Virginia Military Institute
Department of History
HI 103 - World History - Fall 2012
Section 7: MWF, 8:00-8:50 a.m. SSH 515 Prof. R.M. Sheldon
Section 8: MWF 10:00-10:50 a.m. SSH 515 Office SSH 522
Office Hours: MWF 11:00-4:00; T, Th 11:00-1:00 E-Mail: RMS@VMI.EDU
and by appointment Phone: X7691
Web Page: http://www.vmi.edu/fswebs.aspx?tid=26499&id=26497
I. SCOPE OF COURSE: This course is designed to help students learn about major civilizations in the world before 1500: India, China, the Middle East, the Mediterranean, Western Europe, Africa and the Americas. We will study the development of civilizations from a global perspective, and focus on the features that make these civilizations distinctive as well as the similarities they share in common. Finally, we will examine what happens when these civilizations come into contact with each other.
- COURSE OBJECTIVES:
The world history survey is designed to help students achieve the following goals:
1. Be alert to geography - its impact and influences
2. Be alert to differing perspectives and “world views”
3. Be alert to the reciprocal effects of cultural contact
4. Be alert to how people deal with the human condition
5. Focusing on principal institutions and values in societies
6. Improving your clarity of thought and expression.
7. Distinguishing fact from opinion.
III. REQUIREMENTS OF THE COURSE:
Quizzes = 10 percent
Paper(s) = 10 % each (20 %). You must hand in both papers to get the 20%
Hour Exams = 10 percent EACH
Class Participation 10%
Final Exam = 30 %
The formula for calculating your grade at the end of the semester will thus be:
(CP x .10) + (P1 x .10) + (P2 x .10) + (Q x .10) + (H1 x .10) = (H2 x .10) = (H3 x .10) = (F x .30) =
Term Grade
Failure to complete all assignments will result in a grade of "F" for the course.
Please note the late policy. For each day of lateness your paper will be dropped 10 points in grade. This includes weekends. Incompletes for the course are allowed only in case of documented emergencies. If you do not hand in the paper after 10 days, you lose all credit for this class assignment.
Plagiarism: Plagiarism -- or the passing off of someone else's words, ideas, or research as your own -- is a first-degree academic offense. I will reckon plagiarized paper as not fulfilling the assignment and will report such cases for academic discipline. See the departmental website for guidelines on plagiarism: http://www.vmi.edu/departments.asp?durki=1903
IV. EVALUATION AND STUDENT PERFORMANCE
A good student is one who:
1. Shows a command of the subject matter in considerable detail
2. Exhibits clarity and precision in written essays.
3. An ability to make an historical argument not just parrot back data.
4. Written work free of errors in English.
5. Evidence of active engagements in all components of the course.
6. Good preparation for and participation in class discussions
7. general timeliness and completeness of work.
8. Good oral presentation in class.
9. Has handed in all assignments. All work is original to the student.
10. Has sought help from appropriate sources when needed.
Students with Disabilities
I am happy to work with any student to make this a successful semester. Please introduce yourself and tell me about any special learning needs. To determine eligibility for accommodations on tests, contact the Coordinator of Disabilities Services, LTC Sarah Jones at the Center for Cadet Counseling as soon as possible. If you are eligible for academic accommodations, please give me adequate notice when you plan to use them. (For example, VMI policy states students must give instructors at least 72 hours notice before a test on which they plan to use the extended time accommodation.)
V. The following things will be expected of you in class.
- Show up on time, bring a pen and a notebook, and be ready to take notes.
- Have your syllabus with you at all times and refer to it frequently to familiarize yourself with the due dates of assignments.
- Bring your textbook with you. I will be discussing the chapter in some detail and you will need to follow along in the text.
- Stay awake and be ready to participate in the discussion. If I call on you and you are totally unprepared, your class participation grade will suffer. If you feel sleepy, you may stand up at the side or back of the classroom. Class participation is your best insurance against sleepiness.
- All tests will be taken from the material in the textbook. I will add comparative material and explain why the topic being discussed is important in the modern world. Under no circumstances will I go over everything that will be on the test. You will not be spoon fed. You must read the text book to do well in this course.
- Courtesy to your fellow cadets and the professor is a must. Do not speak when others are speaking. Do not shout down other people. Mocking individuals or groups is rude and unacceptable behavior. You will be treated like an adult, you will be expected to act like one.
- I strongly urge you to make flash cards for the important names and concepts in the text and test yourself before the quizzes. I will be happy to go over your cards with you and help you make them or test you on them. There is much material to digest and you cannot master it by passively glancing over the text.
