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POLS311 - Political Parties and Interest Groups
Course Details
Course Code: POLS311 Course ID: 3748 Credit Hours: 3 Level: Undergraduate
This course is a study of the various roles of political parties and interest groups in the American democratic process. Issues covered include the ideological differences among parties, the role of third party candidates, mobilization of voting blocks, the formation and types of interest groups, and political agenda development.
Course Schedule
| Registration Dates | Course Dates | Session | Weeks |
|---|---|---|---|
| 06/24/19 - 11/29/19 | 12/02/19 - 01/26/20 | Fall 2019 Session D | 8 Week session |
| 08/26/19 - 01/31/20 | 02/03/20 - 03/29/20 | Winter 2020 Session I | 8 Week session |
Current Syllabi
Course Objectives:
CO-1 Explain the operations of political parties, interest groups, and campaigns.
CO-2 Describe the historical development of the two-party political system in the US.
CO-3 Explain the current state of parties in the US.
CO-4 Explain parties in three areas (the electorate, the organization, and the government)
CO-5 Explain the basic election laws governing campaign finance.
CO-6 Explain the positive and negative role of interest groups in the US political process.
CO-7 Explain citizen participation in election process.
| Name | Grade % |
|---|---|
| Forums | 60.00 % |
| Forum 1 | 7.50 % |
| Forum 2 | 7.50 % |
| Forum 3 | 7.50 % |
| Forum 4 | 7.50 % |
| Forum 5 | 7.50 % |
| Forum 6 | 7.50 % |
| Forum 7 | 7.50 % |
| Forum 8 | 7.50 % |
| Presentation | 20.00 % |
| Presentation | 20.00 % |
| Research Paper | 20.00 % |
| Research Paper | 20.00 % |
- Schmitz, Andy. 2012. American Government and Politics in the Information Age v. 1.0 Saylor Academy https://saylordotorg.github.io/text_american-government-and-politics-in-the-information-age/index.html
- American Government 2016 Independence Hall Association 2016. http://www.ushistory.org/gov/
- The Federalist Nos. 10 & 51
- Lesson Notes
- Web Resources and Assigned Readings
| Book Title: | Various resources from the APUS Library & the Open Web are used. Links provided inside the classroom in the Lessons section. |
| Author: | No Author Specified |
Previous Syllabi
Not current for future courses.