This course introduces undergraduates to the basic theory, institutional architecture, and practice of international development. We take an applied, interdisciplinary approach to some of the “big questions” in our field. This course will unpack these questions by providing an overview of existing knowledge and best practices in the field. The goal of this class is to go beyond traditional dichotomies and narrow definitions of progress, well-being, and culture. Instead, we will invite students to develop a more nuanced understanding of international development by offering an innovative set of tools and content flexibility.

This is an HTML version of a previous resource, originally in Word format and with supplemental materials: https://oertx.highered.texas.gov/courseware/lesson/871

This course is a global-oriented survey of the history of architecture, from the prehistoric to the sixteenth century. It treats buildings and environments, including cities, in the context of the cultural and civilizational history. It offers an introduction to design principles and analysis. Being global, it aims to give the student perspective on the larger pushes and pulls that influence architecture and its meanings, whether these be economic, political, religious or climatic.

This course is an introduction to the consideration of technology as the outcome of particular technical, historical, cultural, and political efforts, especially in the United States during the 19th and 20th centuries. Topics include industrialization of production and consumption, development of engineering professions, the emergence of management and its role in shaping technological forms, the technological construction of gender roles, and the relationship between humans and machines.

Short Description:
This book is a multidisciplinary introduction to the social sciences with an applied approach to the study of human society. This book examines diverse aspects of social life from multiple perspectives, incorporating analytical and methodological insights in a wide range of social science disciplines, including sociology, anthropology, political science, public policy, psychology and human geography. Through real cases of contemporary issues and social problems, students will explore a wide range of topics that shape both Australia and the world today - the changing nature of work and education, the environment and health, community and development. Using a blend of text, video, and online materials, students will learn the skills for independent study and collaborative investigation. Upon the successful completion of this book, students will have gained critical knowledge on Australian and global social issues, relevant policies, and possible solutions.

Long Description:
This book is a multidisciplinary introduction to the social sciences with an applied approach to the study of human society. This book examines diverse aspects of social life from multiple perspectives, incorporating analytical and methodological insights in a wide range of social science disciplines, including sociology, anthropology, political science, public policy, psychology and human geography. Through real cases of contemporary issues and social problems, students will explore a wide range of topics that shape both Australia and the world today – the changing nature of work and education, the environment and health, community and development. Using a blend of text, video, and online materials, students will learn the skills for independent study and collaborative investigation. Upon the successful completion of this book, students will have gained critical knowledge on Australian and global social issues, relevant policies, and possible solutions.

Word Count: 43661

ISBN: 978-1-74272-385-3

(Note: This resource's metadata has been created automatically by reformatting and/or combining the information that the author initially provided as part of a bulk import process.)

This course examines the major aesthetic, social, and political elements which have shaped modern Japanese culture and society. There are readings on contemporary Japan and historical evolution of the culture are coordinated with study of literary texts, film, and art, along with an analysis of everyday life and leisure activities.

This course explores the historical origins of the Japanese warrior class as well as its reinvention throughout the archipelago’s history, with a special focus on the pre-modern era (200–1600 CE). It highlights key historical contexts including the rise of the imperial court, interactions with the broader world, and the establishment of a warrior-dominated state. It also considers the modern imaginations and uses of the warrior figure.
Note: This course is taught in English with a project that requires research in Japanese.

This course aims to provide students with a general overview of basic themes and issues in Middle Eastern history from the rise of Islam to the present, with an emphasis on the encounters and exchanges between the “Middle East” (Southwest Asia and North Africa) and the “West” (Europe and the United States).

This course examines Israeli identity using a broad array of materials, including popular music, film, documentaries, and art, in addition to academic historical writings. Topics include Israel’s political system and society, ethnic relations, settlement projects, and the Arab minorities in the Jewish state. Students also discuss whether there is a unique Israeli culture and the struggle for Israel’s identity.
Preference is given to students in the MISTI MIT-Israel program.

This course is designed for students seeking a fundamental understanding of Japanese history, politics, culture, and the economy. “Raw Fish 101” (as it is often labeled) combines lectures, seminar discussion, small-team case studies, and Web page construction exercises, all designed to shed light on contemporary Japan.

