THEMES:

This Unit of Study will provide you with an understanding of the issues the new medium of the World Wide Web raises for the study of history.

• Hypertext and History

  What does hypertext mean for the writing and reading of history? What possibilities does it offer for new ways of 'doing' history? What difficulties does it present? Does it change the relationship between historians and their audience? Does the web raise new issues about evidence and its interpretation?

• Creating Hypertext History

  We will explore the possibilities of the new medium by creating our own hypertext history projects. our focus will be on providing context for primary sources, and on exploring how we can use links to create a history that is more thansimply a web-based version of traditional genres of historical writing.

You will develop the skills of critical analysis, communication and organization.

Skills in Analysis

You will critically read a variety of different primary documents .

• You will learn to consider what sources tell us about the past and what they do not tell us, focusing on the strengths and weaknesses, biases and distortions of particular types of evidence.
• You will learn to consider how sources convey meaning &endash; the language, forms, assumptions, images, symbols they use -- as well as their contents are crucial to what they tell us about the past.

You will also read historians' interpretations and critically assess their arguments. The skill of critical reading involves not only trying to understand the interpretation put forward by a historian, but assessing the strengths and weaknesses of those arguments.

• You will learn to examine the evidence historians use to support their arguments and compare your interpretation of these sources with those of historians, as well as considering how far their arguments agree with other sources.
• You will also learn to analyze critically the different ways in which historical issues may be approached and understood, by recognizing the existence of competing interpretations, distinguishing the assumptions and evidenceon which they are based and assessing their arguments.

Analysis of the presentation of American history on the web will enable you to develop a critical perspective appropriate to this new media, exploring how issues of evidence and interpretation take new forms on the web, and require that you adapt the skills of analysis that you have developed in relation to other media.

Skills in Verbal and Written Communication:

The project will teach you the skills of formulating in appropriate language the understanding and opinions you have developed from your analysis of documents and the work of historians, organizing them in a logical and persuasive order, and supporting them with evidence.

• By presenting your written assignments as HTML documents you will develop the combination of written and visual communication skills required by the new media. This does not require advanced technical skills. We will build on our work with Netscape Composer in semester one, developing additional skills as you require them.

In the seminars, you will learn to listen and absorb the ideas of others, and respond to their ideas, as well as develop and express your own ideas, respond to constructive criticism and be ready to change or discard your argument in favor of one that is more convincing.

• There will be an on-line component to class participation as well. This will allow us to extend our discussions beyond the two hours that we meet each week, to continue debates not finished in class, to reflect further on readings and discussion, and to deal with topics not covered in class. The on-line discussion is also intended as a place to which you can bring the questions and problems you confront completing the assignments, or working in HTML, and where you can share what you have found and the skills you develop. I hope on-line discussion will be a less intimidating setting in which to express your ideas than the face-face seminar, that students who struggle to participate in class might find it easier to contribute on-line. I also hope that on-line I will not be at the centre of the discussion, that the postings will be directed and dominated by you rather than me.