Designed to support general education goals and develop historical capabilities, this course examines the history of Europe from the later Middle Ages to the present, emphasizing the interaction of political, social, economic, intellectual and cultural factors to produce historical change and alter Europe’s relationship with the rest of the world. This course fulfills the Historical Perspectives Foundation of the university’s General Education Program.
The learning objectives of this course are divided into two broad categories. These are historical skills and content knowledge. For historical skills, students will gain experience in:
Reading, interpreting, and evaluating primary and secondary sources;
Developing and framing historical questions and arguments;
Integrating primary and secondary sources, historical data, and historical arguments into narratives that interpret, evaluate, and impart meaning upon past events;
Attributing source materials properly in your historical writing;
Conforming to the standards and conventions of written expression;
Collaborating with peers in the analysis and construction of historical narratives;
Presenting historical narratives through oral expression; and
Exploring the intersection of history and new media through the use of Web 2.0 technologies, such as wikis.
For content knowledge, students will:
Demonstrate active knowledge of modern European history, as well as the following course sub-themes: the political, social, and economic foundations of European civilization during the Ancien Regime; the role of the French Revolution in shaping the modern world; the impact of industrialization and globalization on European civilization; the role imperialism has played in the expansion and development of European civilization; and the political, social, and economic turmoil of the so-called Age of Catastrophe (1914-45) and the Cold War (1945-1991); and
Develop a broader cultural literacy through exposure to the key concepts, ideas, and events of the major European civilizations.
Students will be evaluated in this course based on the following 1000 point schema:
Module Quizzes (5 of 6): 125 points
Critical Response Essays (2): 150 points
Personal Interest Essays (3 of 4): 225 points
Subtopic Wiki Exhibits (3 of 4): 300 points
Final Exam: 200 points
Module Quizzes: For each module topic, students will be required to complete a brief quiz demonstrating their retention of the covered module material. There are no make-ups allowed on quizzes if you are late or miss class. Therefore, I will drop your lowest quiz before calculating your final quiz grade. There are NO EXCEPTIONS to this rule.
Critical Response Essays: During the semester, you are required to write two (2) critical response essays over the two (2) supplemental books assigned to you this semester (the Johnson and Garton Ash books). These formal academic essays should be 500-750 words in length, written using formal academic styles and conventions (including proper citation), and posted to your student page on the course wiki (email or paper submission will not be accepted). The essays must be posted to the wiki by the start of class on the day the book in question has been assigned (10 Oct for Johnson and 30 Nov for Garton Ash). The purpose of this assignment is to evaluate how well you are thoughtfully engaging with the issues, materials, and themes discussed in the assigned books and this course in general. How you specifically structure the entries will be largely up to your own critical judgment. As such, you will be graded on the quality and relevance of your observations and analysis; your writing style; and your capacity to follow directions and format guidelines.
Personal Interest Essays: For more detailed information on the personal interest essays, please see the Personal Interest Essays assignment sheet.
Final Exam: The final exam will take place on 7 December 2011 in the HON 114 computer lab classroom. The format for this exam will be explained at a later date. Please note: there will be no make-ups for this exam. If you do not take the exam in class on 7 December, you will fail the exam. Also, students with missing coursework or excessive absences prior to Week 15 (determined at the instructor’s discretion) will not be allowed to take the final exam. There are NO EXCEPTIONS to these rules.
Attendance and Participation: It really goes without saying that attending class every session is rather important, if you are actually interested in learning anything in university. That being said, I am not your mother, your babysitter, or your high school principal. I will not be counting you every day. You are all adults now; you can make your own decisions. But be forewarned: we will be doing several in-class activities to better both your writing and your grasp of the historical content. Failure to attend class during these sessions will severely impact your success in this course. Also, the material covered in this course is significant, and the sheer volume of facts, names, places, and dates can become overwhelming for some. Excessive absences will only exacerbate this dynamic. In other words, we’ll be going over a lot of stuff rather quickly, and once you’re behind, it’s very difficult to catch up.
Late Work: Assignments submitted late will be reduced one third of a grade (e.g., from an A to an A-) for each class period late. There are NO EXCEPTIONS to this rule.
Grading Scale: I will be using the following grading scale in this course:
A 100-94 B 86-83 C 76-73 D 65-61
A- 93-90 B- 82-80 C- 72-70 F 60-0
B+ 89-87 C+ 79-77 D+ 69-66
Classroom Technology Policy: Because this has become a problem lately in my classes, I have decided to impose a blanket ban on using handheld technology during class. Use of cellphones, smartphones, and other PDA-like devices is strictly prohibited. The only exceptions to this policy are laptop computers and e-book readers. However, during class discussions, laptops and e-book readers must be closed. You will receive one verbal warning during the semester for transgressing this policy; after that, you will be asked to leave class for the day and your final course grade will be lowered by one third of a grade for each subsequent infraction. Please note: this policy will be strictly enforced.
