Dual-Enrollment: Western Civilization I

BHSC is excited to offer Western Civilization I (HIST 2311) as part of the BHSC Dual-Enrollment Program in partnership with The Academy at Houston Christian University (HCU). This class offers a survey of Western Civilization from the Ancient World to the end of the Middle Ages in Europe. (Recommended as a full year of World History high school credit in addition to the 3 units of college credit awarded by HCU. Students must complete college-level reading and in-class exams with writing.)

Professor Daniel Broadwell, a full-time minister as well as an instructor in The Academy at HCU, is looking forward to teaching Western Civilizations at BHSC. He enjoys helping dual-credit high school students experience an immersion in the history and literature that has shaped our civilization. He is also grateful for the relationships that he is able to develop with students as they interact with this important material at a time in their lives when they are starting to think critically about their faith and the world around them.

Western Civilization I will be offered over the entire 2023–24 BHSC school year, so the pacing will be much more relaxed than taking an equivalent class at a college or university. Instead of the 3-unit college class lasting one semester, the same class will be offered at BHSC over the full year, August through May.

Western Civilization I, will be offered on Tuesdays, 9:25 to 10:40 a.m. in 2023–24.

HIST 2311: Western Civilization 1 is a survey of the historical foundations of our society, namely the twin pillars of the Greco-Roman heritage and the Judeo-Christian tradition. In the first semester, we will begin with the Ancient Egyptians and Hebrews, but focus on the wonders of the Greek and then Roman worlds. In the second semester, we will look at the rise of Christianity, the fall of Rome, and the development of medieval Europe. The course will conclude with the transition to the modern age, brought about by the Renaissance, the Reformation, and discovery of the new world.

Each class period will consist mostly of lecture, but the students will have primary source documents to read in preparation. These documents could include records, laws, historical accounts, passages from Scripture, and excerpts from books. While the amount of reading should never be excessive, there will be a firm expectation that each student will have read (well) the material before coming to class. A significant portion of the student’s grade will come from their preparation for and engagement in class. The most substantial portion of the student’s grade will be derived from a handful of exams spaced throughout the year. These exams will require the student to recall significant people, places, and events and to write paragraphs explaining their significance in the historical narrative. Each exam will also include a longer essay analyzing and reflecting on one of the primary sources from that unit.

Mr. Broadwell is a firm believer that history is not just facts, figures, and dates, but a story which serves as a rich storehouse of wisdom and understanding. There is so much to be learned from the people and societies of our past, and we benefit greatly from inviting them into our classroom and hearing their perspectives. It is, after all, our story, so we cannot fully grasp who we are without knowing how we got here. And, as someone has said, “history doesn’t repeat, but it rhymes.” Understanding the world of the past offers us tremendous insight for the world of the present, and of the future.