| Curriculum Map 2006-2007 | |||
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The Dwight School |
| Period | Content | Purpose/ Objectives | Activities & Resources | Areas of Interaction | Assessments | |
| Renaissance, Reformation and Scientific Revolution : | The Renaissance, Reformation and Scientific Revolution were all part of a new spirit in Western Europe. In many respects, this was the birth of the "modern world". |
This unit is focused on Europe and the dramatic change which occured in the way that people thought and acted. The Renaissance and the Scientific Revolution were not sudden events; rather, they evolved gradually. These changes were fundamental and altered the way the Europeans saw themselves, understood the world around them, and interpreted their faith and relationship to God. These events explain why European nations grew so powerful and how "Western" civilization became so dominant. They help us understand the Age of Exploration, the Enlightenment and modern World History. |
Textbook: "World History: Connections to Today" as well as numerous primary and secondary documents, with data based questions. The course starts with a viewing of a film excerpt from "The Gods Must be Crazy" that serves to focus discussion on civilizations and change. Students are introduced to Samuel Huntington's thesis on what makes civilizations rise and fall, as well as Paul Kennedy's thesis on the interrelationship between economic and military power. Primary documents include reproductions of Renaissance and pre-Renaissance art, arhcitecture and sculpture. Writings of Galileo and Newton are examined as are those of Luther and Calvin. |
How did the individuals studied in this unit learn and build off of their predecessors and contemporaries (Approaches to Learning - ATL)? How did they have an impact on the world around them (Community and Service)? What did the key figures of this unit create (Homo faber)? What were the benefis from the Scientific Revolution (Health and Social Education)? |
Students will have a unit test with short identifications, essay questions, and an analysis of art and architecture. |
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| The Development of Political Systems in Europe : | The development of Absolutism and Parliamentary systems in Europe. |
Key Questions: What makes people willing to give up their independence to central authority? Should power be centralized? How are nation states created? From the Late Middle Ages, Europe went through a turbulent period. The Bubonic Plague decimated one-third of the population in the 1300’s. Religious wars (The 100 Years War) and the old feudal order further held back political development. Slowly, political order was restored, trade resumed, economies grew and populations expanded. Was the old feudal order no longer necessary because of improved stability, or because more stability was needed? Two systems of political government evolved: the tendency to centralize control which led to absolute monarchies (kings had existed before) and the tendency to avoid centralization of power which led to parliamentary systems or constitutional monarchies. We shall seek to understand whether absolutism was necessary, whether it was a good thing that kings were trying to take power away from nobles who saw their power as hereditary – or were the nobles an important check on monarchic power? Was the centralization of justice and laws a positive development? Finally, how important are strong rulers to the development of countries and even of civilizations? Is strength always a result of the concentration of power, and how is it tied to financial resources and population size? |
Textbook: "World History: Connections to Today" as well as numerous primary and secondary documents, with data based questions. Primary Documents include writings of Bossuet, Saint Simon, Peter the Great, Parliament and James I of England, Frederick the Great, as well as pictures of Versaille and Philip II of Spain. |
What role did absolute monarchs play in forming their nation states (Homo faber)? What are the philosophical underpinnings of absolutism and parliamentary democracies (ATL)? What were the strengths and weaknesses of each system of government (Homo faber)? |
In this unit, students will have 2 assessments. First, they will write a 3 page letter to a monarch of a Central European country circa 1750; their task is to make an argument for absolutism and the benefits it can bring. |
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| Enlightenment (or the basis of Western Philosophi : | An overview of Enlightenment including the principal thinkers and their philosophical thought, as well as a brief discussion of enlightened monarchs. |
Key Questions: Do people have natural rights? Should people be given the freedom to manage their own affairs? In the mid 17th Century, following the Renaissance and Reformation, Europe experienced chaos and disorder, with frequent religious and civil wars. No country was exempt. People searched for an answer, an order to the chaos. Two main schools of thought evolved in politics: those who believed in centralizing authority under monarchs (Absolutists), and those who distrusted monarchies and wanted to vest power in Parliaments (Parliamentary Democrats). With education more widespread and communication improving, and with new answers provided by Scientific Revolution, more and more people thought that the answer lay in the human mind and in reason. When change was resisted, or came too slowly, results were often unpredictable, as we shall see in the next unit. What is curious is that this was the case with both models. |