Academic Honesty: The principles of truth and honesty are recognized as fundamental to a community of teachers and scholars. This means that all academic work will be done by the student to whom it is assigned without unauthorized aid of any kind. In addition, plagiarism, cheating and other forms of academic dishonesty, including dishonesty involving computer technology, are prohibited. Any instances of academic dishonesty in this course (intentional or unintentional) will be dealt with swiftly, and potential penalties include receiving a failing grade (F) on the assignment in question or in the course overall. For further information, students should make themselves familiar with the Academic Honesty section within the Undergraduate Catalog.
Accommodations for Students with Disabilities: If you need academic accommodations because of a learning, physical, or other disability, please contact Disability Support Services (1 Campus Drive, STU 200, telephone 616-331-2490). Furthermore, if you have a physical disability and think you will need assistance evacuating the classroom and/or building in an emergency, please let me know so I can develop a plan to assist you.
Course Outline: I reserve the right to alter any aspect of this course and its assignments and readings schedule as necessary during the semester.
Introductory Module (Week 1)
29 August: Introduction and Syllabus – Class meets in HON 114 Computer Lab
Welcome to the Devenney Teaching Hub, a central website containing all the materials and resources for the classes of Dr. Andrew D. Devenney, a Visiting Assistant Professor of World History at Grand Valley State University in Allendale, Michigan.
Contact Info
Office: D-1-136 Mackinac Hall
Phone #: (616) 331-3420
Email: devennea@gvsu.edu
HST 102 FA11-MW
HST 102: Introduction to European Civilizations
Syllabus Version: Fall 2011 (pdf)
Section: MW 3:00-4;15pm/D-1-123 MAK (#11535) — MW 4:30-5:45pm/D-1-135 MAK (#11537)
Course Wiki: http://hst102.pbworks.com
Course Description and Requirements
Designed to support general education goals and develop historical capabilities, this course examines the history of Europe from the later Middle Ages to the present, emphasizing the interaction of political, social, economic, intellectual and cultural factors to produce historical change and alter Europe’s relationship with the rest of the world. This course fulfills the Historical Perspectives Foundation of the university’s General Education Program.
The learning objectives of this course are divided into two broad categories. These are historical skills and content knowledge. For historical skills, students will gain experience in:
For content knowledge, students will:
Assigned Texts
Judith Coffin and Robert Stacey, Western Civilizations: Their History and Their Culture, Vol. II, Second Brief Edition (W.W. Norton, 2008), ISBN #978-0393932362.
Steven Johnson, The Ghost Map: The Story of London’s Most Terrifying Epidemic – and How it Changed Science, Cities, and the Modern World (Penguin, 2007), ISBN #978-1594482694.
Timothy Garton Ash, The File: A Personal History (Vintage, 1998), ISBN #978-0679777854.
Evaluation
Students will be evaluated in this course based on the following 1000 point schema:
Module Quizzes: For each module topic, students will be required to complete a brief quiz demonstrating their retention of the covered module material. There are no make-ups allowed on quizzes if you are late or miss class. Therefore, I will drop your lowest quiz before calculating your final quiz grade. There are NO EXCEPTIONS to this rule.
Critical Response Essays: During the semester, you are required to write two (2) critical response essays over the two (2) supplemental books assigned to you this semester (the Johnson and Garton Ash books). These formal academic essays should be 500-750 words in length, written using formal academic styles and conventions (including proper citation), and posted to your student page on the course wiki (email or paper submission will not be accepted). The essays must be posted to the wiki by the start of class on the day the book in question has been assigned (10 Oct for Johnson and 30 Nov for Garton Ash). The purpose of this assignment is to evaluate how well you are thoughtfully engaging with the issues, materials, and themes discussed in the assigned books and this course in general. How you specifically structure the entries will be largely up to your own critical judgment. As such, you will be graded on the quality and relevance of your observations and analysis; your writing style; and your capacity to follow directions and format guidelines.
Personal Interest Essays: For more detailed information on the personal interest essays, please see the Personal Interest Essays assignment sheet.
Subtopic Wiki Exhibits: For more detailed information on the subtopic wiki exhibits, please see the Wiki Exhibits assignment sheet.
