Fall 2025
Federal Government
Approved: Initials/date FEDERAL GOVERNMENT (GOVT 2305.2A1) CREDIT 3 Semester Credit Hours (3 hours lecture, 0 hours lab) MODE OF INSTRUCTION Online PREREQUISITE/CO-REQUISITE: TSI Complete in Reading COURSE DESCRIPTION Origin and development of the U.S. Constitution; structure and powers of the national government including the legislative, executive, and judicial branches; federalism; political participation; the national election process; public policy; civil liberties and civil rights. COURSE OBJECTIVES Upon completion of this course, the student will be able to • Explain the origin and development of constitutional democracy in the United States. • Demonstrate knowledge of the federal system. • Describe separation of powers and checks and balances in both theory and practice. • Demonstrate knowledge of the legislative, executive, and judicial branches of the federal government. • Evaluate the role of public opinion, interest groups, and political parties in the political system. • Analyze the election process. • Describe the rights and responsibilities of citizens. • Analyze issues and policies in U.S. politics INSTRUCTOR CONTACT INFORMATION Instructor: John Patterson Email: jpatterson3@lit.edu Office Phone: N/a Office Location: Online Office Hours: Anytime, by appointment REQUIRED TEXTBOOK AND MATERIALS This course utilizes the Third Edition of OpenStax American Government. You will need the following textbook to successfully complete this course, which the textbook is free to use and download. • Direct link to the online textbook: OpenStax American Government 3e • Direct link to the textbook (PDF): OpenStax American Government 3e • For more information, visit https://openstax.org/details/books/american-government-3e • Click here to view OpenStax's Privacy Policy. ATTENDANCE POLICY To stay on track in this course, students are strongly encouraged to log in to Blackboard at least once each day. Regular engagement allows you to review course materials, complete assignments on time, and stay informed about deadlines and announcements. I regularly monitor logins and activity to ensure that students can stay connected and make progress. If I notice a sudden drop in participation, I will reach out to check in and offer support. However, if you are facing challenges, be it personal, academic, or technical, please let me know as soon as possible. Asking for help early can make a significant difference. DROP POLICY If you wish to drop a course, you are responsible for initiating and completing the drop process. If you stop coming to class and fail to drop the course, you will earn an “F” in the course. COURSE CALENDAR DATE TOPIC READINGS (Due on this Date) ASSIGNMENTS (Due on this Date) Week 01 American Government Chapter 01 Chapter 01 Pretest, Chapter 01 Quiz, and Introduction Board Week 02 The U.S. Constitution Chapter 02 Chapter 02 Pretest and Chapter 02 Quiz, and Core Assignment 1 Week 03 American Federalism Chapter 03 Chapter 03 Pretest and Chapter 03 Quiz Week 04 Civil Liberties Chapter 04 Chapter 04 Pretest, Chapter 04 Quiz, and Core Assignment 2 Week 05 Civil Rights Chapter 05 Chapter 05 Pretest, Chapter 05 Quiz, Module 1 Exam Week 06 Public Opinion Chapter 06 Chapter 06 Pretest, Chapter 06 Quiz, and Core Assignment 3 Week 07 Voting and Elections Chapter 07 Chapter 07 Pretest and Chapter 07 Quiz Week 08 The Media Chapter 08 Chapter 08 Pretest and Chapter 08 Quiz Week 09 Political Parties Chapter 09 Chapter 09 Pretest, Chapter 09 Quiz, and Module 2 Exam Week 10 Final Draft (Core Assignment) Core Assignment 4 Week 11 Congress Chapter 11 Chapter 11 Pretest and Chapter 11 Quiz Week 12 The Presidency Chapter 12 Chapter 12 Pretest, Chapter 12 Quiz, and Core Assignment 5 Week 13 The Courts Chapter 13 Chapter 13 Pretest, Chapter 13 Quiz, and Module 3 Exam Week 14 Domestic Policy Chapter 16 Chapter 16 Pretest and Chapter 16 Quiz Week 15 Foreign Policy Chapter 17 Chapter 17 Pretest, Chapter 17 Quiz, Module 4 Exam Week 16 Comprehensive Final Exam Chapters 01, 02, 03, 04, 05, 06, 07, 08, 09, 10, 11, 12, 13, 16, and 17 Final Exam COURSE EVALUATION Final grades will be calculated according to the following criteria: • Chapter Pretests…………………10% • Chapter Quizzes………………….15% • Introduction Board……………….5% • Module Exams…………………….40% • Core Assessment…………………20% • Comprehensive Final Exam….10% GRADE SCALE • 90-100 A • 80-89 B • 70-79 C • 60-69 D • 0-59 F TECHNICAL REQUIREMENTS The latest technical requirements, including hardware, compatible browsers, operating systems, etc. can be online at https://lit.edu/online-learning/online-learning-minimum-computer-requirements. A functional broadband internet connection, such as DSL, cable, or WiFi is necessary to maximize the use of online technology and resources. DISABILITIES STATEMENT The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 are federal anti-discrimination statutes that provide comprehensive civil rights for persons with disabilities. LIT provides reasonable accommodations as defined in the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, Section 504 and the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, to students with a diagnosed disability. The Special Populations Office is located in the Eagles’ Nest Room 129 and helps foster a supportive and inclusive educational environment by maintaining partnerships with faculty and staff, as well as promoting awareness among all members of the Lamar Institute of Technology community. If you believe you have a disability requiring an accommodation, please contact the Special Populations Coordinator at (409)-951-5708 or email specialpopulations@lit.edu. You may also visit the online resource at Special Populations - Lamar Institute of Technology (lit.edu). STUDENT CODE OF CONDUCT STATEMENT It is the responsibility of all registered Lamar Institute of Technology students to access, read, understand and abide by all published policies, regulations, and procedures listed in the LIT Catalog and Student Handbook. The LIT Catalog and Student Handbook may be accessed at www.lit.edu. Please note that the online version of the LIT Catalog and Student Handbook supersedes all other versions of the same document. ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE STATEMENT Lamar Institute of Technology (LIT) recognizes the recent advances in Artificial Intelligence (AI), such as ChatGPT, have changed the landscape of many career disciplines and will impact many students in and out of the classroom. To prepare students for their selected careers, LIT desires to guide students in the ethical use of these technologies and incorporate AI into classroom instruction and assignments appropriately. Appropriate use of these technologies is at the discretion of the instructor. Students are reminded that all submitted work must be their own original work unless otherwise specified. Students should contact their instructor with any questions as to the acceptable use of AI/ChatGPT in their courses STARFISH LIT utilizes an early alert system called Starfish. Throughout the semester, you may receive emails from Starfish regarding your course grades, attendance, or academic performance. Faculty members record student attendance, raise flags and kudos to express concern or give praise, and you can make an appointment with faculty and staff all through the Starfish home page. You can also login to Blackboard or MyLIT and click on the Starfish link to view academic alerts and detailed information. It is the responsibility of the student to pay attention to these emails and information in Starfish and consider taking the recommended actions. Starfish is used to help you be a successful student at LIT. ADDITIONAL COURSE POLICIES/INFORMATION Below are the course expectations. Please read these carefully, and if you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me. Class Participation This course utilizes Blackboard LMS and it is a completely on-line course. It is your responsibility to secure reliable Internet and computer. Many online courses are not necessarily easier because the content is self-taught. In fact, many students report that online courses are more difficult since you are self-teaching content. You are responsible for staying on top of due dates/deadlines and being motivated/disciplined. Academic Dishonesty Be strongly advised that there will be academic consequences for any instances of academic dishonesty. This will be your only warning. DO NOT plagiarize/cheat/etc. I do read the assignments, and I take academic dishonesty extremely seriously. All violations will be reported to Lamar Institute of Technology, and further academic consequences may be pursued. "Plagiarism, or literary theft, is defined as appropriating the literary composition of another person, including the parts, passages, or language of that writing, and passing off the appropriate material as one's own. Plagiarism is the failure to give proper credit or citation to one's sources(s) of information. It includes the failure to use conventional methods of documentation for material quoted or paraphrased. Additionally, plagiarism includes allowing someone else to compose or rewrite an assignment for a student" (Student Rights and Responsibilities). Artificial Intelligence This course is designed to help you develop your own critical thinking and communication skills. Your assignments are your opportunity to practice and express your unique voice, which is an essential part of your academic growth. For this reason, the use of advanced AI tools like ChatGPT, Grammarly, Copilot, Google Gemini, and/or any other automated platforms/models is strictly prohibited for any assignments in this course. To ensure academic integrity, I will be using AI detection tools (Quilbot and zerogpt) to verify the originality of your work. I have reviewed and assessed student writing for over 12 years. I am familiar with the typical patterns, strengths, and growth areas of student writing. That is to say that I am well equipped to recognize when a submitted assignment differs significantly from a student’s usual writing style, level of development, or voice. If a submission appears to be AI-generated or heavily AI-assisted, based on abrupt shifts in quality, lack of authentic voice, or absence of expected student-specific errors, I will ask you to explain their writing process or provide access to your online Word Document. The intent is to protect you, academic integrity, and your learning process. My goal is to support authentic student learning and ensure that everyone is evaluated based on their own growth and effort. Word Processor Requirement Due to the proliferation of Artificial Intelligence (AI) engines in higher education, I require that all students use an online word processor to write all writing assignments. Microsoft is the official office suite of Lamar Institute of Technology, and all students have access to the Office 365 suite for free. Please do not use the desktop version of Word, as it will not suffice this requirement. You may bookmark this link to access your Office 365 account: https://portal.office.com/. Use your LIT login credentials. If an assignment is flagged as being generated by AI or AI enhanced, I will request to be added as an editor on the original document. This will allow me to check the revision history to see when the document was created, how long was spent editing it, and what edits were made. If a paper is flagged as AI generated or plagiarized, and the student cannot provide access to a version history to prove that the document is their original work, the original penalty will remain and/or a zero will be given on the assignment. Exams Questions and answers for the Module Exams are randomly generated for each student. Grading of Assignments Pretests, Quizzes, and Exams are automatically graded by the Blackboard LMS. Any written assignment(s) will be graded within 1 week of the due date. Before submitting any assignments, please be sure to check the following: 1. You have verified you followed the instructions of the assignment 2. You confirm that your submission meets the assignment requirements before submitting 3. You have adhered to the course syllabus policies, specifically the AI Policy. Late Submission of Assignments Assignments are removed from Blackboard immediately after their due date, so it is important to complete them on time as outlined in the course calendar. Late submissions are not accepted unless you provide documentation of a family or medical emergency, or a trouble ticket from Tech Support/Blackboard Support verifying technical issues. Please plan ahead to ensure you meet all deadlines, and let me know as soon as possible if you encounter any challenges. Communication While you can always e-mail me directly, the best method to contact me is through messages in Blackboard. I will response within 24 hours during the week. Note, though, I will never response under any circumstances to personal e-mail accounts due FERPA regulations. Please directly e-mail me at jpatterson3@lit.edu or message me through Blackboard.