INTRODUCTION TO WESTERN CIVILIZATION (HONORS)... · COURSE SYLLABUS 2012-2013 INTRODUCTION TO...

COURSE SYLLABUS 2012-2013

INTRODUCTION TO WESTERN CIVILIZATION (HONORS)

Mr. Hodgin

WHERE TO FIND ME: Bearce Hall Room 301 or Liz Cross Mellen Ski Lodge (home)

WHEN TO FIND ME: Thursday evenings on Sampson 4th

floor, in the classroom or

History Department office during the day, and home when

scheduled.

PHONE: (207)-685-4914 ext.317 (w)

E-MAIL: [email protected]

SKYPE: pete.hodgin

A: Course Description:

This course introduces students to the political, economic, and cultural foundations of Western

Civilization through a focus on Greece, Rome, and the “Middle Ages” in Europe. Relationships

and parallels between these societies and the present day illustrate the roots of many modern

Western ideas and institutions.

B: Course Goals:

The course seeks to develop each student’s understanding and application of the “Key Elements”

of historical study, as outlined by the Social Studies Department:

Chronology

Range and depth of historical knowledge and understanding

Interpretations of history

Historical enquiry

Organization and communication

Specific emphasis will be placed on developing each student’s skills in the following areas:

reading and generating notes, analyzing and interpreting documents, critical thinking and

collaboration, writing and research methods/citation, in class and public expression, proficiency

with MS Word, and familiarity with a range of online applications and resources (including, but

not limited to, Google, Diigo, Wikispaces, Voicethread, Prezi, and Skype, and specialized search

engines like RefSeek and WolframAlpha).

C: Course Texts and Materials:

1. Bishop, Morris. The Middle Ages, Mariner Books/Houghton Mifflin Company, 1968

In Trimesters I and II, the class will rely heavily upon online sources and documents made

available on the KHS network. The Bishop text is used in Trimester III.

mailto:[email protected]


D: Grading:

The grading system for this course will be consistent with that outlined in the Kents Hill School

Handbook 2012-2013. All students are strongly encouraged to review these pages during the first

week of class.

A student’s grade each trimester will be based on the following four areas:

I. Weekly preparation and participation

II. Weekly quiz on class material

III. Weekly submitted assignment

IV. End of trimester assessment

Students customarily receive three equally weighted grades (for areas I- III) each week. In weeks

truncated by special school schedules or vacations, students may not have all three grades that

week. Area IV will be included at the end of the trimester, and will be weighed as 10% of the

grade for the trimester. At the end of the year, the student’s final grade for the course is simply

the average of their three trimester grades.

Grading Details:

I. Weekly preparation and participation

Students are expected to explore the course material, to take part in scholarly discussions,

to respect the dignity and intellectual contributions of classmates, and to work on the

development of academic skills both inside and outside of class.

As is traditionally expected, students must arrive to class fully prepared and make every

effort to remain meaningfully engaged during class time. Additionally, a student’s grade

includes the use and organized maintenance of a notebook as outlined in the “Notebook

Guidelines” (Appendix 1). Notebooks will be checked and evaluated regularly.

Punctuality, proper dress, and adherence to classroom policies also factor into this grade.

Half of a student’s weekly preparation and participation grade is based on contributions

and conduct in class.

A wiki will be used to collate, edit, and review course notes for the entire class to use. I

will also post, in the “discussion” feature of the site, a weekly question or topic designed

to encourage consideration or examination of course material outside of class. Each

student is required to contribute both notes to the notes page and a meaningful response

to the discussion question at least once each week. Students must submit contributions to

the notes and discussions by 9:00pm the night before our last class of the week. Half of a

student’s weekly preparation and participation grade is based on contributions to the

wiki.


II. Weekly quiz on class material

This quiz will be brief and based specifically on material covered during the week. It is

designed to encourage consistent, close attention to course material and class work. The

quiz will appear in a variety of formats designed to gauge comprehension and sharpen a

wide range of skills. Optional quiz corrections may be submitted according to the “Quiz

Correction Policy” (Appendix 2).

III. Weekly submitted assignment

This assignment will require students to explore topics and themes related to our course

of study, and submit a document/product of some sort for grading. The assignment must

be submitted before class on the day the assignment is due, unless otherwise specified.

IV. End of trimester assessment

At the end of the 1st and 3

rd trimesters, students will take an exam that will include all

material covered that trimester. At the end of the 2nd

trimester, students will complete an

“alternative” assessment (rather than a traditional exam).

E: Course Structure:

Customarily, the course meets four times per week. Each week the course will have a relatively

consistent, recognizable structure. Depending on the school schedule during the year, there may

be class days missed and adjustments made, but the structure is as follows:

Day #1: “OUTPUT/INPUT”: Assignments and News

Students will discuss their completed assignments from the previous week.

