city government and what are the racial and ethnic characteristics of its elected officials?
- What issues are of particular importance to the city minority groups and what are the cross-group coalitions and conflict?
The course web site lists helpful research resources. In addition to allocating responsibility for content research, students are also encouraged to divide responsibility for the following roles within their group: Web Master, Managing Editor, Scheduler/Recorder, and Resource/Citation Checker. The case studies will be published on the web and should be created accordingly. (We will address the principles of effective web publishing and the procedures for publishing your case studies on the web in much greater detail during the semester.) The deadline for publication on the web is November 21. The groups will present their findings to the class. Each group will be allotted fifteen minutes for their presentation. See the course schedule for the presentation dates.
As a follow-up assignment to the collaborative case study, each student will focus on the case study of another group and submit a brief, two page analysis comparing the minority politics of that other city with their own. The case study comparison is due December 5.
(4) Participation
Students are expected to engage fully in the class lectures, discussions, and other projects. Attendance will be taken and factored into your participation score. Similarly, the Minority Politics Collaborative Case Study Presentations and the Discussion of Research Paper Findings are a part of your participation grade. In addition, your participation in the collaborative assignment will be evaluated by your fellow group members and taken into consideration.
Course grades are based on the following distribution:
Mid-Term Exam 20% Final Exam 20% Research Paper 20% Case Study 20% Participation 20% All scores are given on a 100-point scale. Grades are assigned as follows:
A+ 96.7 - 100 A 93.3 - 96.6 A- 90.0 - 93.2 B+ 86.7 - 89.9 B 83.3 - 86.6 B- 80.0 - 83.2 C+ 76.7 - 79.9 C 73.3 - 76.6 C- 70.0 - 73.2 D+ 66.7 - 69.9 D 63.3 - 66.6 D- 60.0 - 63.2 F 59 or less Late papers and exams are penalized ten points for every school day they are late. Missed presentations are rarely excused and heavily penalized as well.
| Professor Rodd Freitag Schneider 200E Phone: (715) 836-5044 Fax: (715) 836-2944 Updated: September 4, 2000 |
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