Western Civ
North Allegheny Intermediate High School
Mr. Lamm – Room 31
Course overview
The Western Civilizations course seeks to enable
students to better understand the world in which they
live by studying important events in modern European
history that affected and influenced life in the western
world. Connections will be drawn not only between
those historical events, but between them and life in
the United States today.
Class Rule: Act like an adult!
Grading
89.5 – 100
79.5 – 89.4
69.5 – 79.4
59.5 – 69.4
59.4 – 0
Late work policy for tests, projects and long term
(more than one day) assignments:
-25% off per day late, no credit after three days late.
-For one day/night assignments, no late work accepted
-For electronic submissions, I will not take an
assignment late and then when asked, try to see the
last time you worked on it. The submission time/date
is what counts.
-Can I earn any extra credit? – Yes, but don’t ask.
Extra credit will only be offered to the entire class.
-Can I earn partial credit? – Yes, but only if the
assignment is COMPLETED! You will never earn
partial credit for incomplete work!
Expectations
1. Be in class on time & ready to go. When the
late bell rings, you are to be in your seat and
ready for class to begin. Simply being in the
room is not good enough.
2. Your cell phone, iPod, and/or mp3 players will
remain turned off and out of sight unless we
are using them in class. They will be put in
your pocket, purse, or bag BEFORE entering
the room. This is your warning. If you are
using your phone FOR ANY REASON
without permission, you will forfeit the points
for that class period without opportunity to
make them up and may receive a detention.
3. If you are working on assignments for other
classes, they will be confiscated and
participation points lost.
4. Respect each other. We’re all in this together.
5. Have fun. You’re going to spend a lot of time
in school the next several years. You’ll be best
served finding ways to enjoy it!
A
B
C
D
E
Units of Study
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Middle Ages & Renaissance
Protestant Reformation
The Growth of Parliament
Absolutism, Enlightenment, French Revolution
The Industrial Revolution
19th Century Europe & Rise of Totalitarianism
Daily Grade: Each class period during which notes
are taken will be worth two points. You will earn
them by diligently working on social studies material.
If you are absent, you make up those two points by
logging on to the class website, downloading the
narrated PowerPoints, taking notes, & writing a 5
sentence (minimum) paragraph in which you
summarize the bullet points in each Learning Goal.
You get one day for each day absent to do this, and
your paragraph(s) will NOT be accepted late.
Some Points of Emphasis
-Our class policy regarding classwork and homework: We all read at different speeds, write and type at
different speeds, and learn material at different speeds on different days. I do not make a habit of assigning
something at the end of a class period and make it due the following day. I also do not typically make any
graded assignments due “by the end of the period.” Homework is an opportunity for you to get caught up if the
allotted class time was not enough for you. It is also where you are expected to get back on track should you be
absent from class. Because of this, it is expected that you “hit the ground running” when the late bell rings. We
will have a very low tolerance for wasted class time.
-Do not miss test day! If you miss a test, it should be made up during a Study Hall or before/after school. If
none of those times work for you, you will take the test during the class period in the library. You have one day
for every day absent to earn full credit. If you were absent only on test day, you must take the test the day you
return in order to earn full credit. Leaving your belongings at school is NOT an excuse; everything is online,
and tests are never the day after the last day of notes; there will always be at least 1 class period between them.
-If you are in school AT ALL the day an assignment is due, it is late if it is not turned in that day. If you have
class 8th period, and you are in school periods 1-4 before your early dismissal, the assignment must be turned in
before you leave, or it is considered late.
-If you miss class the day the tests are passed back and reviewed, you can set up a day to come in before school
starts to review your test and to ask questions. This will not be done in class.
-If you ever have an extended illness, work is posted on the class website so you can keep up when/if you are
feeling well enough at home to get some work done. Check the class website for everything you missed.
-Recurring class issues I’ve encountered: Coming to class, dropping off your belongings, leaving, then coming
back in the late bell is being late. Please don’t act surprised when you are reprimanded. If you ask me for
permission to text a message to mom or dad, I will likely say yes. If you try to do it without permission, I will
likely give you the option of placing your phone on my desk until the end of the period or accepting a detention.
