Hist 2311 CRN 54874 Western Civilization I
Fall 2010 TR 11:00 to 12:30 pm
Houston Community College Southwest-West Loop Campus, Room C252
Instructor: Dr. Rogan Ellen Brunet
Email: rogan.brunet@hccs.edu
Website: http://learning.hccs.edu/faculty/rogan.brunet
Office: F17 in the Student Success Center, Phone: 7137188195
Course Description: History 2311 is a survey of Western Civilization from the Neolithic Revolution to
the Renaissance. It will focus on the evolution of the economic, social/cultural and political institutions
which define the development of Western Civilization and its people. Although this course is built
around historical events and processes, it is much more than a simple recitation of facts. Students will
learn and apply critical thinking and problem-solving skills and will work with historical documents,
maps and economic and demographic models.
Prerequisites: Must be placed into college-level reading and college-level writing.
Learning Objectives: This course will enable the student to gain a clearer understanding of Western
Civilization by examining the social, political, and economic factors influencing the West from the
beginnings of civilization to the Renaissance. Included topics are the Ancient World, Greece and
Rome, the Middle Ages and the Renaissance. Students will gain a clear perspective on how these
issues form an interconnected and continuous web of history. Furthermore, students will increase
their critical thinking skills and their writing ability through the use of essay exams. In addition,
students will read/assess primary source documents on the internet, expanding their computer skills,
and their knowledge of the historical eras studied.
Course Schedule:
Aug 30-1
Sep 6-8
Sep 13-15
Sep 20-22
Sep 27-29
Oct 4-6
October 6
Oct 11-13
Oct 18-20
October 18
Oct 25-27
Nov 1-3
Nov 8-10
Novermber 8
Nov 15-17
November 15
Nov 22
November 25
Nov 29-1
Dec 6-8
December 8
Topic One: The Origins of Man
Topic Two: The Neolithic Revolution
Topic Three: The Earliest Civilizations, Mesopotamia and Egypt
continue Topic Three
Topic Four: Bronze Age Civilizations
Topic Five: The 13th Century Crisis and Aftermath
Exam One Due
Topic Six: Classical Greece
Topic Seven: Alexander and the Hellenistic World
Reading Assignment One Due: Creation Myths
Topic Eight: ROME (enough said, bring extra paper and caffeine)
continue Topic Eight
Topic Nine: The West in Transition or Vandals, Mongols and Huns, Oh My!
Book Essay Due, Medea/The Heroides
Topic Ten: Late Antiquity or the Early Middle Ages
EXAM TWO
Topic Eleven: The High Middle Ages
Thanksgiving Holiday
Topic Twelve: The Really Horrible, Terrible, Not-So-Great 14th Century
Topic Thirteen: The Late Middle Ages/Early Renaissance Europe
Book Essay Due, Beowulf/Grendel
Dec 13
FINAL EXAM 11:00 am Tuesday
This is a working syllabus and remains flexible. I reserve the right to modify this syllabus during the
course of the semester. Students who miss a class are responsible for enquiring about any changes
that are made to this syllabus. Please feel free to ask questions and remember that participation is
highly encouraged (and welcome) in class.
Texts:
Recommended-The Western Heritage, v. I, 9th ed., Kagan, Ozment, Turner
Required-Medea, Euripedes
Required-The Heroides, Ovid
Required-Beowulf, Anonymous (David Wright has a prose translation, ISBN978-0140440706)
Required-Grendel, John Gardner
The recommended text book is The Western Heritage. Please make sure that you buy Vol. 1 of the
text. This course is lecture intensive…reading the text book will not replace your lecture notes. Use
your text as a back-up to the information given each day in class.
Exams: There will be three in class exams in this class. These exams will consist of a series of essay
questions. All essays are done outside of class. It is assumed that all students will take all exams at
the assigned times, unless you make arrangements to the contrary ahead of the scheduled exam
time. Points will be deducted for late papers.
Reading Assignments and Web Assignment: The outside readings for this class are listed above. You
will find internet links to the reading selections on my Learning Web page. They can also be purchased
at book stores in town or on the internet. These readings will not be available for purchase in the book
store. There will be a book reviews on each of these monographs that will be done outside of class.
Please refer to the academic dishonesty statement below. In addition, there will be on web
assignment. This will be handed out in class and will also be posted to the website.
Make-up Exams: Make-up exams are given at the discretion of the instructor, and only if the student
has a university approved reason for missing an exam. You must have the approval of the instructor to
schedule a make-up exam. Students will take all make-up exams at the Testing Center on campus. No
papers will be handed back to students until ALL make-ups are completed so please schedule makeups in a timely manner.
Extra Credit: Please do not ask for extra credit assignments as this cannot be done on an individual
basis. There are usually bonus questions on the midterm and the final based on videos viewed in
class. Therefore it is a good idea to take notes during these films.
