World History 2011-2012
Mr. Saner
Textbook - Modern World History - Patterns of Interaction (Beck, Black, Krieger, Naylor, and
Shabaka) - 2007. (Your iPad will also be utilized throughout the school year in and out of class)
World History is a full year course that deals with modern world history (1500 - present),
including a brief review of earlier times. The course will begin with a summary of early history,
including ancient civilizations, early world cultures, and major early events. Then we will proceed to
the major focus of the course, which is the past five hundred years of history. The events and people
that we will discuss from the past have helped to shape our world today, and will continue to shape
our world into the future.
Activities
The day to day activities in World History will soon settle into a familiar pattern. I will use the
same pattern for most of the chapters we will cover. For each chapter, you will receive a list of
vocabulary terms. Most of the words are found in the back of your book, but some are not, you will
have to create your own accurate definition for them. Chapter material is covered by me using two
methods. First, you will be responsible for taking notes that I will give to you on Powerpoint or an
overhead. You must purchase a spiral notebook to keep your notes in. These are aligned with
the chapter tests that I give. Second, you are expected to read chapter as we are covering it, you will
be given occasional reading assignments that will be quizzed the following day. To break up the
notes and reading, we will complete chapter maps, timelines, and occasional worksheets. You need
to get a pack of colored pencils to complete the various maps we do in class. Also, group work,
simulations, videos, and other activities will be utilized. For certain assignments, you will have to use
the Internet to research information from various chapters, make sure to have yourself assigned to
our computer network here at school and remember your password. At the end of each chapter, a
test will be given covering the vocabulary, notes, maps, timelines, and other work that was
completed.
Evaluation
My grading scale is as follows:
A
B
C
D
F
90 - 100
80 - 89
70 - 79
60 - 69
59 and under
My grades are weighted based
on categories of work including: Homework 40%
Tests 35%
Projects 20%
Reading Quizzes - 5%
Your grade in World History will be determined by several things. Effort is very important in my
class, the most common reason for poor performance (failure of my class) is lack of effort, such as
not turning assignments in and not studying for tests. The most important factor in determining your
quarter grade will be your homework average. You will be given several assignments for each
chapter, typical point values are as follows: vocab (30 pts), map (30 pts), timeline (40 pts),
worksheets (20 pts), etc. Homework accounts for the biggest percentage of your quarter grade 40%. The second most important factor in determining your quarter grade will be your performance
on the chapter tests. The tests will cover the material mentioned above for each chapter. I usually
include several different sections on my tests, including matching, defining, fill-in, true and false, short
answer, essay, and map location. These tests will range in points from around 80 for short chapters,
to 175 for longer chapters. Tests account for 35% of your quarter grade. At the end of each quarter I
will give each student a binder grade - this is simply a grade you get for saving papers that I have
given back to you with three holes punched in them. You must have a three ring binder to save
papers in. Items such as vocabulary, maps, tests, etc. will be kept. If you maintain organization,
save your papers, turn your work in, and study for my tests, you can have success in World History.
Projects
You will also have several projects to complete during the course of the school year. They
include country reports, a historical event paper, a map test, and an oral biography report. These
projects will be spaced out, approximately one per quarter, and will make up 20% of your grade for
each quarter. There will be handouts for each project and you will be given several weeks to
complete each project.
Behavior
My policy on behavior in the classroom is simple. At the beginning of each quarter you will be
given a free 50 points toward your homework grade. Each time you fail to turn an assignment in or
participate in class, you will lose points off this participation grade. You are given a lot of freedom by
me. You are, after all, in high school now, I expect you to act mature. Do not abuse my trust in you.
An important part of my class is an incentive program for my students. I have looked for ways to
make my class more enjoyable and to reward the students who behave, show up, and do their work.
Thus, I will be offering several incentives for this year, they are listed below:
*If you get an A on all assignments for a chapter, you earn a free work pass which can be
used to get out of doing some assignments in the 4th quarter
*If you get an A on any of our projects each quarter, you will earn three free work passes
*If you maintain a 90% average on your homework for an entire quarter, you will
be excused from taking any reading quizzes during the next quarter
*We utilize several different review games throughout the year, bonus can be earned as
well as additional homework passes
Finally, my classroom motto has, and always will be, THINK BEFORE YOU SPEAK OR
ACT !!!! If you can learn to follow that simple idea, you will avoid trouble and find a lot of success.
WH
Course Outline
The following is a course syllabus, which is a list of the topics and assignments that will be
included in this World History class. I have included no dates, since delays and closings can quickly
disrupt any schedule. This is the approximate order of events in this class.
First Quarter
Course Introduction - rules, procedures, seating chart, receive books, etc.
Prologue “Classical & Medieval History” (2000 BC - AD 1500)
Prologue “World Religions” (2000 BC - AD 600)
Chapter 1 “Renaissance & Reformation” (1300 - 1600)
Chapter 3 “Age of Exploration” (1400 - 1800)
Chapter 4 “Atlantic World” (1492 - 1800)
Projects: Country Reports
Second Quarter
Chapter 6 “Enlightenment & Am Revolution” (1550 - 1789)
Chapter 7 “French Revolution” (1789 - 1815)
Chapter 8 “Nationalist Revolutions” (1789 - 1900)
Chapter 9 “Industrial Revolution” (1700 - 1900)
Projects: Historical Event Paper
Third Quarter
Chapter 10 “Age of Democracy” (1815 - 1914)
Chapter 11 “Age of Imperialism” (1850 - 1914)
Chapter 12 “Global Changes” (1800 - 1914)
Chapter 13 “WWI” (1914 - 1919)
Projects: Map Test
Fourth Quarter
Chapter 14 & 15 “Years Between the Wars” (1919 - 1939)
Chapter 16 “WWII” (1939 - 1945)
Chapter 17 - 20 “Postwar World” (1945 - Present)
Projects: Oral Biography Report