Syllabus for History 2100

History 2100 — The Historian's Craft -- Fall 2008

Prof. Peter Baldwin

Office Hours (229 Wood Hall): Tuesdays and Thursdays, 3:30 to 4:30; Wed., 10:30 to Noon; and by appointment.
Office phone: 860-486-3154.
Email: pbaldwin@uconn.edu

Course Objectives:

This course introduces students to the goals, methods, and tools of the historical profession. We will consider the writing of history as an act of interpretation, and we will examine the kinds of sources that historians use in constructing an interpretive argument.

Although most of the readings focus on the daily lives of ordinary Americans, the course is not "about" American history. It is about how history is written.

Course requirements:

There are now three possible ways in which you can be graded. At the end of the semester, I will assign whichever option gives each student the highest grade.

Original Recipe	Extra Crispy (Skip the final paper)	Hot & Spicy (Skip one review)
Ten Homeworks (20% of total) Students will complete at least ten of the fourteen homework assignments. If you do more than ten, you will be graded on your ten best. Grades for homeworks will be simple "check plus," "check" and "check minus." These do NOT correspond to A, B and C. In most cases, students will receive "checks." The grading scale will be as follows: check pluses count for three points, checks are two points and check minuses are one point. Twenty four points or above is an A; 23 or 22 is an A minus; 21 is a B plus; 20 or 19 is a B; 18 is a B minus; 17 is a C plus; 16 is a C; 15 is a C minus; 14 is a D plus; 13 is a D; 12 is a D minus.	Ten Homeworks (25% of total) Different weight, otherwise the same	Ten Homeworks (25% of total) Different weight, otherwise the same
Three Document Exercises (15%) Students will complete at least three of the document exercises. If you do more than three, you will be graded on your three best.	Three Document Exercises (25%) Two best count as 10% each.	Three Document Exercises (20%) Best counts as 10%.
Three Papers (50%) Students will complete three paper assignments. The two review essays each count for 15%. The final paper counts for 20%, including the component to be submitted on Nov. 11.	Two Reviews (35%) Students will complete the two review essays, the better of which will count for 20%. These students are not required to write the final paper.	One Review & Final Paper (40%) Students will complete one of the two review essays, plus the final paper. The review essay will count for 15%. The final paper counts for 25%, including the component to be submitted on Nov. 11.
Class Participation (15% of course grade) Students are expected to participate regularly, actively, and constructively in class discussions. Their class participation will be graded. Students will receive high grades for class participation only if they express informed judgments, pose questions, and respond to other students' comments. Students who rarely speak, or who show a lack of familiarity with the material, will not receive high grades.	Class Participation (15% of course grade)	Class Participation (15% of course grade)

Books Available for Purchase:

Nelson, Steel Drivin' Man, John Henry
Presnell, The Information-Literate Historian
Tucher, Froth and Scum

10/30
11/4
11/6
11/11
11/13
11/18
11/20
12/2
12/4
12/11

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Ground Rules:

The following ground rules will apply in the course:

