Course Syllabus

9th Grade World History CP

This is a copy of the course syllabus. A syllabus is an outline of what is expected of you from this course. 

Your Teachers:

Erin Sullivan (sullivane@wellesleyPS.org)

Daniel Loss (lossd@wellesleyPS.org)

Margaret Lynch (Lynchm@wellesleyPS.org)

Ms. Rosenzweig: rosenzweigc@wellesleypos.org 

Click to access  Mrs. Sullivan schedule for Semester 1, including office hours (Day 1, 9:50-10:20; Day 6, 10:20-10:50; Wednesdays - 2:30-3:10)

Dr. Loss's office hours are Wednesdays at 2:30pm.

Mrs. Lynch Semester 1 office hours are Wednesdays at 2:30 and Day 3, 7:45 to 8:30 or by appt.  

 

 Daily Calendar 

 Social Studies Resource Center Schedule 

An overview of the assignments that will be assessed this quarter.

 

 

Dear Scholars,

Welcome to World History! (And welcome to WHS!) It is an honor to be a part of this particular year in your high school career. It is also an honor to have you join us in the study of World History, a task that is truly worth our time and effort because it helps us become better writers, readers, critics, thinkers, and citizens, and because, as we step forward across the Artificial Intelligence (AI) threshold into a new era in human history, your expertise and knowledge matters more than ever. The Massachusetts History and Social Science Framework tasks us with helping you and your classmates become “thoughtful and active participants in a democratic society and complex world.” The world is changing fast. This discipline is part of what will help us all keep up, and more than that, have power in it.

 

ESSENTIAL CONTENT 

This course will start with the study of the different, but also interacting regions of the medieval world. The course is designed to study different places in the world and how they are, or are not, interacting at the same moment in time. Once we have identified these ways we will analyze the impact these interactions have on the development of societies and how these developments led to an interconnected world by the early 19th century. We will finish in June with a required final experience that will guide you through a synthesis of what you learned and be an opportunity to meaningfully showcase that learning.

 

ESSENTIAL SKILLS

The course is designed to provide you with a strong foundation for further work in Social Studies and other courses, and for the ways you will learn and contribute beyond the classroom. It will support your growth in in the following areas:

• Reading, watching, and listening to understand 
• Formulating an original argument that will be supported by precise evidence 
• Understanding cause and effect and its impact on societies 
• Developing reading stamina with nuanced texts

 

ESSENTIAL POLICIES 

Academic Integrity

As a class we will spend  a significant amount of time collaborating. However, the work you submit to be assessed  must be your own. In general, acknowledge what you owe to others (this includes Artificial Intelligence) and make sure you understand when it is appropriate to share your own work with other students. You should review the school’s policy on academic integrity on pages 39-41 of the Student Handbook. Violations of the policy can result in you earning no credit, and consequences will grow in their severity if multiple violations occur during your time at Wellesley High School. To avoid violations use the following guidelines:

• When you use others’ exact words in your own work, use “quotation marks” and cite your source. 
• When you use others’ ideas, give credit. 
• When you get help from others on an assignment, acknowledge that. 
• NOTE: Providing dishonest help (helping someone else cheat) is also a violation of academic integrity. 

 

 

Grading

Assignments are designed to assess your knowledge and skill and will take many forms throughout the term ranging from formal essays, paragraphs, reflections, small and large projects, tests, quizzes, and presentations. A record of completed/missing assignments, scores, and sometimes comments will be posted in PowerSchool. Feedback will also come to you in places like written assignments, in class during whole-group instruction, and in group and individual conferences. In each term, assignments fall into two main categories and will weigh as follows:

 

Category	Weight		Year-Long Grade Calculation
Major Assignments (2-3 assignments per term)	50%		Terms 1-4: 22 % each
Minor Assignments (4-6 assignments per term)	50%		Final: 12%

 

• Major Assignments: These 2-3 assignments per term will range in value from 50 to 100 points. You will have at least a week’s advance notice and often 1 or more days in class to work on them. 
• You will have an opportunity to resubmit one Major Assignment each term to earn up to a B.
• To qualify for resubmission opportunities, you must have submitted on time an honest attempt at completing the assignment in the first place.
•  When you resubmit work, you will have 1 week after receiving a score to do so. This allows time to use feedback, and possibly office hours and/or the SS Lab, which you should do.
• Minor Assignments: These 4-6 assignments per term will range from 5 to 50 points. You will have advance notice and need to prepare for these. Keeping an organized notebook and binder will help you complete the minor assignments in a scholarly manner.  
• Though not all class activities will be “graded,” they all matter. It is a mistake to skip or brush off ungraded assignments; they are designed as opportunities to practice core skills, develop and refine your grasp of course content, and receive feedback. 