Textbook: "World History: Connections to Today" as well as numerous primary and secondary documents, with data based questions. Primary documents include readings from Kant, The Magna Carta, Parliament's Petition of Rights, the English Bill of Rights, Descartes, Locke, Hobbes, Voltaire, Montesquieu, Diderot, Rousseau, Condorcet, Malthus, Ricardo, Catherine the Great of Russia, Joseph I of Austria. |
How did the Enlightenment philosophers influence the world around them (Community and Service)? How did their thinking help the evolution of political and social systems (Homo Faber)? Do people have "natural rights" and what consequences does this have for us (Homo Faber)? Should people have the freedom to manage their own affairs (Homo Faber)? How did Enlightenment ideas influence the thinking of people of that day (Community and Service)? What role do Enlightenment ideas play in the US Declaration of Independence and the French Declaration of the Rights of Man (ATL)? |
Students will choose either the Declaration of Independence or the Declaration of Rights of Man and Citizen, and will be asked to analyze the rights involved and relate these to Enlightenment philosophers who influenced the document. |
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| French and American Revolutions, and Napoleon : | The American War of Independence, the French Revolution and the Napoleonic era. |
While it was all well and good to hear concepts of Enlightenment thought such as natural rights, representative government, and social contracts – could all this really work in practice? Or were these simply noble theories? The drama of the American War of Independence during which American statesmen drew heavily on Enlightenment thought to buttress their appeals for independence, and then of the subsequent bloody French Revolution, changed the way people viewed the Enlightenment forever. For some, these were great events, long overdue; for others – a disaster. In this unit, we will study the issues and main events of both Revolutions and realte them to the Enlightenment. We shall also examine the legacy of one of the great military leaders of all time, Napoleon Bonaparte, and ask whether or not he furthered the ideals of the French Revolution. Key questions: Must a revolution end with a strong man? How did the Enlightenment influence revolutionary activity? Must revolutions be violent? Do revolutions achieve their goals? |
Textbook: "World History: Connections to Today" Primary documents include readings from Jefferson, various British Acts passed on the colonies (Townshend Revenue Act, Declaratory Act), Declaration of the Stamp Act Congress, The First Continental Congress. Later on, students will read from Louis XVI, the Tennis Court Oath, Cahier de Doleances, Robespierre, Napoleon, and women of the French Revolution. Students will also analyze political cartoons. |
How did the American and French Revolutions have an impact on the whole world (Homo Faber)? How did events in America and France shape the political and social environment (Homo Faber)? How can one compare and contrast the cause and effect of the two revolutions (ATL)? How did the French Revolution promote the idea of a nation and nationality, and how did it change the way people saw their community (Community and Service)? |
The unit assessment is a debate on the desirability of the French Revolution including a discussion of its causes and effects. Students will also have a quiz comprised of identification of key individuals, events and dates as well as essays that involve critical thinking. |
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| Resisting Change : | This unit will explore the tension betwen the conservative forces wishing to reestablish the old order and those who wanted change. The focus will be on the Congress of Vienna and the concept of the Balance of Power, the revolutions in Europe and South America in the 1820-1830's and 1848, the changing role of Women, Reform in England, and the Romantic Art movement. |
Key Questions: What was the legacy of the French Revolution and Napoleon? How did they affect countries in Europe and Latin America? How does authority react to violence and chaos? What causes nationalism? The violence and terror of the French Revolution and the wars with Napoleon disconcerted the established order. With the Congress of Vienna, the established monarchies tries to halt the spread of revolutions. Despite their efforts, countries in Eastern and Central Europe, and in Latin America graudally started to gain their independence. The issue of women's rights started to make itself known. Another important reaction to the spread of reason as advocated by the Enlightenment was the Romantic movement that glorified the senses and rebelled against a tyranny of the mind. |
Textbook: "World History: Connections to Today" as well as numerous primary and secondary documents with data based questions, maps. Primary documents include a map exercise, readings from the Congress of Vienna, Metternicht, Troppau protocol, The Carlsbad Decrees of 1819, Mazzini, Bolivar, Decree of Nicholas I on Poland, Chartist petition, The Seneca Falls Convention, Mary Wollstonescraft, Elizabeth Sandford, Pankhurst and more. Students will learn how to compare Romanticist and Classical art, and how to analyze romanticist art. |
What is Romanticism in art and what world view does it reflect (Homo Faber and ATL)? How and why did countries and leaders react to changes in Europe (Community and Service)? How did new nationalist leaders take the example of the American Independence and the French Revolution (Homo Faber)? What were the socio-economic and political effects of the French Revolution and the Napoleonic era (Community and Service)? |
