HI232G-F08:Main
From Eckerd Academic Wiki
Fall 2008
MWF 11:45-12:35
Professor Chittick (chittiab@eckerd.edu)
Office: Miller 104, x8458
Office Hours: MWF 7:45-10:45am or by appointment
Welcome to my survey of world history up to 1500 CE. Obviously, this course addresses an enormous amount of material, some of which you will have encountered before. Our focus will not be on trying to “cover” highlights of each and every major civilization and state throughout this period; instead, we will be seeking to develop a framework by which to understand and interpret the evolution of human societies over time. Several themes predominate.
- We draw on insights from evolutionary biology and anthropology to consider the bases of human social organization, especially in the first section. These ideas will be revisited periodically as we consider the competitive advantages of various forms of society and technology.
- We study the development and interaction of specific “styles” of human civilization, especially in its most densely populated core regions. We will pay particular attention to the development and spread of writing systems, and the ways in which different societies have recorded their own history.
- Cross-cultural travel, trade, and exploration will be an important theme of the course, especially in the second half.
The course is designed to help develop the following fundamental skills:
- world physical and cultural geography;
- analysis of historical argument;
- oral presentation, including formal standup, debate, and conversation and discussion;
- writing short analytic papers;
- basic research and citation skills;
- basic comparative historiography.
The course relies on four sources of information and ideas. First is a general textbook, Societies, Networks, and Transitions, by Craig Lockard, which offers the bulk of our specific information, and on which there will be weekly short quizzes to ensure that you are keeping up with the reading. Second is a reader, Worlds of History by Kevin Reilly, which combines primary source documents with articles that offer comparative and integrative perspectives on those documents. These will be the principal source for analytic and comparative paper assignments. Third is your own further research, which allows you to deepen your knowledge of features of human societies and cultures that are of particular interest to you, and to gather evidence for the positions you will take in discussions, papers, and debates. Finally, the information and perspectives provided by your classmates and your professor should help to challenge you and offer you new ways of approaching the course material.
Grading: Grades in this course will be weighted as follows:
- 20% - Mini-quizzes (10@2pts each)
- 40% - Analytic papers and debate (4@10 pts each)
- 20% - Oral presentations (2@10pts each)
- 20% - Daily attendance and engagement
Other Course Policies: Honor Code, Late Policy, Hurricane Policy
- All Eckerd students are required to pledge to the honor code: “On my honor, as an Eckerd College student, I pledge not to lie, cheat, or steal, nor to tolerate those behaviors in others.” All written assignments must have on them the word “Pledged” and the student’s signature, signifying their ongoing commitment to this code. This college takes issues of academic honesty and plagiarism very seriously; a first plagiarism offense usually results in an F in the course, and a second offense results in expulsion.
- Late papers will be penalized by one +/- grade each morning and afternoon (two per day), down to a minimum grade of D for any reasonable effort; they will be accepted through the end of the last week of classes. If you miss a quiz due to an excused absence (confirmed with the instructor), you will be allowed to make up the quiz in the few minutes prior to the next class meeting; if that is not possible, you can try to arrange a time with the instructor, or drop it as a low grade. Quizzes missed due to unexcused absences may not be made up. Oral presentations and debates can be made up only with prior notification (barring emergency circumstances), for good reasons, and only if class time permits.
- If for any reason, Eckerd College is evacuated due to the possibility of a hurricane, students who leave campus should take their texts, notes and syllabus with them, so that they are able to continue their course work. In such an event, check your Eckerd e-mail from your off-campus location and continue with the course work according to the syllabus and as delivered via e-mail and/or online course materials (accessed from the Eckerd intranet homepage).
