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The Class – History of Western Civilization – 1
Section 4907
Prehistory to the Discovery of the Americas
Room – Village 8342
Weds. 8-10
Sat. 1-5 - 9-12, 9-19, 10-3, 10-10, 10-24 (Final Exam - 2-hour
class, 1-3)
Instructor – Barbara Hambly
Office – 2305 (bungalow up the hill behind the Old Library)
Office Hours – Wed. 5-6 p.m.
E-Mail – hamblybj@Piercecollege.edu
Website – http://faculty.piercecollege.edu/hamblyb/
Campus phone (messages) I DO NOT TEXT
Western Civilization 1 is designed to be a broad survey of the story of
humankind in the area whose culture evolved into that of present-day
America: that is, the western portion of what is now the Middle East,
the lands around the Mediterranean Sea, Europe, and the British Isles.
By the end of the course:
1) Students will be able to evaluate the significance of geography and
identify important persons as they relate to the major trends in the
history of early western civilization.
2) Students will be able to assess the impact of the major intellectual,
religious and cultural events of early western civilization.
3) Students will be able to develop critical thinking skills by learning
how to analyze, evaluate, and interpret the historical evidence of
primary sources.
During the semester, all students will be assessed on at least
one of the above Student Learning Objectives.
The course will also seek to acquaint the student with the major
specific events, people, and turning-points of western civilization, and
with the major intellectual and cultural trends of the past, and how
they affect our present lives.
PLEASE NOTE: This is a tremendous amount of information, and we
will be covering it really, really fast. DO NOT GET BEHIND IN YOUR
READING.
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ATTENDANCE
It is a giant pain in the shorts to come to a 4-hour class on Saturday
afternoons. NEVERTHELESS, due to college funding requirements,
YOU HAVE TO DO IT.
I will take attendance twice on Saturdays - at the start of class and
again at half-time - as well as once on Wednesday evenings.
STUDENTS WHO MISS SATURDAYS will be docked 10 points. If there is
an unavoidable reason to miss a Saturday (and I do not mean an
unavoidable football game), speak to me and I will give you an extra
assignment to make up that 10 points.
TEXTS:
Frankforter & Spellman – The West, A Narrative History – 3rd edition vol. 1
GRADES:
Your grade will be based on class attendance and participation, on
exams, on three short homework assignments, and on a 5-10 page
research paper.
Exams:
There will be four examinations, three during the semester and the
final. See the lecture schedule for dates.
These examinations will be closed-book, closed-notes, and you may
not use an electronic dictionary or any similar device. Because of the
condensed nature of the course, these will be multiple-choice objective
tests; you will need a Scantron 882. The test material will be drawn
both from the lectures and class discussions and from the assigned
readings in the textbook. Just because I don’t get to a topic in the
lecture – or only have time to touch on it briefly – doesn’t mean it
won’t show up on a test.
However, study guides to each chapter will be available on the class’s
Moodle website to help you prepare.
The final exam will not be cumulative.
All examinations, including the final exam, are worth a maximum of
fifty points. The instructor will automatically drop the lowest of the
three mid-quarter tests. Thus, a student can miss one mid-term
examination without penalty, or take all three mid-term exams with
the lowest score being eliminated.
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You cannot skip the final, nor will the final exam score be dropped if
it is the lowest of the four.
There will be no make-up examinations other than if the final exam is
missed.
Cheating on any examination will result in a “0” on that exam IN
ADDITION TO the lowest of your other exam grades being dropped, so
you will be losing TWO grades.
The instructor reserves the right to take whatever precautions deemed
necessary against possible violations while an examination is in
progress. No one is permitted to leave the classroom and return, once
the exam is in progress. If you leave, you must turn in your test. Cell
phones, iPods, or other electronic devices, if seen during the course of
an exam, will be assumed to indicate cheating and will result in a “0”
on that exam.
Research Paper
A research paper of 5-10 pages will be due on the day of the final. I
do not accept e-mailed submissions.
The research paper – and all three of the short homework assignments
(“Mini-papers”) – MUST be turned in on-line to the Moodle site, AND a
hard copy given to me.
You will have a choice of six topics for your research paper.
Slavery
Women
Warriors
Technology
People who have dedicated their lives to religion
Poverty and the lives of the poor
You may write about ANY one of these topics, in ANY of the times and
places we have studied.
For instance: Slavery in Ancient Rome
Slavery in Ancient Egypt
Slavery in the Middle Ages (was there any? If there wasn’t,
what took its place?)
Origins of slavery
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Etc.
Women in Ancient Greece
Women in the Renaissance (rich or poor?)
Women in Ancient Egypt (everybody in other countries
considered Egyptian women “uppity.” Why?)
Etc.
You must tell me the topic of your research paper at the time of the
second exam (that is, September 30), and I must ok it.
Sources for the paper MUST include at least two (2) sources that do
not come off the Internet, and at least one (1) primary source –
that is, a document that originated in the time about which you are
writing. (An eyewitness account of the Black Death would be an
example, or lines from the Iliad where one of the warriors talks about
how great it is to be a warrior).
Electronic books “count” as real books, even though they are read on
the computer. Magazine articles accessed through the Internet “count”
as print sources. The Pierce Library has an EXCELLENT selection of
electronic-access magazines and books.
You can, however, find the primary source document on line.
Papers MUST include a Bibliography or “Works Cited” page, and you
must include notes (either footnotes or MLA-style notes) telling me
where you got either direct quotes, or specific pieces of information.
The paper will be due on the day of the final, Saturday, October 24.
Papers MUST be turned in BOTH in hard-copy format, AND
electronically on the class’s Moodle Site.