- You will be given a list of study terms before each hourly to help you identify important terms. Please be able to identify these terms by the time of the test.
- You are welcome to come to my office hours or make a separate appointment to see me at any time. I would be happy to tutor you personally, but you must come to my office to discuss any problems you are having. I will test you on your note cards if you use them, and I would be happy to help you make them. It is a good idea to stop by my office at least once during the semester to see how you are doing.
- Extra credit is available if you attend outside lectures. An announcement will be made to the class when these opportunities become available.
VI. If you are not doing well in this class . . . .
If you find that your grade average is dropping below a C, ask yourself the following questions:
1. Have you scheduled a conference to see your professor about what you are doing wrong?
2. Have you been to the Miller Academic Center to diagnose any problems you have with study habits, note-taking, reading or comprehension? The MAC is a resource that can help you learn a variety of effective learning strategies, as well as time management skills. Have you been to the Writing Center to improve problems you are having with your writing?
3. Are you reading the assigned chapters before Monday's class? Have you outlined the relevant chapters in the text before the exam? Have you made flash cards for the important terms in the chapters you've outlined?
4. Are you getting enough sleep the night before the hourlies? Do not stay up all night cramming for a test. Your performance is more likely to be marred by the fact that you are tired and stressed out than improved by this study tactic. If you keep up with the lessons, you should be able to review your notes the night before and turn in early. And be sure to have breakfast the morning of the test.
VII. REQUIRED BOOKS:
Judge & Langdon, Connections, Vol. 1.
Mackinnon, Places of Encounter
VIII. SCHEDULE OF CLASSES:
Week 1 August 27 – August 31st .
8/29 Wednesday - Introduction to course, go over syllabus
Friday - GKS test
CH 1
Week 2 September 3-7
Quiz Ch 1
Tuesday Sept. 4 last day for course or curriculum change
CH 2 Quiz
Week 3 September 10-14
CH 3, 4 Quiz
Review for First Hourly
Week 4 September 17-21
Monday Hour Test 1 - CH 1-5
CH 5, 6 Quiz
Week 5 September 24-28
CH 7-8 Quiz
Week 6 October 1-5
CH 9, 10 Quiz
Week 7 October 8-12
CH 11 – Quiz
Review for second hourly
First paper due Friday
Fall FTX CAD 10/12
Week 8 October 15-19
Monday Hourly Test 2 – Ch 6-11.
Ch 12 Quiz
Friday Parents’ weekend
Tuesday October 16th – end of second grading period
Week 9 October 22-26
CH 13, 14 Quiz
Week 10 October 29 – November 2
CH 15, 16 Quiz
Week 11 November 5-9
CH 17 Quiz
Review for Hourly 3
Friday November 9th Founders Day, no classes
Week 12 November 12 - 16
Monday Hour Test 3 – Ch 12-17
Ring Figure weekend 15-16 Nov.
Tuesday, November 13th End of Third Grading Period
Week 13 November 19-23
Tuesday November 20th – Friday classes meet
CH 18 Quiz
Thanksgiving Furlough Begins CAD November 20
Week 14 November 26-30
CH 19 Quiz
Second Paper due
Week 15 December 3-7
CH 20 Quiz
Review for Final
Week 16 December 10th – Last day of classes.
Student Evaluations
Review for Final
Final Exam December 19th 2:00-5:00
INSTITUTE WORK FOR GRADE POLICY
Development of the spirit as well as the skills of academic inquiry is central to the mission of VMI’s Academic Program. As a community of scholars, posing questions and seeking answers, we invariably consult and build upon the ideas, discoveries, and products of others who have wrestled with related issues and problems before us. We are obligated ethically and in many instances legally to acknowledge the sources of all borrowed material that we use in our own work. This is the case whether we find that material in conventional resources, such as the library or cyberspace, or discover it in other places like conversations with our peers.
Academic integrity requires the full and proper documentation of any material that is not original with us. It is therefore a matter of honor. To misrepresent someone else’s words, ideas, images, data, or other intellectual property as one’s own is stealing, lying, and cheating all at once.
Because the offense of improper or incomplete documentation is so serious, and the consequences so potentially grave, the following policies regarding work for grade have been adopted as a guide to cadets and faculty in upholding the Honor Code under which all VMI cadets live:
1) Cadets' responsibilities
"Work for grade" is defined as any work presented to an instructor for a formal grade or undertaken in satisfaction of a requirement for successful completion of a course or degree requirement. All work submitted for grade is considered the cadet's own work. "Cadet's own work" means that he or she has composed the work from his or her general accumulation of knowledge and skill except as clearly and fully documented and that it has been composed especially for the current assignment. No work previously submitted in any course at VMI or elsewhere will be resubmitted or reformatted for submission in a current course without the specific approval of the instructor.
