US Government & Citizenship Disclosure Document
Course Description/Overview/Welcome Statement
The goal of this course is to foster informed, responsible participation in public life. Knowing how to be a good citizen is essential to the preservation and improvement of United States democracy. Upon completion of this course the student will understand the major ideas, protections, privileges, structures, and economic systems that affect the life of a citizen in the United States political system. This course is recommended for seniors due to their proximity to voting and draft age.
Course Detail
0.5 Credit
Grade 12
Credit Type: GOV, NCAA
Topics include:
Philosophical concepts and structures of government
The history of the Constitution
Check and balances
History and philosophy of party politics, voting systems, etc.
Learning Expectations
Students will Learn and practice academic skills: reading, writing, note-taking, speaking, researching, organizing information, presenting information, test-taking and group collaboration.
Students will learn and develop work habits: studying, coming prepared to class, participation, being on time and self-regulated student behavior.
Students will work with others in the classroom to create a safe and positive learning environment.
Assessment of Progress
Course Materials
Students will bring a smile, Chromebook, US Government folder, paper and pen/pencil to class every day.
Classroom Procedures
Provo High Policies:
Tardy Policy: students will receive a warning for up to 3 tardies. Parents will be notified at 4 tardies. Student’s will be referred to the administration for 5+ tardies. Refer to the student handbook for the full tardy policy.
Attendance Policy: upon 10+ unexcused absences, students will be referred to Truancy School. Refer to the student handbook for the full attendance policy.
Credit Recovery Policy: Should your child fail this course with more than 30% and/or has earned a score of 2 on at least half of the term standards, they may apply with their school counselor for a credit recovery course. Any student that does not meet that requirement will not have an option for credit recovery. The student must arrange with their school counselor an opportunity for a course that offers “original credit” to meet that graduation requirement. Refer to the student handbook for the full credit recovery policy.
Cell Phone Policy: During the start of the class warm-up/participation activity you may have your cell phone out for the first five minutes of class. After that five minutes and once I say that it is time to begin, all cell phones must be put in your backpacks and out of sight. If a phone is out during an unapproved time the following consequences will happen: 1st offense= phone taken away for the remainder of the period. 2nd offense= phone taken away and can be picked up from me at the end of the school day. 3rd offense= phone turned in to the office for parents to pick up. There will be times when I allow a phone in class outside of the first five minutes to be used for research and practical classroom use.
Late Work:
Most important things I want you to understand:
- You own your grade
- I do not give out grades
- I do not want you to fail
- I will help you, but communication is the key
- Come to class, keep up with the work, and you will get a good grade
- Have fun!
This is just a review about how I will handle late work for class during this semester. If you have been in my class before, it may have been different, but this will be my policy moving forward.
All of the assignments will have a due date, and most will be due at the end of the week that it is assigned. For example, if an assignment is given on a Monday, Tuesday or Wednesday, the due date will be by the Friday of that same week.
The assignment will remain open for the entire semester. Although the assignment will remain open, you will lose 2 percentage points for each day the assignment is late. For example, if your assignment is 5 days late, you will lose 5 percentage points on your assignment. NO EXCEPTIONS!!
Canvas Board discussions are only open for the week they are assigned. They are worth 5 points. I will close them the same week and I will not re-open them!
If you miss class, all assignments are on Canvas, and you are responsible to check.
If we do any In-Class (class discussion, guest speaker, class simulation) work and you have an excused absence, you will be exempt from that assignment. If you do not have an excused absence, there will be no way for you to make up the points for that In-Class assignment.
If you didn’t get the score you were expecting for an assignment, check to see if it is complete. This is the most common reason that students miss out on full credit. Also check if I made any comments on how you can improve your score. You may resubmit an assignment for more points.
Calendar of Due Dates for Major Assignments
Progress Reports and Report Cards
Connecting Home to School
I will be at school every day from 7:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. Any parents or students with questions or concerns may come in during this time before or after school hours. The best way to contact me is through my email: joshuaa@provo.edu
Personal Statement and other items (optional)
Political science can be a nasty cesspool of raging emotions outweighing things like reason, or civility. While this can be fun, it’s far more entertaining to do just about anything else. This class will explore several theories, ideas, and policies that might relate to subjects which evoke strong feelings. That’s alright, but know that this class exists to explore ideas—how people do think, and how they could think differently. Words like “should” tend to pollute the philosophies, and they solve nothing. I don’t care so much about what people “should” think or do so much as what they actually think or do. We’re here to study the system. Think of political science like a game: We’re here to learn the rules. Students can take that and form an educated opinion on what they should do afterward.