WENTWORTH INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY

HIST 125: WORLD CIVILIZATIONS                                 
Dr. George Katsiaficas                                                                      
Spring 2006                 
Office 8‑410 (telephone 989-4384)                                                          
e-mail: katsiaficasg@wit.edu

Text: A History of World Societies by John P. McKay, Hill, Buckler et. al. (Houghton Mifflin, 1999) Sixth Edition

     The purpose of the course is to provide students with general knowledge of the growth of civilizations in the world before 1500, a development that we will study as a polycentric, global phenomenon. In the modern epoch, Western ideas and technologies have forced other cultures to react and adapt to nationalism, industrialization, colonization and the world economic system.  This course is designed to help the student better understand the forces that preceded the modern world system. We focus on the time period prior to 1500. Rather than simply studying European (or Western) civilization, we will investigate the range of civilizations that evolved on this planet and the global transformation of our species from a naturally occurring force to an historical entity. The diverse paths through which the ground was prepared for the emergence of the contemporary world provide insight into the nature of human beings and our multicultural past and future.

    We are blessed to have the Museum of Fine Arts so close to campus. We shall meet there as often as possible. These museum visits are an integral part of the course. Many students in the past have found them to be the highlight of their semester experience.

    There will be three exams during the semester, and an oral Powerpoint presentation is due by the end of the semester.  The exams will mainly be drawn from the readings as well as from the MFA visits and classroom discussions. Some material presented in class will not be covered in the readings and vice versa. The oral report will be on a topic chosen by the student but approved by the instructor. The Powerpoint should be e-mailed to Prof. K or a disk copy turned in with the presentation.

    Grades will be determined by performance on the exams and presentation as well an additional component comprised of classroom participation. In order to develop better communication skills, all of the exams will include essays.  Extra credit work may be done with the approval of the instructor.

    All written work submitted for this course must meet the standards for English 1. Poorly written papers will be returned to you, without a grade, for revision. Students are encouraged to utilize the new Writing Center Facility for help polishing their papers.

                                                                                   SEMESTER SCHEDULE

(Note: Readings should be done BEFORE the date specified.)

WEEK of          TOPIC                                                                   Pages

1/17                             Introduction to the Course

1/23                             Africa                 279-306

1/30                             Americas                     417-448

2/13                             First Eurasian Civilizations                                          1-30

2/20                             First Empires                                                                           31-52

2/27                             Test #1

3/6                                Spring Break

3/13                             India                                                                                                53-78

3/20                             China                                                   79-104; 181-208

3/27                             Greco-Roman Civilization                                            105-180                                 

4 /3                               Test #2                   

4/10                             Christianity/Byzantium                                                    209-238

                                        Student Presentations Begin

4/17                             Islam                                                                                               239-278 

4/24                             Renaissance/Reformation                                              449-498                                 

5/1                                FINAL EXAM    

Presentations

Each student must prepare a PowerPoint presentation of about 10 minutes on a topic of their own choice with the approval of the instructor. Essentially, you should choose a civilization, a person, an event or some aspect of a civilization before 1500. You should a topic in which you are genuinely interested.

Sample topics include:

The Great Wall of China

Assyrian Astrological Doomsday Prophecies

Maya Manuscripts Still in Existence

Decoding Mayan Glyphs

African Roots of American Exploration

Guidelines for the presentation:

Do not simply read from the screen—make your presentation effective by looking at us.

Work on pronunciation of difficult terms ahead of time so you go with ease.

E-mail Prof. K a copy OR burn a CD with a label and give it to Prof. K at the end of your presentation.

Use graphics.

Have a good introduction and conclusion.

Speak clearly.