Welcome to
Johnston University!
Welcome to Johnston University, also known as Mr. Barber’s SPARK class! This is a
chance for you to experience the challenge of listening to college level lectures while
still in the sixth grade! Yes, it will be challenging, but you are a smart Johnston student
so you can do it! There are no tests or quizzes; however, you will be required to do the
following:
1. Choose a course and have it approved by Mr. Barber.
The Great Courses series below may be checked out for classroom use from Mr.
Barber during SPARK class. Also, if you choose to take the Japanese language course,
the required books and audio recordings will be supplied by Mr. Barber. Open Yale
courses must be retrieved online by the student. They may be downloaded to be
listened to in class. Harvard Open courses must be retrieved by the student online and
to my knowledge cannot be downloaded. Therefore, the student may use the SPARK
class time to review notes and write the required summaries.
A. For more details on The Great Courses, please go to www.teach12.com and
searching for the course name from the list provided by Mr. Barber.
B. For more details on the Japanese Language course, please request this information
in class and I will show you.
C. For more details of the Open Yale courses, please go to http://oyc.yale.edu/courses
D. For more details of the Harvard Open courses, please go to
http://www.extension.harvard.edu/open-learning-initiative
2. Listen to at least one hour of your chosen course per week.
This will be one or two lectures per week based on your chosen course.
Note: You will have an average of five thirty minute SPARK classes per week for a total
of 2.5 hours of class time per week.
3. Take notes on each lecture and summarize the lecture in five sentences or less
A. Put the title of the course and then the title of the lecture above each summary.
(Example: Argumentation—Lecture 1—Introducing Argumentation and Rhetoric)
B. You will need to have a notebook dedicated for your course. This notebook should
be brought to SPARK class every day, and may be checked by Mr. Barber anytime.
The Great Courses Series
Argumentation and Debate
Argumentation: The Study of Effective Reasoning
Course No. 4294
Professor David Zarefsky
Northwestern University Ph.D., Northwestern University
Tools of Thinking: Understanding the World Through Experience
and Reason
Course No. 4413
Professor James Hall
University of Richmond Ph.D., The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Political Science, Economics, and Math
Power over People: Classical and Modern Political Theory
Course No. 443
Professor Dennis Dalton
Barnard College, Columbia University Ph.D., University of London
Economics, 3rd Edition
Course No. 550
Professor Timothy Taylor
Macalester College M.Econ., Stanford University
Basic Math (VHS Video Only)
Professor Murray Siegel
Sam Houston State University
History
Human Prehistory and the First Civilizations
Course No. 380
Professor Brian M. Fagan
University of California at Santa Barbara Ph.D., Cambridge University
Foundations of Western Civilization
Course No. 370
Professor Thomas F. X. Noble
University of Notre Dame Ph.D., Michigan State University
Medieval World
Course No. 8280
Professor Dorsey Armstrong
Purdue University Ph.D, Duke University
History of the United States, 2nd Edition
Course No. 8500
Professor Gary W. Gallagher
University of Virginia Ph.D., The University of Texas at Austin
Professor Patrick N. Allitt
Emory University Ph.D., University of California, Berkeley
Professor Allen C. Guelzo
Gettysburg College Ph.D., University of Pennsylvania
American Religious History
Course No. 897
Professor Patrick N. Allitt
Emory University Ph.D., University of California, Berkeley
Historical Jesus
Course No. 643
Professor Bart D. Ehrman
The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill M.Div., Ph.D., Princeton Theological Seminary
Philosophy
Great Ideas of Philosophy
Course No. 4200
Professor Daniel N. Robinson
Philosophy Faculty, Oxford University; Distinguished Professor, Emeritus, Georgetown University Ph.D., City
University of New York
Birth of the Modern Mind: The Intellectual History of the 17th and
18th Centuries
Course No. 447
Professor Alan Charles Kors
University of Pennsylvania Ph.D., Harvard University
Introduction to Greek Philosophy
Course No. 4477
Professor David Roochnik
Boston University Ph.D., Pennsylvania State University
Skeptics and Believers: Religious Debate in the Western Intellectual
Tradition
Course No. 4670
Professor Tyler Roberts
Grinnell College Ph.D., Harvard University
Passions: Philosophy and the Intelligence of Emotions
Course No. 4123
Professor Robert C. Solomon
The University of Texas at Austin Ph.D., University of Michigan
Reason & Faith: Philosophy in the Middle Ages
Course No. 4636
Professor Thomas Williams
University of South Florida Ph.D., University of Notre Dame
Science
Origins of Life
Course No. 1515
Professor Robert M. Hazen
George Mason University Ph.D., Harvard University
Science Wars: What Scientists Know and How They Know It
Course No. 1235
Professor Steven L. Goldman
Lehigh University Ph.D., Boston University
Biological Anthropology: An Evolutionary Perspective
Course No. 1573
Professor Barbara J. King
The College of William and Mary Ph.D., University of Oklahoma
Biology: The Science of Life (DVD Video Only)
Course No. 1500
Professor Stephen Nowicki
Duke University Ph.D., Cornell University
Major Transitions in Evolution (DVD Video Only)
Course No. 1518
Professor Anthony Martin
Emory University Ph.D., University of Georgia
Professor John Hawks
University of Wisconsin–Madison Ph.D., University of Michigan
Science of Self (DVD Video Only)
Course No. 1592
Professor Lee M. Silver
Princeton University Ph.D., Harvard University
Understanding the Universe: An Introduction to Astronomy
(VHS Video Only)
Course No. 1810
Professor Alex Filippenko
University of California, Berkeley Ph.D., California Institute of Technology
Literature
(Prerequisite for Literature Courses—Will need to also read the work
under discussion)
Plato's Republic
Course No. 4537
Professor David Roochnik
Boston University Ph.D., Pennsylvania State University
Ethics of Aristotle
Course No. 408
Father Joseph Koterski, S.J.
Fordham University Ph.D., St. Louis University
Herodotus: The Father of History (Histories)
Course No. 2353
Professor Elizabeth Vandiver
Whitman College Ph.D., The University of Texas at Austin
Iliad of Homer or Odyssey of Homer
Course No. 301 and 302
Professor Elizabeth Vandiver
Whitman College Ph.D., The University of Texas at Austin
HTTP://OYC.YALE.EDU/COURSES <OPEN
YALE> COURSES
Each course includes a full set of class lectures produced in high-quality video accompanied by such other
course materials as syllabi, suggested readings, exams, and problem sets. The lectures are available as
downloadable videos, and an audio-only version is also offered. In addition, searchable transcripts of each
lecture are provided.
Department
Course
Number
Course Title
Professor Name
Date
African American
Studies
AFAM 162
African American History:
From Emancipation to the
Present
Holloway,
Jonathan
Spring
2010
American Studies
AMST 246
Hemingway, Fitzgerald,
Faulkner
Dimock, Wai
Chee
Fall
2011
Astronomy
ASTR 160
Frontiers and Controversies in
Astrophysics
Bailyn, Charles
Spring
2007
Biomedical
Engineering
BENG 100
Frontiers of Biomedical
Engineering
Saltzman, W.
Mark
Spring
2008
Chemistry
CHEM 125a
Freshman Organic Chemistry
I
McBride, J.
Michael
Fall
2008
Chemistry
CHEM 125b
Freshman Organic Chemistry
II
McBride, J.
Michael
Spring
2011
Classics
CLCV 205
Introduction to Ancient Greek
History
Kagan, Donald
Fall
2007
Ecology and
Evolutionary Biology
EEB 122
Principles of Evolution,
Ecology and Behavior
Stearns,
Stephen C.
Spring
2009
Economics
ECON 159
Game Theory
Polak, Ben
Fall
2007
Economics
ECON 251
Financial Theory
Geanakoplos,
John
Fall
2009
Economics
ECON 252
Financial Markets (2008)
Shiller, Robert J.
Spring
2008
Economics
ECON 252
Financial Markets (2011)
Shiller, Robert J.
Spring
2011
English
ENGL 220
Milton
Rogers, John
Fall
2007
English
ENGL 291
The American Novel Since
1945
Hungerford, Amy
Spring
2008
English
ENGL 300
Introduction to Theory of
Literature
Fry, Paul H.
Spring
2009
English
ENGL 310
Modern Poetry
Hammer,
Langdon
Spring
2007
Environmental
Studies
EVST 255
Environmental Politics and
Law
Wargo, John
Spring
2010
Geology and
Geophysics
GG 140
The Atmosphere, the Ocean,
and Environmental Change
Smith, Ronald B.
Fall
2011
History of Art
HSAR 252
Roman Architecture
Kleiner, Diana E.
E.
Spring
2009
History
HIST 116
The American Revolution
Freeman, Joanne
Spring
2010
Department
Course
Number
Course Title
Professor Name
Date
History
HIST 119
The Civil War and
Reconstruction Era, 18451877
Blight, David W.
