Foundations of the Modern World Course Overview

Taught by: Kathy Krauth & Mark Johnson

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Foundations of the Modern World

Foundations of the Modern World is not the sum of all history, but rather the story of the connections and interactions between human communities. This story can be told through individuals, groups, whole societies, countries or nations, or it can be told through all of humanity. In this course, students investigate the patterns and linkages in the world which have become the foundations for the global community. They thematically study human interactions across civilizations and cultures. Students study global themes and forces which have helped shaped human civilizations. Students analyze the economic, political, and social factors which laid the foundations for the industrial modern world. Foundations of the Modern World  assists students in understanding the emergence of a global community, prepares them for the understanding of the modern and contemporary world which they study in Modern World History as sophomores, and challenges them to develop the skills and thinking processes necessary to become compassionate, inquisitive global citizens.

Text: Beck, Roger, Linda Black, Larry Krieger, Phillip Naylor, and Dahia Shabaka. World History: Patterns of Interactions. Evanston: McDougell Littell, 2005.

Prerequisite: 9th grade standing