Usually, subject in the social sciences can get a little dull at times. This is certainly not the case in Dr. Crotty's American Government course. She brings a lot of life to the subject.

The class periods consist exclusively of lectures. She usually discusses certain topics in correlation with the chapters we're supposed to be reading in the textbook. However, don't think you can get away with reading the textbook and not going to class. First, she does take attendance everyday. Second, she usually adds information that you can't find in the textbook or she slims down the information from what is in the textbook. The lectures she gives don't put you to sleep. She adds examples from the current political scene and uses hypothetical situations to explain concepts.

Most of the work in the course consists of reading the textbook. Each week you are quizzed on two chapters from the textbook. The quizzes consist of eleven multiple choice questions. Your final score is out of 10, which means that you get one free mistake. There are a total of eleven quizzes, and she drops the lowest one, counting for 15% of your grade. The textbook is good, although it can sometimes seem lengthy and uses examples that are too long. I recommend making notes on each chapter in the textbook to review because the questions on the quizzes can be rather tricky if you don't know the information well.

Other than the quizzes there are two exams, a midterm and a final, which combine to count for about half your grade. The exams are exclusively on her lectures, so make sure that you take good notes and study well. If you do so, the tests are no big deal. If the class does well on the midterm, the final is not cumulative. Also, there is a journal (15% of the grade). Throughout the semester you collect newspaper articles on your topic, which she approves early in the semester. Later in the semester, you submit a two-page paper on your opinion about the topic and your analysis of the coverage of the topic in the newspapers. For this paper, make sure your spelling/grammar/punctuation is in check, because you can drop up to a letter grade for excessive mistakes. Finally, about 10% of the grade is for attendance and class participation (asking questions, etc.)

Dr. Crotty is a real live wire. She loves to make a lot of jokes during the class (including about some of the students). Sometimes it does get a little annoying, but as a whole it makes the class enjoyable. Also, she shamelessly swears during class. In fact, if you have a problem with this, she offers to help you move to another section of the class, since she certainly isn't going to change. What most gets injected into the class is her own ideology. She is a no-doubt liberal and clearly expresses her views, although she does do it in a way to make it relevant to the course. Finally, she does have stringent classroom rules. She doesn't allow you to get up during class, even to throw away a tissue. If you need to use the restroom or answer your cell phone during class, don't bother returning - she doesn't want the distraction of people coming and going. You can't make up quizzes or turn in anything late. If you miss the final, expect to make it up at the beginning of the following semester.

I highly recommend taking this course. You learn a lot about how the government really works, other than just the organizational and procedural details. However, if you take the course, expect to do the work. If you do, you'll do well.