The syllabus for HIS 101: World History to 1500 as taught at James Madison University.

There is no greater introduction to world literature than Homer's Iliad. The great epic poem tells the story of the Bronze Age war between the Achaeans (Greeks) and Trojans, the great warriors who did the fighting, the woman they were fighting for (and fighting over), and the gods who egged them on. This is a new, 21st century verse translation by Michael Heumann. It seeks to retain the spirit and language of Homer's original Greek while making it readable and enjoyable for a modern audience. Michael Heumann is a Professor of English at Imperial Valley College in California. He holds a PhD in English from the University of California, Riverside. This is his first translation.

Welcome to Modern World History! This is the textbook for an undergraduate survey course taught at all the universities and most of the colleges in the Minnesota State system. Similar courses are taught at institutions around the United States and the world, so the authors have made the text available as an open educational resource that teachers and learners can read, adapt, and reuse to meet their needs. We’d like to hear from people who have found the text useful, and we’re always open to questions and suggestions.

This hybrid textbook and open course is a comprehensive set of teaching materials for Western Civilization I (until 1648), created through a Round Six ALG Textbook Transformation Grant. Topics covered include prehistory and ancient history by region, the Middle Ages, the Renaissance, and the Reformation.

Lesson 1: The Age of Enlightenment, Reason & Scientific Revolution
Lesson 2: Changes in Political Thought: Imperialism, Colonialism, Nationalism, & Revolution
Lesson 3: Cultural Life, 1700-1900 - Arts, Music, Literature, & Religion
Lesson 4: The World Outside the West
Lesson 5: Industrialization & Lived Experiences
Lesson 6:The World in Two Wars
Lesson 7: Post-Colonial World Culture & Globalization

This video textbook started with the creation of 73 supplementary 10-20 minute video lectures for World Civilizations at Georgia Highlands College through a Round 10 Textbook Transformation Grant. A Round 14 Mini-Grant enabled the team to create guiding questions, key terms, transcript, and table of contents for each of the 73 videos, followed by a public website to share these newly-organized resources with students and faculty.

Topics include prehistory, the classical world system, trade, and the old world system, revolutions, imperialism and hegemony, the 20th century, and new global systems in the 21st century.