History 511: A Mummers' Farce? Teaching World History

Spring 2012
M 3:35-6:05
Dunford 2604

Professor: Chad Black
Office: 2626 Dunford Hall, 6th floor
Office Hours: Mondays 1:00 - 3:00, or by appointment
Contact: cblack6 -at- utk -dot- edu

Table of Contents:
Click to show

Required readings:

The following books are available to purchase at the bookstore, or through any other cheaper means you can find! But, they are all required for this semester.

1. Davis, Mike. Late Victorian Holocausts. Verso Press, 2002.
   
2. Eney, Matthew. Mapping an Empire. Univ. of Chicago Pres, 1999.
3. Gleick, James. The Information: A History. Pantheon, 2011.
4. Lakoff, George and Mark Johnson. Metaphors We Live By. Univ. of Chicago Press, 2003.
5. Manning, Patrick. Navigating World History. Palgrave MacMillan, 2003.
6. McCann, James. Maize and Grace. Harvard Univ. Press, 2007.
7. Pomeranz, Kenneth. The Great Divergence. Princeton Univ. Press, 2001.
8. Restall, Matthew. Seven Myths of the Spanish Conquest. Oxford Univ. Press, 2004.
9. Scott, James. Seeing Like a State. Yale Univ. Press, 1999.
10. Thongchacul, Winichackul. Siam Mapped. Univ. of Hawaii Press, 1997.
11. Topik, Steven, Zepher Frank, and Carlos Marichal. From Silver to Cocaine. Duke Univ. Press, 2006.
12. Wilson, Pamela and Michelle Stewart. Global Indigenous Media. Duke Univ. Press, 2008.
13. Wolf, Eric. Europe and the People Without History. Univ. of California Press, 2010.
14. Wood, Ellen Meiskins. Origins of Capitalism: A Longer View. Verso Press, 2002.

In late December, and with too little foreknowledge for me to include it in this class, Antoinette Burton published an excellent manual for designing World History courses: A Primer for Teaching World History. I would encourage you all to get it and read it along this semester.

Requirements:

1. Register your own blog.
   This semester we will be writing regularly, each on our own blogs, in reaction to the weekly readings and discussions. Each student is required to register a blog using the free, hosted wordpress.com system. This blog should only be for this class, and you may use it both for your own writings and to develop a sample course website (see below). If you would prefer to host your own website, we can look at inexpensive hosting options. I would encourage everyone to consider purchasing a domain and developing a professional presence on the web for your research and teaching. You may use your real name or a pseudonym known only to the instructor. You may also keep your site private, as long as the instructor and your classmates have access to it. Discussion of course materials, whether written or in person, is of the utmost importance to our collaborative learning process, and thus must be accessible to your compadres in arms. I would encourage you to write pseudonymously if you have concerns.
   

   Once you have registered a site, or set up your own, please fill out this form so that I can add it to the course feed.
   

2. Weekly posts and in-class discussions.
   We're going to divide into three groups. Each week, one group will be required to write on their blogs, one group comment on the posts, and one group lead discussion in class. In order for this to work, the group assigned with writing needs their posts up on Friday, to give sufficient time for their colleagues to comment on their posts. Posts will be accessible from the course blog page through the feed. Commenters should write using, well, the comment forms. This means if you're the blog owner, you'll have to pay attention (email alerts work well) and clear comments. The third group is in charge of leading discussion on the weekly readings in class, and particularly on the content books. It is my hope that this course will be driven by the insatiable curiosity of all of you as participants, and that you'll scour the web and the other resources for the community and information that will make you all great teachers. (For example, see what you can find reading back through the posts on GradHacker and ProfHacker.)

3. Unit.
   Each student will need to construct a fully formed unit for a World History class --> the whole shebang (#!), including lectures, discussion questions, readings, media, etc. This, together with your completed syllabus and website, is what you'll present at the end of the semester. I want to see imaginative thinking, creative pedagogy, and some real wrestling with issues.
   

4. Course syllabus and website.
   You'll walk away from this semester with a fully formed syllabus for the World Survey. But, in this day and age, I'd like to see you walk away with a fully formed course website as well. It's a great idea in part because you can permanently tweak it, and have it for the job market as well. There are many options for building the website, including rolling your own in html (and posting it on your unix account provided for free from UTK), Google Sites, wordpress.com, omeka.net, etc.

5. Literature review.
   Finally, in addition to the course planning and engagement listed above, you need to write a focused review of three to five content books from the perspective of their usefulness for building or implementing a World History course. These can include both traditional academic scholarship and appropriate fiction. Just clear the list with me before writing. Due April 2nd.

Other information:

Qualified students with disabilities needing appropriate academic adjustments should contact me as soon as possible to ensure your needs are met in a timely manner with appropriate documentation.

Plagiarism: Plagiarism occurs when someone knowingly or unknowingly presents another person's words or ideas as his or her own. Any work turned in for this class must meet University standards for academic honesty. Any students unsure about how to apply these rules are urged to consult with me prior to turning in any written work.

Deadlines: Assignments that are due in class must be turned in at the start of class. If you anticipate problems, please contact me before the assignment is due, not after!

Office Hours: Students are strongly encouraged to speak with me outside of class. I am available during office hours on a first-come, first-served basis. If you cannot come during office hours, please contact me via email or phone to schedule an appointment.

Schedule and Readings

Week 1

16 January

No class -- MLK day.

Week 2 | COURSE INTRODUCTION

23 January

No readings.

Week 3 | METAPHOR

30 January

Design thinking.

Read:

• Lakoff, George and Mark Johnson. Metaphors We Live By. Univ. of Chicago Press, 2003.
• Wiggins and McTighe, Understanding Design Selections
• Freire, Pedagogy of the Oppressed Selections

Recommended:

Week 4 | WHAT IS WORLD HISTORY?

6 February

Design building.

Read:

• Manning, Patrick. Navigating World History. Palgrave MacMillan, 2003.
• This

POST: 1
COMMENT: 2
LEAD: 3

Week 5 | WORLD HISTORY IS ... MYTH

13 February

Design implementation.

Read:

• Restall, Matthew. Seven Myths of the Spanish Conquest. Oxford Univ. Press, 2004.
• Bring in a handful of syllabi that you've analyzed.
  
• The Academic's Handbook Part IV: Teaching and Advising.

POST: 2
COMMENT: 3
LEAD: 1

Week 6 | WORLD HISTORY IS ... TRANSITION

20 February

Issues 1 --> Expectations.

Read:

• Pomeranz, Kenneth. The Great Divergence. Princeton Univ. Press, 2001.
• Wood, Ellen Meiskins. Origins of Capitalism: A Longer View. Verso Press, 2002.

POST: 3
COMMENT: 1
LEAD: 2

Week 7 | WORLD HISTORY IS ... SPACE

27 February

Issues 2 --> Scheduling.

Read:

• Eney, Matthew. Mapping an Empire. Univ. of Chicago Pres, 1999.
• Thongchacul, Winichackul. Siam Mapped. Univ. of Hawaii Press, 1997.

POST: 1
COMMENT: 2
LEAD: 3

Week 8 | WORLD HISTORY IS ... COMMODITY

5 March

Issues 3 --> The Lecture.

Read:

• McCann, James. Maize and Grace. Harvard Univ. Press, 2007.
• Topik, Steven, Zepher Frank, and Carlos Marichal. From Silver to Cocaine. Duke Univ. Press, 2006.
• Edward Tufte, The Cognitive Style of PowerPoint
• TLC, "Using PowerPoint for Better Learning"
• Explore some radio documentary --> listen to RadioLab, This American Life, or the lessons from The Salt Institute and How Sound or Transom Radio. What makes radio documentary work? Does it have anything to teach us about lecturing?

POST: 2
COMMENT: 3
LEAD: 1

Week 9 | WORLD HISTORY IS ... STATE

12 March

Issues 4 --> Discussions.

Read:

• Scott, James. Seeing Like a State. Yale Univ. Press, 1999.

POST: 3
COMMENT: 1
LEAD: 2

Week 10 | WORLD HISTORY IS ... ON SPRING BREAK

19 March

Week 11 | WORLD HISTORY IS ... POLITICAL

26 March

Issues 5 --> Technologies and the CMS.

Read:

• Davis, Mike. Late Victorian Holocausts. Verso Press, 2002.
  

POST: 1 COMMENT: 2
LEAD: 3

Week 12 WORLD HISTORY IS ... REPRESENTATION

2 April

Issues 6 --> Technologies in the Classroom.

Read:

• Wolf, Eric. Europe and the People Without History. Univ. of California Press, 2010.
• A few links on LMS and PLE issues:
  • Michael Feldstein, "The Evolving LMS Market" Part 1 and Part 2
  • George Siemans, Learning or Management Systems?
  • Jonathan Mott, "Envisioning the Post-LMS Era"
  • Gardner Campbell, "A Personal Cyberinfrastructure"
  • Brian Lamb, "Dr. Mashup; or, Why Educators Should Learn to Stop Worrying and Love the Remix"
  • Falvo and Johnson, "The Use of Learning Management Systems in the United States"

POST: 2
COMMENT: 3
LEAD: 1

Week 13 WORLD HISTORY IS ... AUTOREPRESENTATION

9 April

Issues 7 --> Assignments and Assessment.

Read:

• Wilson, Pamela and Michelle Stewart. Global Indigenous Media. Duke Univ. Press, 2008.

POST: 3
COMMENT: 1
LEAD: 2

Week 14 WORLD HISTORY IS ... INFORMATION

16 April

Issues last --> Handling Students.

Read:

• Gleick, James. The Information: A History. Pantheon, 2011.

Week 15 | PRESENTATIONS

23 April

Week 16 | PRESENTATIONS

30 April