Website: http://webserver1.oneonta.edu/faculty/thomasa/

Course Description & Objectives

This course examines the development and functioning of ancient cities, with an emphasis on the archeology of the Ancient Near East.  The importance of sedentism, agriculture, and imperialism for the functioning of ancient cities is a primary theme running through the course.  The relevance of understanding ancient cities for understanding modern cities is discussed as well.

Course Format & Policies

1.       You are expected to attend all classes and read all assigned materials.  Participation is mandatory.

2. In the event that you miss one of your presentations, you will be assigned a grade of zero (0), regardless of any circumstances or notification of the instructor.  Any changes to the seminar presentation schedule must be addressed in class at least one week prior to the class at issue.  This can be mitigated by finding a replacement to present your material, but full credit will not be granted.

3. Assignments are considered due at the beginning of class.  Late assignments are lowered a grade for every class period late.  Missing a class and turning in an assignment later the same day is still late. 

4. Always save a copy of any work submitted for your own records.

Grading

Assignments

Required Materials

BOOKS

1: Charles Gates: Ancient Cities

2: Reading Packet

Course Schedule

Research Paper

Each member of the class is required to conduct research on an ancient community of their own choice, subject to approval of the instructor.  The research must be conducted on a topic related to the course material, and should utilize course material as much as possible.  The paper must be written in a formal style.  As a graduate student, the quality of research and writing should be of the same approximate quality that would be expected of a professional; an “A” paper will be of a quality that could be published with minimal revision.  The paper will be reviewed in three stages, as shown below.  All papers must be typed or word processed, double-spaced, and stapled or otherwise secured.  This assignment is worth half of the final grade.

An appropriate topic might be an analysis of a specific issue affecting a community, a class of communities, or general trends affecting communities.  Research must include a review of the relevant scholarly literature and should utilize original documents as appropriate.  Although an historical analysis is appropriate to this assignment, this paper should be more than a recounting of events.  In other words, there must be an analysis.

Paper topic: Write a one to two page proposal of your research topic, including the methods you plan to use, ethical issues, sampling issues, and any other relevant information. 

Due: June 28

Final Paper: This is the complete account of your research. 

Due: June 20 in class

It is expected that a graduate-level research paper will be of a minimum of fifteen (15) pages

Class Participation

This is a seminar class.  A seminar class is only as effective as it is lively.  As such, please note that participation is a sizable portion of the grade.  I will be keeping notes during each class.  The grade will be determined by your overall participation in class during the semester as well as your performance on “presentations,” as noted below.  As life is life, you can miss one assignment – that is, one class – before penalty.  Illness and domestic issues are not legal excuses for missing more than one class, and the various points garnered through class participation cannot be made up.  You can earn up to three points toward participation per class, but you are not guaranteed two points – you need to fully participate in class to get the full credit.

            Seminar Presentations:  Each member of the class will present material from up to four of the readings to the class and lead the discussion for each of those sessions.  Topics will be decided in class.  Visual aids are not necessary and presentations are to be informal.  However, each presenter should prepare an outline of the readings for each respective day and make photocopies (at their own expense) for each member of the class, including the instructor.  This assignment is worth a combined forty percent of the participation grade (three points each presentation).

Your grade will be based on the points earned as a percentage of the points you are eligible to earn.