This module introduces students to the way that academic historians use, interpret, and debate the value of historical evidence. It is a vital step in the transition between school- and university-level history, enabling students to understand evidence as the most fundamental building block of historical argument. Students will learn how potential historical ‘sources’ – from shopping lists to state papers, novels to Netflix – can become historical evidence; they will learn to weigh the significance of a piece of evidence and assess how to deploy it to construct an argument; and they will come to be familiar with some of the key concepts through which historians understand evidence. The module not only provides a foundation for historical understanding, it also gives students the tools to enable critical thinking. By the end of this module, students will have acquired skills and knowledge that will remain vital throughout their degree and beyond.
Occurrence | Teaching period |
---|---|
A | Semester 2 2024-25 |
The aims of this module are:
Students who complete this module successfully will have:
Students will attend a 1-hour briefing in week 1, then two lectures and a 1-hour discussion group in each of weeks 2-4, 6-8 and 10-11. Weeks 5 & 9 are Reading and Writing Weeks (RAW). Students prepare for and participate in sixteen lectures and eight discussion groups in all.
Lecture and discussion group topics are subject to variation, but are likely to include the following:
Task | % of module mark |
---|---|
Essay/coursework | 100 |
None
For formative assessment work, students will produce a 500-word source commentary in week 9.
For summative assessment, students will complete a 500-word source commentary and a 1500-word essay in the assessment period.
Task | % of module mark |
---|---|
Essay/coursework | 100 |
Following their formative assessment task, students will receive written feedback that will include comments and a mark within 10 working days of submission.
Work will be returned to students in their discussion groups and may be supplemented by the tutor giving some oral feedback to the whole group. All students are encouraged, if they wish, to discuss the feedback on their procedural work during their lecturers’ student hours. For more information, see the Statement on Feedback.
For summative assessment tasks, students will receive their provisional mark and written feedback within 25 working days of the submission deadline. The tutor will then be available during student hours for follow-up guidance if required. For more information, see the Statement of Assessment.
For semester-time reading, please refer to the module VLE site. Before the course starts, we encourage you to look at the following items of preliminary reading: