Students

MHIS748 – Introduction to Modern Historiography

2019 – S1 Day

General Information

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Unit convenor and teaching staff Unit convenor and teaching staff Assoc. Prof. Convenor
Kate Fullagar
kate.fullagar@mq.edu.au
AAH Building, level 2
by appointment
Credit points Credit points
4
Prerequisites Prerequisites
Admission to MRes
Corequisites Corequisites
Co-badged status Co-badged status
Unit description Unit description
An introduction to views of the nature, origins, limits and purpose of historical knowledge since the beginning of the nineteenth century. Topics explored include: changing understandings of subject matter and evidence, empiricism, objectivity and truth, biography, Marxism, gender, postcolonialism, postmodernism, and universal histories.

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:

  • 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

General Assessment Information

The essays are to be submitted via TURNITIN only. No hard copies necessary. Please check time required for submission carefully. Find the turnitin portal on the MHIS748 iLearn site.

Students are expected to submit all online (TURNITIN) work double-spaced, appropriately formatted with wide margins, and proof-read for spelling and grammatical errors. Every essay also needs a title and page numbers. Essays must include footnotes and a bibliography of all sources cited, including full publication details for all printed sources and the full URL and last date accessed for all electronic sources.

I will endeavour to return all assignments marked via turnitin within two weeks of submission. Work is assessed according to MHIS 700 level rubrics, to be found on the iLearn space. 

Ask me early for a legitimate extension if you really need only an extra day or so. If you need longer you will need to apply for special consideration. Any work submitted late without an extension will be penalized two percentage points (2%) for every calendar day late, with the exception of the Take-Home Examination. Take-Home exams submitted late will not be graded and will receive zero.

Applying for Special Consideration

Students applying for Special Consideration circumstances of three (3) consecutive days duration, within a study period, and/or prevent completion of a formal examination must submit an on-line application with the Faculty of Arts. For an application to be valid, it must include a completed Application for Special Consideration form and all supporting documentation. See https://ask.mq.edu.au/.

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. 

Assessment Tasks

Name Weighting Hurdle Due
Seminar Participation 20% No Weekly
Discussions online 20% No Weeks 2-12
Major Essay 60% No 24 May 2018

Seminar Participation

Due: Weekly
Weighting: 20%

You are expected to attend all seminars. Absences must be documented (for example, with a medical certificate). Participation means not only doing all the common readings beforehand but also contributing to discussion with your fellow students during our meeting. 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. Simply turning up registers no marks at all. Please do not turn up if you have not done any preparation. 
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • 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

Discussions online

Due: Weeks 2-12
Weighting: 20%

Between weeks 2-12 ON THE TUESDAY BEFORE THE SEMINAR (by midnight) you are expected to discuss in the weekly forums your reactions to the readings. I will post prompts to discussion each week, but you are welcome to raise your most urgent questions about the reading; how you think they relate to the previous week's reading; or what you think relates this reading to your own historical work. Each post should be around 200 words long. They should definitely not be more than 400 words. They can bounce off other students' work. You must have completed this assessment task before turning up to the seminar on Wednesday.

Your final mark for this task will be the average of your best 8/10 discussions. 
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

Major Essay

Due: 24 May 2018
Weighting: 60%

Write a 3000 word essay... DESCRIPTION TO BE COMPLETED
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

Delivery and Resources

SEMINARS

This year MHIS748 will run as weekly two-hour seminars. Students are expected to attend every seminar. The online presence of this unit is to be found at: http://ilearn.mq.edu.au/.  For current updates about class locations, please consult the MQ Timetables website: http://www.timetables.mq.edu.au.

Seminars usually require about 50 pages of reading per week. Absences need to be documented with a medical certificate or equivalent. Students need to achieve at least 50% overall to pass the unit.  

READINGS

There is no set textbook (though see recommendations listed in Week One). Due to the shutdown of the printer, there is now no course reader either. All essential readings will be uploaded in PDF form on the iLearn site. Further readings (listed each week on iLearn) are mostly available at the MQ library or in the cache of PDFs at the bottom of the iLearn page. 

As mentioned elsewhere, your participation grade is measured by the quality and enthusiasm of your input: be generous; be curious; be brave.

