History 466

HIST 466
History Travel Study

Catalog Entry

HIST 466
History Travel Study
Credit Hours: (3-6)

Prerequisite: Three hours of HIST at the 100 level.

Involves domestic and/or international travel.  Students will participate in the investigation of historical topics in relevant locations.  One of the goals of the course is to allow students to better understand and relate to historical issues specific to countries and regions by exploring them 'on location.' This course may be taken again for credit with different topics or areas of study.  Designation of the course as counting for area 'A,' 'B,' or 'C' of the History major will depend on the course content, and must be established before the student enrolls.  This course can count for a maximum of 3 credit hours in any one of those areas of the History major.  A maximum of 6 credit hours of travel study may be applied towards the History major.  A maximum of 3 credit hours of travel study may be applied towards the History minor or the Social Science major.


Detailed Description of Content of Course

This course involves travel, domestic or international, to locations of historical interest, in order to engage in the study of specific historical topics.  The course will encourage engagement in primary and secondary sources which are specifically available at the travel destinations.  Topic and major units are to be determined by the instructor.

Detailed Description of Conduct of Course

In order to engage students in the historical process and the interpretation of historical events, any or all of the above instructional strategies may be employed.  The choice of appropriate instructional strategies is at the discretion of the instructor.

Goals and Objectives of the Course

Department Goals:
1. Students will practice thinking critically and analytically about historical issues, acquire a broader knowledge and deeper understanding of pertinent historical events and processes, and cultivate a familiarity with the concepts of historical argument and interpretation.
2. Students will develop disciplinary research skills by designing strategies to locate and analyze primary and secondary source evidence, processing and organizing the resultant data, and composing proper citation and bibliographical entries.
3. Students will apply their critical thinking, research, and compositional skills to the creation and presentation of thesis driven essays that discuss, for example, historical social, economic, political, and/or cultural developments and that address issues such as the causes and consequences of historical change and continuity.

Course Goals:
Students who have successfully completed this course (History majors and non-majors) will be able to place their travel/study experience in historical context and will demonstrate their ability to do that by means to be determined by the individual faculty member. History majors who have completed HIST 466 will have asked interesting and fruitful questions, have found and accumulated sources, evaluated those sources, and produced a well-written and well-argued summary of their findings.  In the process, they will demonstrate their ability to read critically, analyze information, and process, organize, and report their findings in writing.
Assessment Measures

Knowledge and understanding of the material covered in this course may be measured using an array of assessment tools that can include written examinations, class attendance and participation, formal papers (book analyses, research projects, and primary source analyses) and informal writing assignments. All exercises are designed to expand the student's ability to evaluate historical events and to develop his or her ability to compose persuasive arguments.
 
Pre-travel reading assignments will be subject to written assessment measures and strategies to be determined by the instructor.  History majors will meet a minimum writing requirement, the content and results of which will also be determined and assessed by the instructor


Other Course Information

None


Review and Approval
Date Action Reviewed By
October 2010 Reviewed and Approved by Sharon Roger Hepburn

04/2011