Themes in World History: A Series of Instructional CD-ROMs
& Encyclopedia Britanica Timeline

The World History Center has begun a multi-year project of designing and producing multimedia materials in world history. The purpose of this work is to create original and interactive materials which enable students, teachers, and the general public to explore the concepts and the materials in world history in an engaging, accessible and yet challenging fashion. While these materials may be used in association with textbooks, monographs and documents, they represent a distinctive approach to the study of world history. With these materials, we seek to enable the user to go through all of the processes by which historians discover materials and develop interpretations of the past. With support from The Annenberg/CPB Project, initial funding was provided for a project on Migration in Modern World History, since 1500. This pilot project enabled the World History Center to develop its approach to research and development, to build its project staff, and to create the analytical exercises which are the core of the pedagogy. The Migration project is well on the road to completion, and the team is ready to turn its attention to preparation of its first full course.

1. Migration. The theme of migration has the advantage of connecting at least two places for the case of every migration. As such, it underscores the connections over space and time which are the core of studies in world history. The pilot project on Migration, now in production, covers only the period since 1500. A comprehensive global history of migration requires preparation of course materials for the period before 1500, for which the World History Center will seek funds in due course.

2. Technology. A focus on technology emphasizes the desire of mankind to construct and shape the world it inhabits. This course is to be the first full-scale thematic exploration of world history, with a year-long course on two CD-ROMs (or one DVD, if the technology is available).

3. Religion. In the third thematic course, we will address man's concern with the limits on his ability to control the world. The course will explore the great religious traditions, but it will also explore the religious traditions that did not grow into world religions.

4. Government. Where the technology course focuses on man's attempt to regulate nature, the government course centers on man's attempts to regulate society. This course will explore the changing forms and principles of government over the full extent of human history. For the fifth thematic course, the World History Center staff is considering three possibilities: a focus on culture, on the economy, or on the family. The decision will be based on the response to the first four courses. Upon completion of the five individual thematic courses, the World History Center will assess their results, and embark upon the creation of a comprehensive multimedia course in world history, in which the themes will each retain their visibility, yet interact with one another.

The Encyclopedia Britanica Timeline

In the spring of 1998 the World History Center was awarded funding from Encyclopedia Britanica to develop a time line which would not only reflect world history as an approach to history focused on connections, but also integrate computer technologies and historical timelines. The prototype time line focused on using separate periodization schemes for each topic. In addition a topical examination of cities in world history was fully developed and included in the proposal. The Center is awaiting Encyclopedia Britanica's response to the initial proposal before fully developing the project.