This course covers medieval Japanese society and culture from the twelfth to the nineteenth centuries, when political power rested largely in the hands of feudal warriors. Topics include religion (especially Zen Buddhism); changing concepts of “the way of the warrior;” women under feudalism; popular culture; and protest and rebellion. Presentations include weekly feature films. Assigned readings include many literary writings in translation.

This course explores how our views of Jewish history have been formed and how this history can explain the survival of the Jews as an ethnic/religious group into the present day. Special attention is given to the partial and fragmentary nature of our information about the past, and the difficulties inherent in decoding statements about the past that were written with a religious agenda in mind. It also considers complex events in Jewish history – from early history as portrayed in the Bible to recent history, including the Holocaust.

On September 25, 1963, President John F. Kennedy traveled to Grand Forks, North Dakota, greeted its citizens while touring the city, and delivered a speech at the University of North Dakota Field House, which addressed important issues still vital today: environmental protection, conservation of natural resources, economic development, the struggle between democracy and totalitarianism, and the importance of education and public service. The University conferred on the President an honorary Doctor of Laws degree. Over 20,000 people assembled on campus that day to see JFK -- the largest campus gathering in UND history. Tragically, less than two months later, the thirty-fifth President of the United States was assassinated in Dallas.

To commemorate the forty-fifth anniversary of the President's Grand Forks visit, and in tandem with the University's one hundred and twenty-fifth anniversary, UND organized a September 25-27, 2008 conference to foster interdisciplinary discussion and analysis of the issues addressed in JFK's UND speech, as well as other significant issues of the Kennedy era, including civil rights, space exploration, the nuclear threat, and the influence of the media on presidential politics. The Conference also explored issues related to the President's assassination within weeks of his UND visit. This publication of conference proceedings collects the papers presented during this conference as well as transcripts of significant addresses and discussions.

Short Description:
This is a collection of travel letters written by the textile merchant John (Jack) McCaldin Loewenthal, known as JMcC, to his mother Jane at their home in Lennoxvale, Belfast, between 1889 and 1895. They were written during his journeys to South America and the West Indies, where he was securing commercial contracts while representing the firm in which his father was a partner.

Long Description:
This is a collection of travel letters written by the textile merchant John (Jack) McCaldin Loewenthal, known as JMcC, to his mother Jane at their home in Lennoxvale, Belfast, between 1889 and 1895. They were written during his journeys to South America and the West Indies, where he was securing commercial contracts, whilst representing the firm “Moore and Weinberg”, Linen and Jute traders, based in Dundee and Belfast, in which his father Julius Loewenthal was a senior partner. The reason these letters survived for posterity is that he had specifically asked his mother to keep them as a record of his travels, for him to look back on after his return home to Belfast. The letters are a diary-like account of his travels and travel impressions, also containing little anecdotes, as well as more personal interactions with his mother to do with family and friends in Belfast and Dundee, as well as social chit chat. They were part of a regular correspondence between him and Jane.

Word Count: 153006

(Note: This resource's metadata has been created automatically by reformatting and/or combining the information that the author initially provided as part of a bulk import process.)

Journey to Understanding: An Introduction to North Dakota Tribes is an introductory booklet intended to give a quick overview of Indigenous culture in North Dakota. It is a starting point for the rest of the North Dakota Tribal History & Culture series. The booklet explains the names and backgrounds of the nations that share geography with North Dakota. It also teaches basic cultural competency to facilitate interaction for people from a different background. The content is presented in the form of self-quizzes with provided answers. Journey to Understanding was originally used within the North Dakota Department of Human Services (NDDHS) --now part of the North Dakota Department of Health & Human Services (NDHHS)-- and was developed by NDDHS in collaboration with the Native American Training Institute. After its initial publication, it soon made its way from state government and into classrooms. With the permission of NDHHS, it is now distributed as part of the North Dakota Tribal History & Culture series.

