Possibilities and Realities: The Teaching of “America in the World” at Community Colleges

Presenting a synthesis of U.S. and World history in one course is both tantalizing and daunting.  As already noted, much is already being done along these lines in most of our survey courses.  But subtle differences remain, and it is the purpose of this paper to outline some of the possibilities and challenges that remain.

 Specific attention will be drawn to the need to work with four year institutions to ensure the viability of transfer credits, determine who the student target audience might be, scope out the areas of study that might prove most productive, and devise a sequence of instruction that is both achievable and rewarding.   The challenges of adequately covering the essentials of U. S. history (often mandated by state governments) and then adding major components of World History into the curriculum also will be addressed.  But the positive aspects of achieving this larger world view outweigh the obstacles, hence the desire to move ahead with this bold new endeavor.