Students

MHIS2020 – Twentieth-Century Europe

2021 – Session 1, Special circumstances

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

Download as PDF
Unit convenor and teaching staff Unit convenor and teaching staff
Keith Rathbone
Credit points Credit points
10
Prerequisites Prerequisites
40cp at 1000 level or above OR (10cp in HIST or MHIS or POL or POIR or MHIX or POIX units)
Corequisites Corequisites
Co-badged status Co-badged status
Unit description Unit description

Was Europe indeed the 'dark continent' suggested by historian Mark Mazower? This unit offers a political, social, cultural and economic overview of Europe's 20th century relations with the wider world. We will trace European’s obsession with race and empire and consider how that gave rise to the First World War. In the second part, we address the crisis of European liberalism in the face of the Great Depression, Russian communism, and the rise of fascism and Nazism. We finish with an investigation of Europe’s postwar evolution in the context of the Cold War; the Americanisation of Western Europe and the effects of decolonisation and post-colonial immigration. Through a wide range of primary and secondary sources, class discussions, and scaffolded assessments students will develop their critical historical reading and writing skills.

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: Demonstrate an understanding of a variety of conceptual and historiographical approaches to interpreting twentieth-century European history.
  • ULO2: Analyse historical evidence, scholarship and changing representations of the past.
  • ULO3: Contribute to contemporary debates about Europe and the world with an informed and critical understanding of the relationship between past and present.
  • ULO4: Identify and interpret a wide variety of secondary and primary materials.
  • ULO5: Undertaking an original research project with an evidence-based argument that adheres to the methodological and ethical conventions of the discipline.
  • ULO6: Reflect critically on the knowledge and skills developed in their study of history.

General Assessment Information

Assignment submission

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

All assignments (except for the exam) must be submitted as Word documents via Turnitin on the MHIS220 iLearn site:

  1. Log in to your iLearn account and go to your home page. Turnitin assignments should be visible under MHIS220.
  2. If not, log in to MHIS220 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 MHIS220 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
Participation 15% No All semester
Project Proposal/Annotated Bibliography 15% No Week 3
Secondary Source Analysis 25% No Week 9
Research Paper 45% No Week 13

Participation

Assessment Type 1: Participatory task
Indicative Time on Task 2: 42 hours
Due: All semester
Weighting: 15%

Students are expected to participate in and lead seminar discussions throughout the semester.


On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Demonstrate an understanding of a variety of conceptual and historiographical approaches to interpreting twentieth-century European history.
  • Analyse historical evidence, scholarship and changing representations of the past.
  • Contribute to contemporary debates about Europe and the world with an informed and critical understanding of the relationship between past and present.
  • Identify and interpret a wide variety of secondary and primary materials.
  • Undertaking an original research project with an evidence-based argument that adheres to the methodological and ethical conventions of the discipline.
  • Reflect critically on the knowledge and skills developed in their study of history.

Project Proposal/Annotated Bibliography

Assessment Type 1: Annotated bibliography
Indicative Time on Task 2: 20 hours
Due: Week 3
Weighting: 15%

This assessment has two required components. Component One: In the proposal, students must design a research essay question focusing on any topic in 20th century European history. Component Two: In the Annotated Bibliography, students will generate a bibliography of at least five secondary sources that supports their research project.


On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Demonstrate an understanding of a variety of conceptual and historiographical approaches to interpreting twentieth-century European history.
  • Analyse historical evidence, scholarship and changing representations of the past.
  • Contribute to contemporary debates about Europe and the world with an informed and critical understanding of the relationship between past and present.
  • Identify and interpret a wide variety of secondary and primary materials.
  • Undertaking an original research project with an evidence-based argument that adheres to the methodological and ethical conventions of the discipline.

Secondary Source Analysis

Assessment Type 1: Literature review
Indicative Time on Task 2: 20 hours
Due: Week 9
Weighting: 25%

For this assignment, students must examine a monograph (i.e. book) of their choosing. This monograph should be related to their final paper topic.


On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Demonstrate an understanding of a variety of conceptual and historiographical approaches to interpreting twentieth-century European history.
  • Analyse historical evidence, scholarship and changing representations of the past.
  • Contribute to contemporary debates about Europe and the world with an informed and critical understanding of the relationship between past and present.
  • Identify and interpret a wide variety of secondary and primary materials.
  • Undertaking an original research project with an evidence-based argument that adheres to the methodological and ethical conventions of the discipline.

Research Paper

Assessment Type 1: Essay
Indicative Time on Task 2: 29 hours
Due: Week 13
Weighting: 45%

Essay: self-designed from Assignment 1 - your research project proposal.


On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Demonstrate an understanding of a variety of conceptual and historiographical approaches to interpreting twentieth-century European history.
  • Analyse historical evidence, scholarship and changing representations of the past.
  • Contribute to contemporary debates about Europe and the world with an informed and critical understanding of the relationship between past and present.
  • Identify and interpret a wide variety of secondary and primary materials.
  • Undertaking an original research project with an evidence-based argument that adheres to the methodological and ethical conventions of the discipline.
  • Reflect critically on the knowledge and skills developed in their study of history.

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 2021.02 of the Handbook