Course Syllabus

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ACP World History 

2019-2020

 

Mrs. Sullivan

Room 418

Email: sullivane@wellesleyps.org      

Course Content Description

This year, you are going to begin to shape your own perspective of what history is and what it means to you.  We are going to do this by working together to investigate geography, politics, economics, culture, society, and individuals. As we do this, we will draw connections around the world, and we will begin to fully understand the impact and consequences of past thoughts, decisions, and actions on the present world.  These connections will cover the following units…

 Semester 1 (1100-1450): Building Identities through Patterns of Interaction      

  1. The Dark Continent Myth
  2. Connections and Disconnections in Afro-Eurasia
  3. Constructive and Destructive Forces in Afro-Eurasia
  4. The Worlds of the 15th and 16th Centuries

 Semester 2 (1450-1850): When Worlds and Thoughts Collide

  1. Cultural Collisions
  2. Revolutions in Thought
  3. Revolutions in Action

 Course Skills Description

Since this is your first history course at the high school, the goal is to prepare you for success this year and beyond.  To do this, you will be taught how to read, write, and think like a historian.  To be successful in this class you should know that…

 

  1. You will rarely be expected to simply memorize a large amount of facts, dates, etc..
  2. You will rarely take standard tests and quizzes (note the word standard)
  3. You will (probably) read, write, and research more in history than in English
  4. You will need to think about and ‘do’ history independently
  5. You will work with a group almost every single day

 All of the above are fundamental aspects of the class that you will learn to internalize.

Policies, Behavior, and Routines

This class is heavily dependent on you and your participation as an individual, in small groups, and as a class.  Since this is the case, I expect you to always show respect for yourself and others.  Likewise, high school is a time of increasing independence and maturity, so you are expected to complete tasks and assignments in an appropriate manner.

 Grade Breakdown

Historical Thinking and Skills 50%

This part of your grade will focus around assessing important historical thinking skills.  It is where your summative/final work will be recorded. Assignment include research, creative assignments and narrative & analytical writing. You will complete some of these assignments individually and some in cooperative groups. You can expect to complete 2 of these assignments per term.

 Historical Content Understanding 25%

This part of your grade will assess your understanding of historical facts you will be expected to take a short quiz every Day 4 of the cycle.  There will be times when this scheduled quiz will be moved to another day of the cycle because of school-wide scheduling conflicts. You will receive advanced notice when these exceptions occur. The content for these quizzes will be taken from homework assignments, class discussions and activities. The best way to prepare for these short assessments is to thoughtfully complete your assignments, stay actively engaged in class, and review the material from the previous cycle. If you are absent the expectation is that you are taking the quiz the day you return to school even if our class drops. This means that you need to email and arrange a time to make up this work.  You cannot make this quiz up during class.

 

Student Accountability 25%- (Homework and Class Citizenship12.5% and Accountability with Assignments 12.5%)

This part of your grade will reward you for the effort and conduct that you demonstrate throughout each quarter.

  • The Homework and Student Skills section will be made up of homework completion and student skills. You will earn full credit for homework assignments that are fully and thoughtfully completed by the due date.  You can make up missing homework assignments for partial credit if they are handed in before a new unit is introduced.
  • You will be assessed twice during the term on your conduct -once at the mid-term and once at the end of the term. Click here to access the rubric you will complete for class citizenship. 
  • The Accountability with Assignments section will be based on your ability to hand in major Historical Thinking/Skill assignments on time and your timely completion of Historical Content quizzes if you need to make them up.
  • You will not lose points from the actual assignment if it is late. You will simply receive a 0 for the accountability element of the assignment 

 

Meetings and Extra Help: My office hours are Day 2, Block B from 8:30-9:00 and Day 7, Block E from 12:30-1:00. In addition to these hours, my availability before and after school is fairly open, and you should always feel free to reach out to schedule a time if you need anything! 

Organization

Freshman year is a time for you to discover what types of organizational methods work for you. You can organize yourself however you see fit. This being said, you must have at least one section in a notebook, or a single notebook, for history. You will also need one folder designated for just world history. It does not matter where this folder is. it can be 

Canvas

This year we will be using Canvas as a learning management system. This platform is where you will find all the information necessary for the class. You will be handed a reader at the beginning of the unit. This reader will have all the necessary handouts for the unit. If you lose the reader you can access a hard copy on Canvas. I do not update Canvas daily. This means that you have to write down your homework and classwork. If you are absent you can email me and I will let you know what you missed. If you have misplaced any of the necessary work you can print out your own copy.

 

Personal Devices

This year every student will be required to have a computer per school policy. We will not use the computer every day in class, but it is expected that you have access to the computer. This being said, your computer must be charged. You are more than welcome to take notes on your computer if you so wish. If you choose to do this I HIGHLY recommend that you have an organizational system for your google docs. If you need help, please come see me.


It is YOUR responsibly to check canvas for updates and announcements. Homework will be posted on the board in class. Do not assume that the homework will also be written in Canvas.

 

Course Summary:

Date Details Due