Early presidents OR constitution OR Revolutionary war

COURSE DESCRIPTION: This course covers major themes and events in early American history including: the expansion/restriction of democracy; territorial expansion; early American popular culture; the Pre-Columbian world; European exploration and colonization of the New World; slavery in the Americas; the causes and effects of the American Revolution and the War for Independence; the Early Republic period; the sectional crisis; the Civil War and Reconstruction. MAJOR COURSE OBJECTIVES: Upon completion of this course, students will be expected to demonstrate an understanding of: 1. Major periods of United States History and determine their significance. 2. How North America’s geography and ecology influenced the growth of U.S. society. 3. Encounters among European, African, American Indian, and Asian cultures. 4. The various roles religion has played in American life. 5. The development of American nationalism from 1775-1865. 6. The trajectory of democratic politics and the mass party system from 1787-1830s. 7. The transformations in U.S. society from rural agriculture to urban industrial culture. 8. How slavery and sectionalism in the 1850s led to the American Civil War. 9. Historical issues and themes and form coherent, defensible opinions about them.