Social Studies Department

Essential Knowledge and Skills

Students in World History will investigate the rise and development of the modern political system of Europe. Students will assess the importance of intellectual and cultural change on early modern society. Students will investigate the role of revolution in the establishment of governmental systems, and analyze the economic transformation of production and distribution of goods in Europe. Students will evaluate the impact of Western imperialism on Africa, Asia, and the Pacific, and will analyze the global political and economic issues of the first half of the 20th century. Students will investigate the impact of the Cold War. Students will investigate the creation of international organizations. Students will evaluate the impact of terrorism on the world’s political, economic, and social systems.

Indicators of Student Learning

Upon the completion of this course, students will:

Communication

• Build Social Studies vocabulary, and express historical ideas in oral and written form.

• Use communication strategies to facilitate retention of information such as repeating information, constructing mnemonics and taking notes.

• Synthesize prior knowledge and new information in order to understand important issues, solve problems, and communicate ideas.

• Share ideas and information in small groups and general class discussion, through coherent speech, visual and multi-media presentations, etc.

• Use writing as a learning tool, e.g., journals, paraphrasing, summarizing, research reports, and notebooks.

• Write cohesive, comprehensible essays using rubrics.

Content

• Understand the political, economic, intellectual and artistic contributions of Classical Greek and Roman civilization to western and world culture.

• Investigate the transformation from medieval political and economic organization—feudalism and manorialism—to the rise of national monarchies and their subsequent economic development.

• Understand the emergence of the Renaissance and its influence on Europe and the wider world.

• Explain the political, economic, and social consequences of the rise of national monarchies and the modern nation state. This may include examining the roles of men, women, and children in European society.

• Understand the political, social, and economic factors that led to revolution in the modern world, including the English, French, and American Revolutions, as well as the Agricultural and Industrial Revolutions.

• Analyze the significant ideas of the Scientific Revolution and Enlightenment, as well as nineteenth-century ideologies including liberalism, socialism, and communism.

• Identify the major causes and effects of World Wars One and Two, as well as investigate the impact of totalitarianism on Europe, i.e. Nazism, Italian fascism, and Stalinism.

• Explain the key elements of the Cold War, and analyze the causes and effects of the collapse of the Soviet Union.

Technology

• Use a word processor to produce well-formatted papers.

• Create individual written projects using appropriate production software.

• Use the Internet as an effective research tool.

Assessment

Upon the completion of this course, students will:

• Demonstrate understanding of course content through taking true and false, multiple choice, and short-answer examinations.

• Demonstrate competency in communication by expressing ideas clearly, using correct terminology, writing cohesive essays, and presenting information in visual presentations.

• Demonstrate competency in technology by researching, creating, and presenting projects and papers.