Grades: Your grades in this class are a reflection of your critical thinking skills, how well you analyze the data
presented to you and how you organize this data into educated opinions. You will do this by writing an essay on
each exam. The purpose of an essay is to present your point of view about a given topic. In this class, an essay
is the vehicle to demonstrate your mastery of the subject and your organization of these facts into a logical
conclusion that states your opinion of the given subject. You will be graded on content and grammar.
Houston Community College now charges higher tuition rates for students who repeat a class for the
third time (or more).
Your final grade will be derived from the sum of your three exams (300 pts) and reading exams (300
pts), divided by the total number of points possible (600 pts). The grading scale is as follows:
A=100-90, B=89-80, C=79-70, D=69-60, F=59-0
Final Grades will be available to students by Dec 19. Please note that there will be no curving of
grades in this class.
Incompletes: If you experience an unexpected hardship or personal matter during the course of the
semester, you may be able to take an incomplete for the class. The requirements for an incomplete
are as follows: you must have a passing grade for the class and you must have completed at least
75% of the classwork. Remember that any incomplete work must be finished within a semester or the
“I” will change to an “F”.
Open Computer Lab: There are several open computer labs available on the West Loop Campus that
will provide students with access to the internet and email. You can also purchase a printing card to
use the printers in these labs. Please see the instructor for more information if needed.
Computers and Tape Recorders: If you wish, you may use tape recorders and computers to facilitate
note taking in class. Note that if you use a computer to play games or surf the web in this class, it is a
distraction to others in the class and I will have you dropped from the class.
Academic Dishonesty: Plagiarism, cheating and other forms of academic dishonesty are prohibited by
HCC policy and by the rules of this class.
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Plagiarism is the use of the ideas or words of another person (either whole or in part) without
crediting the source and constitutes the theft of another person’s intellectual property. It is
the most common form of academic dishonesty. If you are unclear as to what constitutes
plagiarism, you should seek clarification before beginning an assignment.
Cheating involves fraud and deception for the purpose of violating legitimate testing rules.
Cheating includes, but is not limited to: copying from another student’s test paper, using
during an exam materials or resources not authorized by the instructor; collaborating with
another student during a test; knowingly using, buying, selling whole or part of an
unadministered test.
Academic dishonesty constitutes a severe violation of HCC policy and rules and is subject to
stringent penalties. Violations of these policies will result, at a minimum, in the automatic
failure of this course. Severe violations could result in suspension or expulsion from HCC.
Attendance Requirements: Attendance will be taken at every class meeting. I cannot stress enough the
importance of attending classes. Excessive absences will negatively affect your grade.
Attendance will be taken at every class meeting. If, in the course of the semester, any student misses
more than six classes, then that student WILL BE ADMINISTRATIVELY DROPPED. If you wish to drop
this class, please inform me that you intend to do so. It is your responsibility to drop this class if you so
desire. The final date for withdrawal is November 3rd. If you do not feel you will pass the class, you
must take the responsibility to withdraw on yourself. International students, students receiving
financial aid and veterans must be enrolled full time (12 hours) in order to maintain their status.
Please keep this in mind if you decide to drop this class. The HCCS History Department has mandated
that NO ‘”W” will be changed to an “F”. Also, make an effort to arrive in class on time. If you are not in
class when roll is called you will not be counted present for that day.
The last day for add/swap is August 30. The final date to drop this class is November 3rd.
Please be aware of the fact that you are limited to six withdrawals over your college career when you are
considering dropping the class.
Cell Phones: Cell phones are highly disruptive in class. All students are required to either turn their cell
phones to vibrate or power them off. In the case of a student expecting an important phone call,
please inform me of the situation before class. If your cell phones rings during class, I reserve the right
to deduct one point from your final class average. In addition, students will be required to put away
their cell phones during exams.
Students with Disabilities: I will make every effort to accommodate those students with disabilities.
Any student with a documented disability (e.g. physical, learning, psychiatric, vision, hearing, etc.) who
needs to arrange reasonable accommodations must contact the Disability Support Service Counselor,
Dr. Becky Hauri (713 718-7909) at the beginning of the semester. Faculty members are authorized to
provide only the accommodations requested by the Office of Disability Support Services (DSS).
Students who are requesting special testing accommodations must first contact the office.
EGLS3 -- Evaluation for Greater Learning Student Survey System: At Houston Community College,
professors believe that thoughtful student feedback is necessary to improve teaching and learning.
During a designated time, you will be asked to answer a short online survey of research-based
questions related to instruction. The anonymous results of the survey will be made available to your
professors and division chairs for continual improvement of instruction. Look for the survey as part of
the Houston Community College Student System online near the end of the term.
Caveat: The College purges students who have not paid their tuition or have some other glitch with
their registration every weekend. However, it does not inform those students who have been dropped
from their classes. It would be in your best interests to pay your tuition on time and ensure that you
are still enrolled in classes by the 12th class day, by midterm and before finals. I cannot re-enroll
students who have been dropped by administration, no matter what their class standing might be.
Please take care of any registration problems promptly.