Unit Schedule

WEEK

TOPIC

1, 27 Feb.

Introductions

2, 6 March

Out of the Nineteenth Century: Three Models

3, 13 March

The Longue Durée: Monuments to Structure

4, 20 March

History from Below: Workers and Women

5, 27 March

Poststructuralism: Rethinking the Subject

6, 3 April

From Women to Sexuality: Turns in Feminist History

7, 10 April

From Experience to Culture: Cultural History

 

SEMESTER BREAK

8, 1 May

Western Civilization and its Discontents: Postcolonial History

9, 8 May

Unsettling the Postcolonial: Subalterns and Indigeneity

10, 15 May

The Return of the Repressed: Facts, Counterfacts, Narrative, and Neuroscience in the Era of Fake News

11, 22 May

Reading Week – finalise major paper for MHIS748

12, 29 May

Into the Twenty-First Century I: Psyche, Memory, and the Emotions

13, 5 June

Into the Twenty-First Century II: Environment, Anthropocene, and the Universe

Policies and Procedures

Macquarie University policies and procedures are accessible from Policy Central (https://staff.mq.edu.au/work/strategy-planning-and-governance/university-policies-and-procedures/policy-central). Students should be aware of the following policies in particular with regard to Learning and Teaching:

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

If you would like to see all the policies relevant to Learning and Teaching visit Policy Central (https://staff.mq.edu.au/work/strategy-planning-and-governance/university-policies-and-procedures/policy-central).

Student Code of Conduct

Macquarie University students have a responsibility to be familiar with the Student Code of Conduct: https://students.mq.edu.au/study/getting-started/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 improve your marks and take control of your study.

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.

Graduate Capabilities

PG - Capable of Professional and Personal Judgment and Initiative

Our postgraduates will demonstrate a high standard of discernment and common sense in their professional and personal judgment. They will have the ability to make informed choices and decisions that reflect both the nature of their professional work and their personal perspectives.

This graduate capability is supported by:

Learning outcomes

  • communicate your analysis effectively in oral forms, and in a range of written forms
  • engage effectively in group work with your peers and teachers

Assessment tasks

  • Seminar Participation
  • Discussions online

PG - Discipline Knowledge and Skills

Our postgraduates will be able to demonstrate a significantly enhanced depth and breadth of knowledge, scholarly understanding, and specific subject content knowledge in their chosen fields.

This graduate capability is supported by:

Learning outcomes

  • 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

Assessment tasks

  • Discussions online
  • Major Essay

PG - Critical, Analytical and Integrative Thinking

Our postgraduates will be capable of utilising and reflecting on prior knowledge and experience, of applying higher level critical thinking skills, and of integrating and synthesising learning and knowledge from a range of sources and environments. A characteristic of this form of thinking is the generation of new, professionally oriented knowledge through personal or group-based critique of practice and theory.

This graduate capability is supported by:

Learning outcomes

  • 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

Assessment tasks

  • Seminar Participation
  • Discussions online
  • Major Essay

PG - Research and Problem Solving Capability

Our postgraduates will be capable of systematic enquiry; able to use research skills to create new knowledge that can be applied to real world issues, or contribute to a field of study or practice to enhance society. They will be capable of creative questioning, problem finding and problem solving.

This graduate capability is supported by:

Assessment tasks

  • Discussions online
  • Major Essay

PG - Effective Communication

Our postgraduates will be able to communicate effectively and convey their views to different social, cultural, and professional audiences. They will be able to use a variety of technologically supported media to communicate with empathy using a range of written, spoken or visual formats.

This graduate capability is supported by:

Learning outcomes

  • 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

Assessment tasks

  • Seminar Participation
  • Discussions online
  • Major Essay

PG - Engaged and Responsible, Active and Ethical Citizens

Our postgraduates will be ethically aware and capable of confident transformative action in relation to their professional responsibilities and the wider community. They will have a sense of connectedness with others and country and have a sense of mutual obligation. They will be able to appreciate the impact of their professional roles for social justice and inclusion related to national and global issues

This graduate capability is supported by:

Learning outcomes

  • communicate your analysis effectively in oral forms, and in a range of written forms
  • engage effectively in group work with your peers and teachers

Assessment tasks

  • Seminar Participation
  • Discussions online