proposal for witchcraft through the ages.pdf

Running Head: WC 101: WITCHCRAFT THROUGH THE AGES 1

Proposal for WC 101: Witchcraft through the ages

Molly Laughlin

JCTC

Author Note

This paper was prepared for English 102, Unit 3, taught by Professor Dickerson

WC 101: WITCHCRAFT THROUGH THE AGES 2

Abstract

Many people do not have an in-depth knowledge of the religion witchcraft. Its history

and influences are not known by many other than those who practice the religion. WC

101: Witchcraft through the ages will go in depth about the emergence of witchcraft

through ancient documents and will analyze major events that played key roles in

societies through many time periods. Media, television shows and movies will be

examined and analyzed to show students how witchcraft is manipulated and misconstrued

adding to the lack of understanding of the religion. Also traditions and cultural practices

will be examined and compared to ours to see how much of an influence witchcraft has

on society to this day. This course will be good for this college because it will show

diversity in the curriculum and draw new students to the campus. Students will use this in

their fields of study and careers by broadening student’s perspectives and helping them

analyze and understand different religions and people before they judge them. It will also

help students relate to people they have cultural differences with. Students will achieve

goals set for this course by doing the assignments and research papers assigned by the

professor. WC 101: Witchcraft through the ages should become a course because it helps

expand student’s perspectives, increases background knowledge, and helps develop

societal awareness.

Keywords: Witchcraft, influences, society, traditions, perspectives, societal

awareness, diversity


Contents

Introduction ..................................................................................................................... 4

Course Goals and Outcomes ............................................................................................ 5

Justification ..................................................................................................................... 7

Implementation ............................................................................................................. 10

Content Specifications ................................................................................................... 11

References ..................................................................................................................... 13

Appendix....................................................................................................................... 14

Table of Figures

Table 1: Requested Items and Funds for Course ............................................................ 10


Introduction

This course will be WC 101: Witchcraft through the ages. The history

department will be responsible for this course. Students will need English 101 as a

prerequisite and this course will not be required for graduation. Witchcraft through

the ages is worth 3 credit hours and students will receive letter grades. Students can

repeat this course if need be. The course will be taught in person and the class will

meet two to three times a week. This will be offered as elective and will be available

to take during both spring and fall semesters. Students will gain a foundation for

further study into this field by having students examine the history of witchcraft

throughout time and how it has shaped society today.

Students are responsible for papers given throughout the semester. There

are no major writing assignments with this course other than research papers on

topics designated by the teacher throughout the course. Extra credit will be

accepted in the form of one page research papers on anything relating to what we

are studying. Only three papers are allowed per semester. There will be a midterm

and final consisting of non-multiple choice questions and an essay at the end.

Classes will be combinations of lectures and hands on activities. In this course

students will examine documents, conduct research, and use textbooks to reach the

learning goals set for this class. By accomplishing the main goals set, students will

have a broadened perspective and new knowledge to apply to other courses. This

course will cover the popularity of witchcraft throughout time, belief systems within

different segments of the religion, and how people who practice the religion are


seen. This course will also compare this religion to others and will discuss how

witches have been persecuted throughout time. Some issues we will cover are the

Salem witch trails, persecution off of speculation, misunderstandings, and modern

view and perceptions. WC 101: Witchcraft through the ages should become a course

because it helps expand student’s perspectives, increases background knowledge,

and helps develop societal awareness.

Course Goals and Outcomes

The goals of this course are:

To introduce students to basic elements of witchcraft;

To develop an awareness of witchcrafts influence on society;

To learn the history of witchcraft;

To start to recognize similarities and differences between religions similar to

this religion;

To recognize and understand modern perceptions of witchcraft;

To identify how social media, television, and movies have shaped the public’s

perception today.

Upon completion of the course, students will be able to:

(1) Have background knowledge of witchcraft;

(2) Recognize different parts of society influenced by witchcraft;

(3) State references of witchcraft from the bible;

(4) Connect aspects of witchcraft to paganism;

(5) Understand popular opinions of the religion; and


(6) Name movies and television shows that show different

perceptions of witchcraft.

The first course goal is to introduce students to basic elements of witchcraft. This

goal is to help build students background knowledge about the religion. The course will

cover the definition of witchcraft, and different aspects of the religion. WC 101 will

examine deities worshiped, traditions, rituals, and ceremonies. Students will discover that

though people can use magic for unjust cause and to cause harm to others, the Wicca

religion itself is not associated with black magic.

Another goal set for this course is to develop an awareness of witchcrafts influence

on society. Students will pinpoint specific attributes of the religion that have shaped

society into what is known today. Discussions will be held about holidays and traditions

influence on different societies throughout time. WC 101 will examine prejudice

exercised against people within witchcraft and the extent of discrimination expressed

against people within.