In all work for grade, failure to distinguish between the cadet’s own work and ideas and the work and ideas of others is known as plagiarism. Proper documentation clearly and fully identifies the sources of all borrowed ideas, quotations, or other assistance. The cadet is referred to the VMI-authorized handbook for rules concerning quotations, paraphrases, and documentation.
In all written work for grade, the cadet must include the words "HELP RECEIVED" conspicuously on the document, and he or she must then do one of two things: (1) state “none,” meaning that no help was received except as documented in the work; or (2) explain in detail the nature of the help received. In oral work for grade, the cadet must make the same declaration before beginning the presentation. Admission of help received may result in a lower grade but will not result in prosecution for an honor violation.
Cadets are prohibited from discussing the contents of a quiz/exam until it is returned to them or final course grades are posted. This enjoinder does not imply that any inadvertent expression or behavior that might indicate one’s feeling about the test should be considered a breach of honor. The real issue is whether cadets received information, not available to everyone else in the class, which would give them an unfair advantage. If a cadet inadvertently gives or receives information, the incident must be reported to the professor and the Honor Court.
Each cadet bears the responsibility for familiarizing himself or herself thoroughly with the policies stated in this section, with any supplementary statement regarding work for grade expressed by the academic department in which he or she is taking a course, and with any special conditions provided in writing by the professor for a given assignment. If there is any doubt or uncertainty about the correct interpretation of a policy, the cadet should consult the instructor of the course. There should be no confusion, however, on the basic principle that it is never acceptable to submit someone else’s work, written or otherwise, formally graded or not, as one’s own.
The violation by a cadet of any of these policies will, if he or she is found guilty by the Honor Court, result in his or her being dismissed from VMI. Neither ignorance nor professed confusion about the correct interpretation of these policies is an excuse.
History Departmental Statement Concerning VMI's Policies Regarding Work for Grade
The Department of History’s policies regarding work for grade apply to three types of written work.
1. In the case of written quizzes, tests, or examinations, cadets are to do their own work without help from any other source.
2. In the case of written book reviews or reading reports, cadets are supposed to have read every page indicated and must write the report without assistance.
3. In the case of research papers, such as those required in HI 460 or other research projects in other courses, the research and writing must be done by the cadet alone under conditions specified by the instructor.
When employing a word processor in the preparation of written work for grade, a cadet is allowed free and unrestrained use of computing aids, including translators, spelling, style and grammar checkers, but must acknowledge the use of these aids in the help received statement submitted with the written work.
When undertaking work for grade for history courses, Cadets may seek tutoring assistance from recognized Institute sources such as the Writing Center, Academic Center and tutors authorized by the Institute. This assistance may include critical comments. Such comments are defined in the Institute’s Work for Grade Policy as “general advice on such matters as organization, thesis development, support for assertions, and patterns of errors. It does not include proofreading or editing.” The cadet must acknowledge the use of this assistance in the help received statement submitted with the written work.
If specifically directed by the instructor of a history course, cadets may avail themselves of peer collaboration on written work. Similar to tutoring assistance, peer collaboration may involve the provision of critical comments. Such comments are defined in the Institute’s Work for Grade Policy as “general advice on such matters as organization, thesis development, support for assertions, and patterns of errors. It does not include proofreading or editing.” The cadet must acknowledge the use of peer collaboration in the help received statement submitted with the written work.
Unlike critical comments, proofreading and editing are expressly forbidden by the Institute’s Work for Grade Policy, to wit: “Proofreading means correcting errors (e.g., in spelling, grammar, punctuation). It is the last step taken by the writer in the editing process. In addition to the corrections made in proofreading, editing includes making such changes as the addition, deletion, or reordering of paragraphs, sentences, phrases, or words. A cadet may not have his or her work proofread or edited by someone other than the instructor.” Instructors in the Department of History who wish to employ proofreading and editing as pedagogical tools may be granted exceptions to this rule only if they have received written permission from the department head for a particular assignment.
In all cases, individual course assignments that deviate from the departmental work for grade policies must be approved by the department head in advance and must be explained to cadets in writing.
Cadets should consult the History Department web site, "Guidelines for Referencing Papers" for a fuller discussion of how to conduct written work in History.
Any non-written work for grade, such as oral reports, must be undertaken under specific conditions established by the instructor and will conform to the same spirit of the rules as pertain to written work.
If you have any doubts as to the application of these rules to any
of your work for grade in History courses, consult your instructor.
Do not leave anything to chance.