Kathleen is the embedded librarian in this course. If things get confusing for you or for students, contact Kathleen.
This class began with a student-directed discussion on the "Problems of Modernity" in which students brainstormed some of the major issues of our time. I've included their list below.
Basically, all the work in this class is to help illustrate that the problems we struggle with now, are problems humans have struggled with since time began. We struggle with technology, the Romantics struggled with Industrialization. We have the internet reshaping our world, the Renaissance folks had the printing press.
The first project is a group assignment in which students sign up to investigate a particular time period (e.g. Romanticism, Age of Enlightenment) and create a presentation for their peers on their era. Trevor is basing the research students do on our "Scaffolding Your Research" slide, wanting students to learn about their time period first by consulting popular sources, then moving on the specialized encyclopedias, and finally rigorous, scholarly writing. Their ultimate goal is define their period, but they should be learning about different types of sources and how we evaluate sources along the way. They will also have to identify a representative primary text from their era.
Part I: Defining the Period DUE TUESDAY, JANUARY 27 at 10am
Using resources from Level 1: Popular Websites, define the period you have selected by examining at least 4 difference sources.
What are the popular sources saying about it? What points do they repeatedly emphasize? Identify examples from each, quote, discuss.
Below is what they need to turn in. They should also be prepared to present their findings informally if called upon to do so.
Part II: Refining the Definition; DUE THURSDAY, JANUARY 30th
Using resources from Level 2: Specialized Encyclopedias, provide a more robust definition of the period by using Wikipedia and at least 2 specialized encyclopedias. Consider how these sources deepen our understanding of the period in the following ways:
(These are the overall things you want to identify as you read through encyclopedias.)
Specifically, include the following in your write up:
1) A quick, encyclopedia-derived definition for each of the list of important/interesting terms your found for Part I of this assignment.
This can be as easy as looking up the terms in one of the encyclopedias and copying and pasting the defining, and then indicating where you got the definition with a short note.
This will give you a bunch of new information about the period just by the fact that you'll be able to connect these terms in various ways.
2) A list of what three encyclopedias you are using (Wikipedia will be one).
I really recommend Gale for this.
Just a list. One. Two. Three.
3) A narrative in which you elaborate on what the popular sources have already provided. This is a place to connect similar ideas and important concepts from all three encyclopedias. Your goal here is to provide a robust definition of the period by discussing some:
Of course, feel free to use that concept list you've already constructed to help.
4) Finally, keep a list of new terms/people/ideas/concepts that come up during this process and provide them here. These are more concepts you find you might need to define in your research as you uncover more information.
5) ...Lastly: a sentence or two indicating some aspect of the period (now that you have a general idea of the period) that you are interested in and how it MIGHT relate to one of our Problems of Modernity (or to another issue in which you are fascinated).
6) Make it all look orderly and professional. Give subheadings for each part.
Part III: Getting More specific
Using resources from Level 3: Newspapers and Magazines, select a representative idea, event, work, or individual to investigate further with at least 3 sources. Move from the general to the specific, and try to relate the period as a whole to the object of investigation on its own terms.
You will find and read three sources from Level 3: Newspapers and Magazines on your specific topic.
1.) Write a narrative—a page or so, single-spaced—weaving together the three different sources as you explain in your own words the background and importance of your specific idea. Cite the sources in your text.
If it helps, here are some potential ways to organize your writing:
Source 1 says X (about your specific idea)
Source 2 says Y (about your specific idea)
Source 3 says Z (about your specific idea)
Even better:
X specific idea – Sources 1, 2, and 3 say
Y specific idea – Sources 1, 2, and 3 say
Z specific idea – Sources 1, 2, and 3 say
Better yet:
Ideas and whatever sources make them best communicated, just more abstract.
As you write, feel confident about the material you are summarizing and commenting on. Be familiar with it, considering all the background you already know. Think and write about that relationship of ideas.
2) As you go into the specific topic you have selected, keep a running list of terms/ideas/people that need defining in your reading, and add their encyclopedia definitions with the encyclopedia used in parenthesis). This only needs to be a list of terms and definitions from your sources. It might be best to do this as you read, pulling out terms and defining them as you go.Others might say going back and defining them as you review has its merits.
3) Cite the sources. Simply a list of the three sources you utilized in MLA format.