This course is unlike any other History course you will take here. It is not about the history of a given time or place, but instead about the writing of history in general. There are no lectures or exams. Our focus will be on training together to produce a research paper that integrates primary and secondary sources, to prepare you for proseminar classes and for further coursework in History. It is a reading- and writing-intensive course, and one that prepares you to complete the History major.
There are three basic areas of inquiry for the course:
What is History? (what is it good for? what does it try to do? why do we do it?)
How do historians do it? (what types of History can we write? how do we research? how do historians use sources? how do we write?)
What makes a successful student of History? (how do I “gut” an article? what different types of assignments might I encounter? how do I write an historiographical essay? how do I write a primary source research paper? How do I use primary and secondary sources effectively?)
Our course goals and objectives are to work together to break down the process of researching and writing about history and to produce polished, well-researched term papers. This will lay the groundwork for the primary source research paper required in proseminar courses.
This seminar is intended for upper-division students who are History majors, and it is required for completion of the History major.
Most of the readings for this class will be available on-line through the ilearn site. Log in to ilearn.sfsu.edu and enter your ID# and pin# to access the readings. There is one required book and one recommended book for purchase, in addition to the on-line readings. Please bring the relevant book(s) to class when we discuss them. On-line readings will be available in .pdf format. These can be read with Adobe Acrobat reader, which can be downloaded for free. When the readings are on-line, please either print out the on-line excerpt or take detailed notes on the text.
Cannadine, David, ed., What is History Now?, ISBN 978-1403933362. This is a book of essays about different ways historians write about history, and we will be reading sections from it throughout the semester.
Storey, William Kelleher, Writing History: A Guide for Students, ISBN 978-0195166095. This is a how-to book about writing a History paper. We will be working through the different chapters throughout the semester.
Turabian, Kate, A Manual for Writers of Research Papers, Theses, and Dissertations, Seventh Edition: Chicago Style for Students and Researchers, ISBN: 978-0226823379. This is a classic writing manual, and answers useful questions like, “How do I write a footnote?”, “Do I put a hyphen here?”, and “Should this title be in italics or quotations?” It is optional for the course, but is a fantastic resource to use while you are writing your paper.
The focus of this course is to prepare a formal paper, based on primary source research. This paper will be due at the end of the course, during finals week. We do not have a final exam for this class, but we will meet during our exam time to discuss the paper and celebrate our achievements. Because it is the center of the course, the final paper will comprise one-quarter of the course grade. The rest of the grade will consist of participation in class activities, discussions, and exercises, and a series of assignments designed to lead up to the final paper. Any late assignments will immediately lose points, and they will continue to drop in score the longer they are late.
The course grade will be determined as follows:
Class participation and attendance: 15%
Worksheets and short assignments (topic worksheet, proof of OASIS completion, “What is History?” response paper, primary source worksheet; due weeks 2 - 5): 10%
Thesis statement (due week 7): 5%
Research abstract and bibliography (3 – 5 pp., due week 8): 5%
Historiographical essay (3 – 5 pp., due week 9): 10%
Opening sections and outline (3 – 5 pp., due week 10): 10%
First draft (15 – 20 pp., due week 11): 10%
Research presentation (weeks 13 – 14): 10%
Final paper: 25%
Attendance is mandatory, and will be considered in your participation grade. Class participation will make up a significant percentage of your final grade for the course. You are encouraged to ask questions at any time and are expected to participate in any class activity, discussion, or exercise. An attendance sheet will be passed around at the beginning of every class. You must sign the sheet in order to be counted as present. If you need to arrive late, please make sure you sign in before you leave the room at the end of class. If you need to leave early, please tell the instructor at the beginning of class.
The classroom is a special environment in which students and faculty come together to promote learning and growth. It is essential to this learning environment that respect for the rights of others seeking to learn, respect for the professionalism of the instructor, and the general goals of academic freedom are maintained. Differences of viewpoint or concerns should be expressed in terms which are supportive of the learning process.