Unit rationale, description and aim

Acquiring a good basic understanding of human development in the Ancient Near East, a region often referred to as the 'cradle of civilisation' and Egypt, is important for any student of history.

Starting with a brief survey of human habitation through the Palaeolithic and Neolithic periods and focusing on the era from when recorded history began, this unit will engage with different types of literary and archaeological evidence. The aims of this unit are to develop students' understanding of human development focusing on key cultures in the ancient Near East and Egypt, and to build skills and dispositions ancient historians need for evaluating and synthesising evidence, differentiating between fact and opinion, and effective communication. 

2026 10

Campus offering

No unit offerings are currently available for this unit.

Prerequisites

Nil

Incompatible

HIST116 - The Ancient Near East

Learning outcomes

To successfully complete this unit you will be able to demonstrate you have achieved the learning outcomes (LO) detailed in the below table.

Each outcome is informed by a number of graduate capabilities (GC) to ensure your work in this, and every unit, is part of a larger goal of graduating from ACU with the attributes of insight, empathy, imagination and impact.

Explore the graduate capabilities.

Explain theoretical and factual knowledge of the h...

Learning Outcome 01

Explain theoretical and factual knowledge of the history and material cultures of the Ancient Near East and Egypt
Relevant Graduate Capabilities: GC1, GC9

Select and appropriately reference primary and sec...

Learning Outcome 02

Select and appropriately reference primary and secondary materials relevant to the Ancient Near East and Egypt
Relevant Graduate Capabilities: GC1, GC7, GC9

Develop evidence-based historical narratives/argum...

Learning Outcome 03

Develop evidence-based historical narratives/arguments based on interpretation of a variety of primary and secondary materials relevant to the Ancient Near East and Egypt
Relevant Graduate Capabilities: GC1, GC7, GC9

Content

Topics will include:

  • An overview of human habitation in the Palaeolithic and Neolithic periods, the development of urbanised civilisation, and the rise and fall of empires. 
  • The geography, economy, social structure, political system, cultural practices and religious beliefs of selected ancient Near Eastern civilisations.  
  • Thematic study of Egypt, Assyria, Babylon,  Persia, and ancient Israel.  
  • The interpretation of archaeological and written evidence from the period.  
  • Understanding and appreciating artistic representations.
  • An evaluation of significant historiographical concepts, such as the theory of a “Bronze Age collapse” in the region.  
  • Public and private roles of women in selected ancient Near Eastern civilisations including both royal and non-royal women. 

Assessment strategy and rationale

A range of assessment procedures will be used to meet the unit learning outcomes and develop graduate attributes consistent with university assessment requirements. The unit uses assessment tasks including a short part essay which will be then developed into a full scaffolded essay plus quizzes that are designed to help students develop the foundational skills and capabilities described in the Learning Outcomes.

Assessment Task 1 requires students to learn how to use AI in an appropriate way and to select and appropriately reference primary and secondary materials to develop an evidence-based historical narrative or argument on a specific topic (LO1, LO2). Assessment Task 2 gives students the opportunity to apply research techniques developed in Assessment Task 1 and discussed in tutorials to investigate a larger research question and present their findings in the form of a skeleton essay based on evidence and argument (LO1, LO2, LO3). Assessment Task 3 asks students to demonstrate what they have learnt in the unit. In completing this assignment students will demonstrate their ability to recall and remember ideas, concepts and knowledge relevant to the unit content (LO1, LO2, LO3). 

Overview of assessments

Assessment Task 1: Reporting Task The key purpos...

Assessment Task 1: Reporting Task

The key purpose of this Open task is for students to learn how to select and appropriately reference theoretical and factual knowledge of the history of the ancient Near East and Egypt using Generative-AI and comparing it with scholarly literature accessed through the resources in the ACU library. Skills developed in this task will help prepare students for the second assessment task.

Weighting

30%

Learning Outcomes LO1, LO2
Graduate Capabilities GC1, GC7, GC9

Assessment Task 2: Skills/Knowledge Development T...

Assessment Task 2: Skills/Knowledge Development Task

Students will research and write a scaffolded essay using AI and appropriately referenced scholarly literature  on a topic relevant to the Ancient Near East and Egypt to develop an evidence-based historical narrative based on evidence and argument. 

Weighting

40%

Learning Outcomes LO1, LO2, LO3
Graduate Capabilities GC1, GC7, GC9

Assessment Task 3: Summative Task The purpose of...

Assessment Task 3: Summative Task

The purpose of this assessment is for students to demonstrate their theoretical and factual knowledge of the history and material cultures of the Ancient Near East and Egypt derived from the lectures and tutorials.

Weighting

30%

Learning Outcomes LO1, LO2, LO3
Graduate Capabilities GC1, GC7, GC9

Learning and teaching strategy and rationale

This unit has recorded lectures or curated external material provide students with content to help inform their understanding of primary and secondary sources, and tutorials provide an opportunity for a variety of active learning experiences. Engaging in active, object-based learning allows students to work through the challenges that historians grapple with when studying ancient sources, developing practical skills with application them to a study of ancient history.  

Students in this unit will be encouraged to: develop specific skills in locating, reading and analysing sources especially using generative-AI and the resources of the ACU library; consider different approaches to the past and the dynamics of historical and historiographical debate; and employ active research techniques into their own research and analysis.

This unit has been designed to ensure that the time needed to complete the required volume of learning to the requisite standard is approximately 150 hours in total across the semester. To achieve a passing standard in this unit, students will find it helpful to engage in the full range of learning activities and assessments utilised in this unit, as described in the learning and teaching strategy and the assessment strategy. 

Representative texts and references

Representative texts and references

Bottero, J. Everyday Life in Ancient Mesopotamia. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 2001. 

Brosius, M. Persians: An introduction. London: Routledge, 2006. 

Chavalas, M. (Ed.). The Ancient Near East. Oxford: Blackwell, 2006. 

Leick, G. The Babylonian World. London: Routledge, 2008. 

Miller, J.M. and Hayes, J.H. A History of Ancient Israel and Judah. New York: John Knox, 2006.  

Morris, I. & Scheidal, W. (Eds.). Dynamics of Ancient Empires: State power from Assyria to Byzantium. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2009. 

Snell, Daniel C. Life in the Ancient Near East, 3100-332 BCE. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 1997. 

Stiebing Jr, William H. Ancient Near Eastern History and Culture. London &New York: Routledge, 2016. 

Stol, Marten. Women in the Ancient Near East. Berlin: de Gruyter, 2018. 

Van de Mieroop, Marc. A History of the Ancient Near East, ca. 3000-323 BC. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons, 2015. 

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