Spring
2008
History
HIST 202
European Civilization, 16481945
Merriman, John
Fall
2008
History
HIST 210
The Early Middle Ages, 284–
1000
Freedman, Paul
Fall
2011
History
HIST 234
Epidemics in Western Society
Since 1600
Snowden, Frank
Spring
2010
History
HIST 251
Early Modern England:
Politics, Religion, and Society
under the Tudors and Stuarts
Wrightson, Keith
E.
Fall
2009
History
HIST 276
France Since 1871
Merriman, John
Fall
2007
Italian Language and
Literature
ITAL 310
Dante in Translation
Mazzotta,
Giuseppe
Fall
2008
Molecular, Cellular
and Developmental
Biology
MCDB 150
Global Problems of Population
Growth
Wyman, Robert
Spring
2009
Music
MUSI 112
Listening to Music
Wright, Craig
Fall
2008
Philosophy
PHIL 176
Death
Kagan, Shelly
Spring
2007
Philosophy
PHIL 181
Philosophy and the Science of
Human Nature
Gendler, Tamar
Spring
2011
Physics
PHYS 200
Fundamentals of Physics I
Shankar,
Ramamurti
Fall
2006
Physics
PHYS 201
Fundamentals of Physics II
Shankar,
Ramamurti
Spring
2010
Political Science
PLSC 114
Introduction to Political
Philosophy
Smith, Steven B.
Fall
2006
Political Science
PLSC 118
The Moral Foundations of
Politics
Shapiro, Ian
Spring
2010
Political Science
PLSC 270
Capitalism: Success, Crisis,
and Reform
Rae, Douglas W.
Fall
2009
Psychology
PSYC 110
Introduction to Psychology
Bloom, Paul
Spring
2007
Psychology
PSYC 123
The Psychology, Biology and
Politics of Food
Brownell, Kelly
D.
Fall
2008
Religious Studies
RLST 145
Introduction to the Old
Testament (Hebrew Bible)
Hayes, Christine
Fall
2006
Religious Studies
RLST 152
Introduction to the New
Testament History and
Literature
Martin, Dale B.
Spring
2009
Sociology
SOCY 151
Foundations of Modern Social
Theory
Szelényi, Iván
Fall
2009
Spanish and
Portuguese
SPAN 300
Cervantes' Don Quixote
González
Echevarría,
Roberto
Fall
2009
Note: If you choose an Open-Yale course you are responsible for downloading the audio lectures yourself and
bringing them to class. You may also watch/listen online outside of class.
http://www.extension.harvard.edu/open-learning-initiative
Note: If you choose a Harvard Open course you are responsible for viewing or listening to the lectures outside of
class. You may use class time to review notes and put together summaries.
Harvard Open Courses: Open Learning
Initiative
edX courses (Harvard–MIT initiative)
For information about registering for edX courses, visit the edX website.
Harvard open courses at Harvard Extension School
Videos for the following free Harvard courses are made available by the Harvard Extension
School’s Open Learning Initiative. Featuring Harvard faculty, the noncredit courses are open to
the public. You do not need to register to view the lecture videos.
The Heroic and the Anti-Heroic in Classical Greek Civilization
Gregory Nagy, PhD, Francis Jones Professor of Classical Greek Literature, Professor of Comparative Literature, and Director of the
Center for Hellenic Studies, Harvard University.
Kevin McGrath, PhD, Associate in Sanskrit and Indian Studies, Harvard University.
Watch the videos »
Bits
Harry R. Lewis, PhD, Gordon McKay Professor of Computer Science, Harvard University.
Watch the videos »
Intensive Introduction to Computer Science
David J. Malan, PhD, Lecturer on Computer Science, Harvard University.
Watch the videos »
Shakespeare After All: The Later Plays
Marjorie Garber, PhD, William R. Kenan Jr. Professor of English and American Literature and Language and of Visual and
Environmental Studies, Harvard University.
Watch the videos »
China: Traditions and Transformations
Peter K. Bol, PhD, Charles H. Carswell Professor of East Asian Languages and Civilizations, Harvard University.
William C. Kirby, PhD, T. M. Chang Professor of China Studies, Harvard Faculty of Arts and Sciences, Spangler Family Professor of
Business Administration, Harvard Business School, and Harvard University Distinguished Service Professor.
Watch the videos »
World War and Society in the Twentieth Century: World War II
Charles S. Maier, PhD, Leverett Saltonstall Professor of History, Harvard University.
Watch the videos »
Sets, Counting, and Probability
Paul G. Bamberg, DPhil, Senior Lecturer on Mathematics, Harvard University.
Watch the videos »
Abstract Algebra
Benedict Gross, PhD, George Vasmer Leverett Professor of Mathematics, Harvard University.
Watch the videos »