User:ProfGray/312/Lesson plan week 1

Lesson plan: Week 1

Religions of the Hebrew Bible

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MONDAY

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Proposed agenda Start End
Chat <10 2:30 p.m. 2:40 p.m.
Critical thinking <15 2:40 2:55
Overview of course <15 2:55 3:10
Baseline essay <15 3:10 3:25
Readings for Wednesday < 3 3:25 3:30
What is the Hebrew Bible? <20 3:30
Timelines! ? 3:50

Chat (and survey?)

Critical thinking   Done

  • What is critical thinking? What is critical thinking about the Hebrew Bible at a public university? How does it differ from religious thought?
  • Brainstorm (meaning of the term; assumptions for teaching Bible)
  • Discussion

Overview of the course   Done

  • Goals, competencies, learning outcomes
  • Schedule of assignments and readings (N.B. readings will be cut back)
  • Key points in handout version:
    • Absences. Binders. Books. Collaboration in teams
  • Social impact (~ service learning)
  • Tour of Niihka and Wikipedia course sites?

Baseline essay   Done

  • Due Monday, Feb. 2nd (though preferably this Wednesday :)
  • 1-page essay governed by a suitable claim
  • At least one footnote and bibliographic reference

Readings for Wednesday   Done

  • I Kings 4:25 and Coogan p.292 on Shishak
  • Jeremiah 36:1-4,32 and 39:1-10
  • Coogan. Ch 1. 3-10, Ch 2. 13-15 (Land), (*15-21), 21-25 (Boundaries, History), 27-9 (Archaeology)
  • Syllabus -- must read all the policies and bring questions or concerns to class

What is the Hebrew Bible? 

  • Canon not book. Ezra 7.6   Done
    • Canonization. Apocrypha. Why is "Old Testament" less NPOV?
  • Divisions: Pentateuch/Torah, Prophets, and ….   Done
    • Tanakh
  • Textual criticism
    • Septuagint.
  • Redaction criticism (Jer 36:1-4, 32)

Timelines! (time-permitting) → Partially done and bumped to Wednesday

Ezra as example

  • When does the narrative take place within the Bible? Biblical chronology and Anno Mundi
  • When was the narrative composed, according to scholars? Composition theories
  • When does the event take place, if ever, according to historians and archaeologists? Historical chronology
  • Terms. Anno Mundi. BCE. CE.

WEDNESDAY

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Proposed agenda Start End
Chat 5 2:30 2:35
Policies and other syllabus details. 5 2:35 2:40
Timelines and Places 20+ 2:40 3:00
Readings for Monday 5 3:00 3:05
Baseline exercise, include Lipson 20+ 3:05 3:25
Texts --> key concepts 20 3:25 3:50

Policies and other syllabus details. Q&A with students.   Done

Timelines!   Done

  • Biblical chronology. When does the narrative take place within the Bible?
  • Composition timeline. When was the narrative composed, according to scholars?
  • Historical chronology. When does the event take place, if ever, according to historians and archaeologists?
    • Box 2.1, p.23
    • Chronologies at back and in most chapters
  • Example: Ezra-Nehemiah
  • Example: 1 Kings 14:25
  • Terms to learn. Anno Mundi. BCE. CE. Cyrus cylinder. Exile. Ezra-Nehemiah.
  • Dates to memorize.
    • 722 BCE Assyria (around time of Hezekiah) 587 BCE Babylonians (Destruction). 538 BCE Persian (Return estimated), 333 BCE Greeks, 165 (Hasmoneans),
    • 70 CE Destruction of Temple by Romans
  • Dates might learn: 924 BCE Shishak, 63 BCE Roman control, 5th vs. 4th Century -- events vs. composition of Ezra (p.1661)

Places and maps   Done (a few terms not covered)

  • Current Middle East and Ancient Near East (ANE). 2.1, p.15
  • Ancient Land of Israel. 2.3
  • Places to learn include: Levant. Mesopotamia. Canaan. Israel. Kingdom of Judah. Kingdom of Israel (Northern Kingdom). Assyria, Babylonia, Egypt, Persia. 

Biblical texts and key concepts

  • Canonization. Canon. Jewish, Christian, Samaritan   Done
  • Textual criticism -- studying the origin and versions of the text   Not done
    • Genesis 1 from BHS
  • Redaction criticism -- studying the editing process!
    • Jeremiah 36:1-4,32 and 39:1-10   Not done
    • Biblical chronology example   Done
  • When does historical evidence corroborate the Biblical narrative?   Done
    • I Kings 4:25 and Coogan p.292 on Shishak
    • Ezra-Nehemiah and the Cyrus Cylinder

Readings for Monday -- include how to read the schedule   Done

  • Genesis chapters 1-3, in conjunction with Coogan
  • (Coogan. Ch. 2, review if needed)
  • Coogan, Ch 3. 33-43, (*41-45) and learn some of the comparison with Enuma Elish for BWE
  • Wikipedia background reading, which might be useful for your baseline essay. Have fun!
    • Browse on your own and go behind the scenes. Might try "Community Portal" and various "Talk" pages.
    • Browse articles on Genesis, and key terms in Biblical studies
    • ? Hand out the booklets Evaluating Wikipedia and Editing Wikipedia

Baseline essay   Done

  • Questions
  • Sampling of ideas
    • Canonization. Are documents authorized? How and by whom?
      • See Coogan, 3 criteria. Wikipedia AfD process. Xfd. Policy, guidelines, consensus.
    • Canon. Are there multiple canons?
    • Textual criticism. Cf. versions of an article?
    • Composition. Cf. merging of articles, versions from competing reliable sources, etc.
  • Students shared their ideas, discussion of the class as a whole

Lipson book   Done

  • Notetaking
    • Tip on skimming p.6
  • Paraphrasing
  • Citation

Handed out Wikipedia brochures   Done

Teamwork experiment   Not done

  • Groups more to allocate, share, and peer review ("critique") your individual work, rather than to collaborate in writing a document together
  • Groups are formed
  • Choose one (or both) of these options
    • For the Baseline Essay due Monday, share your ideas by [choose a deadline for yourselves]
    • For Coogan reading due on Monday, split up note-taking and share notes (with those who did it) by [choose a deadline for yourselves]
    • Another goal?
  • Report on Monday about what worked and didn't work with your group

Bumped to week 2

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These items were on the ideal lesson plan, but not covered in week 1. They may be covered in week 2 or dropped:

  • Jeremiah text as an example of redaction criticism
  • Textual criticism -- with example -- more needed?
  • Places not mentioned enough? Canaan. Israel. Kingdom of Judah. Kingdom of Israel (Northern Kingdom)
  • Example of a doublet (?)
    • Noah at 6:5-7 and 6:11-13