Students

MHIS7000 – Introduction to Modern Historiography

2021 – Session 1, Weekday attendance, North Ryde

Notice

As part of Phase 3 of our return to campus plan, most units will now run tutorials, seminars and other small group activities on campus, and most will keep an online version available to those students unable to return or those who choose to continue their studies online.

To check the availability of face-to-face and online activities for your unit, please go to timetable viewer. To check detailed information on unit assessments visit your unit's iLearn space or consult your unit convenor.

General Information

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Unit convenor and teaching staff Unit convenor and teaching staff
Keith Rathbone
keith.rathbone@mq.edu.au
Credit points Credit points
10
Prerequisites Prerequisites
Admission to MRes
Corequisites Corequisites
Co-badged status Co-badged status
Unit description Unit description

This advanced-studies unit introduces students to a brief history of modern historical thinking and writing. It starts with an investigation of three major and enduring strands of Western historical thought from the nineteenth century: Rankean empiricism, Marxist structuralism, and Nietzchean deconstructionism. The rest of the unit traces the intertwining ups and downs of these three traditions through the twentieth century and into the new millennium. We look at the interplay between structuralisms and empiricisms during the early 1900s and then the returning challenge of deconstructionist—or what will be termed ‘poststructuralist’—thought by mid-century. We will study the effects of these changes especially on historical understandings of gender, class, and race. Our final weeks will look at what these different trajectories mean in our present era of ‘fake news’, and the shape of the dominant historiographical concerns of the immediate future.

Important Academic Dates

Information about important academic dates including deadlines for withdrawing from units are available at https://www.mq.edu.au/study/calendar-of-dates

Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this unit, you will be able to:

  • ULO1: read and analyse different kinds of historical writing and demonstrate an awareness of the benefits and limitations of particular approaches to the past
  • ULO2: understand some of the ways different historians have employed different theoretical models in their work
  • ULO3: communicate your analysis effectively in oral forms, and in a range of written forms
  • ULO4: engage effectively in group work with your peers and teachers

General Assessment Information

Assignment submission

Double-spaced type and pages with wide margins (for comments) are preferred. Footnotes and bibliography are mandatory.

All assignments must be submitted as Word documents via Turnitin on the MHIS 7000 iLearn site:

  1. Log in to your iLearn account and go to your home page. Turnitin assignments should be visible under MHIS 7000.
  2. If not, log in to MHIS 7000 and scroll down until you reach the subheading for the week.  ‘Assignment details and submission via Turnitin should be visible in that week. 
  3. Click on the assignment title.
  4. Type the title of your assignment in the box ‘Submission Title’.
  5. To upload your Word document, click on ‘Browse’ next to the ‘File to Submit’ box. Find and select your document from your computer, check the box for copyright, then click on the ‘Add submission’ button.

 

Detailed instructions on how to use Turnitin with can be found at:

http://www.mq.edu.au/iLearn/student_info/assignments.htm#submit_turnitin

 

Feedback will be provided via Grademark. Go to the following URL for instructions on how to view your feedback:

http://www.mq.edu.au/iLearn/student_info/assignments.htm#results

 

Extensions and penalties

Unless a Special Consideration request has been submitted and approved, (a) a penalty for lateness will apply – two (2) marks out of 100 will be deducted per day for assignments submitted after the due date – and (b) no assignment will be accepted more than seven (7) days (incl. weekends) after the original submission deadline. No late submissions will be accepted for timed assessments – e.g. quizzes, online tests.

Assignments handed in early will not be marked and returned before the due date.

Always keep a copy of your assessment tasks in case they get lost in the system.

 

Returning assignments

Assignments will be returned online via the MHIS 7000 iLearn site. For more information on how to view your marked assignments, see: http://www.mq.edu.au/iLearn/student_info/assignments.htm#results

Assignments will be marked and returned within two weeks of receipt.

Assessment Tasks

Name Weighting Hurdle Due
Seminar Participation / Online Forum Contributions 20% No All semester
Reflective Diary 20% No Weekly
Historiographic Essay 60% No Week 13

Seminar Participation / Online Forum Contributions

Assessment Type 1: Participatory task
Indicative Time on Task 2: 24 hours
Due: All semester
Weighting: 20%

 

Participation means not only doing all the common readings beforehand but also contributing to discussion with your fellow students during our meeting or during the online discussion forum for external students. Good participation ensures a productive learning environment for you and everyone else. Your grade is assessed on the basis of your generosity with your knowledge to other students and your willingness to ask relevant questions and to have a go at trying to answer others' questions.

