History (HIST) 208

Overview

The World to 1500 is a three-credit first-year (junior) course that introduces students to the study of Global History. The course was written by historian Dr. Marc B. Cels. It surveys the early human past, from its spread around the world during the last Ice Age, through the rise of early and classical civilizations and the growing communication in the post-classical period, up to the chance connection of global networks by European explorers at the start of the modern age. While it features cultures that will be familiar to many students, such the Egyptians, Maya, Romans, Tang Chinese, and Mongols, the course will also consider societies that flourished without empires or even states, including the Aboriginal Australians, Ancestral Puebloans, and Bantu-speaking peoples. Comparing the different cultures of the past helps students to make sense of this long period of history and to identify patterns of change and continuity. Many of the cultures that developed before 1500 continue to influence us and shape events today. In particular, the course traces the spreading connections that led to our globalized world. Students are introduced to the types of readings and assignments typical of History courses. The course prepares students to take more courses in History, other fields in the Humanities area, or Global Studies.

Outline

• Unit 1: Introduction
• Unit 2: Prehistory to the Beginning of Agriculture
• Unit 3: The First Civilizations
• Unit 4: The Classical Empires of Eurasia and North Africa, c. 500 B.C.E. to c. 500 C.E.
• Unit 5: Classical Culture in Eurasia and North Africa
• Unit 6: Classical Society in Eurasia and North Africa
• Unit 7: The Age of Secondary Civilizations in the Americas, Sub-Saharan Africa, and Pacific Islands
• Unit 8: Post-Classical Trade Networks
• Unit 9: Post-Classical China and East Asia, c. 600 to c. 1300
• Unit 10: Islam: An Afro-Eurasian Civilization
• Unit 11: Medieval Europe, c. 500 to 1450
• Unit 12: The Mongol Hegemony in Eurasia
• Unit 13: The World at the End of the Post-Classical Age

Learning outcomes

1. Recall a narrative of human history to 1500 from assigned readings and videos.
2. Apply strategies for taking notes and analyzing information from assigned materials.
3. Select, order, and document course information in response to assigned essay questions.
4. Summarize the development of major world cultures and selected alternative cultures.
5. Compose essays according to academic standards using assigned resources.

Evaluation

To receive credit for HIST 208, you must achieve a minimum of 50 per cent on the final examination and a minimum composite course grade of D (50 percent).

The final examination for this course must be requested in advance and written under the supervision of an AU-approved exam invigilator. Invigilators include either ProctorU or an approved in-person invigilation centre that can accommodate online exams. Students are responsible for payment of any invigilation fees. Information on exam request deadlines, invigilators, and other exam-related questions, can be found at the Exams and grades section of the Calendar.

To learn more about assignments and examinations, please refer to Athabasca University’s online Calendar.

Materials

eText

Registration in this course includes an electronic textbook. For more information on electronic textbooks, please refer to our eText Initiative site.

Other Materials

Online Study Guide (13 Units)

Online readings and streaming videos available through AU Library.

Challenge for credit

Overview

The challenge for credit process allows you to demonstrate that you have acquired a command of the general subject matter, knowledge, intellectual and/or other skills that would normally be found in a university-level course.

Full information about challenge for credit can be found in the Undergraduate Calendar.

Evaluation

Important links

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