A major art research project exploring examples of Romantic Art at the Metropolitan Museum (done jointly with the Visual Art Department). A short quiz involving identification of key events and people. |
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| Economic Power : | The Industrial Revolution, its philosophical underpinnings and its effects. Students will understand mercantilism and free markets, as well as receive a basic explanation of supply and demand economics. Students will examine the Agricultural Revolution which started in England, the First and Second Industrial Revolutions, understand how it affected society, and explore the ideas of Malthus and Ricardo. |
Key Questions: Should markets be regulated or controlled? How are free markets linked to democratic political systems? How does industrial change affect social structure? What is the relationship between economic and military power? The Industrial Revolution and the cataclysmic changes it brought to Europe and the world affected everybody and everything. The invention of the steam engine and subsequent technological inventions were driven by economic considerations, and led to the development of capitalism and the concentration of industrial power. Capitalism, in turn, led to the search for new markets and new sources of raw materials, and therefore imperialism. The Industrial Revolution’s had a destructive impact on families, cultures and societies, as millions left the countryside to find low-paying jobs in the rapidly growing, overcrowded, polluted cities. New problems had arisen along with new opportunities. Diverse groups such as women and workers organized to promote and protect their rights. |
Textbook: "World History: Connections to Today" Primary sources will include readings from Colbert (on mercantilism), Adam Smith's Wealth of Nations, Malthus, Ricardo, and Paul Kennedy. Students will work with charts, and engage in a class-based factory simulation. |
What were some of the social conequences of industrialization ((Health and Social Education)? How did the industrial revolutHow do technological changes and economic developments affect communities (Community and Service)? How did the Industrial Revolution affect people's environment (Environment)? How does technology affect our lives and how have technological advances affected people in the 19th and 20th centuries (ATL)? What were soe of the major inventions of this era (Homo Faber)? |
Students will be asked to compare the steam engine to a 20th century invention, either using Powerpoint, poster boards, or as a research paper with visuals. |
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| Building National Identity : | During the second part of the 19th century, the idea of nation-states evolved from being a "revolutionary" idea to being "a demand." Some of the strongest nations of the 20th and 21rst centuries were unified during this period. The unit studies the birth of modern Germany, the unification of Italy, Zionism, Chinese reforms, and the Meiji Restoration. |
Key Questions: What were the attributes of successful national movements? How is national identity defined? Who is entitled to a separate nation, and who decides? The Congress of Vienna attempted to restrain powerful new forces that were rapidly spreading. The purpose of this unit is to explore how the ideas of the French Revolution and Napoleon, and before that the American Revolution and Enlightenment thought helped spread the new idea of nationalism. |
The main resource for this unit will be the text, "World History: Connections to Today." Primary sources include map exercises and primary documents from Mazzini, King Victor Emmanuel, Cavour, Herzl, Kaiser Wilhelm, Bismarck and Declarations of the Frankfurt Assembly. |
How is national identity perceived; how and why do ethnic groups relate to each other; what makes them desire to be "with their own kind" (Community and Service)? Who were the main leaders of nationalism movements and how did they achieve their goals(Homo Faber)? What were the consequences of the nationalsit movements in Europe and the world (Homo Faber)? |
Students be given a test with identifications and short essays with critical thinking questions. |
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| Imperialism : | This unit will examine Imperialism and its effects on Africa, The Moslem world (Ottoman Empire and Egypt, Persia and India), China, Meiji Japan, Africa, and the Philippines. |
Key Questions: What lay behind European (and US) imperialism? How did economic power directly translate into military power? How did other countries react to imperialism? The purpose of this unit is to demonstrate how the Industrial Revolution translated into an economic and militry advantage of such proportions, that the European powers and the US, in a short period of time, were able to dominate most of the globe. Students will understand the competition that drove this, and the effect on the developing countries that were at the receiving end of the imperialism. |
The main resource for this unit is the textbook "World History: Connections to Today" Primary Sources include a large variety of primary documents as well as cartoons, pictures and poems. Excerpts are read from Niall Ferguson's "Empire", Samuel Huntington's "Clash of Civilizations". Students will read Kipling, Rammokun Roy, the Azamgarh Proclamation., and Theodore Roosevelt. |
