DIRECTIONS FOR COMPLETING COURSE WORK:

I suspect that since you are reading this you have enrolled in Western Civilization 104B--Self-Paced.  This site includes a course description, a course outline, a course assignment sheet, a list of lecture notes and other assorted handouts used in the regular Western Civilization class.  You will need to fill out the form Online to verify your registration: Instructor's Course Registration. If I fail to receive this form I will list you as a no show.You may complete this course at your leisure--of course that means by the end of the semester. 

This page should provide you with all the information needed to complete your specific tasks.  At the bottom of this page you will find a GUIDELINE FOR COMPLETION that provides you with a guideline as to when I expect you to complete the assignments and the exams. Guidelines are not specific due dates, but a concept of what needs to be done and when to complete this course in one semester. The preferred way of turning in the required assignments is via e-mail.  Send them to me at akirshner@ohlone.edu.  Either attach them as a Word or PDF document or copy and insert them in the body of the e-mail.  DO NOT send Works or Word Perfect attachment or any other format but Word.   I will be posting grades evey few weeks on the internet at
http:// www2.ohlone.edu/ people/akirshner/gradeswc.html and
http:// www.kirshnerisms.com/gradeswc.html

When you are ready for Exam I, Exam II or Exam III, please request them via e-mail and I will send you the exam.  However, I will not send an exam until I have received your reaction reading papers that are scheduled before the exam. I will also not send an exam if I haven't received the last exam from you even if you completed the papers.  I grade the exams like I would a mini term paper—meaning, I expect loads of information with lots of typed pages.  Please remember to place the exact question you are answering on your answer sheets or mail me back the exam paper I sent to you. If you do not and I cannot figure out which question from the 10 different exams I have you are answering, it could hurt your grade dramatically.  With the take-home exams you can, in fact should, do as much research as you would with a term paper. The majority of the research must, of course, come from the textbook and my iTunes lectures or Online written lectures.

If you do not complete the course by the end of the semester I will be forced to give you an F (failure).  If you must miss the final exam for a college approved reason you can obtain an Incomplete form online or from the Registrar's Office in Building 7. If you receive an incomplete, DO NOT reregister for this course.  The computer will throw you out anyway.  An incomplete maintains your registration.  An incomplete will turn to an F if you do not make up the course in one semester.

This course can be taken credit/no-credit.  If you want to go this route, fill out the form in the Admissions Office before the fourth week of school.  I do not have to be informed that you have taken advantage of the credit/no-credit option.

If you have any questions you you will need to e-mail me (akirshner@ohlone.edu) as I am now a retired faculty member teaching part-time. I have been allowed to keep my office so if you need to meet with me, I am happy to create a special office hour.  My office is 8320.

NOTES:         

1. Few students complete the self-paced course.  Not that this course is any more difficult than the classroom course, but most students are not use to scheduling their own time.  I always advise students to take the classroom section as there is an instructor with a whip over them. If this is the only way your schedule permits you to take this course--GOOD LUCK! 

2. Treat this course like any other scheduled class.  If you set up a regular schedule you will finish the course and receive an excellent grade.  Very few students who complete the course get a grade less than B.  Most students  get A grades, but as I wrote above, few students complete the course.

3.  I advise you to follow the “Guidelines on Completion” as close as possible.  Few students who wait for the last moment to turn in their work have done well.  Getting ten two page reaction papers and three term-paper size exams done in a few days is near impossible.

4. Ohlone's withdrawal policy permits a student to withdraw before the third week of class without a grade or notation appearing on the transcript.  Between the third and twelfth weeks of school a student must receive a W if s/he withdraws(BE SURE TO CHECK EXACT DATES IN THE CATALOGUE) .

If the student fails to withdraw after the stated date, s/he can only receive an F or an I. 

COURSE DESCRIPTION:
    
This course is a survey of the cultural, social and political developments in Western Civilization, and how they relate  to other world societies, from the rise of the nation-state through contemporary times with a speculative look at the future. 

TEXTBOOK:

Philip Lee Ralph, et.al, World Civilizations: Their History and Their Culture, W.W. Norton & Company, Ninth Edition, Volume 2, 1997
This is a special edition re-produced to be sold to Ohlone students for less than the price of a new volume. If you can get any copy of the 1997 edition of the Philips text online-by all means get it!
 ISBN: 978-0-393-13654-8

1.  A reading list applicable to each section of the course outline can be found under Course Assignments below. Upon completion of each reading assignment you must submit a two-page typed paper explaining what you learned about history, your society or yourself.  This reaction paper is from the readings within this packet and in the textbook—not the lecture videos.  Please note that I am asking for a reaction paper, not a summary of the readings--I have read the material.  Each paper is worth 10 points.