I DO NOT ACCEPT E-MAILED SUBMISSIONS OF ANYTHING
I DO NOT TEXT
Plagiarism on the research paper, or on any of the homework
assignments, will result in a grade of “0” for that assignment.
Plagiarism includes, but is not limited to:
1) Downloading an entire paper or website from the Internet and
putting your name on it and pretending you wrote it,
2) Downloading portions of websites from the Internet and “cut-andpasting” them into your paper without putting the downloaded content
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into quote-marks “ ”, or properly citing where you got this material
and who actually wrote it,
3) Copying any other person’s work in any fashion without putting the
copied section into quote-marks “ ”, or properly citing where you got
this material and who actually wrote it,
4) Pretending some other person’s work is your own.
5) If you and another student turn in word-for-word, or ALMOST wordfor-word (same sentences, same paragraphs, a word or two changed)
answers to the homework assignments.
You are expected to be familiar with and abide by the standards and
protocols of the college regarding plagarism and academic dishonesty.
The research paper will be worth a maximum of 50 points.
IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS ABOUT WHAT PLAGARISM IS, ASK ME.
Homework Assignments:
In addition to the exams and the research paper, three brief, written
homework assignments will be required.
These will consist of excerpts from primary sources. Read them, and
answer the questions attached in a short paragraph.
Each of these assignments will be worth 20 points.
Like the research paper, these assignments MUST be turned in on-line
to the Moodle site, AND a hard copy given to me. The same plagiarism
rules apply to these, as to the research paper.
Grading
To receive an “A” grade in the course, the student must compile a
minimum of 234 points. The “B” grade range is 233 points to 182
points. The “C” grade range from 181 points to 130 points. A grade
lower than “C” is not a credit grade.
Class discussion and participation is encouraged. My experience as a
teacher of history has been that the best comments, questions,
observations, and criticisms are usually contributed by those students
who have done the assigned reading before class, and my lecture
method is most successful when a student brings to the class some
knowledge of the subject matter under discussion.
Extra Credit
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For those who need a couple of extra points, an extra credit option is
offered, for 20 points.
Watch a movie (of your choice, but ok it with me) with a historical
setting, anywhere between pre-history (10,000 B.C., Quest for Fire,
etc) up to the Protestant Reformation (Elizabeth, the Golden Age,
Luther, an episode of The Tudors or The Borgias are examples from
that time period). (The Borgias is better than The Tudors, but then so
is Robin Hood, Men In Tights). Write me a short paper (250-500 words
– that’s one page double-spaced) telling me two things in the film that
are historically accurate, and two things that are NOT historically
accurate. A list of possible films is on the class’s Moodle Site.
CLASSROOM GUIDELINES:
Disruption or interruption of the learning process of others is rude. The
instructor is the judge of what is disruptive, and reserves the right to
warn, and suspend, students for disruptive behavior.
Leaving before the end of the class session is not acceptable,
and could lead to expulsion from the course. If you have to leave
before the end of class because of a medical appointment or work
requirement etc, please inform the instructor at the beginning of the
class.
Needless to say, coming to class drunk or stoned is totally
unacceptable and will result in suspension from class for two class
sessions. The instructor is the sole judge of whether you’re acting
intoxicated. Arguing with me will simply result in me calling the sheriff.
If you’re on medication of any kind, please notify me at the beginning
of the class.
We will be reading all the way through a pretty lengthy textbook. In
my lectures I will try to emphasize what I consider the most important
points, but you are responsible for everything in the chapter whether I
get to it or not. My advice to you is, DO NOT GET BEHIND IN YOUR
READING.
No profanity is permitted in the classroom.
Please turn cell phones to OFF before entering the classroom. Please
turn off other electronic devices – tablets, X-Boxes, etc, as well.
(Taking notes on a laptop is okay, but if I walk by I’d better not see
Facebook on that thing). If you’re expecting a critical call for family or
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medical crisis, please inform me of it before class so I don’t mark you
off points when I hear it ring.
Please show courtesy to the class as a whole by keeping private
conversation outside the classroom.
For the moment, I don’t mind if you eat or drink during class, but you
MUST clean up after yourselves. There is a campus-wide problem with
ants. Depending upon class-wide standards of cleanliness, I may
change this policy as the semester goes on.
Due to Pierce College insurance and liability issues, no children are
permitted in the classroom.
It is the student’s responsibility to drop the course if he/she
finds it impossible to complete the course. NEVER rely on the
instructor to exclude a student. If you wish to drop, it is up to you
to do your own paperwork to have yourself taken off the roster. If you
“think” the instructor has excluded you for any reason (nonattendance, etc.) double-check with the instructor that you are not still
on the class roster (if for instance the class has passed the Exclusion
Date). If you are still on the roster at the end of the semester, I MUST
give you a grade and that grade is probably going to be an F.
Please do not hesitate to e-mail me if you have any questions, if you
need assistance, or if you are having difficulty with which I may be
able to help.
If you will need any classroom accommodations or services due to a
disability, please see me after class, during my office hours or email
me at loremistress51@cs.com or hamblyb@piercecollege.edu.
You will need to have verified your disability and accommodation
needs. The office of Special Services can help you. Contact them at
(818) 719-6430 or visit their office in the Student Services Building,
Room 48175
You are expected to be familiar with and abide by the standards and
protocols of the college regarding plagarism and academic dishonesty.
I will pursue any instances that I find and will file for disciplinary action
with the Dean of Students. Cheating includes – but is not limited to –
the unauthorized use of suplementary materials during an exam,
copying, or any sort of consultation (electronic or otherwise) with
other persons during an exam.
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Plagarism includes the use of materials presented by yourself as an
original creation when you did not write or appropriately cite them.
Under the provisions of Board Ruling 9803, 04, and 05 I have the right
to exclude students from the classroom for disruptive behavior.