The syllabus sets outs the basic requirements and schedule for the course, but students are responsible for any changes announced in class and on WebVista.
Attendance at every class is expected. Frequent absence will inevitably affect your grade for class participation.
Punctuality is important and expected. By arriving late, you cause a minor distraction for everybody. By doing so repeatedly, or by leaving before the end of class without notifying me in advance, you are likely to annoy me and reduce your grade for class participation.
Please don't wander out for a "personal break" unless absolutely necessary. It's distracting.
Drinks are OK, but no eating in class unless you bring enough for everyone. Otherwise I might take away your food and eat it myself if it looks good.
Students are expected to behave themselves in a way that shows courtesy to the instructors and to fellow students. They are expected to turn off all electronic devices, and to be attentive and respectful. Language or behavior that demeans or harasses other students will not be tolerated; this includes sexual harassment.
Short homework assignments will be accepted late only under one of the following circumstances: a) You received advance permission; b) Class was cancelled that day; c) You can provide documentation of a medical emergency; d) You experienced a death in the family; e) You can provide a letter of support from the Dean of Students.
Document analyses and papers must also be submitted on time. Students who encounter an emergency that prevents them from submitting one of these assignments on time are required to discuss the matter with me in advance, if at all possible, or to notify me by voice mail (486-3854). For each weekday that an assignment late without permission, the grade will be reduced by a third of a grade (for instance from an A- to a B+). No work will be accepted more than a week late without prior arrangement; students submitting work more than a week late will receive an F for that assignment.
All written work must be typed, double-spaced, and in a 10-12 font size. Footnotes and endnotes do not count in the suggested page limits.
Edit all written work carefully for style, spelling, and grammar. Error-ridden writing will lower your grade.
All written work must be fully footnoted; in-text citations are not acceptable. The preferred form is Turabian, and Babbidge Library’s Research Guide, “Turabian Citations,” [ http://www.lib.uconn.edu/using/finding/guides/turabib.pdf ] should be adequate for the needs of this course.
This should be obvious, but… plagiarism of any sort will not be tolerated. Plagiarism is the use of the ideas, organization, or words of another writer without giving proper credit. Students must produce their own, original work for this course. Any student found to have committed a serious act of plagiarism will fail the course. This rule is supported by the policy on academic integrity in the University of Connecticut's student code (see below). I take this requirement very seriously and I actively hunt for plagiarism. If I catch you, I will not care about any excuses you may have. Don't plagiarize! It's not worth the risk.

A fundamental tenet of all educational institutions is academic honesty; academic work depends upon respect for and acknowledgement of the research and ideas of others. Misrepresenting someone else's work as one's own is a serious offense in any academic setting and it will not be condoned.
Academic misconduct includes, but is not limited to, providing or receiving assistance in a manner not authorized by the instructor in the creation of work to be submitted for academic evaluation (e.g. papers, projects, and examinations); any attempt to influence improperly (e.g. bribery, threats) any member of the faculty, staff, or administration of the University in any matter pertaining to academics or research; presenting, as one's own, the ideas or words of another for academic evaluation; doing unauthorized academic work for which another person will receive credit or be evaluated; and presenting the same or substantially the same papers or projects in two or more courses without the explicit permission of the instructors involved.
A student who knowingly assists another student in committing an act of academic misconduct shall be equally accountable for the violation, and shall be subject to the sanctions and other remedies described in The Student Code.

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Schedule

Aug. 26: Primary and Secondary Sources

Aug. 28 : Reading History and Writing History.

Sam Wineburg, "Crazy for History," The Journal of American History, March 2004 <http://www.historycooperative.org/journals/jah/90.4/wineburg.html>.
Patricia Nelson Limerick, "Dancing With Professors: The Trouble with Academic Prose," New York Times, Oct. 31, 1993 (via HuskyCT)

Sept. 2 : Historical Argument

"Historians and Textbooks: The `Story' of Reconstruction," in John Hollitz, ed., Thinking Through the Past: A Critical Thinking Approach to U.S. History, Vol. II, second edition ( Boston : Houghton Mifflin, 2001), 9-23. (via HuskyCT)
Presnell, The Information-Literate Historian, chap 5
Homework #1: Reconstruction

Sept. 4 : Problems of Interpretation

Nelson, Steel Drivin' Man, John Henry, chaps. 1 and 2
Presnell, The Information-Literate Historian, chaps. 1 and 4; pages 152-155.
Homework #2: Questions on Nelson

Sept. 9 : Originality and Interpretation in the Writing of History

Richard Wightman Fox, "A Heartbreaking Problem of Staggering Proportions," The Journal of American History, March 2004 <http://www.historycooperative.org/journals/jah/90.4/fox.html>
Zachary M. Schrag, "Elements of a Thesis Statement," <http://www.schrag.info/teaching/thesis.html>
Zachary M. Schrag, "Thesis Statement Template," <http://www.schrag.info/teaching/thesistemplate.html>

Sept. 11: Evaluating Scholarship

Robert A. Gross, "Forum: The Making of a Slave Conspiracy, Part 1," William and Mary Quarterly, Third Series, vol. 58, no. 4 (Oct. 2001), pp. 913-914.
Michael P. Johnson, "Denmark Vesey and his Co-Conspirators," The William and Mary Quarterly, Third Series, Vol. 58, No. 4 (Oct., 2001), pp. 915-97.
Homework #3: Questions on Johnson

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