The class will take a comprehensive look at the assignments for the coming week,

making sure all assignments and expectations are clear. The class will briefly discuss the

broader historical relevance of the topics of the week, and consider points on which to

collectively focus.

The class will conclude with a look at current events/news items relevant to our study.

Day #2: “INPUT”: Content

The class will dig into the specific historical content (dates, context, figures, events,

implications) of our study.

Day #3: “PROCESS”: Applications and Skill Building


Students will deepen their understanding of the course content by exploring different

skills important to the study of History, including evaluating primary source material,

analyzing data, graphics, or maps, critiquing media for historical relevance/accuracy),

and different modes of inquiry and communication (for example participating in

simulations, analyzing video clips, exploring online resources, networking with other

faculty or students).

Day #4: “OUTPUT”: Quiz and Discussion Board

Students will complete a brief quiz (usually a simple, multiple-choice and/or short-

answer assessment) based on the work completed during the week.

After all students have completed the quiz, the class will spend some time reviewing the

contributions to the weekly question on the online discussion board.

F: Policies and Expectations:

I. Preparedness in and out of class

Students are required to attend all classes (unless excused in accordance

with the school’s attendance policy).

Students must arrive for class on time. Late arrival (unless excused by a

note from a relevant source) will result in a mark of “late” and an informal

sliding-scale point deduction from their “preparation and participation”

grade for the week. If a student is late three or more times in the same

marking period, the student’s “effort” grade will automatically drop one

place. Unexcused lateness of over 15 minutes will be regarded as a “cut”.

If lateness is persistent, additional sanctions (for example, cleaning the

classroom during the student’s free time) may be levied.

Students are required to arrive to class prepared. Homework must have

been completed prior to arrival and the student must have their notebook

(see Appendix 1), a writing utensil, or any other materials needed for that

day. If a student is doing work for a different class during our class time,

the student will be dismissed from class and given a “cut” for the day.

Students must be in dress code not only in class, but also upon arrival and

departure. Dress code violations will be issued when appropriate.

Students must utilize a Kents Hill School email account. To minimize risk

of email being diverted by a spam filter or misidentified by me, all email

communication with me from students must come through that Kents Hill

School account. Email is accessible off campus at

http://mail.kentshill.org:8383

http://mail.kentshill.org:8383/


Students are responsible for the thoughtful maintenance of their accounts

on the websites that we use in this course, including keeping track of their

own usernames and passwords. How to set up accounts with these sites

will be covered in class in MP1, but I will not record/archive usernames

and passwords for students.

II. Assignments and assessments

Homework assignments for the week will be outlined during the first class

meeting of the week. Assignments can also be found on our course page

on the Kents Hill School website. If a student misses class, it is their

responsibility to keep current with homework assignments.

Unless otherwise specified, assignments must be submitted by class time

on the day they are due. Assignments must be handed in personally and

completely. Submission of work by other means (as an email or an email

attachment, on a flash drive, etc.) will be permitted only on a preapproved,

case-by-case basis or after dramatically unforeseen, “it’ll never happen

again” circumstances. In most cases, assignments simply emailed will not

be recognized as having been submitted.

Late homework will be accepted, but will lose 10 points for each day it is

late (inability to submit it by class time is counted as a “day” of lateness),

unless the lateness is due to an excused absence, or when an extension has

been explicitly granted by the teacher. In these cases, the assignment must

be submitted on the day the student returns to class, or on the final day of

the extension, in order to avoid a late penalty.

Assignments “lost” due to computer crashes or other technical difficulties,

stolen book bags, roommate or sibling sabotage, and/or other paranormal

phenomena, must be documented by a note from a relevant faculty

member or your parent/guardian for you to receive an extension.

Daily homework (for example, a nightly reading) is not given an

individual numerical grade, but inattention to homework will be duly

noted and recorded, and will weigh against the student’s academic and

effort grades.

Weekly quizzes missed due to an excused absence can be made up with no

reduction in grade. Weekly quizzes missed due to an unexcused absence

cannot be made up and will be scored as a 0%.


III. Written Work

Unless otherwise specified, all written assignments must be word-

processed, using the following formatting guidelines:

a) Font: Times New Roman, 12 point

b) Spacing: Double spaced

c) Margin: 1 inch on all sides

d) Alignment: Left

e) Pagination: Your last name and Arabic numbers (1, 2, 3…) in the

upper right corner.

The first page of written assignments must have the following information

(double spaced) in the upper left corner:

Your name

Mr. Hodgin

Intro to Western Civilization (Honors)

Date of submission

The first page must have a title centered and with the first letter of each

word capitalized.

Unless otherwise specified, source citation, when appropriate, must be

completed according to MLA guidelines.