The third goal is to guide the students in retaining knowledge of the history of

witchcraft. By the end of the course students will be able to cite references of religion

from the bible. WC 101 will discuss popularity surges throughout history. The course

will examine the Salem witch trials and its lasting effects it had on the religion and other

related events.

In WC 101 students will recognize similarities and differences between religions

similar to witchcraft. The course will look at different aspects of paganism and discuss

how it compares or contrasts to witchcraft. WC 101 will not only focus on paganism but

other religions as well. The course will mainly focus on paganism, witchcraft and Wicca.


Another goal set forth for the course is students will be able to recognize and

understand modern perceptions of witchcraft. By the end of the course students will

understand popular opinions the majority has about this religion. Students will research

the amount of people that believe and or practice the religion in different areas. The

course will examine how practices within have changed over time and how much

perceptions have changed as well.

The last goal set forth for this course is students will be able to identify how social

media, television, and movies have shaped the public’s perception today. By the end of

the course students will be able to name different movies and television shows that depict

witchcraft in different lights. WC 101 will examine what effect the items discussed has

impacted the religions role in the world today. The main question discussed in this

section will be; What do people think of when they hear witch?

Justification

WC 101 is introducing students to the realm of witchcraft and wizardry.

Witchcraft is a very old religion that spans centuries. This course dives down into the

depths of what it means to practice witchcraft. Students will understand how witchcraft

surfaced in ancient documents, including the bible. Witchcraft has been used as weapon

to explain away the evil of the world. Disease, famine, and other hardships have been

placed upon the shoulders of witches just because people need an explanation of the

unexplainable. WC 101 will journey through time and show students the trials and

tribulations people in this religion have gone through. The course will show prejudice and

perception of a religion that is widely misunderstood. This course will also examine how

modern day forces that continue to not only influence the religion itself but how the


world views from an outsider’s perspective. Other colleges offer courses similar to this

one. Some of these include: ANTH367 Social and cultural perspectives on witchcraft and

sorcery, ANT214 Magic, witchcraft and healing, and magic, witchcraft and religion-Long

Beach City College. Witchcraft through the ages differs from these courses because

theses course mainly take an anthropological approach. Not only will students learn how

witchcraft affects people but it will give a background knowledge of everything that goes

into the religion. Students need this course because it broadens student’s perspective of

how the world works and why. WC 101: Witchcraft through the ages should become a

course because it helps expand student’s perspectives, increases background knowledge,

and helps develop societal awareness.

Witchcraft through the ages is needed because people need to understand not what

is familiar to them but what is out of their comfort zone. Students developing their critical

thinking skills need a knowledge base as big as they could possibly get. Knowledge is

power and knowledge allows people to understand others more deeply than before.

According to Sadler, C. C. ( 2011, July), “Part of one's college education should be a

healthy curiosity.” The student expected to take this course is one who is eager to learn

about something unique and history majors. This course will bring a healthy

understanding of history through the eyes of a misunderstood religion. This course will

fill in knowledge about why certain people think the way they do about people they don’t

understand. It will also help to feel in the gap of how one religion can impact an entire

society.

This course should be approved because it is a popular course among other

colleges. According to Tom Rushford of George Mason University, “rarely do high


school history classes fail to cover some aspect of witch trials and they remain a very

popular course at the college level. The only drawback from this course is that students

might not enroll as much as the school likes because students may not be looking for that

kind of elective. ” A study conducted at Jefferson Community Technical College showed

that 90% of students surveyed would take this course. The school will benefit from this

course because the course is popular and it would add diversity to the school’s

curriculum. It will show incoming students that the educational system at this school is

open to many different ways of learning and shows that the school is not set in just

traditional classes.

The result of this course being approved is more enrollments for the college. It

shows other colleges that this school is more open to new curriculum. This course will

equip students for further study into whatever field they wish to go into. This course

helps students look at things differently. Witchcraft through the ages lets student develop

an awareness that helps them analyze other influences on society, Students will use this

in careers to help them better understand the people they work with and how people

should judge before understanding. Other colleges could easily follow suit once this

course is approved.


Implementation

The way to get this course out there for them to see is to advertise. Students will

be intrigued to unique courses. When students go to look at courses offered on the

schools website, the courses name should be included on the first page. Students will be

encouraged to enroll because they don’t want boring electives they want something

interesting. The expectation of enrollment should be lower at first until the course is more

widely known. The expected enrollment at first would likely be 60 students. The best

class size for this course would be twenty to thirty students per classroom. According to

Yavapai College their “Magic, Witchcraft and Healing” course has 25 openings per class.

A professor teaching this course should be very lively and entertaining to enhance the

class. Especially with this course professors should be able to handle group activities well

and hold discussions easily.

