Crash Course World History is a video course hosted by John Green that teaches world history from growing the first crops in the First Agricultural Revolution to global textile production in the 2010s. Across the series, it builds skills in identifying and explaining historical developments, analyzing events in broader context, and tracing patterns and connections across time and place—aiming to help viewers become more informed citizens of the world. Season 1 follows the 2012 AP World History curriculum in a 42-episode chronological survey, while Season 2 continues in 30 episodes with a more thematic approach that focuses on systems and encourages viewers to question how “history” is written and what biases shape it.
In 30 episodes, John Green rethinks world history! In round two we take a different approach and try to think more thematically rather than chronologically. By the end of the course, you will be able to:
*Think about history thematically and in terms of systems, not just important events
*Analyze the context of historical events, developments, and processes and explain how they are situated within a broader historical context
*Explain the importance of point of view, historical situation, and audience of a source
*Question how what we think of as “history,” how it is written, and what biases are at play in a work