2.   The assignment sheet lists videopodcasts that must be downloaded from iTunes Ohlone and must be viewed. Please note the words “must view.” This means that they are required.  The sound on these may not be good if you use your computer speakers. I advise you to listen to them with earphones, especially ones that have a built in sound control. If you prefer not to download them, you can obtain the iTunes videocasts by providing me with two blank DVD disks and an envelope or box with sufficient postage to mail the iTunes videos back to you.   You will still need to download iTunes, if you do not have it on your computer, to view the videocasts.  You can download iTunes free from Apple for a PC or Mac. http://www.apple.com/itunes/download/   Some of the iTunes Video podcast I did, failed.  In those situations you will need to view applicable video tapes that are on reserve in the library.   They have been placed on reserve for this class--Dr. Kirshner's Western Civilization 104B Course.  The lecture videos cannot be taken home. Assignments are listed below under Course assignment. If any problems arise, please let me know as soon as possible.   Sometimes new clerks lack familiarity with this course. Using the call numbers I have listed with the material should help.  In Spring 2010, I placed online mp3's of all the lectures from the 104B course in class. However, the sound is not very loud. You can hear them OK if you use earphones--especially those that have a built in volume. The lectures have not been titled and you will needed to try and corresponded them to the earlier lectures from 2007. The list is at: http://www.kirshnerisms.com/Audio2.html

3.   After you have complete all the required assignments for Sections I through III, please contact me via e-mail to send you an exam.  After you have completed all the required assignments for Sections IV through VII and Exam I, please contact me via e-mail to send you an exam.  After completing all the required assignments for Sections VIII through X and Exam II, please contact me via e-mail to send you an exam.  All exams will consist of essay questions and you will have to answer one of the three questions provided.

4.   If you have any questions regarding the readings or would like to discuss an historical event with me you can send it to me via e-mail or since, I think I will still have my office(8320), we can set up a mutually agreeable time to meet.

5.   Again let me state that your exams MUST be mini-term papers. A term-paper is generally 25 to 30 pages.  So I will let you decide what a mini-term paper is, but you can be sure it is not 2 or 3 pages.

6.   Your grade will be an exact average of three exams and the sum total of ten two-page reaction papers (worth 10 points each). Translation--I will add up the four grades and divide by four. Grades are standard, eg. 89.6 to 100 is an A

STUDENT LEARNING OUTCOMES:
The student will:
1. Give examples of the emergence of national-states and their transformation to
nationalism in class and on exam.

2. Explain on an exam and in class the change from speculative thought to science.

3. Comment to the class on literature, music and art from various historical periods and in
diverse political cultures.

4. Name some of the historical conflicts of the past five hundred years.

5. Examine in various monographs the major forces of modern history: capitalism, science,
nationalism, imperialism, industrialism, Marxism, terrorism and future shock.

6. Identify in the group meeting various modern and contemporary political systems

ACADEMIC DISHONESTY:
Academic dishonesty defrauds all those who depend upon the integrity of the college, its courses, and its degrees and certificates.  Students are expected to follow the ethical standards required in Ohlone courses.  These standards are defined in the "Policy on Academic Dishonesty."   Violations of this policy include cheating and plagiarism. If you cheat on an exam you will obtain a 0 on the exam and an F in the course.  Once I enter the F grade you will not be able to take a W for the course.

STANDARDS OF STUDENT CONDUCT:
The student has the right and shares the responsibility to exercise the freedom to learn.  The student is expected to conduct himself/herself in accordance with the standards of the College that are designed to perpetuate its educational purposes.  

BEWARE:
“Too many people today view the world with a sense of personal entitlement.  They harbor a belief they are somehow entitled to a grade, a degree, a job, a raise, a mortgage, a home, the good life in general; rather than recognizing most of these things actually need to be earned.  We need to keep our commitment to a general and liberal education, with critical thinking as a core focus.  Personal assumptions and beliefs need continual reflection and scrutiny under the bright lights of reality and social awareness.  A sense of entitlement is difficult to maintain if one truly thinks in a critical manner.”  From Dr. Jim Wright, Ohlone College’s Vice President of  Academic Affairs, February 23, 2009

TELEPHONES: In case of an emergency you can call me at (510) 659-0358.  My e-mail is akirshner@ohlone.edu.

 COURSE OUTLINE

SECTIONS:    

I.        BOUNDED:  The Rise of National-States
A.   A look back
B.   Machiavellian
C.   Absolutism vs. Constitutionalism
D.   Mercantilism--International Conflict

II.       EMERGING:  The Baroque Era & The Enlightenment
A.   Balls are Heresy
B.   Cities--Structure twisted straight
C.   Free Schools
D.   Science, Sex and Culture

III.       EXPULSION: The Age of Revolution
A.   Examining the land and the people
B.   American Dreams and French Realitie
C.   Liberty and Equality
D.   Napoleonic Complex

EXAM I

IV.       CHANGE:   The Rise of Nationalism
A.   Lets be Romantic!
B.   Ripe Fruit or Strong Winds?
C.   Upheavals
D.   Blood and Iron

V.       ENERGY:   Industrialism and the Rise of the Masses
A.   Power
B.   Capital and Labor
C.   Impact
D.   Sex, Society and Culture

