Portland Community College | Portland, Oregon

Upon successful completion the student will be able to:

· Articulate an understanding of key events in Russian history from the late eighteenth century to the present and use critical thinking to evaluate historical changes and their impact.
· Recognize the interaction of various groups and institutions in order to evaluate their impact on Russian history.
· Identify the influence of culturally-based practices, values, and beliefs which have influenced the perception and behavior of the various peoples who have resided within the Russian and Soviet spheres of influence.
· Communicate effectively using historical analysis.
· Connect the past with the present to enhance contemporary understanding and encourage civic and global engagement.

The SAC assumes that faculty will assess student learning using some combination of the following assessment strategies:

• Exams consisting of essay or other method that integrates and requires application of concepts, themes and issues in the course.
• Written assignments such as papers, reviews, journals and other writing assignments that demonstrate understanding of content knowledge and appropriate application by students of historical materials.
• Oral presentations, discussions, debates, or role-playing that articulate a comprehensive knowledge of appropriate historical concepts and issues.
• Projects where students can identify historical resources and utilize these resources to evaluate their validity.
• Use standard research techniques and acceptable formats in written work and oral presentations.

Course Content:

1.  Competencies and skills:

• Identify the characteristics of Russian civilization
• Identify key political, geographical, social, economic and cultural aspects of Russian civilization
• Appraise how this civilization has changed over time
• Analyze and evaluate primary and secondary sources
• Connect evidence to its relevant historical context
• Evaluate different interpretations of past events and construct your own
• Recognize and understand the basis for various interpretations and views of historical issues
• Identify an historian’s thesis and supporting evidence
• Select what is important from a large body of material
• Connect present-day events to the past

1. Themes, Concepts, Issues

This course will cover aspects of:

• Russia’s geography and peoples
• Social, political and economic structures in the late eighteenth century
• Alexander I: domestic and foreign policies
• The Decembrists and the Intelligentsia
• Slavophiles and Westernizers
• Era of the Great Reforms
• Opposition to Tsarism
• Revolution of 1905
• World War I and the March Revolution
• The Bolshevik Revolution
• Civil War Era
• Leninism and Stalinism
• World War II
• The Cold War
• Khrushchev and His Successors
• The Gorbachev Era
• The Collapse of the Soviet Union and Beyond
• The Yeltsin Years
• Putin’s Presidency

Considering such factors as:

• Social hierarchy
• Political, institutional, legal, and economic structures
• Cultural contributions including literature, art, philosophy and religion