History for Historians

This subject is not offered in 2014.

10 hours per week: total time commitment 120 hours

Admission to fourth-year honours in history or the postgraduate diploma

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For the purposes of considering request for Reasonable Adjustments under the disability Standards for Education (Cwth 2005), and Students Experiencing Academic Disadvantage Policy, academic requirements for this subject are articulated in the Subject Description, Subject Objectives, Generic Skills and Assessment Requirements of this entry.The University is dedicated to provide support to those with special requirements. Further details on the disability support scheme can be found at the Disability Liaison Unit website: http://www.services.unimelb.edu.au/disability/

History for Historians is designed to enable History students to reflect critically upon their discipline: its history, its theory, its methods, and its practice. Such reflection will enhance students' research for, and writing of, their theses, and the assessment tasks directly incorporate students' thesis research. For these reasons, this seminar is compulsory for all students enrolled in pure History Honours. Students will be introduced to key developments in historiography from early modernity to post modernity. They will examine the application of a range of social theories and methodologies to the practice of History. They will also approach the task of their own research and writing of history through sessions on archival and bibliographical searches, on developing skills of historiographical analysis, on the use of written, oral, and visual sources, and on the creative act of transforming these historical sources into interpretative narratives to communicate to others.

Students who complete this subject will

• understand key developments in the history of History.
• understand significant issues in the theory and practice of history.
• develop skills in research and writing directly relevant to their honours theses.
• have an understanding of the theoretical and methodological issues involved in historical analysis.
• be able to engage in independent critical inquiry and research-based writing.

Weekly reading journal totalling 1000 words 20% (due end of semester and mark based on four best entries), an archives project, 1500 words 30% (due mid semester) and a historiographical essay, 2500 words 40% (due in examination period).

Hurdle Requirement: Students are required to attend a minimum of 75% of classes in order to pass this subject. Assessment submitted late without an approved extension will be penalised at 2% per working day. All pieces of written work must be submitted to pass this subject.

Subject readings will be available on line

Georg Iggers, Historiography in the 20th century: from Scientific Objectivity to the Postmodern Challenge. MIddletown: Wesleyan University Press, 2005

This subject is not available as a breadth subject.

Students who complete this subject will

• develop critical thinking and analysis through recommended reading, essay writing and seminar discussion, and by determining the strength of an argument.
• demonstrate research skills through competent use of the library and other information sources.
• demonstrate the ability to contextualise judgements and construct arguments.
• develop a critical self-awareness, being open to new ideas and possibilities.

This is a compulsory subject for students doing pure honours in History or students doing the Postgraduate Diploma in Arts (History). It is optional for students doing combined honours.