IV. Academic Honesty

The critical importance of academic honesty is outlined at length in the

Kents Hill School Handbook 2012-2013. We will discuss the school’s

policy together, but all students are strongly encouraged to review relevant

pages during the first week of class and as needed during the year.

If the school’s policy is in any way unclear to you, please speak to me,

another teacher, or your advisor. If you are ever unsure as to whether or

not what you’ve produced for class is in keeping with the school’s policy

on academic honesty, you must speak to me before handing in the work.

Cases of suspected academic dishonesty will be brought to the attention of

the Dean of Academics and the student’s Advisor.

V. Classroom Rules

No food (including gum, candy, mints, etc.) or drinks (including “vitamin”

or other flavored waters, coffee, etc.) besides plain water are permitted in

the classroom. Food/drinks must be put away before entering the room.


Students eating/drinking in class will be required to dispose of the

food/drink and return during the student’s free time to clean the classroom.

Laptops/Tablets/Smart Phones are permitted in class, provided they are

used for academic purposes, appropriately, and with permission. Misuse of

such a device will result in the temporary loss of the privilege to use it in

class for that student. Unless otherwise indicated by me, any other

personal electronic devices must be turned off and put away before you

enter the classroom.

The cleanliness and order of the classroom is the responsibility of the class

using it. At the end of class, all garbage needs to be thrown away,

materials returned to their appropriate areas, and desks returned to their

original arrangement.

VI. Teacher Agreement

I will be on time for all classes. If I have not arrived to class within 15

(fifteen) minutes of the scheduled start of the period and no faculty

substitute is present, students are not required to stay and will not be

penalized for leaving.

Unless otherwise indicated, all graded work will be graded and ready for

return within one week of the date that it was submitted. If the work is not

graded and ready for return, the student receives an automatic 100% for the

assignment or quiz.

I will make every effort to be available for extra help during or after the

class day. On Thursday evenings, I am available until 10:00pm and

arrangements can be made to meet personally in Sampson Hall during study

hall. Although I won’t always be available on other nights of the week,

students are permitted to try to contact me before 9:00pm via phone or

Skype as long as the contact is explicitly academic in nature.

Students are entitled to find out their current grade in the class. Upon

request, and in a timely fashion, I will meet to review a student’s grade.

Every student deserves respect, and I will neither engage in nor tolerate

behavior that belittles, denigrates, or creates a hostile learning environment

for any student.

I will make every effort to remain consistent with the policies and guidelines

listed in this document, but will make every effort to remain open to

relaxing or amending policies and guidelines in special circumstances.


By signing below, you are indicating that you have read and understand the document.

Student Signature: Date:


Introduction to Western Civilization (Honors) Curriculum 2012-2013

Unit

Topics of Study

Unit 1

Course Introduction: Expectations, Guidelines and Materials

Focus: What is Western Civilization?

Unit 2

The Ancient Near East:

Focus: Politics, Economics and Culture: How the “Big Three” Influence the Development of

Societies.

Unit 3

The Rise of Archaic Greece and the Persian Wars:

Focus: “Seek Not to Become a Zeus”: Myth, Faith, and The Olympic Games.

Focus: Comparing Political Systems: Sparta and Athens

Focus: Hoplites, Phalanxes, and Hanson’s “Western Way of War”.

Unit 4

Periclean Athens and the Greek “Golden Age”:

Focus: Ars Longa, Vita Brevis: What Can Be Learned about a Society by Studying Its Art?

Unit 5

The Peloponnesian War and the Emergence of Greek Philosophy

Focus: What Forces Bring States Into Competition or Conflict with One Another?

Focus: “The Examined Life”: Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle and The Impact and Influence of Reason

and Logic on the Western World

Unit 6

Alexander the Great and the Hellenistic Age:

Focus: The Pros and Cons of a “Flat” World: Cosmopolitanism and Globalization

End of Trimester 1

Unit 7

The Rise of the Roman Republic and Julius Caesar:

Focus: “ I Am Spartacus!”: The Status Quo vs. Reformers and Rebels

Focus: Crossing the Rubicon: What Makes a “Turning Point” in History?

IN-CLASS ACTIVITY: HAIL CAESAR!


Unit

Topics of Study

Unit 8

Augustus, The Principate and The Pax Romana:

Focus: Post Hoc Ergo Propter Hoc: Exploring Historical Causality and Logical Fallacies


Unit 9

Imperial Leadership after Augustus:

The Julian Emperors

The Flavian Emperors

The “Five Good” Emperors

Focus: Fiddling While Rome Burned: Evaluating Sources of Historical Information


Unit 10

Rome’s Spiritual Metamorphosis

Christianity and the Empire

The Dominate/Reforms of Diocletian

The Reign of Constantine

Focus: “The Closing of the Western Mind?”: Exploring Freeman’s Controversial Thesis


Unit 11

The Roman Empire’s Decline and Fall

The East-West Split

“Barbarians at the Gate”

Focus: Post Hoc Ergo Propter Hoc: Exploring Historical Causality and Logical Fallacies

Focus: An “Empire in Denial”?: Drawing Comparisons Between The Roman Empire and the United

States


End of Trimester 2

Unit 12

The Early Middle Ages:

Byzantium

Islam

Charlemagne, the Franks, and the Holy Roman Empire

The Vikings, Irish, Anglo-Saxons, and Britons

Focus: The Relationship Between Islam and the West from the Early Middle Ages to the Present.


