This is not a lecture-heavy history class. The role of the instructor is to coach, guide, and mentor students, but above all to develop a positive learning environment as we explore the intersection of technology and history. Remember: this course takes a broad approach to education, which can be K-12 but also museum and other forms of public history.
In a project-based learning course, students succeed when completing reading assignments, maintaining a reasonable and effective work schedule, and asking any and all questions. Reading and working on assignments ahead of time can help build constructive conversations that take place in class and online.
Use this Pacing Schedule to stay on track in HIS 3630
Assignments
Engagement: 10%
Readings Analysis (3 Quote- BLOG POST, or Zotero NOTE): 30%
Digital tool / research topic with Lesson Plan: 20%
Researching, Collecting, and Archiving project: 30%
Final Exam: 10%
- A [93+] / A- [92-90]
- B+ [89-87] / B [86-83] / B- [82-80]
- C+ [79-77] / C [76-73] / C- [72-70]
- D+ [69-67] / D [66-63] / D- [62-60]
- F [59 or less]
The grading for this course mostly revolves around two projects, with a semester-long readings assignment. Each project will be posted online and accompanied by a brief description. and a lesson plan (using the lesson plan template on the course website). One lesson plan will stem from a digital tool/research project and uses the lesson plan (ore presentation) template from the History Education Program. The second project uses the tool Omeka for a group project. Your group will visualize a historical topic to research and explain through archival work, curation, and presentation.
- Details and grading rubrics for each project will be posted on the course website and AsuLearn, along with deadlines for each step in the process.
Both projects: students will establish clear learning objectives, research historical scholarship on your subject, and then select the ideal digital tool(s) to enhance historical learning and thinking.
For the group project, your team will build an Omeka exhibit with items grouped in collections, and descriptions that provide both a historical narrative and a research-based argument. 2/3 of the grade will be your own contribution to the Omeka project, whereas 1/3 will be a group-level grade based on both a self-assessment and instructor assessment.
For the individual project, you will research a specific topic, theme, or aspect of the larger group research topic (or compliments the group project) and become an “expert.” You will select a particular digital tool to make your research topic come alive, and then design a lesson plan to teach your research topic using your designated digital tool(s).
ENGAGEMENT
Being engaged in a course is more than just showing up to class, although consistent attendance often correlates with higher grades. Being engaged also includes completing the weekly readings assignments, coming prepared to discuss the readings and contribute to group conversations, bringing the necessary materials to complete in-class projects and assignments, and helping your classmates as needed. In other words, engagements means being invested in your success and that of others.
READING ANALYSIS: Zotero Notes
Students will become Zotero Note Writers. This assignment helps you to think through the readings and how they speak to the theme for the week.
Zotero Notes
You will submit an analysis of course readings using the NOTE template in the HIS 3630 Zotero group library. Of the potential 10 weeks, you will submit work for SIX (6) weeks, which means you can take four (4) weeks off. To receive credit, you must post at least TWO notes per week … unless there is only one required reading in a given week.
- The template for notes isprovided in the HIS 3630 group folder (#2). Other notes offer directions (#1) and an example (#3). DO NOT EDIT any of these notes.
- Simply copy the template (#2) and paste it in the note you will add to readings in the Weeks 02-14 folders.
Assessment
- You will complete a self-evaluation (2/3 of your grade) & the instructor completes his eval. (1/3 of your grade).
- Try to post at least four weeks’ worth of work on this assignment by the midterm point of the semester.
INDIVIDUAL RESEARCH PROJECT & DIGITAL TOOL SELECTION
This project asks students to select a topic in history, research it, and then select a digital tool that can help audiences make sense of the topic (help “history come alive”). The final product is a complete lesson/presentation plan and the product(s) you develop from the tool you selected.
The goal is to develop a “digital identity” as a historian and instructor – an important skill regardless of your eventual career track.
The following are just some of the general areas or categories digital tools for history fall under. Choose the one that BEST aligns with your topic and the learning objectives you establish for your audience.
- Social media platforms (i.e. Twitter, Pinterest, Facebook, LinkedIn, Academia.edu, Instagram, etc.)
- Chronological presentations (like a digital timeline)
- Geographic or spatial presentations
- Data-heavy presentations (Wordle, Tableu, data visualizations)
- Multimedia narratives
- Digital Storytelling (DST)
- Image collections or galleries
- Presentation tools
- Primary-source analysis tools
Assessment
- You will complete a lesson plan and the product(s) from your digital tool. These are examples you can share with your audience as you model what you want them to practice.
- This grade will follow a rubric and involve both student and instructor assessment according to the rubric. You will have an opportunity to resubmit once if you wish for a potentially higher grade.
RESEARCH, COLLECTING, & ARCHIVING HISTORY ONLINE
In this project, we will use tools like Zotero, Google Docs, and video/photo/audio editing tools to create an Omeka.net website. The goal for this project is to better understand how an individual and group can research and collect/archive materials for online use.
You will work in a group of 4-5. The final project includes all major elements – research, collecting, writing – to produce an online exhibit. Each student will be responsible for curating and publishing 10 items. The whole group is responsible for organizing items into 3-4 collections, constructing an About page or Exhibition pages, writing descriptions for each collection, creating and posting a lesson/presentation plan that makes use of the Omeka website, and a Works Cited page.
What is the project’s focus? Explaining the history and significance of (your research topic) in 40-50 items, across 3-4 collections. [Take time to analyze Omeka sites using this worksheet]
- You will assessed on your own contribution (2/3 of your grade) & the group product as a whole (1/3 of your grade).
- Both assessments will follow a grading rubric.
FINAL EXAM
Your FINAL EXAM will be submitted on Exam Day: May 9 (8-10:30 am). We can discuss ideas, but it will most likely include either a formal essay paper, or digital-based oral/visual presentation.
Task: Use appropriately-selected readings from this semester, as well as your individual research to: a) explain how digital tools are reshaping how we teach and learn history; and b) assess the ways in which concepts like “teaching,” “history,” “technology,” and “the digital age” have changed your understanding of people learn about the past.
