In order to broaden student understanding of past and contemporary situations, the world history survey course needs to consider religion as a vehicle through which history moves. The course proposal includes prehistory and paleolithic times to contemporary Islamic culture. The course is thematic and comparative in orientation, but moves through historical time in a conceptual rather than chronological manner. The six major units use religion as the main organizing principle. The first semester of the course examines historical developments from precivilization to the classical era. Unit 1 uses a case study to examine precivilization. In the second unit, students explore the relationship of religion to the environment with a focus on the ancient riverine civilizations of Mesopotamia and Egypt. Unit 3 investigates the ancient classical era where religion affected every aspect of life. The second semester explores religious reformations and the impact on civilizations. Unit 4 examines the ancient civilization of India and the Hindu religion. Unit 5 moves geographically along the trade route from the Indian to Chinese civilization. The last unit focuses on the birth, development and diffusion of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. A 30-item bibliography, and references to 18 world history books and 7 articles provide supplementary reading and textbook information. (CK)