Unit

Topics of Study

Unit 13 Feudalism: The Knights:

The Chivalric Order

Arthurian Legend

The Crusades

Focus: “Just War Theory” from the Siege of Jerusalem to the 1945 firebombing of Tokyo

Unit 14

The High Middle Ages: Economy, Society, and Politics

The Norman Invasion

The Magna Carta

Focus: How Does a Ruling Class Rise to Power and Remain in Power?

Focus: Comparing and Contrasting Concerns of Workers in the Medieval and Modern Eras

Focus: The Development of Constitutional Law from Magna Carta to The Universal Declaration of

Human Rights

Focus: Linking the Medieval Church to Modern Christianity and Modern Politics

Focus: Would We Have Lasted a Week in a Medieval School?

Unit 15

The Late Middle Ages: The Birth of the Modern Era

The Black Death

Peasant Revolts

The Hundred Years War

Schism in the Church

Focus: Schumpeter’s Theory of “Creative Destruction”

End of Trimester 3


Appendix 1: Notebook Guidelines

1. The Kents Hill School Handbook 2012-2013 outlines various study skill guidelines and

expectations that are shared by all departments at Kents Hill School. One of those

expectations is specific to notebook use:

Each student should have a 3 ring binder and notebook-we recommend 2 subjects per

binder -organized with paper and file dividers as designated by the teacher. We do not

sell or allow spiral notebooks. Binders will be frequently checked and graded. (30)

2. Notebooks must be three-ringed.

3. Notebooks for my classes must be divided by “units”. These divisions must be clearly

marked with labeled file dividers. The notebook must also have an area or section in the front

for the Course Syllabus.

All relevant materials provided or accumulated during the course of study of a particular unit

must be filed in their appropriate section. In other words, you may not have papers and

handouts from October blending together with papers and handouts in April, and you may

not have a section of the handbook simply marked “quizzes” with all of your quizzes in it.

4. Notebooks must be brought to every class unless otherwise specified by me.

5. The neat, orderly, thorough, and consistent maintenance and usage of your notebook is part

of your “preparation and participation” grade. You notebook is unsatisfactory if it is falling

apart, if it is a vehicle for extraneous doodling or commentary, or if the materials within it are

torn, wrinkled or sullied from food/drinks, weather, and/or general chaos in your life.

Imagine the notebook as something you will be turning in to a future employer or a college

admissions office, and take care of it accordingly. Plastic sheet protectors are relatively

inexpensive, are reusable, and have proven effective in guarding your notebook materials

against wear and tear.


Appendix 2: Quiz Correction Policy

1. If students are unsatisfied with a grade on a quiz, they may submit typed quiz corrections.

Quiz corrections that are hand-written will not be accepted.

2. The corrections must contain a scholarly sentence or paragraph addressing the topic/issue

covered in each question for which the student received a low score (or no credit) on the

quiz. For example, it is not enough to simply change “true” to “false” on a quiz correction, or

an “a” to a “c” on a multiple-choice question. You must explain, using additional relevant

material from the course, what the correct answer would be.

3. Students may use the textbook, notes, and other materials to write corrections, but as always,

the work must be in the student’s own words (unless, of course, the answer calls for a

specific definition of a term or terms, in which case the material in our readings or notes wiki

will suffice). Students may not simply use the quiz of someone else in the course.

4. The corrections must be submitted to me within one week of receiving the graded quiz or

before the end of a Marking Period (whichever comes first). The original, graded quiz must

accompany the correction at the time of submission or it will not be accepted.

5. The corrections must adhere to all formatting guidelines outlined in the course syllabus.

6. A perfect correction can earn a student up to 50% of the points missed on the quiz.

Examples: 40% on Quiz = 40

Perfect correction (50% of 60) = 30

__________________________________

70 (Final grade for quiz)

80% on Quiz = 80

Perfect correction (50% of 20) = 10

__________________________________

90 (Final grade for quiz)

7. A correction that is submitted incompletely, sloppily, etc. will only receive partial credit or

no credit at all. Once again, corrections that simply swap one multiple choice answer for

another, are not typed, or not accompanied by the original, graded quiz will receive no

additional credit.

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