Last modified: 04 Dec 2023 14:46
History is not simply a dry, academic study of the past; it shapes a host of contemporary political, economic and cultural attitudes and is a central underpinning to the tourist and heritage industries - now one of the largest sectors of employment among mature western economies. This course is designed to give a critical understanding of the theoretical and practical links (as well as clear distinctions) between the practice of 'academic' History and 'public' History. This is done by having students assess how heritage and tourist businesses project a particular version of the past.
| Study Type | Undergraduate | Level | 4 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Session | Second Sub Session | Credit Points | 30 credits (15 ECTS credits) |
| Campus | Aberdeen | Sustained Study | No |
| Co-ordinators |
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The course aims to give a greater sense of History as an applied subject with considerable public relevance and socio-economic significance beyond its academic forms. The course looks at the different practices that characterise the discipline of History in universities and in society at large. Students will refect upon and utilise both factual knowledge and generic techniques and genres inherent in the subject of History. By critiquing six academic papers, undertaking (where possible) workplacements, or reviewing how historical topics are selected, edited and packed in non-academic formats, students will gain a deeper knowledge of the many varieties of History which can and do exist. Beside a comparative review of how academic historians practice their discipline in the format of seminar papers/and or lectures, the course will enable students to evaluate how public, heritage, or civic institutions (libraries, archives, museums, History societies, tourist boards etc.) select, construct and present different, but equally valid, forms of History. Finally, students will then apply their knowledge, understanding and skills to develop an historical project and presentation based on a particular archival or primary source/s. In doing so, students are asked to ponder the wider issue of who 'owns' History and how, if at all, are competing claims to such ownership and practices addressed, mediated, and presented?
Information on contact teaching time is available from the course guide.
| Assessment Type | Summative | Weighting | 20 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Assessment Weeks | 26,27,28,29,30,31,32,33 | Feedback Weeks | ||
| Feedback |
A percentage of the students’ final mark will be based on their participation in the seminars. Marks will be based on Bean and Petersen’s Holistic Rubric for Scoring class participation, adapted to the University of Aberdeen’s marking scheme, and criteria will be presented and discussed with students in week 1 of teaching. In order to better identify each student’s contribution to seminar participation, each week groups will be asked to identify a group leader who will act as project manager and will report on the work done by the group in the final part of the weekly seminar. |
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| Knowledge Level | Thinking Skill | Outcome |
|---|---|---|
| Procedural | Apply | To devise a public history project and be able to present it to an audience via audio and/or video presentation |
| Procedural | Create | To work collaboratively (during seminars) on mini-public history projects: to brainstorm ideas, reach an agreement in a groupwork setting, and envisage a practical development of initial ideas |
| Assessment Type | Summative | Weighting | 40 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Assessment Weeks | 33 | Feedback Weeks | 39 | |
| Feedback |
Students identify, analyse and critically review a particular act, institution, or piece of ‘public history’. This can be, for example, a TV series, a public debate among historians, an exhibition, a commemorative event, or a blog. The review should explain why the subject was chosen, show its significance, reflect on how this public history relates to ‘academic history’, and display critical thought about how history is presented and consumed. |
Word Count | 2000 | |
| Knowledge Level | Thinking Skill | Outcome |
|---|---|---|
| Conceptual | Understand | To broaden students' understanding of the ethical issues and responsibilities central to the practice of all forms of history |
| Conceptual | Understand | To develop a critical understanding of theoretical and practical links (as well as clear distinctions) between the practice of ‘academic’ and ‘public’ history |
| Procedural | Evaluate | To reflect critically on how history is presented to, received, and interpreted by, different audiences in different ways |
| Assessment Type | Summative | Weighting | 40 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Assessment Weeks | 39 | Feedback Weeks | 42 | |
| Feedback |
Students are asked to prepare a 10-minute audio report, in the form of a podcast – to be recorded via PowerPoint – of either a work placement experience (1), or of a potential public history project they would take on in the future (2). 1. The podcast will be based on a work placement scheme, and should indicate the way in which the student's historical skills were utilised in the work environment, and – if appropriate – how the work-placement experience enhanced their historical skills and/or ideas about history. 2. For this podcast students identify a topic, theme or aspect of History and, reflecting on the knowledge, issues and solutions considered in the course, construct their own version of a ‘Public History’ project. |
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| Knowledge Level | Thinking Skill | Outcome |
|---|---|---|
| Conceptual | Understand | To broaden students' understanding of the ethical issues and responsibilities central to the practice of all forms of history |
| Conceptual | Understand | To develop a critical understanding of theoretical and practical links (as well as clear distinctions) between the practice of ‘academic’ and ‘public’ history |
| Procedural | Apply | To devise a public history project and be able to present it to an audience via audio and/or video presentation |
| Procedural | Evaluate | To reflect critically on how history is presented to, received, and interpreted by, different audiences in different ways |
There are no assessments for this course.
| Assessment Type | Summative | Weighting | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Assessment Weeks | Feedback Weeks | |||
| Feedback |
Seminar participation will be excluded from resit assessments, and the percentage of the two other assessment components will be increased to 50% and 50%. |
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| Knowledge Level | Thinking Skill | Outcome |
|---|---|---|
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| Knowledge Level | Thinking Skill | Outcome |
|---|---|---|
| Conceptual | Understand | To develop a critical understanding of theoretical and practical links (as well as clear distinctions) between the practice of ‘academic’ and ‘public’ history |
| Procedural | Evaluate | To reflect critically on how history is presented to, received, and interpreted by, different audiences in different ways |
| Conceptual | Understand | To broaden students' understanding of the ethical issues and responsibilities central to the practice of all forms of history |
| Procedural | Apply | To devise a public history project and be able to present it to an audience via audio and/or video presentation |
| Procedural | Create | To work collaboratively (during seminars) on mini-public history projects: to brainstorm ideas, reach an agreement in a groupwork setting, and envisage a practical development of initial ideas |
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