This class is taught in English. The two semesters are independent and can be taken separately. The first semester deals with early economic history (pre-1900) and focuses primarily on Asia. During this semester we will deal with broad issues concerning how the human race came to dominate the planet using increasingly complex means of cooperation. The second semester covers the 20th-century. The focus will remain primarily on Asia. The second semester will have a more “practical” orientation. We will primarily discuss what has been causing modern economic growth. Given the broad subject matter, the course will only be able to offer a general overview of the periods and economic regions covered.
The course will meet three hours, one day a week. Generally, there will be a lecture during the first hour. Then, the second hour will be devoted to group work. Students will generally be randomly assigned to small groups and required to read one English-language paper or book chapter to prepare for this work. By the end of the day, the group should send me a 2-3 page paper. The last hour will be a second lecture. Grades will be based on group work (40%), a midterm quiz (15%) and a final exam (45%). There is no text, but you will be responsible for the weekly readings, lecture material and notes posted on line.
A tentative schedule is offered below, but changes may be made. Each semester will be divided into two roughly equal halves. The first half of the first semester will give an overview of the subject matter by historic period while the first half of the second semester will give an overview of the subject matter by country. The second halves of each semester will be organized topically.