World Connections

World history begins with what history is, why it is worth studying, and the thematic approach that organizes it. Students trace how humans moved from bands of hunter-gatherers to the great civilizations of the ancient world, and how religions have influenced human society.

The post-classical world follows empires as they rise and decline, from the Byzantine Empire to imperial China to Ghana's trans-Saharan trade. Students also examine the decline of feudalism in Europe and the achievements of the Maya, Aztecs, and Incas.

Gunpowder and its role in empire building opens the first global age, alongside the different approaches to cultural interaction that shaped empires in Eurasia. Students then study the ideas that transformed early modern Europe and the factors behind European dominance as a global economy emerged.

Political revolutions of the 1700s and 1800s come first, compared in terms of their similarities and differences. From there, lessons take up the Industrial Revolution, its impacts on society and the environment, and how a few nations came to control much of the globe.

World War I and the Russian Revolution open a unit on worldwide crisis. Students also study unrest in Latin America, how European colonialism shaped the modern Middle East, nationalist movements in Asia, the rise of fascism and totalitarian states, and World War II.

The Cold War unit starts with post-war cooperation in Europe and how the United States and the Soviet Union became adversaries. Students follow the conflicts that reached Third World nations, the end of the Cold War, and shifts of power in the Middle East.