Final Exam: The final exam will take place on 7 December 2011 in the HON 114 computer lab classroom. The format for this exam will be explained at a later date. Please note: there will be no make-ups for this exam. If you do not take the exam in class on 7 December, you will fail the exam. Also, students with missing coursework or excessive absences prior to Week 15 (determined at the instructor’s discretion) will not be allowed to take the final exam. There are NO EXCEPTIONS to these rules.
Attendance and Participation: It really goes without saying that attending class every session is rather important, if you are actually interested in learning anything in university. That being said, I am not your mother, your babysitter, or your high school principal. I will not be counting you every day. You are all adults now; you can make your own decisions. But be forewarned: we will be doing several in-class activities to better both your writing and your grasp of the historical content. Failure to attend class during these sessions will severely impact your success in this course. Also, the material covered in this course is significant, and the sheer volume of facts, names, places, and dates can become overwhelming for some. Excessive absences will only exacerbate this dynamic. In other words, we’ll be going over a lot of stuff rather quickly, and once you’re behind, it’s very difficult to catch up.
Late Work: Assignments submitted late will be reduced one third of a grade (e.g., from an A to an A-) for each class period late. There are NO EXCEPTIONS to this rule.
Grading Scale: I will be using the following grading scale in this course:
A 100-94 B 86-83 C 76-73 D 65-61
A- 93-90 B- 82-80 C- 72-70 F 60-0
B+ 89-87 C+ 79-77 D+ 69-66
Classroom Technology Policy: Because this has become a problem lately in my classes, I have decided to impose a blanket ban on using handheld technology during class. Use of cellphones, smartphones, and other PDA-like devices is strictly prohibited. The only exceptions to this policy are laptop computers and e-book readers. However, during class discussions, laptops and e-book readers must be closed. You will receive one verbal warning during the semester for transgressing this policy; after that, you will be asked to leave class for the day and your final course grade will be lowered by one third of a grade for each subsequent infraction. Please note: this policy will be strictly enforced.
Academic Honesty: The principles of truth and honesty are recognized as fundamental to a community of teachers and scholars. This means that all academic work will be done by the student to whom it is assigned without unauthorized aid of any kind. In addition, plagiarism, cheating and other forms of academic dishonesty, including dishonesty involving computer technology, are prohibited. Any instances of academic dishonesty in this course (intentional or unintentional) will be dealt with swiftly, and potential penalties include receiving a failing grade (F) on the assignment in question or in the course overall. For further information, students should make themselves familiar with the Academic Honesty section within the Undergraduate Catalog.
Accommodations for Students with Disabilities: If you need academic accommodations because of a learning, physical, or other disability, please contact Disability Support Services (1 Campus Drive, STU 200, telephone 616-331-2490). Furthermore, if you have a physical disability and think you will need assistance evacuating the classroom and/or building in an emergency, please let me know so I can develop a plan to assist you.
Course Outline: I reserve the right to alter any aspect of this course and its assignments and readings schedule as necessary during the semester.
Introductory Module (Week 1)
29 August: Introduction and Syllabus – Class meets in HON 114 Computer Lab
31 August: What is History? Wartime Letters Assignment
Module #1: The Ancien Regime (Weeks 2-3)
5 September: Labor Day (No Class)
7 September: Key Questions; How to Analyze a Source (Worksheet)
12, 14 September: Workshop Days
Required Reading:
Module #2: Liberté, Equalité, Fraternité (Weeks 4-5)
19 September: Key Questions; Making Wiki Exhibits
21, 26 September: Workshop Days
28 September: Module Presentations
Required Reading:
Module #3: Ode to the Industrial Revolution (Weeks 6-7)
3 October: Key Questions
5 October: Workshop Day
10 October: Discussion of Johnson, The Ghost Map
12 October: Module Presentations
Required Reading:
Module #4: European Imperialism (Weeks 8-9)
17 October: Key Questions
19, 24 October: Workshop Days
26 October: Module Presentations
Required Reading:
Module #5: The Age of Catastrophe, 1914-1945 (Weeks 10-12)
31 October: Key Questions
2, 7, 9 November: Workshop Days
14, 16 November: Module Presentations
Required Reading:
Module #6: The Cold War (Weeks 13-15)
21 November: Key Questions
23 November: Thanksgiving Break (No Class)
28 November: Workshop Day
30 November: Discussion of Garton Ash, The File
5 December: Module Presentations
7 December: Final Exam, Class meets in HON 114 Computer Lab
Required Reading:
Final Exam Week
14 December: Final Exam Session for 4:30pm Class, 4:00-5:50pm
15 December: Final Exam Session for 3:00pm Class, 2:00-3:50pm