Table 1: Requested Items and Funds for Course

Item Supplier Catalog No# Quantity Unit Price Total

Professor’s Textbook Llewellyn Publications 1567186483 1 $17.44 $17.44

Guest Speaker Agent N/A 1 $2,000.00 $2,000.00

Cauldron Amazon N/A 1 $8.99 $8.99

Dry Ice Amazon N/A 1 $19.75 $19.75

Terra Cards Amazon N/A 1 $15.50 $15.50

Total $2,061.68

In this course I would use the Text Book, (reference to table 1 above) “Origins of

Modern Witchcraft: The Evolution of a World Religion.” We will have a guest speaker.

That guest speaker is Emma Watson from the Harry potter movie franchise. I will work

with the department on that one because booking for course dates may be tricky. The


cauldron will be used with the dry ice for the media unit to help convey the stereotype of

what witches are thought of today. The terra cards will be used to show students an

aspect of witchcraft that is used by certain people in the religion. This course will not

supplement other courses. The only thing that may need coordination with other

professors in my department is the guest speaker.

Content Specifications

The units will be broken down as follows: History, beliefs, society, and

perceptions. History and beliefs will be the longest units. In history we will travel through

time examining the emergence of witchcraft and how it has left its imprint on certain

societies. Students will look at ancient documents, the bible, and examine how witchcraft

has been a big part of history; Students will also study the popularity swing of the

religion from time period to time period.

Beliefs are a unit that will expand the student’s horizons on the ins and outs of

witchcraft. Students will study what people in witchcraft worship, how they worship,

what the traditions are and how is it practiced today. Students will debate black magic to

the religion and compare and contrast it with other religion such as paganism and Wicca.

The course will also examine how witchcraft has influenced emerging religions.

The unit Society will teach students to become more aware of witchcrafts

influence on society as a whole. The course will go into detail about what impact the

Salem witch trails had on society. The students will study about how the religion has

influenced the media today. Students will also study what types of people believe or

practice today and why.


The last unit is perceptions. This unit will dive into modern perceptions of the

religion. WC 101 will identify different ways media, television and movies have shaped

peoples viewpoints. Students will examine different movies and televisions shows such

as “Charmed” and “Season of the Witch.” Students will identify how these types of

shows and movies manipulate people’s perceptions.

The things we will do to accomplish the goals set by the unit are different.

Students will make use of the internet a lot for research. Students will watch episode of

Charmed, Sabrina the teenage Witch, and Witches of East end. Some of the movies

students will see are: Season of the Witch, Practical Magic, and The Craft. We will use

the Textbook in class. Professors do have a choice in which textbook they would like to

use. Other textbooks include: “The Night Battles: Witchcraft and Agarian Cults in the

16th and 17

th centuries,” and “Witchcraft in Europe and the New World 1400-1800. There

will be no field trip.

Professors will know students accomplished the goals set for this class by many

things. Students will be able to recite a verse from the bible in front of class. Students

will write a 1 to 2 page research paper on a deity assigned by the professor. Students will

take open note tests. Students will research about certain groups and their belief

pertaining to witchcraft. The last test before the final will be a skit performed depicting

the religion in a certain light.


References

Sadler, C. C. (2011, July 20). Brief Course Description. In Magic, Witchcraft and

religion. Retrieved from http://www.lbcc.edu/Anthropology/magic.cfm

Rushford, T. Why I Taught the Source. In Children and Witchcraft (16th c.). Retrieved

from https://chnm.gmu.edu/cyh/case-studies/281

Yavapai College. (2015). Magic, Healing, and Witchcraft-Course Availability/ 2016

Spring. Retrieved from https://www.yc.edu/academics/courses/?ANT214

http://www.lbcc.edu/Anthropology/magic.cfm


Appendix

These are sample test questions that will be given throughout the course on

different assessments.

1.) Name one reference from the bible that pertains to witchcraft.

2.) Name the two deities most worshiped in this religion.

3.) Do people who practice Wicca and Witchcraft perform sacrifices? Explain.

4.) What do you think the majority of the public’s opinion is about a male or female

who practices witchcraft today?

5.) Using your critical think skills, do you think that an event like the Salem witch

trials could occur in today’s society? Why?

6.) Do you think that prejudice against pagan like religions exists today? Explain.

7.) Is witchcraft black magic?

8.) Do you think the people persecuted in the Salem witch trials were mistreated?


Key:

1.) Some that could be used:

Leviticus 19:31

Exodus 22:18

Deuteronomy 18:10

2.) Horned god and goddess

3.) Yes but only animal sacrifices

4.) This is up for debate. Students must use cultural references used in class to help

support argument

5.) Most likely answer is no. Argument could be made for yes but not likely.

6.) Debate question, use statistics and information learned in class to help support

argument.

7.) No

8.) Yes and students should use information from power point to help answer

proposal for witchcraft through the ages.pdf

Documents

religion witchcraft

emergence of witchcraft

influence witchcraft

students perspectives

new students

course goals

diversity wc

societal awareness