This module builds on HS1119 History in Practice Part 1, and extends analysis of how the use of different sources is related to the questions historians ask, the frameworks they choose, and the audiences they address. Through a series of lectures, student-led seminars, and tutor group meetings, students will consider the nature of different types of source material.  Over the course of the module, students will explore the nature of historical evidence, the problems of identifying and selecting sources and the tension between secondary and primary historical sources and how they interact. The module lays a foundation in the historical research skills that history students will require during their undergraduate studies.

• Analyse and interpret a primary source;
• Demonstrate through comparative analysis a critical understanding of the relationship between primary and secondary historical sources;
• Work effectively in a group through peer group discussion;
• Present their findings in written coursework.

Student-led seminars:

In structured student-led seminars, students will meet without tutors to debate questions related to primary source material. They will complete portfolio work demonstrating attendance and participation in sessions which will form part of the summative assessment for the module. Student-led seminars build the skills necessary for independent study in the undergraduate degree, and for future employability.

Tutor group meetings:

Student-led seminars will be supplemented by two tutor group meetings, which will focus on the relationship between sources, evidence and argument, and on providing guidance on the final essay for the module.

Lectures:

The aim of the lectures is to provide introductions to different types of source material, and how and why historians have used this type of material in pursuing different kinds of projects. Lectures will relate questions about sources back to debates on frameworks and audiences discussed in History in Practice Part 1. The lectures aim to provide a basic framework for understanding primary source material and should be thought of as useful starting points for further discussion and individual study. 

Academic Skills (Knowledge, Understanding and Intellectual Skills)

Students will practise and develop their ability to:

Knowledge and Understanding

• critically gather, assimilate and interpret knowledge of the past;
• critically compare different forms of evidence about the past.

Intellectual Skills

• demonstrate an understanding of relevant concepts;
• use a range of techniques to initiate and undertake analysis of information.

Subject Specific (Including Practical) Skills

• develop causal explanations of historical processes;
• demonstrate skills in comparative analysis.

Employability Skills

• think critically and challenge assumptions;
• use a range of information technology resources to assist with information retrieval and assignment presentation;
• independently to organise their own study methods and workload, and manage their time;
• work effectively with others as part of a group;
• communicate their ideas and arguments effectively, in group discussion and in oral and written form, in an accurate, succinct and lucid manner.

Students will be assessed by means of a portfolio based on seminar exercises and on an essay relating to a particular type of historical source.

The portfolio (25%) will be based on exercises conducted for the student-led seminars. It is intended to help students develop the skills of independent work, seminar participation, and source analysis.

The essay (75%) is designed to give students the opportunity to demonstrate their ability to review evidence, draw appropriate conclusions from it and employ the formal conventions of scholarly presentation. Students will be assessed on their analysis of a specific kind of source material, in relation to a set question. The essay must be no longer than 2,000 words (excluding appendices, references, and bibliography).

The syllabus will usually cover a range of chronological and geographical case studies on different kinds of source material such as digital history, legal sources, statistics and visual sources, and will also include sessions exploring specific issues relating to essay writing.

Mark Donnelly and Claire Norton, Doing History (Routledge, 2011).

T. Loughran (ed.), A Practical Guide to Studying History: Skills and Approaches (Bloomsbury, 2017).

John Tosh, The Pursuit of History (Longman), various editions.

• Mary Abbott, ‘Sources and Resources’ in M. Abbott (ed.), History Skills: A Student’s Handbook, 2^nd edn (Abingdon, 2009), pp. 23-28.
• Mary Abbott, ‘Writing Assignments’ in M. Abbott (ed.), History Skills: A Student’s Handbook, 2^nd edn (Abingdon, 2009), pp. 73-84.
• John Arnold, History: A Very Short Introduction (Oxford, 2000), pp. 35-79.
• Jeremy Black and Donald Macraild, Studying History, 3^rd edn (Basingstoke, 2007), especially pp. 89-127 and pp. 198-212.
• Stella Cottrell, The Study Skills Handbook, 3^rd edn (Basingstoke and New York, 2008), pp. 167-224 and pp. 275-92.
• Mark Donnelly and Claire Norton, Doing History (London, 2011), 65-82.
• Ludmilla Jordanova, History in Practice, 2^nd edn (London, 2006), pp. 150-72.
• John Tosh, The Pursuit of History: Aims, Methods and New Directions in the Study of Modern History , 4^th edn (Harlow, 2006), pp. 88-113 and pp. 145-73.