HIST 1010-004

World History I
Fall 2014
Auburn University
2:00-3:15 pm Tuesday and Thursday in Haley 3195

Professor Garrett Spivey
Office: Thach 113A
Email: gts0003@auburn.edu
Office hours: T&TH 1:00-1:50 pm or by appointment

Graduate Teaching Assistants:
David Burel (dmb0034; tests) Office hours: Tuesdays and Thursdays 9:30-11:00 am
Matthew ONeal (mzo0017; accommodations) Office hours: Mondays and Wednesdays 9:00-
10:30 am
Daniel Williams (dww0007; attendance) Office hours: Tuesdays and Thursdays 3:15-5:15 pm

SI Instructor: Menley McPhaul (mcm0052). Meeting time: M & W 6-7:30 pm Haley 3326
Course Description: Auburn University has made a commitment to helping students become
informed and engaged citizens as well as helping them understand and appreciate the diversity of
and within societies of the United States and the World. This course accomplishes those goals by
introducing students to the key moments, themes, concepts, and developments of World History.
The course covers a time span from the earliest moments of human history to 1789 CE. With
such a large span of time, we will not be able to cover all important aspects of the worlds
history. By the end of the semester, however, students should have a firm grasp on several
important developments in World History, including: the initial conditions and developments of
the first human societies; key economic, political, and social innovations; and the first signs of
globalization. Learning will take many forms throughout the course of the semester, including
lecture, group discussion, document analysis, and writing.
This course is also designed to introduce students to the problems of history. Contrary to
popular opinion, history is not merely a collection of a series of dates and facts. Thinking
historically is a unique way of looking at the world (and not just for understanding history), and
this class will introduce students to the concept of thinking historically about the world. By the
end of the semester, students will have learned to be critical of the stories they read or hear,
relying on their own analysis to weigh the significance of evidence and argumentation.

Course Objectives:
To introduce key concepts, ideas, and arguments concerning World History.
To foster learning through student driven analysis, criticism, and inquisitiveness.
To teach critical thinking skills and historical thinking.
To practice effective writing skills.


Assignments:
Tests: There will be three tests throughout the course of the semester, including the
noncumulative final exam. Students will need to bring a scantron sheet to class on the day of the
exam. Scantron sheets can be purchased from the university bookstore. Students will not be able
to make up missed exams without a university approved excuse. See the absence policy for
further details about what is and is not excusable. All make up exams must be made up within
one week of the students return to class. It is the students responsibility to schedule a make-up
with the professor or TAs. Students cannot make up the final exam: no exceptions.

Readings: There is no formal textbook for this class. Students who do better with a text or
want an extra guide to aid with some basic material might consider purchasing a newer edition of
A History of World Societies. ISBN: 9780312666910. The university bookstore will carry
copies for our class.
Throughout the course of the semester, there will be a series of readings related to the
writing assignments, detailed below. All reading material will be provided through Canvas.
There will be no need to purchase any additional reading materials.
Writing: Over the course of the semester, students are required to write two (2) short
papers responding to readings posted on Canvas. The papers should be two full pages, one inch
margins on all sides, double spaced, in 12 point Times New Roman font. These assignments are
due two weeks from the day of their corresponding lecture.
There will be four (4) opportunities to write these papers. Students are under no
obligation to do all four, but I will only count the two highest graded papers in the students final
grade calculation. We will discuss the exact details of what is required for the content of these
papers in class.

Attendance: Attendance for this class is not required; however, with no material coming from a
textbook, it will be very difficult to do well in this class without attending. There will be
assigned seating in this class for testing and bonus purposes, detailed below. The TA in charge of
attendance should be notified as soon as possible in relation to any University approved absence
(see student handbook), and you will provide documentation (i.e. doctors notes, jurors
summons, etc.) within one week of your absence(s).
Students with no more than three unexcused absences at the end of the semester will
receive a 2 point increase to their final grade. For example, a student with only two unexcused
absences and a final grade of 87.5 would be bumped up to an 89.5 and would therefore make an
A.

Grade Breakdown:
75% Exams
25% Writing Assignments




Grading: 89.5-100 = A
79.5-89.4 = B
69.5-79.4 = C
59.5-69.4 = D
59.4 or below = F

All grading scales must have a cut-off point. I do round up from .5, and I will not
roundup for anything less (ex: 79.4, 89.3, etc.). No exceptions.

Early Alert Grades: You will receive an Early Alert Grade one week prior to mid semester
(31st class day). The Early Alert Grade represents your current performance on class work
graded at that point in the semester. Check the grading scale for this course so that you are aware
of what percentage of the total points is represented by your Early Alert Grade. If your Early
Alert Grade is a "D", "F", or "FA" you will receive an email from the Retention Coordinator.
Early Alert Grades can be viewed by logging into AU Access and opening the tiger I tab. Select
"Student Records" and open the "Midterm Grades" window from the drop down box. If the grade
seems inaccurate, please contact me.

