History 1503 Online Fall 2023
Course Description
An introduction to the history of the Modern Middle East and North Africa from the 18th century to the present. Major themes in this course are: colonialism, empire, gender, class, religion, sectarianism and contemporary revolution.
Attendance Policy
It is the conviction of the Department of Social Science that a student who is not in a class for any reason is not receiving the benefit of the education being provided. Missed class time includes not just absences but also lateness, early departures, and time outside the classroom taken by students during class meeting periods. Missed time impacts any portion of the final grade overtly allocated to participation and/or any grades awarded for activities that relate to presence in class.
Course policy for Covid/ Bereavement
“Death in the immediate family includes the following persons: spouse, domestic partner, natural, foster or step parent, child, grandchild, brother or sister, father-in-law, mother-in-law, or any relative residing in the employee’s immediate household. Proof of death is required. Proof of residency is required for relative living in household. You are granted four days for bereavement.” (City Tech Staff handbook, 2019, https://www.citytech.cuny.edu/ofsr/docs/classified_staff_handbook.pdf)
Four days of bereavement is defined as an extension of all submitted work: exams, projects, labs and any submitted work that is graded and calculated into a final grade. While professors should be able to offer more time, the guidance is to offer the minimum. No student suffering a loss of a family member should be required to submit work, attend class or present during the bereavement period. Professors should provide the reasonable accommodation of at least four days to those students who are coping with the intensely emotional loss of a family member.
Guide
Here is a quick guide to the course
 Instructions on how to complete assignments
The rules of cheating and plagiarism
Grade Breakdown
Plagiarism exam 5%
Weekly discussion board 15%
Essay Exam 1 20%
Essay Exam 2 20%
Topic paper 5%
Debate paper 15%
Film paper 15%
Grade Breakdown
93-100 A (exceptional)
92-90 A- (superior)
87-89 B+ (very good)
83-86 B (good)
80-82 B- (above average)
77-79 C+ (slightly above average)
70-76 C (average)
60-69 D (poor)
Below 59 F (fail)
Please note that there are no plus or minus grades below C so be mindful that if you fall below 70 there is no cushion. Keep on top of your grades and come see me during office hours if you feel like you are lagging behind.
Also note that missing one or more assignments nearly guarantees that you will not get a score above a D. If you cannot do an assignment or attend a test, you must inform the professor in advance and ask for an extension. THERE IS NO LATE WORK.
Course and Classroom Policies
In order to provide an atmosphere of mutual respect that fostered intellectual cooperation and free thinking the following criteria for the classroom are not negotiable. These policies are based on my experience as a professor and do not necessarily reflect you as individuals or students.
- You must use your Citytech email address and have access to Blackboard.
- You must have an OpenLab account.
- All assignments will go through an originality check and offer students a score. It picks up quoted text and questions, but neither are considered for plagiarism and cheating. Only original work submitted by student will be considered. Work generated by AI is strictly prohibited. All forms of cheating are prohibited.
- If you have taken this class before you may not resubmit work- it will result in an F.
- You must complete the plagiarism test before you submit any work and submit your score via blackboard
- All students and the professor recognize that this class is a learning environment. Students may read perspectives that you may not agree with, may find offensive and may wholeheartedly believe are wrong. However, it is a college level class and being confronted with ideas that upset our worldview is a healthy and necessary process in a globalized world.
- I respond to emails between 9-5pm M-F- If you send me an email late at night or over the weekend, it will take me longer to get back to you then when I am at school during the week.
- All reading and writing assignments are mandatory and must be turned in by 11:59 pm on the date that they are due.
- Â I give extensions, and allow for revisions, but there are NO late papers.
- Plagiarism of any kind will result in an F in the course. Cheating also results in an F in the course. The use of AI technology is strictly prohibited and considered plagiarism.
- If you stop completing assignments then you will receive a WU, if you have poor attendance that results in missed assignments then you will receive an F.
- I give lots of feedback- It is meant to help you improve for your next assignment. It is never meant to hurt or insult you.
- If you have a question about an assignment, grades or anything related to this course, please refer to this syllabus first. Most answers can be found here.
- This syllabus will serve as a contract between student and instructor and if at any time there is any question with regard to the policies of the classroom, this syllabus will serve as the foundation.
- The syllabus is the law regarding grades, policies and assignment deadlines.
- Paraphrased ideas from your assignments must be cited. if you read something from the internet/ sources assigned and then change or manipulate it to represent it as your own idea- this is plagiarism and will result in an F in this course. Cite all Work.
- Please review rules on cheating and plagiarism
- You will be expected to submit plagiarism free assignments from DAY 1. Remember ANY ideas that do not emerge from your head, must be cited. Even readings for this class for your daily assignments. Please cite all work with quotations that are direct quotations and also all paraphrased citations.
If you have any questions about citations, please come and see me. Below you will find the NYCCT academic integrity statement:
Academic Integrity at City Tech
Students and all others who work with information, ideas, texts, images, music, inventions, and other intellectual property owe their audience and sources accuracy and honesty in using, crediting, and citing sources. As a community of intellectual and professional workers, the
College recognizes its responsibility for providing instruction in information literacy and academic integrity, offering models of good practice, and responding vigilantly and appropriately to infractions of academic integrity. Accordingly, academic dishonesty is prohibited in The City University of New York and at New York City College of
Technology and is punishable by penalties, including failing grades, suspension, and expulsion. The complete text of the College policy on Academic Integrity may be found in the catalog.
