Graduate Curriculum Committee Course Proposal Form
for Courses Numbered 5000 and Higher
Note: Before completing this form, please carefully read the accompanying instructions.
Submission guidelines are posted to the GCC Web site: http://www.ecu.edu/cs-acad/gcc/index.cfm
1. Course prefix and number:
HIST 6570
2. Date:
08/20/13
3. Requested action:
x
New Course
Revision of Active Course
Revision & Unbanking of a Banked Course
Renumbering of an Existing Course from
from
to
#
Required
X
#
Elective
4. Method(s) of delivery (check all boxes that apply for both current/proposed and expected
future delivery methods within the next three years):
Current or
Proposed Delivery
Method(s):
x
On-campus (face to face)
Expected
Future Delivery
Method(s):
x
Distance Course (face to face off campus)
x
Online (delivery of 50% or more of the instruction is offered online)
x
5. Justification. Identify the committee or group (e.g., Graduate faculty of the Department of
English) that conducted the assessment of curriculum and student learning. Explain why the
unit wishes to offer or revise the course. Include specific results from the unit assessment that
led to the development or modification of the course. If applicable, cite any accrediting
agency/ies and reference the specific standard/s.
The Graduate Committee and Curriculum committees of the history department have
determined the viability of a non-thesis option for the MA in history. One target
audience is teachers seeking a Masters in history, many of whom lack confidence in nonWestern subject matter. Discussions with Allen Guidry in teacher education has
confirmed the demand for non-Western history by means of online teaching. In keeping
with ECU’s Strategic Direction, an Education for a New Century, this course will help
students prepare to compete in a global economy by helping them to understand and
appreciate the similarities and differences in the customs, values, and beliefs of another
culture by understanding the development of Middle Eastern history over the course of
the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Furthermore, they will recognize the global
interdependence of economies and societies by better understanding the origins of the
Approved by GCC April 2012; posted summer of 2012
current crises in the Middle East and the role played by powers around the world,
including Britain, France, Russia, and the United States.
6. Course description exactly as it should appear in the next catalog:
HIST 6570 - The Modern Middle East: The Nineteenth & Twentieth Centuries
(3)
The nineteenth and twentieth century history of the Middle East, concentrating on the
Fertile Crescent, Egypt, Turkey, Iran, and the Arabian Peninsula.
7. If this is a course revision, briefly describe the requested change:
8. Course credit:
Lecture Hours
3
Weekly
OR
Per Term
Credit Hours
Lab
Weekly
OR
Per Term
Credit Hours
s.h.
Studio
Weekly
OR
Per Term
Credit Hours
s.h.
Practicum
Weekly
OR
Per Term
Credit Hours
s.h.
Internship
Weekly
OR
Per Term
Credit Hours
s.h.
Other (e.g., independent study) Please explain.
s.h.
3
Total Credit Hours
9. Anticipated annual student enrollment:
20
10. Changes in degree hours of your programs:
Degree(s)/Program(s)
Changes in Degree Hours
MA HIST
n/a
11. Affected degrees or academic programs, other than your programs:
Degree(s)/Program(s)
Changes in Degree Hours
n/a
12. Overlapping or duplication with affected units or programs:
x Not applicable
Documentation of notification to the affected academic degree programs is
attached.
13. Council for Teacher Education (CTE) approval (for courses affecting teacher education):
x Not applicable
Applicable and CTE has given their approval.
14. University Service-Learning Committee (USLC) approval:
Approved by GCC April 2012; posted summer of 2012
s.h.
s.h.
x
Not applicable
Applicable and USLC has given their approval.
15. Statements of support:
a. Staff
x Current staff is adequate
Additional staff is needed (describe needs in the box below):
b. Facilities
x Current facilities are adequate
Additional facilities are needed (describe needs in the box below):
c. Library
x
Initial library resources are adequate
Initial resources are needed (in the box below, give a brief explanation and an
estimate for the cost of acquisition of required initial resources):
d. Unit computer resources
x
Unit computer resources are adequate
Additional unit computer resources are needed (in the box below, give a brief
explanation and an estimate for the cost of acquisition):
e. ITCS resources
x
ITCS resources are not needed
The following ITCS resources are needed (put a check beside each need):
Mainframe computer system
Statistical services
Network connections
Computer lab for students
Software
Approval from the Director of ITCS attached
16. Course information (see: Graduate Curriculum and Program Development Manual for
instructions):
a. Textbook(s) and/or readings: author(s), name, publication date, publisher, and
city/state/country. Include ISBN (when applicable).
