History 101-80 Prof. Wolk Fall 2010 wolkr@wpunj.edu WELCOME Welcome to History 101-80 Western Civilization I. Please read this letter carefully. More detailed instructions can be found in “Submitting Assignments” in the Course Documents section of Bb. Please read this first to avoid having to redo your assignments. History 101 is a survey course that will introduce you to the major historical and cultural developments of Western Civilization from the ancient Near East to the Protestant Reformation. The syllabus, assignments, and all course documents will be available on Blackboard when classes begin on September 1. The syllabus contains the course overview, the calendar, grading methods, and all other relevant information that you must be familiar with. To be successful in this course you must keep up with the weekly reading and writing assignments. Please keep in mind that online courses are not easier than lecture courses! Requirements & Course Help 1. Students are expected to use Windows 95/98, or a higher compatible version. 2. All assignments must be submitted using the standard Microsoft Word program that is part of the MS Office Suite. The University does not support other word processing programs! 3. Set up your pages so that written assignments use the Times New Roman font 11 or 12 pitch, are double-spaced, and have 1” margins. 4. Answers to assignment questions should be submitted in the Assignment section of Blackboard on the appropriate due date. You will see your grade, and sometimes a comment, on every assignment within a few days. This will provide feedback as to how you are progressing in the course. 5. Because the assignments are posted for the entire semester, you may work on and submit assignments in advance. When submitting assignments always indicate the assignment number and copy each question before the answer so that I can give you credit and respond to your answers 6. All correspondence during the course will be conducted using WPUNJ e-mail. I will not open any messages from your personal e-mail! 7. Save and submit your assignments in the Rich Text Format (rtf) format. This should resolve most compatibility problems. You will find the save format in the “Save As Type” drop down box below the box in which you name your document 8. If you have hardware or software problems you should contact the Instructional Resource Team at (973) 720-2659 or (973) 720-HELP. I can not personally assist you with these problems. Course text books: J. Spielvogel. Western Civilization: A Brief History. Volume I to 1715 (3d or 4th edition) M. Perry. Sources of the Western Tradition. Volume I (7th edition) These have been packaged together at a savings to you, and are available in the bookstore. If you get to the bookstore early, you may find used copies. The books may also be available to rent at a reduced cost. Other readings on Bb or online as indicated Weekly Assignments (40 points): Each assignment contains 4-5 questions. The answers to all the questions should be 1.5 to 2 pages long. You will be judged on the quality of your answers and the use of college-level English! Do not expect full credit for three sentence answers. Also, you will lose points for late submissions. Research Assignment (20 points): The research assignment requires you to do a book review or visit a museum. If you have never been to the MET or the Cloisters, you will find this a great learning experience! Detailed instructions on this assignment will be found under “Assignments” in Bb. Communications: The best way to contact me is by e-mail: wolkr@wpunj.edu For security purposes, I will only respond to e-mail sent on your wpunj student account. My office is in the Library. If you need to speak with me in person, I am usually in the Cheng Library on Monday evenings from 7-10 p.m. Please e-mail in advance. You should check your student e-mail several times a week for announcements to see if I made any changes to the syllabus or comments to the class. Please feel free to contact me. I am always available to assist with any problems you may have. Have a good semester - Prof. Wolk
