home

= Welcome to HI 113, Sections 01 & 06 - Spring 2010, Worcester State College =

About this Wiki
This semester students in my sections of HI 113 will be conducting an ongoing simulation of Congress. I've set up a Wiki to help us keep track of the project, since it involves students from across both sections. You'll be working in small groups in committees, based on the real committees in the [|House of Representatives] and the [|Senate]. Each committee will have its own wiki page that anyone in the class can edit or make change to. We'll devote several days throughout the semester to working in committees taking up both current and past issues of national concern. Each committee will conduct hearings and briefings, and draft legislation on issues under its jurisdiction. Our entire Congress will debate and vote on the proposed legislation. At the end of the term, each committee will produce a report on its work at the end of the semester and present its accomplishments to Congress. The goal is for you to appreciate what's involved in formulating national policy and how Congress functions in America since 1945 (or what obstacles it meets in trying to come to consensus).

One of the interesting things that will happen, I am hoping, is that the two Congresses may not go the same direction on every issue. The divergence of these parallel universes will teach us about historical contingency, cause and effect, and Congressional dynamics. That's another purpose for this Wiki, so that the "mirror" committees can keep each other informed of news from their section and document unfolding developments throughout the semester.

**How to use this site:**
1) Join this Wiki, or sign in if you've already joined wikispaces 2) Navigate to your committee's page 3) Click "Edit" in the top right corner to make changes to your page 4) If you don't see the option for "Edit" on the page, you need to sign in, or join. 5) Remember to BOTH join wikispaces AND to also Join This Wiki. 6) When you're done with your changes, hit "Save"

**What to put on your Committee Page:**
That's up to you. Each committee gets one page, which means you are sharing it with the same committee in the other section. You can use it as a workspace for your committee with things in progress or in the process of being drafted, or you can use it to "publish" your work once finalized. You need to keep an eye on your page for any unauthorized changes. Also, you can use the "discussion" tab to have a conversation about the page, behind the scenes. The "history" tab shows who made changes and when.