World History-Honors
Recommended Prerequisite: None
Grades Offered: 9 ‑ 12
Credit: 1/2 ‑ I
SDE Course Code: 3401
MNPS Course Code: SST5513
Course Description
This is a more intensive approach to the standard World History course. It is a comprehensive study of World History, which includes the broad history of humankind, with a more concentrated focus from the Renaissance to present day. The course provides students to analyze cultural, economic, political and social developments that played a fundamental role in shaping the world in which they live. This study provides a context for understanding the development of contemporary institutions, the role of continuity and change in present‑day society and politics, and the evolution of current forms of artistic expression and intellectual discourse.
Framework of Standards for Honors Courses: All honors courses must include multiple assessments exemplifying coursework (such as short answer, constructed-response prompts, performance-based tasks, open-ended questions, essays, original or creative interpretations, authentic products, portfolios, and analytical writing). Additionally an Honors course shall include a minimum of five of the following components:
1. Extended reading assignments that connect with the specified curriculum.
2. Research based writing assignments that address and extend the course curriculum.
3. Projects that apply course curriculum to relevant or real-world situations.
4. Open-ended investigations in which the student selects the questions and designs the research.
5. Writing assignments that demonstrate a variety of modes, purposes and styles.
6. Deeper exploration of the culture, values and history of the discipline.
7. Extensive opportunities for problem solving experiences through imagination, critical analysis, and application.
Reading: Honors history courses are those courses, along with advanced placement, that can be used to fulfill the requirements of the Scholars program. These types of courses should be midway in difficulty between standard courses and AP courses. Students must read and study to gain the wealth of knowledge necessary to meet the requirements for an honors diploma. Students should be tested weekly on class assignments and/or projects. In addition, teachers should carefully select extended reading assignments that connect with the curriculum. Students are expected to read from a variety of sources including essays, articles, biographies, primary sources, and documents. They will also study and interpret maps, charts, graphs, political cartoons, broadsides, posters, etc. Students are expected to interpret, analyze and evaluate information from the readings.
Writing: Honors courses should include researched based writing assignments that address and extend the course curriculum and demonstrate a variety of modes, purposes, and styles. Students are expected to write regularly and effectively, particularly the writing of essays using a thesis. Writing assignments might include essays, book reviews, document based questions, journals and research papers. All writing assignments should incorporate the historical research process including the development of research questions, the gathering of data and information (research), the formulation of a hypothesis, the collection of evidence, analyzing and interpreting evidence, and writing conclusions in narrative form.
Projects/Open-ended Investigations and Problem Solving: Honors courses in history should incorporate project-based learning opportunities. Honors students will be encouraged to develop projects that allow for the deeper investigation and exploration of cultures, values, and history. Such projects should follow the guidelines of National History Day competition which allows students to compete on the regional, state, and national levels. Each year’s competition follows a theme and encourages students to employ the historical research process during the development of the project. These projects may fall in one of the following categories: table-top exhibits, documentaries which incorporate various media and technology, performances, or research papers.
Course of Study
· The Beginnings of Human Society (prehistory-4000 BCE)
o Nomadic Hunters
o Hunters and Gatherers
o Domesticating Animals
o Early Farming
· Early Civilizations and Pastoral Societies (4000 BCE-1000 BCE)
o Sumer, Babylon, Hittites, Assyrians
o Indus Valley. Mohenjo-Daro,
o China, the Xia and Shang Dynasties
o Ancient Egypt, Nubia/Kush
o Ancient Greece, Homer, Greek Mythology
o Aryans
· Mediterranean and Southwest Asian Civilizations (1000 BCE-399CE)
o Israelites , Judaism
o Phoenicians
o The Lydians
o China, the Zhou Dynasty, Confucianism, the Qin and Han Dynasties,
Daoism
o India, Buddhism, Mauryan and Guptas Empire
o Persian Empire, Zoroastrianism
o Alexander the Great
o Roman Republic and Empire, Christianity
· Cultural Exchange and Encounters (300-1500CE)
o Byzantine Empire
o Rise of Islam and the Islamic Empire
o Charlemagne
o China, the Tang Dynasty
o Shintoism, Feudal Japan
o West African Empires
o Olmecs, Mayas, Mayan Pictographs
o Vikings, Sagas, the Rus
o Baghdad’s Trading Empire
o Korea
o Pacific Islanders and New Zealand Natives
o Anglo-Saxon England
o Crusades
o Rise of Nation States
o Mongol Empire
o Aztec and Inca Empires
o The Renaissance
· First Global Age (1450-1770 CE)
o New Monarchies
o Reformation
o Age of Exploration
o Slave Trade
o Columbian Exchange
o Age of Absolutism
o China, Ming & Qing Dynasties
o Tokugawa Japan
o Ottoman Empire
o Mogul Empire of India
· Age of Revolution (1750-1914)
o Enlightenment
o American Revolution
o The French Revolution
o Napoleonic France
o The Industrial Revolution
o Revolutions in Europe
o Latin American Revolutions
o Adam Smith and Capitalism
o Class Conflict, Socialism, & Communism
o Unification of Italy and Germany
o Age of Imperialism
· Increasing Global Interaction (1900-present)
o World War I
o The Russian Revolution
o Stalin and Totalitarianism
o The Western Democracies Between the Wars
o The Great Depression
o The Rise of Fascism
o World War II
o The Cold War
o The Korean War
o The Third World
o U.N., NATO, Warsaw Pact, OPEC, SEATO
o The Civil Rights Era
o The Vietnam War
o Détente
o The Global Economy
o International Terrorism
o The Politics of Oil
o Fall of the Soviet Union
Standards:
MNPS World History Standards
http://www.mnps.org/PageFactory.aspx?PageID=3354
TN State Department of Education Standards
http://www.state.tn.us/education/ci/cistandards2001/ss/cissworldhistory912.htm
Textbook:
Recommended and/or required resources:
Wall map of the World
Wall maps of Europe, Asia, the Middle East, Mesoamerica, North and South America
Atlases (overhead, computer generated and/or hands on) that accompany the adopted text
TV-DVD/VCR
Interactive CDs
Wherever possible, classrooms should have computers that are web accessible:
National History Day http://nhd.org
World History Sources http://chnm.gmu.edu/worldhistorysources/whmfinding.php
Bridging World History http://www.learner.org/channel/courses/worldhistory
World Conflict Map http://nobelprize.orgt/peace/educational/conflictmap
World History Archive http://www.hartford-hwp.com/archives
Historical Maps http://www.lib.utexas.edu/maps/historical/history_world.html
Portals to the World http://www.loc.gov/rr/international/portals.html