Each week you will prepare topics for discussion in a tutorial. Following the Tutorial you will need to write up a single topic as a post to an on-line forum. The post needs to be referenced to the reading that you have undertaken and should also refer to ancient sources, whether coins, archaeological plans/maps, prints from Rome, or texts. By posting to the forum, you will be able to develop and consolidate your knowledge gained from the tutorial and also from the lectures in terms of your knowledge in relation to the historical processes and fundamental historical developments in the study of the city of Rome.  Posts in weeks 8-12 form the basis for the mark in terms of assessment, but you are expected to contribute to the Forum each week (this means weeks 2-6 are to allow you to experiment and to practice using the format of a Forum).

The Tutorial and the Forum provide you with an opportunity to test ideas and to practice your writing.

The Forum accounts for 15% of the marks in the final assessment, hence it is essential that you complete this task each week.

Each post should be no more than 700 words (excluding bibliography/references)

This piece of assessment maps onto the following learning outcomes, in particular numbers 1-4

1. To consolidate knowledge in relation to the historical processes and fundamental historical developments in the study of the city of Rome. 2. To develop sophisticated research skills with which to analyse ancient sources (texts, coins, excavated remains, etc.) with reference to the city of Rome. 3. To critically use evaluate modern scholarship that has been influential in shaping our understanding of aspects of the city of Rome, including the use of evidence. 4. To make decisions in relation to planning, organizing and prioritizing work, including decision making and problem-solving.

During the first 4 weeks of the unit, we will examine ancient sources and discuss how we approach them and what information they provide us with about the city of Rome in antiquity.  Your report will need to include references to what you have read, but the key part of this assessment is to explain how this piece of source material provides us with information and how that information can be interpreted.  It is also important to identify where in Rome places mentioned in the text can be found (annotated maps may help to communicate this aspect). Some buildings in ancient Rome, there is still uncertainty over their position in antiquity. 

Your short report should be no more than 1000 words. The deadline for the report is 11pm on the Friday of week 4.

This assessment task relates to the following learning outcomes, but especially to numbers 2 and 4.

1. To consolidate knowledge in relation to the historical processes and fundamental historical developments in the study of the city of Rome. 2. To develop sophisticated research skills with which to analyse ancient sources (texts, coins, excavated remains, etc.) with reference to the city of Rome. 3. To critically evaluate modern scholarship that has been influential in shaping our understanding of aspects of the city of Rome, including the use of evidence. 4. To make decisions in relation to planning, organizing and prioritizing work, including decision making and problem-solving.    

Alongside your report on ancient source/s, you need to write a report in which you create a summary of the argument of a modern author in a journal article. A list of suitable articles will be provided.  Your report should be written under the following headings:-

1) Summary of the Argument in the Article 2) Why was this article written 3) Why is this article important for how we understand/interpret source material? 4) Evaluate the argument set out by the author/s, is there a counter-argument to be made? 5) How does the author/s use ancient sources to make key points? Evaluate an example/s to make your argument stronger. Your short report should be no more than 1000 words. The deadline for this piece of assessment is 11pm on Friday of week 7.

This assessment relates to the following learning outcomes, but especially to numbers 1 and 3.

1. To consolidate knowledge in relation to the historical processes and fundamental historical developments in the study of the city of Rome. 2. To develop sophisticated research skills with which to analyse ancient sources (texts, coins, excavated remains, etc.) with reference to the city of Rome. 3. To critically evaluate modern scholarship that has been influential in shaping our understanding of aspects of the city of Rome, including the use of evidence. 4. To make decisions in relation to planning, organizing and prioritizing work, including decision making and problem-solving.    

The second half of the unit, weeks 8-12, will focus attention on your ability to undertake research on the city of Rome.  This culminates in a piece of assessment that involves you in using the skills you have developed over the course of the unit. The assessment is in the form of a blog that is written to make research on a particular aspect or building in Rome accessible to the public.  We will examine through lectures and tutorials the role of blogs in Ancient History, and consider how you as a student can contribute to discussion pages (e.g. on LinkedIn) and posts (for example on twitter).

The blog needs to be referenced, but you should put in hyperlinks to other websites so that your reader (the public) can access these in translation (Perseus or Lacus Curtius websites have translations of major authors). You should include pictures to make your blog more attractive and to ensure that what your blog describes is understood.  In using images, you will need to identify whether they can be reproduced in a blog or whether copyright prevents the use of some images.

The maximum length of the blog should be 1500 words, not including references and bibliography.

This assessment fulfills the following Learning Outcomes, but especially number 5.

1. To consolidate knowledge in relation to the historical processes and fundamental historical developments in the study of the city of Rome. 2. To develop sophisticated research skills with which to analyse ancient sources (texts, coins, excavated remains, etc.) with reference to the city of Rome. 3. To critically evaluate modern scholarship that has been influential in shaping our understanding of aspects of the city of Rome, including the use of evidence. 4. To make decisions in relation to planning, organizing and prioritizing work, including decision making and problem-solving.   5. To develop an understanding of how research in Ancient History may be presented to a wider public through the development of virtual content.