HIS102 20th-Century World
Useful links for HIS102
HIS102's tumblr site: https://www.tumblr.com/blog/oswego-his102
Primary Sources:
Internet History Sourcebook: http://www.fordham.edu/Halsall/index.asp
National Archives: http://www.archives.gov/education/research/primary-sources.html
Docs Teach: http://docsteach.org/documents
Euro Docs: http://eudocs.lib.byu.edu/index.php/Main_Page
World Digital Library: http://www.wdl.org/en/
This course will focus on certain major themes such as political and social changes, global conflicts and ideologies, advancement of technology, and cultural developments while following a chronological structure.
At the completion of this course, students will be able to comprehend how our global world and global society have come into existence. They will also be able to understand the historian’s craft, which involves analyzing primary and secondary sources through multiple layers of evidence, as well as independent and critical thinking.
Course Materials
Required:
Goff, Richard et al ed. The Twentieth Century and Beyond: A Global History. 7th edition.
Recommended:
Williams, Stephanie. Olga’s Story: Three continents, Two World Wars and Revolution—One Woman’s Epic Journey through the Twentieth Century. New York: Doubleday, 2005.
Additional readings, including such primary sources as newspaper articles, memoirs, and government papers, will be added onto the course webpage on Angel.
You are encouraged to read newspapers and watch daily news. Topics that we will discuss in this course are quite handy for establishing connections between the past and the present through causal relations.
Evaluation
Course DescriptionThe twentieth century saw global-scale changes that have shaped the world we live in today. Two world wars were fought, great empires faded off the world map, ideologies clashed, new superpowers emerged, and internet has become a part of our daily life. While the nation states emerged as the main actors of the world order, ever developing communication and transportation technologies have turned the world into a global village, making us members of a global society. Considering that everyone registered in this course was born in the twentieth century, it can be said that this century has indeed defined our lives and our international system.
20th-century, courtesy of wikispaces.com
Map exercise and map quiz: For this assignment, you will learn how to use Google Earth technology and will be able to pinpoint important natural and manmade geographical features that will be frequently mentioned in this class. I will provide a list of such geographical features as countries, oceans, seas, islands, cities, mountains, rivers, and regions. You will pin them on Google Earth and e-mail me the .kmz file you created. You will then complete an in-class quiz based on the Google Earth exercise.
Primary source analysis: Primary and secondary sources will be introduced in the first week. For this assignment, you will find a primary source document and write two paragraphs explaining why the document you chose is a primary source and why you have picked that specific document. This phase constitutes 20 % of the total mark. After you clear your primary source with me, you will submit a 3-page (1.5 spaced, 12 Times Roman New) document analysis essay.
Webpage project & presentation: As a part of this course, students will conduct research on a topic related to an event we discuss in the class and design a webpage based on their findings. The webpage should be prepared in a scholarly way and contain at least 2500 word essay. Once webpage is created, students will present their work to the class. This will be a group-work assignment.
Minute papers & participation: Questions for in-class discussions will be posted every week on the course webpage. You are welcome to post your own questions. Posting additional questions will help you improve your participation mark. As for minute papers, I will randomly ask you to write down what was the most important/memorable point made in class according to your opinion. There is no right or wrong in this exercise. It is completely based on your own take on the topic we discuss.