History 4:
Assignment Sheet.
Put your name, the
course number, and the date of submission on all work. Clearly identify which
assignment you are submitting. Keep a copy for yourself! All assignments should be type-written.
I. Text glosses- (5%) Each student must submit brief glosses of required source readings
four times during the semester. These glosses will be the basis for class
discussions of the texts.
For the text glosses you are asked to analyze primary sources. Text glosses should be roughly a page in length. A gloss should especially emphasize how a text deepens our understanding of a given society, or should raise questions about the meaning of the text (or both). Does the primary source reinforce the picture of the society given in the textbook? Does it complicate our understanding? What questions does the text leave us with?
Please submit glosses via email
prior to class on the day the text is scheduled to be discussed. Exceptions
will be made only for those texts already discussed to this date (
II. Internet/website sources and
commentaries. (15% = 2 x 7.5%): 1) Art or music sample.
Each student must submit
at least one example of art from one of the cultures under study in this class
in the time periods covered by this class. You must also provide a brief
commentary on the example, and identify the website (URL) from which it comes. 2) Description of and commentary on a
website dealing with some aspect of western civilization prior to 1600 C.E. The
website must be fully identified. This website must not be used for either the Art/Music. Assignment
specifics to follow.
1) Art or music sample. Due no later than December 4. To complete this requirement submit at least one image and a brief commentary (from one paragraph to one page) on that image. Submit this work via email or via floppy disk.
2) The final website commentary should be 1-2 pages in length. It will be due no later than December 4. You may submit this assignment via email or as a hard copy (paper).
III. Responses to prompts (5%): Writing prompts will be posted for each
week’s readings. You must respond in writing to a prompt from five weeks
throughout the semester.
Writing prompts will be found on the class web log. Each response should be about one page in length. Responses are due by Tuesday of the week following the week the prompt was given. Exceptions will be made for prompts for the first two weeks of the semester. Please submit 1-3 responses before the mid-term exam. The remaining responses should come after the mid-term.
IV. Extended analyses of writers
and documents (20%- 2 x 10%). You
are allowed to use one the writers and documents assigned for our readings. You
may use other writers or documents, but these choices must be approved by the
instructor in advance.
These analyses should be 2-3 pages in length. The analyses should focus on a single text or a single writer. Your analyses should go into some depth on the value of the text (or writer) as a window into the society under study. Consider the perspective, the audience and the concerns of the subject. Does the writer or text, seem to represent the norm, or a challenge to the norm?
The first analysis should have as its subject a text or writer covered in class prior to week 8. This analysis is due 10/21. The second analysis must deal with a subject from the second half of the class. It is due on December 11 (the last day of class). These assignments should be submitted as hard copies.
V. Exams (55%) There will be two exams- a midterm (20%) and
a final exam (35%). Please note: You must average a passing grade on the exams
to pass the course!!! There are no
make-up exams without an acceptable, verifiable, written excuse, or unless
arranged in advance.
This semester we will have a take-home midterm exam. The exam will be given out on October 2, and will be due back on October 7.