-Cell phones: Your cell phone is to be turned off or on silent and put in your purse, bag, backpack, etc. at the
start of each class period. Having it on vibrate in your pocket is not good enough. You and I both know that
when you feel your phone vibrate in your pocket, your attention is lost until you see what the notification
was. If I see your phone sticking out of your pocket, expect to be reprimanded (detention included), even if
you were not using it at the time. Exceptions can and will be made if you ask me first. If you hear an
announcement that a meeting or practice is cancelled and you need to text home to set up a ride, let me
know.
-I am free the following times/places should you need me:
I have read the American History Syllabus and am aware of the class rules, policies, and procedures for the class,
including the cell phone policy and expectations.
________ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ___ ________ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ___ ________ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ___ ________ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ___ ________ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______--
Student Signature
Parent/Guardian Signature
DID I MISS ANYTHING?
By Tom Wayman
Nothing. When we realized you weren’t here we sat with our hands folded on our desks in
silence, for the full two hours.
Everything. I gave an exam worth 40 per cent of the grade for this term and assigned
some reading due today on which I’m about to hand out a quiz worth 50 per cent
Nothing. None of the content of this course has value or meaning. Take as many days off
as you like: any activities we undertake as a class I assure you will not matter either to
you or me and are without purpose
Everything. A few minutes after we began last time a shaft of light descended and an angel
or other heavenly being appeared and revealed to us what each woman or man must do
to attain divine wisdom in this life and the hereafter. This is the last time the class will
meet before we disperse to bring this good news to all people on earth
Nothing. When you are not present how could something significant occur?
Everything. Contained in this classroom is a microcosm of human existence assembled for
you to query and examine and ponder. This is not the only place such an opportunity has
been gathered but it was one place…And you weren’t here
T O M W AY M AN , "DI D I M I S S AN Y T HI N G ? " F AQ S
How did the poem come to be written?
This poem arose because this question that students ask is really quite an aggressive question,
although many students are unaware of this aspect of the words they utter when they've been away.
Every teacher spends hours preparing a class, thinking hard about the best way to present the
material that she or he is going to impart during a certain class session. Besides reviewing or setting
out for the first time the details of the lesson, a teacher will be considering the optimum manner to
introduce, develop, and summarize the content of the lesson. A teacher may evaluate how he or she
has conducted a class on this topic in the past, and figure out some methods to revise or tweak the
upcoming session for maximum effectiveness.
Then, during the class itself, a teacher is constantly monitoring the effect of her or his presentation-am I holding the students' interest? Are they nodding off, or distracted? Does it look like at least my
main points are getting across? A teacher will be thinking about how to best use voice and classroom
aids like blackboard or whiteboard or computer projections. Also, the teacher will be considering on
the fly when and how long he or she should speak, when to ask questions of the class, when to let the
students ask questions, whether small group work or individual student desk work is appropriate.
And when a class is over, a teacher can't help evaluating the pros and cons of that day's session.
Then an absent student shows up and asks whether "anything" happened in the class. The assumption
behind the question is that all this work by the teacher doesn't really amount to "anything." So the
question--intentionally or not--belittles all the effort the teacher has put into doing his or her job.
Thus the question can provoke a flash of rage on the teacher's part, the same rage anybody feels when
important work they do is airily dismissed by somebody else as not really amounting to "anything."
Students can feel the same anger when an assignment they have really and truly toiled over is breezily
dismissed or otherwise put down by an instructor.
My poem is a compilation of all the answers I wanted to give to students who asked the question
during one semester when I was teaching at a community college in a Vancouver, B.C. suburb. I never
actually gave these answers, but I sure thought them.
How would you categorize the tone of the poem?
The speaker in the poem (as I say in the paragraphs above) is quite out of control with anger and hate,
and is swinging between extremes of everything and nothing, just like he or she feels driven to the
edge by the assumptions behind the repeated use of this question by students. The speaker is freaking,
pushed too far, at the end of his or her rope. The speaker realizes that what she or he is teaching isn't
really anything divinely important. But what the teacher makes happen in class is not of zero value,
either, as the question so strongly implies. So the speaker is really mocking the question that has been
asked of him or her once too often.