 

Deadlines, Late Work, Extra Time

Do your work and be honest with yourself and with us when you miss something or need help—HONESTY is one of your most important “character muscles,” and muscles gain strength with repeated use. Flex! Be sure to communicate with us when deadlines and/or workload are getting tricky. We are here to help support you in building this muscle. 

• DEADLINES:  Assignments will have clear deadlines that will be explained in class and will be posted in our daily calendar. It is your responsibility to know the deadlines, and or know where to check on Canvas in order to find these deadlines. Homework assignments will be used in the next class period. 
• LATE, INCOMPLETE, MISSING & MAKE-UP WORK: It is important to complete work according to the assignment schedule and to take advantage of the time provided in class to start and or get work done in order to avoid work pile-ups. 
• Neither Late nor Incomplete work qualifies for resubmission, and after 2 calendar (not school) days it will be graded as is. Work you miss due to an absence from school is MAKE-UP WORK, not Late work (see below).
• Work that is not submitted is MISSING and will be marked as such in Powerschool. Powerschool will have the note "Did not Submit" and it will equate to a 0. 
•  Submitted work is LATE if it is submitted after the assigned deadline. 
• Work is INCOMPLETE if it does not reasonably demonstrate an honest attempt to complete all parts of an assignment on time. 

 

• EXTENSIONS for assessments: Individual’s education plans (IEP’s), religious and ethnic holidays, having 3 major assessments on the same day (see Handbook page 45) and other circumstances may mean you need consideration around assessment and/or assignment schedules. When you become aware that you need more time than is planned, it is your responsibility to be in communication with us AT LEAST 48 HOURS in advance to discuss the possibilities. 

EXTENDED TIME on assessments

• If an IEP or 504 accommodations includes extra time on assessments it is your responsibility to work with us and your Learning Center teacher to set this up prior to the assessment. 
• District accommodations (DCAP) are available to all students, and in the 26-27 school year, WHS is committed to moving this forward with fidelity. While some accommodations can be offered in the moment, others require advanced notice.
• For example: Extended time on an in-class assessment is a collaborative decision made by the teacher, student, and family to meet individual student needs.  The WHS guideline is up to 25% extra time.  This accommodation relies on proactive student communication prior to the date of the assessment.  The student and teacher must establish how the accommodation will be provided. 

 

Attendance and Make-Up Work

There may be times when you miss class. You can not really make-up the magic of an in-person class, but you should do the best you can. It is your responsibility to let us know (ahead of time if possible) if circumstances are such that we need to make special accommodations for an absence. It is your responsibility to go on Canvas and identify the lesson you missed, and the pages in the reader you missed. All the work will be on Canvas, under modules, under the individual daily agendas. 

• Be ready to take a quiz or test you miss or turn in any papers or projects that were due the day you return from an absence, unless we have arranged otherwise in advance. 
• If you miss class with an excused absence, you may have up to a full week to make up work that was assigned while you were away, but you need to be in communication with us as soon as you return to school. 

 

Extra Help

• The work we do in this class is important. You can do it. We will help you. Effective students ask questions and get help. They also responsibly help each other. Be effective.
• The Social Studies Resource Center  is a rare and wonderful resource--take full advantage for help with reading, writing and studying! It will be staffed by history department colleagues and us sometimes who give expert advice that is in-line with my and the department’s expectations. The schedule is posted in our room and linked on Canvas.
• If you would like to receive additional support please check our schedules and send ALL THREE OF US  an email that states the times that align with your schedule and we will set something up. 

 

Materials to bring to class every day 

• 1 notebook exclusively for Social Studies. The notebook should have a built in folder. 
• 1 folder (This will stay in the classroom) 
• Writing Utensils
• An open mind that is willing to learn  

 

Cell Phone Policy 

Per Wellesley High School’s cell phone policy all students will “park” their phones in the cell phone lot that will be hanging up in class. The phone will stay parked for the duration of the class. 

The use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in the classroom and on assignments 

 Scholars, Artificial Intelligence (AI) is a tool that has been created in order to make human lives more efficient. Beyond the walls of Wellesley High School you will be asked by employers, teachers, mentors, and others to engage with AI- whether you want to or not. In order to be successful beyond high school and within the job market you will need to know how to manipulate this tool in order to have it work for you. We will work with AI this year to find creative ways to use it in order to enhance YOUR OWN thinking. Our goal this year, in regards to using AI, is that you find ways to use it as a thought partner, and not have it do the work for you. The Student Handbook states that “Students may not use an artificial intelligence program to aid their work on an assignment unless explicitly directed to do so by their instructor.” It will be clearly indicated on assignments if, and when, the use of AI is appropriate. If AI is used and it is not indicated as such this will be seen as an academic violation.