H 377 Native American History and Culture Spring 2025
Dr. Dawn G. Marsh Course Schedule: T Th 12:00-1:15
Office: Beering 6108 Class Location: STON 215
Email: dmarsh@purdue.edu Office Hours: T-Th 2:00-3:00
The primary purpose of this course is to dispel stereotypes, crush racism, and encourage you to value the history and culture of Native American and Indigenous people.
Course Description
This course provides a general overview of Native American history and culture as experienced by the Indigenous peoples in North America highlighting the regions that became the United States from pre-contact through the mid-twentieth century. This course will present a general overview of events and themes critical to understanding their experiences. I will introduce you to a broad array of historical episodes and cultural ideas that continue to impact Native and Indigenous American lives today. Through a variety of media, we will explore the struggles for land, identity, resources, creativity, and power which characterize the Indigenous American experience. Your success in the course depends on your active participation in various aspects of the class and your timely completion of all required work.
Course Objectives
-Clearly articulate historical analysis in written responses, while demonstrating a strong understanding of historical concepts and terminology.
-Present the results of collaborative historical research. Work with team members during weekly workshops and share responsibilities for presenting the analyses and evidence discovered.
-Distinguish between primary and secondary sources, evaluate their reliability and bias.
-Reflect on the ethical implications of historical interpretation and the potential biases present in historical narratives about Native Americans.
-Interconnect and communicate the key federal policies and legislation impacting Native Americans.
-Develop an understanding of the legacy of European and American colonization on Native American communities and nations from the 16th century to the present.
Required Texts
-Colin G. Calloway, First Peoples, Macmillan Higher Education, 2023. Ebook: ISBN 9781319522223, Print: ISBN 9781319244576
-John Sayles, To Save the Man, Melville House Publishing, 2025. Print: ISBN 9781685892234
-Tommy Orange, There, There, Vintage, 2019. Print: ISBN 9780525520375
Course Brightspace
The syllabus (and any updates), weekly reading assignments, workshop assignments, PPTs (after the class presentation), links to assigned readings, images, or videos, quizzes, the midterm and final will all be available via Brightspace. Announcements and other updates as necessary will be emailed or messaged through Brightspace.
Course Organization
Tuesdays will be devoted to a lecture based on your assigned readings for that week. Thursdays will be devoted to diving deeper into that content through workshops. This may vary due to holidays and other calendar changes.
Course Preparation
It is your responsibility to come to class prepared. You are required to read the assigned content before coming to class on Tuesday. This is not a suggestion. It is a requirement. To encourage this, you will complete a chapter quiz on Brightspace that is due on Mondays (11:59 pm). No late submissions or make-up work will be accepted.
Preparation for Thursdays workshops will vary. Sometimes you will be required to complete the assignment before coming to class, other times your workshop will be completed during class. Again, completing the reading assignment is essential to your successful completion of the course.
Attendance
I will take role at the beginning of each class meeting. More than five absences without notification will impact your final grade. Repeated tardiness or early departure will also be noted and ultimately impact your final grade. If you participate in university-sanctioned extra-curricular activities that will cause you to miss class, it is your responsibility to inform me as far in advance as possible. I do not require medical excuses, not elaborate details of your illness or cause for absence. A brief email notifying me will suffice.
Class Ethics
This class is intended to encourage open, informed discussions and I hope to protect and foster a classroom atmosphere that will encourage open and enlightened discourse in the class. Respect, open-mindedness, and tolerance will be the standard for all classroom discussions. If you encounter any bullying, unfair treatment, or have any negative experiences in my classroom or beyond, please consider my office, BRNG 6108, a place where you can voice those concerns to me.
Academic Integrity
Students are required to abide by the rules of academic honesty and integrity provided by Purdue University. Plagiarism and/or cheating will not be tolerated at any level in my classroom. Students who do so will receive an "F" for the course and will be adjudicated to the History Department Head.
Assessments*
Workshops (10) 150 pts (15 per)
Book Assignments (2) 150 pts (75 per)
Chapter Quizzes (10) 150 pts (15 per)
Midterm 100 pts
Final 100 pts
Workshop Assignments
Thursdays will be devoted to workshops and the associated assignments. Students will be organized into teams that will be assigned a task to complete. Groups will work together on the tasks, but each student will be responsible for their work in the class. If you do not complete the assignment or if you are absent on a Workshop Thursday, you forfeit those points. If you have university related extracurricular activities, you can submit the assignment before the class meets and receive credit. If you are absent due to illness, you can submit the assignment within 24 hours of the class meeting and receive credit.
Hardcopies of the assignments will be submitted for grading at the end of the class. Do not upload workshop assignments in Brightspace.
Midterm and Final
Both assessments will be comprehensive examinations that demonstrate your mastery of the course content relative to the dates they are scheduled. The midterm and final are due on the dates identified in the schedule and submitted via Brightspace.
- The Midterm assignment will be posted on Brightspace one week before the due date. Students who submit the Midterm late will be docked 5 points for each day late.
- The Final assignment will be posted on Brightspace one week before the due date. No late submissions of the Final assignment will be accepted. If you fail to submit the Final by the deadline you will receive a 0 score. No exceptions.
Course Schedule
I reserve the right to make changes to this schedule as needs arise. Students will be informed about these changes through class emails, in-class announcements, and/or postings on Brightspace. Several class meetings will be cancelled due to professional obligations. Content and assignments will be made available through Brightspace for those course hours as needed.
Course Schedule
Week 1 Jan 13-15 Tues: Intro, Admin Thurs: Lecture
Week 2 Jan 20-22
Tues: Read Calloway Ch 1* Thurs: Workshop 1
Week 3 Jan 27-29
Tues: Read Calloway Ch 2 Thurs: Workshop 2
Week 4 Feb 3-5
Tues: Read Calloway Ch 3 Thurs: Workshop 3
Week 5 Feb 10-12
Tues: Read Calloway Ch 4 Thurs: Workshop 4
Week 6 Feb 17-19
Tues: Read Calloway Ch 5 Thurs: Workshop 5
Week 7 Feb 24-26
Tues: Read Calloway Ch 6 Thurs: Workshop 6
Week 8 Mar 3-5
Tues: Read Calloway Ch 7 Thurs: Workshop 7
Week 9 Mar10-12
Tues: Sayles, To Save the Man
Thurs: Sayles, To Save the Man
Week 10 Mar 17-19 Spring Break
Week 11 Mar 24-26
Tues: Read Calloway Ch 8 Thurs: Workshop 8
Week 12 Mar 31-Apr 2 Tues: Read Calloway Ch 9 Thurs: Workshop 9
Week 13 Apr 7-9
Tues: Read Calloway Ch 10 Thurs: Workshop 10
Week 14 Apr 14-16
Tues: Orange, There, There
Thurs: Orange, There, There
Week 15 Apr 21-23
Tues: TBD Thurs: TBD
Week 16 Apr 28-30
Quiet Week: Extended Office Hours
Finals Week May 4-9
Final Due Tuesday May 5
*Remember Chapter quizzes are due each Monday by 11:59 pm. The quiz will be unavailable after the deadline. There are not make-ups or extra-credit if you do not complete the quiz by the deadline.