Wikipedia talk:Education program archive/Pomona College/Introduction to American Politics - POLI 3 (Spring 2014)/Course description

This course will serve as an introduction to the American political system - its historical and constitutional foundations, its institutions, its inputs (mediating institutions like elections, parties, the media, etc) and its outputs (public policy). Major themes explored include: the political consequences of federalism and fragmented power; the degree to which political institutions are *truly* democratically representative; the motivations and behavior of political actors; and the involvement of the public and the media in shaping political outcomes. In addition, we will spend some time evaluating the consequences and implications of this period of extreme party polarization in which we currently find ourselves.

Course Objectives

This course is designed to 1) introduce you to the classic questions and basic concepts of American politics; 2) familiarize you with some tools and approaches that Political Scientists use to study those problems and investigate those concepts; 3) help develop and/or strengthen your research and library skills; 4) build collaborative learning skills and presentation skills.

There is an online research guide to support your Wikipedia article work, and CCL Librarian and Wikipedia Campus Ambassador Char Booth and CCL Librarian Sara Lowe will be your primary points of contact on the Wikipedia assignment.

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