Western Civilization III Discussi Essays - Conn, Aggregat

Western Civilization III Discussion Section Fall 2013 016: 003: A11 and A12 University of Iowa Lecture: Penny Instructor: Conn Email: [emailprotected] [discussion] Email: [emailprotected] [lecture] Website: icon.uiowa.edu Office hours: TBD Office: 167 Schaeffer Hall Course Description: This course meets General Education Requirements for students without prior instruction in modern European history. It offers an overview of major trends in Europe since the mid-eighteenth century, focusing on social, political, cultural, and economic changes. Primarily we will discuss how a continent inhabited largely by peasants, artisans, and aristocrats became the democratic, post-industrial, technocratic world we know today. As we figure out how and why this happened, we will also examine how the history of modern Europe, and the "West" more broadly, is also a story of who gets to tell us about the past and how these voices have helped to carve out the present. Thus, our objective will be to understand history not only as a story of what happened but as an argument. This course is designed to help you think analytically about the past and present, to develop skills to identify and evaluate problems, and to move beyond simply repeating answers. In so doing, our discu ssions will foster your critical thinking with three important questions: how? why ? so what? Evaluation: Assignment Due Date Percentage of Final Grade First Essay 18/19? September 20% Midterm Exam 3 October 15 % Second Essay 6/7 November 20 % Discussion ongoing 20 % Final Exam Finals Week: TBD 25 % Course Policies: See Prof. Penny's syllabus. Required Reading: See Prof. Penny's Syllabus or his course ICON site. *There is also additional required reading on the main course ICON website. Reading Schedule: We will follow Prof. Penny's main course syllabus. Thus, we will discuss the 3 September lecture and reading assignments on 4 September ; the 5 September lecture and reading assignments on 9 September, etc. Any changes to this schedule will be posted to ICON. Reading Requirement: You are expected to have completed the assigned reading prior to attending discussion section. As by definition, a discussion section is primarily a conversation based on shared readings (and lecture), attendance without preparation is basically pointless. Your TA's take on course assignments (he grades all of your coursework). Exams : . In past semesters these have consisted of short answer questions (aka IDs) and longer essays that require students to synthesize material presented in class and draw on assigned readings in support of an argument. One week prior to each exam we will devote an entire class session to review. Regular participation in discussion section will facilitate success on exams. Essays: In order to help students develop their academic writing and critical thinking skills, they will submit two 4-5 page essays on topics to be assigned later this semester. All essays are expected to contain an introduction with a strong thesis statement (in the first paragraph), a clear and logical organizational structure with crisp topic sentences, paragraphs that sustain the essay's argument by properly citing sources, and a lucid conclusion. For matters of clarity and style consult Strunk and White's Elements of Style (free online): see link via ICON. Discussion: In addition to essay writing and test taking, you will also be asked to participate regularly in class discussion. Thus, attendance counts. Exam questions and paper topics are often derived directly from class discussion. Students are expected to arrive at class on time , and to be prepared to ask questions (not so much to me, but better yet, to your classmates) concerning the assigned readings. Students must complete all of the day's assigned readings prior to the beginning of class (and I suggest reading some of the documents more than once). Students who arrive late or have not completed the reading will be marked absent . Participation will be evaluated through various weekly assignments. You should expect to read 50-75 pages per week, and come to class prepared to discuss questions and interpretations. Keep in mind that some readings will be more difficult than others, some will be more interesting, and some will be more important. By definition, discussion sections are based on a conversation between students which is facilitated by the discussion leader (me). At