VI.       SCRAMBLE: Western Imperialism
A.   Penetration
B.   Migration
C.   Neo-Colonialism
D.   Responses

VII.     EXPLOSION: World War I and Its Aftermath
A.   A Closed System
B.   The shot heard round the world
C.   Lenin vs. Wilson
D.   Once they've seen Paree

EXAM II

VIII.   ANTITHESIS: The Mass Movements of Marxism & Fascism
A.   Totalitarianism of the right and the left
B.   Ideologies
C.   Stalin's Russia
D.   Fascist & NAZI Expansion

XI.        IMPLOSION: World War II and Its Aftermath
A.   First they came for . . .
B.   BOOM
C.   An Iron Curtain
D.   A Look to the East

X .       POLARIZATION:  Cold War-Détente & MODERNITY
A.   East-West Conflict
B.   North-South Reaction
C.   The Myth of Sisyphus
D.   It Ain't What It Use To Be!

EXAM III

COURSE ASSIGNMENTS

NOTE:              
All readings stated as required are required. Viewing the  class lectures on video podcasts and video tape is also required. In Spring 2007 I created video podcasts of my classroom lectures. You can download them from Ohlone’s iTunes College: http://itunes.Ohlone.edu  Video tapes are from the Spring 1995 Western Civilization 104B course.  I suggest you watch video podcasts in the small screen version as the resolution at larger sizes is very poor due to the need to reduce the size of the video file. Tab 2 at the iTunes History 104B site has the video podcast with subtitles! When asking for the video tapes from 1995 in the library please use the call numbers.

I.       BOUNDED!
         
REQUIRED READING:
Chapter 22 and Chapter 23             
        
REQUIRED VIEWING:
          Ohlone iTunes video podcasts 1/29/07 (Part 1), 1/29/07 (Part 2), 1/31/07, 2/9/07, 2/12/07 and Lecture 2 (VID/621), Lecture 3 (VID/622), Lecture 4 (VID/622), Lecture 5 (VID/623)

II.     EMERGING

REQUIRED READING: Chapter 24 plus

Everyday Life in the 17th Century, http://www.localhistories.org/stuart.html (also read the material at the links at said site)

Daily Life in the 18th Century plus attached links, http://www.localhistories.org/18thcent.html

REQUIRED VIEWING:
          Ohlone iTunes video podcasts 2/21/07, 2/28/07, 3/5/07,  and Lecture 7 (VID/624), Lecture 8 (VID/624), Lecture 9  (VID/625),   

III.     EXPULSION

REQUIRED READING:  Chapter 25

REQUIRED VIEWING:
          Ohlone iTunes video podcasts 3/7/07, 3/9/07, 3/14/07

EXAM I (SAMPLE ONLY)

IV.   CHANGE

REQUIRED READING:  Chapter 28 and Chapter 29

REQUIRED VIEWING:
         Ohlone iTunes video podcasts , 3/14/07 (repeat--especially last part of tape) 3/16/07, 3/19/07, 3/21/07, 3/23/07

V.     ENERGY

REQUIRED READING:  Chapters 26, 30 & 31

REQUIRED VIEWING:
          Ohlone iTunes video podcasts  4/2/07, 4/4/07, 4/6/07, 4/9/07
          ALSO VIEW: Video, "Disease in the 19th Century"(#VID/071)

VI.    SCRAMBLE

REQUIRED READING:  Chapter 32  and Chapter 33    
        
REQUIRED VIEWING:         
         Ohlone iTunes video podcasts 4/11/07,  4/13/07

VII.  EXPLOSION
         
REQUIRED READING: Chapter  34         

REQUIRED VIEWING:
         Ohlone iTunes video podcasts 4/16/07, 4/18/07

EXAM II (SAMPLE ONLY)

VIII. ANTITHESIS

REQUIRED READING:  Chapter 35

         
REQUIRED VIEWING:
         Ohlone iTunes video podcasts 4/30/07, 5/2/07, 5/7/07         
         Also VIEW:   Videos, "Fit to Rule"  (#VID/072)
         and "The Twisted Cross" (#VID/073)

IX.    IMPLOSION

REQUIRED READING:  Chapter 36

REQUIRED VIEWING:
         Ohlone iTunes video podcasts 5/11/07, 5/14/07, 5/16/07

X.     POLARIZATION

REQUIRED READING:   Chapters 37, 38 & 43
OPTIONAL READING:   Chapters 40, 41 & 42
         
REQUIRED VIEWING:
         Ohlone iTunes video podcasts 5/18/07

GUIDELINE FOR COMPLETION

WESTERN CIVILIZATION 104B -SPRING 2012

The schedule that follows suggests completion dates for your assignments. 

Although it is not mandatory, I strongly urge you to adhere to this schedule.
NOTES:  I PREFER ALL PAPERS TO BE SENT TO ME VIA E-MAIL: AKIRSHNER@OHLONE.EDU.

Either send them in Word format or a pdf file. You can insert the papers into the e-mail or both. Please do not send it to me in Works or Word Perfect or any other word processing format but Word.

Place your name on all papers you send plus the Section number of the reaction paper. Remember to return your exa questions with your answers.