INSTRUCTOR INFORMATION:
professor: Kathryn E. Meyer
office: 341 Wilson
phone: 335-7996
e-mail: kemeyer@wsu.edu
web site: http//www.wsu.edu/~kemeyer/
COURSE INFORMATION:
This course begins with a quick look at prehistory (Man's emergence from the primeval ooze to the Agricultural Revolution), then focuses primarily on the development of World Civilization from 3,500 BC to AD 1500 (Writing to Columbus). Because this time span includes an enormous amount of material, we will be more or less hitting the high spots. Therefore, our approach will be selective and topical, emphasizing the following: the appearance and development of civilization in Mesopotamia, Egypt, India, China, Africa, and the Americas; primitive styles of government and their evolution into states, kingdoms, empires, and nations; the origin and development of the great world religions; the philosophical heritage of Europe and Asia; the artistic and literary expression of classical and expanding civilizations; and finally, the beginning of global exploration, trade, and conquest.
Daily routine consists of lecture, augmented with assorted interesting computerized visual and audio aids, designed to: (a) help you remember the material, (b) motivate you to come to class, and (c) keep you awake once you are there. Expect weekly quizzes (on Wednesdays, beginning in the second week of classes), except during weeks when midterm exams are scheduled. Exams will be mostly essay format, and the third exam is NOT comprehensive. Please note also that attendance is part of your grade.
GRADES & ASSIGNMENTS:
There are 600 points possible, broken down as follows: 3 exams (100 pts. each) Note: You must take all three of these exams to pass the course. 1 Library Assignment (40 pts.) 11 quizzes (25 pts. each, lowest 3 quiz scores will be dropped). Attendance (60 pts.)
TEXTBOOKS:
World History to 1500, 2nd edition, by William J. Duiker and Jackson J. Spielvogel.
Hammond Historical Atlas of the World, Revised and Expanded.