HIS 101 History of Western Civilization I

HIS 101-010L, MW 12:45-2:05 PM

Professor Charles Evans
Office: LC 228
If you have questions about your course/assignments/materials, or if you want to talk history, or if it is time for student advising, my office hours for fall 2021 are: Mondays and Wednesdays in my office (LC 228) or the LC lounge from about 10 AM to 1230 PM. I am also available for questions/advising M-TR mornings.
Office Phone: 703.948.7701
Email: cevans@nvcc.edu also charles.t.evans@gmail.com
Division phone: 703.450.2505

Review my academic credentials on my professional CV.

Most of my web-based history projects are linked on my history projects page.

My online and campus courses and some teaching resources are located on my college page.

Required Books

There are no required books for this course.

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Tentative Schedule

Week 1
23 August, Monday: Introduction and attendance
25 August, Wednesday: Introduction reprise, questions answered

Week 2
30 August, Monday: Review the Using Wikipedia information and the explanation of how to access Britannica Academic. Review the material on presentations and the available topic list. Assign topics for the Wikipedia paper (100 points), due by Friday, 3 September, at midnight.
1 September, Wednesday: Wikipedia paper assistance (in class). Volunteer for upcoming presentations.

Week 3
6 September, Monday: NO CLASS
8 September, Wednesday: special group project on history (See Canvas for information.), completed in class and submitted in Canvas (25 points)

Week 4
before class: Read my notes on pre-history. Read Wikipedia and Britannica Academic on prehistory. Watch my short video.
13 September, Monday: my quick comments on pre-history
15 September, Wednesday: presentations on Stonehenge (Natalie M.) and Göbekli Tepe (Zach Y.), quick group paragraph on Stonehenge and Göbekli Tepe, completed in class and submitted in Canvas (60 points). You will find the specific information for each quick group paragraph on Canvas. Look under assignments.

Week 5
20 September, Monday: presentation on Çatalhöyük (Leo C.), presentation on Mississippian mound culture (Zain A.)
22 September, Wednesday: quick group paragraph on Çatalhöyük and Mississippian mound culture, completed in class and submitted in Canvas (35 points)

Week 6
before class: Read my notes on the Ancient Near East. Read Wikipedia and Britannica Academic on the history of Mesopotamia. Watch my short video.
27 September, Monday: my quick comments on the Ancient Near East, presentations on Hammurabi (Cydney K. + Faith T. + Grace H.) and Ancient Egypt (Old Kingdom) (Lauren T. + Wendy P.)
29 September, Wednesday: quick group paragraph on Hammurabi's law code, completed in class and submitted in Canvas (60 points)

Week 7
before class: Read my notes on Ancient Greece. Read Wikipedia and Britannica Academic on Pericles. Watch the Khan Academy video.
4 October, Monday: my quick comments on Ancient Greece, presentation on Pericles (Maggie M. + Austin T.) and Aristotle (Ashlyn S. + William D.)
6 October, Wednesday: quick group paragraph on Pericles, completed in class and submitted in Canvas (60 points)

Week 8
11 October, Monday: NO CLASS
13 October, Wednesday: midterm quiz (50 points)

Week 9
before class: Read my notes on Ancient Rome. Read Wikipedia and Britannica Academic on Rome. Watch my video on Ancient Rome.
18 October, Monday: my quick comments on Ancient Rome, presentations on Cicero (Edgar C. + Sophia F. + Christian L.) and Marcus Aurelius (Louis P. + William C.)
20 October, Wednesday: quick group paragraph on excerpts from the Meditations by Marcus Aurelius, completed in class and submitted in Canvas (60 points)

Week 10
before class: Read my notes on Islam and the Byzantine Empire. Read Wikipedia and Britannica Academic on Islam. Watch the very short video. I also have an older video available that I did in about 1995.
25 October, Monday: my quick comments on Islam and the Byzantine Empire, presentations on the early Islamic caliphates (Chris A. + Joshua M.) and Byzantine Christianity (Anton Q. + Jonathan T.)
27 October, Wednesday: quick group paragraph on the early Islamic caliphates using Pact of Umar, completed in class and submitted in Canvas (60 points)

