Week+1

**The human journey through time** //Curiosity about our origins and fascination with our futures distinguishes humans from all other creatures that we know. We may see the past as part of our identity and the future as part of our purpose. In this introductory topic we explore time and change as crucial elements of our existence as individuals, as groups and as a species, homo sapiens (wise man) and develop a personal understanding of time as a basis for considering our own and human futures.// **An explanation of the Notes, Resources and Activities page:** **Notes** : This generally provides a brief introduction to the topic and sometimes includes a link to a video clip or PowerPoint presentation. [|**Resources**] : Each week you are expected to study the resources set. These may include notes, recordings or other presentations developed specifically for this unit and other selected materials from the World Wide Web such as TED lectures, data sheets, audiovisual presentations etc. **Activities section** : This sets out what you are expected to do each week and provides a template for you to copy as a word or equivalent document. Complete the activities, save your document and submit it to the Assignment portal for comment and assessment.
 * Week 1: Notes, Resources and Activities:**

**Notes** **:** This first week is to orientate you into the unit, familiarise you with the new Moodle learning environment and to provide practice on exploring resources, completing activities, posting them for assessment and contributing to a forum. Generally this note section will contain more information and ideas, almost a ‘resource’ in itself. Time and change is one of the hardest things for humans to really understand. For most of the last 200,000 years since modern humans evolved, change, in terms of lifestyles and perhaps beliefs and sense of purpose, was very slow, barely perceptible from one generation to the next. This applied throughout out our hunter gatherer and early agricultural phases and to a large extent even upto the very recent science, technology and industrial phase of our history. We need to call on both scientific and historical underpinnings of time and change and our imagination to really make sense of our own time trajectory and the trajectory or destiny of homo sapiens. So we start with just two resources; first, a TED lecture by David Christian introducing 'big history' with an accompanying website and second, yourself, one of the most creative yet frequently squashed resources available.

**Resources** **:** //(Please explore this first resource on big history. This might take an hour or so,you could take longer but we will be returning to big history in later topics. Then spend an hour or so stretching the second resource. Your imagination tempered by experience and knowledge.// **1a) TED lecture by David Christian on 'Big History'. [] ** David covers the whole history of the universe up to and including our own time. He does this brilliantly in less than 20 minutes. His is a classic example of how a really great thinker can indeed express great thoughts with clarity and power in simple language. Watch the video for technique as well as content. But of course content is key. He has put together a great way of thinking about the universe and our unique place in it. **1b)** **The big history project:** [] This is the project and organisation developed by David Christian and others to spread the word on 'big history'. The creators of this website believe that the concept and principles of 'big history' should be a vital component of our education, one that could well help us to shape human and world futures; a goal that IHS shares absolutely.  **2)** **Your imagination, common sense, creativity and experience; your wisdom**. So often this resource is squashed by the very mass, complexity and authority of formal academic knowledge. Sometimes the apparent or real brilliance of articles, documentaries or very occasionally lecturers, effectively stifles our own ideas. Beware of that. Read and think about the ideas of others. But sometimes put them back into your subconscious and allow your own ideas to surface. So for this topic, use your imagination to consider how time might be perceived by 1) hunter gatherers, 2) early agricultural workers, 3) workers in the industrial age and 4) you, here and now.

**Activities:** This section sets out what you are expected to complete for the current week. After completing the tasks as a Word file, upload it as your Assignment. **Submission date for week 1 Assignment: Sunday 12th August** **Procedure:** Open this week's assignment word document and complete the activities as outlined. Return to Moodle, click on **Assignment** in Week 1. You will be prompted to submit the file. If you have problems, message Angela. Once submitted, your assignment will be graded and feedback will be provided. You will be able to see this in your grade book in moodle. If for any reason you cannot complete any of the activities, please make a note in the section provided in the upload portal as you submit your assignment. Once complete, save the file for your own records in your computer. Later (from week 2, you will include it into your ePortfolio).