— NYCCT statement on academic integrity
Content Learning Outcomes and Assessment Measures=
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LEARNING OBJECTIVES: For the successful completion of this course, |
ASSESSMENT METHOD: Instructional ac- tivity and evaluation methods.* |
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Distinguish between different approaches to Mid- dle Eastern history. |
Read and discuss a variety of historical texts. Students will use these texts to complete written assignments and presentations. |
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Understand how historians utilize sources and crit- ical analysis to draw historical conclusions. |
Use primary and secondary sources to create their own historical conclusions. Students will discuss their conclusions in written quizzes and exams, as well as in oral in-class presentations. |
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Explain how the impact of western and non-west- ern peoples shaped the foundation of the modern world. |
Read from a variety of primary and secondary sources in history, philosophy, sociology, and economics. Students’content knowledge and critical thinking ability will be tested through in class quizzes and exams, as well as through in- class discussion and class presentations. _J |
Pathways World Cultures and Global Issues Learning Outcomes
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1. Identify and apply the fundamental concepts and methods of a discipline or in- terdisciplinary field exploring world cultures or global issues, including, but not limited to, anthropology, communications, cultural studies, economics, ethnic studies, foreign lan- guages (building upon previous language acquisition), geography, history, political sci- ence, sociology, and world literature. |
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2. Analyze culture, globalization, or global cultural diversity, and describe an event or process from more than one point of view. |
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3. Analyze the historical development of one or more non-U.S. societies. |
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4. Analyze the significance of one or more major movements that have shaped the world’s societies. |
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5. Analyze and discuss the role that race, ethnicity, class, gender, language, sexual ori- entation, belief, or other forms of social differentiation play in world cultures or societies. |
General Education Objectives and Assessment Methods
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LEARNING OBJECTIVES: |
ASSESSMENT METHOD: Instructional Activity, Evaluation Methods and Criteria.* |
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KNOWLEDGE: Engage in historical in- quiry, research, and analysis. |
Students will demonstrate the ability to evaluate a variety of historical sources for their credibility, posi- tion, and perspective, as well as contextualize materi- als from the past with appropriate precision and de- tail. Students will demonstrate this competency com- plete written exams, quizzes, assignments, in-class discussion and presentations. |
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Skills: Understand the complex nature of the historical record and generate significant, open-ended questions about the past and de- vise research strategies to answer them. |
Students will demonstrate the ability to 1) Distin- guish between primary and secondary source materi- als and decide when to use each, 2) Choose among multiple tools, methods, and perspectives to investi- gate and interpret materials from the past, and 3) Recognize the value of conflicting narratives and ev- idence, 4) Generate significant, open-ended questions about the past and devise research strategies to an- swer them, 5) Seek a variety of sources that provide evidence to support an argument about the past, 6) Develop a methodological practice of gathering, sift- ing, analyzing, ordering, synthesizing, and interpret- ing evidence, and 7) Identify and summarize other scholars’historical arguments. Students will demon- strate this competency complete written exams, quizzes, assignments, in-class discussion and presen- tations. – |
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Integration: Craft historical narrative and argument. |
Students will demonstrate the ability to 1) Generate a historical argument that is reasoned and based on his- torical evidence selected, arranged, and analyzed, 2) Write effective narrative that describes and analyzes the past for its use in the present, 3) Understand that the ethics and practice of history mean recognizing and building on other scholars’work, peer review, and citation, and 4) Defend a position publicly and revise this position when new evidence requires it. Students will demonstrate this competency complete written exams, quizzes, assignments, in-class discussion and presentations. |
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Values, Ethics, and Relationships: Practice historical thinking as central to engaged citi- zenship. |
Students will demonstrate the ability to 1) Engage a diversity of viewpoints in a civil and constructive fashion, 2) Work cooperatively with others to develop positions that reflect deliberation and differing per- spectives, and 3) Apply historical knowledge and analysis to contribute to contemporary social dia- logue. Students will be assessed through written ex- ams, quizzes, assignments, in-class discussion and group presentations. |
* may vary slightly per instructor
STUDENT ACCESSIBILITY
City Tech is committed to supporting the educational goals of enrolled students with disabilities in the areas of enrollment, academic advisement, tutoring, assistive technologies, and testing ac- commodations. If you have or think you may have a disability, you may be eligible for reason- able accommodations or academic adjustments as provided under applicable federal, state, and/ or city laws. You may also request services for temporary conditions or medical issues under cer- tain circumstances. If you have questions about your eligibility and/or would like to seek ac- commodation services and/or academic adjustments, please email the Student Accessibility Cen- ter.
COMMITMENT TO STUDENT DIVERSITY
The Department of Social Science complies with the college wide nondiscrimination policy and seek to foster a safe and inclusive learning environment that celebrates diversity in its many forms and enhances our students’ ability to be informed, global citizens. Through our example, we demonstrate an appreciation of the rich diversity of world cultures and the unique forms of expression that make us human.
