Class Description: World History has the good, bad and ugly- what you choose to learn from it makes all the difference for your future!  Join me as we study "...things which have been- things which are at home, things which are abroad; the wars and the perplexities of the nation... and a knowledge also of countries and of kingdoms."  (DC 88)

Discover the political ideologies, industrial advances, pivotal alliances and wars, as well as important inventors, artists, scientists & revolutionaries that have influenced the development of ideas and ultimately improved the human experience, emphasizing1945- Modern Day.
In this 13-week class, we will discuss the developing global interactions and implications/ improvements of the human experience in a Judeo-Christian worldview- including cultural literacy relative to this time frame: Cold War and Post War Changes, the Contemporary Western World, Latin America, Africa and the Middle East, Asia and the Pacific, and Changing Global Patterns.

Please note that we discuss the social injustice of racism and discrimination in this study of Twentieth Century World History as it continues to be a part of our human story. From monarchies to republics- those whom are our government officials should reflect private as well as public virtue. With the creation of the US Constitution and subsequent republics formed around the world, we have seen HUGE leaps of progress in creating equality in law for all- in quoting the words of John Locke- "Where-ever the law ends, tyranny begins." The social contract between government and man continues to be developed and improved where laws can be passed which sustain an economically stable environment to provide opportunity for all regardless of nationality, ethnicity or culture.

Homework: Students are encouraged to connect and apply what they are learning by engaging in discussion, reflecting on supplemental video content, completing weekly homework assignments, including narrations and two required presentations to show understanding of subject matter. The bulk of weekly homework consists of preparing for the discussion about 1945- Modern Day, completing the review questions and an occasional preparation for themed narrations/ presentations- expect 1-2 hrs. of out of class time prep per week. I will be asking students to prepare 2-3 min narrations and current event presentations weekly.

Required Texts: Ebook (provided) Glencoe World History by Jackson J. Spielvogel, Ph.D. ISBN 9780078745256 (hardback to purchase- ISBN 9780078785849)

Colloquia Discussion: Individual Life Studies (not provided) Studying the life and works of notable individuals through biographies and memoirs provides valuable lessons in life. Every life serves a purpose, and discovering your own purpose can be aided by delving into the lives of others whose purposes have made our lives better or worse. Students will choose two books/ influential figures from the list below and come prepared to share a short narration about the book as well as discussion worthy ‘epiphany’ quote, question and insight. Epiphany- "an illuminating discovery, realization, or disclosure or a revealing scene or moment." God often uses such moments of illumination to bring people to the knowledge of Himself. This illumination, or epiphany, is one of the central aspects of Christianity, for without God's intervention, none of us would see the truth. Colloquia Reading (not provided): (or propose another biography/ memoir)

First Colloquia: Choose one story/ influential figure you aren’t familiar with- Red Scarf Girl (Jiang), A Long Way Home (Brierley) & To Destroy You is No Loss (Criddle)

Second Colloquia: Choose one story/ influential figure you aren’t familiar with- Long Walk to Water (Park), Kisses for Katie (Davis) & Running for My Life (Lomong)

Additional literature (AR) of historical fiction, classics and biographies are given as individual reading or family read aloud suggestions which can provide a better understanding of this Modern Age experienced firsthand.

Week One- Anglo-American Saeculum, Turnings, Generation: Boomers, Gen X, Millennials, Gen Y, Archetypes: Prophet, Nomad, Hero, Artist; Thinking Like a Historian: Storyteller, Scientist, Lawyer

Week Two- Capitalism vs. Communism: Iron Curtain, Propaganda, Truman Doctrine, Marshall Plan, Policy of Containment, Korean War, East and West Germany, Berlin Airlift & Wall, NATO vs. Warsaw Pact; The Arms Race: Space Race, Sputnik, Apollo 11

Week Three- USSR: Khrushchev, De-Stalinization, Solzhenitsyn; Britain’s Welfare State; European Economic Community (EEC); Keynesian vs. Austrian Schools of Economics; Scandinavian Socialism: Democratic Socialism vs. Social Democracy

Week Four- Cold War: Cuban Missile Crisis, Day of Pigs; Vietnam War: Domino Theory, Vietcong, POW/ MIA, Anti-War Sentiment, Memorial; Red Scare, Alger Hiss, Joseph McCarthy, Jim Crow Laws, Martin Luther King, Jr; John F. Kennedy/ JFK

Week Five- USSR: Expansion, Détente, Premier, KGB, Dissident, Mikhail Gorbachev, Perestroika & Glasnost, US President Ronald Reagan, Peace Through Strength; Chernobyl; Economic Challenges, Organized Crime; Eastern Europe Paths to Independence: Germany, Fall of Berlin Wall; Balkans- Ethnic Cleansing, Genocide, Croatia, Serbia, Bosnia; Romania, War with Ukraine

Week Six- European Union, Brexit; Keynesian vs. Austrian Schools Economics: Liberal vs. Conservative Policies; Thatcherism; Watergate, Nixon, Reagan, Clinton, NAFTA; Women’s Liberation Movement; Terrorism, 9/11; Science & Technology: Pros/ Cons- Environmental Damage, GMOs. Christian Revival; Pop Culture/ Art- Abstractionism, Postmodernism, Olympics

Week Seven- First Colloquia Discussion Epiphany Presentations

Week Eight- Latin American Economics, Population Growth, US Involvement; Cuba: Batista, Fidel Castro, Ché Guevara, Bay of Pigs; Panama Canal; Argentina: Juan Peron, Evita, Falkland Islands; Chilean Oligarchy, Military Coup; Columbian Drug Cartel

Week Nine- Algeria, Rwanda, Ghana, South Africa: Apartheid, Nelson Mandela; Pan-Africanism; Egypt, OPEC, Zionism, Israel: Jerusalem, Palestine, PLO, Six Day War 1967, Suez Canal War, Pan-Arabism, Yasir Arafat, Intifada; Iran: Shiite; Iraq: Sunni, Saddam Hussein, Kuwait, Persian Gulf War; Afghanistan: Taliban, Osama bin Laden; Islamic Militancy & Women’s Roles

Week Ten- China, Communist Party, Mao Zedong, People’s Revolution, People’s Republic of China, Great Leap Forward, Cultural Revolution, Little Red Book, The Four Olds, Deng Xiaoping, Tiananmen Square, Tank Man, Hong Kong; India; Pakistan: Bangladesh; Vietnam War: Vietcong, Cambodia: Pol Pot, Khmer Rouge; Japanese Miracle; Four Asian Tigers: Singapore, Hong Kong, Taiwan, South Korea; Lands Down Under

Week Eleven- Global Progress vs. Environmental Impact, Ecology, Developing vs. Industrialized Nations; United Nations: Security Council, UNESCO- United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization, UNICEF- United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund, UNESCO World Heritage Sites, Book of Daniel- Biblical Prophecy

Week Twelve- Second Colloquia Discussion Epiphany Presentations

Week Thirteen- Final Presentations & Kahoot Review