This course explores the political, social, and economic factors commonly offered to explain the fall of the Roman Republic: growth of the territorial empire, increased intensity of aristocratic competition, transformation of the Italian economy, growth of the city of Rome and dependence of the urban plebs, changes in military recruitment and dependence of soldiers on their generals. There is an emphasis on the reading of ancient sources in translation, including Cicero, Sallust, Caesar, Augustus, Appian, Plutarch, and Suetonius.

Diverse Perspectives

Short Description:
This book is intended for readers who have never studied the Middle East, or experts who may wish to fill gaps in their knowledge of the region from other disciplines. Whether for establishing or deepening one’s knowledge of the region, these fundamentals are important to know. The languages, cultural, religious and sectarian communities of the region, and selected turning points and influential people in history are starting points for gaining an understanding of the diverse contexts of the region.

Long Description:
This book is intended for readers who have never studied the Middle East, or experts who may wish to fill gaps in their knowledge of the region from other disciplines. Whether for establishing or deepening one’s knowledge of the region, these fundamentals are important to know. The languages, cultural, religious and sectarian communities of the region, and selected turning points and influential people in history are starting points for gaining an understanding of the diverse contexts of the region. It is based on introductory and graduate courses on the contemporary Middle East, which the Center’s director, Dr. Alam Payind, has been teaching for the past 30 years. The book’s co-author, Melinda McClimans, has taught these and other courses with him, as well as her own, for the past 15 years. The material is intended engage with diverse – even conflicting – cultural and historical perspectives, and ways of perceiving both Middle Eastern and world history from perspectives within the region. It is not intended to reinforce a monolithic or matter-of-fact perception of the region. For this and many other reasons, images are an important aspect of the knowledge presented. Each chapter starts with links to its image galleries, along with other visual aids and key elements.

Word Count: 28082

(Note: This resource's metadata has been created automatically as part of a bulk import process by reformatting and/or combining the information that the author initially provided. As a result, there may be errors in formatting.)

UM-Dearborn Edition

Short Description:
This book, developed for students at the University of Michigan-Dearborn, is an adaptation of Alam Payind's and Melissa McClimans' 2017 open text, "Keys to Understanding the Middle East," published by Ohio State University. Specifically, this version adds a more consistent approach to transliteration, and expands on languages in the Middle East, Islamic sects, and the history that preceded the modern period.

Long Description:
This book, developed for students at the University of Michigan-Dearborn, is a remix of Alam Payind’s and Melissa McClimans’ 2017 open text, “Keys to Understanding the Middle East,” published by Ohio State University. Specifically, this version adds a more consistent approach to transliteration, and expands on languages in the Middle East, Islamic sects, and the history that preceded the modern period.

This book is intended for those who have never studied the Middle East, or experts who may wish to fill gaps in their knowledge of the region from other disciplines. Whether for establishing or deepening one’s knowledge of the region, these fundamentals are important to know. The languages, cultural, religious and sectarian communities of the region, and selected turning points and influential people in history are starting points for gaining an understanding of the diverse contexts of the region.

Word Count: 29227

(Note: This resource's metadata has been created automatically by reformatting and/or combining the information that the author initially provided as part of a bulk import process.)

A Student-Authored Textbook

Short Description:
An Open Education Resource textbook for anybody who wants to learn more about Korean history.

Long Description:
In this textbook students from the course HST259 share what they learned and want you to know about a particular aspect of Korean history. The content ranges from the earliest times to the present, and covers music, food, archaeology, armed conflicts, and much more. The students are not experts in Korean history, but hope that their chapter will make you curious to discover more about the fascinating history of the Korean peninsula.

Second edition: Published August 19, 2022.

Word Count: 44898

(Note: This resource's metadata has been created automatically by reformatting and/or combining the information that the author initially provided as part of a bulk import process.)

Short Description:
In this class, students will explore diverse topics in the geosciences at a high level. Students who complete this class will have had the opportunity acquire the skills needed to engage in advanced geologic study.

Word Count: 30933

(Note: This resource's metadata has been created automatically by reformatting and/or combining the information that the author initially provided as part of a bulk import process.)