How can one evaluate the Scramble for Africa from the perspective of one of the European Powers (ATL)? How did the Great Powers succeed in acquiring huge colonial empires and what were their reasons for doing so (HomoFaber)? What effect did imperialism have on the colonies and their people (Community and Service) How did the economic factors driving imperialism affect overseas colonies and their internal development (Environment)? What were the effects of the changes brought about by imperialism (Health and Social Education)? |
Students will work in pairs on a research project entitled "The Scramble for Africa." They will be asked to make an oral team presentation with visual aids (posters, maps, etc) and will be required individually to write up the results of their research. Students will be assigned one of the European powers and must present how well their country did in terms of colonies by examining the reources, climate and geography. Finally, students must make a strategic assessment of the colonies their country acquired. Students will be assessed both as a team and individually for their work. |
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| World War I and Its Legacy : | This unit looks in depth at the events of World War I, including: the reasons for the outbreak of the war, the impact on individuals and societies. Students will examine the concept of "total war." |
The purpose of this unit is to have students gain a firm knowledge of the causes, events, and effects of World War I. Of utmost importance is that students come away from this unit with a firm understanding of the earth-shattering and long-lasting impact of the war, a conflict that marked the definitive end of the nineteenth-century and the beginning of the twentieth. |
The main resouce for this unit is the textbook, "World History: Connections to Today." Other resources include excerpts from Paul Kennedy's "Rise and Fall of Great Powers," and numerous primary resources. |
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In two parts: students will individually write a 1-2 page editorial, arguing for or against war, taking the position of England, France, Russia, Germany or Austria. Students will also work in pairs to prepare a propaganda poster for or against the war. |
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| Revolution in Russia : | This unit considers the causes, events, and outcome of the Bolshevik Revolution in Russia through the period leading up to World War II. Areas of focus comprise the formation of the Bolshevik party, the Revolution of 1905, the February and October 1917 Revolutions, Civil War and war Communism, NEP, Stalin's rise to power, the Five-Year Plan, and the Great Purges. |
The purpose of this section is to understand why and how revolution came to Russia. The effect of industrialization, revolutionary activity, and World War I will be studied. Students will explore Marx's and Lenin's philisophy; they will compare capitalism and democracy to command economies and communism. They will explore whether terror and repression started with Lenin or Stalin, and they will understand the nature of a regime that killed tens of millions of its own citizens. |
*The main resource for this section is the textbook, "World History: Connections to Today" *Primary sources include excerpts from Marx, Nicholas II (October Manifesto), the Provisional Government, selected writings of Lenin, Stalin, and victims of the purges. |
(ATL) Why was Russia an improper place for a Communist revolution? (Homo faber) How did this reality lay the foundation for terrible suffering, if the Bolsheviks were ever going to gain firm control over the country? |
A unit test will ask students to identify key events, people and concepts as well as ask them to write essays showing their critical thinking abilities. |
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| Totalitarianism and the Holocaust : | This unit explores the origins and nature of totalitarianism in Germany, Italy, Spain and Japan. Students revisit the Treaty of Versaille and the conditions of that treaty. The economic rebound in Germany in the 1920's and the global catastrophe of the Great Depression (including in the US) are covered as well. The unit finishes with a study of the Holocaust, from its early development to the "Final Solution." |
Students will make the connection between economic problems, political instability, and the attraction of radical solutions. In studying the Holocaust, students will learn about the motives and psychology of the participants by reading their first-hand accounts. An effort will be made in this unit to contrast the philosophy of totalitarian rulers to ideas proposed in the Enlightenment. Comparisons will be drawn to Soviet Russia after 1917, and specifically to ideas and practices of Lenin and Stalin. |
The main resouce for this unit is the textbook, "World History: Connections to Today." Students will view selected excerpts from "Triumph of the Will" and "Night and Fog." Primary documents will include the Treaty of Versaille, as well as excerpts from the writings of Hitler, Mussolini, Goebbels and various Nazi writings. |
What is the basis of discrimination and the excesses of nationalism (Health and Social education)? How did events after World War I lead to the rise of totalitarian regimes (Community and Service)? |
Students are asked to write a series of four letters between a high school student and a local fascist party leader living in the 1930's (either in Germany, Italy, or Japan). The letters are a debate on the relationship of the individual and authority. |