Week 11
before class: Read my HIS 241 remarks on the early Kievan state. Watch my short video.
1 November, Monday: my quick comments on early Rus', presentations on the Russian Primary Chronicle (Patrick C.) and the Russkaia pravda (Patrick B.)
3 November, Wednesday: quick group paragraph on the Primary Chronicle, completed in class and submitted in Canvas (60 points)

Week 12
before class: Read my notes on Charlemagne. Read Wikipedia and Britannica Academic on Charlemagne. Watch the short video. (I also have some longer remarks on Charlemagne from the mid 1990s that I used on the TV version of the HIS 101 course). Watch the short video on King John and the Magna Carta.
8 November, Monday: my quick comments on Charlemagne, presentations on Charlemagne (Ryan L. + Joseph B.) and the Magna Carta (Zenas D. + Ethan W.)
10 November, Wednesday: quick group paragraph on the Magna Carta, completed in class and submitted in Canvas (60 points)

Week 13
before class: Read my notes on the Late Middle Ages and the Khan Academy notes on the Black Death. Watch my short video on the Black Death. Read my notes on the Age of Exploration. Watch the short video on exploring the jungles of Reston.
15 November, Monday: my quick comments on the Black Death, presentations on Joan of Arc (Austin), the Black Death (Molly J. + Madison C.) and Columbus (Nick K. + Elvin M.)
17 November, Wednesday: quick group paragraph on the Black Death, completed in class and submitted in Canvas (60 points)

Week 14
22 November, Monday: Optional history lab (assistance with digital project work)
24 November, Wednesday: NO CLASS

Week 15
before class: Complete your digital project by Sunday, 28 November, at midnight.
29 November, Monday: digital project presentations
1 December, Wednesday: desperation grades day

Week 16
before the quiz: Complete the Reflective paragraph by 7 December at midnight. (25 points)
8 December Wednesday: 12-1:40 PM, Wednesday, final quiz (50 points)

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Course grading

Course grades are based on the following point scale:

Required Assignments

Wikipedia paper = 100 points
Digital project = 150 points
Group paragraph assignments (done in class), 9 @ 60 ≈ 500 points
Midterm and Final Quizzes, 2 @ 50 = 100 points
Presentation = 100 points
Reflective paragraph = 25 points
Special group project on history = 25 points
There is some extra credit available generally every Friday in the course. You can find more detail in Canvas.

Course Grading Requirements

IMPORTANT: To earn a grade of A, B, C or D, you

Extra Credit Opportunities

Assignment Drafts and Rewrites/Resubmits

Submitting Assignments

Late Work

General course purpose

Surveys the general history of the Western world from about 3000 BCE to 1600 CE and allows students to reach a basic understanding of the characteristic features of the Western world's early historical development in that span of time. Students will learn about some of the important political, economic, social, intellectual, cultural and religious changes that shaped the development of the West from earliest times.

Course objectives

Upon completion of the course, the student will be able to:

  1. Establish a chronology of historical events in the Western world before 1600 CE.
  2. Explain the changing geopolitical structures of the Western world up until 1600 CE.
  3. Define the importance of key individuals and developments in Western civilization before 1600 CE.
  4. Identify the social, economic and political forces at work in the evolution of early and medieval Western history.
  5. Recognize and describe the significance of some of the cultural achievements of ancient and medieval Western civilization.
  6. Analyze complex historical sources and materials and reach conclusions based on interpretations of those materials.

Course prerequisites

Although there are no formal prerequisites for this course, please consider:

Technology

NOVA is committed to preparing students for today’s workforce and recognizes computers to be an extension of the learning tools needed to be globally competitive. To attend NOVA, students are expected to have a laptop (or a desktop with webcam and microphone) that meets the minimum requirements for their major and Internet access at home or through a mobile device hot spot.

Here is information on using financial aid for the college's laptop purchase information.

Using Zoom

Here are some instructions for using zoom: Zoom Instructions for Students.