Honors World History

         Below, you will find specifics regarding Honors World History.  This will include what to expect throughout the course and what extensions an honors student will receive in this class that is not taught in the general level class.  If you have questions regarding the following, please contact the course teacher.

Curriculum Content

Honors World History provides the opportunity for advanced work, rigorous study, and systematic study of major ideas and concepts found in the study of global history. The course is challenging and requires students to take greater responsibility for their learning by participating in problem-seeking, problem-solving, scholarly and creative processes, critical analysis and application, and reflective thinking. Although the goals and objectives are the same as those found in the North Carolina Essential Standards, the material is taught with greater complexity and reflects a differentiated curriculum.

Honors World History is a survey course that gives students the opportunity to explore recurring themes of human experience common to civilizations around the globe from ancient to contemporary times. An historical approach will be at the center of the course.  The application of the themes of geography and an analysis of the cultural traits of civilizations will help students understand how people shape their world and how their world shapes them.  As students examine the historical roots of significant events, ideas, movements, and phenomena, they encounter the contributions and patterns of living in civilizations around the world.  

Students broaden their historical perspectives as they explore ways societies have dealt with continuity and change, exemplified by issues such as war and peace, internal stability and strife, and the development of institutions.  To become informed citizens, students require knowledge of the civilizations that have shaped the development of the United States. World History provides the foundation that enables students to acquire this knowledge which will be used in the study of Honors Civics and Economics and Honors American History I & II. Students will be expected to learn the basic standards quickly and should be ready to dig deeper into content through our Honors World History extensions. These extensions are designed to prepare students for future honors and Advanced Placement courses within the Social Studies pathway and across other subject areas. Honors World History is a recommended pre-requisite for all subsequent Honors Social Studies courses. Through the study of World History, students will acquire the skills and knowledge necessary to become responsible and effective citizens in an interdependent world.

Standards and Objectives

While the North Carolina Essential Standards emphasize the development of historical thinking skills in the World History classroom (WH1.1-5), Honors World History students will focus on the development of the historical thinking skills adopted by College Board for the AP World History, United States History, and European History courses. These include crafting historical arguments from historical evidence, chronological reasoning, comparison and contextualization, historical interpretation and synthesis. In addition Honors World History students will understand the importance of geographic location and the geographic thinking skills adopted by College Board for AP Human Geography. These include spatial thinking, regionalization, cultural diffusion and globalization.

The skills will be developed by teachers through explicit attention to historical and geographic thinking in individual and group activities, open-ended research and writing assignments and skills-based formative assessment strategies. Students will practice using these skills to investigate and formulate historical and geographic arguments about the major developments in history.

Curriculum Plan

My Honors World History Class Procedures can be found on the documents page.

Click link to access the Parent Curriculum Documents: http://https://www.cabarrus.k12.nc.us/Page/33225

Instructional Materials and Methods

Instructional materials and resources used for extensions and enrichment:

• Analysis of Scholarly Articles
• Document Based Questions and Essays
• Analysis of Primary Source Documents
• In-Depth Class Discussions
• Reflective Writing
• Problem-Based Activities
• Project-Based Learning
• Tiered Assignments
• Student Choice Assignments
• Cooperative Learning

Assessment

Over the course of Honor’s World History, students will be assessed formally with unit specific tests, including some benchmark assessments that may contain cumulative questions to assess retention of previously covered material.  Other formal assessments may include quizzes, essays, and projects.  Students will also be assessed informally by their contributions to class activities, including simulations, role plays, and discussions.  At the conclusion of Honor’s World History, students will be expected to take the NC Final Exam in World History.  This is a test that will make up 25% of their overall grade and usually contains around 40 multiple-choice questions, in addition to some critical-response, short-answer questions.  This should be a very familiar format to Honors World History students, as they will have many critical-response, short-answer questions on their unit tests throughout the year.