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| World War II : | With a clear understanding of totalitarianism, students study the major events and turning points of World War II, in both the European and Pacific theatres. These will include the Blitzkrieg, Dunkirk, the Battle of Britain, Pearl Harbor and Operation Barbarossa, El Alamein, the Battles of Midway and Coral Sea. Those students who wish to study World War II in more depth, will be given the opportunity to do so and will be asked to present in class |
Key Questions: What makes people decide to fight for a cause? How do strategic decisons change the course of events? The purpose of this unit is to help students understand the major strategic decisions taken by the Allies and Axis Powers, and how these had an impact on the outcome of the war. Students will learn the major battles, areas of conflict and turning points. The emphasis is on the strategic decisions that were taken. A final objective is to help students understand how developments in World War II affected the post-war world. |
*The main resource for this unit is the textbook, "World History: Connections to Today." *Primary sources include Churchill's and FDR speeches, accounts of war (eg during the Battle of Britain), as well as US and Japanese perspectives on the atomic bomb. |
How do actions taken by leaders affect nations and people (Community and Service)? How did the "free world" respond to the threat of fascism (Community and Service)? How did the war help shape the post-war world (Homo Faber)? |
*A unit test will gauge students' understanding of the main events of World War II as well as their conceptual grasp of key turning points. |
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| The Cold War : | This unit explores the Cold War period and its impact on the world. It provides a framework for major events of the Cold War including the Berlin Airlift, Korea, the Cuban Missile Crisis, and Vietnam. It incorporates the major changes in the Soviet Union from Stalin, to Khruschev, Brezhnev, to Gorbachev and Yeltsin. |
The purpose of this unit is for students to explore the reprecussions of the competition between the Soviet Union and the United States during the post-war period. Students will examine the economic and political effects of the Cold War and will examine the arms race, detente and the break-up of the Soviet state. |
*The main resource for this unit is the main text, "World History: Connections to Today." *Primary sources include Truman's speech to congress on March 12, 1947, in which he introduced the "Truman Doctrine, Churchill's Iron Curtain Speech, and various documents pertaining to the Brezhnev Doctrine as well as the break up of the Soviet Union. |
(ATL, Homo faber) What is the difference between a "cold" and a "hot" war? (ATL, Homo faber, Environment, Health, Community) Has globalization been positive, negative, or both? (ATL, Homo faber) Why has terrorism become an increasingly serious problem over the past twenty-five years? |
A chapter test will evaluate students understanding of the main events of the Cold War, as well as key terms from this unit like terrorism, globalization, interdependence, and multinational corporation. A two-page essay will ask students to compare and contrast positive and negative aspects of globalization. |
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| The New World Order : | This unit builds off the previous unit on the Cold War and explores its effect on different parts of the world. The collapse of the last major European Empires concided with independence movements in former colonies. Specific areas covered include India, Africa (Including South Africa and Nigeria), China and the Middle East (Iraq and Iran). Students study challenges facing the global community such as envioronmental problems, competition for resources and nuclear non-proliferation. The unit ends with an examination of new institutional structures (such as the UN, EU, and IMF)that have been created to address these challenges, and considers whether these new institutions are successfull. |
The purpose of this unit is to explore the how the cold war era affected independence movements in different parts of the world. It is also to understand the global challenges facing citizens of the 21rst century, as well as their solutions. Students will consider issues such as national security, nuclear non-proliferation, the struggle for resources such as energy, food and water), health crises, famines and poverty. |
The main resource for this unit is the textbook, "World History: Connections to Today." Primary sources include writings of Mao, Gandhi, Dag Hammerskjold and Bin Laden. Documents also include the UN Charter. |
What are the challenges facing the modern world (ATL, Community and Service)? What are some of the ways that people have devloped solutions to global problems (Homo Faber)? What will the competition for resources incorporate (Environment)? How do events and problems in other parts of the world affect us (Health and Social Education)? |
Students will be asked to play the role of a senior Foreign Policy Advisor to the US President in writing a 3-4 page memorandum analyzing the challenges facing the United States today. Alternatively, non-US students can do so to their country's government leader. |
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| Final Exam : | During the first week in June, students will take a two-hour exam. Students will be asked to demonstrate their knowledge and understanding of the themes in the course by writing 2-3 in-class essays. Essay questions will be given to students a week or so in advance to give them time to develop their arguments cogently and comprehensively. The exam will count no more than 10% of the third trimester grade. |
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