| Unit name | Approaching the Past |
|---|---|
| Unit code | HIST13015 |
| Credit points | 20 |
| Level of study | C/4 |
| Teaching block(s) |
Teaching Block 1 (weeks 1 - 12) |
| Unit director | Dr. Rob Skinner |
| Open unit status | Not open |
| Pre-requisites |
None |
| Co-requisites |
None |
| School/department | Department of History (Historical Studies) |
| Faculty | Faculty of Arts |
In this unit we will be introducing you to some key skills that will carry through your degree, and in some cases into the world of work. But perhaps the most important aim of the unit is to encourage you to read, write and think as an historian and to introduce you to the challenges and the excitement of actually exploring the discipline yourself. This unit will be constructed by a series of lectures and workshops. Everyone attends the lectures, which amount to 20 hours in total. You are then divided into smaller groups, and will attend a total of 10 workshops. By the end of the unit you should understand what is distinctive about the study of history and understand why historians study their subject in the ways they do. You should also be able to reflect upon the complex relationship between evidence and interpretation, and to think about the nature of academic debate.
Aims:
This unit is designed to prepare students for degree-level study in history by equipping them with the skills they will need. It focuses upon fostering the practical and interpretive skills required by those studying history, and upon developing students' sense of what being an historian involves. It thus aims to introduce students to the challenges and the excitement of studying this subject, with a particular emphasis on how to read, interpret and discuss historical texts and objects.
By the end of the unit students will be equipped to:
1 x 1-hour lecture
1 x 1-hour workshop
Access to tutorial consultation with unit tutor(s)
Plagiarism test (students are required to pass this in order to complete the unit) [ILO 1]
Group-project presentation (50%) [ILOs 2-4]
2-hour exam (50%) [ILO 5]
J. Arnold, History: A Very Short Introduction (Oxford University Press, 2000)
L. Jordanova, History in Practice [2nd edn.] (Hodder Arnold, 2006).
A. Munslow, The Routledge Companion to Historical Studies (Routledge, 2006).
J. Tosh, Historians on History (Pearson Longman, 2000).
J. Tosh, The Pursuit of History [4th edn.] (Pearson Longman, 2002).
