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The German Cultural Heritage

Syllabus

Room: None. The class will be conducted on the World Wide Web and through e-mail.

Time and Days: At the discretion of the students. The course will begin at the beginning of September and conclude in December. Students may do the work at their own pace during this period. Suggestions for pacing will be provided, however, on the course directory page on the World Wide Web.

Text: No paper text. Most materials will be online. Suggestions will be made from time to time for reading from print materials.

Lectures: All lectures will be of a duration of about 10-15 minutes and may be accessed online with a RealAudio player. Lectures will be in English.

Course Content: Highlights of German cultural history from the earliest period (ca. 2000 B.C.) through the present. See: "Outline of Course Content" below.

Prerequisite: Permission of the instructor. Otherwise, none. The language of instruction is English. No knowledge of German is required.

Daily Assignments: Suggestions for completion of work on a daily basis will be made on the course directory (online). Students have the latitude, however, of working at their own pace, realizing that the assigned learning must be completed by the date of the scheduled final examination. In cases of unavoidable conflict either of a work nature or a personal nature, the date of the final examination may be delayed for up to 3 weeks upon agreement by the instructor.

Evaluation and Grading: Students will be expected to submit a personal learning development inventory every three weeks during the duration of the course. This will be in written form and submitted by e-mail, fax or postal mail. The PLDI will comment on the materials assigned during the preceding three weeks (including the daily e-mail information and the Web information), show an integration of the materials covered into overall knowledge and understanding of that historical period and its relation to comprehending human history and the human experience as a whole. Insights into present human experience as conditioned by the historical ideas and events treated will be valued. Students should indicate at the end of each PLDI what additional materials to those specifically assigned have been read or learned through other means (Web, CDs, videos, tapes, discussion with knowledgeable persons, etc.). Accuracy in historic placement of ideas and events will be expected. 50% of the overall course grade will be based on the instructor's evaluation of the PLDIs.

There will be a final test at the end of the course covering the whole of German cultural history. On this multiple choice test students will demonstrate recollection of major persons, events and ideas as covered during the course. The final test may be taken under the supervision of the instructor at the University of St. Thomas or students may identify a proctor (to be approved by the instructor) at any location. The grade on the final test will constitute 50% of the overall course grade. The instructor does, however, reserve the right to weight the cumulative PLDI score more heavily in the case of excellent PLDIs in such an incident where the heavier weighting might be in "favor of" the student. (Thus extra care with the PLDIs over time may assure a better grade even in the event that the score on the final might be somewhat lower than hoped for.) FAQ on PLDI

VI. From the End of the Roman Empire through the Founding of the Holy Roman Empire (570-814) (course file 6)

VIII. From 1200 through the Beginning of the Modern Period (1200-1500) (course file 8)

IX. From 1500 through the End of the Holy Roman Empire (1500-1806) (course file 9)

X. From the End of the Holy Roman Empire through 1850 (1806-1850) (course file 10).

XIV. The Establishment of Two Germanys (1949) through 1979 (course file 14).