Course Requirements

Every student in HIST 102 is also assigned to discussion section; and the graduate leading the section is responsible for evaluating the work of all students in that section. Attending lectures and discussions is required and in your own best interest to comprehend the information on which you will be examined. There will be a mid-term and a comprehensive final examination: the mid-term exam will be in class on Friday, February 9 (Week 5). The final examination for this course is scheduled by the University of Oregon Registrar's Office for Monday, March 19, at 10:15 a.m. In addition, the discussion section leader may hold quizzes from time to time during the term.

For written work, there will two short essays on an assigned topic; the first of the two short essays will be due in class on Monday, February 5; the second short essay will be due in class on Friday, March 16. In addition, students will be evaluated for attendance at discussion sections, for the quality and frequency of contributions to discussions, the quality and clarity of written work, and of course performance in mid-term and final examinations. For the criteria we will be employing to grade your written work, click here . For some guidelines on how to write a good history paper, click here.

All work, including examinations, must be completed and/or delivered on time. No extensions will be granted, except for a verifiable and documented medical or familial emergency. Note that the University of Oregon Health Center has stopped giving out documentation of illness, so you will have to find verifiable documentation from a physician.

Discussion Section (including quizzes): 20%
First Short Essay:  15%
Second Short Essay:  15%
Mid-Term Examination: 20%
Final Examination:  30%

Note that the mid-term and final examinations will cover all assigned readings and lectures to date. All work submitted in this course must be your own and produced exclusively for this course. The use of sources (ideas, quotations, and paraphrases) must be properly acknowledged and documented (click here for some pointers on how to avoid plagiarism and other forms of academic dishonesty). For the consequences of academic dishonesty, refer to the Schedule of Classes, published quarterly.  Violations will be taken seriously and are noted on student disciplinary records.  If you are in doubt regarding the requirements for this course, please do not hesitate to consult me.  Finally, all work must be delivered on time; late work will not be accepted without a documented medical or other legitimate excuse.

A note on minimum requirements: each of the examinations and paper assignments is a minumum requirement, which is to say that a student cannot pass this course unless she/he has successfully completed all writing assignments and taken both examinations. A student who fails to deliver one of the papers, or who does not take one of the exams, has not met the minimum requirements for the course, and therefore will receive a grade of “F” for the entire course.

Readings

The textbook for this course is Western Civilization, by Brian Levack, Edward Muir, and Meredith Veldman. The syllabus indicates which chapters from the textbook you should read for each week. The purpose of this text is to provide greater continuity and background than can be supplied in lectures; throughout the term, you should refer to your textbook as a reference and as a guide to study. Be aware that the textbook covers topics that are not covered in the lectures; likewise the lectures cover topics and raise interpretations that are not offered in the textbook. You will also be tested on the information contained both in the lectures and in the textbook, so it is wise to keep up to speed on the readings.

In most of the discussion sections throughout the term, we will be discussing assigned books or texts that are available to you on the website. The following books will be required reading for this course:

Michael G. Baylor, The German Reformation and the Peasants' War: A Brief History with Dcouments.
Michael Walzer, Regicide and Revolution: Speeches at the Trial of Louis XVI

In addition to these books, we will also be reading a several texts that will be made available on-line through the course website and/or Canvas.