Extra Credit: I do not promise that there will be any additional extra credit opportunities over
the course of the semester. If there are, however, they will be available to all students, and each
student may only complete one extra credit assignment.

Late assignments: All assignments are due at the beginning of class for the date scheduled. Any
assignment not turned in at the beginning of class will receive a 5% deduction from the grade.
Each subsequent day that the assignment is late will receive an additional 5% deduction.
Assignments will not be accepted more than one week past their due date.

Classroom Behavior: It is vital that we maintain an environment within the classroom that is
suitable for learning. Any activity that hampers the learning of an individual or others in the
classroom will not be tolerated. Cell phones, iPods, and other electronic devices may not be
used. Laptops are allowed for note taking purposes, but students will not use the internet (i.e.
Facebook, twitter, etc.) without express consent from the professor. Students not in compliance
with these guidelines will be given a warning through email. Continuing to ignore these
requirements beyond the warning will result in unexcused absences.

Academic Honesty: Students caught violating the student handbooks rules for academic
honesty will not be tolerated. If a student is found being dishonest with any assignment, that
assignment will receive a 0 and will immediately begin the discipline procedures described in the
student handbook.
Academic honesty includes plagiarism. Plagiarism is presenting ideas, arguments, or
evidence that is not your own as if they are your own. In a class that requires written
assignments, plagiarism can be a real temptation. Do not do it. In order to avoid plagiarism,
students should follow the guidelines for proper citations, which we will go over in class. You
should always ask any questions regarding citations or plagiarism. When in doubt, ask. It is
better to be too cautious rather than not cautious enough in regard to plagiarism.
Accommodations: Students who need accommodations are asked to electronically submit their
approved accommodations through AU Access and to make an individual appointment with the
instructor during the first week of classes or as soon as possible if accommodations are needed
immediately. If you have not established accommodations through the Office of Accessibility,
but need accommodations, make an appointment with the Office of Accessibility, 1228 Haley
Center, 844-2096 (V/TT).


Per the universitys policy, all official class communication will be through email. Students
must check their email regularly. If any changes are to be made to this syllabus, students
will be notified through email.

CLASS SCHEDULE
Note: Dropping a course from August 25
th
through September 8
th
will result in a $100 Drop Fee.
August 19
th
: Introduction
August 21
st
: Mesopotamia Chapter 1
August 26
th
: Egypt Chapter 1
August 28
th
: India Chapter 2
September 2
nd
: China Chapter 3
September 4
th
: Greece and Hellenization Chapter 4
September 8
th
last day to drop course with no grade assignment.
September 9
th
: Rome Chapter 5
September 11
th
: Christianity/Western Rome Chapter 5 (Historiography 1)
September 16
th
: Silk Roads Chapters 2 & 4
September 18
th
: Test 1
September 23
rd
: East Asia and spread of Buddhism Chapter 6
September 25
th
: Byzantium Chapter 7 (Paper 1 due)
September 30
th
: Islam Chapter 8 (Early Alert grades due)
October 2
nd
: Germanic tribes Chapter 7
October 7
th
: Central Asia Chapters 7 & 11 (Last day to withdraw from class with a W and
last day to reschedule final.)
October 9
th
: Medieval China and Japan Chapter 12 (Historiography 2)
October 14
th
: Medieval Europe Chapter 13
October 16
th
: Fall Break
October 21
st
: Renaissance and Reformation Chapter 14
October 23
rd
: The Americas Chapter 10 (Paper 2 due) (Historiography 3)
October 28
th
: Test 2
October 30
th
: Global Contact Chapter 15
November 4
th
: European political developments Chapter 16
November 6
th
: Scientific Revolution and Enlightenment Chapter 17 (Paper 3 due)
November 11
th
: Africa and the Slave Trade Chapter 18 (Historiography 4)
November 13
th
: Gunpowder Empires Chapter 19
November 18
th
: East Asia Chapter 20
November 20
th
: Political Revolutions Chapter 21
November 25
th
: Thanksgiving Break
November 27
th
: Thanksgiving Break
December 2
nd
: Beginning the Industrial Revolution Chapter 22 (Paper 4 due)
December 4
th
: Review Day

The final exam will be administered in the same classroom (Haley 3195) on Friday, December
12
th
, 4:00-6:30 pm.



This is a dynamic syllabus and subject to change. All students will be notified
via email of any and all syllabus changes throughout the course of the
semester.