Syllabus: HSTY2656

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UNIT OF STUDY DESCRIPTION

The Civil War had momentous consequences for America – realigning the political balance between the North and South and state and federal governments, ending slavery and forever transforming millions of lives. This unit analyses the social, cultural and political history of the Civil War and Reconstruction. We will examine issues such as soldiers’ motivations and combat experiences, civilian mobilization and state formation, the war’s effects on gender and race relations and the causes for Reconstruction’s failure.  We end by looking at the ways these events continue to resonate in American culture.

UNIT OF STUDY OBJECTIVES

SKILLS

In this unit, students will develop skills in critical analysis, verbal and written communication, and organization:

1. Skills in Critical Analysis

Generally, our tutorial readings include both primary and secondary sources. We’ll be examining a range of different primary source material (from newspaper editorials and diaries to contemporary films), interrogating the value of particular sources for our understanding of the past. We will also be looking at a variety of secondary sources, sometimes concentrating on the way a particular scholar creates and supports an argument, at other times focusing on different interpretations of the same event or period. These varying modes of critical analysis are designed to increase students’ awareness of the way history is practiced and contested.

2. Skills in Verbal and Written Communication

The aim of your written assignments is to help you to organize your notes in a logical way, to formulate ideas into coherent arguments, and to support those arguments with appropriate evidence.

• You will complete an essay supported by significant primary and secondary research. In addition to developing your skills as a researcher, this assignment is intended to strengthen your ability to sustain an argument at length.
• At the conclusion of the course, you will complete an examination, designed to test your ability to consolidate what you’ve learned throughout the semester and to express this knowledge succinctly and cogently.

In tutorials you will learn to listen, absorb, and respond to classmates’ comments, as well as developing the ability to formulate and express your own ideas in a public setting.

3. Skills in Organization

This unit of study requires you to manage your time. To perform effectively, you should attend all of the lectures and tutorials, keep up with the reading, and meet the specified deadlines.

STUDENT LEARNING OUTCOMES

In terms of the university’s generic attributes, students will:

• have developed a body of knowledge relating to the history of the Civil War and Reconstruction;
• be able to acquire and evaluate new knowledge through independent research;
• be able to identify, define, investigate, and solve problems;
• think independently, analytically and creatively;
• critically evaluate the sources, values, validity and currency of information; and
• use information in critical and creative thinking.
• be intellectually curious, open to new ideas, methods and ways of thinking, and able to sustain intellectual interest;
• be aware that knowledge is not value-free.
• be able to use appropriate communication technologies.