This course provides an introduction to Native American history in North America and the Caribbean. Students will consider the varied societies Native peoples built before Europeans arrived and the challenges that the arrival of Europeans posed to them. Students will especially focus on the relationship between the United States and Native Americans, particularly as it has been understood by Native Americans themselves in their struggles for land, sovereignty, and identity. Prerequisites: None
Course Objectives: Upon completion of this course, students will be able to do the following:
1. Identify various Native cultures and the geographical regions in which they have historically been located.
2. Demonstrate an understanding of the major periods of Native American history, including prehistoric development, historical interactions with European settlers and governments, and modern Native American life.
3. Demonstrate an understanding that history is interpretive and that Native oral traditions, Native written materials, and mainstream written sources all have a place in creating workable historical narratives about Native North America.
4. Identify cultural differences between Native American groups.
5. Analyze how mainstream white America has historically represented Native American groups as monolithic “others.”
6. Connect Native American history with current Native American governmental policies; U.S. governmental policies; and modern sovereignty issues.
Course Outline:
Unit 1 - Early Native American Migrations and Cultures
Unit 2 - Mesoamerican and South American Civilizations
Unit 3 - The Challenge Posed by the Spanish
Unit 4 - English, Dutch, and French Colonization
Unit 5 - European Imperial Wars and North America
Unit 6 - Indian Removal and Westward Expansion
Unit 7 - Reservations and Assimilation
Unit 8 - Current Native American Life
Resources Included:
Additional Costs: None
Scoring System: Michigan Virtual does not assign letter grades, grant credit for courses, nor issue transcripts or diplomas. A final score reported as a percentage of total points earned will be sent to students upon completion of a course. Your school mentor is also able to access this score within the Student Learning Portal. Schools may use this score for conversion to their own letter grading system.
Time Commitment: Semester sessions are 18-weeks long: Students must be able to spend 1 or more hours per day in the course to be successful. Summer sessions are 10 weeks long: Students must be able to spend a minimum of 2 or more hours per day, or about 90 hours during the summer, for the student to be successful in any course. Trimester sessions are 12-weeks long: Students must be able to spend 1.5 or more hours per day in the course to be successful.
Technology Requirements: Please review the Michigan Virtual Technology Requirements: https://michiganvirtual.org/about/support/knowledge-base/technical-requirements/
Students must also have access to YouTube.
Instructor Support System: For technical issues within your course, contact the Customer Care Center by email at [email protected] or by phone at (888) 889-2840.
Instructor Contact Expectations: Students can use email or the private message system within the Student Learning Portal to access highly qualified teachers when they need instructor assistance. Students will also receive feedback on their work inside the learning management system. The Instructor Info area of their course may describe additional communication options.
Academic Support Available: In addition to access to a highly qualified, Michigan certified teacher, students have access to academic videos and outside resources verified by Michigan Virtual. For technical issues within the course, students can contact the Michigan Virtual Customer Care by email at [email protected] or by phone at (888) 889-2840.
Required Assessment: Online assessments consist of formative and summative assessments represented by computer-graded multiple choice, instructor-graded writing assignments including hands-on projects, model building and other forms of authentic assessments.
Technical Skills Needed: Basic technology skills necessary to locate and share information and files as well as interact with others in a Learning Management System (LMS), include the ability to:
- Download, edit, save, convert, and upload files
- Download and install software
- Use a messaging service similar to email
- Communicate with others in online discussion or message boards, following basic rules of netiquette
- Open attachments shared in messages
- Create, save, and submit files in commonly used word processing program formats and as a PDF
- Edit file share settings in cloud-based applications, such as Google Docs, Sheets, or Slides
- Save a file as a .pdf
- Copy and paste and format text using your mouse, keyboard, or an html editor’s toolbar menu
- Insert images or links into a file or html editor
- Search for information within a document using Ctrl+F or Command+F keyboard shortcuts
- Work in multiple browser windows and tabs simultaneously
- Activate a microphone or webcam on your device, and record and upload or link audio and/or video files
- Use presentation and graphics programs
- Follow an online pacing guide or calendar of due dates
- Use spell-check, citation editors, and tools commonly provided in word processing tool menus
- Create and maintain usernames and passwords
Additional Information: This course was fully redeveloped for Tri 2 of the 2017-2018 SY.