 
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • read and analyse different kinds of historical writing and demonstrate an awareness of the benefits and limitations of particular approaches to the past
  • understand some of the ways different historians have employed different theoretical models in their work
  • communicate your analysis effectively in oral forms, and in a range of written forms
  • engage effectively in group work with your peers and teachers

Reflective Diary

Assessment Type 1: Log book
Indicative Time on Task 2: 6 hours
Due: Weekly
Weighting: 20%

 

Between weeks 2-13 you are expected to write a reflection each week after the discussion has concluded of between 200-400 words, you should attempt to synthesise the key points from the weekly discussion and offer a reflection on how these have challenged, transformed or perhaps reinforced some of your ideas about historical research. These will be submitted in 2 batches over the semester.

 
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • read and analyse different kinds of historical writing and demonstrate an awareness of the benefits and limitations of particular approaches to the past
  • understand some of the ways different historians have employed different theoretical models in their work
  • engage effectively in group work with your peers and teachers

Historiographic Essay

Assessment Type 1: Essay
Indicative Time on Task 2: 45 hours
Due: Week 13
Weighting: 60%

 

Write a 3000 word essay in which you address a historiographical question that you have formulated, a question that relates to any of the ideas or issues covered in the unit. You should clear your choice of question with your convenor by at least week 8. Start thinking about your essay question now! Try to keep your project manageable, by, for instance, investigating a concept or controversy through three to four primary texts. Keep your question short, too. Your paper should illustrate that you are able to locate evidence and present your findings in a clear and coherent manner. You must format and reference your essay according to departmental guidelines (see doc uploaded on ilearn). Submit via Turnitin.

 
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • read and analyse different kinds of historical writing and demonstrate an awareness of the benefits and limitations of particular approaches to the past
  • understand some of the ways different historians have employed different theoretical models in their work

1 If you need help with your assignment, please contact:

  • the academic teaching staff in your unit for guidance in understanding or completing this type of assessment
  • the Writing Centre for academic skills support.

2 Indicative time-on-task is an estimate of the time required for completion of the assessment task and is subject to individual variation

Delivery and Resources

Delivery and Resources

All students will participate via in-person or online learning exercises.

Writing your history essay 

The Department of Modern History has an essay writing and referencing guide available on iLearn. Please read it before you embark on your assessment tasks!

Participation 

Active participation in-person and in online seminars is an essential component of the course and repeated absences or lack of engagement without prior notification and adequate explanation may mean you fail this unit.

Assignment submission Please submit all assignments via Turnitin on iLearn. Assignments must include a heading that identifies the question chosen and a bibliography.

Special Consideration Please note that requests for special consideration are not granted automatically, and are reserved for unforeseen and serious circumstances such as prolonged illness, hospitalisation or bereavement in your immediate family.

Policies and Procedures

Macquarie University policies and procedures are accessible from Policy Central (https://policies.mq.edu.au). Students should be aware of the following policies in particular with regard to Learning and Teaching:

Students seeking more policy resources can visit Student Policies (https://students.mq.edu.au/support/study/policies). It is your one-stop-shop for the key policies you need to know about throughout your undergraduate student journey.

To find other policies relating to Teaching and Learning, visit Policy Central (https://policies.mq.edu.au) and use the search tool.

Student Code of Conduct

Macquarie University students have a responsibility to be familiar with the Student Code of Conduct: https://students.mq.edu.au/admin/other-resources/student-conduct

Results

Results published on platform other than eStudent, (eg. iLearn, Coursera etc.) or released directly by your Unit Convenor, are not confirmed as they are subject to final approval by the University. Once approved, final results will be sent to your student email address and will be made available in eStudent. For more information visit ask.mq.edu.au or if you are a Global MBA student contact globalmba.support@mq.edu.au

Student Support

Macquarie University provides a range of support services for students. For details, visit http://students.mq.edu.au/support/

Learning Skills

Learning Skills (mq.edu.au/learningskills) provides academic writing resources and study strategies to help you improve your marks and take control of your study.

The Library provides online and face to face support to help you find and use relevant information resources. 

Student Services and Support

Students with a disability are encouraged to contact the Disability Service who can provide appropriate help with any issues that arise during their studies.

Student Enquiries

For all student enquiries, visit Student Connect at ask.mq.edu.au

If you are a Global MBA student contact globalmba.support@mq.edu.au

IT Help

For help with University computer systems and technology, visit http://www.mq.edu.au/about_us/offices_and_units/information_technology/help/. 

When using the University's IT, you must adhere to the Acceptable Use of IT Resources Policy. The policy applies to all who connect to the MQ network including students.

Unit information based on version 2021.03 of the Handbook