For Purchase




James Gelvin, The Modern Middle East, A History, Second Edition, Oxford University
Press, 2008. [Textbook] 0199766053
Ghassan Kanafani, Palestine’s Children: Return to Haifa & Other Stories. Boulder:
Lynne Rienner, 2000. 0894108905
Stephen Kinzer, All the Shah’s Men, An American Coup and the Roots of Middle East
Terror. NY: Wiley & Sons, 2008 (second edition). 047018549X
Benny Morris, Righteous Victims: A History of the Zionist-Arab Conflict 1881-2001,
Vintage Books-Random House, 2001. 0679744754
Approved by GCC April 2012; posted summer of 2012


Hanan al-Shaykh, The Story of Zahra. NY: Anchor Books, 1986. 0385472064
Sonallah Ibrahim, The Committee: A Novel , Trans. by Mary St. Germain and Charlene
Constable, Syracuse University Press, 2001. 0815607261
 Fawaz Gerges, Journey of the Jihadist, Harcourt, 2006. 0156031701
 Ofra Bengio, Saddam’s Word: Political Discourse in Iraq, Oxford, 2002. 0195151852O
On Reserve or Bb
 Nikke Keddie, Women in the Middle East: Past and Present, Princeton, 2007, pp, 61170 on Bb 0691128634
 Selections from Muhammad al-Muwaylihi’s A Period of Time. Trans. Roger Allen,
(London: Ithaca Press, 1992), 171-222. 0863721656
 Karen Barkey, “Changing Modalities of Empire: A Comparative Study of Ottoman and
Habsburg Decline” and Resat Kesaba, “Dreams of Empire, Dreams of Nation” both
from Esherick, et. al, Empire to Nation. NY: Rowman & Littlefield, 2006. 0742540308
 Çaǧaptay, Soner, Islam, Secularism, and Nationalism in Modern Turkey: Who Is a
Turk?(NY: Routledge, 2006) [e-book accessed via Joyner library] 0415567769
 Chapters by Sluglett, H. Watenpaugh, Dodge, Fischbach, Saliba, and Hanna in
Meouchy & Sluglett, eds. The British & French Mandates in Comparative Perspectives.
Leiden: Brill, 2004. 9004133135
 Keith Watenpaugh, “Middle Class Modernity and the Persistence of the Politics of the
Nobles in Inter-War Syria,” International Journal of Middle East Studies 35 (2003):
257-286. [Accessible through e-journal portal at Joyner library].
 Lisa Pollard, “The Family Politics of Colonizing and Liberating Egypt, 1882-1919,”
Social Politics: International Studies in Gender, State & Society, Volume 7, Number 1,
pp. 47-79. [Accessible through Joyner library].
 Gamal Abdul Nasser, Philosophy of the Revolution. Buffalo: Smith, Keynes, &
Marshall, 1959. B004Z0KC7W
 Bob Vitalis, “Black Gold, White Crude: An Essay on American Exceptionalism,
Hierarchy and Hegemony in the Gulf,” Diplomatic History, Vol. 26, No. 2 (Spring
2002):185-223).
 Judith Tucker, “Problems in the Historiography of Women of the Middle East: The
Case of Nineteenth Century Egypt,” International Journal of Middle East Studies 15
(1983): 321-336. [accessible through e-journal portal at Joyner Library].
b. Course objectives for the course (student – centered, behavioral focus)
If this is a 5000-level course that is populated by undergraduate and graduate students,
there must be differentiation in the learning objectives expected.
Upon completion of this course, students will be able to:
1. Evaluate decline, modernization, and dependency theory as paradigms in
modern Middle East history.
2. Analyze the development of the nation-state in the Middle East, and
evaluate the Islamic critique of the nation-state.
3. Examine the Palestinian-Arab-Israeli conflict in the context of imperialism
and competing nationalisms.
4. Trace the development of imperialism in the Middle East.
5. Understand the diversity of culture within the Middle East by reading
literature and watching films.
6. Research and write a paper based on at least one primary source. Students
in the Greenville area will be encouraged to use Special Collections.
Approved by GCC April 2012; posted summer of 2012
c. Course topic outline
The list of topics should reflect the stated objectives.
Week One
Introduction to course; Introduction to Islam and Islamic empires
Reading:
Gelvin, 1-26
Week Two
Ottoman Empire; Modernity & Defensive Developmentalism; Imperialism, Secularism,
Islamic Reformism, & Constitutionalism
Reading:
Gelvin, 27-170
Reaction paper #1
Week Three
Discussion of Muwaylihi; End of Empire; World War One,
Reading:
Allen/Muwaylihi, A Period of Time—Bb
Gelvin, 171-222
Barkey, “Changing Modalities…”—Bb
Kasaba, “Dreams of Empire …”Bb
Reaction paper #2
Week Four
Turkey to multi-party system; oil, the beginnings
Reading:
Çaǧaptay, Soner, Islam, Secularism, and Nationalism in Modern
Turkey: Who Is a Turk? [e-book accessed via Joyner library]
Gelvin, 223-257
Reaction paper #3
Week Five
Iran to 1979; Court simulation
Reading:
Kinzer, All the Shah’s Men
Gelvin, 278-290
Approved by GCC April 2012; posted summer of 2012
Week Six
Syria, Iraq, & Lebanon to 1967; British v. French mandates
Reading:
Chapters from Sluggett & Meouchy, The British & French Mandates in
Comparative Perspectives—in regular reserve at the library
[prohibitively expensive]
 Sluggett, p. 103
 H. Watenpaugh, p. 185
 Dodge, 143
 Saliba, p.203
 Hanna, p 457
Keith Watenpaugh, “Middle Class Modernity and the Persistence of
the Politics of the Nobles in Inter-War Syria,” International Journal of
Middle East Studies 35 (2003): 257-286. [Accessible through e-journal
portal at Joyner library]
Reaction paper #5
Week Seven
1919 Revolution in Egypt; Interwar Period; Film Everything is Fine
Reading:
Lisa Pollard, “The Family Politics of Colonizing and Liberating Egypt,
1882-1919,” Social Politics: International Studies in Gender, State &
Society, Volume 7, Number 1, pp. 47-79. [Accessible through Joyner
library].
Morris, start reading—as much as possible.
Reaction paper #6
Week Eight
Palestinian/Arab/Israeli Conflict to 1967; Jordan to 1967
Reading:
Morris, up to 346
Sluggett & Meouchy, British &French Mandates in Comparative
Perspectives—in library [chapter by Michael Fischbach on
Transjordan, p. 477].
Kanafani, Return to Haifa (just the novella + any one short story)
Reaction paper #7
Week Nine
Military Revolutions of the Middle East; Suez Crisis; Competing Dictators
Approved by GCC April 2012; posted summer of 2012
Reading:
Nasser, Philosophy of the Revolution—on ordinary reserve in the
library
Watch Nasser 56 in the history lab and compare it with ANY historical
account (European, American, or Middle Eastern) of the event.
Reaction paper #7
Week Ten
Arab-Israeli Conflict 1967-Annapolis
Reading:
Finish Morris
Start Gerges
Reaction paper #8
Week Eleven
Oil, Arms, & Fundamentalism
Reading:
Bob Vitalis, “Black Gold, White Crude: An Essay on American
Exceptionalism, Hierarchy and Hegemony in the Gulf,” Diplomatic
History, Vol. 26, No. 2 (Spring 2002):185-223).
Gerges, Journey of a Jihadist
Reaction paper #9
Week Twelve
Women in the 20th-Century
Reading:
Keddie, pp. 61-170
Judith Tucker, “Problems in the Historiography of Women of the
Middle East: The Case of Nineteenth Century Egypt,” International
Journal of Middle East Studies 15 (1983): 321-336. [accessible
through e-journal portal at Joyner Library].
al-Shaykh, Story of Zahra
Reaction paper #10
Week Thirteen
Authoritarian Regimes of the late-20th-Century; Disc. of Committee; Film A Citizen, A
Detective, & A Thief
Approved by GCC April 2012; posted summer of 2012
Reading:
Ibrahim,. The Committee
Reaction paper #11
Week Fourteen
Late-20th century conflicts
Reading:
Bengio, Saddam’s Word; View Waltz with Bashir
Reaction paper #12
PRESENTATIONS
d. List of course assignments, weighting of each assignment, and grading/evaluation system
for determining a grade
Participation: Students must be prepared to discuss weekly readings coherently. After week
one, there will be discussion facilitators that will be in charge of the discussion for that week.
This does not mean that no one else will be reading—everyone is graded on his/her
participation—both quantity and quality matters. Writing weekly reaction papers (see below)
should help facilitate participation. I also anticipate that students will have varying viewpoints
that they should be ready to defend with substantive arguments and evidence from readings,
not hot air and empty rhetoric. 25%
Weekly Reaction Papers: Students are expected to analyze the weekly readings in reaction
papers that address not only readings of the week, but also the larger themes of the course.
Student papers are expected to progress over the course of the semester. These papers
should help thoughts for discussion. There will be a total of 12 papers. There will be no paper
during the week of the court simulation and students will be allowed two skips at any point;
however, at no point will students be allowed to turn in a reaction paper late. 25%
Court Simulation: During week one, students will be assigned a side (defense or prosecution)
for the trial of the US role in the 1953 Iranian coup. Students will have no choice; it is simply
the luck of the draw. During week five students will present their case. Depending upon the
size of the class, students may role play, or simply turn in lists of potential witnesses and
depositions of their “testimony”. Groups will be graded on the merit of the group case, and if
the groups are large, information will be gathered from a group leader about participant
Approved by GCC April 2012; posted summer of 2012
contributions. Extra points will also be awarded to the team that presents the more
convincing case. 25%
Research paper: Students are expected to carry out a primary source research project: a
paper of 25-35 pages. Special collections in Joyner Library contains material from
missionaries, tobacco merchants, and other items pertinent to the Middle East in this era, e.g.
the sinking of the Zam Zam. While students are not limited to materials housed in special
collections, lack of facility in Middle Eastern languages (for most students) and lack of access
to other types of materials makes this collection accessible on many levels. 25%
Grading Scale
A=90-100 B=80-89
C=70-79
Approved by GCC April 2012; posted summer of 2012
F=69 and below